Lualhati Bautista
Encyclopedia
Lualhati Torres Bautista (born Manila, Philippines December 2, 1945) is one of the foremost Filipino
female novel
ists in the history of contemporary Philippine Literature. Her novels include Dekada '70, Bata, Bata, Pa'no Ka Ginawa?, and ‘GAPÔ
.
, Philippines on December 2, 1945 to Esteban Bautista and Gloria Torres. She graduated from Emilio Jacinto Elementary School in 1958, and from Torres High School in 1962. She was a journalism student at the Lyceum of the Philippines, but dropped out even before she finished her freshman year.
Despite a lack of formal training, Bautista as the writer became known for her honest realism, courageous exploration of Philippine women's issues, and her compelling female protagonists, who confront difficult situations at home and in the workplace with uncommon grit and strength.
(1980, 1983 and 1984) for her novels ‘GAPÔ
, Dekada '70 and Bata, Bata… Pa’no Ka Ginawa?
exposing injustices and chronicling women activism during the Marcos
era.
‘GAPÔ, published in 1980, is the story of a man coming to grips with life as an Amerasian
. It is a multi-layered scrutiny of the politics behind US bases in the Philippines
, seen from ordinary citizens living in Olongapo City
point of view.
Dekada '70 is the story of a family caught in the middle of the tumultuous decade of the 1970s. It details how a middle class family struggled and faced the changes that empowered Filipinos to rise against the Marcos government. These series of events happened after the bombing of Plaza Miranda, the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, the proclamation of martial law and the random arrests of political prisoners. The oppressive nature of the Marcos regime, which made the people become more radical, and the shaping of the decade were all witnessed by the female protagonist, Amanda Bartolome, a mother of five boys.
Bata, Bata… Pa'no Ka Ginawa?, literally, "Child, Child… How Were You Made?", narrates the life of Lea, a working mother and a social activist, who has two children. The novel begun with an introductory chapter about the graduation day from kindergarten of Maya, Lea’s daughter. A program and a celebration were held. In the beginning, everything in Lea’s life were going smoothly – her life in connection with her children, with friends of the opposite gender, and with her volunteer work for a human rights organization. But Lea’s children were both growing-up – and Lea could see their gradual transformation. There were the changes in their ways and personalities: Maya’s curiosity was becoming more obvious every day, while Ojie was crossing the boundaries from boyhood to teenage to adulthood. In the end, all three, and especially Lea, have to confront Philippine society’s view of single motherhood; and the novel itself brazens out to the questions of how it is to be a mother, and how a mother executes this role through modern-day concepts of parenthood.
, namely "Tatlong Kuwento ng Buhay ni Juan Candelabra" (Three Stories in the Life of Juan Candelabra), first prize, 1982; and "Buwan, Buwan, Hulugan mo Ako ng Sundang" (Moon, Moon, Drop Me a Sword), third prize, 1983.
. One of her best screenplays, also written during the same year was Bulaklak ng City Jail based on her novel about imprisoned women, has won almost all awards for that year from various awards guilds including Star Awards
and Metro Manila Film Festival
.
Creative Writing Center in 1986. Bautista also served as vice-president of the Screenwriters Guild of the Philippines and chair of the Kapisanan ng mga Manunulat ng Nobelang Popular.
She was the only Filipino included in a book on foremost International Women Writers published in Japan in 1991.
Bautista was honored by the Ateneo Library of Women's Writings on March 10, 2004 during the 8th Annual Lecture on Vernacular Literature by Women. In 2005, the Feminist Centennial Film Festival presented her with a recognition award for her outstanding achievement in screenplay writing. In 2006, she was recipient of the Diwata Award for best writer by the 16th International Women's Film Festival of the UP Film Center.
A full translation of Bautista's best works could better represent the characteristics of Filipino writing in international publishing. Some speculate, however, that no such translations have been published because her use of simple yet incisive language to describe complex social and spiritual conditions in the Philippines is often dismissed in Philippine literary circles.
