Paz Márquez-Benítez
Encyclopedia
Biography
Born in 1894 in Lucena CityLucena City
Metro Lucena has an estimated population of 700,000 which is mostly concentrated in the flat south-central portion of Quezon, which includes the cities of Lucena and Tayabas, Sariaya, Candelaria, Lucban & Pagbilao . The people are often characterized as friendly and hardworking...
, Quezon
Quezon
-History:Originally, what now forms Quezon was divided among the provinces of Batangas, Laguna, and Nueva Ecija. The area was first explored by Juan de Salcedo in 1571-1572, during his expedition from Laguna to Camarines provinces....
, Marquez - Benítez authored the first Filipino
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...
modern English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
-language short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
, Dead Stars, published in the Philippine Herald in 1925. Born into the prominent Marquez family of Quezon province, she was among the first generation of Filipinos
Filipino people
The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....
trained in the American education system which used English as the medium of instruction. She graduated high school in Tayabas High School (now, Quezon National High School
Quezon National High School
Quezon National High School is a public secondary science high school located at Brgy. Iyam, Lucena City, Philippines with more than 11,000 enrolleess from first year to fourth year, placing it as the 2nd Most Populated School in the country....
) and college from the University of the Philippines
University of the Philippines
The ' is the national university of the Philippines. Founded in 1908 through Act No...
with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in 1912.
She was a member of the first freshman class of the University of the Philippines, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1912.
Two years after graduation, she married UP College of Education Dean Francisco Benítez, with whom she had four children.
Márquez-Benítez later became a teacher at the University of the Philippines, who taught short-story writing and had become an influential figure to many Filipino writers in the English language, such as Loreto Paras-Sulit
Loreto Paras-Sulit
Loreto Paras-Sulit was a Filipino writer best known for her English-language short stories.-Biography:Paras-Sulit was born in Ermita, Manila. After finishing her secondary education in Manila, she entered the University of the Philippines, where she first gained notice for her short fiction. While...
, Paz M. Latorena, Arturo Belleza Rotor
Arturo Belleza Rotor
Arturo B. Rotor was a Filipino medical doctor, civil servant, musician, and writer.-Medical career:Rotor was born in the Philippines and attended the University of the Philippines. He graduated simultaneously from the Conservatory of Music and the College of Medicine...
, Bienvenido N. Santos
Bienvenido Santos
Bienvenido N. Santos was a Filipino-American fictionist, poet and nonfiction writer. He was born and raised in Tondo, Manila. His family roots are originally from Lubao, Pampanga, Philippines...
and Francisco Arcellana
Francisco Arcellana
Francisco "Franz" Arcellana was a Filipino writer, poet, essayist, critic, journalist and teacher. He was born on September 16, 1916. Arcellana already had ambitions of becoming a writer during his years in the elementary. His actual writing, however, started when he became a member of The Torres...
. The annually held Paz Marquez-Benitez Lectures 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...
honors her memory by focusing on the contribution of Filipino women writers to Philippine Literature in the English language.
Though she only had one more published short story after “Dead Stars” entitled "A Night In The Hills", she made her mark in Philippine literature because her work is considered the first modern Philippine short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
.
For Marquez-Benitez, writing was a life-long occupation. In 1919 she founded "Woman's Home Journal", the first women's magazine in the country. Also in the same year, she and other six women who were prominent members of Manila's social elites, namely Clara Aragon, Concepcion Aragon, Francisca Tirona Benitez, Carolina Ocampo Palma, Mercedes Rivera, and Socorro Marquez Zaballero, founded the Philippine Women's College (now Philippine Women's University
Philippine Women's University
The Philippine Women's University is a non-sectarian academic institution for men and women in the Philippines, founded in 1919 as the Philippine Women's College by Filipino women who envisioned a school that would prepare young women for leadership and service...
). "Filipino Love Stories", reportedly the first anthology of Philippine stories in English by Filipinos, was compiled in 1928 by Marquez-Benitez from the works of her students.
When her husband died in 1951, she took over as editor of the Philippine Journal of Education at UP. She held the editorial post for over two decades.
In 1995, her daughter, Virginia Benitez-Licuanan wrote her biography, "Paz Marquez-Benitez: One Woman's Life, Letters, and Writings."
Other sources and further readings
- Lichunan, Virginia Benitez. Paz Marquez Benitez: One Woman's Life, Letters, and Writings by Paz Marquez Benitez, Author Review by Helga E. Jacobson, The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 57, No. 2 (May, 1998), pp. 612-613, JStor.org, 2007, retrieved on: June 17, 2007
See also
- Cecilia Manguerra BrainardCecilia Manguerra BrainardCecilia Manguerra Brainard is a Filipina author of fiction based in California, U.S.A.. She was born in Cebu, Philippines, attended St. Theresa's College in Cebu and in San Marcelino, Manila. She also went to Maryknoll College in Quezon City from 1964 to 1968, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts...
- PAWWA
- Ninotchka RoscaNinotchka RoscaNinotchka Rosca is a Filipina feminist, author, journalist and human rights activist who is active in AF3IRM , the Mariposa Center for Change , Sisterhood is Global and the initiating committee of the MARIPOSA ALLIANCE , a multi-racial, multi-ethnic women's activist center for understanding the...
- Lualhati BautistaLualhati BautistaLualhati Torres Bautista is one of the foremost Filipino female novelists in the history of contemporary Philippine Literature. Her novels include Dekada '70, Bata, Bata, Pa'no Ka Ginawa?, and ‘GAPÔ....
- Sophia RomeroSophia RomeroSophia G. Romero is a Filipino female writer based in Brooklyn, New York. She is the author of the novel, Always Hiding, written in English. The 224-paged book was published by William Morrow & Company on April 1, 1998.-See also:*Ninotchka Rosca...