'To the Foot from its Child' Summary

Introduction

Pablo Neruda is a Chilean poet, diplomat and politician. He has written in a variety of styles. He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971.

His poem To the Foot from its Child is a translation in English by Alastair Reid who is one of Scotland's foremost literary figures well-known for his poetry, prose and translation.

Theme / Summary

To the Foot from Its Child is rich and deep in its meaning and message. The poem portrays the journey of a child or child's foot from its birth to its death. Neruda begins the poem stating that the child's foot is not aware of the reality but dreams to be a butterfly or an apple. Then the passage of time exposes the foot to such hardships of life that they teach the foot that it cannot become a butterfly or an apple.

It then loses the battle and remains condemned to live in the shoe. Here the poet shows how an individual is controlled by society. The foot then starts to understand its limits and live accordingly like a blind man out of touch with its fellow foot.

The child's foot gradually transforms into an adult foot. The poet sketches this change beautifully. As the foot grows, its soft nails start to change and grow hard. Neruda effectively uses the imagery of eyeless reptiles to describe the state of the foot.

Life of darkness in the shoe is hard. It is like living with volcanoes of death. It's the hard reality and it must be accepted. The later half of the poem describes the presence of the foot in every order of life - “the one foot, the other, now the man’s , now the woman’s. The foot has had such a life without any respite. It is a lone and arduous journey for the foot “until the whole man chooses to stop”.

As the adult foot has ended its journey of life, it is buried underground where it is dark. Even now the foot does not understand that it has just ended up as a foot. It continues to dream about its possibilities of becoming a butterfly or an apple. Thus the poem ends on an optimistic note.

Conclusion

The poem, To the Foot from Its Child can be interpreted at different levels: a child and a society; an individual and a government etc. A child who is creative and talented may not realise its dreams controlled by the environment or society it grows in. Similarly, an individual may fail to achieve one's goal due to the challenges posed by the institution or state that controls. In any case, optimism prevails. There is still hope that one can still become anything one wishes to be.

Click for Questions and Answers

My YouTube channel