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
female novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
ists in the history of contemporary Philippine Literature. Her novels include Dekada '70, Bata, Bata, Pa'no Ka Ginawa?, and ‘GAPÔ
‘GAPÔ
‘GAPÔ is a 1988 Tagalog novel written by award-winning Filipino author Lualhati Bautista. Its complete title is ‘GAPÔ at isang puting Pilipino, sa mundo ng mga Amerikanong kulay brown which means "Gapô and one white Filipino, in a world of brown Americans" in translation. Gapô is an abbreviated...
.
Biography
Bautista was born in Tondo, ManilaManila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, Philippines on December 2, 1945 to Esteban Bautista and Gloria Torres. She graduated from Emilio Jacinto Elementary School in 1958, and from Torres High School in 1962. She was a journalism student at the Lyceum of the Philippines, but dropped out even before she finished her freshman year.
Despite a lack of formal training, Bautista as the writer became known for her honest realism, courageous exploration of Philippine women's issues, and her compelling female protagonists, who confront difficult situations at home and in the workplace with uncommon grit and strength.
Works as novelist
Lualhati garnered several Palanca AwardsPalanca Awards
The Palanca Awards or Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature is the Philippines' most prestigious and most enduring literary awards and is dubbed as the "Pulitzer Prize" of the Philippines...
(1980, 1983 and 1984) for her novels ‘GAPÔ
‘GAPÔ
‘GAPÔ is a 1988 Tagalog novel written by award-winning Filipino author Lualhati Bautista. Its complete title is ‘GAPÔ at isang puting Pilipino, sa mundo ng mga Amerikanong kulay brown which means "Gapô and one white Filipino, in a world of brown Americans" in translation. Gapô is an abbreviated...
, Dekada '70 and Bata, Bata… Pa’no Ka Ginawa?
Bata, Bata… Pa’no Ka Ginawa?
Ang Bata, Bata… Pa’no Ka Ginawa? is a novel written in Tagalog by the Filipino female writer, Lualhati Bautista. Bautista uses "Taglish" – a mixture of Tagalog and English, instead of pure Tagalog – as a stylistic device for her works...
exposing injustices and chronicling women activism during the Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
era.
‘GAPÔ, published in 1980, is the story of a man coming to grips with life as an Amerasian
Amerasian
In its original meaning, an Amerasian is a person born in Asia, to a U.S. military father and an Asian mother. The term has sometimes been used to describe a person in the United States of mixed Asian and non-Asian ancestry, regardless of the circumstances....
. It is a multi-layered scrutiny of the politics behind US bases in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, seen from ordinary citizens living in Olongapo City
Olongapo City
The City of Olongapo is a highly urbanized city located in the province of Zambales, Philippines. According to the latest census, it has a population of 227,270 people in 50,300 households.-History:...
point of view.
Dekada '70 is the story of a family caught in the middle of the tumultuous decade of the 1970s. It details how a middle class family struggled and faced the changes that empowered Filipinos to rise against the Marcos government. These series of events happened after the bombing of Plaza Miranda, the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, the proclamation of martial law and the random arrests of political prisoners. The oppressive nature of the Marcos regime, which made the people become more radical, and the shaping of the decade were all witnessed by the female protagonist, Amanda Bartolome, a mother of five boys.
Bata, Bata… Pa'no Ka Ginawa?, literally, "Child, Child… How Were You Made?", narrates the life of Lea, a working mother and a social activist, who has two children. The novel begun with an introductory chapter about the graduation day from kindergarten of Maya, Lea’s daughter. A program and a celebration were held. In the beginning, everything in Lea’s life were going smoothly – her life in connection with her children, with friends of the opposite gender, and with her volunteer work for a human rights organization. But Lea’s children were both growing-up – and Lea could see their gradual transformation. There were the changes in their ways and personalities: Maya’s curiosity was becoming more obvious every day, while Ojie was crossing the boundaries from boyhood to teenage to adulthood. In the end, all three, and especially Lea, have to confront Philippine society’s view of single motherhood; and the novel itself brazens out to the questions of how it is to be a mother, and how a mother executes this role through modern-day concepts of parenthood.
