Shyne17’s Weblog

It could be unusual to

analyze social events,

by breaking down mental processes

into the most basic components.

He used the binary opposition.

He emphasizes on the

systematic interrelationships

among the elements of any human activity.

Examines the abstract codes

and conventions in the social

production of meanings.

How words can mean and what they mean

through signs

between the signifier and the signified.

His activities are as diverse

as food preparation,

religious rites or games,

literary and non-literary passages.

Every form of entertainment,

is studied to discover the deep structures

by which meaning is produced

and reproduced within a culture.

So wide ranging.

He focused on the things

in the world that the words designate,

he emphasizes on the system of signs,

and their differences,

rather than on the individual signs

themselves.

He rejects the traditional impression

that literature reflects reality

or it expresses author’s meaning.

A very unconventional man,

a kind of man that

will improve the way of living

through his study and

awareness in the

importance of language.

The Philippines is a colonized country. There are debates in the term post-colonial, but we know that in a literal sense, post- colonial is that which has been after colonization. In practice, and when it is used, it seems to be very unclear and because it is broadly used. Some however says that this term means independence as well, independence after the colonizers. In here, we can debate whether it is true that the Philippines could belong to the post-colonial period.

It seems that the country is not that independent, still under the power of big and powerful countries. There are writings about our history, the most famous perhaps are the works of our national hero, Jose Rizal that addresses matters of the Filipino identity, gender, race, and ethnicity. Also, some of the modern writers are challenged to develop a post-colonial national identity through their writings.

However, the national identity that the Filipinos are trying to have is not that achievable because of the almost four hundred years of colonization of the Spaniards and then the Americans, then the Japanese. We cannot just turn away from these colonizers even though, according to historians, they abused our country. Some of us are westernize even if the Philippines experienced the so-called Independence day long time ago, because almost everyone loves their culture and even their language.

Post-colonial critics are concerned with literature produced by colonial powers and works produced by those who were colonized. It is very interesting to know what the colonized countries view about their colonizers, like the Philippines, wherein they tend to reclaim and maintain the connections with the colonizers. Post-colonial theory looks at the topic of politics, religion, power, economics, and culture and how these things work in relation to colonial form of government.

In the Philippines, we are shaped by our colonizers, we cannot do something about this. English is a common language used and Spanish or Japanese are taught in schools openly. Even in literature, one cannot stray from using the English language, it is the only language that can be used for world transactions. Also, most of us are descendants of these colonizers and our outer appearance cannot deny that.

A Writer’s Remorse

Why do readers always give a metaphorical meaning to everything?

What if I only mean a simple banana, a simple pencil, you are the one that gives meaning to it.

Most of you give it a phallic meaning.

Then, if I am pointing a deep and critical topic some of you absorb it as something so shallow.

One should be open to works for improvement of oneself. A writer cannot always choose a topic with a common theme- for the all to understand.

To understand the meaning of a work, one must look to create that meaning and experience. One doesn’t need experience, the work is an experience. While you can put your own ideas and experiences into a piece of work, you are at the same time gaining new understanding through the text. We allow you readers to interpret a text any way you want, but text do exist you cannot just change the meaning of the work. One must read a work and understand it with immunity, and setting aside one’s own culture, traditions, status, personality, and other.

A Reader’s Remorse

You cannot give us an exact meaning because we have different meanings for each and every word.

Pork could be something delicious and imagined as tasty to some, but for Muslims it is something sinful and disgusting.

How can I relate to your work about mountain climbing if I’m not into it? You cannot blame me.

Each of us have different ideas about things such a suspense, curiosity, or surprise. You cannot dictate us on when to experience those feelings. Maybe you could influence me with feelings in the way you write and control me, but in the end, it is my decision that will prevail. Our culture, traditions, status,and personality will always come to us while we are reading, because that compose the “me”.

Remember the cliché, you cannot please everyone.

In the end, we are the consumers, we will choose what to read and what not to.

One morning, a man was in a hurry to go to his work.

“ I have many things to do there in the office”, he said as he bang the door of their house as he goes out.

He entered his office and saw many people waiting for him. They are very noisy and the heat in the air-conditioned room seemed unbearable.

The people are arguing. They are shouting to each other. But they all stopped when they saw the one coming.

