The poem is about a woman named Maritess whose face was likened to two famous TV personalities namely Susan Roces and Bella Flores. t talks about the fate that Maritess suffered under the hands of the con!ressman"s son and his friends. She was taken on a starry ni!ht in an abandoned place in #o$aliches. She was $iolated by fi$e men in a deserted open field. She was punished in her !enital part but was later on freed. %er bo yfriend was not able to accept what has happened to her and so he drowned himself with alcohol. %er story was e&posed by the media but the police did not do anythin! about it. think that the poem is a reflection of how the influential people co$er up their filthy actions throu!h their power and wealth. Maritess" was not !i$en the 'ustice that she deser$es because the police( despite d espite knowin! the truth( did not do anythin! to sol$e it. n the be!innin! of the poem( she was compared to the beauty of Susan Roces who acts as a prota!onist in her films. t is a stereotype that the lead role possesses $ery !ood )ualities but is )uite weak and !ullible which resembles her. She was unable to escape the persons who want to take ad$anta!e of her. But later( she was likened to Bella Flores who is well*known for her $illain roles. think that this twist has happened because she ser$ed as a threat to the ima!e of the con!ressman and his family. She is treated as the suspect e$en if she is the real $ictim. conclude that the police were bribed to preser$e the reputation that the con!ressman is takin! care of. Since he will be runnin! for a political position( it is of !reat importance for him to maintain a !ood ima!e to the public. pub lic. Thus( the poem"s sub'ect is $ery realistic. t !i$es the readers a $ i$id awareness of what is really happenin! in the society. t does not co$er up the dirty deeds of the people re!ardless of their wealth( power( and influence. Just like what Matthew +rnold said( poetry is of a ,hi!her truth and seriousness- or that it ,reflects society-. The poem informs the readers about the real
world. %is choice of sub'ect is $ery appropriate because it is really the persons of hi!h status who steps on the commoners. The poem opens our eyes of how human bein!s can be $ery stron! the predator/ or $ery weak the prey/ in specific situations. +s for e&le( Maritess became the prey of the con!ressman"s son and his friends. She was $ery $ulnerable that she was not able to protect or defend herself from the persons who ha$e $iolated her di!nity. t also hi!hli!hts how the con!ressman"s son and his friends can become so animalistic that they used Maritess to satisfy their ra!in! hormones. Furthermore( the poem a!rees with %enry James" idea that the author should show the characters( actions and emotions. The author was $ery clear in statin! the se)uence of e$ents that the reader can easily follow and understand what happened. The characters" characteri0ation and emotions from the pleasure( stru!!le( and pain that they felt/ are concei$able. The readers can easily picture out or ima!ine the e$ents throu!h the emphasis on the settin! in each stan0a. n the first stan0a( the settin! is under the starry sky( the second is in an isolated place in #o$aliches( the third is inside the Mustan!( the fourth talks about the e$ents in Manila( the fifth talks about the e$ents in Sampaloc( the si&th is on the open field where Maritess was $iolated( and the se$enth is inside the Mustan! a!ain. n addition to Matthew +rnold"s idea on literature( the poem is a !ood e&le of a herald of $alues and concerns. t does not only entertain( but it also teaches the readers a moral lesson about life. From the simple story of Maritess( we can be aware that people tend to manipulate or co$er up the truth. They may take it to the point that the $ictim will seem to be the one at fault and that he or she cannot do anythin! about it because she does not ha$e the power to fi!ht a!ainst them. This is one of the ma'or concerns in the society we are li$in! in today. The influential people remain to be at the top due to their wealth and power lea$in! the poor powerless and oppressed. The poem tells us that until now there is still an issue with e)uality. +ll
persons should be treated fairly re!ardless of a!e( !ender( race( status( etc. t promotes the idea that there should be an action done to sol$e this concern. Just like Maritess( e$eryone deser$es 'ustice. t should be ser$ed to all $ictims and there should not be an e&emption( e$en if it means to char!e or imprison the influential. +s for the lan!ua!e used by the author( he conforms to 1ante +li!hieri"s proposal on the use of the $ernacular. The words used in the poem belon! to the national lan!ua!e of the Filipinos. The readers can easily relate with what the author wants to con$ey because the word choices are commonly spoken by the intended audience of the poem. Thus( the lan!ua!e does not impede comprehension.
