Twice Blessed
Encyclopedia
Twice Blessed, also known as Twice Blessed: A Novel, is a 1992 novel written by Filipino author
Ninotchka Rosca
. It won the 1993 American Book Award
for “excellence in literature
”. It is one of Rosca’s novels that recreated the diversity of Filipino culture (the other was State of War
). Apart from tracing back Philippine History, Rosca also portrayed contemporary Philippine politics, delicate events, and cultural preference
s through the novel.
” concerned about the Philippines’ status, at the time of writing, as “a nation struggling to be born.” It was published when Ferdinand
and Imelda Marcos
were exiled in Hawaii, USA. In this satirical novel, Rosca derided the Marcoses and exposed how some moneyed Filipino warlord
s preserve their status and power through clan
alliances, corruption
, and “fuel and favors” (i.e. bribery, sexual favor
s, and the like) generally known as gasolina in the vernacular
meaning “gasoline
” to “keep things running” as planned.
). Hector and Katerina are twin
s having an incestuous relationship. Katerina had a shoe collection resulting from her experiences of “humiliations” during childhood. Teresa Tiklopluhod is a provincial governor
’s daughter who became a confidante
of Katerina Basbas.
and “strong-arm” persuasive manoeuvring. Together with Katerina, Hector was aiming to convert the Philippine democratic
system into a dynastic reign of monarch
s.
granted her the American Book Award
, for excellence in literature, for her Twice Blessed. The Before Columbus Foundation
seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre.
in 1946) is a Filipina feminist, author
, journalist
and human rights
activist. Ninotchka Rosca is described as, "one of the major players in the saga of Filipina American writers". During the political instability during Ferdinand Marcos
's rule she was arrested and held at a detention center for six months. She then spent sometime in exile in America. Much of her work is taken from her experiences during her imprisonment. Her short stories have been included in several collections including, the 1986 Best 100 Short Stories in the U.S. compiled by Raymond Carver and the Missouri Review Anthology. She went on to write Jose Maria Sison: At Home in the World, "To read Ninotchka Rosca's [latest is] not just to discover the controversial man, but to learn the political and economic history of the Philippines."
Filipino women writers
The history of Filipino women writers is an account of how Philippine women became literary “mistresses of the ink” and “lady pen-pushers” who created works of fiction or factual and historical storybooks, poetry, novels, short stories, essays, biographies, autobiographies and other known writing...
Ninotchka Rosca
Ninotchka Rosca
Ninotchka 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...
. It won the 1993 American Book Award
American Book Award
The American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
for “excellence in literature
Philippine literature in English
Philippine literature in English has its roots in the efforts of the United States, then engaged in a war with Filipino nationalist forces at the end of the 19th century. By 1901, public education was institutionalized in the Philippines, with English serving as the medium of instruction. That...
”. It is one of Rosca’s novels that recreated the diversity of Filipino culture (the other was State of War
State of War (novel)
State of War, also known as State of War: A Novel, is the first novel written in 1988 by American Book Award recipient and Filipino author Ninotchka Rosca...
). Apart from tracing back Philippine History, Rosca also portrayed contemporary Philippine politics, delicate events, and cultural preference
Filipino values
The Filipino value system or Filipino values refers to the set of values or the value system that a majority of Filipino people have historically held important in their lives. This Philippine value system includes their own unique assemblage of consistent ideologies, moral codes, ethical...
s through the novel.
Description
Twice Blessed was described as a “comic parableParable
A parable is a succinct story, in prose or verse, which illustrates one or more instructive principles, or lessons, or a normative principle. It differs from a fable in that fables use animals, plants, inanimate objects, and forces of nature as characters, while parables generally feature human...
