Auditing: Bienvenido N. Santos

Comusta Readers,

Today was our 1st day discussing literary works from Bienvenido N. Santos.  He mostly wrote about the experience of Pilipino Old Timers (O.T.), who were considered the first to migrate to the States in pre-World War II, around the 1920s-30s.  One of Santos' points is to speak on the O.T.s behalf, and to honor and remember them for being pioneers ( before the 2nd Generation Immigrants ).

Depending where one is in the States ( whether there's a centralized Filipino community or not ) or in the Philippines, then Santos may have succeeded in his goal.  I've never heard of the O.T.s until I read an essay and a sample of Santos' works for this class ( "Immigration Blues," "The Day the Dancers Came," and an essay, "Pilipino Old Timers: Fact or Fiction" which explored inarticulacy and choice-making in an unromanticized vision of America ).

Prof. C. noticed the class's judgmental stance as we read our responses ( generated by the free writing ).  I was a bit intimidated by my classmates.  They were throwing around literary jargons in proper context like frisbees.  I understood them ( but omg, this is why I only minored in Literature ).  G.I. C wrote his response, like a speech ( complete with intonations and hand gestures ); he wears a cowbody-esque hat a la Kuya Kim style, and he performs magic tricks with a 100 pesos bill ( American Flag ).

Using postcolonial lens, according to Prof. C, allows for heavy subjectivity ( making the stories OUR own ).  Sometimes, the Literature articulates many provocative ideas ( maybe too close for comfort, pero dahil I'm uncomfortable, it must be good for growth, diba? ).  In spite of this allowance, one must still be careful to avoid turning the discussion into a personal soapbox.  It is also inevitable to historicize and sociolize ( using traditions/culture ) when reading postcolonial literature ( issue of language use whether oral-vocal or written abounds also )

Stories that are character driven and full of internal conflicts remind me of my earlier attempts at fiction writing ( fiction which according to Santos is the same as fact; the difference is that fiction has "heart," empathy and human connection ).  Something new I never considered before is translating the English into Tagalog to get a clearer meaning and to speculate which meaning is closer to the intent of Filipino-Tagalog-speaking author ( oh semantics ).