551-562 Dominador L. Pagliawan PDF

Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) Vol.5.Issue 1.
2017
A Peer Reviewed (Refereed) International Journal
(Jan-Mar)
http://www.rjelal.com; Email:[email protected]
RESEARCH ARTICLE
WE FILIPINOS ARE MILD DRINKERS: A POST-COLONIAL TEXT EXEMPLIFYING

MULTIPLICITY OF MEANINGS
DOMINADOR L. PAGLIAWAN DA LitCom

Chair, Languages and Literature Unit
Leyte Normal University, Tacloban City, Philippines
Email: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Typical literature teachers have been rather selective and prescriptive in determining
the meanings of literary works. They limit those meanings to their own perceptions,
draining the texts of more insights, and not welcoming other meaningful possibilities.
Inputs that are not agreeable with their own, particularly from the students, are deemed
DOMINADOR incorrect. To assert the multiplicity of meanings extant in good literary works, this study
L. PAGLIAWAN was pursued subjecting, as a method of inquiry, Alejandro Roces’ post-colonial work We
Filipinos Are Mild Drinkers to critical analysis based on mimetic, expressionistic,
formalistic, affective, and historical theories. Appraisal zeroed in on the above short
story. The results of the study exemplify how stories yield various insights from different
critical lenses. Teachers, then, should discard that pedagogic treatment which deprives
the texts of multiple meanings.
Keywords: Textual meaning, multiple meaning, mimesis, expressionism, formalism,
reader-response, historicism
©KY PUBLICATIONS
Introduction of a language (Driedger, 1983). Such idea of

It has been a tendency of literature singularity in meaning is widespread that the
teachers to be sort of prescriptive when they teach possibility of multiple meanings in a text is not only
literary pieces to students. Their interpretation of viewed as absurd but is likewise improper, hence its
works is one that limits the meanings to their own outright rejection.
perceptions, not welcoming other views that may This pedagogical tendency has prompted
unravel the text. Insights that are contrary to their this study. Adhering to the idea of indeterminacy
own, particularly from students, are deemed where multiple interpretations is encouraged to
incorrect. address authorial lapses and gaps (McHale, 1992),
As a result, schools have been producing this inquiry had resolved to prove the “limited
readers with narrow perceptions of literary works. meaning” wrong, and the best way to do that is to
They think that a text simply yields a single meaning provide a sample of work that is viewed from
which, when finally unearthed, drains the text of different angles yet the meanings drawn from it
more ideas. The notion is akin to the plain meaning never run out. This would explain the significance of
rule, or literal rule, which is a traditional statutory this study as it would show the inexhaustibility of
construction used in English courts wherein statutes meanings in texts when viewed from various critical
are read and interpreted based on ordinary meaning standpoints.
551 DOMINADOR L. PAGLIAWAN

Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) Vol.5.Issue 1. 2017
(Jan-Mar)
This paper then theorizes that Alejandro materialistic society combines itself with that sense
Roces’ We Filipinos are Mild Drinkers yields multiple of foreboding for an inevitable collapse.
meanings, like other literary works do, as it is viewed Formalism, the next theory, is a school
from various critical lenses. These theories used to of literary criticism and literary theory having to do
analyze the story are the mimetic, the mainly with structural purposes of texts. It covers
expressionistic, the formalistic/objective, the critical approaches that interpret, analyze, and
affective/reader-response, and the historical evaluate inherent features of a text such as
theories. grammar and syntax, and also literary devices like
Theories at Work tropes and meter (Lemon & Reis, 1965). It reduces
A critical and philosophical term that the importance of a text’s historical, biographical,
carries a wide range of meanings, mimesis and cultural context.
includes imitation, representation, mimicry, imitatio, Having assumed prominence in the early
receptivity, non-sensuous similarity, the act of twentieth century, Formalism commenced as a
resembling, the act of expression, and reaction against Romanticism, which centers on
the presentation of the self (Taussig, 1993). artists and individual creativity, and underscores the
It was, in ancient Greece, an idea that text itself to manifest its indebtedness to forms and
governed the creation of works of art, in particular those works which preceded it. Two schools of
with correspondence to the physical world formalist literary criticism developed: Russian
understood as a model for beauty, truth and the formalism, and soon after, Anglo-American New
good. Plato contrasted it with the narrative. After Criticism.
him, the meaning of mimesis eventually shifted Formalism predominated academic literary
toward a specifically literary function in ancient studies in the US from the end of the second World
Greek society, its usage changed and re-interpreted War all the way to the 70’s, particularly as embodied
many times thereafter. in Wellek and Warren's Theory of Literature (1948,
Expressionism, on the other hand, attempts 1955, 1962). From the late 1970s, it was
to portray the inner workings of a person's mind by substantially displaced by various approaches (often
turning them ‘inside out’ and allowing mental states with political aims or assumptions) that were
to shape their face, body, and the very world where suspicious of the idea that a literary work could be
they live in (Gordon, 1987). This could be a reaction separated from its origins or uses. But recent trends
against a comfortable, unthinking, uncaring and in academic literary criticism suggest that formalism
increasingly mechanized society. Franz Kafka’s main may be making a comeback.
characters, for instance, find themselves trapped Affective theory or Reader-response
inside a vision of the world that’s rather distorted, criticism is a school of literary theory that focuses
reflecting either their own psychological conflicts, or on the reader (or "audience") and his or her
of the society where the readers live. experience of a literary work, in contrast to other
The physical consequences of a distorted schools and theories that focus attention primarily
situation in expressionist literature are followed on the author or the content and form of the work
through as if they were completely real. Writers are (Tompkins, 1980). Literary theory has long paid
quite divided as regards the latter’s final some attention to the reader's role in creating the
consequences. Destruction of the character often meaning and experience of a literary text. Modern
results from personal tragedies. But given the focus reader-response criticism began in the 1960s and
on society’s status, positive ending can surface, the '70s, particularly in America and Germany, with the
traditional human values ending up victorious. works of Hans-Robert Jauss, Stanley Fish, Roland
Poetry eschews details of description and narrative, Barthes, Norman Holland, and others. Predecessors
and attempts a lyrical intensity capable of conveying like I. A. Richards had analyzed a group of
the essence of an inward experience. As with Cambridge undergraduates' misreadings in
expressionist painting and drama, disgust over 1929; Louise Rosenblatt, in Literature as

