21st Century Literature

Module 3 Do Activity
Marxist Approach in Literary Criticism

Name of Student: Title of Text:

Author/Performer:

What is the message of the text?

The song “Upuan” emphasizes the situation between government officials and the citizens, especially
those who are not privileged. Its message is that those people who are seated with power, particularly
government officials, abuse their power and neglect their duties as they seem to be blinded by the
power and wealth that they have because of the positions they are seated in.

What do you think is the connection of the title to the overall meaning of the text?

The title of the song which is “Upuan” is heavily connected with the meaning of the text because it
symbolizes the “seat” or the position of those particular people in the government. It implies that
while these individuals are comfortably seated in their positions, there are people at the bottom who
are struggling because of their selfish deeds. These people are given their respective positions in
order to serve the country and its citizens, however, instead of doing that, they choose to abuse their
power and use it for their personal gains.

What social forces and institutions are represented in the work? How are these forces
portrayed? What is the author’s attitude toward them?

The social forces and institutions which are represented are the government officials and the
struggling citizens. The author/singer used his/her voice to represent those people who are suffering
because of the corruption in the government. He used the song as a way to amplify the voices of those
people and send the message to the listeners about the government system. The words of the song are
pointed towards the ones who are seated, asking them to see the current situation of the citizens and
do their duties properly. The government sector is portrayed in such a way that it opens the eye to the
truth. It is being emphasized that the people of power are abusing their power, therefore, the rich gets
richer, meanwhile, the poor only gets poorer.

What economic issues appear in the course of the work? How important are economic facts in
influencing motivation and behavior of the characters?

The economic issues that appear in the work are corruption and poverty, and these are heavily
emphasized in the song. These issues and their facts are essential in influencing motivation and
behavior of the characters because they depict the theme and choice of words. They heavily influence
the flow of lyrics and the goal of the song.