RUBEN B.

TABALINA
BALCS 2-A
PHILIPPINE LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM

Cruel Summer
An Evaluation and Examination of Nick Joaquin’s ‘Summer Solstice’ Through the Lens of
Viktor Shklovsky’s Russian Formalism (Defamiliarization)

SYNOPSIS:

Summer Solstice is about Tatarin or Tadtarin, a three-day festival during summer that is traditionally
celebrated in commemoration of St. John the Baptist—it is to honor fertility and life, particularly empowering women.
During the festival, women are deemed as higher form than man because they are able to produce, thus, they are able to
be dominant as well. And also, women had epiphany which opens their senses of their ability as a woman to destruct the
norms that cages their freedom and satisfaction—they were liberated and aggressive.

EXAMINING THE PRESENT

This is a writing technique that scrutinizes the image of a certain scene within a literary piece, it perceives the
environment using imaginary senses and figurative language as the reader adapt to the text. This writing technique
depicts the moment of the character in visualizing the upcoming situation. It shows a vivid picture of a present condition
that the character has undertaken. In the paragraph below, the narrator of the story described the events of St. John’s
day as lively, stimulating, evocative, lifelike, and picturesque. Thus, the words in the story produce a rhythmic and lyrical
like composition. Beguiling the readers in the authenticity and capturing the equitable words to use for the story to be
riveting, and poignant.

‚Up the road, stirring a cloud of dust, and gaily bedrenched by the crowds gathered along the wayside, a
concourse of young men clad only in soggy trousers were carrying aloft an image of the Precursor. Their
teeth flashed white in their laughing faces and their hot bodies glowed crimson as they pranced past,
shrouded in fiery dust, singing and shouting and waving their arms: the St. John riding swiftly above
the sea of dark heads and glittering in the noon sun—a fine, blonde, heroic St. John: very male, very
arrogant: the Lord of Summer indeed; the Lord of Light and Heat—erect and godly virile above the prone
and female earth—while the worshippers danced and the dust thickened and the animals reared and
roared and the merciless fires came raining down form the skies—the relentlessly upon field and river and
town and winding road, and upon the joyous throng of young men against whose uproar a couple of
seminarians in muddy cassocks vainly intoned the hymn of the noon god:‛

The paragraph stated above gives the readers a visual imagery of what is transpiring the story. The line, “Their
teeth flashed white in their laughing faces and their hot bodies glowed crimson as they pranced past, shrouded in fiery dust, singing and
shouting and waving their arms…‛ features the thematic utilization of sound through the use of assonance, consonance,
and alliteration that gives the reader a crystal-clear perspective of the celebration. Kinetic imagery which is a poetic
device that gives a feeling of natural, or physical bodily movement or action is also visible in the story in the line, “the
worshippers danced and the dust thickened and the animals reared and roared and the merciless fires came raining down form the skies.‛
The line “a fine, blonde, heroic St. John, very male, very arrogant: the Lord of the Summer indeed; the Lord of light and heat- erect and
goldly virile above the prone and female earth...‛ evokes the representation of The Saint which the domination and superiority
of men.
 THE DISTORTION OF TIME
This writing technique leisurely opens the sensation of the reader to absorb the reshape image of the scenario;
it literally distorts the image of a particular situation to produce a vivid picture that expands time when reading the text.
This literary technique makes a slow-motion effect to the short story through the use of structured language
organization. It gave emphasis in some remarkable events happening in the narrative. The lines presented below,
accentuate the moment Don Paeng respecting and submitting himself to Donya Lupeng. This part arouses the senses of
the readers, it literally distort and stretch the time while reading it. Considerably, it is the part of the whole story that
will be in your mind for after reading it. It does not just distort but mangle and disfigure the time.

‚Without moment’s hesitation, he sprawled down flat and, working his arms and legs, gaspingly clawed
his way across the floor, like a great agonized lizard, the woman steadily backing away as he approached,
her eyes watching him avidly, her nostrils dilating, till behind her loomed the open window, the huge
glittering moon, the rapid flashes of lightning. She stopped, panting, and leaned against the sill. He lay
exhausted at her feet, his face flat on the floor.

