Pablo Neruda, who was simply born in Chile, is the best-known & most influential Latin American poet of the times. Pablo Neruda's Sonnet XVII demonstrates the characteristics of the sonnet. It consists of fourteen lines with line chance of 4-4-3-3. The sonnet was originally written in Spanish therefore the rhyme does not flow as effortlessly as it can in Spanish. The sentiment of the poem is perfectly projected in the sonnet form. By studying the sonnet, we can see that Neruda exhibits a clear knowledge of the proper execution.
The second one half of the first stanza answers this question. The lines read: "I really like you as certain dark things should be loved, /in magic formula, between your shadow and the heart" (39). Instead of blossoms, Neruda compares his love to dark things, which increases the question: How do you love dark things? Neruda answers this by responding "secretly, between the shadow and the soul" (39). This line shows that he maintains his love deep in his spirit. It details the emotional placement of his love. Whenever we love someone, we feel it deep in our spirit and center; we do not think about how precisely much we love blossoms or rainbows. This range is the sonnet's problem statement and the sonnet uses this lines theme throughout the poem.
The sonnet remains with an addition to the sentiment presented in the first stanza. The fist two lines hold the same firmness of love: "I love you as the flower that never blooms/ but bears in itself the light of the invisible plants;" (39). This lines shows how he retains his love inside him and even though we may well not see it, he's content. The "light" is symbolic for the love that he retains inside that makes him flourish. This describes how love might not be tangible, but is experienced inside as the same love that is in comparison to bouquets. The stanza's continues with the addition of: "because of your love a certain stable fragrance, /risen from the planet earth, lives darkly in my body" (39). Neruda explains how her love is given through the earth and into his heart and soul where he retains it. He uses the term "darkly" to show that he retains her love deep in his spirit to safeguard it.
So far, in the sonnet, we've seen Neruda describe how he is in love with from the darkness of his heart. This notion is shown in the 3rd stanza: "I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where" (39). This shows how fresh his love is. He enjoys from the depths of his soul and he easily shows it. He will not use the original tone of a love poem; therefore, his love becomes very instinctual. The idea is extended within the next line, "I really like you straightforwardly, without complexities or take great pride in; / so I love you because I know no other way" (39). Here he points out how he will not allow his pleasure to refrain him from expressing his love the only way he knows, instinctively.
The sonnet concludes by expressing the tranquility of love and how two become one. He commences by saying, "that this: where I does not are present, nor you" (39), this can be an enjambment from the previous line which is self-explanatory. He is saying love has no "I" or "you", an illustration of unity. Then finalizes the theory with the addition of: "so close that your hand on my torso is my side, /so close that your eye close when i fall asleep" (39). This closes the sonnet beautifully by demonstrating how his love allows him to become so close to his fan that she becomes an extension of him.
The major theme in this poem is love. Love can be believed in many levels and Neruda runs on the very straightforward approach that is very effective. Neruda will an excellent job of demonstrating a love poem doesn't have to be about plants and rainbows for it to be effective. He is able to make this poem very real and concentrate on the real human psyche of a guy and love.
The sonnet comes after a distinctive rhyme scheme not the same as the original rhyme design. Neruda writes this sonnet as a Petrarchan, which would follow a rhyme design of abab cdcd cde cde. The translated version does not follow a rhyme plan, but looking at the original Spanish version, we see the rhyme system. The octave ends with what: "topacio, " "fuego, " "oscuras, " "alma, " "lleva, " "flores, " "cuerpo, " and "tierra" (Neruda 38). These words give us a rhyme structure of aabc cbac. In the sestet the lines end with what: "donde, " "orgullo, " "manera, " "eres, " "mia, " and "sue±o" (38). These words give the sestet a rhyme structure of bac bca. After examining the rhyme structure in each collection, we end up with an overall system of aabc cbac bac bca. If we look at the traditional rhyme plan, of abab cdcd cde cde, we observe that Neruda uses the style, but in another order.
The change in the rhyme system makes the sonnet his. Neruda changes the proper execution to harmonize it to the tone of the sonnet. Neruda's sonnet point out the emotion of love in a unique fashion, which contradicts traditional love sonnets like, Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Neruda is not contrasting love to a summer's day; instead, he identifies love as a robust emotion maintained within the darkness of the heart and soul. The actual fact the Neruda chooses to break away from the traditional rhyme routine parallels the theme of his anti-traditional love sonnet.
I first read this poem several years again and immediately I got captivated with Pablo Neruda's work. This sonnet gives me a powerful emotional response. The way the poem is located into a sonnet helps build the sentiment that the poem is portraying. The ideas are expressed beautifully in each stanza and the lines break flawlessly. Each series expresses a fresh emotion and creates a perfect enjambment with the next series. Each stanza jobs different degrees of the emotion that can stand alone, but work brilliantly mutually.
The one aspect of the sonnet that I love the most is the respite away from the original love poem. It appears most loves poems were written from an identical template. The traditional love poem is becoming cliche and to read today's poet write in the same fashion is unoriginal. This sonnet broke away from the traditional template and created voyage in to the human nature where love grows. Neruda's originality makes me love this poem.
I have read this sonnet countless times and it still handles to express an psychological response. I've been a supporter of love poems and the feeling shown in this sonnet is original and inspiring. As an aspiring poet, I have made Neruda's style the typical that I desire to accomplish.
The sonnet has come a long way from its origin in Sicily. Whether it is a Petrarchan or Shakespearian sonnet one thing has not changed and that is the beauty of the poem. The sonnet is beautiful and it is just about the transcript of the real human soul. The modern sonnet has changed from its very organised form to a deviation of varieties that screen the characteristics of the sonnet. Pablo Neruda's Sonnet XVII is a wonderful example of how the sonnet has improved. Neruda has written countless sonnets and he does not use one single form. Each sonnet is specially altered to match the theme and tone of the poem and it still jobs the wonder of the proper execution.
