Introduction to Heights of Macchu Picchu

Time, Place, Space
The Heights of Macchu Picchu

​We are learning to understand how time, place, and space shape the themes and global issues in Neruda’s The Heights of Macchu Picchu.

Global Influence and Impact of Neruda

• Chile (1904–1973) – Born in Parral; his homeland remained the heart of his poetry, rooted in nature, justice, and human connection.

• Burma / Myanmar (1927–1929) – Served as consul in Rangoon; exposure to Asian culture and solitude deepened his introspection and poetic voice.

• India (1929–1931) – Diplomatic post in Calcutta; inspired by Eastern spirituality and contrasts of wealth and poverty.

Global Influence and Impact of Neruda

• Spain (1934–1937) – Consul in Madrid during the Spanish Civil War; formed friendships with Lorca and Alberti, strengthening his political and artistic convictions.

• Mexico (1938–1951) – Consul in Mexico City; also write "Canto General" here.

  • Collaborated with Rivera and Kahlo, merging art, activism, and Latin American identity.

• France (1951–1952, 1969–1972) – Exiled during Chile’s political repression; later returned as ambassador, symbolizing global recognition and poetic diplomacy.

Open Ended

After watching the video, explain the power and ingenuity of the Incas and Macchu Picchu (2-3 sentences)

Match

Matching Activity: Neruda’s Global Journey

• Chile

• Spain

• Mexico

• France

• Burma (Myanmar)

Born here and inspired by nature

involved Civil War against Fascism

Wrote "Canto General" in this country

Exiled; became an ambassador for peace

Discovered Eastern spirituality

• Born here and inspired by nature

• involved Civil War against Fascism

• Wrote "Canto General" in this country

• Exiled; became an ambassador for peace

• Discovered Eastern spirituality

Time: Ancient Civilization

• "Canto General" was written in 1945–1949, during Neruda’s political exile and spiritual crisis.

• Looks back to the Incan era as a symbol of unity, spirituality, and collective labor.

• Reflects 20th-century modern disillusionment with industrial progress and loss of humanity.

• Moves cyclically through time...from the poet’s present despair to the eternal past and back to renewal.

• Suggests that history is not linear (straight), but a living continuum connecting the dead and the living

Time: Ancient Civilization and Surrealism

• Surrealism mixes past, present, and future as the poet “travels” through centuries in a dreamlike flow.

• Time becomes fluid and cyclical, not historical; the Incan dead coexist with the modern speaker.

• The surreal imagery (e.g., “a corpse rose from the earth”) blurs the boundary between living and dead time.

• This distortion allows Neruda to transcend chronological history and experience universal, eternal time.

• It transforms memory into a visionary experience, where time feels emotional, not measurable.

Open Ended

Write a 3-5 sentence response to the following quetsion:

What does surrealism explore or reveal?

Surrealism

• Definition: Surrealism is a literary and artistic movement that blends dream, imagination, and reality to explore the unconscious mind and reveal deeper emotional or spiritual truths.

• Neruda uses dreamlike imagery (e.g., speaking stones, rising corpses, living mountains) to blur the line between the real and the imagined.

Surrealism

• Surrealism allows the poet to transcend time and space, moving freely between life, death, and rebirth.

• Everyday elements of nature — water, stone, wind — are transformed into mystical forces that speak and remember.

• Through surreal vision, Neruda awakens the buried voices of the dead, giving mythic and cosmic meaning to human history.

Multiple Choice

Which ancient civilization inspired Neruda in The Heights of Macchu Picchu?

• Incan civilization
  

• Mayan civilization
  

• Aztec civilization

• Greek civilization

Multiple Choice

What does Neruda suggest about time in the "The Heights of Macchu Picchu"

• Time is a straight, historical line

• Time only exists in the past
  

• Time is cyclical and connects the dead and the living
  

• Time ends with modern progress

Multiple Choice

How does Surrealism affect Neruda’s concept of time?

• It focuses only on realism and logic
  

• It blends past, present, and future in a dreamlike flow
  

• It removes emotion from time
  

• It separates memory from imagination

Multiple Choice

What does Surrealism transform time into?

