KEEPING QUIET

- PABLO NERUDA
THEME:
a. Quiet introspection
b. Creating a feeling of mutual understanding among human beings

CONTENT:
1. “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.”
a. The poet asks everyone to count up to twelve in their mind
b. The number twelve represents the hours of the day or the months of the year
c. He wants all of us to be calm and still and quiet.
d. People across the nations have to unite together, so, they shall not speak their own languages,
rather they shall all keep quiet and speak the language of silence
e. This will bring unity among all the humans on the face of the Earth
f. For at least one moment, no one shall move his arms either to signal, or to fight, or argue with
each other
2. 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.
a. When everything will come to a standstill, it will be a rare situation.(an exotic moment – happening
for the first time)
b. No one will be in a rush, there will be no engines running.
c. Everyone will be calm and quiet, united with each other in a strange atmosphere
d. It will be strange because it has never happened earlier
e. No person would be harming any other living being either for food or to earn his livelihood
f. All the people who work endlessly will get some time to look at their injuries and the damage they
have caused to their body and to the environment
3. “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.
What I want should not be confused
with total inactivity.”
a. The people who exploit the green wealth of nature by deforestation, or mining, or fishing in the deep
seas and the soldiers who use weapons to kill fellow human beings need some time to introspect into
the consequences of their actions
 b. Biological warfare, chemical and nuclear warfare will make us victors but with no survivors.
c. He wants the perpetrators(agents) of such warfare to put on ‘new clothes’ – to adopt a new
approach towards life and to realize that killing so many people is no victory
d. He wants all of us to be united as one, consider our enemy to be our brother
e. He is promoting brotherhood, peace and unity
f. He does not want us to stop our work but to take some time to analyse the results of our deeds
4. “Life is what it is about
I want no truck with death
If we were not so single-minded
about keeping our lives moving,
and for once could perhaps a huge silence
might interrupt this sadness
of never understanding ourselves
and of threatening ourselves with death.”
a. All human beings work endlessly with the aim of completing all their tasks
b. They are driven by the target of survival and the threat of death
c. So they are in a mad rush to accomplish all their work
d. He says that perhaps, if they pause for a while, they can appreciate their achievements and their
lives would become happier
e. He suggests that by keeping quiet, we will be able to understand the true purpose of our life
5. “Perhaps the Earth can teach us
as when everything seems dead
and later proves to be alive.
Now I’ll count up to twelve
and you keep quiet and I will go.”
a. The poet suggests us to take a teaching from nature
b. As the Earth undergoes changes, in winter, everything freezes, becomes lifeless but after some
time, the season changes again, and everything comes back to life(is dormant  springs into life)
c. Similarly, taking a pause and introspecting into our lives will give it a new meaning
d. We will be able to understand the purpose of our life. It will be like the re-birth of the soul
e. The poet has conveyed to all the people the purpose of his message and so, he asks them once
again to take a pause, count till twelve and keep quiet and he will leave as his objective has been
achieved
RHYME SCHEME – Blank Verse
LITERARY DEVICES:
a. ‘Count to twelve’ – symbolizes a measure of time. The clock has twelve markings on it, the year has
twelve months and the day has twelve hours
b. Let’s-repetition to create a bond with the reader and stress his point.
c. ‘Fishermen in the cold sea…hurt hands’-symbolic image showing how man is ruthlessly destroying
nature and harming other species in cold blood for his selfish need and greed. The ‘hurt hands’ – the
sore hands of the salt gatherer would make him realize how he is harming himself by his mindless
corrosive activities.
d. ‘…put on clean clothes’- metaphor. The poet says that quiet introspection will make us comprehend
the destructive nature of wars. Man would shed his blood soiled clothes and don on clean clothes i.e.
he would cleanse his soul, heart and mind, purging it of all anger and hatred.
e. Brothers – symbol of mankind
 f. In the shade- metaphor- just as shade protects us from the harsh sun, we will protect and shelter each
other as brothers, thus live in peace and harmony.
g. no truck – euphemism
h. Earth can teach us as when everything… symbol, Just as earth, the greatest creator, in its sleeping
mode appears to be dead on surface but is actually dormant and carefully preserving the seeds of life,
human beings too need to keep still and quiet to rejuvenate and awaken the life forces within and be
productive.
i. Assonance: Use of vowel sound ‘o’ and ‘e’ (Now we will count to twelve, not move our arms so much),
use of vowel ‘o’ (victory with no survivors, would put on clean clothes and walk about with their
brothers)
j. Anaphora: Two consecutive lines starting with the word ‘Let’s’
k. Alliteration- ‘we would’, ‘sudden strangeness’, ‘his hurt hands’, ‘wars with’ ‘clean clothes’
l. Repetition: use of ‘war’
m. Enjambment: and for once could perhaps a huge silence……..of threatening ourselves with death.

HOME ASSIGNMENT:
a. What is the significance of the number twelve?
b. What does the poet mean by ‘let’s not speak in any language’?
c. What would be an ‘exotic moment’ for the poet? Why?
d. What does the poet advocate in the poem?
e. What is the significance of ‘Keeping Quiet’?
f. Do you think the poet advocates total inactivity and death?
g. What symbol from Nature does the poet invoke to say that there can be life under apparent stillness?
h. What different kinds of wars does the poet refer to in the poem?
i. ‘Life is what it is all about….’ How is keeping quiet related to life?