Wazzup Pilipinas!?
I am saddened to learn of the passing of National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose. He is the Philippines’ most translated author and most prolific novelist in English. He passed away on Thursday evening (Jan. 6, 2022) at age 97.
National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose has passed away without a Nobel Prize.
Today is still a day of mourning. We just lost a revered and esteemed National Artist, F. Sionil Jose. But for this woketard who embodies the antithesis of decency, there will come a day when you, too, will follow in his footsteps, but the difference is that noone will remember your good works...only your sour-graping.
He was still a significant intellectual figure, who at his best moments wielded an incisive, elegant pen. We can never erase that in history. But knowing how the Marcoses has been doing historical revisionism, if there's a trail of money, anything is possible.
He died Thursday evening at the Makati Medical Center where he was supposed to undergo an angioplasty Friday, Jan. 7, according to his wife, Tessie Jovellanos Jose..
Unfortunately, he left a legacy tainted with the worst character arc in his twilight years. I would appeal for a sense of historical nuance & graciousness. The ornery, reactionary positions he took in his final years should not be allowed to overshadow what he achieved, nor however should they be glossed over. They must be understood.
F. Sionil Jose might have turned questionable during his later years, however it cannot be denied that he still left a mark in Philippine literature. After all, he won’t be National Artist for nothing.
Anyone else who had been to his little bookshop along Padre Faura, between Bocobo and Adriatico in Ermita, Manila?
Bought books many times from SOLIDARIDAD, aka "The Best Little Bookstore in Asia." It opened in 1964, owned and managed by the late National Artist F. SIONIL JOSE.
These, along with my collection of comic books and magazines, graphic novels, all about pop culture, because I also loved the drawings and illustrations, both from local and foreign artists.
Similarly, when CDR King was selling those writable or recordable CDs, I was collecting every content possible that I had a stack of CDs that piled up, and ended only when online and digital e-books boomed, and thus ended my years of collecting.
Then I discovered social media and blogging which is my current playpen or sandbox.
F.Sionil Jose's lines: This is the harsh truth about us: not only do Filipinos ignore books, literature - we do not understand how important the arts are - not just to those of us who work at it, but to the nation as a whole.
He was a Ramon Magsaysay Awardee for Literature in 1980 and was conferred the Order of National Artist for Literature in 2001.
The National Artist for Literature was known for his novels and short stories about class struggles and colonialism in Filipino society.
He was a staunch anti-Marcos and consistent in his walkouts on events where Imelda was present. But he slowly succumbed to the curse of old age equals right-wing evidenced by his recent political commentaries.
The great F. Sionil Jose some of us admired died long ago.
Whether you like him or hate him (especially now), there's no questioning that F. Sionil Jose is a master in literature.
I realize that F. Sionil Jose has said many questionable things but I do not think that we should dance on his grave.
We cannot be like those poorly-raised Duterte fanatics who celebrated when Carlos Celdran died--not while we're hoping to fix the country the DDS ruined.
Samuel K. Tan was known, or rather was criticized, for his supposed “bias” toward the Marcoses. He was one of the academicians who partook in Marcos’ biggest brainwashing project — the Tadhana project.
Ditto with F. Sionil Jose, while we take a pause, we will never forget.
F Sionil Jose is gone. But we’re still here. The evil actions of this regime are not yet reversed. We’re left to ourselves to fight for the victims that he once sidelined — the victims of the tyranny he once called a “revolution.” As he moves and passes on, we will never forget.
“He wrote stories and he believed in them.”
He was brilliant---a sun insisting to be resplendent even during the twilight of his life.
For now, I pause to honor his greatest artistic achievements.
Sumalangit nawa, Nick Joaquin will be waiting for him there.
Rest in peace, F. Sionil José.
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
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