Saturday, November 24, 2007

Readings for this (4th) week



*Will recap on Manalang Gloria and Dato’s poems.
*Quiz (including Si Richard Gomez at Ang Mito ng Pagkalalaki, at least before the discussion)


Reading Assignment:
Ang Babaeng Nangarap ng Gising by Rio Alma
Babaeng Namumuhay ng Mag-isa y Joy Barrios
The Mats by Francisco Arcellana

ang babaeng nangangarap ng gising
by virgilio almario aka rio alma

Nakayakap siya sa sandok na bali
Nang muling magising
Habang nagtatalo ang subo't sagitsit
Ng tuyo't sinaing.
Kumukutitap pa sa sulok ng mata
Ang planeta't bitwin
Bagama't naglaho ang sintang prinsipe,
Hasmin at palangkin.

Naisumpa niya noong dalagita
Na siya'y aahon
Mula sa malansa at bukid na basa
Ng liblib na nayon;
Kipkip ang pangarap sa isang tampipi,
Hindi lumilingong
Napaangkin siya sa tukso ng lungsod
At bughaw na layon.

Tulad sa isatorya ng ligaw na sisiw,
Pagod na at lanta
Nang kanyang kagatin ang buhay sa isang
Lumang aksesorya.
May nakapagsabing darating nga ngayon
Ang galang asawa
Kaya't maaga pa'y naghanda't naglinis
Saka nagpaganda.

Sa pagbukas ng pinto, siya ay pipikit
Sa saliw ng b'yolin
At magpapalunod sa hasmin at himas
Ng asawang lasing.


ang babaeng namumuhay ng mag-isa
by joi barrios

Babae akong namumuhay nang mag-isa,
hiwalay sa asawa,
matandang dalaga,
kerida,
puta.
Ang aking pag-iisa'y
batik na itinuturing,
latay na pabaon ng nakaraan,
pilat na taglay habambuhay.
May pagsusulit na di ko nakayanan,
may timbangan sumukat sa aking pagkukulang,
may pagsusuring kumilatis
sa pagkatanso ng aking pagkatao.
Lagi'y may paghuhusga sa aking pag-iisa.
Ang di nila nakita'y
akin ang pasya.
Maliit na kalayaang
hinahamak ng iba pang
pagkapiit at pagkaalipin
sa aking lipunan.
Ang pag-iisa'y di pagtalikod sa
pag-ibig, o pagnanasa o pananagutan.
Hindi ito pagsuko
sa katuparan ng mga pangako
o pagkakatutuo ng mga pangarap.
Hindi pagtanaw sa buhay
nang hubad sa pag-asa.
Paghangad lamang
na kamay ko ang magpatakbo sa aking orasan,
puso at isipan ang sumulat ng aking kasaysayan,
sarili ko ang humubog sa aking kabuuan.
Hayaan akong mamuhay nang payapa,
nang hindi ikinakabit sa aking pangalan
ang mga tawag na pagkutya:
puta,
kerida,
matandang dalaga,
hiwalay sa asawa.
Babae man akong namumuhay nang mag-isa.

The Mats
by Franz Arcellana

For the Angeles family, Mr. Angeles’s homecoming from his periodic inspection trips was always an occasion for celebration. But this homecoming- from a trip to the south-was fated to be more memorable than any of the others.

He had written from Mariveles: “I have just met a marvelous mat weaver-a real artist-and I shall have a surprise for you. I asked him to weave a sleeping mat for every one of the family. He is using many different colors, and for each mat the dominant color is that of our respective birthstones. I am sure that the children will be very pleased. I know you will be. I can hardly wait to show them to you.”

Nana Emilia read the letter that morning and again and again every time she had a chance to leave the kitchen. In the evening when all the children are home from school she asked her oldest son, Jose, to read it at the dinner table. The children became very much excited about the mats, and talked about them until late into the night. This she wrote her husband when she labored over a reply to him. For days after that the mats continued to be the chief topic of conversation among children.

Finally, from Lopez, Mr. Angeles wrote again: “I am taking the Bicol Express tomorrow. I have the mats with me, and they are beautiful. God willing, I shall be home to join you at dinner.”
The letter was read aloud during the noon meal. Talk about the mats flared up again like wildfire.

