This contemporary Philippine fiction by Jose Y. Dalisay Jr., retells retained memoirs of its main character, Noel Ilustre Bulaong, from childhood in a beachside village named Kangleong in a Visayas island, to the life of an activist during the first quarter storm, to hardship in detention camps during Martial Law, . . . → Read More: Killing Time in A Warm Place]]>

This contemporary Philippine fiction by Jose Y. Dalisay Jr., retells retained memoirs of its main character, Noel Ilustre Bulaong, from childhood in a beachside village named Kangleong in a Visayas island, to the life of an activist during the first quarter storm, to hardship in detention camps during Martial Law, and life and inner struggles of a renewed man who took side with the government in the era of the New Society.

The recollection took place during an airplane ride of Bulaong on his way back to the Philippines to attend the burial of his father. Bulaong was seated beside an American Information Technology (IT) entrepreneur on his way to do business in the Philippines, when he started the vivid recollection.

The recollection started with Bulaong’s childhood in Kangleong. Bulaong recalled the mode of living in a beachside community, where a boy is exposed to the various plant species, animals and creatures considered as exotic, and where children due to the absence of sophisticated toys, which are found only in cities, experimented on fruits and plants to satisfy their primitive biotechnological curiosity. Bulaong also recalled amusing tales of aswang, how to annihilate them, and how his grandfather was once attacked by this blood-sucking creature after courting his grandmother, but successfully defended himself by whacking the aswang on the back with his bolo, only to find out on a Sunday mass after the attack, that the aswang was his grandmother. Bulaong further recalled his local politician uncle, who owed it to health failures and some malfeasance of their mayor, for him to be given a chance to serve as officer-in-charge in their town, and amass some amount to build a comfortable bungalow, and retire there when his term ended. In his childhood, Bulaong came to know about power, honor, people’s regard and respect for someone who holds an elective position – the elite complex that accompany politics – through stories of his uncle.

The most vivid event in his childhood recollection was his father being a campaign coordinator for Ferdinand Marcos in their village, The sight of his father being on stage with Ferdinand Marcos, and testing the microphone, which Marcos will use, and arranging for Marcos’ campaign, brought pride to Bulaong’s mother and him, and his brother Jimmy. He recalled the fact that his father, a former lawman (secret agent) who became a senior clerk at the head office of the Highways Ministry, rubbing elbows and mingling with politicians, made his father important, equating him to a local hero in Kangleong.

Later on, Bulaong, with his job as an assistant to the Deputy Minister for Public Highways, his uncle and relatives would push him to become the mayor of his town.

Then, his memory takes him to the struggling days in UP Diliman, in which he is an activist who organized students and people, and walked as one of the front liners on the streets, denouncing, condemning and cursing the government of Marcos. He recalled his fascination with Marxism, Leninism, Maoism, and other progressive literatures, which awakened a strong passion in him to adhere to class struggle as a means to “serve the people.”

He recalled his comrades, Jong, who came from a rich family; Benny; and Laurie. The four of them held key and strategic positions in the struggle on the streets to serve the people. Benny took care of organization; Laurie, finance; while he performed auxiliary services at propaganda, such as writing manifestoes and other propagandist literature. They rented a secluded dilapidated boarding house, which served as their headquarters, and chipped in the few precious bucks they have for rice and sardines. Like typical activists during that time, they seldom see their family, and when they do, they are regarded as lost sheep seeking temporary shelter, and be given the compassionate and understanding treatment from a caring family, before they are consented to go back again to the slaughter, in the underground movement, after persuasion and pleadings of parents for them to just leave the movement, ended in futility.

But, the Martial rule ended their subversive lifestyle. When Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law, they became like sheep to be slaughtered by wolves. They split up and dispersed in different directions, yet, tried to get in touch and regroup. But the Martial Rule that time, either held them in captivity in political prison camps, or pushed others to the countryside and mountains. He and Jong found each other in a prison camp in Luzon, while Laurie survived on the hills, while Benny became missing only to be traced in a prison camp in Mindanao.

