Residencia en la tierra: Tercera residencia (Biblioteca Pablo Neruda)

by Pablo Neruda

Los poemas de Residencia en la tierra 1 y 2 fueron escritos entre 1925 y 1935, en Chile, en el Lejano Oriente, en Argentina y en España. Residencia en la tierra 1 se publicó en Chile, durante 1933, en una hermosa y muy limitada edición. En 1935, Neruda reeditó este libro en Madrid, agregando otros poemas, que forman Residencia en la Tierra 2 . Desde entonces ambas Residencias  se han publicado como dos partes de un mismo libro. Con Residencia en la tierra Neruda se situó como uno de los poetas más importantes de las letras hispánicas contemporáneas.
En Tercera residencia , que el poeta empieza a escribir durante 1934, además de cierta singular poesía amorosa incluye cantos con tono épico popular sobre la lucha contra el fascismo y poemas americanos, como " Un canto para Bolívar ". A partir de este libro, Neruda reconoce un fuerte compromiso político que cambiará su poesía. Asimismo, asume una posición crítica frente al individualismo atormentado y a la figura del poeta egocéntrico y solitario, afirmando, en cambio, el valor de la poesía en las luchas y en la conciencia colectiva de los pueblos. 
Siempre se menciona el corte de la poesía nerudiana que se produce entre Residencia en la tierra 1 y 2 , y Tercera residencia . Sin embargo, algunos críticos han hecho notar ciertas continuidades de temas y de estilo, por lo que podría hablarse de un " ciclo de las Residencias ". 

189 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2019

About the author

Pablo 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.

Reviews

[Francisco Barrios · Rating 4 out of 5]

Los poemas de este libro abarcan periodo de diez años dividido en dos partes: De 1925 a 1931 y de 1931 a 1935.

Si bien hay poemas deslumbrantes (e.g., Arte poética, Sistema sombrío, Ángela adónica, Entierro en el este, Ritual de mis piernas, Sólo la muerte, El desenterrado, El reloj caído en el mar, y No hay olvido (sonata)), el tono general del libro se abreva casi por completo en la lírica de tintes conceptistas de la Generación del 27 y hace no pocas excursiones al Surrealismo, fruto del generoso intercambio vivido por el autor con las vanguardias europeas; de manera que si, a título personal, consideramos al mejor Neruda aquél de “Memorial de Isla Negra” u “Odas elementales” (para mí lo es), este “Residencia en la tierra” es en realidad una obra de transición entre su lírica juvenil de una fuerza poética admirable y la obra “de madurez”, fruto de un temperamento mucho más asentado y una concentración que no busca los fuegos artificiales de la abundancia verbal, sino la palabra justa, lentamente aquilatada, de cuño mucho más plástico y evocador.

Un buen libro, pero no el mejor de Neruda.

[Daniela · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Oyes caer la ropa, las llaves, las monedas
en las espesas casas donde llegas desnuda?”