“I like the feel of mats,” Antonio, the third child, said. “I like the smell of new mats.”
“Oh, but these mats are different,” interposed Susanna, the fifth child. “They have our names woven into them, and in our ascribed colors, too.”
The children knew what they were talking about: they knew just what a decorative mat is like; it was not anything new or strange in their experience. That was why they were so excited about the matter. They had such a mat in the house, one they seldom used, a mat older than any one of them.

This mat had been given to Nana Emilia by her mother when she and Mr. Angeles were married, and it had been with them ever since. It had served on the wedding night, and had not since been used except on special occasions.

It was a very meaningful mat not really meant to be ordinarily used. It had green leaf borders and a lot of gigantic red roses woven into it. In the middle, running the whole length of the mat was the lettering:

Emilia y Jaime
Recuerdo

The letters were in gold.

Nana Emilia always kept that mat in her trunk. When any one of the family was taken ill, the mat was brought out and the patient slept on it, had it all to himself, Every one of the children had some time in their lives, slept on it; not a few had slept on it more than once.

Most of the time the mat was kept in Nana Emilia’s trunk and when it was taken out and spread on the floor the children were always around to watch. At first there had been only Nana Emilia to see the mat spread. Then a child-a girl- watched with them. The number of watchers increased as more children came.

The mat did not seem to age. It seemed to Nana Emilia always as new as when it had been laid on the nuptial bed. To the children it seemed as new as the first time it was spread before them. The folds and ceases seemed always new and fresh. The smell was always the smell of a new mat. Watching the intricate design was an endless joy. The children’s pleasure at the golden letters, even before they could work out the meaning, was boundless. Somehow they were always pleasantly shocked by the sight of the mat: so delicate and so consummate the artistry of its weave.

Now, taking out that mat to spread had become a kind of ritual. The process had become associated with illness in the family. Illness, even serious illness, had not been infrequent. There had been deaths…

In the evening Mr. Angeles was with his family. He had brought the usual things home with him. There was a lot of fruit, as always (his itinerary carried him through the fruit-growing provinces): pineapples, lanzones, chicos, atis, santol, sandia, guayabano, avocado, according to the season. He had also brought home a jar of preserved sweets from Lopez.

Putting away the fruits, sampling them, was as usual accomplished with animation and lively talk. Dinner was along affair. Mr. Angeles was full of stories about his trip, but would interrupt his tales with: “I could not sleep off nights thinking of the young ones. They should never be allowed to play in the streets. And you older ones should not stay out too late at night.”
The stories petered out and dinner was over. Putting away the dishes and wiping the table clean did not at all seem tedious. Yet Nana Emilia and the children, although they did not show it, were all on edge about the mats.

Finally, after a long time over his cigar, Mr. Angeles rose from his seat at the head of the table and crossed the room to the corner where his luggage had been piled. From the heap he disengaged a ponderous bundle.

Taking it under one arm, he walked to the middle of the room where the light was brightest. He dropped the bundle, and, bending over and balancing himself on his toes, he strained at the cord that bound it. It was strong, it would not break, it would not give way. He tried working at the knots. His fingers were clumsy, they had begun shaking.

He raised his head, breathing heavily, to ask for the scissors ready. Alfonso, his youngest boy, was to one side of him with the scissors ready.

Nana Emilia and her eldest girl, who had long returned from the kitchen, were watching the proceedings quietly.

One swift movement with the scissors, snip! And the bundle was loose.
Turning to Nana Emilia, Mr. Angeles joyfully cried:“These are the mats Miling.”
Mr. Angeles picked up the topmost mat in the bundle.
“This, I believe, is yours, Miling.”

Nana Emilia stepped forward to the light, wiping her still hands against the fold of her skirt, and with a strangely young shyness received the mat. The children watched the spectacle silently, and then broke into delighted, though a little self-conscious, laughter. Nana Emilia unfolded the mat without a word. It was a beautiful mat: to her, mind, even more beautiful than the one she received from her mother on her wedding day. There was a name in the very center of it: Emilia. The letters were large, done in green. Flowers-cadena-de-amor-were woven in and out among the letters. The border was a long winding twig of cadena-de-amor.

The children stood about the spread mat. The air was punctuated by their breathless exclamations of delight.

