brief biography of pablo neruda

Pablo Neruda

Pablo Neruda was a Nobel Prize–winning Chilean poet who was once called “the greatest poet of the 20th century in any language.”

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Diplomatic career, accomplishments, personal life, death and investigations, neruda film, who was pablo neruda.

Poet Pablo Neruda stirred controversy with his affiliation with the Communist Party and his outspoken support of Joseph Stalin , Fulgencio Batista, and Fidel Castro . His poetic mastery was never in doubt, and for it, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971. Neruda died on September 23, 1973, with subsequent investigations exploring whether he might have been poisoned.

FULL NAME: Pablo Neruda BORN: July 12, 1904 DIED: September 23, 1973 BIRTH CITY: Parral, Chile SPOUSES: Maria Antonieta Hagenaar (1930–1936), Delia del Carril (1943–1954), and Matilde Urrutia (1966–1973) CHILDREN: Malva Marina ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Cancer

Pablo Neruda was born Ricardo Eliecer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto in the Chilean town of Parral in 1904. His father, José del Carmen Reyes Morales, worked for the railroad, and his mother, Rosa Basoalto, was a teacher who died shortly after his birth. His father moved the family to Temuco when Neruda was a toddler, and José remarried.

At age 13, he began his literary career as a contributor to the daily La Mañana , where he published his first articles and poems. In 1920, he contributed to the literary journal Selva Austral under the pen name Pablo Neruda, which he assumed in honor of Czech poet Jan Neruda. (In 1946, he legally changed his name to his pseudonym.) The next year, he moved to Santiago to study French at university but soon was back to writing poetry.

Some of Neruda’s early poems are found in his first book, Crepusculario ( Book of Twilight ) , published in 1923, and one of his most renowned works, Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada (Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair) , was published the following year. Twenty Love Poems made Neruda a celebrity, and he thereafter devoted himself to verse.

In 1927, Neruda began his long diplomatic career (in the Latin American tradition of honoring poets with diplomatic posts), and he moved frequently around the world. In 1936, the Spanish Civil War began and Neruda chronicled the atrocities, including the execution of his friend Federico García Lorca , in his España en el corazón ( Spain in Our Hearts ).

Over the next 10 years, Neruda would leave and return to Chile several times. Along the way, he was named Chile’s consul to Mexico and won election to the Chilean Senate. He would also begin to attract controversy, first with his praise of Joseph Stalin (in poems such as “Canto a Stalingrado” and “Nuevo canto de amor a Stalingrado”) and later for his poetry honoring Fulgencio Batista (“Saludo a Batista”) and Fidel Castro.

Always left-leaning, Neruda joined the Communist Party of Chile in 1945, but by 1948, the Communist Party was under siege, and Neruda fled the country with his family. In 1952, the Chilean government withdrew its order to seize leftist writers and political figures, and Neruda returned to Chile once again.

For the next 21 years, Neruda continued to write prodigiously, rising in the ranks of 20th century poets. ( The collection of his complete works , which is continually being republished, filled 459 pages in 1951; by 1968 it amounted to 3,237 pages, in two volumes.) He also received numerous prestigious awards, including the International Peace Prize in 1950, the Lenin Peace Prize and the Stalin Peace Prize in 1953, and the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971.

Neruda was married three times. He met his first wife, Maria Antonieta Hagenaar, in Java, Indonesia. The couple married in 1930 and had a daughter, Malva Marina. Neruda and Maria separated by 1936. Their daughter, who was born with a congenital defect, died in childhood.

In 1943, Neruda wed Delia del Carril, an Argentinian artist who was at least 20 years older than the poet. But years into the marriage, Neruda began having an affair with a Chilean woman, Matilde Urrutia. Neruda and Delia divorced in 1954.

It was while in exile in Mexico that Neruda and Matilde connected. She inspired some of his most famous poems. They married in 1966 and remained together until Neruda’s death.

In 2011, Neruda’s chauffeur alleged that the writer said he’d been given an injection at a clinic by a physician that worsened his health. Chilean judge Mario Carroza later authorized an official investigation into cause of death. Neruda’s body was exhumed in 2013 and examined, but a forensics team found no initial evidence of foul play.

However, in January 2015, the Chilean government reopened the investigation with new forensic testing. Although Judge Carroza ordered Neruda’s body to be returned to his gravesite, the discovery of unusual bacteria in the writer’s bones indicated that the matter had yet to be fully resolved. That November, the Chilean government said it is “clearly possible and highly probable” that third parties were involved in Neruda’s death.

A 2023 report confirmed Clostridium botulinum , a botulism strain, was found in one of Neruda’s molars and that it was likely present at the time of his death. The experts could not determine if the bacteria, which produces a highly lethal toxin, botulinum, caused the poet’s death. However, they noted that political prisoners in Chile were poisoned with this same bacteria in 1981.

In 2016, the life of the renowned poet inspired the acclaimed Chilean film Neruda , which is directed by Pablo Larraín and follows a police inspector (played by Gael García Bernal ) on the hunt for Neruda as he hides to escape arrest for his Communist views.

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Biography of Pablo Neruda, Chilean Poet and Diplomat

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Pablo Neruda (July 12, 1904–September 23, 1973) was a Chilean poet and diplomat who wrote about love and the beauty of Latin America, as well as politics and communist ideals. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1971, in what was called a "contentious" decision, and is considered one of the greatest Spanish language poets of all time.

Fast Facts: Pablo Neruda

• Known For: Nobel-Prize winning Chilean poet and diplomat whose verses explore sensuality and the beauty of Latin America.
• Also Known As: Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto (full name at birth)
• Born: July 12, 1904 in Parral, Chile
• Parents: Rosa Neftalí Basoalto Opazo and José del Carmen Reyes Morales, and Trinidad Candia Malverde (stepmother)
• Died: September 23, 1973 in Santiago, Chile
• Education: Pedagogical Institute, Santiago
• Selected Works: 20 Love Poems and a Song of Despair, Residence on Earth, Canto general, Odes to Common Things
• Awards and Honors: International Peace Prize, Stalin Peace Prize, 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature
• Spouses: Maria Antonieta Hagenaar Vogelzang, Delia del Carril, Matilde Urrutia 
• Children: Malva Marina
• Notable Quote: "On our earth, before writing was invented, before the printing press was invented, poetry flourished. That is why we know that poetry is like bread; it should be shared by all, by scholars and by peasants, by all our vast, incredible, extraordinary family of humanity."

Early Life and Education

Pablo Neruda was born in the tiny village of Parral, Chile, on July 12, 1904, under the name Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto. His father, José Reyes Morales, was a railway worker, and his mother, Rosa Basoalto, was a teacher. Rosa died of tuberculosis on September 14, 1904, when Neruda was just a couple of months old.

In 1906, Neruda’s father remarried Trinidad Candia Malverde and settled down in a small house in Temuco, Chile, with Neruda and his illegitimate older half-brother Rodolfo. José had another affair that resulted in the birth of Neruda’s beloved half-sister, Laurita, whom José and Trinidad raised. Neruda also loved his stepmother dearly.

Neruda entered the Boys’ Lyceum in Temuco in 1910. As a young boy, he was very skinny and terrible at sports, so he often went for walks and read Jules Verne. In the summers, the family would head to Puerto Saavedra on the cooler coast, where he developed a love for the ocean. The library in Puerto Saavedra was run by the liberal poet Augusto Winter, who introduced Neruda to Ibsen , Cervantes , and Baudelaire before he turned ten.

