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Windows That Open Inward: Images of Chile
Other titles by Pablo Neruda available from
The Book of Questions (Copper Canyon Press), 1-55659-041-5 PB • 1-55659-040-7 HC
Ceremonial Songs (Latin American Literary Review Press), 0-935480-80-3 PB
Neruda at Isla Negra (White Pine Press), 1-877727-83-0 PB
Neruda’s Garden (Latin American Literary Review Press), 0-935480-68-4 PB
The Sea and the Bells (Copper Canyon Press), 1-55659-019-9 PB
The Separate Rose (Copper Canyon Press), 0-914742-88-4 PB
Still Another Day (Copper Canyon Press), 0-914742-77-9 PB
Stones of the Sky (Copper Canyon Press), 1-55659-007-5 PB • 1-55659-006-7 HC
Winter Garden , (Copper Canyon Press), 0-914742-93-0 PB • 0-914742-99-X HC
Yellow Heart , (Copper Canyon Press), 1-55659-029-6 PB
The Book of Questions (Copper Canyon Press), 1-55659-041-5 PB • 1-55659-040-7 HC
Ceremonial Songs (Latin American Literary Review Press), 0-935480-80-3 PB
Neruda at Isla Negra (White Pine Press), 1-877727-83-0 PB
Neruda’s Garden (Latin American Literary Review Press), 0-935480-68-4 PB
The Sea and the Bells (Copper Canyon Press), 1-55659-019-9 PB
The Separate Rose (Copper Canyon Press), 0-914742-88-4 PB
Still Another Day (Copper Canyon Press), 0-914742-77-9 PB
Stones of the Sky (Copper Canyon Press), 1-55659-007-5 PB • 1-55659-006-7 HC
Winter Garden , (Copper Canyon Press), 0-914742-93-0 PB • 0-914742-99-X HC
Yellow Heart , (Copper Canyon Press), 1-55659-029-6 PB
- GenresPoetry
96 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1984
1 person is currently reading
32 people want to read
About the author
Pablo Neruda
1,083 books9,649 followersPablo Neruda, born Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto in 1904 in Parral, Chile, was a poet, diplomat, and politician, widely considered one of the most influential literary figures of the 20th century. From an early age, he showed a deep passion for poetry, publishing his first works as a teenager. He adopted the pen name Pablo Neruda to avoid disapproval from his father, who discouraged his literary ambitions. His breakthrough came with Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada (Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair, 1924), a collection of deeply emotional and sensual poetry that gained international recognition and remains one of his most celebrated works.
Neruda’s career took him beyond literature into diplomacy, a path that allowed him to travel extensively and engage with political movements around the world. Beginning in 1927, he served in various consular posts in Asia and later in Spain, where he witnessed the Spanish Civil War and became an outspoken advocate for the Republican cause. His experiences led him to embrace communism, a commitment that would shape much of his later poetry and political activism. His collection España en el corazón (Spain in Our Hearts, 1937) reflected his deep sorrow over the war and marked a shift toward politically engaged writing.
Returning to Chile, he was elected to the Senate in 1945 as a member of the Communist Party. However, his vocal opposition to the repressive policies of President Gabriel Gonzalez Videla led to his exile. During this period, he traveled through various countries, including Argentina, Mexico, and the Soviet Union, further cementing his status as a global literary and political figure. It was during these years that he wrote Canto General (1950), an epic work chronicling Latin American history and the struggles of its people.
Neruda’s return to Chile in 1952 marked a new phase in his life, balancing political activity with a prolific literary output. He remained a staunch supporter of socialist ideals and later developed a close relationship with Salvador Allende, who appointed him as Chile’s ambassador to France in 1970. The following year, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, recognized for the scope and impact of his poetry. His later years were marked by illness, and he died in 1973, just days after the military coup that overthrew Allende. His legacy endures, not only in his vast body of work but also in his influence on literature, political thought, and the cultural identity of Latin America.
Neruda’s career took him beyond literature into diplomacy, a path that allowed him to travel extensively and engage with political movements around the world. Beginning in 1927, he served in various consular posts in Asia and later in Spain, where he witnessed the Spanish Civil War and became an outspoken advocate for the Republican cause. His experiences led him to embrace communism, a commitment that would shape much of his later poetry and political activism. His collection España en el corazón (Spain in Our Hearts, 1937) reflected his deep sorrow over the war and marked a shift toward politically engaged writing.
Returning to Chile, he was elected to the Senate in 1945 as a member of the Communist Party. However, his vocal opposition to the repressive policies of President Gabriel Gonzalez Videla led to his exile. During this period, he traveled through various countries, including Argentina, Mexico, and the Soviet Union, further cementing his status as a global literary and political figure. It was during these years that he wrote Canto General (1950), an epic work chronicling Latin American history and the struggles of its people.
