The Dreamer

“He heard footsteps. Was it Father? He had been away, working on the railroad for a week, and was due home today. Neftalí’s heart pounded and his round brown eyes grew large with panic.”

The author’s treatment of Neftalí’s father aims to display his complexity and the underlying reasons for his dictatorial parenting style. He is portrayed in moments of kindness as well as meanness, and he is not shown physically abusing Neftalí, which may create a perception that he’s like any father who sometimes loses his temper. This line belies that notion by demonstrating how afraid Neftalí is of him. Its subtext allows the reader to understand the detrimental effects of Father’s behavior toward his children.

“I am small and many say much too thin. I may not appear big and strong on the outside, but I am perfectly capable on the inside…just like you.”

The Dreamer’s main conflict is between Neftalí and his father, and more specifically, between Neftalí’s true self and his father’s efforts to change him. Father’s main focus is on what he perceives as Neftalí’s weakness and his efforts to make Neftalí stronger. These efforts establish a contradiction between ideas of strength and weakness and what they really mean. Mamadre’s words to Neftalí in this line reinforce his inner strength, which enables him to overcome every obstacle in the pursuit of his dreams.

“Within the lull of Mamadre’s soothing voice, Neftalí lost himself in the legends of swashbucklers and giants. There, his painful shyness stayed in the back of his mind. There, he could not be called ‘Shinbone’ because of his thin and sickly body, or chosen last for a street game by the neighborhood boys. Between the pages, he forgot that he stuttered when he spoke […] While the pages turned, he even dared to imagine himself with a friend.”

These lines demonstrate the hardships Neftalí faces in his childhood, portraying him as sensitive and isolated. They also establish the contradiction between Neftalí’s internal and external realities and explain what draws him again and again to the world of imagination, daydreaming, and stories. He sees how getting lost in a good book can change his reality, which helps him recognize The Power of Words.

“It is time to get serious about your future. You will study business or medicine. That is what I would have done if given the chance.”

Father says this to Rodolfo after forbidding him from studying music or attending the conservatory. He explains the hardship he experienced as a young man trying to find work. The impact these experiences had on Father plays a large role in his need to control his sons and their futures. This line in particular characterizes Father’s decision-making regarding his sons as based on his own life lessons and his own desires and values.

“‘I want to see…everything,’ said Neftalí. ‘The t-t-tall pines and the parrots and beetles and eagles. And Father says there is a bird in the forest that tells the future […] I want to see the chucao bird. And I want to see the other Father…the n-n-nice one.’”

Neftalí’s fascination with nature and his ardent curiosity are central aspects of his characterization. Muñoz Ryan was inspired by what she called Pablo Neruda’s “spirit of inquiry” (355). Without Neftalí’s eager desire to see and experience the world around him, especially its natural elements, Neruda might never have been inspired to create engaging poetry. This line also establishes Neftalí’s hope that different circumstances might result in his father being nicer to him, a hope which will ultimately lead to disappointment and then acceptance.

“‘Last week…when it was time to go, he had to search for me. When he found me, I was disobeying him. He…he…’ Rodolfo winced. ‘I…I still have the bruises. Do you understand? You do not want Father to catch your doing something…wrong.’”

Rodolfo’s warning indicates he has experienced physical abuse at their father’s hands. This explains why he tells Neftalí that things will only get worse as he gets older. After Rodolfo’s revelation that the thing he did wrong, the thing for which Father beat him up, was singing, it becomes apparent why both boys live in fear. Avoiding everything that displeases their father is impossible.

“Slowly, he murmured the words to the trees, delighting in the tempos they played on his tongue. Neftalí looked around to see if anyone was near. If Father had heard or seen him, would he have thought him absentminded? Was he doing something wrong? He smudged out the words and kicked the leaves back in place.”

Neftalí’s early fascination with words and rhythm, which will contribute to his skill as a poet, is apparent in this line and echoes a motif in the text (See: Symbols & Motifs). His fear that writing words in the dirt of the forest might be doing something wrong, something which might anger Father, is telling. A constant state of anxiety caused by never knowing what he might be punished for creates a defeating sense of powerlessness within him. Neftalí’s ability to overcome this and achieve his dreams is a testament to his remarkable resilience.

“He longed to tell someone about the eagle and the pinecone. He longed to share all that he had seen with a friend, someone whose hands he could squeeze with excitement, someone with whom he might be able to talk without stammering. He wished it with all of his heart. He even dared to think that he could share it all with Father.”

