Poetry Analysis

 

Poetry Analysis

Score: 100

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Blood is nothing. Space is all. Filipinos are beyond exposed to the fraudulence of leaders who have a higher power to use and a lot of money to spend. Whether it be from the highest government officials to the leaders, or more like bosses, of organizations and companies. It is undeniably true that Filipinos, as a society, are run by payola officials. To this dismay, the rich only become richer and the poor become poorer. It is a cycle that won’t stop until there are people who use their power in greed. This society is what’s featured in Cirilo Bautista’s poem entitled “A Man Falls to His Death” where a man committed suicide because of a superior abusing their power. It shows how blood is nothing – no one’s life is compared to the power held by a superior, and space is all – space and money are all that it takes to cover up a deceitful man’s crime. 

            On July 9, 1941, a Filipino poet, critic, and nonfiction writer, Cirilo Bautista was born. He made significant contributions to the Philippine arts and letters, conferring him the Order of National Artist for Literature in 2014. The way of living and the political context of his time might have also influenced him to write about societal issues as based on Bautista’s biography, he lived under Marcos Sr.’s leadership, who was known to be a dictator and corrupt. Some of the poems he wrote expressed the problems of society, including the work entitled “A Man Falls to His Death” which highlights the power of the poor and the rich. In his poem, he incorporated the elements of science and mathematics to express how the man took his life because he couldn’t do anything to the threat of a superior. With an example of a diagram, which is unlikely in poems, and the use of geometric means, he made the readers think about its connection with the meaning of the poem. By connecting the details, the diagram is then interpreted as the platform on which the man jumped down. In the following lines, the author then explains the reason how and why the man committed suicide.

            As lines six to eight state, “above the clogged engine a shadow traced the lines on his foot, while shoot his brain with firelights the money did” visualizes the scene where he is standing on a path, casting his shadow. However, it can also be a foreshadowing of what goes on in the man’s mind, with the “shadow” of thoughts claiming him, lighting up his intentions to end his life. It is also said that “…if we extend A to the absolute (He was, a day ago, threatened with dismissal for displeasing a superior)” showing that tracing the reason for this tragedy, it was the superior who didn’t like the man’s behavior and threatened to dismiss him. The poem ends with a cliff as it ends with a statement from the company, announcing his death, together burying the thought of their crime. It portrays how easily the company can get out of its problems easily as they have the space to do so. They have the power to do everything. While the man? He was left hanging with nothing. Not even the blood that runs in his body.

            The poem “A Man Falls to His Death” is indeed complex. It is a unique, questionable story that leaves the reader hanging and reflects on it. The narrative shows a complicated sequence of words that give different understandings and perspectives to people, depending on how and what they think. It is also a timely poem, in line with what is happening in the political status of the Philippines. In this case, the understanding is that a man is below a powerful, superior man that he can’t displease. However, the poor man is eaten by his thoughts, leading him to end his precious life. As bad as it can be, the people who are the reason for the man’s suffering covered up the issue as they have the space to do so. This situation can be connected to what is happening not just in the Philippines, but in the world right now as the leaders abuse their powers that are supposedly used for the goodness of everyone. It is unfortunate to admit but as long as the power is still held by those who don’t deserve it, people will live in a society where one is silenced for something not even worth its life. The superior, those who are treated on top, should not abuse the power they have because of something that can be talked about in a short time. It is much better than losing someone’s life forever. With the world we are living in right now, indeed, the blood of people is nothing compared to the power that holds everything.