Blindness and Seeing
What if everybody goes blind all of a sudden? What would happen? Portuguese Nobel Prize-winning writer Jose Saramago follows the repercussions of such a speculative scenario in his 1995 novel, Blindness. The novel starts with a government in panic rounding
Blindness and Seeing
What if everybody goes blind all of a sudden? What would happen? Portuguese Nobel Prize-winning writer Jose Saramago follows the repercussions of such a speculative scenario in his 1995 novel, Blindness. The novel starts with a government in panic rounding
After the Dinner Party
The changing of my blog’s name from (Mis)readings to After the Dinner Party on the other hand has more at stake than mere whim or impulse. This may come as a surprise for some readers. After all, I’ve been using the name (Mis)readings since I started publishing the blog for exactly two years already since August 2008.
There are two main reasons for the change. The first has to do with vanity. The second is perhaps more significant and for that reason more circuitous.
After the Dinner Party
The changing of my blog’s name from (Mis)readings to After the Dinner Party on the other hand has more at stake than mere whim or impulse. This may come as a surprise for some readers. After all, I’ve been using the name (Mis)readings since I started publishing the blog for exactly two years already since August 2008.
There are two main reasons for the change. The first has to do with vanity. The second is perhaps more significant and for that reason more circuitous.
Photography and Ideology
Photographs are not windows which supply a transparent view of the world as it is, or more exactly, as it was. Photographs give evidence – often spurious, always incomplete – in support of dominant ideologies and existing social arrangements. They
Photography and Ideology
Photographs are not windows which supply a transparent view of the world as it is, or more exactly, as it was. Photographs give evidence – often spurious, always incomplete – in support of dominant ideologies and existing social arrangements. They
An Evening at the Cinema: Claire’s Knee
Of the films Sheila and I saw at the cinema in last week’s Sineng Pambansa Iloilo Film Festival 2012, we liked Eric Rohmer’s Claire’s Knee the best. Unlike most films that we usually see, Claire’s Knee shuns the standard plot-based,
An Evening at the Cinema: Claire’s Knee
Of the films Sheila and I saw at the cinema in last week’s Sineng Pambansa Iloilo Film Festival 2012, we liked Eric Rohmer’s Claire’s Knee the best. Unlike most films that we usually see, Claire’s Knee shuns the standard plot-based,
Artemio Cruz: The Quintessential Big Comprador-Landlord
Following in the vein of old Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilych, Carlos Fuentes’ The Death of Artemio Cruz takes off at the deathbed of the main character and from there launches into a long, winded, and circuitous journey into
Artemio Cruz: The Quintessential Big Comprador-Landlord
Following in the vein of old Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilych, Carlos Fuentes’ The Death of Artemio Cruz takes off at the deathbed of the main character and from there launches into a long, winded, and circuitous journey into
What to Read this 2012
In continuation of the tradition began three years ago, when this blog was still in its infancy, I am listing down the books that I should be reading before the “end of the world.” These books are chosen primarily for
What to Read this 2012
In continuation of the tradition began three years ago, when this blog was still in its infancy, I am listing down the books that I should be reading before the “end of the world.” These books are chosen primarily for
The Year 2011 According to Books
The year 2011 saw a decline in the number of books that I read. The year would therefore not amount as much as the previous years when judged according to the books I read. From some 77 books in 2010,
The Year 2011 According to Books
The year 2011 saw a decline in the number of books that I read. The year would therefore not amount as much as the previous years when judged according to the books I read. From some 77 books in 2010,
Decline of U.S. Imperialism?
The United States has the world’s biggest economy, strongest military and the most influential culture. It’s the only power with a global project defended and supported by more aircraft carriers, Fortune 500 companies and most successful media-tainment conglomerates than any
Decline of U.S. Imperialism?
The United States has the world’s biggest economy, strongest military and the most influential culture. It’s the only power with a global project defended and supported by more aircraft carriers, Fortune 500 companies and most successful media-tainment conglomerates than any
Jail Palparan!
