Heta Patel

on translating Pablo Neruda

“Verb” by Pablo Neruda explores language at its very core – as a medium for conveying the human experience. Yet Neruda, in his poem, latches onto that liminal space of the inexpressible, yearning for words that could begin to capture the pain of the Latin American people. With this in mind, I knew that translating this poem would require diligent attention to diction. And like Neruda, I wanted to use words that were intense, synesthetic, and multiplicitous. Below is a brief description of the thought process behind some of these selections.

• Arrugar means “to wrinkle,” “to crumple,” or “to shrivel.” I opted for “shrivel” not only because of its stronger connotation but because becoming shriveled necessitates a loss of water. This provides an interesting contrast to the water motif (river, thirst, etc.)
• Torcer means “to twist, “to bend,” or “to sprain.” I landed on “sprain” because it evokes a sense of physicality and pain which is reflected in the rest of the poem.
• Lisa means “smooth,” “flat,” or “plain.” I chose “plain” not only because it conveys the blandness of the word but also because it references a geographical feature which is flat in itself. This additionally connects with the river erosion imagery at the end of the stanza.
• Aspereza means “roughness,” “sourness,” or “sharpness.” Since roughness is associated with the sense of touch and sourness with the sense of taste, I selected “sharpness” because it evokes both senses.
• Adentro means “inside,” but I opted for “lodged,” which has a more intrinsic connotation. At the same time, “lodged” can also mean “to be flattened by wind or rain,” which ties into the first stanza.
• Sonido means “sound” or “noise,” and I chose “noise,” which is the more intense adjective.