If suddenly you do not exist,
if suddenly you no longer live,
I shall live on.
I do not dare,
I do not dare to write it,
if you die.
I shall live on.
For where a man has no voice,
there, my voice.
Where blacks are beaten,
I cannot be dead.
When my brothers go to prison
I shall go with them.
When victory,
not my victory,
but the great victory comes,
even though I am mute I must speak;
I shall see it come even
though I am blind.
No, forgive me.
If you no longer live,
if you, beloved, my love,
if you have died,
all the leaves will fall in my breast,
it will rain on my soul night and day,
the snow will burn my heart,
I shall walk with frost and fire and death and snow,
my feet will want to walk to where you are sleeping, but
I shall stay alive,
because above all things
you wanted me indomitable,
and, my love, because you know that I am not only a man
but all mankind.
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the whole poem
From guest hope cherrington (contact)
it is about one person coming to terms with death nothing more nothing less. this man has lost the one he lives and he is hurting and he wants to be with her but he knows that no matter how much he is hurting he will go on living -
Live on...
A very brave heart to speak the hard truth to one he loves: If you die, I will go on. But a heart that truly loves would want just that: for the object of love to continue. He later shows the depth of heartbreak he would suffer,"it will rain on my soul night and day", but he has the comfort of that knowledge we all have, we are more than this physical world, we DO go on...and so does the love we carry. -
Breathtaking
This piece was so beautiful. The imagery, descriptiveness, and flow of Pablo's excellently chosen words were fantastic. It is really terrible indeed, that we must miss this poet so talented, but at least his poetry lies in the archives, ready to be revealed to hungry eyes. -
Why is it Called "Dead Woman"
Is the narrator's voice that of a woman? I think so! Brilliant poem; I'm glad soccer2Katie pointed this out. -
I thought that Neruda was writing about his frustration of witnessing all of the deaths during the spanish civil war. He must do all that he can because he is alive and one person can make a difference in such a political struggle.
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