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Neruda

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The first half of Neruda's poem offers context to beauty within the structure. The choice of beautiful content ultimately offers a stronger point in his protest since he explains what people expect him to write.
The poem begins by questioning the reader, assuming that the reader would ask Neruda, "where are the lilacs?/ And the poppy-petalled metaphysics?/ And the rain repeatedly spattering/ and drilling them full/ of apertures and birds?" Neruda decided to engage the reader by acknowledging the reader's need for a typically beautiful poem. Due to the assumption, the first half of the poem describes the beautiful land of Spain in the typicality of Neruda's writings. Neruda speaks mostly to the past in this beauty, mesmerizing the reader with …show more content…

The tone allows a clear and strong purpose to be visible for the reader. The sudden shift from the beautiful past to the dreary reality of Spain is clear, as Neruda explains the land, his house, and the markets to when "all that was burning." This sentence bursts with Neruda's angry passion. It establishes the explanation of the fire that engulfed the people of Spain from 1936 to 1939, and the unimaginable deaths and waves of blood. The tone from the "wave on wave of tomatoes rolling down the sea" to "all of [it] burning" reflects the sudden change that the people of Spain had to go through during the Spanish War. By describing the contrasting past and present, an imitation of the emotions felt by innocent people stuck in between war is given to the reader.
As Neruda explains the horrors, he changes his tone yet again to an attacking anger towards the "treacherous generals". He asks them to "see [his] dead house,/ [and to] look at broken Spain". This change in tone creates a peak in the poem; a point where the arousal of anger reaches its highest …show more content…

The second sentence changes the rhythm of the answer, putting emphasis on "come and see", which imposes the sincerity of the statement. Neruda truly intends for those who do not understands the despair in Spain must come and look for themselves. The final sentence changes the emphasis yet again to accentuate "come and see the blood". Blood has the most stress in the final sentence. The third repeat of the statement is meant to be yelled, indicated by an explanation point. The sentence is read in a shouting voice, finalizing the importance of the statement. The purpose of the poem shines through the repeated statement as Neruda expects the reader to realize their ignorance. How could Neruda possibly write purely on beautiful landscapes and dreams when he is living amongst streets painted with

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