I.
The history teacher turns to face the loud, bustling
classroom. Wanting to see just how well his students have studied on their
assigned topic, he calls out randomly:”You at the back! Yes you, Mr. Hayden
Khalili. What can you tell me about the U.P. Oblation?”
Slowly, the student gets up from his seat. With a blank
look on his face he states:”Um, I think it’s a place where people need to run
naked?”
Whether we like to
admit it or not, the nearly completely nude figure of a young man standing with
his arms raised to the sky is , the second image that comes to our mind when
the words: “U.P. Oblation” are mentioned. These words have become so synonymous
with the image of nude frat members running in the streets of Manila, that we
tend to forget that the statue has inspired more than just the Oblation Run, a
yearly event designed to garner attention on the issues brought up by a frat.
The Oblation is arguably, a symbol that has served to invigorate the diversified forms of free expression.
II.
To start off, we should
look at one of the rumors and theories
that have been formed for the statue’s benefit. For example, there is a
famous legend that supposedly claims that the actor Fernando Poe Sr. is somehow
the model that the statue was based upon. This is of course something that the
university outright denies, stating that it was actually modeled upon the physique
of Prof. Anastacio Caedo, a student assistant of the sculptor himself. But
another report conflicts with this, stating that Jules Alistado, Tolentino's
student assistant, and Caedo's brother-in-law, Virgilio Raymundo both served as
the model for the Oblation, using Caedo's physique and Raymundo's proportion. Whether
this is true or not, we can only attribute this myth as a compliment on the
power of the statue’s symbolism.
Perhaps the first
instance of free expression the Oblation
has inspired, came strangely before it was even built. Sometime in the 1930’s,
a collection of 2000 pesos was acquired. Given the fact that this collection was
solely contributed by employees, students, and alumni of the university, this
was probably no easy task to accomplish. The 2000 pesos was gathered to fund
the construction of the first Oblation statue, and although as mentioned above,
it failed to capture the public’s attention, it’s failure would only motivate
the creation of it’s iconic successor.
One of the most
interesting facts to note is that the Oblation has also played a direct role in
some of the ventures of free expression. Students place tarpaulins and posters in
its vicinity to express their opinions on particular issues. Sometimes they may
even go as far as to place a black cloth on the statue itself if they believe
the issue has become a dire one.
But of course last but
not least, undoubtedly, the defining example of what the statue is known to have inspired,
is the Oblation Run, as mentioned above, an event that is memorable for having
contributed exponentially to the
statue’s popularity. The Run is perhaps
the ultimate form of expression and freedom the Oblation has inspired, because
as mentioned above the main purpose of the event is to highlight the issues
that are being called out by the Alpha Phi Omega fraternity via the use of
parading naked male members in full view
of the attending public.
In conclusion, one
cannot help but smile in awe towards this simple, but passionate symbol of expression.
Probably to the dismay of many critics, the shadow of the juvenile Oblation Run
may still hover heavily over its’ name, but it is undoubtedly this statue that
will serve to inspire future generations of artists and U.P. students long
after the ‘Run’ has become outdated. It
serves to push even as far as, each and every Filipino to express their
freedom in his/her own unique way.
After the
jeers and the whoops of laughter have quickly died down, the history teacher
can only shake his head in amusement.
Seeing
the confused look on some of his students’ faces, he attempts to
clarify.“Close, but not quite, Mr Khalili. You are most likely thinking about
the Oblation Run, a bi-annual nudity run that serves to highlight their
protests through the simple but effective way of exposing male genitalia for
the world to see. However, I was in fact referring to the Oblation statue
standing in U.P. Diliman that was crafted by the great Guillermo Tolentino
using some of the very words from Rizal’s Mi Ultima Adios as his inspiration.
Many even go as far as to claim that it is these very words working their magic
through the artist’s rendition of the statue, that served to inspire things
like this ‘event’ which Mr. Khalili so fondly described. Perhaps I shall have
to arrange a field trip someday, to fully educate us on the contributions…
The
teacher abruptly halts midsentence, raising an eyebrow in a semi-stern gesture.
“Oh, and before any of you even ask, no, I will not be planning nor authorizing
any field trips to this said
event.”
