Thematic Depth in Miguel Hernández’s Works
Image and Symbol in the Poetry of Miguel Hernández
Miguel Hernández’s poetic journey developed, resulting in his book Expert on Moon. In Expert on Moon, a style very close to Ramón Gómez de la Serna’s greguerías can be observed. Following the example of Gómez de la Serna and the avant-garde poets, Hernández focuses on real-life scenes, such as the cock, bull, rockets, watermelon, sheep, goats, snakes, gypsies, the well, the wheel, or the palm. He applies a very particular lunar iconography.
With the publication of The Ray That Does Not Cease, Miguel Hernández emerges as a poet who has absorbed the influence of Quevedo, Garcilaso, and the sonnet’s stanza form.
At this time, there is a clear shift towards “impure poetry” – revolutionary poetry. His war production can be summarized in two books of poetry: Wind of the People and Man in Ambush. In Wind of the People, we see a writer deeply rooted in the populace.
This period marks the soldier-poet, the soldier who is dragged by war events and whose poetry is filled with images of metallic hardness and weapons. This is where the influence of Neruda and Aleixandre’s “impure” poetry becomes fully present, and the poems are filled with surreal, unreal images. Man in Ambush is a book of deep pessimistic and negative commitment; passion and enthusiasm are lost, and the book is tinged with pain. The Prison and Death: The Ballad of the Songbook and Absences, composed of episodes from his life such as the death of his son Ramón, joy at the birth of his second child, and the harsh separation from his wife, marks Miguel Hernández’s poetic maturity.
Note that metaphor rises to its highest perfection; the poet ignores everything superfluous or not absolutely essential. We are faced with a poetry that seeks, above all, human truth, shown almost naked and devoid of artifice.
Miguel Hernández’s work shows a close relationship between his life and his writing. His works often carry a tragic tone, and his poems are elaborately constructed with symbols and images that either persist or evolve.
Symbols in Expert on Moon
- Lunar Orb: Symbol of fertility.
- The Moon: A supernatural sign of poetic destiny.
- The Belly: Symbol of fertility, signifying pulse and pain, strength, and tragedy.
- The Fig Tree: Symbol of masculinity and virility, with erotic connotations of the conjunction of man and woman.
- Rain: Sometimes linked to blood, accompanied by thunder, lightning, and storms.
Symbols in The Ray That Does Not Cease
These are poems of passionate love, contempt, rejection, influenced by Quevedo, and vital suffering. The term “ray” (or “beam”) is used to symbolize the tragic destiny of love and life; the lightning represents the power of denied love.
- The Lemon: Initially an element of inspiration, then progressing to heartache.
- Death: A constantly repeated theme, notably the “three wounds”: life, death, and love.
One might add that there is a fourth “Hernandian” wound: the penalty of the land. The color white…