Pablo Neruda: Sonnet XVII

Pablo Neruda was a Chilean poet who died in 1973. I became acquainted with his poetry through James Wright, who translated some of Neruda’s poems for his book, Collected Poems. Neruda’s surprising, sometimes surreal imagery resonated in my imagination so I picked up The Essential Neruda sometime last year.

Reading Neruda was an experience. His poems range from narrative and accessible to mind-bending inner landscapes of abstraction. Most poems in the collection I bought were free verse but for this post I’d like to share one of his sonnets: Love Sonnet XVII.

Part of the reason I selected this sonnet is it displays several of aspects of Neruda’s writing in one poem (plus, it’s short!). Love Sonnet XVII includes rich, curious imagery coupled with almost metaphysical abstraction. While some of the abstractions could feel alien, Neruda’s imagery brings things down to earth and evokes universal feelings.

Here is one stanza:

I love you as the plant that doesn’t bloom but carries   
the light of those flowers, hidden, within itself,   
and thanks to your love the tight aroma that arose   
from the earth lives dimly in my body.

I hope this sample will whet your appetite and encourage you to read the whole sonnet here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/49236/one-hundred-love-sonnets-xvii