An Analysis of a 21st Century Philippine Literature entitled
The Haiyan Dead by Merlie M. Alunan
"We all know that typhoons are dangerous and terrifying, especially when they are very powerful. But why do we need to prepare and evacuate before the typhoon hits? In this poem, it is all about how the typhoon destroyed people's lives. How they asked for help, and how they panicked before the typhoon came."
BACKGROUND
NAME OF THE AUTHOR: Merlie M. Alunan
HER PROVINCE AND REGION: Tacloban City, Leyte of the Visayas
EDUCATIONAL AND FAMILY BACKGROUND: She graduated from Silliman University with an MA in Creative Writing in 1974. She teaches at the Creative Writing Center, University of the Philippines Visayas Tacloban College. She lives in Tacloban City.
LIST OF AWARDS AND YEAR:
· 1984 - Likhaan Award for Poetry, UP Creative Writing Center
· 1994 - Free Press Literary Award for Poetry
· 1995 - Free Press Literary Award for Poetry
· 1995 - Home Life Magazine Poetry Writing Contest, Second Prize, "Hunger"
· 1996 - Chancellor's Award for Outstanding Creative Work
· 1997 - Gawad Alagad ni Balagtas Award, UMPIL (Unyon ng mga Manunulat sa Pilipinas)
· 2003 - Catholic Mass Media Award for Best Column, Cebu Daily News
· 2004 - Home Life Magazine Poetry Writing Contest, First Prize, "Mater Dolorosa in Two Voices"
· 1995 - Distinguished Faculty Grant, University of the Philippines
· 2007 - Second Prize Tula sa Cebuano, Gawad Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino
· 2008 - Selected Poems (UP Press, 2004), listed among the UP Centennial Publications
· December 13, 2008 - Professor Emeritus, University of the Philippines.
· July 2, 2009 - Sangyaw Achievement Award, City of Tacloban.
· 2014 - Ani ng Dangal (Literary Arts), NCCA.
· 2015 - Gawad Kampeon ng Wika, Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (KWF)
· 2018 - Garbo sa Ormoc for Literary Arts, Ormoc City, Leyte.
LIST OF WORKS YEAR PUBLISH:
· Hearthstone, Sacred Tree, Anvil, 1993,
· Amina among the angels, University of the Philippines Press, 1997,
· Selected poems, University of the Philippines Press, 2004,
· Tales of the Spider Woman, University of Santo Tomas Publishing House, 2010.
· Pagdakop sa Bulalakaw ug uban pang mga Balak, Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2013.
· Running with Ghosts, Ateneo de Naga University Press, 2018.
· Kabilin Legacy of 100 years of Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental Centennial Foundation, 1993.
· Songs of ourselves: writings by Filipino women in English, Editor Edna Zapanta-Manlapaz, Anvil Publishing, 1994,
COPY OF THE LITERARY TEXT
“THE HAIYAN DEAD”
Merlie M. Alunan
Leyte
do not sleep.
They walk our streets,
climb stairs of roofless houses,
latchless windows blown-off doors.
they are looking for the bed by the window,
cocks crowing at dawn lizards in the eaves,
they are looking for the men,
who loved them at night, the women.
who made them crawl like puppies,
to their breasts babes they held in arms,
the boy who climbed trees the Haiyan dead,
are looking in the rubble for the child.
they once were the youth they once were,
the bride with flowers in her hair,
red-lipped perfumed women,
white-haired father gap-toothed crone.
selling peanuts by the church door,
the drunk by a street lamp waiting,
for his house to come by the girl dreaming,
under the moon the Haiyan dead are.
looking for the moon washed out,
in a tumult of water that melted their bodies,
they are looking for their bodies that once,
moved to the dance to play.
to the rhythms of love moved,
in the simple ways--before wind,
lifted sea and smashed it on the land--
of breath talk words shaping,
in their throats, lips, tongues.
the Haiyan dead are looking,
for a song they used to love a poem,
a prayer they had raised that sea had,
swallowed before it could be said.
the Haiyan dead are looking for,
the eyes of God suddenly blinded,
in the sudden murk white wind seething,
water salt sand black silt--and that is why,
the Haiyan dead will walk among us,
endlessly sleepless-
ANALYSIS
Literary Genre
Poems are frequently written in stanzas, and they frequently employ symbolism. It may also have a dramatic method of telling stories, making it more easily recognized as poetry. Poems are frequently written in symbolism. It may also have stanzas, and they frequently employ dramatic methods of telling stories, making it more easily recognized as poetry. The poem represents many Filipinos who suffered in many tragedies, but still they know how to fight and stand in every struggle they faced or they might face. The author used some figure of speech to emphasize his work and to give deep meaning to his work. Because of these figures of speech, the author highlighted some of the important events in the poem. Being brave is one of the values that every Filipino has, and as a Filipino, we must be proud of it. In spite of different calamities in our country, we should lose our hope and always trust God.