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Exploration (1938), had argued that teachers should which refers to the substance, content, or
avoid imposing preconceived ideas on the proper interpretation of a work. Exemplified means
way in reacting to any work. sampled, illustrated, enlightened, and something
Reader-response theory recognizes the clarified by way of example.
reader as an active agent who imparts some kind of An Expressionist Reading
real existence to the work and completes its This part assumes that Roces’ award-winning
meaning through interpretation. It argues that short story, We Filipinos Are Mild Drinkers, yields
literature should be viewed as a performing art in traces of the writer’s presence, not just physically,
which each reader creates his or her own, possibly but mentally and emotionally as well. The story
unique, text-related performance, opposing the obviously reveals a vision that underlies the author’s
theories of formalism and the New Criticism which idea, which is doubtless concerned with external or
ignore the reader's role in re-creating literary works. objective incidents, thereby conveying his quality of
Historicism is another critical analysis focusing on soul.
the role of historical context to understand a text. If the meaning of a literary work could be
With this, the critic creates a more cultural, or had from studying the psychology of the author
anthropological criticism, conscious of its own status (Adams, 1971), then it should be easy to arrive at
as interpretation, and intent upon discerning reliable conclusions as to what a literary work
literature as forming part of a system of signs conveys, given one’s familiarity with its writer, and
constituting a given culture (Wellek and Warren, the literary text as the author’s mouthpiece.
1977). Beckson and Ganz (1993) make a clear-cut
Literary criticism and historical critique distinction between Expressionism and Mimesis by
then are integrated, with the critic's role being an pointing out the former’s departure from certain
investigator of both the social presence to the world realistic conventions. They caution, however, that
of the literary text and the social presence of the the term itself is problematic in that it can be used
world in the literary text. Given this, one would have to describe any of the deliberate distortions of or
to understand the story as being rooted in its departures from reality that pervade modern
cultural and authorial connections. literature and art.
The Method Used Thus, the symbolic metamorphoses of the
Given the critical lenses used, this paper characters in Joyce’s Finnegans Wake and
scrutinizes Alejandro Roces’ story We Filipinos are Kafka’s Metamorphosis (wherein a nightmarish
Mild Drinkers. It critiques the story using those metaphor becomes a literal fact), and the
theories to come up with multiple and varied fragmentary construction of T.S. Eliot’s The Waste
meanings. Although the other works of the author Land could exemplify expressionism, an imprecise
were considered, and so with his biography, the designation embracing disparate works that casts
researcher did so only to have those works shed doubts on its usefulness as a literary description.
further light on the story. The author, regarded as the cause of
The theories used to analyze the story are, meaning (Kessey, 1998), unconsciously makes
again, limited to five, which are the mimetic, his/her works autobiographical. And so to
expressionistic, formalistic, affective, and historical understand the latter, a reader simply needs to
lenses. The paper claims that, by subjecting a work unearth the author’s social, political, intellectual,
to analysis using the above approaches, one could and social milieu and juxtapose these with the vital
unearth multiple meanings from a literary text. elements highlighting the writer’s works.
Some key terminologies are made Attempting to express the basic reality of
operational in this study. First of which is the word its subjects rather than to reproduce the mere
multiplicity. In here, it is used to mean variation, appearance or surface, an expressionistic work relies
numerousness, and abundance of meanings that are heavily on distortion of salient features, being
embedded in a text. Next is the word meaning, exclamatory and dynamic, sometimes so cryptic as