Among the four, Benny, Laurie and Jong remained faithful to the cause. But he, he renounced his faith in the movement and became a part of the bureaucracy through the connections of his father. He reaped the fruits of his paradigm shift, and began to enjoy his new life with a government job, a meaty pay, apartments, car and connections.

But there were those times, when the comrades he betrayed paid him a visit, especially Laurie, who requested him to use his connections to search for Benny. Through a general, he located Benny in a prison camp in Mindanao, and facilitated his release. But after four days, Benny was salvaged and found floating in the Pasig River. After Benny’s death, Jong visited him to persuade him for the last time to join the movement, which was still on its struggle. However, he chose to stick with the kind of life he now have, and turned his back from the cause and comrades he once embraced and fought for, with the inner struggle of feelings of betrayal, which he learned to subdue.

Shortly, after that visit and betrayal, he left his job in the government, and decided to live in America, to the imperialist country he once denounced and cursed, as an act of anti-thesis or the real thesis of his life he really wanted.

Then, his father died, and he has to come home for the burial.

The Characters and Their Thoughts

While the novel centered on the recollection of Noel Ilustre Bulaong, the main character in the fiction; other characters, which I took note of are Mandoy Imoy, the main character’s uncle, who became officer-in-charge of their town; Laurie, Benny and Jong; and the militia men, who carried out Martial Rule.

Bulaong’s character is highlighted, if not revealed, by his act of renunciation of the struggle he has been advocating for – his paradigm shift from a subversive propagandist to becoming a part of the bureaucracy. Probably amid excruciating pain and torture in a political prison camp, Bulaong renounced the ideals, which he used to fight for, to avoid further pain and gain pleasure. This scenario or situation brings to mind hedonism, utilitarianism, and Herbert Spencer’s reconciliation of the two.

Hedonism is an ethical theory, which holds that the supreme end of man consists in the acquisition of pleasure, and that actions are good or bad according as they give or do not give worldly pleasure or satisfaction that an act brings or entails. The good action is the pleasant action. The bad action is that which produces pain. (Montemayor, 1995)

Meanwhile, utilitarianism states that the goodness or badness of an action would depend on the effects or consequences of the action. An act is good if and when it gives good results, if it works, if it makes you successful, if it makes you attain your purpose; bad if it does not. (Montemayor, 1995)

Herbert Spencer reconciled the two with rationalization that good is that which furthers life, which makes man well adjusted; and bad is that which makes him miserable and unhappy due to maladjustment. (Montemayor, 1995)

In the novel, Bulaong avoided pain brought by the torture of being detained in a political prison camp, beaten and maltreated, to obtain pleasure – working in the government with the luxury of his own vehicle, fat pay check and comfort. Bulaong’s renunciation led to pleasure and success, and made him adjusted to the New Society as one of its bureaucrats.

There are many Bulaongs in Philippine society today. Politicians and people, who, in securing tenure and a pleasurable life renounce the idealism and ethics, they once held high. People in the government service who renounce the virtues of transparency and honest-to-goodness governance to obtain temporal gains through graft and corrupt means. Politicians who renounce their comrades, party and ideals, to gain political advancement and the pleasure and over privilege that come with it.

Another character is Mandoy Imoy, the main character’s uncle, who became officer-in-charge of their town, due to the ailments of their mayor. Mandoy Imoy, while the OIC, cunningly made up legal repercussions to persuade the mayor, he fancied on becoming the mayor, but his inability to please the political party where he belonged because he failed to pay his dues, led him to fall in disgrace. But Mandoy Imoy during his term at the helm as mayor was able to erect for himself a decent bungalow where he retired.

Mandoy Imoy is also a hedonist and utilitarian. His action and decision are motivated by his desire for satisfaction or happiness or well-being. His move to extend the leave of their mayor is motivated by his desire to take over the mayoralty, which to him is good. He seized the opportunity to adjust himself in a position that will propel him to a permanent position as mayor, and enjoy the comfort that comes with it.