“It is beautiful, Jaime; it is beautiful!” Nana Emilia’s voice broke and she could not say any more.

“And this, I know, is my own,” said Mr. Angeles of the next mat in the bundle. The mat was rather simply decorated, the design almost austere, and the only colors used were purple and gold. The letters of the name, Jaime, were in purple.

“And this, for you, Marcelina.”

Marcelina was the oldest child. She had always thought her name too long; it had been one of her worries with regard to the mat. “How on earth are they going to weave all of the letters of my name into my mat?” she had asked of almost every one in the family. Now it delighted her to see her whole name spelled out on the mat, even if the letters were a little small. Besides, there was a device above her name which pleases Marcelina very much. It was in the form of a lyre, finely done in three colors. Marcelina was a student of music, and was quite a proficient pianist.

“And this is for you, Jose.”

Jose was the second child. He was a medical student already in third year at the medical school. Over his name the symbol of Aesculapius was woven into the mat.

“You are not to use this until the year of your internship.” Angeles was saying.

“This is yours, Antonio.”

“And this, yours, Juan.”

“And this, yours, Jesus.”

Mat after mat was unfolded. On each of the children’s mat there was somehow an appropriate device.

At last, all the children had been shown their individual mats. The air was filled with their excited talk, and through it all Mr. Angeles was saying over and over again in his deep voice:
“You are not to use these mats until you go to the university.”

Then Nana Emilia noticed bewilderedly that there were some more mats remaining to be unfolded.

“But, Jaime” Nana Emilia said, wonderingly, with evident trepidation, “there are some more mats.”

Only Mr. Angeles seemed to have heard Nana Emilia’s word. He suddenly stopped talking, as if he had been jerked away from a pleasant phantasy. A puzzled, reminiscent look came into his eyes, superseding the deep and quiet delight that had been briefly there, and when he spoke his voice was different.

“Yes, Emilia,” said Mr. Angeles. “There are three more mats to unfold. The others who aren’t here…”

Nana Emilia caught her breath; there was a swift constriction in her throat; her face paled and she could not say anything.

The Self-centered talk of the children also died. There was a silence as Mr. Angeles picked up the first of the remaining mats and begun slowly unfolding it.

The mat was almost as austere in design as Mr. Angeles’s own, and it had a name. There was no symbol or device above the name ; only a blank space, emptiness.

The children knew the name. But somehow the name, the letters spelling the name, seemed strange to them.

Then Nana Emilia found her voice.
“You know, Jaime, you didn’t have to, you didn’t have to.” Nana Emilia said, and her voice was hurt and sorely frightened.

Mr. Angeles jerked his head back; there was something swift and savage in the movement.
“Do you think I’d forgotten? Do you think I had forgotten them? Do you think I could forget them.

“This is for you, Josefina.”

“This is for you, Victoria!

“This is for you, Concepcion.”

Mr. Angeles called the names rather than uttered item.

“Don’t, Jaime, please don’t, ” was all that Nana Emilia managed to say.

“Is it fair to forget them? Would it be just to disregard them?” Mr. Angeles demanded rather than asked.

His voice had risen shrill, almost hysterical; it was also stern and sad, and somehow vindictive.

Mr. Angeles had spoken almost as if he were a stranger.

Also, he had spoken as if from deep, grudgingly silent, long, bewildered sorrow.

The children heard the words exploding in the silence. They could neither move nor look away; his eyes held them, his voice held them where they were. They seemed rooted to the spot.
Nana Emilia shivered once or twice, bowed her head, gripped her clasped hands between her thighs.

There was a terrible hush. The remaining mats were unfolded in silence. The names which were with infinite slowness revealed, seemed strange and stranger still; the colors not bright but deathly dull; the separate letters spelling out the names of the dead among them, did not seem to glow or shine with a festive sheen as did the other living names.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Crisostomo,Carina 4h4

Ang Babaeng namumuhay ng mag-isa

Para sa akin ito ay tungkol sa isang babaerng humaharap sa mundo ng mag-isa na kung saan ay hinuhusgaan siya ng mga tao bagama’t hindi siya kilala ng mga ito. Base sa aking interpretasyon, isinasaad nya ang kanyang paghihinagpis at kalungkutan sa kanyang buhay. Isang babae na nakaranasan ng bumagsak at tumayo sa sarili niyang mga paa ng walang pagaalinlangan na kakayanin nya ito. Ang tanging hiling lang nya ay wag siyang huhusgahan ng basta-basta.