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to be baffling (Hornstein, Percy, and Brown, 1984). It Like the character-narrator, the author
revolts not just against current art, but against mingled a great deal with American GIs during the
current civilization, which appears prosperous and World War II years and established friendships with
attractive, but rotten at the core. them. He was already a grown up young man then,
A not-so-old literary invention, the short aware of the historical and cultural milieu of the
story is a prose narrative that reveals what the artist time. In fact, his frequent association with the
feels about human experience that communicates a American soldiers even led to his involvement in the
distinct impression, vision, and meaning that the war—he later became a guerilla warrior. In short,
writer feels relevant. This vision is buried deep in his he, like the narrator, was too knowledgeable about
personal life and depends upon his native sensibility, the weaknesses, whereabouts, and the vices of the
his acquired knowledge, and his character. Realistic GIs like he knew his palms. That they were addicted
in essence, the short story then, as exemplified by to liquor didn’t, of course, elude his attention.
Roces’ stories, tend to be anecdotal and The narrator’s association with American
autobiographical, hence expressionist to certain GIs in their place is not just juxtaposed with the
extents. author’s similar experience; his wine
For its point of view, the story uses the connoisseurship also resembled Roces’ love for
first-person, observer-participant narration which, lambanog. The author, in real life, had his share of
when used, is usually taken by readers for an spending time together with friends, passing around
autobiographical narrative due to the presence of an a glass that contained the treasured liquid. And
“I” narrator in the story. Being confessional in tone, wont to drinking it, he was not easily downed by just
this makes the story closer to the author’s life and a few shots. It would take gallons of lambanog
personal experiences. The choice of subjects, before he would retire for bed. Indeed, the narrator
symbols, and imagery moreover indicates a writer’s in him; and Roces in this narrator-character.
preference. If such items as wine and fighting cocks Mentally and emotionally, then, Roces’
make it to a story, then an author’s fondness of presence in the story via the character-narrator is
them in real life is confirmed. highly evident, distributed all over the story,
The main character in the story, though a obviously visible, heard and felt by readers. But
peasant farmer, could somehow represent the that’s if readers are aware of the author’s own life
author in some ways. He meets the American story, his past involvements, his vices, hobbies, and
soldier, but it was not by accident as the foreign all.
soldiers, being yet assigned in Philippine soil, It is one’s knowledge about him that would
frequented the barrios for their leisure and strolling allow one to see him in stories he had penned. If
sprees. This made the barrio folks, including the wine albeit in the form of lambanog occupied his
narrator, familiar with them such that most often, mind in real life, then we can see his mind in the
friendships between the natives and these GIs characters’ preoccupation with this liquid
became inevitable. commodity. The fact, moreover, that he had
Then the protagonist-narrator is portrayed associations with American GIs as a young man is
as being hospitable, which is typical of Filipinos mirrored in the narrator’s hospitality to his GI visitor
especially in earlier times. His manner of and their subsequent drinking session. And the way
entertaining a visitor through drinking lambanog the narrator treasured the lambanog, the way he
does not just reveal his hospitality, but also his played the host, would be exactly the same way
fondness of the native wine. That he is not easily Roces would have performed had he experienced
affected by lambanog’s “venom” despite gulping the same in reality.
down repeated shots suggests that, like the rest of In conlusion, Roces’ story clearly suggests
rural folks deprived of urban entertainments, he is that it is an expressionist work that partly reveals
used to drinking the liquor. the author’s mental preoccupation with something
and physical association with certain individuals