Process Questions / Analysis Guides
1. Which of the following statements is true about the persona, who speaks in the third person:
• He/she addresses the Haiyan dead after the storm
• He/she catalogues the Haiyan dead after the storm
• He/she recalls the Haiyan dead after the storm
-He/she addresses the Haiyan dead after the storm
Because she dramatically described how the victims of Haiyan persevered throughout the whole time when Haiyan was engulfing the shores of Tacloban and the Philippines in its entirety.
2. In the perspective of the persona, what were each of the Haiyan dead doing? To plot the dramatic situation in a poem. chart the persons individuals mentioned by the persona and the verbs or actions attributed to them and as in a map, connect them with the phrase "The Haiyan Dead" in the middle of the box.
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3. What were the images of devastation dramatized in the poem? Write in the space below the lines that described the locality after the storm.
-To create significations and insight, one must understand and appreciate what metaphors do. Edith L. Tiempo, national artist for literature, describes the poem as "steeped in metaphor."
4. There were clear references to what the dead were doing in what was left of their town after the typhoon. What do these suggest about the person's attitude towards the event?
-The persona's perspective on the event is that the victims who died in the storm are zombie-like.
5. Some parts of the poem do not follow the usual writing mechanics. How do you relate this with the persona's attitude towards the devastation?
-The persona's attitude towards the devastation is to share her experience and to tell everyone how do people in Tacloban suffer from the typhoon Haiyan (Bagyong Yolanda), She also wants to make sure that the person who will read her poem will have an idea on how the people survive from the devastation happened.
6. The Haiyan dead, in the memorializing of the persona, seem unable to have peace as they "do not sleep" and keep on "looking for certain people. objects, or places in the town. How do you relate the two main actions of the Haiyan dead?
-The victims of Typhoon Haiyan were unable to sleep because of the destruction of the town. They are trying to find family members who have lost their loved ones and hope they can survive the tragedy. They also seem to be looking for items that can still be used to help them start a new life.
7. Thinking of the poem in terms of its metaphor, what was being suggested by the person's way of perceiving the devastation? How is the event of the calamity related to the calling out of the Haiyan
-This poem describes the death of Haiyan and we walk among us endlessly. The person's way of perceiving the devastation suggests that some of the people were not being laid to rest properly, and some of them never found after the severe storm surge, Also speaks of how the persona wants to make sure that this event will be remembered so it can be.
Contextual Analysis
Merlie M. Alunan, Visayas' most influential and respected writer, lived in Tacloban. The author and her family were survivors of Typhoon Haiyan (Bagyong Yolanda).After the storm, a poem titled The Haiyan Dead were published in 2014 by Merlie M. Alunan, demonstrating the difficulty and finding a miracle during the typhoon and its enormous impact on them. She came up with the idea to help through his poem based on their experience and inspiration to those who died in that disaster. He wished to tell the story of the moments preceding the disaster's devastation.
SUMMARY
The Haiyan Dead is a poem written by Merlie M. Alunan, and it revolves around victims of Haiyan, or most commonly known as "Yolanda" that destroyed many infrastructures and caused a mass casualty especially to the region of Tacloban. She even described the Haiyan Dead as a ghost-like creature that seeks for something or someone. This literary text is considered as a poem due to how the author made it very dramatic to the point where it can be seen as exaggerated to others. This also can be a homage to those who have their loved ones pass away during the disastrous event, so that people can give condolences to those who passed away.
The qualities of the poem "The Haiyan Dead" are artistry, intellectual value, spiritual value, permanence, and style. The author uses his voice as a writing to be heard by many, and also used his voice to sympathize with those Filipinos who didn't survive super typhoon Haiyan.
The Contextual Analysis we use here is the Application of Sociocultural Context,
Merlie M. Alunan, Visayas' most influential and respected writer, lived in Tacloban. She came up with the idea to help through his poem based on their experience and inspiration to those who died in that disaster.
In the process questions, Edith L. Tiempo, national artist for literature, describes the poem as "steeped in metaphor". There were clear references to what the dead were doing in what was left of their town after the typhoon. How do you relate this with the persona's attitude towards the devastation? The person's attitude towards the devastation is to share her experience and to tell everyone how people in Tacloban suffer from typhoon Haiyan (Bagyong Yolanda) She also wants to make sure that the person who will read her poem will have an idea on how the people survive.
REFERENCES
Here’s a list from where we gathered data and information:
Online Sources:
Sitoy, L. (2013). Letters from the outlands. Retrieved from http://bingsitoy.blogspot.com/2013/11/letter-from-merlie-alunan-poet-critic.html?m=1.
Dalisay, B.. (2018). Tacloban’s worthier wonders. Retrieved from https://www.philstar.com/lifestyle/business-life/2018/07/09/1831708/taclobans-worthier-wonders.
"Merlie M.". Panitikan.com.ph. 8 October 2019. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
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