• A. Scientific measurement
  

• B. Historical record
  

• Visionary, emotional experience
  

• Chronological sequence

Open Ended

In 3-5 sentences, explain the dreamlike elements in this image. You may use metaphors, similes, juxtaposition...

Place:Macchu Picchu

• "The Heights of Macchu Picchu" is set in Macchu Picchu, the ancient Incan citadel high in the Andes of Peru.

• A place of awe, mystery, and ancestral memory — a bridge between earth and sky.

• Represents both physical height (the climb up the mountain) and spiritual elevation.

• Contrasts modern civilization’s emptiness with the harmony of the ancient world.

• Functions as a sacred site of revelation, where the poet discovers his human and poetic purpose.

Place:Macchu Picchu

• Machu Picchu becomes a mythic rather than geographic place, existing between dream and reality.

• Surrealism transforms the ruins into a living organism — walls breathe, stones speak, mountains remember.

• The physical site turns into an inner landscape of the poet’s soul, fusing mind and matter.

• It highlights how imagination re-creates place, suggesting that spiritual truth outlasts physical decay.

• The mountain becomes both a real summit and a psychological ascent toward enlightenment.

Space:Macchu Picchu

• Expands from personal isolation to the collective human experience of the oppressed.

• Moves between earthly space (mountains, stones, ruins) and metaphysical space (memory, soul, spirit).

• Suggests that space holds the echoes of history — the dead still “speak” through the ruins.

• Uses vertical imagery (ascent, descent) to symbolize spiritual awakening and connection to ancestors.

• Blurs boundaries between nature, history, and humanity, creating a unified cosmic space.

Space:Macchu Picchu

• Surrealism dissolves boundaries between earth, sky, body, and spirit — creating a cosmic space.

• The poet moves through dreamlike dimensions, where natural and supernatural coexist.

• Space becomes elastic and symbolic, representing the vast interior world of human consciousness.

• The ruins open a gateway between worlds — human and divine, mortal and eternal.

• Surreal space allows the poet to reconnect with humanity’s collective soul, beyond p

Multiple Choice

How does Surrealism transform Machu Picchu?

• It turns it into a battlefield
  

• It confines it to a single time period

• It erases its historical importance
  

• It becomes a living organism — walls breathe, stones speak
  

Multiple Choice

What does the poet’s climb up the mountain represent?

• 
  A spiritual and psychological ascent toward enlightenment
  

• An escape from society

• A physical competition
  

• A dream without meaning

Multiple Choice

Why is the setting of Macchu Picchu significant in Pablo Neruda’s poem "The Heights of Macchu Picchu"?

• It is located in the middle of a bustling city, reflecting modern civilization.

• The city is primarily depicted as an industrial hub with no relation to nature.

• It is used to highlight the technological advancements of modern Peru.

• 
  The ruins represent the grandeur of the Incan civilization and a spiritual connection to the earth.
  
  

Multiple Choice

How does Pablo Neruda’s poem describe the natural landscape surrounding Macchu Picchu?

• The poem emphasizes only the human-made structures, ignoring the natural environment.
  

• Neruda focuses on the urban development near Macchu Picchu and its modern infrastructure.

• The surrounding Andes Mountains are described as a rugged, surreal landscape that adds to the isolation and majesty of the ruins.

• The natural landscape is portrayed as insignificant compared to the ruins.

Themes

• Rebirth – Renewal through spiritual awakening

• Memory – Remembering the forgotten dead

• Nature – Harmony between earth and man

• Time – Past and present intertwined

• Transcendence – Rising beyond earthly limits

• Isolation – Loneliness before connection found

• Labor – Honoring hands that built

• Identity – Discovering self through ancestry

Global Issues

• Exploitation – Injustice toward indigenous laborers

• Injustice- unequal treatment and suffering of marginalized people, especially the indigenous and the poor, whose labor and lives are overlooked by those in power.

• Colonialism – Conquest destroying native civilizations

• Cultural Erasure – Loss of ancestral heritage

• Power & Oppression – Voice of the silenced masses

Open Ended

This mural, painted by Diego Rivera, celebrates the history, labor, and spirit of Latin America—much like Neruda’s poetry. Both artists explore how the land, people, and past are interconnected.

What do you notice about the relationship between humans and nature in this artwork? (3-5 sentences)