Short stories
Two of Bautista's short stories won the Palanca AwardsPalanca Awards
The Palanca Awards or Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature is the Philippines' most prestigious and most enduring literary awards and is dubbed as the "Pulitzer Prize" of the Philippines...
, namely "Tatlong Kuwento ng Buhay ni Juan Candelabra" (Three Stories in the Life of Juan Candelabra), first prize, 1982; and "Buwan, Buwan, Hulugan mo Ako ng Sundang" (Moon, Moon, Drop Me a Sword), third prize, 1983.
As screenwriter
Lualhati Bautista's venture as screenwriter produced several critically acclaimed works. Her first screenplay was Sakada (Seasonal Sugarcane Workers), 1976, which exposed the plight of Filipino peasants. Her second film was Kung Mahawi Man ang Ulap in 1984, which was nominated for awards in the Film Academy of the PhilippinesFilm Academy of the Philippines
Established in 1981, the Film Academy of the Philippines is the Philippines' official counterpart of the United States' Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The FAP was founded through Executive Order 640-A, signed by former President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos...
. One of her best screenplays, also written during the same year was Bulaklak ng City Jail based on her novel about imprisoned women, has won almost all awards for that year from various awards guilds including Star Awards
Star Awards
The Star Awards is an annual ceremony where the media organisation, Mediacorp, recognises entertainers in their employ for their outstanding performances...
and Metro Manila Film Festival
Metro Manila Film Festival
upright|thumb|320px|Metro Manila Film Festival Official LogoThe Metro Manila Film Festival-Philippines is the annual film festival held in Manila...
.
Other honors
She became a national fellow for fiction of the University of the PhilippinesUniversity of the Philippines
The ' is the national university of the Philippines. Founded in 1908 through Act No...
Creative Writing Center in 1986. Bautista also served as vice-president of the Screenwriters Guild of the Philippines and chair of the Kapisanan ng mga Manunulat ng Nobelang Popular.
She was the only Filipino included in a book on foremost International Women Writers published in Japan in 1991.
Bautista was honored by the Ateneo Library of Women's Writings on March 10, 2004 during the 8th Annual Lecture on Vernacular Literature by Women. In 2005, the Feminist Centennial Film Festival presented her with a recognition award for her outstanding achievement in screenplay writing. In 2006, she was recipient of the Diwata Award for best writer by the 16th International Women's Film Festival of the UP Film Center.
Translations of her novels
Excerpts from Lualhati Bautista's novels have been anthologized in Tulikärpänen a book of short stories written by Filipino women published in Finland by The Finnish-Philippine Society (FPS), a non-governmental organization founded in 1988. Tulikärpänen was edited and translated by Riitta Vartti, et al. In Firefly: Writings by Various Authors, the English version of the Finnish collection, the excerpt from the Filipino novel Gapô was given the title "The Night in Olongapo" while the excerpt from Bata, Bata, Pa'no Ka Ginawa? was titled "Children's Party".A full translation of Bautista's best works could better represent the characteristics of Filipino writing in international publishing. Some speculate, however, that no such translations have been published because her use of simple yet incisive language to describe complex social and spiritual conditions in the Philippines is often dismissed in Philippine literary circles.
Short fiction collections
- Buwan, Buwan, Hulugan Mo Ako ng Sundang: Dalawang Dekada ng Maiikling Kuwento
Screenplays
- Sakada
- Kung Mahawi Man ang Ulap
- Bulaklak sa City Jail
- Kadenang Bulaklak
- The Maricris Sioson Story
- Nena
- Bata, Bata...Pa'no Ka Ginawa?: The Screenplay
- Dekada '70
- Ang Tondo ay May Langit din - Khonde