“Now
we will count to twelve
and
we will all keep still.
For
once on the face of the Earth
let’s
not speak in any language,
let’s
stop for one second,
and
not move our arms so much.”
The poet Neruda begins the poem by asking everyone to count
to twelve and keep still. These twelve seconds would help everyone calm
themselves and relax and be ready to begin introspection or retrospection. He
uses the number twelve that probably represents the dial of a clock.
He
says for ones on this earth let’s not speak in any language. Let’s break the
barriers of communication and speak no language at all for a few minutes.
Here the poet is encouraging a unified movement among people, with no
discrimination based on race or language. This would be a mass movement for the
first time on the face of the earth, and would greatly enhance unity. Let us
stop for a moment and not move our hands so much in violence i.e. Let us not
fight and argue so much.
1.
Why does the poet want us to count to
twelve?
Ans . The poet wants us to
count to twelve and keep quite so that we can get time to introspect and
realize our
faults.
2. What does the poet ask us to
do?
Ans.
He says for ones on this earth
let’s not speak in any language. Let’s break the barriers of communication and
speak no language at all for a few minutes. Here the poet is encouraging
a unified movement among people, with no discrimination based on race or
language. This would be a mass movement for the first time on the face of the
earth, and would greatly enhance unity. Let us stop for a moment and not move
our hands so much in violence i.e. Let us not fight and argue so much.
“It
would be an exotic moment
without
rush, without engines,
we
would all be together
in
a sudden strangeness.
Fishermen
in the cold sea
would
not harm whales
and
the man gathering salt
would
look at his hurt hands.”
It would be a splendid moment with reduced use of
engines. The silence or the peace would form the common link between all of us,
bringing us all together. Man would get an opportunity to realize how he is
destroying nature and harming himself in the process. The fishermen that harm
aquatic life would realize how nature brings them a cold reception. The man who
gathers salt from the sea would realize that nature strike back by hurting his
hands. Here the fishermen represent
proficient hunters of all kinds. The whales represent the oppressed class of
human beings, because of their helplessness. It is therefore a cry for the
oppressed. In this quiet moment of introspection, people would stop hurting
others in an attempt to understand themselves. The whole of humankind is in a
mad rush to finish off their existence and achieve whatever goals they set.
People are so occupied with the daily rush of things and the flurry to
accomplish their various goals that they never take the time to look into
themselves and understand themselves. Mankind has been personified as the salt
gatherer in the poem. In an exotic moment of peace, people would finally slow
down and look into themselves in an act of introspection, identify their
follies and rectify them, making them better human beings. These moments of silence would
be unique and enticing because in our mundane life, we are constantly working
towards selfish goals and never take the time to reflect.
v
Which
exotic moment does the poet refer to?
Ans. It is the quiet moment of introspection when
people would stop hurting others in an attempt to understand themselves.
v
Why
does the poet feel that the moment would be exotic?
Ans. The poet feel the
moment will be exotic because in
this moment of peace, people would finally slow down and look into themselves
in an act of introspection, identify their follies and rectify them, making
them better human beings. These
moments of silence would be unique and enticing because in our mundane life, we
are constantly working towards selfish goals and never take the time to
reflect.
“Those who prepare green wars,
wars
with gas, wars with fire,
victory
with no survivors,
would
put on clean clothes
and
walk about with their
brothers
in
the shade, doing nothing.”
Green wars can be thought of as wars wherein people
utilize nature – to hide themselves among the foliage of forests or make use of
the environment. “Victory with no survivors” is a paradox. People who win a war
claim to possess victory; but is that so? Have they not lost tremendous lives
in the process? How then can they claim to have had victory? All wars originate
from the lack of self-understanding, and the understanding that all individuals
are equal, which is why the poet stresses on introspection. There can be two
interpretations drawn out from the last few lines of the stanza. One
interpretation expounds that the people responsible for wars such as
politicians, scientists, trigger the war and later stay in the shade walking
hand in hand with the rival as brothers, while thousands of lives are lost in
the battle. Another explanation is that people are never happy to go to war.