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exemplified in the story. In terms of foremost of which is the common lesson that one
characterization, the Filipino character-narrator should not judge a book by its cover alone the way
mentally represents the author for attending to the American GI belittled the native jungle juice that
something that the latter likewise considered a boomeranged at him in the end.
must-have when with friends—wine. The narrator’s How well a work of literature connects with
one-time association with an American GI over the the real world is what mimetic criticism aims to
native lambanog could be autobiographical in that determine, but may also accommodate approaches
the author, that time when American soldiers were dealing with the spiritual and symbolic, the images
yet in the country, must have had drinking sessions that connect people of all times and cultures, the
with the latter, transporting his presence there into aspects of moral/philosophical criticism,
the story. Even the vivid description of how the psychological criticism, and feminist criticism,
American soldier reacted every time he gulped arguing that art conveys universal instead of just
down a lambanog shot was clearly drawn from what temporal and individual truths.
he saw from his drinking GI buddies. It is therefore This reality showed in the American
held that this story is an expressionist work soldiers’ obsession with wine while they were here
revelatory of the author’s autobiographical milieu, in the country during the war. Perhaps that was
part of which being drawn from his mind, and their way of cheering themselves up in the midst of
another from his life’s experience. homesickness, war shock, uncertainties of their
A Mimetic Reading future, and haunting dread for the on-going war.
This part theorizes that Alejandro Roces’ Local observations had it that these foreigners
story under study is a re-creation of reality that was would go as far as the mountains only to look for
extant during the World War II years in the something to drink every time they ran out of
Philippine archipelago, particularly in the whiskey, not minding the risks and the perils that
countryside. threatened their lives.
Mimesis assumes that art imitates reality, The story exemplifies how well a work of
tracing its roots to Aristotle who argued that the literature accords with the real world, exhibiting its
universal can be found in the concrete. It was accuracy and morality, and considering whether or
developed and applied through mimetic theories of not it shows how people really act, and whether or
literature, theater and the visual arts during the not it is correct. It tries to assess reality through the
Renaissance and the Enlightenment (Abrams and prism of its own time, and judges the same
Adams, 1992). according to its own value systems.
Aristotle, Plato, Moliere, Shakespeare, That’s exactly how the text lends itself to
Racine, Diderot and Rousseau applied the mimetic this critical investigation. It provides accurate details
theory of literary criticism to their work and lives; on the things that transpired during those war years.
modern thinkers such as Benjamin, Derrida, and Filipinos were readily hospitable to American
Girard have reworked and reapplied their ideas. soldiers, giving them what they need based on their
Being a recipient of foreign ideas and styles, capacity to give. In the story then, the Filipino
Philippine literature easily adopted mimetic theory, narrator was quick to give his remaining lambanog
as manifested in works of many Filipino writers, one just to satisfy the hunger of his American visitor. This
of them being Alejandro Roces himself. was the world then, documented in the story by way
Mimetic theory is rightfully the universal of vivid local color.
foundation of literature, of schools of literary Mimetic criticism praises literary works of
criticism. Text-audience relationship is what this authors like Homer, Shakespeare and Goethe for
pragmatic school of literary criticism deals with. expressing the highest ideas and aspiration of
Often drawn from mimetic theory are moral effects. humankind. Representatives of the Mimetic Theory
Apparently, aside from injecting humor, Roces must of Literary Criticism include Plato, Samuel Johnson,
have also been imparting morals through this story, Matthew Arnold and Leo Tolstoy. Samuel Johnson

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argued that Shakespeare portrayed universal now. You could not even lift a finger. Your size now
character traits and moral values. That’s in the is nothing; your height doesn’t help; your blonde
universal sense which, if we will apply to Roces’ hair proves unattractive; and, yes, your white
work, would likewise fit as the story is equally laden complexion is utterly useless. You busted your butts
with deep characterization and said values. with lambanog you could not even fuck the semen
Girard (1976) a modern thinker, stretched out of you.”
the mimetic theory of literary criticism across time “But, here, you open your eyes a little bit
and disciplines. In his book, "Deceit, Desire and the against the flickering flame of the kerosene lamp. I
Novel," he argued persuasively that great novelists just want to stare at your blue eyes that remind me
alone in the Western world have understood the of the baby doll I once gave to my childhood
mimetic foundations of human interaction. The sweetie. Come on, man; look, I’ve walked my
theory owes it to him for its present widespread carabao over here. That beast will carry you to your
application and acceptance. quarters.”
The manifestation of realistic elements in The story clearly suggests that it is a
fiction when viewed mimetically do not just show on mimetic work that copied the reality surrounding
the outward but may as well come via a character’s the characters’ lives and the story’s
thought prowess. One could imagine that, given a cultural/historical context. In terms of
chance to express what he had in mind, the Filipino characterization, the character-narrator represents
narrator in the story could be talking to the the typical Filipino young man doing the work in the
American soldier this way: farm but is once in a while engaged in drinking
“Tell you what, Joe, were it not for your sessions. The American GI ‘s hunt for liquor was
enchanting blue eyes, I would have dismissed you as exactly what the American soldiers did occasionally
nothing but a peeled-off banana trunk fallen by the in their obsession with liquor that time when they
wayside. Thank God for those eyes, though; they are were fielded in Philippine soil for the war. Even the
your saving grace.” vivid description of how the American soldier
“How dared you challenge me into a reacted every time he gulped down a lambanog shot
drinking duel? You must have been in your usual, was clearly drawn from what Roces saw from his
collective self as Westerners—thinking great of drinking GI buddies.
yourselves while looking down on us dwarfed, It is therefore held that Alejandro Roces
brown natives.” story We Filipinos are Mild Drinkers is a mimetic
“You must have been banking, too, on your creation imitating remarkable events, characters,
wine connoisseurship, more so if it were true that settings, and other narrative elements.
you have drunk all the known wines in the world A Formalistic Reading
with astonishing appetite, even drinking medical This part theorizes that Roces’ story utilizes
alcohol and lotion without feeling a bit of their lambanog as a symbol of Filipino identity. In
toxicity.” formalistic studies, the selection is read and viewed
“How come that, after gulping down a few intrinsically, or for itself, independent of author, age,
shots of our lambanog, which you ridicule and mock, or any other extrinsic factor. Close to the “art for
you were soon off your wits and consciousness. art’s sake” dictum, this critical approach studies a
Don’t tell me it crawls down your throat like a selection based on literary elements which more or
centipede, for why do you have to grab your neck, less boil down to the literal feel (subject matter), the
your face distorted, every time you drank it?” affective values (mode, tone, atmosphere, emotion,
“Now that you have become good-for- attitude, empathy), the ideational values (visions,
nothing in that silly uniform that identifies you with character, universal truths, themes), technical values
the world’s military superpower, how would you (imagery, plot structure, language, scene, point of
ever get up and go back to your barracks? Your view, figure, metrics, etc.), and the total effect (the
colleagues must have been waiting for you right

