Creating New Perspectives with Imagery and Language of Pablo Neruda - Essay Example

? Creating New Perspectives with Imagery and Language Introduction The approaches which are taken with the expression of poetics are defined to convey specific meanings among various types of writing. When looking at Latin American poets, it can be seen that there are defined approaches that are taken to reveal ideologies on life and philosophies on the complexities which occur. A variety of poets use images and language, specifically to show the complexities that are in life and what this means from a specific perspective as well as in the surrounding environment. The complexities of life are defined by combining both observations of the external environment with internal philosophies about meaning and responses. The perspectives are then able to combine and relate to each other so a specific message can be conveyed. By creating a different perspective through the techniques of poetry, there is the ability to understand the poetry in context to reality from an alternative angle. Works of Pablo Neruda The first poet which defines the concepts of imagery and language with writing about the perspectives of life is Pablo Neruda. Both the imagery and language are generally regarded as the most important influences in the works, specifically because they unify the poem and create the meaning that is throughout each of the pieces of writing. Each of the sequences that are used in the poems contain imagery that links to the other images in the poem, specifically which unifies the piece together and shows how one image can define and create meaning with the overall expression used. The language takes the same form, in which the simplicity that links to the images is able to create the same representation. The perspective which Neruda takes is to use simplistic forms of language, unified images and writing that is then able to state several experiences by creating places within the poetry that are able to make a statement through the undertone, which is the information that is not said in the poem (Costa, p. 6). The idea of using one image and creating several meanings with the language then shows both a relationship that can be imagined through the metaphor and simile used as well as a specific relationship which is defined by the narration and the internal beliefs which are created. An example of these effects can be seen in the poem “A Song of Despair.” In this particular poem, Neruda only uses two main images. One is of the sea and one is in reference to the woman, which he metaphorically approaches as a boat. The concept of the sea is not only described from the several attributes of the ocean waves and the water that most think of with this particular ideology. Neruda begins by stating: “The memory of you emerges from the night around me. / The river mingles its stubborn lament with the sea” (Neruda, lines 1-2). This beginning shows the sea but also creates a connection to other images that link to the sea. This continues with the birds that arise around the sea (line 6), and the “solitude of islands” (line 25) that he compares to the woman he has lost. Each of these images continues to show one image and the different relationships it has to the overall poem. The indication of this is based on the ideology of the depth of the sea, as well as a metaphor of the depth of the sorrow and despair which he is writing about from the beginning. The importance of this becomes based on developing both an external observation of the sea while relating this to the internal thoughts of love and loss of the woman that the narrator has lost in the poem. The imagery that is pointed out by Neruda becomes important because it links to the ideology of what has been lost, specifically with reference to a woman that he loved and has lost. However, when creating a story with the woman lost, he builds statements that are attributed to the woman being like the sea. Neruda writes “This was my destiny and in it my voyage of my longing, and in it my longing fell, in you everything sank!” (lines 41-42). The approach which Neruda takes is based on creating a relationship to the ocean, also which becomes the mystery of the woman. There are varieties of perspectives which can then be related to the woman, specifically with the narrator who becomes the ocean that sinks in the sea, as well as the mystery of the woman which is lost while only the surroundings can continue with this relationship. The perspective taken is to show how the loss and despair of the love is one which has a large amount of depth and which can be compared to each of the elements that Neruda points out. The one image that defines this specific poem is combined with the language that Neruda uses to show the same variety of perspectives about the song of despair. The language which Neruda uses first moves around the imagery, where each of the images becomes the main focus in the stanzas. This is combined with the simplistic statements and the emotional language which is used. The metaphor is combined with words such as “despair,” “hope,” “sorrow,” and “abandoned.” Each of these concepts are used continuously throughout the poem to show the meaning of the images and to connect and unify the overall poem. The structure and the ideologies which Neruda uses then allows the metaphor and descriptions of images within the sea to become the main component while the emotional ideas of despair are able to add onto the overall figure and perspectives which Neruda takes. The main ideal is to show several perspectives and depth to the despair that the narrator feels while describing the loss of love as an expression of life. In each of the poems by Neruda, this same approach is taken, where there is a unifying image that is combined with forward language, specifically to show