Little Silver and me

Author: (Spanish) Juan Ramón Jiménez
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2005-02-01
Features: Juan Ramón Jiménez, the Spanish poet and 1956 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate, wrote over a hundred poems for a donkey named Platero. Each poem is filled with tears yet also with smiles. In the poet's eyes, Platero was his brother, friend, or child—a fluffy, delicate, and gentle creature. His exterior was so soft, like a body of pure cotton fluff with no bones. Only his two gem-like, shining eyes were as hard as two exquisite, clear black crystal beetles. They relied on each other, walking together through beautiful fields, villages, hills, churches, streets, and alleys.
The poet said: "In this small book, joy and sorrow coexist, just like Platero's pair of ears."
Juan Ramón Jiménez (1881-1956) was a renowned modern Spanish poet. His major works include poetry collections Versos Libres and Líricas, the long poem Espacio, and the prose collection Un Hombre que Was de los Tres Mundos. In 1956, he won the Nobel Prize in Literature "for his Spanish lyrical poetry, which constitutes an outstanding example of high spiritual and pure art." Platero y Yo (Platero and I) is a later work from the poet's second creative phase and one of the most significant works of his life. It was soon translated into English, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Hebrew, Swedish, and other languages, and an Braille edition was also published. In Spain, it has been reprinted almost every year since 1937. It has been selected as a textbook in all Spanish-speaking countries, making it a widely read book.
Platero y Yo tells the heartfelt bond between the author and a donkey (Platero), a bond of purity and depth that can only be understood in a religious sense. Platero was the author's brother, friend, or child. They were inseparable. In the author's eyes, Platero was fluffy, delicate, and gentle, with an exterior as soft as pure cotton fluff, with no bones. Only his two gem-like, shining eyes were as hard as two exquisite, clear black crystal beetles—silver-white as the moon, strong as steel. They relied on each other, walking together through beautiful fields, villages, hills, churches, streets, and alleys, passing through the poet's hometown—Moguer in the province of Huelva, Spain, which was also the poet's final resting place. This is a series of landscapes of southern Spain and a long lyrical poem dedicated to Platero.
Jiménez speaks in a soft, tender, passionate, and serene voice. His gaze upon Platero was gentle, deep, devoted, and tranquil. Jiménez is unparalleled, with only Tagore as his closest counterpart. Platero y Yo is a prose book, also known as a prose poem. Both the author and the donkey were poets, with broad and compassionate hearts. Their language was beautiful and melodious. The subtle difference lies in that Jiménez was more.
When it comes to the heart, no children's literature writer in the world can match the breadth and kindness of Jiménez, though we have many other beautiful adjectives. Perhaps we can imagine that this is the limitation of children's literature. For children, life, death, love, and such issues are far less appealing than excitement and fun.
Jiménez said: "In this small book, joy and sorrow coexist, just like Platero's pair of ears." But the poet's joy and sorrow were clear and pure, like the surface of a lake stirred by a gentle breeze. Whether Platero accompanied the poet or the poet accompanied Platero no longer mattered; their souls and blood had deeply merged.
When reading Platero y Yo, we forget a basic fact: Platero is a donkey, an animal. Jiménez gave Platero too many human qualities. The writer is not a scientist, an animal, or a botanist; he has no reason or responsibility to take on the duties that scientists should, and they themselves cannot bear them either. Kipling, Jack London, and Jiménez have left us immortal animal characters. We are not objectively revealing the world of animals but subjectively approaching it. In reality, we are showing the truth of humanity and its depth and breadth.