” concerned about the Philippines’ status, at the time of writing, as “a nation struggling to be born.” It was published when Ferdinand
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...
and Imelda Marcos
Imelda Marcos
Imelda R. Marcos is a Filipino politician and widow of 10th Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos. Upon the ascension of her husband to political power, she held various positions to the government until 1986...
were exiled in Hawaii, USA. In this satirical novel, Rosca derided the Marcoses and exposed how some moneyed Filipino warlord
Warlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
s preserve their status and power through clan
Clan
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clan members may be organized around a founding member or apical ancestor. The kinship-based bonds may be symbolical, whereby the clan shares a "stipulated" common ancestor that is a...
alliances, corruption
Political corruption
Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...
, and “fuel and favors” (i.e. bribery, sexual favor
Sexuality in the Philippines
Sexuality and sensuality in the Philippines or Filipino sexuality refers to human sexuality and sensuality as perceived, expressed, experienced, and valued by the Filipino people. This encompasses sexual behavior, sexual practices, and sexual activities exhibited by Filipino men and women of the...
s, and the like) generally known as gasolina in the vernacular
Philippine languages
The Philippine languages are a 1991 proposal by Robert Blust that all the languages of the Philippines and northern Sulawesi—except Sama–Bajaw and a few languages of Palawan—form a subfamily of Austronesian languages...
meaning “gasoline
Gasoline
Gasoline , or petrol , is a toxic, translucent, petroleum-derived liquid that is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines also contain...
” to “keep things running” as planned.
Characters
The main characters in Twice Blessed are Hector Basbas, Katerina Basbas, and Teresa Tiklopluhod (her surname literally meant “fold and kneel” in TagalogTagalog language
Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
). Hector and Katerina are twin
Twin
A twin is one of two offspring produced in the same pregnancy. Twins can either be monozygotic , meaning that they develop from one zygote that splits and forms two embryos, or dizygotic because they develop from two separate eggs that are fertilized by two separate sperm.In contrast, a fetus...
s having an incestuous relationship. Katerina had a shoe collection resulting from her experiences of “humiliations” during childhood. Teresa Tiklopluhod is a provincial governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
’s daughter who became a confidante
Confidante
A confidante is a type of sofa, originally characterized by a triangular seat at each end, so that people could sit at either end of the sofa and be close to the person sitting in the middle...
of Katerina Basbas.
Description
Through political tactics and societal manoeuvres, Hector and Katerina Basbas became dominant figures in the Philippines. When Hector won the Presidential elections by “buying”, the incumbent refused to relinquish the position. Hector needed to provide more “fuel” to keep things moving, a plan that required Katerina’s help, covert assistance from the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and “strong-arm” persuasive manoeuvring. Together with Katerina, Hector was aiming to convert the Philippine democratic
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
system into a dynastic reign of monarch
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
s.
Awards
In 1993 the Before Columbus FoundationBefore Columbus Foundation
The Before Columbus Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1976 by Ishmael Reed, Victor Hernández Cruz, Shawn Wong and Rudolfo Anaya to be "a multi-ethnic organizing dedicated to promoting a pan-cultural view of America," especially through the promotion of multicultural writers.One of...
granted her the American Book Award
American Book Award
The American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
, for excellence in literature, for her Twice Blessed. The Before Columbus Foundation
Before Columbus Foundation
The Before Columbus Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1976 by Ishmael Reed, Victor Hernández Cruz, Shawn Wong and Rudolfo Anaya to be "a multi-ethnic organizing dedicated to promoting a pan-cultural view of America," especially through the promotion of multicultural writers.One of...
seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre.
Author
Ninotchka Rosca (born in the PhilippinesPhilippines
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...
in 1946) is a Filipina feminist, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist. Ninotchka Rosca is described as, "one of the major players in the saga of Filipina American writers". During the political instability during Ferdinand 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...
's rule she was arrested and held at a detention center for six months. She then spent sometime in exile in America. Much of her work is taken from her experiences during her imprisonment. Her short stories have been included in several collections including, the 1986 Best 100 Short Stories in the U.S. compiled by Raymond Carver and the Missouri Review Anthology. She went on to write Jose Maria Sison: At Home in the World, "To read Ninotchka Rosca's [latest is] not just to discover the controversial man, but to learn the political and economic history of the Philippines."