several perspectives to one given ideology. Federico Lorca The second poet which shows these specific attributes is Federico Garcia Lorca. The poem of Lorca takes the approach of combining the history, ancient beliefs and personal remembrance with the images and language that is created. Specifically, Lorca is able to build a sense of mystery by using the present objects with those of the past to describe a situation. This is combined with his ability to create a narrative which allows one to experience and re-experience a specific moment in time and to use this as a part of one’s existence. The images work in a way to support the narrative and to present a sense of mystery that allows the perspective of life to be redefined and looked at from several angles, including that of culture, history, introspection, experience and the remembrance of the narrator, as well as of Lorca. These several attributes are known to create an ideology of mystery that belongs to the imagery and language, as well as to the overall meaning that each poem creates (Forman, Josephs, 20). Locra’s mastery of poems is based on the ability to combine the external with the internal, both with the perspective of the mysterious as well as the ability to create and define the internal and external relationship to different concepts. A poem which shows the significance of Lorca’s writing comes from “Ballad of the Moon.” The imagery is secondary to the language, specifically which is created through a narrative. The narrative is able to build the image of action and of memory as well as experience, specifically between the actions of the moon, boy and the gypsy. The first attribute with this is the moon and the boy. “The moon came into the forge / in her bustle of flowering nard. / The little boy stares at her, stares / The boy is staring hard. / In the shaken air / the moon moves her amrs, / and shows lubricious and pure, / her breasts of hard tin” (Lorca, lines 1-8). The imagery is first defined by action, such as the repetition of the boy who stares at the beauty of the moon as well as the moon showing her arms and breasts to the boy. The imagery is around these specific actions and creates the main ideology of experience as well as being a part of the narrative. The response which the reader has is one which is then based on redefining experience and the understanding of the moon and the relationship it holds to others. The imagery and narrative continues with creating memory and in defining the historical aspects of how each group responds to the moon. The approach taken is through the gypsies, which the boy warns the moon about. The moon, at this point, becomes a personification of one that can lose its life, specifically because of the reaction which the gypsies may have to the moon. The boy states that “If the gypsies come, / they will use your heart / to make white necklaces and rings” (lines 10-12). The concept which is approached at this point moves into the deep mythology that Lucra was familiar with and also uses a language which is based on the historical aspects of the time frame. The warning; however, is met with the moon taking the boy and “climbing through the sky” where the gypsies can’t reach it. The mystery is based on the imagery of the moon climbing after it is personified, the reaction from the gypsies and the belief in historical events which occurred from a different perspective. This works together to build an ideology about the occurrences. The perspective which Lucra creates in this poem is one which is used in other poetry. The narration becomes the main use of language, combined with the use of repetition and the historical, mysterious and ancient ways of approaching the language. By telling the story from this perspective, Lucra is able to establish a different ideology of the poems and their relationship to the events which occur. The imagery then becomes a part of the story in the poem so the reader can follow the events which are occurring. The narration then creates a perspective to life events that moves outside of the natural and which contains both possibilities and an understanding of what may have occurred or doesn’t occur in relation to the mysteries that Lucra studied. Julia Alvarez A third writer which uses imagery and language to create alternative perspectives through poetry is Julia Alvarez. The images of Alvarez are known to relate to both the internal experiences of the author as well as the association which has been created with the external environment. Society, cultural affiliations and social class all work into the images and language of Alvarez. This is combined with religious beliefs that are often referred to by Alvarez to convey a specific meaning. Each of these individual ideologies combine into overall meaning in the poem and to show a specific expression of life that Alvarez is able to convey within her works. The concept of the environmental aspects in the works not only is conveyed with the Latin American culture. Alvarez grew up in America and was often torn between both ways of living. Both the social, cultural and classes are combined in the poetry with observations and conflicts that show a variety of perspectives of what it means to belong in both states and to understand the strengths and weaknesses through these perspectives of life (Sirias, p. 44). An example of Alvarez’s perspectives o life and the clashes in the external environment come first from the poem “Hairbands.” There are two main images which are used in this poem, one which is based on the hair and the other on the bands that the woman has kept. The statement which is made first describes the images as objects and how they are only associated with a sense of materialism, which is based on the perspective of her husband. “My husband has given away my hairbands / in my dream to the young women