Neruda wrote his first poem before his 11th birthday, on June 30, 1915, which he dedicated to his stepmother. His first publication was in July 1917, a newspaper article on persevering in the pursuit of dreams, published in the daily La Mañana . In 1918, he published several poems in the Santiago-based magazine Corre-Vuela ; later he called these early works “execrable . ” In 1919, the future Nobel laureate Gabriela Mistral arrived in Temuco to lead the girls’ school. She gave Neruda Russian novels to read and became a major influence on his work. Neruda began winning local poetry competitions, but his father didn’t support such a fanciful path for his son and threw his notebooks out the window. In response to this, in 1920 the boy began writing under the pen name that would make him famous, Pablo Neruda.

In 1921, Neruda began studying to become a French teacher at the Pedagogical Institute in Santiago. However, his grades were poor, as he spent most of his time listening to radical speakers at the Students’ Federation. He wrote for the Claridad student newspaper and developed friendships with other literary-minded students, including the young poet Pablo de Rokha, who would become a bitter rival of Neruda’s.

Early Work, Santiago, and Consulship (1923-1935)

• Twilight (1923)
• Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair (1924)
• Endeavor of the Infinite Man (1926)
• The Inhabitant and His Hope (1926)
• Rings (1926)
• Residence on Earth (1935)

Neruda compiled some of his adolescent poems and some of his more mature work into Crepusculario ( Twilight) in 1923. The collection was sexually explicit, romantic, and modern all at once. Critics had favorable reviews, but Neruda wasn’t satisfied, saying, “looking for more unpretentious qualities, for the harmony of my own world, I began to write another book.”

Neruda published Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair in 1924, when he was 20 years old. The collection was considered scandalous for its explicit sexuality, but remains one of Neruda’s most popular and translated collections. Overnight, he became a literary darling and the public was fascinated. For years after publication of his collection of poems, readers wanted to know who the poems were about. Neruda would not say, claiming that many of the poems were about southern Chile itself, but posthumous letters revealed that many of the poems were about Neruda’s young loves, Teresa Vázquez and Albertina Azócar. 

Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair gained a lot of traction for Neruda, but also many enemies. Vicente Huidobro claimed that Neruda’s Poem 16 was plagiarized from Rabindranath Tagore’s The Gardener ; the poems both began quite similarly, but Neruda denied the charges. Huidobro repeated this claim for the rest of his life, even after the International Association of Writers in Defense of Culture asked the pair to settle their feud in 1937.

While critics and international readers alike fawned over Neruda, his father remained dismissive of Neruda’s career choice and refused to finance him. Despite numerous fights and a meager diet, Neruda published Tentativa del hombre infinito ( Endeavor of the Infinite Man ) in 1926. While critics were unimpressed, Neruda maintained that they did not understand the collection. Later that year, Neruda published his first foray into prose, a dark and dreamy novella called El habitante y su esperanza ( The Inhabitant and His Hope ). These collections did not bring prosperity, and Neruda remained poor, but he read and wrote all the time instead of looking for more traditional work. He wrote another collection, Anillos ( Rings ), in 1926 with his friend Tomás Lago. Rings took on a new prose poetry style and moved between expressionism and impressionism.

Discouraged by unsustainable poverty, Neruda sought a consular posting at the Foreign Ministry. On the strength of his poetic reputation, he received a posting in Rangoon, Myanmar, in 1927. He found Rangoon generally isolating, but that's where he met Marie Antoinette Hagenaar Vogelzang, whom he married in 1930. Neruda transferred to Buenos Aires in 1933 and then the couple moved onto Madrid that same year. Also in 1933, Neruda published Residencia en la tierra ( Residence on Earth ), though he had been working on the collection since 1925. Residence is widely considered one of the greatest Spanish language collections ever written; its surrealist simplicity moved away from only the sexual into a growing fascination with the mortal.

In 1934, Maria gave birth to Neruda’s only daughter, Malva Marina Reyes Hagenaar, who was born with hydrocephalus. Neruda began his acquaintance with the painter Delia del Carril around this time and moved in with her in 1936. 

In Spain in 1935, Neruda started a literary review with his friend Manuel Altolaguirre and began writing one of his most ambitious and masterful collections, Canto general ( General Song ). But the Spanish Civil War interrupted his work. 

War, the Senate, and Arrest Warrant (1936-1950)

• Spain in Our Hearts (1937)
• Verses Against the Darkness (1947)
• General Song (1950)

The outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 turned Neruda more concretely towards politics. He became more vocal about his communist views and wrote of the devastation on the front, including the execution of his friend, Spanish poet Federico García Lorca, in his collection España en el corazón ( Spain in our hearts ). His explicit stance made him unfit for his diplomatic post, so he was recalled in 1937. Neruda traveled to Paris, despite his trepidation for the literary city, before returning to Chile in 1938.

While in Chile, Neruda started the Alliance of Intellectuals of Chile for the Defense of Culture, an anti fascist group. He became consul to Mexico in 1939, where he wrote until returning to Chile in 1944. Neruda married Delia in 1943. That same year, his daughter Malva passed away. While he was not a present father, he felt a lot of grief at her death, writing “Oda con un lamento” (“Ode with a lament”) for her, which opens: “Oh child among the roses, oh press of doves, / oh presidio of fish and rose bushes, / your soul is a bottle of dried salts / and a bell filled with grapes, your skin. / Unfortunately, I’ve nothing to give you but fingernails / or eyelashes, or melted pianos.”

In 1944, Neruda won a Senate seat as part of the Chilean Communist Party. One of his key political missions was to decrease the influence of the United States in Chile and all Latin America. In 1947, he was granted a leave of absence from the Senate to focus more fully on writing General Song. Yet Neruda remained politically active, writing letters critical of Chilean President Gabriel González Videla, and a warrant was issued for his arrest in 1948. Neruda moved underground before fleeing to Europe in 1949, where he could write more publicly. While on the run with his family, he began his affair with Matilde Urrutia, who inspired many of his most tender verses.

Neruda finished the 15-part General Song while in hiding, and the collection was published in Mexico in 1950. The epic 250-poem cycle examines the arc of man’s struggle in Latin America through time, from natives to conquistadors to miners, exploring the ways people are united across centuries. One of the most anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist poems in the collection, “The United Fruit Co.,” says, “When the trumpet sounded, everything / on earth was prepared / and Jehovah distributed the world / to Coca Cola Inc., Anaconda, / Ford Motors, and other entities.”

Neruda had long been a vocal communist and supporter of the Soviet Union and Joseph Stalin , but his acceptance of the Stalin Prize in 1950 was criticized as diminishing his chances of appealing to a broader international audience and of winning a Nobel. After General Song , Neruda was nominated for the Nobel numerous times before he won, a delay which many scholars suggest was due to the Stalin Prize and Neruda’s communism. In 1953, Neruda doubled down and accepted the Lenin Peace Prize.

International Acclaim and the Nobel (1951-1971)

• Grapes and the Wind (1954)
• Odes to Common Things (1954)
• One Hundred Love Sonnets (1959)
• Isla Negra Memorial (1964)

The warrant against Neruda was dropped in 1952 and he was able to return to Chile. While in exile, he had written the collection Las Uvas y el Viento ( Grapes and the Wind ), which was published in 1954. He published Odas elementales ( Odes to Common Things ) over the course of five years, starting in 1954, which marked a turn in Neruda’s work away from daily political events to larger historical narratives and the mysticism of quotidian objects. 

In 1955, Neruda divorced Delia and married Matilde. He continued to have affairs but dedicated many of the poems in his 1959 collection Cien sonetos de amor ( One Hundred Love Sonnets ) to Matilde. In 1964, Neruda published a commemorative autobiographical collection, Memorial de Isla Negra ( Isla Negra Memorial ), for his 60th birthday.

