Author: Derpy Derp

On the topic of taste and experiences: An Earnest Parable

On By Derpy DerpIn Earnest ParableLeave a comment

One thing that defines our nature its that we are the cumulative sum of all of our experiences. Every action that we have done, all the entertainment media that we have consumed, all the ideologies and believes we have learned, all of these things affect us in ways both blatant and subtle. Another thing that defines us is that we have no idea on what are the things that we like, after all how would one know that they like fan fiction of Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo if they hadn’t read one. Variety is the spice of life and status quo is the starch.  So with this established, how could one continue to make their lives still interesting?

 

The short story that I will be discussing today was authored by Merlinda Bobis.  The author was originally from in Legazpi City, Albay, attended Bicol University High School then  completed her Bachelor of Arts Degree at Aquinas University in Legazpi City. And has post-graduate degrees from the University of Santo Tomas and University of Wollongong, and currently lives in Australia.

 

A reason as to why she decided to pursue writing this short story, the writer theorizes that she wanted to narrate the story of the modern immigrant experience. She wants to show what happens to these people using a woman’s perspective, while also integrating the traditional culture of the countries they came from. And with this remind us of their plight and hopefully become more concerned as to the happenings regarding them.

 

The cultural values that the writer could is multiculturalism and cooperation. Multiculturalism because the story is about people from different countries around the world doing things they wouldn’t normally do because of the influence of the people they surround themselves with, learning things they didn’t know about themselves in the process. Cooperation because it would have been easy for one of them to hog the tongue for themselves only, but they decided against that and instead cooperated with one another for the use of the tongue.

 

A major difference between this and Philippine literature is the fact that it does not focus on the details regarding Filipinos and the country but rather a group of people coming from different nationalities. Another thing that sets this apart is the fact that the story does not focus on anyone woes or negative experiences. But the fact that makes this similar to Philippine literature is the fact that the story tries to push a moral that aims to improve society.

 

The story begins with the Filipino chef enjoying their native delicacies then goes to mention that after an hour the Sri Lankan tailor would be using the tongue. It then proceeds to state that the community at Bessel Street share a communal tongue. Then the narration states the events that happened last week when the Italian butcher who gained the tongue from the Australian couple a week before, and what experience he had with the tongue along with his family. The story then introduces the characters of the story which are respectively a Turkish baker, a Filipino cook, an Australian couple who owns a fish shop, an Italian butcher with his family, and a Sri Lankan tailor. It then tells how having to share a tongue affected the way the people lived. It says that they began to cherish things they would have taken for granted before, and how they began to try things from the other resident’s culture. It then proceeds by saying that the tongue remembered where it came from, which was understood by each of the households. The piece ends with saying that even though it is its own thing, it became a part of something greater than itself.

 

The literary approach which could be applied to the story would be the Cultural approach due to the fact that the text shows the cultural phenomena that happens when one is a migrant worker. Another literary approach that could be applied would be Historical approach because it shows a possible situation that would happen to migrants. Formalistic approach could also be applied because all the elements in the story contribute to the theme it is trying to show.

 

A thing that I like regarding the story would be the optimism that permeates through it, the fact that community decide to share the tongue rather than have it devolve into some sort of free for all is quite nice to me. Another thing would be the fact that the piece is rather well thought out makes me like the text.

 

A thing that I have come to dislike about the text is the fact that the sequence of events is sort of all over the place makes it a bit frustrating to read.

 

I would recommend the book mostly due to its relative brevity and the moral that it teaches. The sort of person that I would recommend the book to would probably be someone looking for the experience of being an immigrant and someone who needs to learn why people need to learn to appreciate multiculturalism.

 

So in conclusion I would rate the book a 7 out of 10. Mostly due to the fact it contains a semi-interesting story and competently made make it worth reading. Although it is the sort of thing that you will only read once and never pick up again due to the fact that it is not engaging.

