Cu4tro Cantos

This is my entry to WikiPilipinas and FilipinaImages Writing Project: “Filipina Stories”. WikiPilipinas, the Philippine Encyclopedia will unveil a special portal, The Encyclopedia of Philippine Women which will feature achievements of Filipinas all over the world. Let us all support this great project.

Have you noticed how we like to compare the people we know to popular fictional characters? This is particularly true when we talk about Filipinas.

A common fictional character we use to describe a modern Filipina is the popular DC Comics heroine, Superwoman - because the Filipina is no longer ‘just the housewife’; she has taken not only the role of a house-maker; she’s also the husband’s equally able partner in providing the family’s bare necessities and shaping a better future for them.

She is her children’s Math tutor, she is the nosy yet protective sister, she is the ever-reliable best friend and many more…

But I also noticed that there are two genuinely Filipina fictional characters that are often used to describe us Filipinas, even in the modern times. These characters are Sisa and Maria Clara. They are two of the more prominent characters in Jose Rizal’s novel, Noli Me Tangere. (which is by the way one of my favorite novels)

In the novel, Sisa is the loving and doting mother to her two boys, Crispin and Basilio. Sisa lost her mind when she thought she had lost both her boys. The most heart-breaking setting in the novel was Christmas Eve where Sisa was walking in the woods looking for her sons. She did not know that Basilio followed her. She did not recognize him anymore and she died in her son’s arms.

Sisa is typecasted as the ‘crazy woman’; it’s just what got stuck in our minds. Some people laugh at her character. Some pity her. That’s why when a woman is on the verge of breaking down, we would tell her, “O magagaya ka na kay Sisa nyan”. But we forget that she is a just woman battered by the misfortunes in her life.

We Filipinas are also often described as Maria Clara, the ultimate “dalagang Filipina”. She is well-mannered but conservative. In the novel, Maria Clara is Crisostomo Ibarra’s love interest. Her love is faithful but she is also jealous. Some see her as a martyr. Her life was also a tragedy but she remained faithful to her love until the end.

Even in this what we call the modern age, there are a lot of Filipinas, some are even our own friends who are of the Maria Clara type. Have we not heard someone say, ”martir ka masyado, di na uso ang Maria Clara ngayon”.

But there’s a new hybrid of Sisas and Maria Claras today. We are BRAVER and STRONGER. We have learned to not let our selves go crazy when life is bitter. We will stand up and fight for justice. Yes, we would grieve and it may take months or years, but we will not give up. We will get back to living our lives and picking up the pieces again, we are not alone, we have our families, our friends, support groups, people who are ready to help.

We modern Filipinas are still conservative, but it does not mean we do not think for ourselves. We are opinionated. We do not need other people to tell us what to do. We will remain faithful and we will fight for our loved ones.

I believe we have a little of Sisa and Maria Clara in all of us. This is something that we Filipinas should be proud. We are Sisa and Maria Clara and MORE. The modern Filipina is a braver Sisa, a stronger Maria Clara.

You may also read this entry in the WikiPilipinas site (actual link to follow)

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