Pesoa

by Mesándel Virtusio Arguelles

"Mga tala sa alala ng paglimot ang laman ng aklat na ito. Ngunit mga talaga nino, alala nino, paglimot nino, aklat nino? "Bawat pangalan ng iba ay sa akin," sabi ni Mesandel Virtusio Arguelles gamit ang mga labi ni Rene O. Villanueva. Tadtad ng butas ang kaniyang corpus, inambush ng pag-akda Ano ba naman si Arguelles, si Villanueva, kundi heteronym ni Pessoa, sa Pesoa. Ano ba naman si Pessoa, sa Pesoa, kundi heteronym ng wika. Mga alala ng pagtala sa paglimot ang aklat ng laman na ito."

—Angelo V. Suarez

Genres: Poetry

50 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Mesándel Virtusio Arguelles’s 19 books in Filipino include, among others, Walang Halong Biro (De La Salle University Publishing House, 2018), an edition of selected poems, Ang Iyong Buhay ay Laging Mabibigo (Ateneo de Naga University Press, 2016), and Talik, Antares, and Mujeres Públicas, a three-volume poetry series from Balangay Books. A recipient of multiple national awards and fellowships, two-time Philippine National Book Award finalist Arguelles is co-editor of the journal hal., works as a book editor, and teaches literature and creative writing at the De La Salle University. English translations (by Kristine Ong Muslim) of his poems have appeared or are forthcoming in numerous journals, magazines, and anthologies, including Asymptote, Circumference: Poetry in Translation, Construction Magazine, Fishhouse, Samovar, Spoon River Poetry Review, The Adirondack Review, The Cossack Review, Speculative Masculinities (UK: Galli Books, 2019), and The Silent Garden: A Journal of Esoteric Fabulism (Canada: Undertow Publications, 2018).

Reviews

[K.D. Absolutely · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sublime. Beautifully crafted free verse poems. This book is charmingly packaged: stunning cover depicting the many heteronyms of Fernando Pessoa (1888-1935), a Portuguese poet, writer, literary critic, translator, publisher and philosopher, described as one of the most significant literary figures of the 20th century and one of the greatest poets in the Portuguese language.

This book, Pesoa (take note of the single "s" probably because this poetry book is written in Filipino), highlights the use of many heteronyms from its very first stanza:

Fernando, Joaquin, Virgilio at iba pa. Mga tao mula sa nakalipas, sumibol sa akin ang kanilang mundo at panahon. Malayo sa buhay ko. Tuwing babasahin ko sila, nananaghili ako sa mga nababasa ko. Walang sarili: mundo lang ang tanong. Ilan ang ilan. Marami at walang sapat na dami. 40, baka lagpas sa 40, mahigit 40, palagay ko kulang ang dalawampu. Binubuo ng hiwa-hiwalay at tagni-tagning piraso ng pagkatao ang tao. Sinikap kong maging estranghero sa lahat. Hindi, napakalayo ko na sa sarili. Nasa mga narito ang isa lamang sa lahat.

Obviously, we know that Fernando is Fernando Pessoa. Joaquin is Nick Joaquin. Both of them are already dead. Virgilio is Virgilio Almario, who like Nick Joaquin, is one of the National Artists of Literature in the Philippines. The poet is saying that these three are from the past and seem to belong in the past. Almario is still alive and he is part of LIRA and Mesandel Virtusio Arguelles is part of High Chair.

Another reason why I find this amazing is its silent use of Rene O. Villanueva's Personal: Mga Sanaysay sa Lupalop ng Gunita (4 stars), one of my favorite Pinoy books. Silent because it is hard to see the connection between this book and that Villanueva's masterpiece. One obvious scene is that the narrator walks long distance wandering aimlessly to find himself. There is a scene in Personal where Villanueva walks to and from from La Loma and his university everyday. In the memoir is himself lost amidst the surroundings and people around him in that part of the city.

This may not be a book for everyone but I felt connected to its very core: that feeling of being lost. Not that I am lost now but sometimes with all the things that go on around me, it's like that I am being eaten by what's around me that all I see is myself working in the office double shift and staying in the office late night, after late night, after late night. That at times, I'd like to have another me sleeping in my bed or another me talking and making love to my wife or another me going home early to play with my daughter or assist her in her homework.

That's Fernando Pessoa turning into Bernado Soares, turning into Alberto Caeiro, turning into Ricardo Reis.

[Rise · Rating 5 out of 5]

The spelling of the title was not wrong. Pesoa, as in Ernando. A letter subtracted was a new word gained. The poet Mesándel Virtusio Arguelles was a connoisseur of found meanings. His latest collection featured what was called "blackout poetry" or "poetry of subtraction" or "erasures" or "redaction poetry." Portions of a text were redacted, leaving out words or phrases that formed new contexts and new reading experiences. An altered book.

Full review: http://booktrek.blogspot.com/2015/01/...

[Honeypie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aaminin ko, sa totoo lang, hindi ko talaga magets to [sa simula].

Kaya gumawa na lang ako ng sarili kong interpretasyon.
Or simply put, I read it by relating it to my life.

Mas na-appreciate ko naman siya, in fairness.

[Buti na lang.]

Kaya, ang masasabi ko lang...

Ang ganda nito.
Magaling.
Mahusay.

