Jake Cogswell, Stephen Pistorius, Whitney McBride, Elizabeth Morales
Literary Analysis
Period 5
Have you ever encountered an exotic predator that changed you? Pablo Neruda
did. Pablo Neruda was a twentieth century poet as well as a Chilean diplomat. Being a
diplomat brought him many opportunities to travel and have interesting experiences. His
poem “Black Pantheress” is his account of one such experience where he came face to
face with a pantheress while traveling in Singapore. In “Black Pantheress,” Neruda uses
creative imagery, an expansive vocabulary, and poetical syntax to explain the impact the
encounter with the panther had on him.
In the beginning of the poem, Neruda uses some great imagery to set the scene for
his encounter with the panther. He uses unconventional methods and words that, though
they seem spontaneous, help you visualize the scene perfectly. He describes there being
“a blood heat of rain” on the day of his encounter (3-4). Though it was not raining blood,
it describes the warmth of the rain in Singapore, which is a tropical country in Southeast
Asia, on that day. Another example of Neruda using this method can be found in the
seventh through tenth lines when he describes the walls as being “bitten/with wet/and the
leprous kiss/of humidity” (7-10). The walls cannot literally become lepers, so Neruda
uses this word not in the sense of the disease but rather in the sense that the humidity is
making the walls decay and erode. In the first line of the second stanza, Neruda says he
“drowned in Betel.” Betel is a pepper commonly found in Singapore so he could not
literally drown in it. This helps us visualize that as he walks through the alley, the Betel
surrounds him.
Neruda’s use of descriptive vocabulary also contributes to the picture of the
setting in the readers mind. In the fifth line, he calls the walls “moldering” which means
“turning to dust” (5). This reinforces the picture of the aged and decaying walls
surrounding him. Neruda also describes the sun to be “implacable,” which is a synonym
of merciless (16). This word helps us visualize the heat of the sun beating down upon him
through the clouds.
The poetical architecture also helps him create imagery. He uses his lines and line
breaks to put emphasis on particular words that help describe the setting. For example, in
the seventh line, he separates the word bitten from the other lines even though there is
room on the line to put it. He wants to emphasize the fact that the walls are slowly being
eaten away. In the seventeenth line, he separates iron from the rest of the poem as well.
He wants to emphasize the unchanging nature of the sun in the sky.
Neruda introduces the theme element of the poem in the next lines. Up until this
point, Neruda has described the city of Singapore as he traveled its alleys. None of what
he has seen has given him pause, but what he sees next commands his attention. Neruda
writes that he “suddenly saw it/the face in a cage/by my face” (26-28). His first sighting
of the pantheress was both sudden and up close. He found himself unexpectedly staring
this creature in the eye. Out of all the parts of a panther Neruda could have described, he
chose the eyes first. He did this to show that what he saw in those eyes had the most
impact on him. By using these lines as his introductory description of the pantheress,
Neruda ensures that they will influence the reader’s opinion in much the same way that
people are influenced by their first impression of a stranger.
Neruda describes the panther’s eyes as “magnets” (32). He implies that the eyes
draw his gaze to them. No matter how hard he struggles, the panther’s eyes draw his own
to them. He also describes its eyes as “electric antagonists” (33). Neruda uses these words
to evoke in his readers the hostility he felt emanating from the panther’s gaze. Neruda’s
use of this phrase makes his readers view the panther as dangerous, maybe even as an
enemy, from the moment he introduces it. The final description Neruda gives of the eyes
makes them seem like living things. The way he writes makes it seem that the pantheress’
eyes are drilling through his and bolting him to the ground. His writing easily brings to
mind the image of a man transfixed by the gaze of a predator. This image, as well as the
idea that the panther is hostile, remains with the reader throughout the rest of the poem.
Neruda next uses a line with the single word “saw” to show that he is changing
topics (26). By having that word on its own line, Neruda takes the readers attention off of
the panther’s eyes and prepares them for the next description of the panther. That
description centers on a motion the pantheress makes, a simple “surge,” as Neruda writes.
Yet that simple motion has great impact on him (40). He describes the panther’s “flexing
perfection” in one line, and on the next again describes it as “darkness made perfect” (4344). Neruda twice describes the pantheress as perfect. In doing so, he conveys the great
respect he had gained for this creature merely by looking at it.
Throughout the third stanza, Neruda uses short lines, the longest being only five
words. The short lines make the reading somewhat slower and choppier. However, it
emphasizes the relationships between the words of each line. Every line relates either to
describing the look of the panther, or an action it is performing. The separation of these
descriptions into lines makes each part of the description stand out more, making it more
memorable and impactful to the reader. One such example that really stood out was when
he described the pantheress eyes as “electric antagonists” (27). This description was far
more memorable by itself than it would have been if it was on a line with another
description.
