Life, Death, and Imagery in the Poetry of Miguel Hernandez
Life and Death in the Poetry of Miguel Hernandez
In keeping with the idea of the valuation of life, Miguel Hernandez’s poetry often rejects the cemetery as a final resting place. Instead, it prefers the idea of returning to the earth, joining the vital current that flows through all of nature and becoming something more than simple dust. This idea is repeated in the elegy to Ramon Sijé and in the encouraging words to his friend in “Poppies.”
Death plays a dominant role in Hernandez’s poetry. The poet sees life constantly threatened by the specter of mortality, a sentiment that overshadows all his work and provides a special color and rhythm to his artistic creation. This reflects a fundamentally tragic vision of life, influenced by Quevedo, who taught him to discover the gloomy undertones of existence.
In “Perito en Lunas,” the obsession with death is evident in the metaphorical language. The poet requests the funeral carpenter to make a pine coffin and asks for a pit to be opened to bury him under flowers, symbolizing the love of life. The act of union between a couple produces life, but also represents a symbolic death for both individuals.
Blood, the source of life, is also associated with early death. It is both the lifeblood and the fatal stream that transforms a living being into a corpse. Life is depicted as an immense wound that continues to sink into death. The immense sorrow and pain are primarily caused by the loneliness and unrequited love that deepen this wound.
The idea of death constantly haunts Miguel Hernandez. In “The Ray That Doesn’t Stop” and the elegy to Ramon Sijé, he rebels against death, wishing for the earth to open and release his companion from its clutches. In the “Cancionero,” the profound contemplation of life and death takes the form of the classic comparison between the brevity of life and the ephemeral nature of flowers.
For Hernandez, the problem of death remains unresolved. He doesn’t seek a solution but rather a way to transcend death and human limitations through conjugal love, which gains cosmic significance in the perpetuation of life through children and parents.
Images and Symbols in Hernandez’s Poetry
Miguel Hernandez utilizes numerous literary devices, with the metaphor being a key element in “Expert in Lunas.” The poet-pastor draws inspiration from the everyday objects of the real world, such as lemons, figs, and agave plants, transforming them into metaphorical material.
His poems often resemble lyrical puzzles, employing descriptive and pictorial imagery that reflects visual impressions of the real world through paraphrased expressions. Gradually, his style develops into colorful, sensory, and abstract metaphors, creating images of striking beauty.
As Hernandez explores his internal drama, the image loses its descriptive character and begins to reflect inner states. He uses both the image-noun and the metaphor-comparison. In “The Ray That Doesn’t Stop,” the melancholy of a lover transforms into a passionate ache. The pain intensifies, becoming a hurricane, lava, lightning, and a carnivorous knife.
The poet frequently employs bimembration, a technique that divides a verse into two parts, to give content and structure to his sonnets of love and passion. As he becomes more aware of his poetic personality, this structure evolves into longer accumulations.
Surrealism inspires Hernandez to use bold and visionary images. He develops a characteristic imagery, charging the symbol of the knife with the most intimate feelings and essential ideas of his poetic world.
The imagery in “Winds of the People” marks a return to a world of harsh realities. The abundant use of synesthesia effectively communicates the originality and power of his images. In this work, we find both panegyric enumeration, celebrating the Hispanic race, and chaotic enumeration, depicting a world of hatred, horror, and death.
The metaphors of sexual desire in “Winds of the People” are linked to the natural purpose of procreation. In his later poetry, lightning and fire symbolize burning desire. Lightning represents the passionate fire that consumes the lover and the wound it inflicts.
Blood symbolizes sexual desire, while the male shirt and the female breast are represented by the lemon. The frustration caused by the elusiveness of his beloved, Josefina Manresa, results in pain, a major theme in his work.
Night, darkness, and emptiness are associated with death. Weapons symbolize the aggressive nature of pain. The moon represents change, vitality, and fertility. The wind embodies peace and freedom. The earth is another significant element, conceived as a mother figure that gives birth and welcomes him back after death.
Through his masterful use of imagery and symbolism, Miguel Hernandez explores the profound themes of life, death, love, and pain, creating a powerful and enduring poetic legacy.