Neruda's Oda a la manzana (Ode to the Apple 蘋果之頌)

Apple is one of the commonest fruit in Europe. In fact, it is so common that many other fruits or vegetables are called apples by analogy. Thus potatoes when first introduced to Europe was called by the French "pomme de terre" or "earth apples" and when the tomato was first introduced to Europe, they were called "pomme d'amour"  or "love apple" and dates were called "thorn apples" and oranges were called "Chinese apples" or "golden apple"  Therefore for a people's poet like Neruda, it is not at all surprising that he should write about this colourful, juicy, munchy and nutritious fruit. So here's Neruda's Oda a la manzana with my translations.

 

Oda a la manzana              Ode to the Apple                          蘋果之頌

 

A ti, manzana,                               To you, apple                     蘋果，為了你，

quiero celebrarte                           I'd like to celebrate you   我望能

llenandome                                    filling                                   滿口

con tu nombre                               my mouth                           你名字時

la boca,                                          with your name                   吃你

comiéndote.                                  eating you.                          以祝賀你

 

Siempre                                          Always                                你常

eres nueva como nada                you're new like nothing     那麽新

o nadie,                                          or nobody,                          無比或無人可比，

siempre                                           always                                 永像

recién caída                                    newly fallen                        剛從樂園

del Paraiso:                                     from Paradise                     掉下：

¡ plena                                             full                                        豐盈  

y pura                                             and pure                               純潔

mejilla arrebolada                          cheeks reddened                 頰染

de la aurora!                                   by dawn clouds!                 晨霞。 

 

Qué dificiles                                   How difficult                        大地

son                                                  are                                          之果

comparados                                   the fruits of the earth          如何

contigo                                           compared                               與你

los frutos de la tierra,                    to you,                                   相 比，

las celulares uvas,                         the cellular grapes,               細胞般的萄葡，

los mangos                                     the gloomy                             黯然的

tenebrosos,                                     mangos.,                                芒果，

las huesadas                                   the bony                                骨慼的

ciruelas, los higos                          plums, the underwater         鳥梅，潛水的 

submarinos:                                    figs:                                         無花果：  

tú eres pomada pura,                     you are pure cream,              你純是膏，

pan fragrante,                                 fragrant bread,                       香包

queso                                              vegetarian                               素

de la vegetación.                            cheese.                                   乳酪。

Cuando mordemos                        When we bite                        我們牙齒 

tu redonda inocencia                    your round innocence          啃下你圓渾之天真時

volvemos                                        we return                                 那刻

por un instante                              for a moment                           我們亦

a ser                                                 to being                                   變回

también recién creadas criaturas: also recently created creatures:  剛造之被造物：

aún tenemos algo de manzana.   we already partake something of the apple.   我們已化作蘋果。

 

Yo quiero                                        I like                                          我樂見

una abundancia                             an abundance                          一全面的

total, la multiplicación                   total, the multiplciation          豐收，你家族的

de tu familia,                                   of your family.                         繁衍， 

quiero                                               I'd like                                         我樂見

una ciudad                                       a city                                        一城市，

una república,                                  a republic,                               一共和國，

un río Mississipi                             a Mississipi river                   一密西西比河的

de manzanas,                                   of apples.                                蘋果，

y en sus orillas                                and upon your shores         在他們岸旁

quiero ver                                         I'd like to see                          我樂見

a toda la población                         all the population                  普世

del mundo                                        of the world                            人民

unida, reunida,                                 united, re-united,                   團聚，重聚

en el acto más simple de la tierra:  in the simplest act of the Earth:  於至單一之行動：

mordiendo una manzana.               eating an apple.                      啃蘋果。

 

To Neruda, the apple is not just a fruit. It is also associated, as Chile is a catholic country, with the Biblical story of the "forbidden fruit", the fruit of the tree of knowledge, which by tradition, is painted as an apple. Hence in deference to this tradition, he refers to it as "recién caída del Paraiso" or " the newly fallen from Paradise". But as a poet, he has he own angle to the apple. He wants to give a new image to the apple as "pomada pura " or "pure cream", "pan fragrante" or "fragrant bread" and "queso de la vegetación" or a cheese of vegetarian origin! His dream is a simple dream: a dream where the peoples of the world are united or reunited by munching that once forbidden fruit: apple. Since the apple is the fruit of the "tree of knowledge", is Neruda suggesting that the people of the world should somehow attain moral knowledge by merging themselves with the qualities of the apple: "plena" or "full/ complete/whole", "pura" or "pure" and with a healthy blood-red colour? As he said, when we sink our teeth into the "innocence" of the apple, we may somehow become recall once more albeit for a brief moment and be identified with its qualities: we become aware once more of our status as a creature instead of being the master of the world and thereby regain a little of the innocence that we lost? To him, there is simply no comparison by any other fruit with the apple. As he says, there is "nada y nadie" or "nothing and nobody" which can hope to compare themselves to the apple. It's simply non-pareil! it is non-pareil because of its biblcal and symbolic significance!