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The Dust in the Crown

Every once a female child dreamed of it: to be the stars, the beauty of all time, the prettiest of them all. It’s normal in every girlhood that they desire it. Who wouldn’t want to be a queen, to be crowned Miss Universe, or to be crowned the role or title that they want? This is the understandable mindset of every female: it's the naked part that they see, but there’s some area and point that needs to be exposed.

As a queen and holding a title and name, it comes with a lot of responsibility that, if we looked through, we could come to the conclusion that it didn't even matter at all. Pageantry trains contestants with mindsets such as being slim, having perfect facial features, being tall, and being flawless on the physical part. It promotes unrealistic perfectness to be deserving of having a title and winning a crown. Pageants teach young women that, in order to be a queen, you need to be physically beautiful, where flaws are not allowed.

But a woman is human; it’s their nature to have flaws; it's natural to have a stretchmark to have acne; it doesn’t have anything wrong with that.

Does it make them ugly?

Does it make them not deserving of the crown?

No.

See, this standard of pageantry to be qualified does not even matter as an individual. Your color doesn’t affect your capabilities; your pimple doesn’t define your beauty; and your unorganized teeth don’t make you less. Their standard for “beauty” has been a misconception for a lot of women for a very long time. Beauty isn’t defined by the physical appearance or glow of your hair. The true meaning of beauty is the qualities an individual chooses to promote and do good. To influence others to do better. It's about appreciating themselves and accepting who they are, and flaws are part of it. Beauty should be judged by the pureness of the heart, not by the beauty of the face.

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Hidden in Plain Sight: The Connotative Interpretation of a Literary Piece

"Minsan may isang Puta" is an allegory written by Mike Portes that was published in April 2004 and later modified in 2007. Despite honing her I.T. skills at DLSU Manila, Mike Portes is an entrepreneur and an author. She was a guest writer for two high-traffic blog sites, Definitely Filipino and Get Real Philippines. Portes’ allegory 'Minsan may isang Puta' left a huge mark on Filipino literature, for it has been studied in high school, college, and other learning facilities in the Philippines. It has received numerous awards and won a film grant to be included in an indie trilogy entitled “Ganap na Babae”, better known internationally as ‘Garden of Eve’.

The allegory delves into the story of a young, beautiful woman and the pain and hardship she has experienced. It was later pronounced that the story exhibits the experiences the Philippines had, where it was compared to a whore (puta) for how it was ‘used’ and passed around by different personas.

The line “Tatlong malilibog na foreigner ang nagpyesta sa katawan ko.” is analogous to how the Philippines was ‘passed around’ by three different foreigners, who were our colonizers.

In the passage “Sa tulong ng ilan sa mga anak ko, napalayas ko ang demonyo pero ang hirap magsimula," the author smartly used metaphor to compare the whore’s children to the Filipino residents in how it succeeded in driving away the ‘demon’ in the story, in which the demon is the colonizer that had occupied the Philippines.

The allegory written by Portes tackles different societal issues of the past and the present. Disguised behind its simple delivery is a deep message that would touch the hearts of the readers. As such, Minsan may isang puta will continue to resonate its profound significance to our country’s timely issues. Mike Portes exhibited complete mastery towards the use of figures of speech to provide a deeper meaning behind a simple passage. Her use of rhetorical devices has aided in a better understanding of her seemingly different excerpt.

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Pursuit of Equality: Using Literature to Appeal

Born on April 4, 1928, and died on May 28, 2014, Marguerite Annie Johnson, better known for her pen name "Maya Angelou" was an African-American memoirist, poet and Civil Rights Activist. She has written 7 autobiographies, 3 essay books, multiple poetry books, and a long list of plays, films, and television programs during the course of her life. She used to write about her former experiences in her writing, as demonstrated by the poem 'Equality', which was released in 1990. Since Maya experienced discrimination throughout her adolescence, she attempts to discuss the significance of equality and freedom without segregation, racism, and prejudice in the poem. The poem aims to make the reader understand the author's belief that everyone deserves respect, and to persuade them to consider how others are treated. Throughout the entire poem, the lines "Equality, and I will be free" were repeated six times, in an effort to linger in the minds of the reader.

Maya's poem 'Equality' tackles how males perceive and treat black women and demands and end to racial and gender inequalities. It examines the global equality conundrum and illustrates the day-to-day aggravations of the marginalized and the oppressed, in a society that looks the other way. The poem expresses in each stanza how difficult it is to face prejudice and criticism from people who barely know them, and how they are hoping that one day, it will end.

Angelou’s writing style in her story, and typical literary content makes the topic of equality a very natural one for her to write about and discuss in a promising and impressive fashion. The topic of equality is hardly a new or unique idea, and thankfully the concept has received a great deal of momentum since Angelou was born in 1928. Her input on the topic in the form of her distinctive poetry offers a compelling message that has remained relevant since the moment it was written. Angelou’s use of metaphor, imagery, repetition, and notable word choice creates a significant and noticeable atmosphere that stays with the reader long after the poem has been read and re-read. The poem also flows in a rhyming pattern ABCB. The meaning behind the words is simple enough to decipher, because of the author’s simplistic but alluring way of expressing herself in the poem. The message she was trying to convey got to the readers’ mind easily, and she was able to make use of the words to make a message about discrimination and racism around the world in which had clearly pierced the hearts of many.