I wrote a short post about the search for Ret. Maj. Gen. Palparan for Global Voices Online a week ago. Notorious as the “The Butcher,” Palparan has been charged with the kidnapping and serious illegal detention of University of the Philippines
Jail Palparan!
I wrote a short post about the search for Ret. Maj. Gen. Palparan for Global Voices Online a week ago. Notorious as the “The Butcher,” Palparan has been charged with the kidnapping and serious illegal detention of University of the Philippines
The Philippine Educational System [1]
Education is generally described as “the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction.”[2] It is a basic human right because it is considered one of the fundamental guarantees that enable an individual to live his full potential as a human
The Philippine Educational System [1]
Education is generally described as “the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction.”[2] It is a basic human right because it is considered one of the fundamental guarantees that enable an individual to live his full potential as a human
How Much of the Philippines Have I Visited?
Not much, really. How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan! Created by Eugene Villar.
How Much of the Philippines Have I Visited?
Not much, really. How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan! Created by Eugene Villar.
Sendong Aftermath: Fragments from Cagayan De Oro
“Mahadlok mi kung ulan kay mudako ang tubig.” There used to be some houses by the river shore where some men and women were busy washing their clothes. Just a little further ahead is the covered court, lately swelling with
Sendong Aftermath: Fragments from Cagayan De Oro
“Mahadlok mi kung ulan kay mudako ang tubig.” There used to be some houses by the river shore where some men and women were busy washing their clothes. Just a little further ahead is the covered court, lately swelling with
The Filipino Youth and Social Transformation [1]
In these times of national crisis and global upheavals, there is a need for an active youth that can unite with the oppressed in struggle against injustice and tyranny. But if one looks at popular portrayals of the Filipino youth,
The Filipino Youth and Social Transformation [1]
In these times of national crisis and global upheavals, there is a need for an active youth that can unite with the oppressed in struggle against injustice and tyranny. But if one looks at popular portrayals of the Filipino youth,
It’s Class and Practice, Stupid!
“You’re deceiving yourself! Even if you did believe in God, it would make no sense to believe alone. You’d have to believe in him the same way the poor do; you’d have to become one of them. It’s only by
It’s Class and Practice, Stupid!
“You’re deceiving yourself! Even if you did believe in God, it would make no sense to believe alone. You’d have to believe in him the same way the poor do; you’d have to become one of them. It’s only by
![death-in-the-andes_thumb[2]](http://karlomongaya.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/death-in-the-andes_thumb2.jpg?w=210 "death-in-the-andes_thumb[2]")
Death in the Andes: The Revolution as Nightmare and the Empowered Masses as Aliens
The charge that all revolutions are bound to devour its own children is one of the oldest and most common admonitions against the people’s collectively rising up to effect massive social transformations. Mario Vargas Llosa’s Death in the Andes gives another variation to this old worn-out theme.
Death in the Andes: The Revolution as Nightmare and the Empowered Masses as Aliens
The charge that all revolutions are bound to devour its own children is one of the oldest and most common admonitions against the people’s collectively rising up to effect massive social transformations. Mario Vargas Llosa’s Death in the Andes gives another variation to this old worn-out theme.
Economics Contra Spirituality
Last December 10, a fellow jeepney passenger, an old man sporting round glasses, a Taqiyah cap and a Rasputin-like goatee, began a conversation with me while I was on my way to the assembly area of the International Human Rights
Economics Contra Spirituality
Last December 10, a fellow jeepney passenger, an old man sporting round glasses, a Taqiyah cap and a Rasputin-like goatee, began a conversation with me while I was on my way to the assembly area of the International Human Rights
A Brief Impression on In the Time of the Butterflies
The scenery along the road to Roxas City made Julia Alvarez’s In the Time of the Butterflies come to life as I read the novel in the bus. All the rice crops, sugarcane plantations, sleepy town centers, and peasants tending
A Brief Impression on In the Time of the Butterflies
The scenery along the road to Roxas City made Julia Alvarez’s In the Time of the Butterflies come to life as I read the novel in the bus. All the rice crops, sugarcane plantations, sleepy town centers, and peasants tending
(Mis)readings