Neftalí’s loneliness and earnest longing for affection create a somber atmosphere. His hope that he might get the affection and companionship he longs for from his father is presented as naive by the phrase “he even dared to think.” Repeated references in the story to Neftalí’s desire for a friend, for a connection to someone, convey a sense that this had a significant influence on his worldview. This search for human connection is realized in Neruda’s recognition of “a precious idea: that all of humanity is somehow together” (365), allowing him to connect with the world through his writing.

“Father bellowed, ‘Ignore the boy! He is an idiot!’ […] When the train started, Neftalí waited for Father to come and sit with him. But he never did. All the way to Temuco, Neftalí stared out the window, hugged the pinecone, and wondered if, for the first time, the chucao bird had lied.”

Rodolfo tells Neftalí, “they say the chucao bird does not lie” (46). When Neftalí hears the chucao bird call from his right side, he believes its omen of good fortune and happiness means he will get his wish for Father’s affection. When the train ride home contradicts this, despite the chucao’s omen, he begins to sense it may never happen. Coming to grips with this truth moves Neftalí along his character arc toward transformation, which will manifest in his self-acceptance.

“So it had not been Rodolfo calling his name. Who was it then? Neftalí searched from one end of the street to the other but saw no one looking his way. Maybe Father was right. Maybe he was a scatter-brain. He looked down and saw a long stick, just the right length for dragging, and picked it up. He turned back toward home. When he arrived in his backyard, he wrote on the earth: I AM HERE.”

This scene epitomizes Neftalí’s feelings of invisibility, as well as the potential repercussions of his father’s insults. After his brother and Guillermo ignore him, his sense of being alone in the world intensifies, making him more vulnerable to the inundation of negative messages from his father. If he continues to believe that he is a “scatter-brain” and won’t amount to much, he may give up trying, and the world would miss out on the gifts he has to offer.

“As the seasons changed, the sheep became Neftalí’s devoted companion. In the fall, he buried his head in its wool to protect himself from the boys at school, who chased him and pelted him with acorns. During the winter rains, Neftalí read out loud to the sheep, and together they traveled to distant worlds. In the spring, when he should have been studying his mathematics, it sat with him in the wild apple tree on the banks of the river Cautín, daydreaming.”

By nurturing the sheep and including it in his favorite activities, Neftalí is nurturing his inner self (See: Symbols & Motifs). In lieu of a father who admires his talents and encourages him to pursue his passions, Neftalí must do these things for himself. In this symbolic relationship, Neftalí becomes the father he wishes he had to the sheep.

“After Mamadre settled them on the blankets and left, Laurita whispered, ‘Neftalí, I’m scared.’ ‘Of what?’ ‘Of the water. Rodolfo says, no matter what, I must not go in too deep or the ocean will swallow me in one gulp and I will disappear forever.’ ‘Do not worry. We can just look at the ocean. We do not have to get wet. Go to sleep, now.’ He reached over and squeezed Laurita’s hand.”

In this conversation between Neftalí and Laurita, Neftalí comforts Laurita and becomes protective of her safety. This is an important step in the transformation of his character arc. He knows what it is to feel scared and helpless. He copes with those feelings by protecting others who are vulnerable. Laurita’s fear and Neftalí’s role as her protector heighten the sense of betrayal when their father forces them to swim in the ocean. It also results in Neftalí’s nightmares in which he and Laurita are both drowning.

“Neftalí felt the river breathing beneath him, as if keeping time to the slow and sorrowful tune. His heart filled with the beauty and the peacefulness of it all. He felt as if he were on the brink of something magnificent. Did the Mapuche boy feel it, too? Neftalí turned to him and smiled.”

This description provides an example of personification through imbuing the river with life and sentience and evoking Neftalí’s reverence for nature. Here, the Mapuche boy symbolizes communion with nature and a respect for the earth, which Indigenous cultures often embrace and which the developers in the story are threatening to erode. Bonding with the Mapuche boy makes Neftalí feel closer to the beauty of the earth. The peace this brings him has a powerful impact, reinforcing his appreciation for nature.

“While Neftalí changed, he could not contain his joy. This place, it seemed, was already making Father more good-natured. Maybe here Neftalí could share his discoveries with Father. And maybe here he would listen.”

The moment described in this line builds on the story’s main conflict between Neftalí and his father, adding tension by creating hope that will soon result in disappointment for Neftalí. It furthers an idea prompted in Chapter 6 by an illustration caption that asks, “What grows in the dark soil of disappointment?” (133). Neftalí’s joy in this scene, by contrast, enhances the pain of learning his father’s real agenda.

“On a cliff overlooking the ocean, he daydreamed on purpose. He was the flamingo at the edge of the salt marsh, lifting like a giant kite. He was the banished seagull. He was the swan, whose curious body seemed to slide on a mirror. When he wasn’t daydreaming, he read, on purpose, until he had finished all the books he had brought with him.”

