Rader has published widely in the field of American and Latin American art and literature. In this essay, Rader explores the ways in which Neruda's famous poem both exemplifies and eludes classification as a modernist text.

There may be no more beloved poem in all of Latin America than Pablo Neruda's beguiling poem "Tonight I Can Write." Written when Neruda was in his very early twenties, the poem perfectly captures the paradoxical emotions of recently lost love. On some level, this poem absolutely resists interpretation and analysis—it is so simple, so direct, so honest, that there is very little to unpack. Indeed, few students have difficulty understanding the poem, and few critics have made it the focus of their critical attention. The poem's language is accessible, and unlike many modernist texts, it explores emotions that every reader can relate to. Instead of offering a reading...