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interrelation of foregoing elements), and of clothing images reinforces this point: because
communication. Macbeth does not grow gradually, his clothing does
The formalist critic embraces an objective not fit. At the end of the play, his "Tomorrow and
theory of art and examines plot, characterization, tomorrow and tomorrow" soliloquy drives home the
dialogue, and style to show how these elements point as we see, and pity, a man trapped in the lock-
contribute to the theme or unity of the literary step pace of gradual time. Formalistic critics would
work. Moral, historical, psychological, and immediately see that the repetition of the word
sociological concerns are considered extrinsic to "tomorrow" and the natural iambic stress on "and"
criticism and of secondary importance to the enhance the meaninglessness and frustration that
examination of craftsmanship and form. Content the character feels. References to blood and water
and form in a work constitute a unity, and it is the pervade the play, and blood comes to symbolize the
task of the critic to examine and evaluate the guilt Macbeth feels for murdering Duncan. Even the
integrity of the work. Paradox, irony, dynamic drunken porter's speech provides more
tension, and unity, among other literary elements than comic relief, for his characterization of alcohol
and devices, are the primary values of formalist as "an equivocator" is linked to the equivocation of
criticism. the witches. Shakespeare's craftsmanship has
Because it posits an objective theory of art, formed an aesthetic unity in which every part is
there are two axioms central to formalist connected and in which the whole is greater than
criticism. One of these is The Intentional the sum of the parts.
Fallacy which states that an author's intention (plan One can readily see that Roces was into
or purpose) in creating a work of literature is getting some message across, especially to the
irrelevant in analyzing or evaluating that work of Westerners who are known for their tendency to
literature because the meaning and value of a discriminate and belittle Filipinos in many ways. The
literary work must reside in the text itself, message is clear and poignant, unfolding in the
independent of authorial intent. Another axiom of arena where the ridiculed race has been
formalist criticism is The Affective Fallacy which traditionally bullied by the above.
states that the evaluation of a work of art cannot be Driving home this point is clearly the story’s
based solely on its emotional effects on the preoccupation from start to end. The author had
audience. Instead, criticism must concentrate upon employed certain devices, objects, and techniques
the qualities of the work itself that produce such to achieve it. For one, he used the wine around
effects. The formalistic approach stresses the close which the characters are to revolve. The story then
reading of the text and insists that all statements opens with the narrator saying that, in relation to
about the work be supported by references to the wine, Filipinos are mild drinkers, drinking only for
text. Although it has been challenged by other three reasons, namely: when they are sad; when
approaches recently, the New Criticism is the most they are happy; and for any other reason.
influential form of criticism in this century. This is followed by a description of
Formalism is intrinsic literary criticism American soldiers frequently swarming the
because it does not require mastery of any body of narrator’s barrio while under the influence of liquor.
knowledge besides literature. As an example of how They would rather that they spill their blood if only
formalistic criticism approaches literary works, to spare a bottle of whisky that had become part of
consider Shakespeare's Macbeth. All the elements their uniform. This is how addicted they were to
of the play form an organic whole. The imagery of wine such that one day, an American G.I. risked his
the gradual growth of plants is contrasted with the life wandering by himself into back countries to buy
imagery of leaping over obstacles: Macbeth is an more wine. But he could not find it because foreign
ambitious character who cannot wait to grow liquors were not available in those remote sari-sari
gradually into the full stature of power, but, instead, stores.
must grasp everything immediately. A related series

