Comments on: Analyzing `Rosas ng Digma’ and `Ang Tugon’

By: baader / SimmerDownBoy

baader / SimmerDownBoy — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:29:23 +0000

thank you…

i really intended it to be incomplete. i want my readers (naks!) to use their creativeness, to use their poetic side that’s not being used. i used to write complete poems, but once in a while i tend to keep the rest to my self, like not totally giving all of my soul to them. anyone may disagree but that’s just me.

i am currently looking for a spark to ignite the passion in me again. for the more i grow old, the more my hands get tied this routine life: i have to till more now for my family. again, my sincerest thank you. i do bless my stars for having met a person like you. irie!

Reply: Your reason for making your poem incomplete makes sense, I guess. Barthes believes, after all, in the “death of the author” (not literally, of course) when it comes to works of art. I’m sure you know that writing is more of perspiration than inspiration (a popular saying puts it at 99:1), so the only suggestion I can give you is to just go ahead and write and not wait for divine intervention euphemistically called inspiration. In other words, procrastination is an enemy of writing! I can, however, understand your apprehension because whatever you write (creative or not) is a reflection of who you are. Good luck on your writing!

By: baader / SimmerDownBoy

baader / SimmerDownBoy — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 00:59:19 +0000

… and i agree with activism is being gender-sensitive. kewl.

By: baader / SimmerDownBoy

baader / SimmerDownBoy — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 00:57:25 +0000

it’s not a “love song”, btw. a short poem it was, and i thank the stars above that we broke up for i wouldn’t have met my constant reminder that life is beautiful: Shirlene and Li’l Leela. here is the piece:

Kandila

Muli nating sindihan, o aking irog
At paluhain ang bulag niyang mata
Mabigyan man lang ng liwanag
Ang kadilimang natamo
Dahil sa panaghoy ng hangin
Ng ating hindi pagkakaunawaan

-SimmerDownBoy

very obvious? ;-) i have posted a few of my pieces @ my friendster blogspot (shaofanaticsyndrome@yahoo.com) but sadly i couldn’t keep it updated. i was busy or “nagbi-busy-bisihan” these past months. another reason is (as i have read from another blog) that it might be “stolen” from me. anyways, if you find something wrong or anything about this piece, feel free to bash me in the head. i have always wanted somebody to help me hone my writing skills, if you even call it “skills”.

IRIE!

Reply: No bashing necessary for it’s obviously very inspired writing. But don’t take my word for it because I am not an authority when it comes to poetry, or creative writing for that matter: With the exception of a recent column article (Nakakapatula ang mga sandaling ito), the last time I had a couple of poems published was in the mid-1990s.

But I hope you don’t get offended when I say that your poem seems incomplete or unfinished. Or perhaps you decided to just provide an excerpt given your apprehension about your work being stolen, a sad reality in making it part of the public domain which is cyberspace.

Then again, your friends and other discerning readers of this blog may have a different take: It’s supposed to be bitin (to use a Filipino term) because the poem talks about one’s emotional uncertainty brought about by one’s affection.

Either way (incomplete or not), I like the use of the characteristics of the candle in depicting one’s depression, not to mention the darkness resulting from the separation. I hope you’ll continue writing. Don’t think I’m being patronizing when I say that I see a lot of potential. All the best!

By: baader / SimmerDownBoy

baader / SimmerDownBoy — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 14:34:31 +0000

this is the first time that i have visited this site and i am already getting hooked. anyway, in my opinion, the person who wrote this song probably wasn’t really conscious about the gender-awareness thing as his/her main objective of writing the song was to convey what he/she feels inside in an activist’s perspective.

i once wrote a piece about rekindling a dying relationship using a “candle” as the objective. my point is, there is a lot of things in this world that we can use to describe what we feel subliminally. on the surface, a candle is a mere piece of wax that is useless without fire. but when you use it to channel your love for somebody, combine it with words, the world will be a bright place for you, at least for me. although i just pretended that my girlfriend and i was about to part ways (we did part ways eventually \m/).

rosas ng digma is like beauty i ugly.

Reply: So nice of you to drop by! I guess you’re right about the composer of the song not being conscious about gender. But I’m sure you’ll agree that an intrinsic part of activism is being gender-sensitive, and a composer-activist should try his or her best to be one. I’m curious about the love song you composed and I hope you’ll make it public someday through your blog or public profile (e.g., Friendster or Facebook). It’s unfortunate that you’ve parted ways with your loved one, and I wish that you’ll find happiness in the near future. All the best!

