BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE

Did you know that Jose Rizal is not the Philippines’ national hero? According to  the National Commission for Culture and
the Arts (NCCA 2011), there has been no  offi cial proclamation of any Filipino historical fi gure as our national hero. The
NCCA states, “Even Jose Rizal, considered as the greatest among the Filipino heroes, was not explicitly proclaimed as a
national hero. The position he now holds in Philippine  history is a tribute to the continued veneration or acclamation of the
people in  recognition of his contribution to the significant social transformations that took place  in our country.” 
The poem you are about to read is an imagined narrative by a priest of the Ateneo, Padre Faura, on how he feels about
his old student, Jose Rizal. 

Padre Faura Witnesses the Execution of Rizal

by Danton Remoto

1 I stand on the roof 

2 Of the Ateneo Municipal, 
3 Shivering 
4 On this December morning. 
5 Months ago, 
6 Pepe came to me 
7 In the Observatory. 
8 I thought we would talk 
9 About the stars 
10 That do not collide 
11 In the sky: 
12 Instead, he asked me about purgatory. 
13 (His cheeks still ruddy 
14 From the sudden sun 
15 After the bitter winters
16 In Europe.) 
17 And on this day 
18 With the year beginning to turn, 
19 Salt stings my eyes. 
20 I see Pepe, 
21 A blur 
22 Between the soldiers 
23 With their Mausers raised 
24 And the early morning’s 
25 Star: 
26 Still shimmering 
27 Even if millions of miles away, 
28 The star itself 

29 Is already dead.

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GUIDE QUESTIONS

1. Who is Pepe? Explain. 

2. Why does Pepe ask the persona about purgatory?  
3. The poem talks about the nature of stars. Can you explain what he means, in terms of science? 
4. This discussion of a star is also a metaphor. What is it a metaphor for?  Explain. 
5. Why was Rizal executed? How is this similar to the idea of a star? Relate this  to Philippine history. 
6. What do you think the persona felt for Rizal? Give textual evidence.
7. Do you feel the same way? Why or why not? 
8. What would you say was Rizal’s greatest contribution to Philippine society? 
9. If you were in Rizal’s place, would you have supported the Katipunan?  Why or why not? 
10. Who do you consider as our national hero? Jose Rizal or Andres Bonifacio?

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BACKGROUND KNOEWLEDGE

There are many different perspectives regarding martial law. In the history books,  martial law is seen as a great evil under
the reign of former President Ferdinand  Marcos, but there are some Filipinos who look at our martial law past with
fondness.  Why do you think this is the case?

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Martial law began in September 21, 1972 under Proclamation No. 1081, and the Marcos babies (those who were born
from 1964 to 1986) are only beginning to write about this segment of the past. When martial law began, there was not
much resistance to it, as people believed that it would curb the insurgency 2 of various rebel groups at the time. Although it
did lessen crimes in the country, anyone who went against President Marcos was jailed, and in many cases, disappeared
without a trace.  According to Philippine-History.Org, 30,000 politicians, students, and journalists were “detained by[sic]
military compounds under the President’s command,” and  many news publications and television news broadcasts were
closed or controlled  by the Marcos government. Numerous human rights violations were made during this time. 

Apo3 On the Wall 

by Bj Patino 

1 There’s this man’s photo on the wall 

2 of my father’s office at home, you 
3 know, where father brings his work, 
4 where he doesn’t look strange 
5 still wearing his green uniform 
6 and colored breast plates, where, 
7 to prove that he works hard, he 
8 also brought a photo of his boss 
9 whom he calls Apo, so Apo could, 
10 you know, hang around on the wall 
11 behind him and look over his shoulders 
12 to make sure he’s snappy and all. 
13 Father snapped at me once, caught me 
14 sneaking around his office at home 
15 looking at the stuff on his wall—handguns, 
16 plaques, a sword, medals, a rifle— 
17 told me that was no place for a boy,  
18 only men, when he didn’t really 
19 have to tell me because, you know, 
20 that photo of Apo on the wall was already 
21 looking at me while I moved around,  
22 his eyes following me like he was 
23 that scary Jesus in the hallway, saying 
24 I know, I know what you’re doing. 

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GUIDE QUESTIONS

1. How would you describe the persona and the persona’s father? How would  you describe their relationship? Would you
say that your relationship with  your father is similar or diff erent? Explain. 
2. In lines 12 and 13 in the poem, there is the use of the words “snappy” and  “snapped,” respectively. What do these
words mean? How do they add to the poem in terms of sound? How do they add to your understanding of the  relationship
between father and son? 
3. Who is Apo in the poem? Cite evidence to support your answer. 
4. How would you describe the relationship between the persona’s father and Apo? What does this tell us about the
father’s perspective about martial  law? 
5. What kind of values does the persona’s father want to teach his child, specifically, about what it means to be a man? Do
you agree with these values? Why or why not? 
6. Why is Apo compared to the “scary” Jesus in the hallway? What do they  seem to have in common? 
7. What do the father, Apo, and the “scary” Jesus have in common?  
8. Read the last line of the poem. What does it mean? How does this regulate  the persona’s behavior? 
9. Do you think the persona’s perspective about martial law is the same as his  father’s? Why or why not? 
10. How does this poem provide the reader a glimpse of what martial law was  like? How did the poem make you feel? 

