A treasure is something that has a great
value it can be a chest of filled with gold coins or even an artifact. But a
treasure could also a person, someone who is so talented in the field of
literature and uses it for the pride of the country, someone who cares and sympathize to his country men, someone like Francisco
Sionil Jose.
Francisco is a Filipino writer and a
National Artist; he was born in Rosales, Pangasinan on the year 1924 and
graduated in the University of Santo Tomas Manila. He received his title
Philippine’s National Artist for Literature in June 2001. Aside from the Philippine’s
National Artist for Literature award he also received the first prize for the
Palanca Memorial award for Novel in English another proof that he is so
talented. Some of his well known literary works are:
For Short Stories
The God Stealer and Other Stories. Quezon
City: R.P. Garcia Publishing Co., 1968; Bratislava, 1983.
Waywaya, Eleven Filipino Short Stories. Hong
Kong: Heinemann Asia, 1980; London, 1980; Manila, 1985.
For Novels and Novellas
Po-on. Manila: Solidaridad Publishing
House, 1984; Jakarta, 1988 Lisbon, 1990.
Tree. Manila: Solidaridad Publishing House,
1978; Moscow, 1983.
My Brother, My Executioner. Quezon City:
New Day Publishers, 1979; Moscow, 1983; Hanoi,1989.
The Pretenders. Manila: Solidaridad
Publishing House, 1962; Moscow (Russian, Latvian, Ukrainian), 1971; Jakarta,
1979; Amsterdam, 1980; Prague, 1981; Tokyo, 1983.
Well there are just too many of them.
Francisco is known to write not in Filipino
or Ilocano (which is his native language) but rather in English but, but this
doesn’t stop him from telling what is really happening in the country. he is also known abroad and he was given comment like this:
"...America
has no counterpart to José – no one who is simultaneously a prolific novelist,
a social and political organizer, and a small scale entrepreneur...José's
identity has equipped him to be fully sensitive to the nation's miseries
without succumbing, like many of his characters to corruption or despair...
— James
Fallows, The Atlantic Monthly
"...The
reader of his well crafted stories will learn more about the Philippines, its
people and its concerns than from any journalistic account or from a holiday trip
there. José's books takes us to the heart of the Filipino mind and soul, to the
strengths and weaknesses of its men, women, and culture.
— Lynne
Bundesen, Los Angeles Times
F. Sionil Jose is indeed one of the greatest treasure of our country and I hope that he will not be the last one of them.
Sources:
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TumugonBurahinYow winz!
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