Ang babaeng nangangarap ng gising

Ayon sa aking pagkakaintindi isinasaad ditto ang kanyang buhay simula pa sa kanyang pagkadalagita hanging sa nagkaasawa na siya. Inumpisahan ng isang gawaing pambahay, ang pagluluto at pagbabalik tanaw sa nakaraan na kung saan nasaktan siya ng labis dahil sa pagibig. Dahil dito isinumpa nya na makakaahon siya sa kahirapan kahit ano pa ang mangyari. At ng makapag asawa siya ay nagging isang may bahay na nagtitiis sa kabiyak.

Anonymous said...

Encarnacion, Nicole 4h4

Ang Babaeng Nangangarap ng Gising
by Virgilio Almario aka Rio Alma

Sa aking palagay ang tula ay tungkol sa isang babaeng nuon ay nakatira sa isang pook at nagbakasakaling manirahan sa lungsod. Sa kasamaang palad
nakapangasawa siya ng isang iresponsableng lalake kung kaya't palagi siyang nangangarap na balang araw ay aahon din siya sa kanyang paghihirap. Ito ay
nagpapahiwatig na ang kababaihan ay sadyang masakripisyo at matiisin kahit na lugmok na sa masamang sitwasyon. Madalas pinagsasamantalahan ang
kahinaan nito ang kamangmangan.


Ang Babaeng Namumuhay ng Mag-isa
by joi barrios

Ang tulang ito ay nagsasaad ng mga kababaihan pilit inaalipusta ng lipunan dahil sa kanilang katayuan (magisa, puta, kerida, walang asawa). Hindi nakikita
ng iba ang kadahilanan kung bakit ang isang tao ay sadyang nasa ganung katauhan. Nakikita lamang nila ang gusto nilang makita. Ang tao ay pinanganak na mapanghusga kung kaya't may "stereotyping" sa mga taong sa tingin nila ay walang moral lalo na sa kababaihan. Madali nilang makita ang pagkakamali sa isang babae dahil para sa karamihan ang babae ay pangalawa lamang sa uri ng tao at nakakaangat pa din ang mga kalalakihan. Ang babae ay walang
karapatan hubugin ang sarili ayon sa kanyang kagustuhan at marapat dapat niyang sundin ang inaasahan sa kanya ng lipunan.

Paula Pizarro said...

Pizarro,Regina 4H4

“Ang Babaeng Nangangarap ng Gising” by Virgilio Almario aka Rio Alma

As little girls we may all have the same dream of ending up with our prince charming who would sweep us off our feet and live happily ever after. The poem illustrates a woman who also once dreamt of ending up with her own prince charming but never did. As a young girl, the woman in the poem wanted to get out of her misery in living at a farm so she went off to live at a town. Far from her dreams, she got married to a drunkard living a not so fairy tale story.

“Ang Babaeng Namumuhay ng Mag-isa” by Joi Barrios

The poem speaks for all the unmarried women who choose to live their lives alone. Some people may see them in a bad way but they are happy with their way of living. Others judge them for being alone disregarding the women’s rights to choose how they live their lives. It’s their choice to be alone for they want to live their lives independently according to how they want to without anyone objecting. The poem basically tells that these women we may have called sluts, mistress, old lady or separated may just want to be independent.

Anonymous said...

barbon,maria charissa

Ang babaeng namumuhay mag isa..

Ito ay tungkol sa babaeng namumuhay mag isa na kung saan siya ay hinuhusgahan ng mga tao bilang isang kerida,puta at iba pa.Inamin naman niyang marami siyang pagsubok na dinaanan ngunit kanya itong nalagpasan. Nasabi din niya na hindi ibig sabihin pag mag isa ang isang tao ay tinalukuran niya ang pag ibig ngunit mas ninaiis niyang sa kanya lang ang kanyang oras upang itguyo ang kanyang sarili.