Following the international success of General Song , Neruda toured New York in 1966, yet did not soften his stance against American imperialism on the trip; he was still received very favorably. Between 1966 and 1970, he wrote a further six collections of poetry and a play. Neruda ran for the presidency in 1970 with the Communist Party, but dropped out in favor of his friend Salvador Allende Gossens , who ran as a socialist. When Allende won, he appointed Neruda as ambassador to Paris.

Neruda was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1971 "for a poetry that with the action of an elemental force brings alive a continent's destiny and dreams." Yet the Nobel committee recognized that this award was contentious, and called Neruda “a contentious author who is not only debated but for many is also debatable.” 

Literary Style and Themes

Neruda avoided as much as possible the florid Spanish poetry of the 19th century, centering instead on clear and honest poems. He found the classical form of the ode productive, yet avoided a classical elevated style.

Among his many varied influences, he counted the modernist Nicaraguan poet Rubén Darío and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 's mystery novels. Neruda also cited Walt Whitman as a key role model.

While the conviction of his Spanish is inexorable, Neruda took a much more flexible attitude towards translations. Often he would have multiple translators working simultaneously on the same poem.

In February 1972, Neruda resigned from his ambassadorship, citing poor health, and returned to Chile. In July 1973, he underwent surgery to combat prostate cancer. In September, a military coup ousted Neruda’s friend Allende, and two weeks later, Neruda died during a hospital stay, on September 23, 1973, in Santiago, Chile.

While his death certificate states the cause of death as a cancer-related heart collapse, recent forensic evidence and testimony suggest that he may have been assassinated. Neruda’s body was exhumed in 2013 and forensic morticians found samples of lethal bacteria. Doctors now suspect infection as the cause of death, however, whether this was intentional or accidental remains unclear. The Chilean government has not admitted or denied a part in Neruda’s death.

Gabriel García Márquez famously called Neruda “the greatest poet of the 20th century—in any language.” His poetry is one of the most widely translated and has been published in dozens of languages, including Yiddish and Latin. However, most of his poems remain available only in Spanish; their complexity and difficulty mean that only a small portion is considered translatable at all. The Poetry of Pablo Neruda was a mammoth collaboration in 2003 that saw 600 of Neruda’s poems published in English for the first time. 

In 2016, an anti-biopic called Neruda , directed by Pablo Larraín, was premiered at the Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim.

A move by the Chilean Senate to rename the Santiago airport after Neruda in 2018 was met with resistance by feminists, who cited Neruda’s admitted rape in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). The famous Chilean writer Isabel Allende said in response that, “like many young feminists in Chile, I am disgusted by some aspects of Neruda’s life and personality. However, we cannot dismiss his writing.”

• Bonnefoy, Pascale. “Cancer Didn’t Kill Pablo Neruda, Panel Finds. Was It Murder?” The New York Times , 21 Oct. 2017.
• “Breve Biografía Pablo Neruda.” Fundación Pablo Neruda , https://fundacionneruda.org/biografia/.
• Dargis, Manohla. “Why the Movie 'Neruda' Is An 'Anti-Bio'.” The New York Times , 18 May 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/19/movies/cannes-pablo-larrain-interview-neruda.html.
• Hess, John L. “Neruda, Chilean Poet‐Politician, Wins Nobel Prize in Literature.” The New York Times , 22 Oct. 1971, https://www.nytimes.com/1971/10/22/archives/neruda-chilean-poetpolitician-wins-nobel-prize-in-literature-nobel.html.
• McGowan, Charis. “Poet, Hero, Rapist – Outrage over Chilean Plan to Rename Airport after Neruda.” The Guardian , 23 Nov. 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/nov/23/chile-neruda-airport-rename-outrage-admitted-rape-memoirs.
• Neruda, Pablo. The Essential Neruda: Selected Poems . Edited by Mark Eisner, Bloodaxe Books, 2010.
• “Pablo Neruda.” Poetry Foundation , https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/pablo-neruda.
• “Pablo Neruda.” Poets.org , https://poets.org/poet/pablo-neruda.
• “Pablo Neruda, Nobel Poet, Dies in a Chilean Hospital.” The New York Times , 24 Sept. 1973, https://www.nytimes.com/1973/09/24/archives/pablo-neruda-nobel-poet-dies-in-a-chilean-hospital-lifelong.html.
• Feinstein, Adam. Pablo Neruda: A Passion for Life . Bloomsbury, 2004.
• Pablo Neruda. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Media AB 2019. Thu. 21 Nov 2019. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/literature/1971/neruda/biographical/
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Pablo Neruda

Born Ricardo Eliecer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto in the town of Parral in southern Chile on July 12, 1904, Pablo Neruda led a life charged with poetic and political activity. In 1923, he sold all of his possessions to finance the publication of his first book, Crepusculario (“Twilight”). He published the volume under the pseudonym “Pablo Neruda” to avoid conflict with his family, who disapproved of his occupation. The following year, he found a publisher for Veinte poemas de amor y una cancion desesperada (“Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair”). The book made a celebrity of Neruda, who gave up his studies at the age of twenty to devote himself to his craft.

In 1927, Neruda began his long career as a diplomat in the Latin American tradition of honoring poets with diplomatic assignments. After serving as honorary consul in Burma, Neruda was named Chilean consul in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1933. While there, he began a friendship with the visiting Spanish poet Federico García Lorca . After transferring to Madrid later that year, Neruda also met Spanish writer Manuel Altolaguirre. Together, the two men founded a literary review called Caballo verde para la poesîa in 1935. The outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 interrupted Neruda’s poetic and political development. He chronicled the horrendous years which included the execution of García Lorca in Espana en el corazon (1937), published from the war front. Neruda’s outspoken sympathy for the loyalist cause during the Spanish Civil War led to his recall from Madrid in 1937. He then moved to Paris and helped settle Spanish republican refugees in Chile.

Neruda returned to Chile in 1938 where he renewed his political activity and wrote prolifically. Named Chilean Consul to Mexico in 1939, Neruda left Chile again for four years. Upon returning to Chile in 1943, he was elected to the Senate and joined the Communist Party. When the Chilean government moved to the right, they declared communism illegal and expelled Neruda from the Senate. He went into hiding. During those years he wrote and published Canto general (1950).

In 1952 the government withdrew the order to arrest leftist writers and political figures, and Neruda returned to Chile and married Matilde Urrutia, his third wife (his first two marriages, to Maria Antonieta Haagenar Vogelzang and Delia del Carril, both ended in divorce). For the next twenty-one years, he continued a career that integrated private and public concerns and became known as the people’s poet. During this time, Neruda received numerous prestigious awards, including the International Peace Prize in 1950, the Lenin Peace Prize and the Stalin Peace Prize in 1953, and the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971.

Diagnosed with cancer while serving a two-year term as ambassador to France, Neruda resigned his position, ending his diplomatic career. On September 23, 1973, just twelve days after the defeat of Chile’s democratic regime, the man widely regarded as the greatest Latin American poet since Darío died in Santiago, Chile. 

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Pablo Neruda

Biography of pablo neruda.

Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto (12 July 1904 – 23 September 1973), better known by his pen name and, later, legal name Pablo Neruda (/nəˈruːdə/; Spanish: [ˈpaβlo neˈɾuða]), was a Chilean poet-diplomat and politician who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971. Neruda became known as a poet when he was 13 years old, and wrote in a variety of styles, including surrealist poems, historical epics, overtly political manifestos, a prose autobiography, and passionate love poems such as the ones in his collection Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair (1924).