Neruda’s return to Chile in 1952 marked a new phase in his life, balancing political activity with a prolific literary output. He remained a staunch supporter of socialist ideals and later developed a close relationship with Salvador Allende, who appointed him as Chile’s ambassador to France in 1970. The following year, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, recognized for the scope and impact of his poetry. His later years were marked by illness, and he died in 1973, just days after the military coup that overthrew Allende. His legacy endures, not only in his vast body of work but also in his influence on literature, political thought, and the cultural identity of Latin America.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 2, 2015
How to arrange myself to seem bad and remain well? It is like when one looks at himself in the mirror (or the portrait) looking for the beautiful angel (without
anyone observing it) to check that one keeps on being the same always.
Some plant themselves sideways, others will imprint the truth with that which they would like to be, others will ask themselves: How am I really?
But the truth is that we all like taking notes on ourselves, lying in ambush for our own selves, declaring only the most visible, and hiding the irregularity of the apprenticeship and of time ... But, let's get to the point.
For my part I am or believe I am hard of nose, minimal of eyes, scarce of hair on the head, growing of abdomen, long-legged, wide-soled, yellow of face, generous in loves, impossible to calculate, confused with words, tender of hand, slow in going, unrustable heart; fan of the stars, tides, tidal waves; admirer of scarabs, walker of sands, slow of intuition, Chilean to perpetuity, friend of my friends, mute to enemies, intruder among birds, badly educated in the house, timid in the salons, audacious in solitude, repentent without object, a horrendous administrator, navigator of the mouth, stirrer of ink, discreet among animals, lucky in cloudbursts, investigator in the markets, dark in the libraries, melancholic in the mountains, untiring in the forests, very slow in answering, happening years later, vulgar throughout the year, resplendent with my notebook, monumental of appetite, a tiger for sleeping, quiet in joy, inspector of the nocturnal heavens, invisible worker, persistently irregular,valiant by necessity, coward without sin, sleepy by vocation, friendly with women, active through suffering, poet by malediction, and ignorant fool.
anyone observing it) to check that one keeps on being the same always.
Some plant themselves sideways, others will imprint the truth with that which they would like to be, others will ask themselves: How am I really?
But the truth is that we all like taking notes on ourselves, lying in ambush for our own selves, declaring only the most visible, and hiding the irregularity of the apprenticeship and of time ... But, let's get to the point.
For my part I am or believe I am hard of nose, minimal of eyes, scarce of hair on the head, growing of abdomen, long-legged, wide-soled, yellow of face, generous in loves, impossible to calculate, confused with words, tender of hand, slow in going, unrustable heart; fan of the stars, tides, tidal waves; admirer of scarabs, walker of sands, slow of intuition, Chilean to perpetuity, friend of my friends, mute to enemies, intruder among birds, badly educated in the house, timid in the salons, audacious in solitude, repentent without object, a horrendous administrator, navigator of the mouth, stirrer of ink, discreet among animals, lucky in cloudbursts, investigator in the markets, dark in the libraries, melancholic in the mountains, untiring in the forests, very slow in answering, happening years later, vulgar throughout the year, resplendent with my notebook, monumental of appetite, a tiger for sleeping, quiet in joy, inspector of the nocturnal heavens, invisible worker, persistently irregular,valiant by necessity, coward without sin, sleepy by vocation, friendly with women, active through suffering, poet by malediction, and ignorant fool.
June 8, 2017
Beautiful poems from throughout Neruda's career paired with beautiful pictures of the people and places of Chiloe, an island in southern Chile.
January 3, 2016
He moves the soul. He reminds us that the world is always in tandem. We are pained by those we elect. We are pushed out by those we have chosen to trust.
There are a lot of up and downs in his life. He strives through it all, deciding to comfort himself in letters and words, propelling us towards greater places by reading him.
I think this collection, proves one thing, home is best, whenever, forever.
I'll forever keep on reading this.
There are a lot of up and downs in his life. He strives through it all, deciding to comfort himself in letters and words, propelling us towards greater places by reading him.
I think this collection, proves one thing, home is best, whenever, forever.
I'll forever keep on reading this.
January 4, 2016
What a way to kick off this year with poetry.
Neruda be deep.
With aphorisms and political overtones....plus a dash of some love dust...
What more would anyone ask for?
https://storify.com/samdemic/windows-...
Neruda be deep.
With aphorisms and political overtones....plus a dash of some love dust...
What more would anyone ask for?
https://storify.com/samdemic/windows-...
October 1, 2015
Read it and read it again. It's a story, told in verse and photography - perfectly translated - a sad reminder, with its melodramatic ups and downs, that the world is so much more than easy.
January 2, 2016
More than poetry.
Read
November 11, 2016983 R735 1985
Read
January 4, 2016Deep, Mind Provocating and enlightening.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews