Exchange and mutual learning, short poems but long love

w88 casino News Network (provided by the w88 casino of Foreign Languages)At 13:30 pm on December 9th, the Neruda Poetry Recitation Competition jointly organized by the Spanish Department of the w88 casino of Foreign Languages of w88 casino and the Venezuela China Research Center was successfully held in Room 213 of Qiusuo Building. Mr. Zheng Haoyu, Vice Dean of the w88 casino of Foreign Languages, Mr. Wang Yi, Director of the Spanish Department of the w88 casino of Foreign Languages, Mr. Wu Sa of the Department of Spanish, as well as Ms. Aymara Gerdel and Mr. Jorge Días, Directors of the Center for Chinese Studies in Venezuela, attended this competition and gathered with 27 Spanish students from all grades to celebrate Neruda’s classic poems, exchange Latin American literature, and build a cultural bridge.

At the beginning of the conference, the host Zhao Wangxuan made an opening speech to everyone and expressed his heartfelt thanks to the judges and teachers present. He introduced, Pablo·Pablo Neruda is one of the most outstanding and influential writers of the 20th century. Another well-known writer, García Márquez, once evaluated him as "the greatest poet of the 20th century". Among Neruda's many achievements, the most well-known is that he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971. Recurring themes in his poetic works often include love, time, death and existential pain.

Then, Mr. Zheng Haoyu, deputy dean of the w88 casino of Foreign Languages, delivered the opening speech. Teacher Zheng mentioned that due to the epidemic in recent years, the college has not had many opportunities to organize offline cultural exchange activities. Therefore, the holding of this poetry recitation competition is really valuable and hopes that it will become an interesting and valuable experience for the students in their study career. When talking about the purpose of reading poetry, Teacher Zheng said:“Human nature is eternal. The insights written by poets centuries ago still resonate with everyone today.” Poetry can help us reflect on ourselves, dive deep inward, discover the passion and confusion hidden deep in our hearts, and find resonance and relief in the thoughts of our predecessors. Teacher Zheng also encouraged everyone to try to express their thoughts with poetry. When we are in trouble, the writing of a sentence or a poem can become an emotional support and release our souls from heavy pressure.

Teacher Zheng also shared some poetry reading methods suitable for everyone based on the students’ learning experience. She said that it is not necessary to grasp every syllable of a poem, but what is important is the overall and intuitive perception: feeling the hidden emotions and subtle meaning behind the text. Reading itself is a pleasant experience, and we should learn to read with enjoyment. Finally, Teacher Zheng quoted the movie "El cartero y Pablo Neruda" to conclude with a motto: "La poesía no es de quien la escribe, sino de quien la necesita. (Poetry does not belong to the person who created it, but to the person who needs it.)" After the speech, the audience burst into applause and expressed their heartfelt thanks to Teacher Zheng for his careful guidance.

Next, the students enjoyed the song titled " specially recorded by Teacher Xu Shicheng for this competition.Himno a China (Chinese Hymn)" recitation video. Mr. Xu is a researcher and honorary member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He has published dozens of research works on Latin American politics, culture and history. With a profound understanding of Latin American culture, Mr. Xu’s poetry recitation was more elegant and scholarly, deeply affecting the teachers and students present.

Then,27 contestants took to the stage one after another to give everyone a wonderful performance. The themes of the poems are widely distributed, from the most tender and romantic love poems to the most majestic hymns. The students showed us many aspects of Neruda in diverse and equally gratifying ways: Neruda as a poet, Neruda as a soldier, and Neruda as a revolutionary... A few words can span a thousand miles. Neruda's poems bring together the beauty of style and the light of thought, providing us with a window into the vast Latin American culture.

The judges and teachers listened attentively, made fair judgments, and finally passed10 outstanding contestants were selected from the 27 participating students. Teachers Zheng Haoyu, Teacher Wu Sa, and Ms. Aymara Gerdel awarded Spanish dictionaries to the winners. Mr. Jorge Días gave each participating student a Spanish graded reading masterpiece as an encouragement to actively participate in the competition. These carefully prepared prizes also coincide with the original intention of this recitation competition, providing students with an opportunity to further understand the culture of Spanish-speaking countries.

Finally,Ms. Aymara Gerdel and Teacher Wu Sa took the stage to give a summary speech and express their heartfelt congratulations to all the students who participated in this competition. Teacher Wu Sa said that she also admired Neruda’s poetry very much, especiallyPuedo escribir los versos más tristes esta noche("Tonight I can write the saddest poem").But although it said: "El amor es corto, el olvido es largo (Love is short-lived, forgetfulness is eternal)", she did not think so: "El amor es largo, el olvido es corto. (Love is long-lasting, forgetfulness is short-lived.)" She said, "May this beautiful afternoon be remembered by everyone forever."

The students’ wonderful and emotional interpretations complemented Neruda’s poetry, presenting an oriental interpretation of Latin American culture to everyone, and also demonstrated the deep interest of the Spanish language students of the University of International w88 in Latin American culture. This poetry recital is just the beginning and the starting point for the extension of a road to future cultural exchanges.“The road is long and long, and I will search for it from top to bottom.” We have reason to believe that generations of Chinese speakers will forge ahead and continuously inject new strength into the cultural exchanges between China and Latin America.