Ang babaeng nangangarap ng gising

Para sa akin, lahat naman ng babae ay ganito ang pinapangarap, isang lalaking darating upang mailigtas tayo sa buhay. Halimbawa na ang babaeng ito, gusto niyang maka alis sa nayon, magpunta sa lungsod na kung saan inasahan niyang makita ang kanyang prinsipe
Ngunit sa di magandang pangyayari di natupad ang kanyang pinapangarap

leta arianna desiderio said...

Desiderio, Leta Arianna 4H4

1st poem

What I’ve understood in the poem “Ang Babaeng Nangangarap ng Gising” by Virgilio Almario aka Rio Alma is that when the main character was young, she promised herself that she won’t live like she used to and will succeed someday; but due to the temptation of falling in love young, the girl got married and lived the way she used to while she was in the province. I guess the girl felt hopeless of what she had become after not pursuing the life she wanted and might have felt pity for herself for marrying the guy she thought will give her a good future but what came out was that the guy is giving her a hard time because her husband is alcoholic.

If I relate this poem to the real world, I believe that it was quite true among the other women I know who had good futures while they were young but was wasted when they married early or had children at a young age. Most women nowadays are engaging in young family life affair thinking that they will have a better future with just a good-looking guy for a husband but doesn’t strive hard for a better life for his family. I know nobody is born perfect but everyone is born with brains and those who know how to use it right are the ones who excel and experiencing a good life. This is more than a piece of literature for me; it also serves as a guide to give me the knowledge of using my brain cells and wit well.

2nd poem

For the poem “Ang Babaeng Namumuhay ng Mag-isa” by Joi Barrios is about a simple single girl who was misunderstood by the society. She was given names that are harsh for a woman. The society misjudged her for being single and for wanting not to be attached with someone. The girl in this poem is a person who prefers to have her own control in her life. I believe that this person wants to show that a woman doesn’t always need a man or someone she can depend or rely on, she wants to say that a woman may be fragile inside but is strong enough to face the problems of the world alone and that a woman can stand for herself. The poem gives me the realization of having faith to what you believe you can do especially the reason that you yourself can stand on your own. Nobody really knows what a woman can or cannot do because she herself has her own style of doing things her own way. Let the person be of what she believes is right and is good for her.

desiderio, leta said...

Desiderio, Leta 4H4

1st poem

What I’ve understood in the poem “Ang Babaeng Nangangarap ng Gising” by Virgilio Almario aka Rio Alma is that when the main character was young, she promised herself that she won’t live like she used to and will succeed someday; but due to the temptation of falling in love young, the girl got married and lived the way she used to while she was in the province. I guess the girl felt hopeless of what she had become after not pursuing the life she wanted and might have felt pity for herself for marrying the guy she thought will give her a good future but what came out was that the guy is giving her a hard time because her husband is alcoholic.

If I relate this poem to the real world, I believe that it was quite true among the other women I know who had good futures while they were young but was wasted when they married early or had children at a young age. Most women nowadays are engaging in young family life affair thinking that they will have a better future with just a good-looking guy for a husband but doesn’t strive hard for a better life for his family. I know nobody is born perfect but everyone is born with brains and those who know how to use it right are the ones who excel and experiencing a good life. This is more than a piece of literature for me; it also serves as a guide to give me the knowledge of using my brain cells and wit well.

2nd poem

For the poem “Ang Babaeng Namumuhay ng Mag-isa” by Joi Barrios is about a simple single girl who was misunderstood by the society. She was given names that are harsh for a woman. The society misjudged her for being single and for wanting not to be attached with someone. The girl in this poem is a person who prefers to have her own control in her life. I believe that this person wants to show that a woman doesn’t always need a man or someone she can depend or rely on, she wants to say that a woman may be fragile inside but is strong enough to face the problems of the world alone and that a woman can stand for herself. The poem gives me the realization of having faith to what you believe you can do especially the reason that you yourself can stand on your own. Nobody really knows what a woman can or cannot do because she herself has her own style of doing things her own way. Let the person be of what she believes is right and is good for her.

Anonymous said...

Nadres, Alberto Lorenzo P.