Neruda occupied many diplomatic positions in various countries during his lifetime and served a term as a Senator for the Chilean Communist Party. When President Gabriel González Videla outlawed communism in Chile in 1948, a warrant was issued for Neruda's arrest. Friends hid him for months in the basement of a house in the port city of Valparaíso, and in 1949 he escaped through a mountain pass near Maihue Lake into Argentina; he would not return to Chile for more than three years. He was a close advisor to Chile's socialist President Salvador Allende, and, when he got back to Chile after accepting his Nobel Prize in Stockholm, Allende invited him to read at the Estadio Nacional before 70,000 people.

Neruda was hospitalized with cancer in September 1973, at the time of the coup d'état led by Augusto Pinochet that overthrew Allende's government, but returned home after a few days when he suspected a doctor of injecting him with an unknown substance for the purpose of murdering him on Pinochet's orders. Neruda died in his house in Isla Negra on 23 September 1973, just hours after leaving the hospital. Although it was long reported that he died of heart failure, the Interior Ministry of the Chilean government issued a statement in 2015 acknowledging a Ministry document indicating the government's official position that "it was clearly possible and highly likely" that Neruda was killed as a result of "the intervention of third parties". However, an international forensic test conducted in 2013 rejected allegations that he was poisoned. It was concluded that he was suffering from prostate cancer. Pinochet, backed by elements of the armed forces, denied permission for Neruda's funeral to be made a public event, but thousands of grieving Chileans disobeyed the curfew and crowded the streets.

Neruda is often considered the national poet of Chile, and his works have been popular and influential worldwide. The Colombian novelist Gabriel García Márquez once called him "the greatest poet of the 20th century in any language", and the critic Harold Bloom included Neruda as one of the writers central to the Western tradition in his book The Western Canon.

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Chile Culture » Chile Culture » Biography of Pablo Neruda

Biography of Pablo Neruda

Green was his favorite color, he always wrote in green as it was the color of hope. Gabriel García Marquez, Colombian novelist, once referred to him as “the greatest poet of the 20 th century in any language”. He was a communist who fought for world unity and peace, persecuted in his country and forced to exile, his work is a reflection that safeguards the cultural heritage of Chile and the entire South American continent.

Pablo Neruda’s real name was Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto and was born in the town of Parral in the Maule Region in Chile on July 12 th , 1904. His parents were José del Carmen Reyes Morales and Rosa Basoalto Opazo. He was a railway employee and she was a school teacher who died of tuberculosis two months after giving birth to his first and only son. Soon after the death of his wife José del Carmen Reyes moved his family to Temuco and a few years later he remarried Trinidad Candia Malverde. Pablo Neruda grew up Temuco with half-brother Rodolfo and half-sister Laura. He attended the Men’s Lyceum of Temuco where he completed high school. The school was renamed Lyceum Pablo Neruda of Temuco after he was awarded the Nobel Prize.

Early years 1917-1920

While in high school at age 13, he published his first poems among them are “ Entusiasmo y Perseverancia” – “Enthusiasm and Perseverance” in the regional daily “La Mañana” . In 1918 he published 13 poems in the journal “Run and Fly” including “My eyes” . In 1919 he won the third prize in a local contest with his poem “ Nocturno ideal” .

Neruda’s father opposed his son’s interest in writing; nevertheless Neruda found support in his school teachers. At age 15 Neruda met Gabriella Mistral who was a teacher in the local girl’s school. She introduced him to the work of European poets and particularly Russian literature which influenced him the most. Because Neruda wanted to hide his publications from his father he chose the pseudonym of Pablo Neruda, all future publications after October 1920 were published under that name. A Czech poet Jan Neruda (1834-1891) inspired the young poet from whom he took his last name. Later he legally changed his name to Pablo Neruda.

In 1920 he became a contributor in “Selva Austral”, “Diario Austral of Temuco ” and various literary student journals in Temuco. He became president of the Athenaeum Literary in his high school and deputy secretary of the Student Association. The same year, he won the first prize for poetry in the spring festival in Temuco. He graduated high school from the Men’s Lyceum of Temuco.

Universidad de Chile – 1921

Neruda’s father wanted him to become a teacher. In 1921 when he was 16 and after graduating from high school Neruda moved to Santiago to study Education and French at the University of Chile. He had no interest in pedagogy; his passion was in learning French so that he could read French literature in that language. Upon his arrival he published a series of poems in the university magazine “Clarity” signed as Pablo Neruda. During this period as a student he produced some of his best known work and established his reputation as a poet, he also met Rosa Albertina Azocar who was his inspiration for a series of poems in Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair. It was clear that Pablo wanted to pursue a career in writing so his father stopped sending money. In July 1923 the first edition of “ Crepusculario” – “Book of Twilights” was published by Clarity Editions of the Student Federation of Chile. The following year, 1924, the first edition of “ Veinte Poemas de Amor y una Cancion Desesperada” – “Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair” was published by Nascimiento Editors, which would become one of his best-known and most translated works. The publication of “Twenty Love Poems” was notoriously controversial due to its eroticism which led to the publication in “La Nacion” of a letter titled “”Exegesis and loneliness”. This letter explained the creation of the love poem and his frustration at the lack of understanding within the literary critics.

In 1925 he became the director of the magazine “Knights of Wands”. The following year two books were published by Nascimiento; ”Tentativa y su esperanza” –  “The habitant and his hope” and “Anillos” – “Rings”. “ Crepusculario” – “Book of Twilights” goes on a second edition.

  Diplomatic career 1926

As a writer Neruda was facing poverty so he began to look for a job as a consul. Because of his literary achievement and relationships he cultivated as a writer he was able to obtain a consular job in Burma. He remained a regular contributor to the newspaper “ La Nacion ” in Santiago where he published his travel chronics.

From 1927 to early 1929 he stayed in Burma as an honorary consul. In 1929 he was appointed consul in Colombo, Sri Lanka. During these years he experimented with different styles and wrote a series of surrealistic poems which would be part of “Residencia en la tierra” – “Residence on Earth” one of his most important books. In 1930 he was appointed consul in Singapore and Batavia in Java where he married a Dutch woman named Marie Antoinette Haagenar Vogelzang. In 1931 the international economic downturn made the government of Chile cut on consular positions and Neruda was asked to return to Chile. After a voyage of two months, in February of 1932, he arrived in Chile accompanied by his new wife. He resettled in Santiago and was offered a job at the Library of the Foreign Ministry which did not satisfy him; two months later he was transferred to the Department of Cultural Extension of the Ministry of Labor. At this time the second edition of “Twenty Poems of Love and a Song of despair” is published.

The following year, 1933, Neruda was appointed Consul in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Nascimiento Editors publishes “Residence on Earth” limiting its publication to only one hundred copies. In Buenos Aires he met Federico García Lorca with whom he was to establish a close friendship. By the end of the year he was appointed consul in Barcelona. In Madrid he is reunited with Federico García Lorca who introduced him to Rafael Alberti, César Vallejo and Miguel Hernández. He also met Delia del Carril who later became his second wife.

In August 1934 his daughter Malva Marina Trinidad was born in Madrid, she was born with hydrocephalus, a condition that leads to brain swelling. This was a stressful period in the lives of Neruda and his wife and he began a relationship with Delia del Carril.

In 1935 Neruda was transfer to Madrid as consul replacing Gabriela Mistral. Neruda founded “Green Horse for poetry” a literary magazine. He left his wife and daughter in Barcelona and moved in with Delia del Carril.

Spanish Civil War and communism

On July 1936 the Spanish Civil War broke out and Federico Garcia Lorca was assassinated by forces loyal to Franco. This experience had an intense effect on Neruda who for the first time became politicized supporting the republican side and becoming a communist for the rest of his life. Because of his post as a consul he should remain neutral to political causes. He published anonymously “Song to the mothers of the dead militants” in the literary journal “The blue monkey” which later became part of “Spain in the heart”. The Chilean government decided to close its consulate in Madrid.

