Ode to My Suit Questions

Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.

  1. How is this poem an ode? Does it differ from the tradition of odes in any ways? Is the title accurate?
  2. What qualities does the speaker praise? Are they qualities a suit can actually possess?
  3. How does Neruda's use of form (or rejection of poetic forms) affect your reading experience? How does his form relate to the subject matter?
  4. Why address a poem to an object that cannot respond? How does that affect the reading experience for us, the actual audience?
  5. How does the suit allow the speaker to live his life? What activities or life events does the speaker credit the suit for allowing him to experience? Would he really be unable to enjoy them without the suit?
  6. Why does the speaker say he sometimes "forgets" the suit?