“Um…Exactly
why not, sir?” Asks a student from the front row.
A
mischievous grin on his face, the teacher calmly answers:” Besides the obvious reasons
to that question, I am quite aware that there is a significant probability that
most of the female members of this class might enjoy themselves just a LITTLE
too much.”
References.
Oblation (University of the Philippines). (n.d.) Retrieved August 14. 2013 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.P._Oblation
Gonzales, Narita. Los Banos Gerardo. U.P. Diliman:Home and
Campus. University of the Philippines. Press. 2010. Print.
This was an informative article. The intro and conclusion put an interesting spin to it. I also like how the article focuses on the symbol for the Oblation Run, the statue. Nice job.
ReplyDeleteYour attitude towards the UP Oblation was evident throughout the article. I do not see the point of the numerical division but all in all, I was amused with this article. :)
ReplyDeleteThe beginning caught my attention, but as the article progressed, I started losing interest. But that's just me. Don't let my opinion speak for this article.
ReplyDeleteThere are instances where you use too many big words too often in a sentence, which makes it clunky and difficult to read. Don't over-complicate sentences unnecessarily. If you can say something in half the number of words it's written in, then make it short and to the point. Try to make sentences simpler, and if you want to make formal sentences sound more complex, do it sparingly. Doing it too much makes it boring and distracting.
ReplyDeleteAlso, you misused "it's".
It's=it is
Its=possessive
So replace your "it's" with "its".
The last part is a bit problematic but again, if you rephrase it, it'll sound less offensive and more casual.
IN SUMMARY: Make it more casual. I know it's a formal work but even formal works need simplicity. Don't over-complicate everything, try to make it a tad simpler, and clean it up just a little.
But the structure and the progression is good :) It's a good piece, my friend, just polish it.
A little work on the chronology would be good, but other than that, you're work is great!
ReplyDeleteI didn't think anyone at college-level could write so fluidly. I have actually never seen the UP Oblacion thinger. I've only heard about it a couple of times, maybe. But this was mad cool, Alex! Very informative. You'll be a great journalist someday, friend :D
ReplyDelete-Alex B.
Thanks for clearing stuff up! This is perfect for a newspaper article. Being someone close to being a college student, I find it timely to have my friends' and my own misconceptions.
ReplyDelete...corrected. Your work has truly made me consider choosing UP as a place to go to college.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting that the article started with a dialogue between a teacher and a student. It lessens the formality and makes the reader enjoy reading the article. A good intro because people do associate the UP Oblation with the naked man. A well thought out article :)
ReplyDeleteInteresting article! Went off-tangent sometimes and could go for a little polishing but it's off to a good start. :) I do like the interaction in the classroom because it also explains it in a casual light. Could've been executed better but what you have now is pretty strong already. Maybe expound some more on the Oblation itself. You touched on some key points so just go from there. Good job overall!
ReplyDeletepretty interesting article that shows the statue's historical ties with the freedom of expression that UP prides itself on providing. :P Could it really have been FPJ though? =))
ReplyDeleteVery informative article. A great read overall.
ReplyDeleteHmmm....The article itself was very informative, but I just wish you could have added more detail like the part about the students placing tarpaulins on the statue. But good job nonetheless! :D
ReplyDelete1. Don't name drop. This isn't a journalistic article, it's a feature article - it's creative nonfiction. You don't drop names unless it's very very very necessary. This is not an understatement.
ReplyDelete2. While given the title I understand that you're talking about the Oblation statue, it has to be shown in the article itself: what do you really want to talk about? The article tends to veer off from discussion of its history (which, by the way, requires a lot of sources) to a talk about the Oblation run and how it's connected to the statue and, as you say, some "frat." You tend to digress - remember that digression is always likely to happen when writing, just make sure that there's a point to it. MAKE YOUR POINT CLEAR. Understand what your thesis is, understand what you're writing about.
3. Those prologue and epilogue parts need to be condensed a little more. While they may be important to the article itself, you can't make it take up half the space of the article. Remember that those prologue and epilogue parts are like the introduction and the conclusion - short and sweet.
Good points, but a lot of your words are just recycled and reused from the other paragraphs. Maybe consult a thesaurus next time? Otherwise you're doing great. :)
ReplyDelete