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Finally, this wine-devouring American could somewhat sense they were into it. One was to
soldier met with the narrator, a Filipino farmer to maintain, or even augment, his reputation of being a
whom he offered a half-filled bottle of whisky. The wine devourer, even claiming to have drunk medical
farmer refused, though, saying that Filipinos do not alcohol and lotion without feeling their toxic effects.
drink it as they are but mild drinkers. They have a The other was to stick to being a mild drinker using
mild wine to drink, the lambanog, mocked by his mild drink.
American soldiers as jungle juice for its primitive and Amid their diverging fates as wine drinkers,
inferior quality. the acid test as to who had a tougher belly was to be
Then the author provided a stark contrast provided, and determined, by the ridiculously
between the two nationals: the bragging GI who mocked lambanog, the mild drink of the little brown
claimed to have drunk all the known wines in the farmer. It was to settle the matter and finally decide
world with ease and appetite, and the poor Filipino who among the two deserved the distinction as a
farmer bearing only with the humble, primitive wine heavy drinker.
juice which was the only one he preferred and could Local color by way of vivid descriptions
afford. Between the two drinks and drinkers, we abounds in the story, reinforcing the author’s intent
could easily tell which one is a mild drink, and who in underscoring meaning. The images of the carabao
among the two is the heavy drinker—it’s the whisky splashing itself excitedly in the mud hole, of the
and the GI, respectively. lemon fruits and how they are plucked off the tree,
The farmer is even hesitant to introduce of the foot-high table, bare nipa house on whose
his native wine to the American visitor, due perhaps bamboo floor they sat, polished coconut shells from
to its inferiority and mildness in comparison to which they drank, and many more, contribute
foreign liquors. The foreigner, however, got so successfully to the development of the story.
interested with it that despite the farmer’s caution When the drinking session began, it soon
that he wouldn’t like it, he still insisted they go drink turned out that the pompous wine devourer in the
that lambanog in the farmer’s house. Drinking that American soldier was of no match to the Filipino
“jungle juice” became a sort of great challenge to farmer who would drink his share of lambanog with
him he followed the farmer everywhere if only to ease and pleasant smile on the face. The foreigner,
gulp down that thing. after every gulp, grimaced as if in pain, struggled to
As the story progresses, the author swallow the liquid, and had to grab his neck like he
carefully arranged everything in climactic had swallowed a centipede. Just a few shots and the
succession, adding on items like the coconut tree of GI was already out of his wits, could not stand by
the Philippines and the pine tree of the United himself, and had to be brought by the farmer back
States as part of the widening contrast between the to their barracks on top of a carabao.
lowly farmer and the puffed up foreigner. They did His colleagues were happy to see him back.
not just differ in terms of their preferred wines; they In gratitude, they offered him a bottle of whisky. But
also differed in terms of their national trees. The the Filipino farmer declined, claiming that he was
pine tree, which the American soldier said but a mild drinker. Mild drinking to him is, to
symbolizes America, is tall and stately, going straight Western foreigners, actually heavy and impossible
up to the sky like a skyscraper. The coconut tree to match. The lofty characterization that the
which according to the farmer symbolizes the American soldier enjoyed—wine expert, devourer,
Philippines, starts up to the sky; but its leaves sway and all, suddenly collapsed, downed by the humble
down the earth to remember the land that gave it lambanog of the “mild” drinker.
birth. The humble lambanog then succeeds in
The characters understood that they had representing the soft-spoken Filipino and his identity
diverging roles played—one being superior, and the in general. Like the native inhabitants in the island,
other being inferior. A competition therefore this liquor has extra strength that is hidden inside
between the two is established. They themselves but, when challenged by an intruder, could unleash

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deadly venom that could spell defeat for the latter, moments.
and victory for its owner. The two, thus, are In this story, we see an American soldier
inseparable, being complementary to each other, who was out into the backward villages looking for
and representing each other in matters of identity. bars and more whiskey. But in their conversation
A Reader-Response Critique that followed, his arrogant tone seemed to suggest
This portion is a critical essay explaining my his mission was to preach into the natives the
positions relative to significant issues raised in superiority of their race in matters of wine
Alejandro Roces’ story. Personally, this story has consumption. Although the narrator warned he
something to do with me since, being a Filipino, could not stand it, he still insisted to drink it so he
Alejandro Roces’ came up with a body of works that could perhaps compare, or contrast, how far it is
concerns me, or with the rest of our countrymen. from the best wines he had tasted all over the
The story shows a clash of cultures, or a race to take world. Tasting it was his way of assessing the
on an identity. drinking ability of this “brown brother,” who was
It makes me glad, and quite proud, that in just up to this inferior wine, and of judging the
this contest, the Filipino narrator came out the worth, or intensity, of this native drink.
winner, though he appeared a down-to-earth Amid his discriminatory appraisal of the
underdog at first. And I like his choice of gauge with brown drinker and his humble jungle juice, the
which they were to be measured up—the American soldier found what he was looking for
lambanog—which the American soldier merely when he finally gulped it down. Grabbing his neck
belittled as against the numerous wines he had each time he swallowed it, his face terribly
already gulped in various parts of the world, distorted, he was soon off his soberness after
particularly in comparison with the medical alcohol just a few shots. His brown drinking buddy, who
and the lotion that he had devoured once. drank the “mild” lambanog with a smile on the face,
This lambanog, being almost private to was surprised to see him seemingly swallowing coals
Filipinos, does its job to my utmost satisfaction. It of fire down his throat.
seems as though this native wine has a mind of its It gives me a sense of satisfaction to see that
own, making clear distinctions between its masters a braggart is reduced to his rightful place. Pompous
and the latter’s adversaries. And alas, how loyal it people always piss me off, but I also relish over their
proved to be, working so mild down the narrator’s downfall. Through the instrumentality of lambanog,
throat, yet crawling like a centipede on its way to the GI Yankee went through it—an embarrassing
the American GI’s belly. How this “jungle juice” had downfall. Oozing with pride and delight over his
championed the Filipino spirit in this one-one-one wine connoisseurship, he later on succumbed to the
competition, and I could only identify myself with it, blows of embarrassment and humiliation.
desirous to spread this outcome far and wide. Roces’ story We Filipinos Are Mild
The text somehow agrees with me over the Drinkers clearly suggests that it is an affective work
necessity to once in a while put people in their calling to mind the reader’s past experiences that
proper places. For instance, I’ve been critical about could help him unravel the story’s seemingly
the bullying people from so-called superpowers do inexhaustible meanings. Its characters undergo an
to the ones of inferior origins. History attests to it— experience to which the reader, particularly a
countries that make it to the top eventually produce Filipino reader, can immediately relate to. The plot is
arrogant citizens who think great of themselves, endowed with elements that can activate one’s
putting down others in utter discriminatory emotions, such as a sense of satisfaction, or sense of
treatment. The Greeks once showed this, so did the humour, at seeing the antagonist suffer from the
Romans, the Germans, the Spaniards, and now the intense effect of the lambanog. It is therefore held
Americans. At the height of their seeming that this story is an affective piece expressing
superiority in all things, sometimes there is a need elements to which readers could have plenty of
to drop them to where they belong at certain