In 1937 he moved to Paris with Delia del Carril and began his work supporting the Spanish Republic. He organized the Latin American Committee to defend the Spanish Republic and gave a conference about Federico Garcia Lorca against the Chilean government advice. He published his views in the magazine “The world poets defend the Spanish people” which was published in Spanish and French. Neruda joined Peruvian Cesar Vallejo with whom he worked in the Association for the Defense of Culture. In the magazine “The blue monkey” he published the poem “In this way” later known as “I explain a few things” in his book “Spain in the heart”. This poem is a breakthrough in Neruda’s style, which changed to a radical and militant tone concerned with social and political matters.

By the end of the year he had to move back to Chile as he lost his post because of his political views. In Chile he founded the Alliance of Intellectuals from Chile for the Defense of Culture. The first edition of 2000 copies of “España en el Corazon” – “Spain in the heart” sold out in the first few weeks and 2 months later a second edition was in print. “España en el corazón” had great impact as it was printed during the civil war.

His father, Jose del Carmen Reyes, died in Temuco on May 1938. Neruda supported the election of the newly elected president, Pedro Aguirre Cerda, and soon after he was appointed special consul to Paris to assist in the immigration of Spanish refugees in France. He assisted about 2000 political refugees flee to Chile.

In 1940 Spanish philologist and literary critic, Amado Alonso, published the first major academic work about Pablo Neruda’s work; “Poetry and style of Pablo Neruda, Interpretation of a hermetic poetry”.

Mexico 1940 -1943

In 1940 Neruda was appointed Consul General of Chile in Mexico City. After the assassination attempt of Leon Trotsky Neruda granted a visa to Chile to Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros who was accused as one of the conspirators to murder Trotsky. Neruda was suspended for one month without pay for engaging in such misconduct. Once in Chile the painter spent one year painting a mural in a school in Chillán.

In 1942 Neruda was invited to Cuba by the Ministry of education to give a series of lectures. While in Cuba he received the news of the passing of Miguel Hernandez, a close friend, in Spanish prison. During his stay in Cuba he wrote two poems “To Miguel Hernandez killed in the prisons of Spain” and “The lost shepherd” which were included in “Canto General” and “The grapes and the wind” respectively. In Cuba he started collecting seashells. On a trip to Mexico at the Theater of the Mexican Union of Electricians he read his poem “Song to Stalingrad” which celebrated the first major Russian victory over the Nazis. This generated such criticism that he wrote another poem “New love song to Stalingrad”, both poems were included in his book “Third Residence”.

A first private edition of one hundred copies of “Canto general of Chile, Fragments” was published in Mexico. Exclusive and elegantly printed all the copies were signed by Neruda and given to friends and family. On March 1943 he hears the news that his daughter Malva had died in Nazi occupied Holland and shortly he married his companion Delia del Carril though the Chilean courts declared it illegal.

Once again Neruda violated his diplomatic neutrality when at the funeral of Leocadia Felizardo, mother of Brazilian communist leader Luis Carlos Prestes, read his poem “ Dura elegía ” making remarks that offends Getulio Vargas, the Brazilian dictator. Neruda voluntarily stepped down of his position and returned to Chile. On his way to Santiago Neruda traveled to Cusco where he visited the ruins of Machu Picchu . The Inca citadel inspired him to write “ Alturas de Machu Picchu” – “Heights of Machu Picchu” which he completed in 1945. In this book he valued the accomplishments of ancient Andean civilizations but also denounced the slavery that took place in order to achieve such an outstanding construction and their subsequent conquest by the Spaniards.

Return to Chile and the Communist Party 1944

Soon after his return to Chile, Neruda was appointed candidate for senator for the provinces of Antofagasta and Tarapacá representing the Communist Party of Chile. Even thought he was not an official militant, he joined the party a few months later. A bilingual edition of “Residence on Earth” was published by New Directions, New York.

He devoted himself to campaigning and in 1945 he was elected Senator of the Republic. In 1946 Gabriel Gonzales Videla was elected President of Chile in an alliance with the Communist Party. The following year Gonzales Videla turns against the Communists and aligns himself with the United States starting a campaign against the communists. A violent repression of a miner’s strike in Lota led the poet to criticize President Gonzales Videla’s policy in a speech known as “Yo acuso” – “I accuse” in which he read the names of the miners and their families who were imprisoned. Because Gonzales Videla banned the communist party newspaper “The Century” Neruda published a letter “Intimate letter for millions of men” in many Latin American countries. This letter denounced the government policies against its workers. The government accused Neruda of defamation and of denigrating Chile abroad and started the process of impeachment. From February 1948 until March 1949 he lived in hiding and constantly changing houses to avoid being captured. During this period he finished “Canto General”.

Local and international solidarity was expressed in defense of the Chilean poet. After several failed attempts to escape Chile, Neruda finally succeeded to cross the border to Argentina with the help of his friends Victor Pey, Jorge Bellet, Raul Bulnes and Victor Bianchi. When receiving the Nobel Prize in 1971, the poet remembered this adventure as a spiritual journey to freedom. Once in Buenos Aires he joined his long time friend Miguel Angel Asturias and taking advantage of their physical resemblance Asturias lent Neruda his passport to travel to Europe. He crossed the Argentinean border to Montevideo, Uruguay and from there to France disguised as the Guatemalan novelist Miguel Angel Asturias.

In order to assume his own identity Pablo Neruda had to go to Switzerland where his old passport, brought by his wife, was awaiting for him. Pablo Picasso making use of his prestige to make this possible. Back in Paris he attended the World Congress of Peace to a surprised and stunned audience. The Chilean Embassy requested to confiscate Neruda’s passport but it was in vain.

The next three years he spent his time traveling through Europe and Asia. In Moscow and Leningrad the poet participated in the sesquicentennial of the birth of Alexander Pushkin. Neruda was an admirer of the Soviet Union and Stalin which is reflected in his poetry “Canto a Stalingrado” “Song to Stalingrad” and “Nuevo canto de amor a Stalingrado ”-“New love song to Stalingrad”. Later he would denounce Stalin’s cult of personality and the crimes committed under his command. He travelled to India, China, Poland, Hungary and the Czechoslovaquia, in Prage he applied for a visa to London but he was denied.

In 1949 he travelled to Mexico where he participated in the Latin American Congress for Peace. In Mexico the poet became ill with thrombophlebitis, inflammation of a vein caused by a blood clot and Matilde Urrutia, a Chilean singer, was hired take care of him starting a love affair which lasted until his death in 1973. This affair was poetically fruitful, he produced many poems where Matilde Urritia was his muse and they are included in “The captain’s verses”, “On hundred love sonnets”, “Estravagario”, “The Barcarolle and “The sea and the bells”. From 1953 onwards her presence in the poet’s work becomes more intense. In 1950 while recovering in Mexico “Canto General” was published in Mexico City with an initial edition of 500 copies and in Chile the communist party published a clandestine edition. At the end of the year he received the Stalin Prize for the Peace.

Return to Chile 1952

Neruda retuned to Chile in 1952 after three years in exile, his return was made possible by the weakness of Gonzales Vileda’s government and the support of the poet’s movement group comprised of intellectuals and politicians. During this period “The captain’s verses” was published. This book was controversial as it was published anonymously for many editions out of respect for his wife. In this book his mistress, Matilde Urrutia was the muse of his poems. By the time the book was published he was separated from his wife.

Neruda was actively involved in the presidential election of Salvador Allende and participated in the XI Congress of the Communist Party of Chile. During this period he traveled the world extensively promoting his books and giving speeches and lectures and when not traveling he would spend his time in his house in Isla Negra. In 1959 during a visit to Cuba he met Fidel Castro.

