One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII

BY P AB LO NER UD A
TRANSLATED BY MARK E ISN ER

I don’t love you as if you were a rose of salt, topaz,

or arrow of carnations that propagate fire:
I love you as one loves certain obscure things,
secretly, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that doesn’t bloom but carries

the light of those flowers, hidden, within itself,
and thanks to your love the tight aroma that arose
from the earth lives dimly in my body.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where,

I love you directly without problems or pride:
I love you like this because I don’t know any other way to love,
except in this form in which I am not nor are you,
so close that your hand upon my chest is mine,
so close that your eyes close with my dreams.

One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII by Pablo Neruda

‘One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII’ is one of Neruda’s most famous sonnets. It is important to
note that ‘Sonnet XVII’ was translated from the original Spanish. That means that any pattern of
rhyme or rhythm has been lost. It was originally published in the collection, Cien sonetos de
amor or 100 Love Sonnets. Neruda published the poem in Argentina in 1959. It was dedicated to
his wife, Matilde. He separated the collection into four sections, morning, afternoon, evening,
and night.
Even without access to the title of the collection, this work appears in. A reader will immediately
understand that this piece is about love. The word appears nine times in the text, and
the speaker spends the entire first two stanzas attempting to relate his feelings of love to other
objects.

Summary of One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII

‘One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII’ by Pablo Neruda describes the love he feels and how it
surpasses any previous definition of what love could be.
In the first stanza, the speaker lists out a few things that his love is not like. These objects, a rose
and a flaming arrow are traditional representatives of love. His emotions go far beyond the
physical. They exist deeper and are present in the “shadow and the soul.” This makes it seem as
if his emotions are forbidden or ephemeral. They cannot be pegged down to anything as trite as a
rose.
The next section describes how his love is going to exist, no matter what. It is like the love one
would feel for a flower that is not blooming, existing needless of exterior beauty. In the final
lines, the speaker gives up trying to define his love through metaphor. He admits that he loves
this person, and that is that. There is no better way to put it.

Themes in One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII

As with most love sonnets, the themes in this piece are quite clear. Neruda was concerned with
the power and possibilities of love, as well as the human soul. The speaker digs deep into his
love in the lines of this sonnet. He is very aware of its complexities and the fact that simple
language is not enough to define it. Neruda uses phrases like “I love you as one loves certain
obscure things, / secretly, between the shadow and the soul” to describe this relationship. This
forces the reader to think on a much deeper level about what the relationship is like and how it
might transcend normal barriers.

Structure and Form of One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII

‘One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII’ by Pablo Neruda is a fourteen-line sonnet separated into
three stanzas. The first two stanzas contain four lines and are known as quatrains. The last stanza
has six lines and is known as a sextet. While sonnets are generally contained within one block of
text, they commonly follow this same pattern (of two quatrains and a sestet). The pattern
(regardless of rhyme) comes closest to the Petrarchan sonnet, named after the poet Francesco
Petrarca.
The space between the two sections of the poem is called the “turn.” This means that something
about the poem, whether that is the speaker, subject matter, or opinion of the narrator, changes.
The second half of a sonnet often also contains an answer to a question asked in the first or an
elaboration on the first’s details.

Literary Devices in One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII

Even though this poem was originally written in Spanish, there are several literary devices that
readers should take note of. These include repetition, enjambment, and imagery. The latter is one
of the most important techniques at work in ‘Sonnet XVII.’ As Neruda’s speaker, or Neruda, as
the case may be, it can be seen throughout the poem describing his love for the listener. He uses
lines like: “the light of those flowers, hidden, within itself” and “so close that your hand upon my
chest is mine,” all of which are quite evocative.
Repetition is another important literary device. In the case of ‘Sonnet XVII,’ Neruda
uses anaphora and repetition more generally. Anaphora appears when a poet uses the same word
or words to start multiple lines. For example, “I love you.” There are also broader examples of
repetition in that Neruda uses similar line structures throughout the poem. Enjambment is
a formal literary device that is concerned with where a line breaks. A poet might choose to insert
a line break before the end of a phrase or sentence. This can have different effects depending on
the content. For example, the transition between lines one and two of the second stanza and lines
three and four of the same stanza.
Analysis of One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII
Stanza One
Lines 1-2
In the first stanza of ‘Sonnet XVII,’ the speaker tells his lover about a few things that don’t
represent his love. Although not mentioned explicitly in this piece, Neruda dedicated the
collection Sonnet XVII appeared to his third wife. This makes it likely that she was the intended
listener and the lover to whom he refers. Neruda is utilizing the second-person perspective in this
piece to broaden the range of people the words could refer to. This makes it easier for the reader
to see these lines applying to their own life.
The speaker states he doesn’t “love you” as he might love a “rose of salt, topaz.” A “rose of salt”
likely refers to a flower that grows near the ocean and takes in saltwater. He also mentions the
mineral “topaz.” It can appear in several different hues, from orange to blue and brown. Both of
these things are beautiful and somewhat precious or rare.
In the next line, the speaker presents another vague image. He describes an,

[…] arrow of carnations that propagate fire:

It is easiest to take this statement at face value. He doesn’t love his partner as one would love the
brightness of a flaming arrow. At this point, it is fairly easy to see the reasoning behind
the comparison the speaker is attempting. She is not the same as these symbols of love and
beauty are. There is something else to their relationship beyond the traditional patterns and
aesthetics of love.

