Thursday, March 22, 2012

Irish Mae O. Pasion and John Raymond C. Gonzales Reader's Response

Synopsis:

The story is about Kandata, a sinner from hell who was given mercy by Buddha for the last time. He strives to go to paradise using the spider’s thread provided by Buddha.


1. The Spider’s Thread by Ryunosuke Akutagawa

In the story of The Spider’s Thread, I found three main themes. First is, Kandata being a cold hearted man and also the central character. Second, it talks about man’s pursuit of paradise. Lastly, is the wide gap between the kinds of people found in the society, the powerful one and the weak one.

Kandata is pictured as a murderer and robber, among others sharing the evil tendencies and capabilities of man. On the other hand, hell being Kandata’s final destination after life is given equally gloomy and pitiful description.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION

This story tells us that each and every one of us has done something good no matter how bad we are .And this good deed could be the reason for us to change. We are all given a chance and opportunity to change everything for us to repent in all our sins and help others. To changed for a better one. We should grab this opportunity, because those chances knock only once.

-John Raymond C. Gonzales


Synopsis:

The story is about mister Rat’s journey for finding the right man to marry her daughter Rina.


2. The Vanity of the Rat by Y. T. Pyun

Base on what I have read. The vanity of the rat is a story about a parent who wanted their daughter to marry a high stationed human being but they ended up being rejected. I think the moral lesson of the story is our goals should be realistic rather than idealistic. Because if our goals should be realistic it is far for being possible and it will end up in disappointment and waste of time especially that their daughter is old enough to decide whom she wants to marry.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION

This story tells us that when we are looking for something, we should look first behind us. We should not aim for a big one. We should b contented with what we have. We should not look for the best when we are choosing the person we want to be with for the rest of our lives. We should look for the right one. Someone who is not perfect but he/she could fits and compliment with our personality. Someone who is not domineering and could accept you for who you are.

-John Raymond Gonzales


Synopsis:

Mohan Lal was a middle aged man who worked in the British Raj. He was ashamed to be an Indian and hence he tried to speak in English or in Anglicized Hindustani and to dress as if a high ranked British official. He used to fill the cross word puzzles of newspapers, which he did to show his immense knowledge in English. His wife Lachmi was a traditional Indian woman and due to this difference they were not having a sweet married life.


3. Karma by Khuswant Singh

I hate the attitude of Mr. Mohan Lal towards his countrymen. He is very arrogant. He loves himself more than his wife and material things around him. He treats himself as an English man but definitely his Indian. He practice being an English Man by reading an English newspaper “ The Time”, by using an English cigarettes, drinking an English whisky and wearing an English necktie. He has a colonial mentality.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION

This story tells us that we should not be too arrogant. We should know how to humble ourselves. Mr. Mohan lal an Indian but he made himself as an English man. He wears an English necktie, use English cigarettes, and read English newspaper (the time).

-John Raymond C. Gonzales


Synopsis:

The Sparrow together with his wife and their eggs are sitting up their nest up a tree when Elephant suddenly get hold of the tree that caused their eggs to be crushed. Sparrow burning with anger plot to take revenge with the help of a few friends.


4. The Duel between the Elephant and the Sparrow from The Panchatranta

I think the title is not appropriate in the content of the story. It’s not about the fight between the elephant and the sparrow. The story is about the revenge of the sparrow to the innocent elephant for killing their children. Sparrow’s friends are bad because they killed the innocent elephant. Whatever they do the lives of their poor chicks will never be back again. But for sparrow, he believes that their sadness and grief will lessen if they kill the elephant.

On the other hand, the other characters are small creatures that managed to come together and devise a plan for revenge. If we are to consider and compare the status of these small creatures versus the elephant’s reputation in the animal world, most people would say that the bigger the creature is, the more dominant it will be in terms of survival. Despite this notion, the fable proved it wrong. The small ones were able to kill the giant, just like what happened to David and Goliath.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION

This fable is a very interesting story about love, revenge and friendship; reinforcing the idea of defying the impossible, which alludes to the notion of courage and hope. It is worth noting how the characters’ juxtaposition emphasized the idea of “seeing beyond the physical.” The elephant, for instance, was a large creature which was supposed to be strong, powerful and a figure of authority. However, it was depicted to be a weak and careless character, since it was easily distressed by the spring’s heat, making its trunk carelessly cling to a branch with a sparrow’s nest. This eventually led to the demise of the sparrow’s family.

A number of values were depicted as well. Love for one’s family and friends, a friendship that knows no boundaries and a revenge which was made out of pain and love. However, there’s probably one thing that could be put into question here: “Is revenge always sweet?” The sparrow may have killed the murderer of her family with the help of her friends, but does that mean that it can bring back the life of her children and make her feel better? The jury is still out. Given that this is an Indian fable, the revenge could be closely related to the idea of karma, which is under the practice of Hinduism.

On a positive light, however, it is interesting to see how the idea of conquering the impossible could be achieved by working together, planning well and just going for it. The sparrow, gnat, woodpecker, and the frog may be small creatures, but it doesn’t mean that their size will stop them from defeating the giant elephant.