Between 1954 and 1959 seven books were published, among them are three Elementary odes books: “Elementary odes”, “Third book of odes”, “New elementary odes”, “Navigations and return”, “Extravagaria”, “Grapes and the Wind” and “One hundred love sonnets”. The last one is one of the most accomplished and greatest poems of the Neruda, it celebrates his love for his lover Matilde Urrutia whom he married in 1966.

On March 1966 his first wife Maria Antonieta Hagenaar died in Holland. The same year he became the first Latin American to receive the title of Doctor Honoris Causa in Philosophy from Oxford University

The Nobel Prize of Literature 1971

In 1970 the Communist Party of Chile appointed Neruda as pre-candidate for the upcoming presidential election; however he withdrew from it and supported Salvador Allende, the candidate of the Popular Unity Party, the first socialist elected president. In 1971 Neruda gets nominated ambassador to Chile in Paris which would last until 1972 when his health deteriorated. As ambassador he got to negotiate the Chilean external debt with the Paris Club.

On October 1971 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. The Nobel Prize Academy pointed out the poet’s persecution and his work for the world’s community and peace. However the decision was not an easy one as they did not forget the poet’s past support of the Stalinist dictatorship.  At the end of the month his health started deteriorating and was operated from prostate cancer in Paris. He spent his recovery at The Manquel, a cottage he bought in Normandy. He resigned his post as ambassador of Chile in Paris.

Final Years

Neruda never recuperated and was terminally ill when he returned to Chile. He spent his final years in his house in Isla Negra accompanied by his wife Matilde Urrutia and his close friends.

As the government of Allende collapsed, prosecutions were initiated against his political supporters, most of Neruda’s friends were taken prisoners or had to seek asylum abroad. Neruda’s house in Isla Negra gets broken into and his books and notes destroyed by the military police. Meanwhile his health was rapidly failing and he had to be transferred from Isla Negra to Santiago. Neruda was hospitalized at Santa María Clinic in Santiago and three days later, on the evening of September 23, 1973 the poet died of heart failure.

Neruda was temporarily buried in the mausoleum of the Fittborn family. Large crowds gathered at the cemetery defying the measures of the military police where they paid tribute to one of the greatest poet Chile had known.

Source: Fundación Neruda

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A Brief Biography of Pablo Neruda

Pablo Neruda: A Poet of Love, Beauty, and Politics

Pablo neruda.

Pablo Neruda was a Chilean poet, diplomat, and politician who rose to prominence as one of the twentieth century’s most important Latin American poets.

He was born Neftal Ricardo Reyes Basoalto but used Pablo Neruda as a pen name.

Over the course of his five-decade career, he left a legacy of beautiful, powerful poetry that touched on themes of love, beauty, politics, and communist ideals.

Neruda was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1971 , which drew both praise and criticism. Despite this, his works are still celebrated and revered as some of the greatest works of Spanish language poetry ever written.

Table of Contents

The early life of pablo neruda.

Pablo Neruda was born on July 12, 1904, in the town of Parral in Chile. Tragically, his mother, a teacher, died soon after his birth.

Neruda grew up with his father, a railway employee, who wanted him to have a practical occupation. As a result, he was encouraged to shirk his love of poetry and focus on a more practical career path.

Despite his father’s wishes, Pablo found solace in the written word, pouring his heart and soul into his writing.

His early works were largely focused on love and its many facets, cementing his place as a romantic and passionate poet .

Love and Beauty in Latin America

Love was the main subject of most of Neruda’s poems . He wrote about all kinds of love, from desire to heartbreak to the happiness that comes with being in love.

By carefully choosing his words, he painted a picture of love as a strong and changing force that could change our lives in deep ways.

Neruda’s work often talks about the beauty of his home country, Latin America. He was very proud of his roots, and in his writing, he tried to capture the essence of his home country.

Neruda’s poetry was a celebration of the beauty around him, whether it was the bright colors of the landscape, the rich history, and culture of the people, or the warmth of the sun.

Politics and Communist Ideals

Neruda was known for more than just his poetry about love and beauty. He was also well-known for his political work.

He was a very strong supporter of communism, and he used his poetry to bring awareness to political and social issues that were important to him.

Throughout his career, he wrote about how unfair things were for the working class, the importance of sticking together, and how society needed to be more fair and just.

His writings were full of passion and a sense of urgency, which made them powerful calls to action that still move and inspire people today.

The Legacy of Pablo Neruda

The life and work of Pablo Neruda continue to be celebrated and revered. He was a multi-talented man who dedicated his life to the pursuit of beauty, love, and justice.

His poetry is as powerful and moving today as it was when he first wrote it, and his influence on the literary world is undeniable.

Books by Pablo Neruda

Pablo Neruda authored numerous books throughout his lifetime. His first published work, Crepusculario (1923), was a collection of poems he wrote under the pen name of Pablo Neruda. Below you will find some of his other well-known works:

1. The Poetry of Pablo Neruda

Immerse yourself in the stunning poetic works of Nobel Prize winner, Pablo Neruda.

Through his transformative words, experience a range of emotions from deep sadness to joyous celebration.

Enjoy an intimate connection to one of the most prolific poets of the 20th century as you explore his unique perspectives on life and love.

Each poem will transport you into another world where color and music will move your heart and spirit.

2. The Essential Neruda: Selected Poems

This bilingual edition of the essential works of one of the world’s most celebrated poets, Pablo Neruda, is an indispensable resource for anyone seeking to appreciate the depth and beauty of Neruda’s oeuvre.

Featuring poems in both English and Spanish side-by-side, The Essential Neruda allows readers to engage with this body of work on a truly intimate level.

3. Love Poems

The romantic and timeless poetry of Pablo Neruda is a must-have for any lover. With Love Poems by Pablo Neruda, you can bring the beauty and passion of his words into your home.

You’ll be able to experience and share this iconic poet’s masterful works as if it were written especially for you.

The poems will transport you to a world of fantasy, romance, and heartache allowing each emotion to linger in your soul long after they’re read.

4. Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair

If you’re looking for the perfect way to express your inner feelings in both Spanish and English, look no further than Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair (Spanish and English Edition).

This unique volume offers readers the opportunity to revel in the beauty of Pablo Neruda’s lyrical verses, fully translated into two languages.

Spanning themes of love and loss, this collection provides language learners with an engaging way to improve their vocabulary while exploring complex emotions.

5. 100 Love Sonnets

Cien sonetos de amor – the perfect way to express your love! Immerse yourself in a selection of 100 beautiful and poetic love sonnets, expertly crafted to capture the essence of romance.

Whether you’re looking for something romantic that will take your partner’s breath away or just want to add a heartfelt touch to your special occasions, these timeless works are sure to make a lasting impression on those you love.

Final Thoughts on Pablo Neruda

In conclusion, Pablo Neruda was a versatile poet whose writing combined politics, beauty, and love.

He was a master of the Romantic movement who, through his poetry, expressed his political views as well as the essence of young, passionate love.

Generations of poets and readers alike continue to be inspired by Neruda’s poetry , which stands as a potent testament to the power of language.

References:

• Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Pablo Neruda . Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved February 13, 2023, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pablo-Neruda
• Carroll, C. (2020, April 30). Biography of Pablo Neruda, Chilean poet and diplomat. ThoughtCo. Retrieved February 13, 2023, from https://www.thoughtco.com/biography-of-pablo-neruda-chilean-poet-4843724
• The Nobel Prize in Literature 1971 . NobelPrize.org. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13, 2023, from https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/literature/1971/summary/
• Colloff-Bennett, T. (2013, December 23). Pablo Neruda: A Chilean life full of poetry and politics . The Quillcards Blog. Retrieved February 13, 2023, from https://quillcards.com/blog/pablo-neruda/

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10 of the Best Pablo Neruda Poems Everyone Should Read

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

Pablo Neruda (1904-73) is undoubtedly the most famous Chilean poet, and perhaps the greatest love poet in all of Latin-American literature.

