WEDDING DANCE

by Amador Daguio
I.ELEMENTS
A. CHARACTERS
*Lumay- who was left by her husband because he had to marry another
woman/ Developing
*Awiyao- husband stated above / Flat
*Madulimay- Awiyaos new wife / Flat
B. SETTING
* Place in the mountains, somewhere in the Philippines
B. PLOT Linear
a) Exposition
The setting is a mountain village of the Philippines where Awiyao has been remarried.
b) Rising Action
Outside, the villagers are dancing in celebration of the wedding. Awiyao leaves to try
and comfort Lumnay. He offers her many items of the life that they built together.
Lumnay refuses them and clings to Awiyao, wishing he would stay.
c) Climax
Awiyao finally leaves to re-join the wedding and Lumnay runs into the hills.
d) Falling action
Lumnay sits on the side of the mountain overlooking the blazing fire and dancing
women, thinking about how her life has changed. She has a sense of desperation,
isolation, and worthlessness.
e) Resolution
The reader is left not knowing what will become of Lumnay.
D. CONFLICT
The conflict here is Man vs. Society. The lead characters have to follow their tribes
custom.
Awiyao has left his wife Lumnay, whom he loved very much. However, she couldnt
give him a child. He has now married Madulimay in hopes to have a son, who will
continue his legacy. This is something Awiyao expresses as important in his culture.
However, Lumnay is upset because she loves Awiyao and doesnt want this
separation.
E. POINT OF VIEW
The Point of View used in this short story is the Omniscient Limited - The author tells
the story in third person (using pronouns they, she, he, it, etc). We know only what
the character knows and what the author allows him/her to tell us. We can see the
thoughts and feelings of characters if the author chooses to reveal them to us.
F. LITERARY DEVICES
For me, there is an extensive use of the literary device Symbolism.
Gangsas- The gangsas are culturally important. The sound of the gangsas
represents the man in the wedding ceremony. Like the gangsas, they are strong
and provide a beat to the dance, or a "beat to life".
Dancing- Culturally, the dancing is a celebration of happiness. It is also a show
of sexuality by the women. Because Lumnay has not produced a child, she feels

ashamed to dance and show herself to the other men, as she believes no one
will look at her.
The Fire- The fire or flames signify the burning intensity of both love and hate
that Lumnay feels in the situation. When Awiyao stirs the embers in Lumnays
dark hut, he stirs up both of these feelings in her. Later, as Lumnay watches the
bonfire from afar, her physical distance from the fire reflects her emotional
separation from the man she loves.
The Beads- The beads in the story symbolize the promise that Awiyao made to
Lumnay. They are also very precious and are worth 20 fields. The fact that
Awiyao gives them to Lumnay shows that he cherishes her, and that he still
believes she has worth. Although Lumnay rejects the hut and field Awiayo offers
her, she accepts the beads, suggesting her desire to remain connected to
Awiyao.
The Floor - A number of times the narrator draws the readers attention to the
rattan floor as Lumnay pulls it apart. This is symbolic of their marriage
unraveling.
The Night- The nighttime setting symbolically adds to the darkness and isolation
that Lumnay feels as she runs away from the village. As she works her way up
the dark mountain alone, she is unable to envision a path to the future. The
reader, too, is left in darkness with the unresolved ending.

G. THEME
In my opinion, the theme is:
1. True love never dies.
2. If you truly love a person, you must let them be happy
Have you ever heard the saying if you love someone, let them go? The story of
Lumnay and Awiyao wrestles with this difficult issue. Despite how upsetting it is to
Lumnay, she must let Awiyao go, not only because of their culture, but also because it
is clear that he will not be happy without a child.
II.COPY OF THE STORY
III.DISCUSSION
-The story talks about our Filipino tradition, and our culture and how true love
is. In a relationship, other said that true love never dies but true love can not only
be seen by words or by the physical appearance of one person, it is through their
actions on how they prove it to you that he/she loves you. Awiyao and Lumnay both
love each other but they need to follow their culture thats why awiyao remarried to
another woman but that doesnt mean that he doesnt love lumnay. Today in our
generation, I can say that this culture is not being followed because nowadays there
is already a third party between those couples, and they have the freedom to choose
whether to live or stay with their wife even if she cant have a child.

LITERATURE 1 TTH 3:00-4:30