Commentary:The simple but dense "Scaffolding" is a love poem. The image of a building under construc...

1. poetry explication for "Scaffolding" by Seamus Heaney?
Commentary:
The simple but dense "Scaffolding" is a love poem. The image of a building under construction
represents a relationship that two people build over the years. Initially, the building needs external
support, but eventually it stands on its own. Even the formal structure of the poem supports the idea
of sturdy architecture: five neat couplets with perfect rhyme.
In the lines "So if, my dear, there sometimes seem to be/Old bridges breaking between you and
me/Never fear" the speaker characterizes conflicts between the partners as a natural part of a long-
term compact. Crutches they once used to stand on -- half-truths told to protect someone's feelings,
or other ideas or expectations -- can be discarded; the bond the two have established will withstand
these losses one by one, because "we have built our wall."
http://www.centennial.k12.mn.us/chs/LitT...