By: reden

reden — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 12:03:33 +0000

dani,
napadaan ako sa web site na ito at nakapag-basa ng ilang ma kwento sa pag-ibig, kritka sa mga awit at iba pa.

maya napansin lang ako na napasingit, bakit may pampanga scandal 4 sa nasa taas na mga short videos.

good luck and more power

By: gracie

gracie — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 09:56:57 +0000

.,great great.. ^_^

was just trying to look for the lyrics and i found your blog.. hmm.. interesting..

i’m just nineteen and i would surely want to know more and mature more in terms of my perspectives. ^_^

thanks po.. hehe

By: gracie

gracie — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 21:05:16 +0000

about the rosas ng digma.. well, i am not a feminist but more of a womanist. i do not believe in the concept that women are the stronger sex but are of equal footing with men.

The person I’m with now is an activist, and he was the one who introduced me to this song.. I have seen him in the midst of a mob a lot of times, and this song touched my heart. I agree that there isn’t any manifestation of being “political” per se in the lyrics, but It’s in the context- the first hand experience and the memory of seeing someone you love standing on the line fighting that compensates to what seems to lack in the lyrics of the song. That made it extra special for us because it makes us realize more that people who join the mobs or people who take active roles in political issues aren’t just mechanical organisms-but real, living, and feeling human beings.. .

When I heard him sing this to me, I did not feel offended or even bothered of being likened to a rose.. because in love we are of the same footing- we are all weak, and yet in weakness, we find strength.

..about the “hardin ng digma”.. pakalimiin natin na ang isang hardin ay hindi lamang nagtataglay ng ganda, o ng katahimikan.. sa hardin, madalas na may mga damong unti-unting pumapatay sa mga halaman.. i believe that that’s the point of it- the rose, in its being termed as “delicate” finds the strength to grow and fight against the severity of the “hardin ng digma”… the strength in the midst of weakness is the strength of a woman.

Nonetheless, I appreciate men like you who happens to become more gender sensitive…

^_^ take care and God bless.

Long Reply:

Thanks for your message which raised a lot of interesting points:

Feminist and womanist – From what I’ve read, feminism does not advocate female superiority but gender equality, which is what you believe in. The struggle for the liberation of women is rooted in the patriarchy (or male superiority) that exists in society. The objective is to remove any form of superiority on the basis of gender, not to replace male with female superiority. From what I know, “womanism” is the word coined by Alice Walker to describe the situation of African-American women.

The movement’s “human face” – I agree that the song gives a human face to the revolutionary movement that is often perceived to be mechanistic, given the rigidity of its organization. However, I think the songs in Rosas ng Digma have become “too subjective” for comfort. In other words, the feelings tend to be more significant than the cause. One gets the impression that the revolution gets in the way of true love, as is the case of “Ang Tugon” (though one can better appreciate this point after listening to the song “Kahit Kailan” where even failure in pushing the revolution forward was considered an option.)

“Hardin” as venue for “digma” – You have an excellent point that gardens also have weeds that can destroy the beauty, or the illusion of it. I think that is a valid, alternative way of analyzing the lyrics of “Rosas ng Digma.” As an “enlightened male” who cannot be considered a feminist, I hope you understand our difference of opinion: Your interpretation of the garden still cannot explain why the male has to “take care” of the female (likened to a rose) when the latter should be able to stand on her own two feet.

Nevertheless, I repeat my appreciation for the production of an album like “Rosas ng Digma.” As in your case, my wife and I also like listening to the songs. Mabuhay ka!

By: Tine

Tine — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 01:51:47 +0000

I enjoyed our discussion about that in class. Although I was the one who said that the lyrics are a bit…well slanted in terms of gender awareness, i would have to admit that RND is one of my favorites in terms of musicality. Of course you made us listen to it when I was a freshman, back in your j100 class.
I could have said was my first favorite “progressive” song then. But the Anak ng Bayan CD is much much better…

Reply: It’s good to know that you appreciate our class discussion. I agree that other albums like Anak ng Bayan are better, in the sense that they are more “politically correct.” But to be fair to Rosas ng Digma, it’s a very good attempt to present love at a time of chronic crisis and to try to be popular at the same time. That would also explain why I like the album despite its weaknesses.