Breadappears in Dedication, Sonnets XIII, XV

Matilde is frequently described as bread or wheat. This emphasizes her simplicity, her earnestness, and her earthiness. She is a simple sustenance for Neruda to enjoy. She is Neruda's means of living.

Woodappears in Dedication, Sonnets XV, XLVII

Neruda states that, instead of crystal, silver, or cannonfire, he made his sonnets out of wood. Similar to why Matilde is likened to bread, Neruda chooses wood as a basic gift of the earth, without pretensions, a difficult but solid material to work with.

Lightappears in Sonnets XVI, XXI, XXXV

Matilde is many times likened to light. This functions just as light in poetry and elsewhere has, historically: Matilde brings life to death, light to darkness, knowledge to ignorance, being to non-being.

Pumaappears in Sonnet XI

In one Sonnet, Neruda is a puma who stalks the streets, desperately hungry. But, he is hungry not...