Wala pa akong nababasang gawa ni Fernando Pessoa.
O ni Rene O. Villanueva.
O kahit ni Mesándel Virtusio Arguelles.

Pero kahit ganoon pa man, nagustuhan ko to... eventually.

Paano pa kaya kung nabasa ko ang mga gawa nila no?
E di wow na siguro talaga.

: ))

---

Here I am, making my own version of "erasures" :)


Bawat isa'y unang tao.
Tumingala ako.
Hinanap ko ang ako na naroon pa rin.
Tulad ng dati.

Kataka-takang umaga ang simula ng lahat.

Kalahati ng mga ako ang mga hindi ako.

Ang pagtatanong ang sagot.

Hindi lang doon natapos ang lahat.


Yung huling linya, gusto kong i-strike at hindi.
Depende siguro sa iniisip kung saan ang "doon", pwedeng doon natatapos ang lahat. Pwede ring hindi.

Kapag ang doon ay ang kamatayan, hindi doon natatapos ang lahat.
Pero kapag ang doon ay ang ginawa Niya, doon natatapos ang lahat.

Boom.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ano na ba ang estado ng panulaang Filipino sa kontemporaryong panahon? Ang makabagong makata ay may dalawang daang maaaring tahakin: sumunod sa estilo ng mga naunang makata (kagaya ni Rio Alma), o subukang lumayo sa estilong ito. Ang mga tula sa Pesoa at ang aklat mismo ay sumasalamin sa hamon na ito.

Fernando, Joaquin, Virgilio at iba pa. Mga tao mula sa nakalipas, sumibol sa akin ang kanilang mundo at panahon. Malayo sa buhay ko. Tuwing babasahin ko sila, nananaghili ako sa mga nababasa ko. Walang sarili: mundo lang ang tanong.

Bagamat ang persona sa Pesoa ay gumagalaw sa mundo na tila ba hindi umaayon sa mga iba pang sumibol na katauhan sa kaniya, ang pagkakaayos ng mga tula sa pahina ay hindi umaayon sa regular at tradisyunal na paglapat ng salita sa aklat. Makabago, sa estilo ng stream of consciousness at free verse. (Ano nga ba ang Filipino para sa prose poetry?) Makabagong makaluma. Makalumang makabago.

Habang binabasa ko ang mga tula, unti-unting bumalik ang mga tanong sa aking isip. Nasaan na ang manunulat sa aking persona? Buhay pa ba siya? Saan siya nakatambay habang ako ay naglalakad papasok sa opisina. Isa na lang ba akong empleyado sa malaking makinarya ng outsourcing?

Salamat sa Pesoa, naisip ko ulit magsulat.

Oo nga pala, napakaganda ng pabalat ng aklat. Ayon din sa mga rebyu sa pabalat ay may koneksyon ang Pesoa sa Personal ni Rene Villanueva. Hindi ko pa ito nabasa. Ngayon babasahin ko na. Hindi ba dapat ganoon ang tunay na panitikan? Nagpapalawak sa isipan, nagpapayabong sa kaalaman. Hindi lang kaalaman sa mundo kundi kaalaman sa iba pang aklat at manunulat!

Bili na!

[Meeko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Namangha ako sa pagkakagawa nito ni Arguelles. Bukod sa ipinasilip niya tayo sa akdang Personal ni Rene Villanueva, dinala tayo ng may-akda sa isang paglalakbay tungo sa pagtuklas sa sarili, maging sa literal man o matalinghagang aspeto.

Naalala ko ang akdang A Lover’s Discourse ni Roland Barthes tungkol sa sarili bilang isang sariling nagmamahal; ngunit sa Pesoa, ang sarili habang tinutuklas ang totoong sarili ang pangunahing tema nito.

Maikli at madaling basahin ngunit may lalim at may iiwang tanong sa bawat nagbabasa: sino nga ba ang totoong ikaw?

[Ice · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm used to blackout poetry with blocked-off lines, but in this collection, Arguelles forms Rene O. Villanueva's personal essays into his own lines of poetry. It was interesting reading the original Filipino text side by side with Kristine Ong Muslim's idiosyncratic translation. She doesn't always translate the words in the most obvious manner, but rather, does what she believes will best bring the text to life in English. Read if you like blackout poetry w/ side-by-side translation.

[Meeko · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the translations are rough. :(

Overall, Pesoa reminds me of Barthe’s A Lover’s Discourse, but instead of love, it focuses on the sense of self and finding the true self. I didn’t get the same feeling of depth that I got from the original Tagalog text but to be fair, it is difficult to translate knowing the material and the imagery it evoked.

Piocos’ Introduction and Ong Muslim’s Translator Notes help a lot in understanding the context of what Arguelles wrote but still, it felt short.

[Rise]

In “Borges and I”, Jorge Luis Borges wrote:

I am not sure which of us it is that’s writing this page.

In Pesoa, Mesándel Virtusio Arguelles wrote:

Only one of them is among the ones present here.

You can read what I wrote at this link: https://booktrek.blogspot.com/2022/01...

[Puffy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Malalim ang tula at maraming pwedeng ipakahulugan.

Gusto ko tuloy basahin ang kwento kay Pesoa at Rene Villanueva.

[Joshua Delos reyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wasak