Name: Dahl A.

Paalisbo
Grade and Section: 11- STEM Mendel

Expressive Literary Critique

Ang Hunsoy Sungsongan Usab By Marcelino M Navarra

This Critical Reading theorizes that in “Ang Hunsoy Sungsongan Usab” of Marcelino M.
Navarra is a short story that showed his reality about realism and the sacrifices of how he faced the
difficulties during the World War II with regards to the life of the Filipinos.

At the beginning of the story, Malta stares blankly at the fire she has just built, wondering
what she is to serve the soldiers when her own family has nothing to eat. The men of Lipata are thus
forced to take turns keeping vigil. The story also brings out the soldiers' lack of concern for the very
lives they are supposed to protect. All throughout the story, Malta feels conscious about her humble
condition. She does not, for instance, approach the soldier who requests her to bring him the rolled
tobacco leaf she has prepared especially for him, because she remembered her tattered skirt which
still smelled strongly of urine. Although exploited, she happily serves the guerrillas. She is all too
eager to please the men who are supposed to protect the people of the barrio, even if she and her
family have to skimp on food. There were times when one could afford to forget hunger, but at this
moment when Malta was staring at the abundance of food shared by the soldiers, the hunger pains
she always felt became even more acute. Last night, their food for supper was cassava, and the
leftovers were all they had for breakfast. It was almost a year now since the couple, Malta-Imok, had
tasted corn meal. They had gotten used to malunggay leaves mixed with bits of nangka and banana
blossoms, young kamote leaves, raw papaya soaked in vinegar, which they ate together with scraped
coconut meat - food they used to feed their pigs. The condition of the couple Malta-Imok did not
differ much from that of their neighbors and many others in Lipata. In spite of this they were still
able to find means and ways to feed the men who were willing to die for the preservation of their
native land. The people's condition is symbolized by the empty clay pipe that Malta keeps in her
mouth. The empty pipe represents the people's hunger pangs. In the end, Malta has to be content
with leftovers she kept which the soldiers told her to feed it to the dogs.

This literary critique is endorsed by the theory of expressivism, which treats a literary work
primarily in relation with the author. This tends to judge a work by it’s sincerity with the author’s
presence in the context.

"Ang Hunsoy Sungosongan Usab," A Cebuano Short Story written during the 18 th of
September in the year of 1954 by Marcelino M. Navarra. He was born on June 2, 1914 at Tuyom,
Carcar. Tuyom is a small barrio in Carcar, Cebu, that juts out to the sea. Typical of the condition in
many parts of Cebu, its land is dry and barren. During the war, from his work in Manila, Navarra
returned to Tuyom got married and had nine children.

He wrote over 80 short stories before and after World War II and earned him the
recognition to be called as the “Father of Cebuano Writings”. He became an editor of Bisaya,
Republic news and Cebuano periodicals. After writing "Zosimo" in 1955, Navarra stopped writing.
But he was active in other literary work. He assisted in the construction of LUDABI (the Das Bisaya,
which stands for the heart of the pen in Bisaya) in 1956. He is the organizer of the organization and
serves as one of its leaders. He retired in December 1973. He was also considered as the Guy de
Maupassant of our literature. He leads the record of successful and progressive writers over a long
period of time, before and after the World War II upto present. He was also named as the
Hemingway of Binisaya by other Sebastian writers. He was recognized as the proponent of
modernism and realism in the Sebastian language which provided a definite form of short story.
He retired not soon enough and was laid to rest when he died in his hometown on March 28, 1984.
 As the story rises, Imok once said, “Nganong maulaw? Wala man gali tay ikapamahaw karn!”
Imok realizes as early as Malta that they were being controlled by the soldiers and force to provide
food even they don’t have anything and have nothing to eat. It was evident that it is not an ideal and
practical behaviour of such a person. But the people of Tuyom were doing it as a respond to their
responsibility of feeding the soldiers and was made them to suffer, that is why Navarra decided to
escape from his hometown and earn a living in Manila.

Tuyom is the place where the story takes place. It is a small barrio in Carcar, Cebu, that juts
out to the sea. Typical of the condition in many parts of Cebu, its land is dry and barren. Life is
extremely difficult and, to survive, its people resort to fishing, tuba-gathering, and selling copra and
maguey. The place is poor and the people remain poor. “Sa tinuoray, naanad na sila na makaduha da
(usahay makausa lamang) makakaon sa usa ka adlaw.” It was evident in this line that the people of
Tuyom were used to eat only a few amount of food daily. It shows that before their responsibilities
takes place upon taking over the food of the guerrillas, their supply of food wasn’t enough for them
to sustain and eat three times a day. But, it has showed on how the life before and now differ in
terms of economic status. It is clearly visible to us all now that the place of Carcar now is abundant
with their own produced products, has raised a number of income and a good range of status.

This story was entitled “Hunsoy Sungsongan Usab”, for the Hunsoy symbolizes the inevitable
challenge of their lives. For instead of having tobacco inside the pipe, it has only agiw or ashes
inside it. This reveals a clearer picture on how low is the status of life they had.

Even after they encountered the unpleasant conditions people from Tuyom still continues to
provide food for the guerrillas. They were still so obedient with the responsibility assigned to them.
It is evident to us Filipinos, not just before but as well as now especially if visitors are coming to our
home to visit. We really finds time to prepare and when times that we don’t have anything in our
pockets, we try to find someone where we can ask to debt. Which became a bigger obligation for us
to pay our credit. It signifies our trait as a Filipino that we are hospitable and priotizes others more
than ourselves. The people in Tuyom still continues to exert an effort. Similar to Navarra’s life, even
if he wasn’t able to finish a secondary education he was still determined that he can achieved more
other than being a professional. Despite that he went to Manila where his skills were developed
more and had lead him to what title he earned right now.

This short story reveals how Navarra and the people of Tuyom, Carcar struggled. This story
informs the people of this current generation on how hard they went through before. Today’s
generation must know how to give value to those people who were so strong to fight for their battle.
Thus, Navarra put their struggles into writings which led the people of this generation aware of how
our nationality as a Filipino started and formed to what it is right now.

Thus, “Ang Hunsoy Sungsongan Usab” of Marcelino M. Navarra is a short story that showed
his reality about realism and the sacrifices of how he faced the difficulties during the World War II
with regards to the life of the Filipinos.

References:

[ CITATION Ter77 \l 13321 ]

[ CITATION DrT86 \l 13321 ]

https://www.bachelorandmaster.com/criticaltheories/about-expressive-theory.html#.XTSqoB0zbIU

https://www.cebuanostudiescenter.com/marcel-navarra/