(Jan-Mar)
reactions, thus contributing to the story’s meaning historical accounts for drawing its substance from
and interpretation. reality.
A Historicist Reading This story indeed showcases certain elements
This portion assumes that Roces’ story that are strongly suggestive of an unfolding history.
reveals the historical milieu surrounding the First, it is set at a time that juxtaposes with one of
author’s life and the times during which the story the country’s past. Then, it introduces a character
was penned, as suggested by the story’s elements that likewise represents certain personages in our
particularly its characters, plot, and setting. history. Moreover, it chronicles events that exactly
This is another critical return to focusing on match with a crucial historical moment in our
the importance of historical context to understand history, thus erasing any doubt that may question
the story. According to Stephen Greenblatt, the role history’s predominance in the story.
of Historicism is to facilitate easier grasp and When the story mentioned the presence of
understanding of literature as part of a sign system American barracks and quarters of the GIs, the
constituting a particular culture. In his new reader is immediately transported back in time into
historicism, we either understand history through the World War II years as Philippine settings
literature, or vice versa (Mikics, 2007). particularly in strategic places abounded with such
Literary criticism and historical critique then sights during that period. Wandering American
are integrated, with the critic's role being an soldiers in search of food, wine, and women were
investigator of the text’s social presence in the common in those days, braving treacherous terrains,
world, and the world’s social presence in the text. hills, and fields if only to acquire the objects of their
Given this, one would have to understand the story desires.
as being rooted in its cultural and authorial This is history making its way to fiction, or
connections. vice versa. In whatever way we view it, the setting of
In fact, the study of literary text is only one the story documents vivid images of homesick and
element of the New Historicist's exploration of pleasure-hunting American GIs who, for reasons of
the poetics of culture. Like the Marxist critic, the war, were deployed into the countryside as living
Historicist explores the place of literature in an on- witnesses to those cruel clashes of civilizations the
going contest for power within society but does not world cannot forget. In short, this is fiction
define this contest narrowly in terms of an economic documenting history.
class struggle. Rather, within a culture, a chorus of The introduction of a GI for a character
disparate voices vies for attention and influence. supports another historical fact. During World War
Partly, the nation’s history can be learned by II, Philippine experience, American GIs indeed
way of reading a story. And in a way, too, one can roamed around the archipelago mostly for military
glimpse how the people in this part of the world operations. But although their deployment in
reacted to the events around them. One can read countryside was basically for said missions, they
their dreams, joys, anxieties, and problems sometimes wandered into the villages for
encountered in that historical context. All this can be socialization, particularly in search of pleasure
had if a story’s historical intricacies are dwelt on, at drawn from drinking sprees and the like.
length if need be. The American soldier in the story is one good
Fiction itself, as represented by the short example. He was out for that purpose till he met the
story, is a rightful product of reality. It does not Filipino farmer who was working in the field. As
exist in isolation nor does it draw its materials from expected, the latter proved readily accommodating,
nowhere. For the most part, it reveals and mirrors known for hospitality as they are. Historically, this
reality, sourcing its contents from the real world. was quite consistent as the Filipinos then, being
Since the events that unfold in real life substantiate allies with the Americans, considered the white
history, it is then easy to look at realistic fiction, like visitors as brothers. In the events when the
We Filipinos are Mild Drinkers, as being expressive of American soldiers wandered into various places for