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BACKGROUND KNOEWLEDGE

 In December 2011, Chief Justice Renato Corona was impeached by the Philippine Senate, with 16 senators voting to
impeach him and three senators voting for acquittal. He was impeached because he did not declare 183 million pesos in
his SALN, a public document required for all government officials. The declaration of assets and liabilities in the SALN
ensures that public officials do not accept bribes or are not prone to corruption; Chief Justice Corona’s non-declaration of
assets close to 200 million pesos hinted suspicion regarding the source of these funds and that these may be considered
ill-gotten wealth.  In a prior case, a court interpreter, Delsa Flores was fi red after she had failed to declare a market stall in
her SALN. The senators who impeached Corona stated that the law should apply to all. One can interpret the event as a
victory over corruption, but in the Philippines, this is not as simple as it looks. Others interpret the event as a political move
by the Aquino administration to take away the obstruction blocking them from  prosecuting former President Gloria Arroyo.
Be that as it may, it was a political exercise that showed that the checks and balances in the Philippine government are
alive and  well, and that no one is above the law. 

 The following poem explores the concept of justice and how it is applied in  Philippine society. Although it is about the
Supreme Court, in particular, it also refl ects  other problems of the Philippine government. 

Justice
by Ralph Semino Galán
1 These are the accoutrements of her offi ce: 
2 the blindfold symbolizing impartiality; 
3 a golden pair of scales measuring the validity 
4 of evidence given, both pro and con; 
5 the double-edged sword that pierces through 
6 the thick fabric of lies; Thoth’s feather 
7 of truth which ultimately determines whether 
8 the defendant’s life is worth saving. 
9 In J. Elizalde Navarro’s oil painting titled 
10 Is this Philippine Justice? The fi gure 
11 of the Roman goddess Justitia slowly fades 
12 into thin air, swallowed by pigments
13 cloudy as doubts. In my uncertain country 
14 where right and wrong are cards 
15 that can be shuffl ed like a pile of money bills, 
16 even the land’s Chief Magistrate 
17 is not immune from culpability; found guilty 
18 he has to face the music of derision. 

GUIDE QUESTIONS:

1. Why are symbols important in a poem? Explain what some of the symbols  mean, and how they add to the meaning of the
poem. 
2. Why are symbols important in the life of a nation? What do people get from  the symbols of a nation?  
3. Why does the poem describe the Philippines as “my uncertain country”? 
4. What does the simile, “right and wrong can be shuffl ed like cards” mean?  What does this mean when it comes to any of the
following: politics and  politicians, the police, and the justice system? 
5. What is the poem trying to say about the diff erence between justice in the  Philippines and justice anywhere else? 
6. Of all the objects that Justice owns, which one do you think is the most  important? Why? 
7. Why does Justitia look like she is fading in the painting, “Is this Philippine  Justice”? 
8. Why is money mentioned in the poem? 

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9. Why was it important for the Chief Justice to be impeached? What is the  message for Filipino government offi cials? 
10. Why does the Chief Justice have to “face the music of derision”? Is he  derided, not only for his crime, but because he
was caught?  

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BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE

The poem you are about to read describes race riots that occurred in Australia.  The persona in the poem is trying to come
to grips with the race relations found in Australia, and the ironies involved. 

Cronulla Beach
by Jose Wendell Capili 

  In Sydney’s Cronulla Beach, more than 5,000 white Australians descended on the  sands, attacking anybody who looked
Middle Eastern or Asian. Revenge followed:  Men of color rampaged through Cronulla with baseball bats, smashing
storefronts  and windshields. 
—early morning news, 12 December 2005 

1 Blood surges rapidly 

2 along Cronulla Beach. 
3 Armed with bats, 
4 white bodies are mad 
5 replications of tents, 
6 parasols and sunblinds 
7 spreading all over 
8 what used to be kurranulla, 
9 aboriginal landscapes, 
10 the place of pink seashells. 
11 There is no chieftain 
12 on the shore, no starfi sh 
13 where dominion shatters. 
14 Not too far behind, 
15 thugs and their hand 
16 maids constrict exquisite 
17 shades of perplexity 
18 to keep generations 
19 pure and sterile. 
20 Spaces beneath vestiges 
21 of hamlets from long ago 
22 have become driftwood, 
23 shells, cleavers of melting 
24 pots and succession. 
25 They are swaying eerily 
26 translucent as postcards 
27 bereft of scintillating light 
28 in the heated-up weather. 
29 So racializing, this soap

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GUIDE QUESTIONS:

1. What is the importance of the poem’s setting?  

2. Why is it ironic that the beach used to be an “aboriginal landscape”? 
3. What does it mean that there are generations who want to keep themselves  “pure and sterile”? What does this say about
immigration issues in Australia? 
4. Why did the white men rampage against colored people? How do you feel  about this? 
5. Why did the colored people take their revenge? How do you feel about this? 
6. In this discussion about immigration and race, where does the Filipino come  in? Why is this an important concern for
Filipinos? 
7. The pink seashells in the story gradually turned into sand. What could this  be a symbol of? Explain. 
8. There is a juxtaposition8 of the image of the riots with a postcard. Why was  this done?  
9. Did this poem change the way you look at living or working abroad? Did it  change the way you view Australia? Why or why
not? 
10. The last line says, “So racializing, this soap.” What does it mean?