Jeffrey Jabson

Philippine Literature

 

Children of the city:

Questions:

  1. Discuss Victor’s reaction to his father’s death.
  2. Discuss what happened to Victor on his second night on the job. Why is this incident told?

Answers:

  1. Victor’s reaction to his father’s death was a kind of a laid-back reaction, although he also felt fear…as the story tells; cowered in the shadows. He felt uncertainty and probably did not even notice some things he had done. And as described in the story when his father was about to be buried, he felt like calling his father, but can’t, this may well be a sign that he may be a strong person deep inside or is emotionally strong although it is good to let feelings out rather than keep it inside, Victor maybe an exception.
  2. On Victor’s second night on the job, he was set upon and beaten up by a group of boys his age. I think this incident was told to show Victor’s difference among other newsboys, that he may have an advantage in the way he looks and the way he presents himself that makes him more attractive to buyers. And maybe the boys who beat him up were ordered by the other newsboys because they were jealous of him.

 

 

Summer Solstice:

Questions:

  1. Who manifested instincts and refined culture? Which characters symbolize instincts and refined culture?
  2. How was the battle of the sexes implied?
  3. Explain the implications of women’s rights and triumphant womanhood in the story.

Answers:

  1. In the short story Summer Solstice, set in the late 1850s, Nick Joaquin portrayed the collision between instincts and refined culture. I think the character who symbolized instincts and refined culture was Dona Lupeng. She first rejects ancient beliefs, but under the spell of the moon, she becomes possessed by the spirit of the Tadtarin cult – she does not want to be loved and respected anymore but adored as the embodiment of the matriarchal powers.
  2. "He lifted his dripping face and touched his bruised lips to her toes; lifted his hands and grasped the white foot and kissed it savagely - kissed the step, the sole, the frail ankle - while she bit her lips and clutched in pain at the windowsill, her body distended and wracked by horrible shivers, her head flung back and her loose hair streaming out of the window – streaming fluid and black in the white night where the huge moon glowed like a sun and the dry air flamed into lightning and the pure heat burned with the immense intense fever of noon."
  3. The battle of the sexes was implied when girls broke away from their parents and wives from their husbands to join in the orgy where it is an all women procession, after which ends to a chapel. And the mere fact that they participated something where women reigned supreme for three days and the men who participated could do so by wearing some female garb as a symbol of subservience. It implies or in a way shows a picture that males dominate or rule over females, and for just even for 3 days, women want to reign supreme, where it shows a kind of power struggle or battle.
  4. Modern day feminists appear to consider the Tadtarin as symbol of militant, conquering, and triumphant womanhood. If truth be told, the Philippines is a nation of strong women. Directly or behind the scenes, they run business empires, government, haciendas, etc. while commanding an army of house help and keeping an eye on potentially errant husbands. They hold purse strings. Wives feared by husbands, mothers by grown sons, grandmothers by all. Why rub it in with a festival of woman triumphant? And the past shows that there are certain rights and things women don’t have, but within their powers or abilities, they can be able to do or fulfill such things, like issues on leadership, status in the family, society, etc.

 

 

(Philippine Literature)

Oral folk stories and proverbs passed down in various dialects of the islands are what Philippine literature consisted of before the arrival of the Spanish. During the Spanish colonial period, the literature that was written was for the most part religious. Philippine literature expanded under the American influence to include genres such as short stories and drama. Jose Rizal, a novelist; Jose Garcia Villa, a poet and outstanding short story writer; Nock Joaquin, a poet, playwright and novelist, Claro Recto, a people and playwright; Franciso Balagtas, a poet and philosopher; and Pas Marques Beitnz, a writer of short stories are all notable contributors to Filipino literature.

(The Philippine Languages)

Filipino (formerly Pilipino) is based on Tagalog and is the official language of the Philippines. In spite of being the national language, only about 55 percent of Filipinos speak the language. In addition to Filipino are about 111 distinct indigenous languages and dialects, of which only about 10 are important regionally. English is generally used for educational, governmental and commercial purposes and is widely understood since it is the medium of instruction in schools. The Philippines are the third largest group of English speaking people in the world, after the United States and the United Kingdom. Since English is widely spoken in the Philippines, it is common to hear Filipinos use a mixture English and Filipino words or phrases, known as "Taglish" (a mixture of English and Tagalog), in their everyday conversations. A steadily dwindling minority still speak Spanish, which had at one time been an official language.

 

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