Ang babaeng nangarap ng gisiing

Sa aking naisip, ang babaeng nangarap na gising, ay tungkol sa asawang babae, na lagging naghihintay sa kanyang asawa na umuwi galing sa trabaho. Pero pag uwi palagi ng asawa ay laseng naman siya. Kahit anung hirap ng gawin ng babae, ay minsa’y hindi napapansin ng kanyang asawa, kaya noon ay naisip nyang tumakas siya sa hirap ng buhay at lungkot sa probinsiya, pero ngayo’t nag bago ang kanyang buhay, naisip niya na wala naming pinag bago ang kanyang buhay. Dahil hindi naman siya nabibigyan pansin ng kanyang asawa, kaya siguro nangangarap na magising sa totoo ang kanyang asawa at bigyan siya ng tamang pagpansin sa kanilang pamamahay.

Ang babaeng namumuhay ng mag-isa

Sa aking pagkakaintindi ng, ang babaeng namumuhay ng mag-isa ay isa siyang babaeng nasakatan dahil sa nangyari sa kaniyang asawa, sila’y nag hiwalay at lagi nalang sila nag aaway at minumura siya ng asawa niya. Napapaisip tuloy siya kung siya ba ay nagkulang sa pagmamahal sa kaniyang asawa, dahil napaisip siya kung anu man ang kanilang problema at bakit hindi nila itong malutasan. Sa aking palagay ay ang babaeng ito ay tinalikuran ang pag-asang magmahal muli dahil sa naranasan niyang sakit mula sa unang pag-ibig niya ng sobra. Pero kahit tayo man ay masaktan ng paulit ulit dapat tayo ay hindi tumalikod sa pagmamahal dahil tayo din ay makakaraos sa sakit at makakakita ng iba pang pwedeng mang yari sa ating kinabukasan.

Anonymous said...

Catindig, Jamellee 4H4

Ang Babaeng namumuhay ng mag-isa

- para sa akin tungkol sya sa pagiging magisa ng isang babae. Masyadong mainit ang mga mata ng lipunan sa mga single women. Siguro para sa akin ang pagiging isang single woman ay may kanya kanyang dahilan. Hindi lahat ng nag-iisa ay isang kerida, puta or matandang dalaga siguro may nangyari sakinla sa nakaraan nila n naka-apekto sa kanilang paniniwala.


ang babaeng nangangarap ng gising

- sa aking panguunawa, ito ay tungkol sa isang mahirap na dalaga na nangako sa kanyang sarili na paglaki niya ay aahon siya sa kanyang kinalalagyan at mamumuhay ng iba sa kanyang kinagisnan. natupad niya iyon at nakapagasawa siya ng isang taga siyudad. kaya lang ang kanyang napangasawa ay hindi sakanyang pinapangarap kungdi ay isang lasingero at wala na siyang magawa kung hindi magtiis.

Anonymous said...

Narcisso, Ma. Sherrilyn 4H4

Ang babaeng namumuhay ng mag-isa

The way that I understood the poem is that the wife is a battered wife because her husband used to swear at her. After breaking up with her husband she didn't have any room left to love again which is really sad because, she will never give it another try beacause of her past experience, but she must know how to let go and move on beacause everybody is different and she must learn that not everything is the same as the last experience.

Ang babaeng nangangarap ng gising

In this poem, the wife isn't appreciated by her husband and that's why maybe everytime she sleeps, she wakes up in the middle of the night feeling sad because she feels that she can't connect with her husband because, when he comes home late at night he's always drunk. We must always give importance to what we have and always be thankful to what we have been blessed and not what we usually look for that isn't really there.

Anonymous said...

Antonio, Jerome 4H4

Ang babaeng namuhay ng mag-isa

After reading this poem, I can say that this girl had ahard time because she was all alone. She was having a hard time with with loving someone, and now that she's all alone, she doesn't trust anyone but herself. Maybe she should forget everything that had happened and let herself be happy with snother person who will love her the way that she deserves to be loved.

Ang babaeng nangangarap ng gising

I can see that this poem is about a girl trying to change her own life by doing new things which have been said that will always make our life better. But little did she know that it came with a life of sorrow without the proper love that is supposed to be shown towards a person. We always need to see that there will always be a brighter side in everthing even if if you feel that things can't get any worst, that's how the wife felt in this poem, she always tried to make everything for her husband, but her husband never see's the effort that she puts in her work. This is a classic example of when a wife is treated like a miad, which us Filipinos must deteriorate while it is still early.