Besides using varying lengths of lines, Neruda also uses expressive vocabulary to
compare the pantheress’ skin to the night and soon after he talks about her transparency.
This shows that the pantheress has skin similar to that of the night itself, and that she
seems almost transparent as she blends in with the night. He continues to describe the
pantheress as having a bit of sparkle in her eyes, “like a pollen-fall,” as well as comparing
the flecks of brightness in her eyes to a gold hexagon or a topaz rhombus (47). Using
these words shows that the only reason he could see the pantheress was because of her
bright eyes. It creates a somewhat contrasting image because pollen looks pretty, but also
causes allergies and annoyance. Just as the pantheress looks beautiful, she can cause
harm as well.
Neruda shifts the focus back to her general appearance when he explains that she
had a “tapering/presence” that has “displaced itself” (53-55). The words “tapering” and
“displacement” show that the pantheress has dwindling health and does not seem to be
completely present. Neruda adds to her apparent lack of health by describing her as
“throbbing.” The word throbbing represents the pain the pantheress feels. Neruda’s final
description of the pantheress in this stanza shows it “thinking/its thoughts,” this builds in
the readers a sense of curiosity as to what the pantheress ponders (57-58).
Besides using an expansive vocabulary, Neruda makes use of certain line breaks
to add to the image. He sets specific words on a line by themselves; causing us to pay
special attention to those lines as well as making us read those parts a bit slower.
Specifically, the word midway set off on a line by itself shows that it contains
significance. It does not seem like one word would particularly matter to the poem.
However, when looked at as part of the whole section, the word midway shows us that
the pantheress was not completely on the trash but was instead only midway on the trash.
This shows that the panther has not been entirely covered in filth, and can still maintain
some dignity.
In the last few lines of the third stanza, Neruda creates a very powerful image
when he describes the pantheress as “a/barbarous/queen” (60-61). Comparing the
pantheress to a queen shows the pantheress’ beauty and rank; however she resides in
squalor. This makes the reader feel that the cage and filth are not worthy of such a queen.
Using this image of a queen expresses the idea of a wrongly imprisoned pantheress, who
belongs somewhere worthy of her caliber. This, in turn, creates the feeling that no animal
deserves placement in some box in the street. Neruda clearly feels that the pantheress
deserves to live in a jungle and not in such lowly conditions. Although the poet lived
before animal rights activism gained major attention, the reader can clearly tell that
Neruda feels that the pantheress was wrongly treated.
In the last two stanza’s “The Black Pantheress,” Pablo Neruda uses very creative
imagery to set the mood of how dangerous and powerful the city is, similar to the
panther. He describes the city in such a way as to make it appear untrustworthy. The
description of the scene also shows a very quiet and dangerous environment, almost as if
the panther is influences everything in its surroundings. Neruda’s words make the whole
alley seem cramped, similar to the pantheress’ cage. He next explains how bittersweet the
life of the pantheress has become, having once been a queen, and yet now she has fallen
from the top of the food chain.
The next few lines compare the dwellings of the humans, calling them “powdery”
(72). Neruda uses this word to emphasize the softness of the humans compared to the
predatory strength embodied in the pantheress. As he continues to describe the panther,
he once again describes her eyes. The pantheress’ eyes, described as “mineral,” declare
her strength and her contempt for all she sees (75). Neruda also describes her eyes as
“unbreakable/seals” focused on the jungle (80-81). He clearly felt that the pantheress still
longed for her home. In the last stanza of the poem, Neruda explains that the panther
“walked/like a holocaust” (85-86). With these words he paints a picture in the reader’s
mind the destruction and death that the pantheress is capable of causing, reaffirming his
opinion of her dangerousness.
Neruda ends the poem when he loses sight of the pantheress. She closes her eyes,
and her dark skin blends completely into the “smoke” of night (87). This part of Neruda’s
poem gives the pantheress an air of mystery. The final line says that the pantheress “was
one with the night,” which makes the reader feel that the pantheress finally gained some
freedom (88). This conclusion shows the evolution of Neruda’s feelings towards the
creature he stumbled upon, starting with surprise and fear, then progressing to respect,
and even awe towards this majestic and mysterious creature.
Through creative imagery, the structure of the poem, and descriptive vocabulary,
Neruda depicts with vivid detail his encounter with a foreign predator. With these literary
devices, the poem shows the awe he feels for this panther and the way it has affected him.
Pablo Neruda’s “Black Patheress” a poetic masterpiece.