Caleon, Alonzo Martin B.

11021993

GREATWK Synthesis Paper Dr. Leni Garcia

Philippines has a wide array of tradition. They go back to centuries ago when the culture was still untapped. As time passed, a number of things changed. What once was untapped (our culture) suddenly changed little by little. The Philippines was influenced because of trading and the occupation of the foreigners through food, clothing, buildings, weapons, dance. I could go on just telling how much change our country has gone through. Some say it is negative since we have forgotten our own culture but for others, it has created progress for the Philippines. Focusing on dance, our folk dances were known to be of earth-bound. Normally, we would choreograph dances that depict either normal day activities. Though as we held on to modernization, we have learned other dances as well- Ballet is a part of it. As they say, the etymology of the word "ballet" reflects its history. Ballet ultimately traces back to Latin ballare, meaning "to dance". I remember the times when I was young that I would start jumping or turning with my arms raised doing the Mcdonalds move. This, to me, was already ballet and I thought it was easy to do. At a young age, I did not find anything important with dance maybe because it was not just part of my interests. Why can we not just read and spend our time on history books and the like? Of course, others wouldnt think of it like that specially girls. It is every girls dream to take up ballet or dance lessons (well at least to those that I grew up with). I really did not see the point of this. Although just recently, I began to appreciate this art as we studied the different national artists. Leonor Orosa a.k.a. Cristina Luna was one of them. Born on July 24, 1917, she was lateron married to Benjamin Goquingco and they have three children, two of whom are both dancers. Orosa-Goquingco graduated valedictorian of her high school class, and finished bachelor of science in education, summa cum laude, at St. Scholastica's College. She took graduate courses in theater craft, drama, and music. After World War II, she organized the Philippine Ballet where she brought to life Maria Clara, the leper, Sisa, Elias, and Salome-all characters in Rizal 's novel Noli Me Tangere. In 1958 she founded the Filipinesca Dance Company. We could infuse history and dance afterall. I began to realize that ballet involved tedious work. It wasnt something bara-bara since it entailed time and literally blood and sweat. I admired Orosas passion with dance. Even though ballet was something foreign to us, the Filipinos, she did not forget to incorporate this with our folk dances. She did a marvellous job on incorporating the two to think that these are two complete opposite having the folk dances styles closer to the ground and ballet as a depiction of flying. I cannot question why she was proclaimed a national artist because she did not just amaze me but also a lot of people as well. Another national artist worthy to be talked about is Carlos Botong Francisco. Have you ever wondered how dragging it would be to study passed events from our history if there were no pictures? From Angono, Rizal, Francisco was a most distinguished practitioner of mural painting for many decades and best known for his historical pieces. He was one of the first Filipino modernists along with Galo Ocampo and Victorio C. Edades who broke away from Fernando Amorsolo's romanticism of Philippine scenes. To others, Francisco's art "is a prime example of linear painting where lines and contours appear like cutouts." Having been able to enroll under sir Dolor, I was able to open doors when it came to the art of painting. Before, lines were just lines to me. But if you put them together, it would create a masterpiece. Suddenly, my world was not just all about using the internet, hanging out with friends and the like. There was more to life than doing that. I would entail my time doing something insignificant while others like Botong delegated their time through painting. Their patience and love for art was truly admirable. A lot of men underestimate the capabilities of Filipinos. Nowadays, they only see our country as overpopulated and dirty. What they do not know is that we breed maestros and artists with different skills.

Caleon, Alonzo Martin B. 11021993

GREATWK Synthesis Paper Dr. Leni Garcia

Watching movies is my favourite pastime. They say that these shows are created to relieve us of our stress and to get us away from our lives. True enough, I would often watch American, Japanese, Thai movies because they would be of my interest. I realized lately that I have underestimated Philippine movies because nowadays, there are only a few movies that really produce quality storylines. A lot of Filipinos would enjoy slapstick movies that really do not make us reflect on what is happening in society. Lino Brocka, a great and well-distinguished director in the Philippines. Through his movies, he was able to depict the Philippine society and its problems. Yes, our country has progressed throughout the years but then the problems remain the same making Lino Brockas movies interesting to watch since the message he is trying to relate to us is similar to the problems of today. Luckily, we were able to watch two of his movies entitled Tinimbang ka ngunit kulang and Maynila sa kuko ng liwanag. The two movies made me realize who I was in todays society and how society was being affected because of these social norms. Because of this class, my way of thinking changed. I believe that there is more to Filipino movies than I have thought. We have to live by the line of Pagtangkilik ng sariling atin with not just movies but also with food, clothing, handicrafts, music. As an end result, this class has taught me to appreciate the works of the Filipinos- My countrymen. In a world full of negativity, there should always be an ounce of hope. Even though there are people who are more known of this and that, we still have something to be admired of; that is our culture and way of living as Filipinos. We should all learn to reflect on things because this helps us grow as a person. Never belittle our being Filipinos because this is the best thing that happened to us.