Keeping Quiet

“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.

v  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.                                 

v   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

v  What is the significance of ‘twelve’?                                                  

v   Why does the poet want us not to use our language and our arms?     

v    What does the poet want us to do away with?                                     

v  Justify the statement: We would all be together in a sudden strangeness

v  What would the fisherman not do?                                                   

v  What would the man gathering salt do?                                            

v  What transformation will these actions bring?                                  

v  How does nature respond to man's actions?      

v  What are the different kinds of wars mentioned here?

v  What is the poet's advice to the warmongers?

v  Justify: 'Victory with no survivors'

v  What do the ‘clean clothes’ signify?

v  What lesson can we learn from Earth?                                                           

v  The earth is the inactive hub of activity. Discuss.                                          

v  What does the word 'alive' imply in this context?                                          

v  What does the poet not want from the listener/reader?                                  

v  Explain: I have no truck with death