(Jan-Mar)
non-combatant ends, the Filipinos were quick to This paper then exemplifies how a text could
keep them company, or meet their needs, like what yield multiple meanings, thus proving that there is
the Filipino character did to the American soldier in not just one, limited meaning of a text but there are
the story. actually so many, even inexhaustible, depending on
Besides using a historical setting and how we view a text. Teachers who have had limited
personages, the story has included a glaring appraisals of literary works, believing that a text
historical event, which was the infamous World War could not have more meanings than how they
II, in the mid-forties. This provides the strongest perceive it to be, would come to realize that they,
proof that, indeed, history permeates in We Filipinos after all, have been espousing error with their bias,
are Mild Drinkers, almost making the story a and they might as well change their minds or else
historical document rather than a work of fiction. they would be missing a lot of significant meanings
This is more than enough to silence any and experiences in their narrow-minded treatment
question regarding the story’s historical of literature.
signification. In fact, when viewed from various Students on the other hand should be more
critical standpoints, the story is more historical than careful on how they should approach literary texts.
something else. It seems to have been tailored to a In case they have been influenced by the tutelage of
historicist appraisal from whatever angle, including traditional teachers, they should open their eyes to
the cultural aspect. And authorial meaning is the meaningful possibilities that a text could afford.
undoubtedly agreeable with it. Drawing ideas from it, they may try their hands at
In short, Roces’ story clearly reveals that it is writing their own critiques based on their chosen
a historicist material that dwells at length on a texts to see for themselves how varied textual
significant historical event of national magnitude. meanings could be.
The story’s setting is patterned after the typical Literary critics, both budding and
sights in Philippine countryside during the war. The established, may take a look at the scholarly
characters, particularly the American GI, significance of this study and thereby consider it in
represented historical personages who played vital pursuing their own inquiries, either for presentation
roles during the war—the American soldiers. The in conferences, or for publication in noteworthy
story’s plot emanated from a glaring historical journals. Even ordinary readers may find it
nd
landmark, which is the 2 World War. enlightening since they, too, need some kind of
It is therefore concluded that Roces’ We guidance, though their readings are mostly for
Filipinos are Mild Drinkers is a historicist fictional pleasure and entertainment.
genre revealing much history as exhibited clearly by Works Cited
the author’s choice of setting, characters, and plot. Abrams, Meyer and Hazard Adams. Critical Theory
Conclusions Since Plato. Wadsworth Publishing, 1992.
To sum up the findings, the story We Filipinos Print.
are Mild Drinkers yields the writer’s presence Adams, Hazard, Ed. Critical Theory Since Plato. San
mentally and physically, recreates the reality that Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Pub.,1971.
was extant during the WW II years, uses lambanog Print.
as a symbol of Filipino identity, explains my Driedger, Elmer. Construction of Statutes. Toronto:
positions relative to various issues raised in it, and Butterworths, 1983. Print.
reveals the historical milieu surrounding the Girard, Rene. Deceit, Desire, and the Novel: Self and
author’s life and the story’s creation. This story is Other in Literary Structure. John Hopkins
indeed a classic example of how meaningful texts University Press, 1976. Print.
are when subjected to various critical analyses such Gordon, Donald E. Expressionism: Art and Ideas,
as mimesis, expressionism, formalism, reader- New Haven: Yale University Press. 1987.
response, and historicism. Print.

(Jan-Mar)
Hornstein, Lillian Herlands, Calvin S. Brown, and G.D.

eds. The Reader’s Companion to
World Literature. New York: Holt, Rineheart
and Winston, 1984. Print.
Keesey, Donald. Contexts for Criticism. California:
Mayfield Pub. Co., 1998. Print.
Lemon, Lee T., and Marion J. Reis. Russian Formalist
Criticism: Four Essays. Lincoln: U of Nebraska,
1965. Print.
Maramba, Asuncion David. Philippine Contemporary
Literature. Makati: Bookmark, 1990. Print.
McHale, Brian. Constructing Postmodernism,
Routledge,1993. Print.
Meyer, Michael, ed. The Bedford Introduction to
Literature. New York: St. Martins, 1994. Print.
Mikics, David. ed. A New Handbook of Literary
Terms, 2007. Print.
Taussig, Michael. Mimesis and Alterity: A Particular
History of the Senses. London and New
York: Routledge, 1993. Print.
Tompkins, Jane P. ed. Reader-response Criticism:
From Formalism to Post-Structuralism. Johns
Hopkins University Press, 1980. Print.
Wellek, René, and Austin Warren. Theory of
Literature. 3rd. rev. ed. San Diego: Harcourt
Brace Jovanovich,1977. Print.

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Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) Vol.5.Issue 1.

WE FILIPINOS ARE MILD DRINKERS: A POST-COLONIAL TEXT EXEMPLIFYING

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