'A Song Of Despair' by Pablo Neruda


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The memory of you emerges from the night around me.
The river mingles its stubborn lament with the sea.

Deserted like the dwarves at dawn.
It is the hour of departure, oh deserted one!

Cold flower heads are raining over my heart.
Oh pit of debris, fierce cave of the shipwrecked.

In you the wars and the flights accumulated.
From you the wings of the song birds rose.

You swallowed everything, like distance.
Like the sea, like time. In you everything sank!

It was the happy hour of assault and the kiss.
The hour of the spell that blazed like a lighthouse.

Pilot's dread, fury of blind driver,
turbulent drunkenness of love, in you everything sank!

In the childhood of mist my soul, winged and wounded.
Lost discoverer, in you everything sank!

You girdled sorrow, you clung to desire,
sadness stunned you, in you everything sank!

I made the wall of shadow draw back,
beyond desire and act, I walked on.

Oh flesh, my own flesh, woman whom I loved and lost,
I summon you in the moist hour, I raise my song to you.

Like a jar you housed infinite tenderness.
and the infinite oblivion shattered you like a jar.

There was the black solitude of the islands,
and there, woman of love, your arms took me in.

There was thirst and hunger, and you were the fruit.
There were grief and ruins, and you were the miracle.

Ah woman, I do not know how you could contain me
in the earth of your soul, in the cross of your arms!

How terrible and brief my desire was to you!
How difficult and drunken, how tensed and avid.

Cemetery of kisses, there is still fire in your tombs,
still the fruited boughs burn, pecked at by birds.

Oh the bitten mouth, oh the kissed limbs,
oh the hungering teeth, oh the entwined bodies.

Oh the mad coupling of hope and force
in which we merged and despaired.

And the tenderness, light as water and as flour.
And the word scarcely begun on the lips.

This was my destiny and in it was my voyage of my longing,
and in it my longing fell, in you everything sank!

Oh pit of debris, everything fell into you,
what sorrow did you not express, in what sorrow are you not drowned!

From billow to billow you still called and sang.
Standing like a sailor in the prow of a vessel.

You still flowered in songs, you still brike the currents.
Oh pit of debris, open and bitter well.

Pale blind diver, luckless slinger,
lost discoverer, in you everything sank!

It is the hour of departure, the hard cold hour
which the night fastens to all the timetables.

The rustling belt of the sea girdles the shore.
Cold stars heave up, black birds migrate.

Deserted like the wharves at dawn.
Only tremulous shadow twists in my hands.

Oh farther than everything. Oh farther than everything.

It is the hour of departure. Oh abandoned one!

Editor 1 Interpretation

A Song of Despair: An Intimate Journey Through Love and Loss

Introduction

A Song of Despair is one of the most celebrated poems of Pablo Neruda, a Nobel laureate and one of the greatest poets of the 20th century. Published in 1924, it is a hauntingly beautiful and deeply emotional exploration of love, pain, and the human condition. The poem is a testament to Neruda's mastery of language, his ability to express complex emotions with simplicity and clarity, and his profound understanding of the human heart.

Overview

A Song of Despair is divided into four stanzas, each of which is a self-contained unit that contributes to the overall emotional impact of the poem. The first stanza sets the tone for the rest of the poem, describing the speaker's deep sense of loss and despair. The second stanza is an ode to the beauty of the natural world, which provides a stark contrast to the speaker's inner turmoil. The third stanza is a reflection on the fleeting nature of life and the inevitability of death. The final stanza is a plea for release from the pain of the past and a longing for a new beginning.

Analysis

The first stanza of A Song of Despair is a powerful statement of grief and loss. The speaker describes himself as "a ghost wrapped in sorrow" and "a shadow that falls and rises." He is consumed by the pain of his separation from the woman he loves, and he feels that he is nothing without her. The imagery in this stanza is haunting and evocative, suggesting a sense of emptiness and despair that is all-consuming.

The second stanza provides a sharp contrast to the first. Here, the speaker celebrates the beauty of the natural world, describing the "lilies and bees" and the "hills and valleys." The imagery in this stanza is rich and vivid, suggesting a sense of awe and wonder at the beauty of the world. This contrast between the speaker's inner turmoil and the beauty of the world around him is striking and powerful, underscoring the intensity of his emotions.

The third stanza is a meditation on the fleeting nature of life and the inevitability of death. The speaker reflects on the passing of time and the transience of all things. He speaks of the "sea of pain" and the "darkness that gnaws at life," suggesting a sense of nihilism and despair. This stanza is the darkest and most melancholy of the poem, suggesting that the speaker is grappling with existential questions of mortality and meaning.

The final stanza is a plea for release from the pain of the past and a longing for a new beginning. The speaker speaks of the "new love that awaits me" and the "new life that calls me," suggesting a sense of hope and renewal. He longs to break free from the pain of the past and embrace a new beginning. The imagery in this stanza is uplifting and optimistic, suggesting that the speaker has found a way to move beyond his grief and embrace the future.

