Advice to Young Poets

“Oh, there is no advice to give to young poets! They ought to make their own way;

they will have to encounter the obstacles to their expression and they have

to overcome them. What I would never advise them to do is to begin with

political poetry. Political poetry is more profoundly emotional than any other

—at least as much as love poetry—and cannot be forced because it then

becomes vulgar and unacceptable. It is necessary first to pass through

all other poetry in order to become a political poet. The political poet

must also be prepared to accept the censure which is thrown at him—

betraying poetry, or betraying literature. Then, too, political poetry

has to arm itself with such content and substance and intellectual

and emotional richness that it is able to scorn everything else.

This is rarely achieved.” — Pablo Neruda, born on this day in 1904