Neftalí’s actions depicted here represent an important point in his character arc, reflecting Daydreaming and the Pursuit of Dreams. In the past, he tried to heed his father’s demands that he stop daydreaming. He didn’t succeed, but he tried. Now, Neftalí is beginning to believe there isn’t anything wrong with reading or daydreaming, or with him. His active rebellion against his father’s efforts to change him shows movement along his journey to self-acceptance.

“In the middle of the poppies, an old rowboat went to pieces. Neftalí ran to the landlocked ship, raised his arms above his head, jumped in the air, and claimed it as his own. How could one little piece of earth fill him with such joy?”

The landlocked ship described in this quote is next to the cottage the librarian lets Neftalí use as a hideout, where he can read without his father knowing. The cottage and its surroundings represent Neftalí’s first taste of autonomy. His father controls every detail of the family’s lives. Now, Neftalí has some room to be himself, free of anxiety. He can spend an entire afternoon not trying to be someone else for fear that his father might be watching.

“Mamadre put her arm around Neftalí’s shoulder. ‘Wounds are deceiving. Maybe his pain was from something else. A swan needs other swans, just as people need other people.’”

When the injured swan dies, despite Neftalí and Laurita treating its injury and nursing it for several weeks, Mamadre’s response shows a great deal of insight. She recognizes the possibility that the swan was heartbroken from losing its mate. She also recognizes a parallel to Neftalí, who longs for a friend. Her words show Neftalí that she sees he’s hurting and understands his pain.

“As Neftalí thought about Mamadre, he felt overwhelmed with gratitude for all that she had done for him. He picked up a pencil and began to write down words that reminded him of her. Soon, his mind tensed with sentences that demanded to be written.”

Neftalí must write a love letter, something he’s never done or even contemplated before. He decides to practice expressing affection by first penning a note of appreciation to Mamadre. In this quote, the author imagines how an emerging poet might discover his artistic process. Like many other things in the book, The Power of Words takes on a magical quality in Neftalí’s mind.

“I will start by writing more stories, stories that might make people whisper behind closed doors. Did you know that many whispers can make a very loud noise?”

After Uncle Orlando’s newspaper office is burned down, he tells Neftalí he will never be silenced. His comment here speaks to The Power of Words, especially the power of the written word in a society where the powerful try to silence the weak. In the midst of injustice, some might feel stirring whispers is not doing enough. Orlando points out, however, that when loud protests are too dangerous, whispers can still make a big difference.

“These people are writing about fairness and justice. They are my heroes, Laurita. They write words that stir people’s thoughts. They write about changing what is wrong in the world.”

Neftalí’s character is greatly defined by who he admires, reflecting the importance of Inspiration, Influence, and Identity in the text. Neftalí has come to a time in his youth, and in his character arc, when he understands his values and priorities. This quote demonstrates to the reader what they are: writing words that stir people’s thoughts and changing what is wrong with the world. An important connection is established here between cause and effect, between the formative factors of Neftalí’s childhood and the poetry and career of Pablo Neruda.

“‘So Father has given up on the medical profession?’ asked Laurita. ‘My math grades.’ He shrugged. ‘Father changed my destiny to business.’”

The author, through Neftalí, humorously plays on the concept of “destiny” here. The term’s use suggests a belief in a predetermined and unalterable course of events. This casual suggestion that his father changed Neftalí’s “destiny” uses irony to emphasize Father’s authority by contending he holds sway over fate itself—an idea that Neftalí will soon consistently defy.

“How could a government arrest someone for writing what he knew, in his own heart, to be true? Should all writers pass along only the beliefs of their government?”

The author’s note to The Dreamer describes how General Pinochet’s regime made it illegal to write or speak out against his military coup. Subsequently, thousands of people were killed, imprisoned without trial, or forced into exile “because they chose to have an opinion different from those in power” (358). Neftalí’s early experience of government censorship sets the stage for his future political activism and his experiences under Pinochet.

“At the end of his poem, instead of signing Neftalí Reyes, he wrote Pablo Neruda. He would use this name to save Father the humiliation of having a son who was a poet. Maybe he would use the name only until he became lost enough to find himself. Maybe he would even keep the name.”

Choosing his pen name is an important moment in Neftalí’s character arc. It’s the moment in which he chooses to define his own identity and accepts that the relationship he has with his father isn’t going to change. Although he makes the choice to define his own identity in this moment, he acknowledges that the process of defining himself, or finding himself, will take time. He gives himself the freedom to use the name temporarily, or permanently, depending on how that journey of finding himself goes and what it turns up.