Lines 3-4
In the next two lines, the speaker describes how it is that he does love his partner. He states that
their love is the same as the love of “obscure” or dark, “things.” There is no clear description of
what these dark things are. Perhaps he is referring to the power of a love that is forbidden. It is
located somewhere between “the shadow and the soul.” This could also be a comparison
between the physical and the ephemeral. His love cannot be nailed down to the image of a rose
or a flaming arrow. It exists elsewhere.

Stanza Two
In the second quatrain of ‘Sonnet XVII,’ the speaker continues his metaphorical descriptions of
his love. The first line re-emphasizes the fact that his love is not based on beauty. He states that it
is closer to how one would feel about a,

[…] plant that doesn’t bloom but carries

The light of those flowers, hidden

Compared to the previous images, this one is fairly clear. His love is not dependent on a flower
being in full bloom and at the pinnacle of its beauty. It exists internally. He loves something
about this person that is deeper than the skin. This means that no matter if it is winter or summer,
his love would not change.
The second line adds to this fact by stating that he can see into the flower, past what might be its
dead exterior, to the “light”. He knows it will emerge in the spring, but for now, it is carried
around silently.

In the next two lines, the speaker thanks his lover for the way that she is. She gives off a “tight”
or quickening aroma that has seeped into his body and changed him. The feelings she gave him
are only growing, as a plant would, within his “body.” These two lines mirror the ones that came
before them. The speaker keeps the love he feels inside his body, just like his lover (like a
flower) keeps her light and beauty inside her.

Stanza Three

The first two sections of the poem were devoted to attempts at defining what his love is like. In
the final six lines of ‘Sonnet XVII,’ he gives up trying to clear his feelings up through metaphors.
Instead, he takes a more straightforward approach and states that he loves her no matter what
happens. The first two lines put this sentiment very beautifully. The speaker says that he loves
her,

[…] without knowing how, or when, or from where,

[He loves her] directly without problems or pride:

His love is not defined or plagued by exterior problems or those which he might create for
himself. So far, the speaker has presented his love for this person as very singular. It does not
exist in any other place. In the third line of the stanza, though, he states that he loves her this way
because he doesn’t know how else to love. This makes his participation in the relationship more
important and actually goes against the previous statement about pride. He is clearly proud of his
own fidelity and purity of heart.

The final three lines speak to the way the lovers have become interconnected. When they are
together, the “hand upon [his] chest” is both hers and his. At the same time, the “eyes” that close
at night belong to them both. The two have grown so close and learned to love one another so
well that they’re becoming the same person.
 Sonnets from the Portuguese 14: If thou must
love me, let it be for nought
BY ELIZ AB ET H B ARR ET T B ROW NING

If thou must love me, let it be for nought

Except for love's sake only. Do not say
I love her for her smile ... her look ... her way
Of speaking gently, ... for a trick of thought
That falls in well with mine, and certes brought
A sense of pleasant ease on such a day'—
For these things in themselves, Belovèd, may
Be changed, or change for thee,—and love, so wrought,
May be unwrought so. Neither love me for
Thine own dear pity's wiping my cheeks dry,—
A creature might forget to weep, who bore
Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby!
But love me for love's sake, that evermore
Thou may'st love on, through love's eternity.
About Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Elizabeth Barrett Browning was born in 1806 in Durham, England. She was the firstborn
out of twelve children, was educated at home through the works of Milton and Shakespeare. She
also began writing poetry at a young age, finishing her first epic poem at the age of twelve.
Browning also suffered from a number of maladies from a young age, particularly a lung ailment
for which she took morphine for the rest of her life. As a teenager, Browning taught herself
Hebrew, and studied Greek classics.