Neruda, who was born Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto (Pablo Neruda was his pen name, though he later changed it officially), won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971 and is widely regarded as one of the major poets of South America, and, in some circles, as one of the greatest poets of the twentieth century, with his love poems receiving much admiration.

1. ‘ Tonight I Can Write the Saddest Lines ’.

This poem is the perfect place to begin our exploration of Pablo Neruda’s greatest poems, because it combines both intense feeling and a more realistic and level-headed approach to love. Sometimes known by the shorter title ‘Tonight I Can Write’, this poem is an example of metapoetry, or poetry written about writing poetry.

The central theme of the poem – a lost love – doesn’t emerge until several stanzas into this lyric, but even when it does, Neruda characteristically downplays the usual language we find in love poetry. This woman loved him, the speaker tells us, buy only ‘sometimes’. The speaker ends by signing off the poem with a declaration that these will be the last lines he writes for his lost love.

2. ‘ Love ’.

Although we may miss someone whom we remember a great deal, we can sometimes forget – unwillingly – the love and touch of someone we held dear to us. This Neruda poem is touching and true: ‘I have forgotten your face, I no longer / Remember your hands’, he tells his lost beloved.

3. Love Sonnet XI .

One of the verse forms Pablo Neruda preferred to work in for his love poetry was the sonnet: that Italian form which dates back to the Middle Ages, when it was popularised by Petrarch as the form used for courtly love.

But where courtly love tended to be chaste, based on the poet’s admiration of the unattainable woman adored from afar, Neruda’s love sonnets are about an intimate, physical kind of love. The idea of craving someone as you remember ‘the liquid measure’ of their ‘steps’ is especially arresting.

4. Love Sonnet XVII .

Any list of Neruda’s greatest poems should include several of his many wonderful love poems, and ideally, at least a couple of his love sonnets. So here’s another one: this time, one which probes the nature of the poet’s love for the addressee of the sonnet.

Neruda’s speaker rejects any more traditional symbols of passion in favour of describing his love as something more shadowy and obscure: it is less like the bloom of the flower and more like the light which (quietly, unassumedly) makes it possible for the flower to exist.

5. Love Sonnet XIX (‘ When I Die I Want Your Hands on My Eyes ’).

Okay, let’s have one more sonnet from Neruda. This one combines two of his greatest themes: love and death. From its striking opening line onwards, this sonnet sees the poet wishing and hoping that, when he dies, he can do so knowing that what he loves will go on living. But as so often in Neruda’s poetry, the nexus for this wish is the human body: her hands, his eyes.

6. ‘ Your Feet ’.

Elsewhere in his love poetry, Neruda often focuses on those physical aspects which have typically been overlooked by romantic poets: there are thousands of love poems in praise of a woman’s eyes, but how many poets have singled out their lover’s feet for poetic adulation?

In this short free-verse lyric, Neruda describes the male gaze alighting on the woman’s ‘hard’ feet. And why not? The feet are what support the rest of the woman’s body which the poet adores.

7. ‘ Ode to My Socks ’.

John Keats may have written odes to the nightingale and the Grecian urn, but Pablo Neruda’s greatest ode was written to his socks: specifically, the socks his friend brought to him. Maru Mori (a friend of his) gave him a pair of socks which she had knitted herself. She is a ‘sheepherder’ or shepherdess by profession, so she works with sheep and their wool.

For Neruda, they are ‘heavenly’ socks, which he was tempted to lock the socks away so that he might preserve them forever as rare gifts. But he resisted this impulse, instead sliding the socks on over his feet and wearing them. The poem’s ‘moral’? That things are twice as good when we’re talking about a pair of woollen socks worn to keep the feet warm in the cold winter months.

8. ‘ Cat’s Dream ’.

As well as writing some of the greatest love poems ever written, Pablo Neruda also wrote well about pets. ‘Cat’s Dream’ is a fine poetic depiction of a cat, describing the animal’s physical appearance but then imagining what a cat’s dreams must be like.

Neruda’s arresting description of the night flowing through the cat’s dreaming mind ‘like dark water’ makes it worth reading on its own – but there are many other things to admire here.

9. ‘ A Dog Has Died ’.

Just as Neruda didn’t write traditional love poems or odes, he also approached the elegy, or poem of mourning, in a new and original way.

He wasn’t the first to write a poem about the death of a pet dog, but ‘A Dog Has Died’ is remarkable for its unsentimental attitude to death – describing the burial of the beloved pet in rather matter-of-fact terms – even while Neruda embraces the idea of a heaven for dogs.

10. ‘ If You Forget Me ’.

Let’s conclude this pick of Neruda’s best poems with one of his most famous. It’s another free-verse lyric which calls for mutual forgetting but also mutual memory: if his lover forgets him, he will forget her, but if she finds herself remembering him, she can count on him still thinking of her, too.

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“If You Forget Me” by Pablo Neruda – A Formal Poem Analysis

Today, our focus will be If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda. This poem deserves to see some level of analysis because it is one of the more notable poems of Pablo Neruda, and his work has come to be seen as some of the most important of the 20th century. This discussion will examine the poem but will also look at the writer and some of the themes of the text. If this is something that you like, then perhaps you’ll like even more of it if you keep reading!

Table of Contents

• 1 If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda Analysis
• 2 If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda Summary Points
• 3 Biography of Pablo Neruda
• 4.1 Stanza One
• 4.2 Stanza Two
• 4.3 Stanza Three
• 4.4 Stanza Four
• 4.5 Stanza Five
• 4.6 Stanza Six
• 5 The Themes of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda
• 6.1 What Is If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda?
• 6.2 Who Was Pablo Neruda?
• 6.3 What Are the Themes of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda?

If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda Analysis

If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda is considered to be one of the best poems by this notable Chilean figure, and its examination of longing has come to be seen as some of the best of the 20th century. This is the reason that I shall be committing to a far more in-depth look at this text. However, let’s first have a look at something else to help us on our way.

If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda Summary Points

It can be very helpful to have a nice little summary of things to come, and that is exactly the point of what we will be doing right here. This summary should be beneficial to you if you wish to learn about If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda:

• If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda is a poem about longing. The text is concerned with an immense sense of longing that one might experience when one is deeply in love with another.
• If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda is written in free verse. This means that it does not follow any ordinary kind of structure, and it also does not use rhyme or a set meter throughout the poem.
• If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda was originally in Spanish. The original title of this poem was Si tú me olvidas , but it has been translated into many languages throughout the world.

A good summary is a useful thing. However, this poem should also be examined in a far more in-depth fashion. That is what I will soon do for you.

Let’s first have a look at a very brief biography of the writer in question.

Biography of Pablo Neruda

Pablo Neruda is considered to be one of the most important writers of the 20 th century as well as being considered to be the national poet of Chile. He was involved in the politics of the country and was even forced to flee Chile for a time because of his role in the political landscape of the country. His work is seen as powerful and explores ideas related to love, the natural world, and politics. However, the best way to come to a better understanding of him is by having a look at some of the poetry for which he was so famous.

An In-Depth Analysis of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda

As we get into this analysis of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda, we should first note that this poem is written in a free verse style. This means that there are no real uses of definitive rhyme or metrical structure. However, while this is the case with much of the poetry that Pablo Neruda wrote, it is still worth mentioning something about translation here. You see, the fact that this poem was translated is actually quite an important thing.

Whenever you translate something from one language to another, you will automatically change the words and how they are used.