“There is a threat of increase in the price of goods, and the most expensive would be the rice, and as the captain of this barangay you should help us like you always do!”, the people uttered.

“We farmers are about to increase the price of rice because the owners of the land that we are farming increased the price of our payment in using their land”, the farmers said.

They argued again and stopped when he said, “ Don’t worry, I will talk to these land owners. I will negotiate with them about your problem.”

His assistants came and put everything ready for the trip to the rich land owner.

He talked to the landowners.He was respected, so his points were considered by the land owners.

The day ended with people happy for the accomplishments of the captain.

“Thank you Cap, we can eat our food now without any threat of hunger.”, the people said to him.

The captain went home that night. Hungry and tired after the long day of negotiations and arguments, he asked his wife, “Where is the food for me tonight?”

“There is no food for you tonight, remember, you bang the door at my face this morning and you also forgot to kiss me goodbye!”, then, wife went to their room and locked the door.

The light, it makes my eyes close,
the men in green is slapping my behind,
I couldn’t help but cry of course.

“Oh it’s a boy, look!”
So what’s with that little thing there?
The phallus they mentioned.
It is small- of no power.
Not even powerful enough
to bring me back to darkness,
in peace again.

I am naked and there it is
but I’m not ashamed
because here is the one who kept me
peacefully inside her for nine months.

Tell me,
how could I not love her?
This is love
combined with gratefulness.
Who is this man
who says that what I am feeling is sexual?

My father is beside my mother,
smiling.
But he could be tricky.
Now she sleeps.

I’m at the incubator
and the man whom Freud says
that will threaten me of castration here
He is with her all this time.
He comes with my mother
just to see me in my form from the outside.
He is not threatening me of any kind
as what this fraud is saying.

He’s not threatening,
he is in fact smiling
and seem to want me
like the way my mother
wants me.

 It was just for the reason of passing a requirement. I badly need to pass my work because it was our midterm project for our CW 101- I thought it was just as simple as that.
 Reading it again made me realize that even if the main character of our flash fiction was only randomly given to us, a touch of my personality marked on the way I wrote my paper.

 Well, a little background first. Before writing my flash fic, I just finished reading my AH 2 research paper, it was about same-sex marriages. I am really interested in that topic. As a person raised from a family with a strong faith in the church, I was really culture-shocked now by the people I know who engage in the same-sex relationships. I am not against it, but it seems that, today, people are getting to be more and more open-minded about these things.

Homosexuals are everywhere, in school, in the television, in the radio and even in churches. In the local and international television, there are people who seemed to be role models and at the same time, openly admitting to the society that they are gays. The possibility of marrying two people with same gender made me realize that the society accepts these kind of things because of the kind of people that practice this kind of culture.
I wrote my flash fiction with the influence from my AH 2 paper. It was hard. On the first workshop, the comment I got from everyone was that my work was like a reasearch paper. I am not shocked of that though. Later, my work was improved but mistakes are still present.

The character of my flash fiction was an old man, dying and crippled. It was everything that I am not, but I tried to relate to the character of my story. It was a little awkward to write something that you cannot relate. But I was happy that I still mixed something that interests me in the flash fiction I made- same-sex  marriages.

My age back then was five, I remember that it was the time that my kindergarten teacher was asking us what we want when we grow old. For me, that was a very easy question. Instantly, my firm answer was to be a lawyer. I didn’t know why that was my answer, perhaps because my father wants me to become lawyer or maybe because I needed an instant answer. From that day on, when people would ask me my dream, I would answer that I want to be a lawyer. Well, the kindergarten days is very far from the time I choose the course BA English, so i’ll go fast forward to my senior highschool days.

We received UPCAT forms and were instructed to fill up those forms. Of course, I have in mind a course that would serve as my pre-law. Then, I saw at my preferred campus the course BA English Creative Writing, so I opted for it. I did not take it very serious, because I thought that I would not pass the exam, but I was wrong. My parents were very happy that I passed the UPCAT so they decided to send me to UP Mindanao to study.

Changing my course was also an option for me and asked signs whether BAE was really for me. I told my self that if there was an opportunity for me to shift, then I would. I thought BACA was a better course but, there were no opportunities for shifting that came, so I decided that I will be in BAE until graduation. I also promised myself that I will not entertain doubts about my course anymore. Besides, I am beginning to love writing, and as I’ve heard that BAE is a good pre-law course.

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