It was in 1826 the Browning anonymously published her first collection, An Essay on
Mind and Other Poems. During this time period, Browning’s family suffered financial troubles
and ended up settling in London. In the 1830’s Browning first started getting attention for her
work. She wrote The Seraphim and Other Poems in 1838 through which she expressed
traditional Christian beliefs, which were very dear to her, through Greek tragedies.
The following years of Browning’s life were filled with illness and loss. She spent a year
living with her brother Edward at the sea of Torquay. Edward died while sailing there and
Browning returned home, living as a recluse for the next five years. in 1844 she
published Poems and she met the writer Robert Browning. The two began a romance that was
opposed by Elizabeth’s father, eloping in 1846. The collection that is generally considered her
best work, Sonnets from the Portuguese, was published in 1850. After publishing a number of
works about social injustice, Elizabeth died in Florence in 1861.
“If thou must love me…” (Sonnet 14) by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

“If thou must love me” by Elizabeth Barrett Browning is a Petrarchan or Italian sonnet composed
of an octave (two groups of four lines), rhyming ABBAABBA, and a sestet (two groups of three
lines), rhyming CDCDCD. Unlike a Shakespearean sonnet, the Italian sonnet does not close with
a couplet, but the second half of the poem gives a resolution to the first. In the case of this
particular sonnet, Browning uses the second half of the sonnet to confirm the first, making it
clear what her speaker desires. This sonnet type was made popular by the Italian poet, Francesco
Petrarca, who lived in Italy during the 1300s.

This sonnet is number fourteen of a set of forty-four and comes from Browning’s most popular
volume of poetry, Sonnets from the Portuguese, first published in 1850.

Summary of “If thou must love me” – Sonnet 14

‘If thou must love me’ by Elizabeth Barrett Browning follows the pattern of a traditional
Petrarchan sonnet and declares the speaker’s intentions for how she is to be loved.

The poem begins with the speaker declaring that she does not wish to be loved for any
reason other than for love’s own sake. She does not want her lover to love her for her smile or
the way in which their thoughts are similar, as these things are liable to change over time. She
would rather not be loved, than to lose love later in life.

The speaker hopes that her lover will love her simply because he does, as this love will
not be “unwrought” by time. No matter how hard one works for love, if it is based on trite
principles of 17th-century relationships, such as mannerisms and looks, it will not last forever.
She desires a love that will last through “eternity.”

Analysis of “If thou must love me” – Sonnet 14

Lines 1-5

If thou must love me, let it be for nought

Except for love’s sake only. Do not say,
“I love her for her smile—her look—her way
Of speaking gently,—for a trick of thought
That falls in well with mine, and certes brought

Browning begins this sonnet by making the request that will make up the basis of this
poem. She asks of her potential lover, if you are going to love me, don’t let it be for any reason
other than the fact that you love me. She does not wish this unnamed lover to care for her for any
reason that could be called trite or physical. She wants love for love’s sake and no other.
 The speaker goes on to list the ways in which she does not want her lover to justify his
love for her. “Do not say,” the speaker says, that you love me for my smile or how I look. Or
even, she states, “[my] way / Of speaking gently.” These are all traditional reasons a man,
especially one living during the early 1800s, as Elizabeth Barrett Browning was, might state for
feeling “love.” She does not care for them. Her speaker sees them as being cliché, common, and
stereotyped. The speaker does not want to be defined by her looks or female charm.
She concludes this stanza by stating that she does not want to be loved for any of these
reasons, or just because of their thoughts, “[fall] in well” together. It is not a reason to be loved,
simply because one’s thoughts are similar to another. She adds to this statement as she transitions
into the next line.

Lines 5-9
A sense of pleasant ease on such a day”—
For these things in themselves, Belovèd, may
Be changed, or change for thee—and love, so wrought,
May be unwrought so. Neither love me for

The similarity of their thoughts, even though they, “certes brought / A sense of pleasant
ease,” or more simply, assuredly or certainly brought pleasure to their time together, is still not a
reason to be loved as, she continues, they may change. Not only may their thoughts change, but
so too might his opinion of her smile, look, or “way / Of speaking gently.” These are mutable
factors of her life and she knows they are no basis on which to build a relationship.

The speaker continues on to say that even if she changed for him, “changed for thee” and
worked hard for their love, “love, so wrought,” it still may be “unwrought” with the passage of
time. If the two lovers do not find reasons to love one another rather than present-day surface-
level pleasantries, then their love may be liable to change over time. The speaker would rather
not be loved than risk this in the future.

Lines 9-14

Thine own dear pity’s wiping my cheeks dry:

A creature might forget to weep, who bore
Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby!
But love me for love’s sake, that evermore
Thou mayst love on, through love’s eternity.

The last lines of this sonnet conclude the speaker’s ideas about love and restate her initial
request. She also voices another reason she does not wish to be loved, for pity’s sake. Due to the
fact that he has given her comfort in the past and she has heartily appreciated it, she knows that
over time she might come to take that comfort for granted and forget the love it once engendered
in her. This loss of recognition might make her lose his love for good.
 The last lines of the piece are a reiteration of her entire request. She wishes for her lover
to love her for love’s sake only, not anything else. This will ensure that “Thou mayst love on”
throughout all eternity.”

She believes that if only they can come to a place in which their love is based on love
alone and not dependent on any physical or mental predilections, then it will last forever.