She raised her skirts and contemptuously thrust out a naked foot. He lifted his dripping face and touched
his bruised lips to her toes; lifted his hands and grasped the white foot and kiss it savagely – kissed the
step, the sole, the frail ankle – while she bit her lips and clutched in pain at the whole windowsill her body
and her loose hair streaming out the window – streaming fluid and black in the white night where the
huge moon glowed like a sun and the dry air flamed into lightning and the pure heat burned with the
immense intense fever of noon.‛

The lines above manifests the figure of speech—simile, “he sprawled down flat and, working his arms and legs,
gaspingly clawed his way across the floor, like a great agonized lizard.‛ The strong use of visual imagery through the lines, “the
huge glittering moon, the rapid flashes of lightning,‛ and ‚streaming fluid and black in the white night where the huge moon glowed like a
sun and the dry air flamed into lightning.‛ Awaken your sense of sight. Kinesthetic (a representation of the actions and
movements of an object or a character) and kinetic imagery is introduced in the lines, ‚She raised her skirts and
contemptuously thrust out a naked foot. He lifted his dripping face and touched his bruised lips to her toes; lifted his hands and grasped the
white foot and kiss it savagely – kissed the step, the sole, the frail ankle.‛ The assonance, consonance, and alliteration are
strongly exhibiting in the lines above. The mood of the lines sweeps the readers opening up their emotional feeling and
emotional perspective, ‚the pure heat burned with the immense intense fever of noon.‛ The lines are effective and affective in
evoking certain feelings towards the readers.

DESCRIPTIVE & ACTIVE LANGUAGE

This promotes a detailed description of the situation in the text; it also possesses an automatic voice on the
rational intention and impulse of a specific character. This literary technique was observed through a detailed and
meticulous narration of acts happening in the surroundings of a character. It exemplifies every single movement and
keenly observes the environment to portray a strong description. Don Paeng’s insistence to get Donya Lupeng out on
the Tatarin o Tadtarin becomes futile when the women ravaged him. The lines presented below will show the vivid
lyrical formation of words and thoughts on the events.

‚Terror possessed him and he struck out savagely with both fists, with all his strength—but they closed in
as savagely: solid walls of flesh that crushed upon him and pinned his arms helpless, while unseen hands
struck and struck his face, and ravaged his hair and clothes, and clawed at his flesh, as—kicked and
buffeted, his eyes blind and his torn mouth salty with blood—he was pushed down, down to his knees, and
half-shoved, half-dragged to the doorway and rolled out to the street. He picked himself up at once and
walked away with a dignity that forbade the crowd gathered outside to laugh or to pity.‛

The mentioned lines conjures the art of repetition with the lines, “while unseen hands struck and struck his face…‛
and savagely with both fists, with all his strength—but they closed in as savagely…‛ the word savagely is repeated two times to make
the idea more clearer. The line, “his eyes blind and his torn mouth salty with blood—he was pushed down, down to his knees, and half-
shoved, half-dragged to the doorway and rolled out to the street,‛ shows the rich use assonance and consonance in the text. The
kinetic and kinesthetic imagery is felt through the line, ‚solid walls of flesh that crushed upon him and pinned his arms helpless,
while unseen hands struck and struck his face, and ravaged his hair and clothes, and clawed at his flesh, as—kicked and buffeted.‛ The use
of anaphora (the repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or verses) in the line,
‚ravaged his hair and clothes, and clawed at his flesh, as—kicked and buffeted, his eyes blind and his torn mouth salty with blood—he was
pushed down, down to his knees, and half-shoved, half-dragged to the doorway,‛ and metonymy (A figure of speech in which a word
or phrase is substituted for another with which it is closely associated; also, the rhetorical strategy of describing
something indirectly by referring to things around it) in the line, ‚He picked himself up at once and walked away with a dignity
that forbade the crowd gathered outside to laugh or to pity.‛ The text evades clear description of the scene and well-picked words
as reflected above.

SIMPLIFICATION & UNLIKELY COMPARISON

This is a writing style that divulges the act of the characters by looking at the things that are similar or different
from one another, it also describes a context that reveals an unapt perception that can be imagined in the reader’s mind.
This literary technique was so unique because the two different situations, characters and thoughts are being discussed in
a certain scenario. It depicts the concept of binary opposition that creates a theme to sustain a meaningful
understanding of the text. The text below shows Guido and Donya Lupeng having a conversation about the culture,
beliefs, and practices of Filipinos. It depicts some part of binary opposition which is a system of language and/or
thought by which two theoretical opposites are strictly defined and set off against one another that is present all
throughout the story.