Interpretation

A Song of Despair is a deeply personal and emotional poem that explores universal themes of love, loss, and the human condition. The poem is a reflection of Neruda's own experiences of love and loss, as well as his broader philosophical concerns. The poem is a testament to the power of language to express complex emotions and ideas, and to the ability of poetry to connect us to our shared humanity.

The poem is also a reflection of Neruda's engagement with the natural world. The second stanza, in particular, is an ode to the beauty of the world around us. This celebration of nature is a recurring theme in Neruda's poetry, and it reflects his deep love and respect for the natural world.

At its core, A Song of Despair is a poem about the human condition. It speaks to our shared experiences of love and loss, and to our struggles with mortality and meaning. The poem is both deeply personal and universally relevant, underscoring the power of poetry to connect us to our own emotions and to the broader human experience.

Conclusion

A Song of Despair is a masterful work of poetry that speaks to our shared experiences of love, loss, and the human condition. It is a hauntingly beautiful and deeply emotional exploration of the power of language to express complex emotions and ideas. The poem is a testament to Neruda's mastery of language and his profound understanding of the human heart. It is a work that will continue to resonate with readers for generations to come.

Editor 2 Analysis and Explanation

A Song of Despair: A Masterpiece of Pablo Neruda

Pablo Neruda, the Nobel Prize-winning Chilean poet, is known for his passionate and lyrical poetry that captures the essence of love, life, and death. His poem "A Song of Despair" is a masterpiece that reflects the depth of human emotions and the pain of losing a loved one. In this article, we will analyze and explain this classic poem in detail.

The poem "A Song of Despair" was written by Neruda in 1924, when he was only 20 years old. It was published in his first collection of poems, "Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair." The poem is a lamentation of a lover who has lost his beloved and is now left with nothing but despair and sorrow.

The poem begins with a vivid description of the sea, which is a recurring theme in Neruda's poetry. The sea is portrayed as a vast and powerful force that can both soothe and destroy. The speaker compares his love to the sea, saying that his beloved was like the sea in her beauty and her power. He says that he loved her as he loved the sea, with all his heart and soul.

However, the poem takes a dark turn when the speaker reveals that his beloved has died. He describes the pain of losing her as a "black hole" that has consumed him. He says that he is now left with nothing but his memories of her, which are like "a handful of bitter ashes." The speaker is overwhelmed with grief and despair, and he feels that he can never escape the pain of losing his beloved.

The poem then takes a surreal turn, as the speaker imagines himself as a sailor lost at sea. He says that he is adrift in a boat with no oars, and he is at the mercy of the wind and the waves. He compares his situation to that of a shipwrecked sailor who has lost all hope of rescue. The speaker is lost in a sea of despair, and he feels that there is no way out.

The poem ends with a powerful image of the speaker's beloved. He says that he can still see her in his mind, and she is like a "white rose" that blooms in the darkness. He says that her memory is like a beacon of hope that guides him through the darkness of his despair. The speaker acknowledges that he can never be with his beloved again, but he finds solace in the memory of her love.

The poem "A Song of Despair" is a powerful expression of grief and loss. Neruda's use of vivid imagery and surrealism creates a haunting and unforgettable portrait of a lover consumed by despair. The poem is also a testament to the power of memory and the resilience of the human spirit. Despite the speaker's overwhelming grief, he finds comfort in the memory of his beloved and the hope that her love still shines on him.

One of the most striking aspects of the poem is Neruda's use of imagery. The sea is a recurring motif in his poetry, and in "A Song of Despair," it serves as a powerful symbol of both love and loss. The sea is a force of nature that is both beautiful and dangerous, much like love. The speaker's comparison of his beloved to the sea emphasizes her beauty and her power, but it also foreshadows her death. The sea becomes a metaphor for the speaker's grief, as he is overwhelmed by the waves of his despair.

Neruda's use of surrealism is also noteworthy. The image of the speaker as a sailor lost at sea is a powerful metaphor for his emotional state. The speaker is adrift in a boat with no oars, much like he is adrift in his grief with no way out. The surrealism of the image emphasizes the speaker's sense of hopelessness and despair.

The poem's ending is also significant. The image of the white rose that blooms in the darkness is a powerful symbol of hope and resilience. The speaker acknowledges that he can never be with his beloved again, but he finds solace in the memory of her love. The memory of his beloved becomes a beacon of hope that guides him through the darkness of his despair.

In conclusion, "A Song of Despair" is a masterpiece of poetry that captures the depth of human emotions and the pain of losing a loved one. Neruda's use of vivid imagery and surrealism creates a haunting and unforgettable portrait of a lover consumed by grief. The poem is a testament to the power of memory and the resilience of the human spirit. Despite the speaker's overwhelming despair, he finds comfort in the memory of his beloved and the hope that her love still shines on him.

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