They realize the absurdity of victory from war. As a result of this reflection,
People can be friendly as brothers, and walk about in the shade doing no
violence. So poet says
in this silence, futile wars against men and nature would
be arrested and a new feeling of unity would be experienced. Those who plan and
implement bio warfare and nuclear weaponry should, for once, shed their old
attire (profession and preoccupations) and put on clean clothes to walk among
their fellow men. They must use this time to truly witness what they would
destroy with their attempts to achieve a fruitless victory. Such a win leaves
no survivors because even if they were physically alive, they would be
emotionally dead and eventually, mankind will perish. The war will be a victory
of scientific knowledge but there will be no survivors left.
“What
I want should not be
confused
with
total inactivity.
Life
is what it is about;
I
want no truck with death.”
The poet’s words should not be confused with death or a
state of complete dormancy and worklessness. The poet’s message is about life
and he does not want it to be related in any way to death. It is not a state of
inactivity but rather of continued action at a slower pace.
“If
we were not so single-minded
about
keeping our lives moving,
and
for once could do nothing,
perhaps
a huge silence
might
interrupt this sadness
of
never understanding ourselves
and
of threatening ourselves with
death.”
As mentioned before, the basic concern of all human
beings is being alive. Human beings are single-minded about survival. Human
beings are in a mad rush to finish life and accomplish all their varied
targets. If people could slow down for once and do nothing, the massive silence
will intrude the despair of never appreciating or recognizing ourselves. When
we look around, all we see is an extremely pathetic condition wherein people
are only concerned or afraid of dying and never of understanding themselves.
Death is a threat to many of us because it means that we will not be able to fulfil
all the targets that we create. We will not be able to accomplish the task of
survival in peace.
“Perhaps
the Earth can teach us
as
when everything seems dead
and
later proves to be alive.”
This paragraph is possibly empathetic toward human
beings, persuading them to take a lesson from nature. During winter, the earth
is blanketed with a coat of ice, and it appears as though there is no life in
the environment. Even the air is frigid (frosty) and draughty. However, this is
not the end and this does not last for long. The earth gets itself refined of
all these trivial discrepancies, counting them all as a part of the
rejuvenation process. Despite all natural disasters and calamities, the earth
continues its journey. After a certain period of time, the cycle of
reconstruction continues. The earth rejuvenates itself and moves on, alive once
again.
“Now
I’ll count up to twelve
and
you keep quiet and I will go.”
Maintaining a third person viewpoint to the entire
dilemma, the poet leaves us on a train of thought. Now that he has passed on
the message, his work is done and he quietly leaves the scene.
Question-answers
Q.1. What is the sadness referred to in the
poem?
Ans. The sadness Pablo Neruda refers to in his poem,
‘Keeping Quiet’, is that of never being able to understand ourselves through
introspection. It also arises out of our mad rush to achieve everything quickly
due to our constant fear of the brevity of our lives.
Q.2. What is the significance of ‘twelve’ in the context
of this
poem?
Ans. Twelve here may represent twelve months or on the
face of the clock dividing the day into two halves of twelve hours each. This
poem is a plea for universal brotherhood and peace. At twelve, the hands of the
clock, despite their differences, become one. Hence, Neruda appeals to the
readers to take these symbolic twelve seconds to begin the journey from strife,
barriers and destruction to peace, unity and replenishment.
Extra
questions
1.
What
is the significance of
‘twelve’?
2.
Why does the poet want us not to
use our language and our arms?
3. What does the poet want us to do away
with?
4. Justify the statement: We would all be
together in a sudden strangeness
5.
What
would the fisherman not
do?
6.
What
would the man gathering salt do?
7.
What
transformation will these actions
bring?
8.
How
does nature respond to man's actions?
9.
What
are the different kinds of wars mentioned here?
10. What is the poet's advice to the warmongers?
11. Justify: 'Victory with no survivors'
12. What do the ‘clean clothes’ signify?
13. What lesson can we learn from
Earth?
14. The earth is the inactive hub of activity.
Discuss.
15. What does the word 'alive' imply in this
context?
16. What does the poet not want from the
listener/reader?
17. Explain: I have no truck with
death