The poem's subject made me realize how serious this issue is for everyone and caused me to consider how hastily I had made judgments in the past. And it dawned on me that sensible humanity is being obscured by hatred and intolerance. Nevertheless, I was pleased to learn that black people today face less discrimination from white people and enjoy the same rights as everyone else.

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Territorial Dispute: Decades long war of the Jews and Arabs

Terrorists from Hamas attacked Israel across borders in a way never seen before on October 7. They launched a well-planned, covert attack that destroyed the border fence in several locations, ambushed Israel's security apparatus, and overran the armed forces. The attackers, taken aback by the lack of opposition, escalated the operation into a violent and disorderly rampage into residential areas. In spite of such attacks, Hamas has categorically denied any charges of sexual assault or mutilation. Israeli authorities have charged Hamas soldiers with war crimes during the assault, including torture, rape, and mutilation. According to an Al Jazeera tally based on official Israeli statistic, at least 1,139 individuals were murdered in the aforementioned invasion, including 766 civilians and 373 security forces, and approximately 240 more people were taken as hostages.

Before the attack had occurred, the conflict started long way back. The discord between the two parties  commenced, with historical roots dating back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In 1947, the year Britain took over Palestine, there were more arabs than jews residing there , which led the UN to enforce Resolution 181, also referred as Partition Plan, with the goal of dividing the British Mandate of Palestine into Arab and Jewish state. With the establishment of the State of Israel on May 14, 1948, the first Arab-Israeli War began. After Israel won the war in 1949, 750,000 Palestinians were forced to flee their homes, and the region was split into three sections: the Gaza Strip, the West Bank (across the Jordan River), and the State of Israel. 

However, with Israel's invasion of the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt, which resulted in a six-day fight, tensions flared up once more, especially between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. Following the battle, Israel was granted sovereignty over the Golan Heights from Syria, the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan, and the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip from Egypt. After six years, Egypt and Syria shook Israel by launching a surprise two-front invasion on Yom Kippur, in an attempt to recover lost territories.

Even after the war was done, Palestinian self-determination and self-governance remained unresolved. The country was divided into two, the west bank and the Gaza — which is a small piece of land on the Mediterranean Sea that borders Egypt to the south. The west bank was ruled by the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Gaza Strip��was governed by Hamas.

An Islamic political and military group from Palestine, Hamas, which is an acronym for its official name, the Islamic Resistance Movement is in charge of the Gaza Strip in the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories. The major Palestinian party, Fatah, which still holds power in the Palestinian Authority, was defeated by Hamas in the 2006 elections in Gaza. Headed by Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas' designated charman, who was also associated with Qatari authorities, Hamas has been listed as a terrorist group by the USA since 1997. Fewer than 22% of Palestinian populace backs the aforementioned group, and 73% oppose them, on the grounds that they are widely corrupting Gaza.

When Hamas struck Israel on October 7, 2023, at the Supernova Sukkot Gathering, an outdoor music festival held in honor of the Jewish holiday of Shemini Atzeret, the war broke out once more. The attack resulted in numerous Israeli deaths, including numerous civilian deaths. Israel declared war on Hamas on that same day.According to the Gaza Health Ministry, Israel has been attacking Gaza with airstrikes and artillery since then, resulting in hundreds of deaths and over 26,400 injuries—many of which are of minor age. Following the incident, Israel launched a catastrophic bombardment of Gaza, which has been under an Israeli siege for 17 years. According to Palestinian authorities in the region, this shelling killed around 25,000 people, the majority of whom were women and children.

In order to ensure the release of the other hostages, Israeli commanders have stated that they will keep applying military pressure to Hamas. In response to requests for evacuation from the north, Israeli authorities have advised citizens in the south to relocate to undefined "safe zones." When the battle finally ends, there will be questions about who will rule Gaza, which has sparked speculation. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, claims that his country does not "seek to occupy Gaza." Secretary of State Antony Blinken reported that "Gaza cannot continue to be run by Hamas," and that "it is also clear that Israel cannot occupy Gaza." Only as part of a "comprehensive solution," according to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's advisors, would his administration return to Gaza; detractors, however, derided the notion, branding his leadership as antiquated and dishonest.

References:

“Israel-Hamas War: Timeline and Key developments | ABC News” https://abcnews.go.com/International/timeline-surprise-rocket-attack-hamas-israel/story?id=103816006

“Hamas says October 7 attack was a ‘necessary step’, admits to ‘some faults.’ | Al Jazeera”  https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/21/hamas-says-october-7-attack-was-a-necessary-step-admits-to-some-faults

“Israeli-Palestinian Conflict | Global Conflict Tracker”

“Hamas’s October 7 Attack: Visualizing the Data | CSIS”  https://www.csis.org/analysis/hamass-october-7-attack-visualizing-data

“Israel-Palestine: A short history of the two-state solution | Le Monde”  https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/11/19/israel-palestine-a-short-history-of-the-two-state-solution_6269446_4.html#

“Why are Israel and Hamas at war? A basic explainer | Washington Post” https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/17/israel-hamas-war-reason-explained-gaza/