he works with, / my black velvet, my mauve my patent leather one / the olive band with the magenta rose / whose paper petals crumple in the drawer” (Alvarez, lines 1-5). The image doesn’t move into detail or explanation but only makes a statement of what is seen with the hair bands and how this relates to the main subject. The language and narration of the story are able to show the layers of perspective of life that come with the hair bands and how they associate with the narrator’s lifestyle. The main perspective is to give the narrator a social status based on gender and age. This is one which comes with the position of the woman in belonging in the home and growing old as well as no longer being a representative of the younger aged woman. “These are trophies of my maidenhood, / the satin dress with buttons down the back, / the scented box with the scalloped photographs. / This is my wild – haired girlhood dazzled with stories / of love, the romantic heroine with the pale, operatic face / who throws herself on the train tracks of men’s arms” (lines 13 – 17). The hair bands then become a representation of women that have a specific status in society which changes with age. The concept is based first on the maidenhood which is lost, as well as the concept of the romantic heroine which many women are expected to be. This is followed by the belief that this is gone, along with the hair bands, meaning that the material representation is also one which carries the value of the social, cultural and gender status of the narrator. The poem then moves from the perspective of the external environment to one which is introverted and based on the concept of who the woman believes she was. This comes from the narrator’s ideologies and perspective about what it is like to be married and growing older as well as how maidenhood changes into different concepts within life. The hair bands not only remain as a colorful image that intertwines memories with the social and gender status of the woman. They become the representation of her husband and how, as she grows older, the hair bands can be given away to others. “And in my dream I weep real tears that wake me up / to my husband sleeping beside me that deep sleep / that makes me tremble thinking of what is coming. / And I slip out of bed to check that they are still mine, / my crumpled rose, my mauve, my black hairbands” (lines 26-30). The end of the poem not only shows the relationship to the social status of the narrator but also creates a deeper meaning that builds the perspective of the one woman and her relationship to her husband. The hair bands become like her husband, where she wakes to make sure that he is still hers and not with another woman because of her social status. The perspective is one which relates from the external environment to the internal thoughts and shows a relationship that links each of these together. Linking Perspectives In each of the poems, it can be seen that there is the ability to create several perspectives and complexities of life through the imagery and language. The complexity is one which incorporates language that defines history, narrative and the social and cultural environment which is surrounding each individual. This is combined in each of the poets and is one of the similarities that are taken with all of the poems written. The images are combined with this in creating images that relate to individuals and the way in which they are able to associate with the events taking place through the poems. These are only some of the external observations that are made by each of the poets and which take precedence in each of the poems. While the metaphors and imagery differs between poems, all of the poets take the stance on creating a strong set of images that reflect the external observations. These are then combined with the internal responses, such as the idea of despair or of losing a husband. It is the complexities of the external environment that is able to influence this and to create even more perspectives as well as individual responses toward a given situation. The poets are then each able to convey the conclusion coming from an individual philosophy, specifically which is related to the external environment and the associations which individuals have toward a given situation. Conclusion The concept of perspective of life in the Latin American poetry is one which is based on creating different viewpoints with the image and language. Each of the poets creates this by building a basic relationship to the different perspectives of life. This includes observations of the external environment, understanding of the mysterious and a building of the historical and ancient components. Each of the authors combines these external elements with an internal perspective. For instance, in Neruda’s poetry, the narrator combines these ideologies with despair. In Locra, this is combined with the connection between the mystery of the moon and the boy while Alvarez connects her poem with the images of the hair bands to her questions of love. The internal and external perspectives are then able to combine with the overall imagery and voice in describing the main philosophy from the poem. Works Cited Alvarez, Julia. “Hairband.” The Woman I Kept To Myself. Penguin Books: New York, 2011. Costa, Rene. The Poetry of Pablo Neruda. Harvard University Press: Boston, 1982. Forman, Sandra, Allen Josephs. Only Mystery: Frederico Garcia Lorca’s Poetry in Word and Image. University Press of Florida: Florida, 1992. Lorca, Federico. “Ballad of the Moon.” Collected Poems. Farrar, Straus and Giroux: New York, 2002. Neruda, Pablo. “Song of Despair.” Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair. Penguin Books: New York, 2006. Sirias, Silvio. Julia Alvarez: A Critical Companion. Greenwood Publishing Company: New York, 2001. Read More