Answer:
"The Pitchfork" is a poem by Seamus Heaney that reflects on the afterlife and the speaker's relationship with their father. The poem describes the speaker's father using a pitchfork to work in the fields, and the speaker reflects on the image of the pitchfork as a symbol of death and the afterlife. The poem suggests that the speaker's father's presence continues to live on in the fields, even after his death.
In the poem, the speaker describes the pitchfork as "black-handled" and "heavy", which convey a sense of weight and importance, suggesting that the pitchfork holds a symbolic significance in the speaker's life. The speaker also describes the pitchfork as "the implement for his ascension" which implies that the pitchfork represents the journey of the soul after death.
The poem also explores the theme of the continuation of life through the imagery of the fields, which continue to grow and change, despite the speaker's father's death. The poem also reflects on the idea that death is not an end, but rather a continuation of life, and the speaker's father's spirit lives on in the fields.
Overall, "The Pitchfork" is a poem that reflects on the afterlife, and the speaker's relationship with their father. It suggests that death is not an end, but rather a continuation of life, and the speaker's father's spirit lives on in the fields.