Pablo Neruda's - Explaining a Few Things in Connection with Isabel Allende's House of Spirits

Through their separate mediums of writing, poetry and literature, both Neruda and Allende both achieve a common goal of criticizing the actions of certain militant forces, past or present, within there country of living. In Neruda’s “I’m explaining a Few Things”, the Civil Spanish war, sparked by the forceful and bloody overtake of the current, fair republican government by the Faschist general Fransisco Franco, is the topic of Neruda’s disgust and criticism. The “burning” and “devouring” manner of Franco’s revolt changed his political opinion concerning his fondness for the communistic ideals and history tells he realigned with the Republican Party. This same general theme persists in Allende’s House of Spirits as she criticizes the military coup that revolted against the fully democratic communist leader in power in Chile. Through obvious shifts in positive and negative connotation, strong war and peace imagery juxtaposition, and colloquial diction, Neruda highlights the reasons for his hatred for the unjust revolt in Spain during the 1930’s; a criticism almost paralleled in Allende’s House of Spirits.

Neruda begins his poem with a lengthy and vivid description of the prosperity experienced by himself and the town of Madrid before the bloody events of the 1930’s Spanish Civil War. The “lilacs”, “pile ups of palpitating bread”, and “the house of flowers” depicted the marvelous prosperity and happiness of the current times with the Republican Democracy. In House of Spirits, the great revival of the Tres Marias plantation and the exorbitance of Esteban Trueba’s life parallels the first half of Neruda’s poem in which a great Spain, a lovely Spain, is set stage for. The repetition of “flowers” and “light” emphasize the luxuries being enjoyed by Neruda in this great time of peace. This overwhelming image of peace and prosperity comes to an abrupt ending with a simple shift of “And one morning all that was burning.”. Neruda’s perfect and happy state of living is crushed with this one line, marking the beginning of the Civil War. After the shift, a plethora of “bonfires”, “blood”, and “bandits” engulf the city of Spain and “the blood of children ran through the streets.” Neruda accentuates that he completely opposes the Faschist uprising in his home of Spain with the exaggerated metaphors of “Jackals that the jackals would despise. Stones that the dry thistle would bite on and spit out.” Esteban Trueba’s eventual shift in character due to the violence seen by the military force of his beloved Conservative party in House of Spirits models after the shift in political alignment Neruda suffers after witnessing the blood shed of the innocent by the Faschists against the democratic Republicans. Both Neruda and Esteban realize that their current party is wrong in their doings, Neruda noting to “come and see the blood in the streets. Come and see the blood in the streets!”

Colloquial statements and questions such as “You are going to ask”, “I’ll tell you the news”, and even the title of the poem “I’m explaining a few things” represent Nerudas very personal and emotional stance on the blood-filled civil war. Such personal statements as “Eh, Rafel? Fredrico, do you remember from under the ground…” and “come and see the blood in the streets” reiterate Neruda’s personal involvement and feelings revolving the civil war. It is clear he wrote this poem from a personal standpoint,