In many languages, word orders are changed, and so this could irrevocably alter the rhyme of a poem because the wrong words are in the wrong order. However, this is similar to when it comes to the differences in words themselves. If you had written that a “tree makes you free”, you can see that rhyme in English, but arbre (tree) and gratuite (free) do not rhyme at all. You can also see that these English examples have one syllable each, but the French translations do not. So, the meter of a poem would also be changed by translating it.

Why mention all of this when it comes to an analysis of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda? Well, because this poem was ordinarily written in Spanish! That means that the entire poem had to be altered from its original form into what it can be read as in English. You should keep this in mind and, generally, focus more on the content of the text rather than the form because the form, such as the language and composition, would likely have changed quite a lot.

I want you to know

The first stanza of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda is a very short one and it is a single statement. However, this statement is spread over two lines and so it features the use of enjambment to run from one line to the next. This statement simply reads that the speaker wants us, as the readers, to know just one thing. What that thing is, we have not yet been made aware.

However, this is a powerful way to open a poem as it allows us to immediately start wondering what exactly this thing is that the speaker wants us to know. It creates a certain sense of expectation.

You know how this is:

at the crystal moon, at the red branch

of the slow autumn at my window,

near the fire

the impalpable ash

or the wrinkled body of the log,

everything carries me to you,

as if everything that exists,

aromas, light, metals,

were little boats

toward those isles of yours that wait for me.

The first four lines that are presented to us in this stanza provide to us a single thought, and that thought is directly tied up with a setting. We are told about a moon that looks like a crystal in the sky and a branch that is colored red. The season has been labeled as autumn, or fall, and so we know that the world can take on more of an orange hue at this time of year.

The next four lines contain their own series of thoughts, and they contemplate the way in which the speaker might touch that fire that can be found above us all or the tree from which the branch extends.

We are provided with the imagery of the natural world here. And that is reaffirmed when it comes to the speaker’s next statement. Over the next few lines, the speaker discusses the way in which he is brought to thoughts of his lover. These natural elements make him think of her. Every smell, touch, and sight led him to think of her. He even states that all of those sensations are metaphorical boats that take him toward her.

Stanza Three

if little by little you stop loving me

I shall stop loving you little by little.

This is a rather short stanza, and it tells us something very simple. He loves this person, but if she were to stop loving him, he would stop loving her. It would be a lengthier process, as he refers to it as happening “little by little”, but it would still eventually come to pass.

The longing and desire he has to be with her is something ephemeral, and it can fade away the longer he is apart from her.

Stanza Four

If suddenly

you forget me

do not look for me,

for I shall already have forgotten you.

This fourth stanza operates alongside the previous stanza by stating that if she were to simply forget about him, to abandon him, then he would have done the same to her. This shows a reciprocal understanding of love. It cannot simply be a one-sided affair for it to be able to last through time and remain as strong and firm as ever.

There is a need for both partners in a relationship to be present for the other.

Stanza Five

If you think it long and mad,

the wind of banners

that passes through my life,

and you decide

to leave me at the shore

of the heart where I have roots,

that on that day,

at that hour,

I shall lift my arms

and my roots will set off

to seek another land.

The use of both natural and naval imagery persists in this stanza as the speaker addresses this lover of his. He states that if she does not accept the little boats mentioned before, and they are not caught on the wind that guides him to her and her to him, then their love for one another will gradually fade away and wither into nothingness.

She states that if she were to leave his boat at the shore if she were to abandon him, then he would pull himself away.

There is also the image of a tree here with deep roots. When he is with her, his roots are powerful and firm, but if she were to abandon him and no longer wish for him to be there, then he would pull out his own roots so that he might find some other place to call his home. We are treated to further geographical images here. She is referred to as a series of isles in the second stanza, and so she is directly compared to the land into which roots can be planted. However, he would “seek another land” in which to plant his roots if it comes to that. We can see that while there is a sense of longing in the speaker, there is also a fear of being abandoned, and a determination to not allow that abandonment to persist if he is not taken as her lover.

if each day,

you feel that you are destined for me

with implacable sweetness,

if each day a flower

climbs up to your lips to seek me,

ah my love, ah my own,

in me all that fire is repeated,

in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten,

my love feeds on your love, beloved,

and as long as you live it will be in your arms

without leaving mine.

Once we get to the final stanza of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda, we can see that the text repeatedly provides the speaker’s lover with something of an ultimatum. He tells her that if she wants to be with him and feels that she is destined for him and he for her, then they can be together forever. Their love and connection are compared to a flower and fire.

There is also a sensuality to describing the way that their lips will come together if she decides to be with him, and this will seal them together with one another.

It states that “my love feeds on your love”, and so that reciprocity that was mentioned before can be seen in full swing here too. Their love cannot be one-sided because it simply will never work. They need to love one another, and then they will be in each other’s arms for the rest of their lives. Thus ends If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda, and, hopefully, this analysis has elucidated what it discusses.

The Themes of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda

The primary themes that can be found in If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda include those to do with a sense of deep longing. There are fears of being abandoned and a desire to be with someone who is the object of immense affection. It may not be quite right to see the poem as necessarily being about love itself but rather the feelings that emerge alongside love. This is one of the reasons that the poem has come to be so beloved over the decades since it was published.

Over the course of this article, I have provided an analysis of the poem in question, but there is much to still be learned if you read it for yourself. However, the more you read any writer’s work, the more you will come to understand the kind of message that they wished to present to the world. If you want to learn a whole lot more than what I have shown you today, you can certainly do so!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is if you forget me by pablo neruda.

This is a poem by Pablo Neruda that is notable as one of the most well-known of his career. It is concerned with feelings of longing for a loved one. It is known for the way that it uses vivid and emotional language.

Who Was Pablo Neruda?

Pablo Neruda was a Chilean writer and politician. While his political work was aimed at diplomatic relations, his poetry spanned a number of topics such as love, politics, and the natural world. His work has been an inspiration to many, and it can be noted as some of the best of the previous century.

What Are the Themes of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda?

The principal themes that are explored in If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda include those related to a sense of deep devotion and longing that can be experienced by those who are in love. However, there is also a sense of realism that can be noted within it.

Justin van Huyssteen is a freelance writer, novelist, and academic originally from Cape Town, South Africa. At present, he has a bachelor’s degree in English and literary theory and an honor’s degree in literary theory. He is currently working towards his master’s degree in literary theory with a focus on animal studies, critical theory, and semiotics within literature. As a novelist and freelancer, he often writes under the pen name L.C. Lupus.

Justin’s preferred literary movements include modern and postmodern literature with literary fiction and genre fiction like sci-fi, post-apocalyptic, and horror being of particular interest. His academia extends to his interest in prose and narratology. He enjoys analyzing a variety of mediums through a literary lens, such as graphic novels, film, and video games.

Justin is working for artincontext.org as an author and content writer since 2022. He is responsible for all blog posts about architecture, literature and poetry.

Learn more about Justin van Huyssteen and the Art in Context Team .

Cite this Article

Justin, van Huyssteen, ““If You Forget Me” by Pablo Neruda – A Formal Poem Analysis.” Art in Context. March 19, 2024. URL: https://artincontext.org/if-you-forget-me-by-pablo-neruda/

van Huyssteen, J. (2024, 19 March). “If You Forget Me” by Pablo Neruda – A Formal Poem Analysis. Art in Context. https://artincontext.org/if-you-forget-me-by-pablo-neruda/

van Huyssteen, Justin. ““If You Forget Me” by Pablo Neruda – A Formal Poem Analysis.” Art in Context , March 19, 2024. https://artincontext.org/if-you-forget-me-by-pablo-neruda/ .

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