Pablo Neruda: "The Fable of the Mermaid and the Drunks"

Pablo Neruda is a literary giant and this poem, " The Fable of the Mermaid and the Drunks" is one of his greatest works.

The imagery is so vivid that a movie inside your head starts to play once you begin to read the lines of the poem. The first few lines already establish the direction of the poem and like a vise, it gradually grips you until you find yourself struggling away towards the end. This poem, in a few lines of beautiful prose, was able to encapsulate a strong message to the reader.

Innocence is such a beautiful thing. This poem is all about innocence and how brutal man can be in stealing it away. At the one level of interpretation, it is all about an innocent mermaid who left her home and found herself in a completely different place, abused by drunk men, and forced to return to her world, damaged. Some would interpret it as man's destruction of nature, going as far as developing a imagery of rape--- there were explicit references to spitting on the mermaid, obscenities thrown and taunting, and sadly, physical abuse:

"They blackened her with burnt corks and cigarette stubs, and rolled around laughing on the tavern floor."

The mermaid's reaction was priceless. Without fanfare or a whimper, she left. Was this an attempt from Neruda to paint an image of an abused woman who has submitted to her fate? By returning to the river, she was "cleansed" and eventually, "swam towards emptiness and death". It was clear that despite this, going back was the best decision for her and home was a far better place to be in.

This poem may be a fable but the message is far more profound than it looks.

Indeed, there is dignity in silence, beauty in simplicity.