You can say anything you want, yessir, but it's the words that sing, they soar and descend...I bow to them...I love them, I cling to them, I run them down, I bite into them, I melt them down...I love words so much...The unexpected ones...The ones I wait for greedily or stalk until, suddenly, they drop.
Interpretation
This quote expresses a deep passion and reverence for the beauty and power of words.
In this quote, Pablo Neruda conveys his profound admiration for the magic of language. He describes words as living entities that evoke emotions, inspire creativity, and connect people. The act of chasing after words symbolizes the relentless quest for expression and meaning, showcasing how they can resonate with the soul and elicit powerful feelings. His enthusiasm for the unexpected and unique words underlines the joy of discovery in language, emphasizing its significance in the human experience.
In practice
In a speech about the impact of literature on society, one might say, 'As Pablo Neruda said, words soar and descend; they hold the power to inspire change.'
Perhaps this war will pass like the others which divided us leaving us dead, killing us along with the killers but the shame of this time puts its burning fingers to our faces. Who will erase the ruthlessness hidden in innocent blood?
I want to see the thirst inside the syllables I want to touch the fire in the sound: I want to feel the darkness of the cry. I want words as rough as virgin rocks.” - Verb.
Only do not forget, if I wake up crying it's only because in my dream I'm a lost child hunting through the leaves of the night for your hands.
And here am I, budding among the ruins with only sorrow to bite on, as if weeping were a seed and I the earth's only furrow.
Once more I am the silent one who came out of the distance wrapped in cold rain and bells: I owe to earth's pure death the will to sprout.
I learned about life from life itself, love I learned in a single kiss and could teach no one anything except that I have lived with something in common among men.
There have been times when I'm writing about things that are personally embarrassing. Like any human being, sometimes I can't help but wonder - 'What are the people I know going to think about this?' So I have to remind myself that all is permissible. Art has to be a free space. Language has to be a free space.
People sometimes forget all the films that we've done. They remember the likes of 'Malcolm X' and 'Do the Right Thing.' But I've been working since 1986. From the beginning, I was determined to not just be a flash in the pan. I've got to keep up with Woody Allen. He's lapping me.
As a writer of fiction, I spend my days inventing real lives for make-believe people; what I create can only seem real.
And then there came the pounding of another drum, as if another giant were coming yards behind him, and each giant, intent on his own drum, gave no notice to the rhythm of the other. The sound grew louder and louder until it seemed to fill not just my hearing but all my senses, to be throbbing in my lips and fingers, in the flesh of my temples, in my veins.
Anxious, inexperienced writers obey rules. Rebellious, unschooled writers break rules. Artists master the form.
The long path from material through function to creative work has only one goal: to create order out of the desperate confusion of our time.
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