On the topic of the Other: A Review of the Green Sanctuary

On By Derpy DerpIn Green SanctuaryLeave a comment

A definition of the word sanctuary given by the Merriam-Webster dictionary is a place of refuge and protection. This brings to mind the feelings of security, where one could be safe from any persecution and judgment by other people and be generally be one’s self without any consequences. However, another definition given by Merriam-Webster is the immunity from the law attached to a sanctuary.  This was a slightly unexpected definition, but one fitting considering the literary piece that I will be reviewing today.

 

But before I start this review, we must first ask who is the person behind the piece and what are some possible reasons why they may be motivated to write it.  Antonio Enriquez, the person responsible for writing the piece, was born in 1936 at Zamboanga and was raised there. While initially, he went to Manila to study medicine, he eventually returned years later. While in the process of figuring himself out, he worked various odd jobs and eventually landed a position with a surveying firm in Cotabato. His experiences with this job eventually provided the basis for his works. Following a fellowship to the highly esteemed National Writers Workshop, he returned to school, graduated with a degree in creative writing, and landed a teaching position in the university. He eventually wrote several novels and short story collections before passing in 2014.

 

In my opinion, the reason why the author wrote this piece is to tell the story of  Mindanao from the point of view of someone who lived there. The reason for this speculation is because most published works are set upon the island groups of Luzon and Visayas, and when Mindanao is often talked about it is often in the context of something bad like the various rebel groups that currently reside there. I think the author wants to show that the people there are not some faceless terrorist wanting to murder you, but rather a collection of various people groups with their own history, culture, and traditions. And to try to humanize them so that they would not be considered as a mysterious other but rather as a fellow person.

 

With that established this piece, like every literary work, has some cultural values woven into it. The cultural values are shown in the work that I could recognize are The willingness to cooperate with one another in pursuit of a goal, although it is portrayed in a negative light. The tendency of people to hide when there is a good chance of trouble,  a strongman culture in politics, and the tendency of powerful or influential individuals to strong-arm people to get what they want.

 

And in relating to Philippine literature, The literary piece continues the tradition of social critique started by Rizal, in that it shows the things that the author considers wrong with society nowadays in hopes of creating a social awareness and causing reform. The difference between this and other literary pieces of this kind is that it takes a point of view that is not commonly found in Philippine literature, namely from a native of Mindanao, the machismo that is prevalent in our culture, and focusing on the culture clash between the Christian parts of the country and the Muslim parts of the country.

 

From what I could gather, The story is about the experiences of a surveying company from the Christian part of Mindanao as they do their work in Moro territory and the culture clash that happens when both groups interact.

 

It like any other literary piece could be analyzed in some literary approaches. The Literary approaches that I found applicable to the text are as follows: Historical approach because it narrates the history of Mindanao when the country was under Spanish colonial rule and tries to explain the conflict that occurs in the story as a result of the contact between the Christians and the Muslims.  Cultural Approach due to the fact that the cultures of the survey team and the Moros are either implicitly or explicitly shown in the work.  Psychological approach because of the fact that this work is influenced by his time working on with a survey company.

 

And now for some personal opinion. The thing that I particularly like about this text is the fact that this has a subject that is rarely seen in the popular works, giving us insight into the culture, traditions, and psyche of a people that is more often than not cast as the other, which should hopefully gives us a breadth of new ideas and perspectives to consider.

 

Regarding my personal dislikes, A thing that I dislike about the story is the tendency of the author to speak about one subject then immediately jump into another related one with little to no transition, which makes for a jarring read through at times

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With all of that in mind, I personally would recommend the book due to the fact that it is interesting and actually teaches you something about the Moros. The sort of person that would enjoy reading this sort of thing would probably be the sort of person that enjoys reading biographical and anecdotal pieces, enjoy learning about cultures that are traditionally considered the other, like learning about cultures in general, or just curious as to the Moros.

 

So in conclusion, I would personally give the literary piece 8 out of 10. This is because while this is a generally interesting read and is actually competently done and is engaging. I personally don’t see myself rereading the piece in my own leisure because it didn’t click well with me.