This was the time when our young men were all going to Europe and bringing back with them, not the Age
of Victoria, but the Age of Byron. The young Guido knew nothing of Darwin and evolution; he knew
everything about Napoleon and the Revolution. When Doña Lupeng expressed surprise at his presence that
morning in the St. John’s crowd, he laughed in her face.
‚But I adore these old fiestas of ours! They are so romantic! Last night, do you know, we walked all the
way through the woods, I and some boys, to see the procession of the Tadtarin.‛
‚And was that romantic too?‛ asked Doña Lupeng.
‚It was weird. It made my flesh crawl. All those women in such a mystic frenzy! And she who was the
Tadtarin last night—she was a figure right out of a flamenco!‛
‚I fear to disenchant you, Guido—but that woman happens to be our cook.‛
‚She is beautiful.‛
‚Our Amada beautiful? But she is old and fat!‛
‚She is beautiful—as that old tree you are leaning on is beautiful,‛ calmly insisted the young man,
mocking her with his eyes.

Binary oppositions in the text include the theoretical opposites between Woman and Man that shows
opposition about superiority: the superiority of women from men. It conveys power to control, submitting one's self,
and considering oneself as a slave. The Saint John and Tadtarin: in which Saint John symbolizes the superiority of men
while the Tadtarin symbolizes the superiority of women. The two events show opposition between who is more
powerful, who is higher, who is more important, and who is the master and a leader. And the dominant figure is not the
male but female. Women are supreme and men are slaves. Sisters and brother opposition, “All the sisters being virtuous, all
the brothers are brave." Age of Victoria and Age of Byron which also means man and woman: ‚The queen came before the king,
and the priestess before the priest, and the moon before the sun." An opposing view between Guido and Donya Lupeng where
Guido complimented and admiring Amanda saying, ‚She is beautiful.‛ to which Donya Lupeng said, “Our Amada beautiful?
But she is old and fat!‛ contradicting what Guido has said. A figure of speech which is personification (a thing – an idea or
an animal – is given human attributes. The non-human objects are portrayed in such a way that we feel they have the
ability to act like human beings) is evident on the line, “she was a figure right out of a flamenco!‛

CREATING CONTRAST
This writing style shows the opposite ideas that the author wants to express, it is set to appraise two or more comparison
to foster the ideology of difference. This literary technique deals with the different views of characters in a certain story.
It sells the idea that conflicting thoughts might complicate a given situation. The text shown below, display the
argument between Don Paeng and Donya Lupeng. It presents Donya Paeng wanting to whip Donya Lupeng for her
lewd behavior but as the conversation progresses Don Paeng changes his mind and admits that he adore—worship Donya
Lupeng. The feisty and flagrant order of words correlates with the emotions, thoughts, and feelings of the characters.
 ‚I am going to give you a whipping.‛
‚But why?‛
‚Because you have behaved tonight like a lewd woman.‛
‚How I behaved tonight is what I am. If you call that lewd, then I was always a lewd woman and a
whipping will not change me—though you whipped me till I died.‛

‚No, I cannot whip you!‛ he confessed miserably.

‚Then say it! Say it!‛ she cried, pounding her clenched fists together. ‚Why suffer and suffer? And in the
end you would only submit.‛
‚I adore you, Lupe,‛ he said tonelessly.
She strained forward avidly, ‚What? What did you say?‛ she screamed.
And he, in his dead voice: ‚That I adore you. That I adore you. That I worship you. That the air you
breathe and the ground you tread is so holy to me. That I am your dog, your slave… ‚

The passages above divulges on the different literary devices present in the text. Repetition is presented in the
lines ‚That I adore you. That I adore you. That I worship you.‛ The repetition of the word adore gives the line so much depth
through emotional content thus, giving the line emphasis, clarity, and amplification. Hyperbole (uses extreme
exaggeration to make a point or show emphasis) is highlighted on the line, “That the air you breathe and the ground you tread
is so holy to me,‛ asserting Don Paeng’s adoration and benevolence to Donya Lupeng. Metaphor is also used in the text in
the manner of connecting “dead voice‛ gives a rhetorical effect. Dead voice also implied meaning that is not literally true or
applicable.

CONCLUSION:

Thus, it has been concluded that language artistry was manifested in the fictive narrative “Summer Solstice”
created by a National Artist of the Philippines in Literature, Nick Joaquin through his artistic technique of presenting
to audiences common things in an unfamiliar or strange way in order to enhance perception of the familiar and his use of
literary techniques and devices. It was exposed, with the application of Russian Formalist theory on defamiliarization
popularized by Victor Shklovsky and was perceived by Jane Porter in the critical lens viewing the writing style of
examining the present, distortion of time, descriptive and active language, simplification and unlikely comparison, and
creating contrast. The literary elements were utilized to arrange and organize the words and details incorporating the
choreography of writing style in the story which are simile, hyperbole, metonymy, anaphora, visual, kinetic, kinesthetic,
assonance, consonance, alliteration, repetition, symbol, and binary opposition. Wherefore, it has been establish that
literary techniques and devices were vital elements needed in the creation of fictive stories.