We see people like Mandoy Imoy in the bureaucracy and in private businesses, people who take advantage of a favorable situation to achieve political and economic advantages. People who seize every opportunity that come their way for political and economic gain. An example that comes to mind is the take over of the presidency of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo from Joseph Estrada, following a people’s movement and withdrawal of support by the military from Estrada’s administration. Arroyo seized the opportunity brought up by the favorable situation to achieve political gain. This take over also happens in top and middle managerial positions both in the government, private enterprise, and family business.

Laurei, Benny and Jong’s loyalty to the movement epitomizes the youthful passion of some people who embraced communism. Communism is founded on the theory of change, evolution and revolution. Everything is progressing towards the goal of perfection; and, society and history naturally and necessarily tend towards the attainment of the ultimate objective; the perfect state here on earth, the classless society. Good is that which brings about the realization of a classless society; bad, that which hinders or delays its coming. Revolution, conflict, bloodshed, wars, espionage, etc., are good if they bring about the desired end: the realization of the classless society.

In our society, there are still many people who are fighting for the same cause Laurei, Jong and Beny fought for and held onto. We see them in universities and colleges, hear of them fighting at the mountain places and hinterlands, organizing urban poor people and peasants, and immerse and integrate themselves in communities to gather vital information to advance their cause.

The militia men who maltreated Bulaong and Jong, and probably all other political detainees during that time, bring to mind a characteristic of Friedrich Nietzche’s thinking that hardship, severe justice, rigid training, conflict, hate, cruelty, harshness and war, in consonance with militaristic pedagogy, toughen the spirit and is productive of the strong. Although Nietzsche’s adherence to such rigidities are aimed in producing the superman, which is not the case among the militia men, still, their practice of cruelty reflect an aspect of Nietzsche’s thoughts.

Today, we still see these abuse and cruelty among our law enforcers, particularly police officers and military officials. Militaristic pedagogy is applied to peasants in countryside, which human rights advocate expose, denounce and fight against.

Striking quotes

The novel is rich with lines and verses, which one way or the other, epitomize the teachings and thinking of some philosophers. This paper will enumerate these quoted lines and verses. They are as follows:

“Theory of contradictions and the unity of opposites… class analysis and class contradictions… classify people into your enemies and your friends – strategic allies, vacillators, vanguard elements.”

“Be resolute, fear no sacrifice, surmount every difficulty to win victory! In times of difficulty, we must not lose sight of our achievements, must see the bright future and must pluck up our courage! Dare to struggle, dare to win!”

“…commitment to the destruction of US imperialism, feudalism and bureaucrat-capitalism – so called triad of our national affliction.”

“That’s all you need, a sincere ambition. An ambition to learn, to get a diploma, to land a good job and then who knows if fate wills it, to go abroad.”

“…victims of crushing greed.”

“That civil liberty, for all its clamor and cacophony, had failed woefully to build roads, to curb crime, to feed the poor and to satisfy the rich, and that, therefore national discipline and constructive subordination are worth trying.”

“A new Filipino entrepreneur could choose the best partner and invest in resort palaces, tobacco, tennis-ball production or car assembly plants, or better yet in banks to nourish these timely ventures, and expect to reap the just rewards of a guaranteed industrial peace.”

“Prison was frightening, but freedom even more so. Prison could be a warm and restful place, and all you had to do in it was kill some time.”

“America was a country with death throes of its own excess.”

“What makes you happy?… Security, comfort, pleasure. The ability to enjoy all these. To do things for myself.”

“What is good for you, must be good for the people too, serve the people, serve yourself.”

“A revolution is not a dinner party, the masses are the real heroes dare to struggle; dare to win, serve the people, in times of difficulty, we must not lose sight of our achievements, must see the bright future and must pluck up our courage, serve the people.”