Relating this to real life situations, people are often quick to judge in terms of one’s physical aspects versus his or her capabilities. We live in a society wherein people tend to establish labels that limit us to prove what we can do and separate us even farther apart from each other. Because of this, instead of putting order into things, we are left with even more confusion, apathy and discrimination.

Shifting paradigms and stereotypes is one way to start the change. It is therefore essential to keep in mind that nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it, take the risk and put those thoughts into actions. As long as you have hope, courage and perseverance, nothing can stop you from reaching your goals.

-John Raymond C. Gonzales


Synopsis:

The main character here is named Raicharan. He was only 12 years old when he became a servant. His Master made him a private servant to his Son. He took good care of him, until the time that the little Master Anukul grew up and got married. When Anukul had a son of his own. Anukul still made Raicharan his Son’s private servant. But fate got in the way, the little Master disappeared when Raicharan was taking him for a stroll. No one knows whether the Baby was taken by a group of Gypsies who were hovering nearby or He drowned in the river. Anukul’s wife got so distressed and furious that there is no reasoning with her. They made Raicharan go back to his Village.

5. My Lord, My baby by Rabindranath Tagore

This story is about unconditional love from a father to his child. Raicharan did was she gave his only precious son Phailna to hide his mistake of losing Anukol’s son. Just like what God did to us to save us from our sins, he gave his one and only child for us to be forgiven.

I love the character of Raicharan, he has a good and loving heart to others. He gives up everything and nothing left to himself except LOVE. He is not materialistic instead a humble man. I like the story because it explained us the real meaning of love.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION

My Lord, The baby was a great story. For me it was great because the father gave her son an unconditional love. The father gave her son to the elite one in the society for the good needs of her son. He can sacrifice all for her son. A person behaves in a certain situation depends on what type of personality he has. Their actions will be determined by their motivations.

-John Raymond C. Gonzales


Synopsis:

Peddler befriends a Rich Little Girl. Something happened and they lost touch. Peddler seeks for Rich Little Girl on her wedding day, but she is not little anymore.


6. The Man from Kabul by Rabindranath Tagore

In the beginning of the story, I enjoy the relationship of Rahman and Mini. Every time they had a conversation they will laugh as if there is no tomorrow. The personal love of Rahman for Mini is a heartwarming moment. Their friendship towards each other is like a father and daughter relation.

But at the end, I felt sad when Mini didn’t recognize the Man from Kabul, the Kabuliwala. I knew it will turns awkward on that moment because it was many years ago since Rahman left Mini. When Rahman showed the hand print of his daughter, The Kabuliwala touched my heart.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION

This story tells us about a very loving Father. Rahman shows his love to her daughter through his actions. No matter what the situation is or wherever he is, he always thinks of his little angel. He is always worried about his baby girl.

-John Raymond C. Gonzales


Synopsis:

Sii Sward is a thai cat owned by a family in Muang. Entitled as the Cat Queen, has saved the whole town from a unfortunate and difficult situation.


7. My Thai Cat

The heroine in “My Thai Cat” was describing as if it was a person. The story was written in a detailed manner such that the feelings and reactions of the main character is expressly narrated, also the supporting characters are well describe and same goes with the settings of the story. This story used the second person point of view which was narrated by the owner of the cat. And lastly, the story shows how much each person willing to sacrifice for the sake of living.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION

This poem tells us the difference that is happening on us now. Before people used to be warm hearted and everything they do was from the heart. Now the people forgot all of those good deeds and examples we’ve learned from our ancestors. We are influenced already by the changes that are happening now.

-John Raymond C. Gonzales


Synopsis:

This short poem is about how friendship starts and change as time and circumstances pass by.


8. Once Upon a Time

Its shows how friendship begins and how it ends as time passes by. It’s like were not able to value one another when issues regarding material things interfere in the relationship. And then suddenly no more strings bind them until friendship fades and left nothing behind.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION


This story tells us how the main character treated his cat. He treats the cat as if it was a real person. He really loves it and will do anything for it. We should love and respect all the creatures in the world

-John Raymond C. Gonzales





Synopsis:
Savitri is the daughter of the King of Madras and, having attained marrying age, finds that no-one has asked for her hand. She is told by her father that she must now look for a husband on her own. She goes on a pilgrimage and comes upon Satyavan, himself the son of a king, who lives in exile in the forest as a wood-cutter. Savitri chooses him to be her husband but learns from a seer that Satyavan is doomed to die exactly one year from that day, a curse of which he is unaware. Undeterred, she becomes his wife and goes to live with him in the forest..

9. Savitri’s Love by Maha Bharata

I loved the story of Savitri’s love because of the breathtaking scenes of Savitri and Satyavan while fighting for death and love. Princes Savitri is beautiful and intelligent. So splendid was she, that people thought her a goddess. I like the beginning when she found a man worthy to wed her that no one could take away from him to her heart’s path and not even the god of death Yama.

-IRISH MAE O. PASION

After reading this short story, I found out that one can beat all odds in life through love and devotion. What an amazing love Savitri has for Satyavan that even if the Prince will leave her soon, she didn’t give up. And until the last breath of Satyavan, she’s there.

-John Raymond C. Gonzales