Southeastern Philippines Journal of Research and Development

Editorial Preface

2024-05-01T08:18:37+00:00

2024-03-27T05:43:02+00:00

Phases of Filipino Proletarianism in the 20th Century Dagling Tagalog: A Critique Using Pierre Macherey’s Theory of Gaps and Silences

2024-05-01T08:22:48+00:00

Self-image is deeply rooted in one’s place in society, as manifested in one’s involvement in its facets and realities which are spoken of in literature, and yet it is the “unspoken” or the “unsaid”– the gaps and silences in the texts– that exposes the ‘unconscious’ of the work where lies a text’s repressed historical narrative and discourse. Accordingly, this study was targeted toward the deep understanding of how Filipinos see themselves and each other as Filipinos (self-image and self-identity) during the American colonization in the Philippines in the 20th century, specifically as proletarians, through the examination of the textual gaps and silences in dagling Tagalog texts written and published in the early 20th century. Using the post-structuralist Marxist theory of gaps and silences by Pierre Macherey, this paper discusses the subject formation of Filipino characters into the image of a proletarian and the phases of Filipino proletarianism. The results indicate that there are three phases to which Filipino proletarians are subjected: from False Consciousness to Recognition of Oppression, and finally to Revolution or Self-emancipation through carrying the “duty.” The study concludes that the texts are propagandist literature, with anti-government, anti-capitalist, and anti-colonial sentiments hiding behind the mask of fiction and satire, emerging through the gaps and silences. Additionally, the portrayal of the Filipino proletariat in the texts is shaped by Marxist ideals of revolution, hence the inclination of the literary production of the texts towards the communist ideology.

A Semantic Analysis of Cross-Linguistic Mondegreens: Implications on How Filipinos Interpret Meanings

2024-05-01T08:22:12+00:00

Historical evidence reveals that mishearing words have contributed to language enrichment. Presently, such mishearing persists in the form of mondegreens, which are quite pervasive in the field of songs. However, most studies on this phenomenon have primarily focused on phonology, leaving its scope explored insufficiently. This qualitative study aimed to investigate other aspects of mondegreens, especially their semantic dimensions. Grounded on the theory of linguistic relativity and semantic fields, the methods of this paper analyzed 131 unique English lyrics from about 5,000 message threads on public online forums and news websites using content analysis. Data mining was used to verify the content analysis, which was done through intercoder validation. It was found that mondegreens caused the lyrics to either be semantically anomalous or semantically sound, albeit with changes in meaning. Six processes were identified for the semantically anomalous changes, while seven were identified for the semantically sound changes. Even more, the major implication this has on the understanding of Filipinos is that no matter what genre/ semantic field the songs belong to, they most likely would be shifted to the field of humor or comedy. Despite this tendency for humor shifting, this shows language indigenization and enrichment and reflects the positive Filipino spirit.

Scammer Strategies and Social Actions in Online Filipino Transactions

2024-05-01T08:21:23+00:00

As technology has developed newer and faster forms of communication, the internet has also become a convenient medium for scammers to interact with their targets. Since deception is understudied from a linguistic perspective, this paper investigated the persuasive strategies and linguistic markers of scammers and analyzed the social actions of both scammers and their targets—all of whom are users of the Filipino language. This qualitative study employed digital conversation analysis in analyzing ten conversations between scammers and their targets—all of which were failed scams. The results showed that scammers used emotion, credibility, and logic in persuading their targets. The following linguistic markers were found in their utterances: (1) pronouns that are personal, exclusive, inclusive, noncommittal, impersonal, and ambiguous; (2) negation used for denial, non-existence, refusal, discouragement, inability, loss, contrast, clarification, and correction; (3) emotion words expressing happiness, astonishment or amusement, worry, doubt or fear, shame, regret or inadequacy, and fondness, and lastly, (4) cognitive verbs indicating equivocation, and expression of knowledge or understanding. Furthermore, the social actions of the scammers and the targets were categorized into four sequences that generally involved certain actions: (1) pre-offer (asking about and providing details), (2) insert (expressing doubt and explaining), (3) offer (offering or asking for money/info, and rejecting), and (4) post-offer (insisting, showing aggression, or conceding and retaliating or interrogating). Although all conversations resulted in the targets’ rejection of the scammers’ offer, which undermines social solidarity, dispreference is seen as a beneficial response in conversations involving scams.

Food and Ayuda Narratives during the Pandemic in Remote and Small Island Communities in Northern Iloilo, Philippines

2024-05-01T08:19:16+00:00

Food insecurity and access to ayuda, or government-initiated social protection programs, were essential concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines. While the needs in urban city centers are fairly attended to by government instrumentalities, the question of how food and survival issues in small and remote island communities are addressed warrants equal attention. In this paper, the people’s narratives in remote and small island communities are investigated to assess how individuals survive and can be subjectively well during the pandemic. Through focus group discussions, three activities were conducted: community map making, Lamesa activity, and ayuda/basket activity participated by representatives from the seven barangays in remote island communities in Northern Iloilo in May 2023. As a result of the FGDs, this paper concluded the following insights: (1) Rice is a key resource as it indicates a household’s food security and subjective well-being at the time of the pandemic, (2) Cash or money in the Ayuda program of the local government is important as it allows households to access food and improve its stock of food supplies, (3) Having alternative financial resources is important as the island communities are mainly dependent on fishing as its core economic activity, and (4) Volunteer work for the community forms part of the people’s subjective well-being despite the limitations experienced with regards to food and financial resources.

Whispers of Wisdom: Exploring the Essence of Partandaan in the Suluk Indigenous Mediation

2024-05-01T08:20:40+00:00

The Orang Suluk, who call themselves Tausug, have a deep history in the sea areas and are known for their strong cultural and political independence. Residing in the Sulu Archipelago and the northeastern coast of Borneo, they identify themselves by names such as Suluk, Anak Negeri, coastal people, sea people, indigenous maritime group, and Orang Asal Pesisir. Symbols are a part of the Suluk Indigenous Mediation (SIM) approach, which is still practiced on the east coast of Sabah, Malaysia. The techniques mentioned are organic to the Adat (customs) of the Suluk passed down from their forefathers. This study discusses the essence of partandaan (symbols) found in SIM practices of the Suluk mediators in the said geographical area. Five expert informants in Semporna, Lahad Datu, and Sandakan shared their wisdom, experience, and interpretation of the SIM during the in-depth interviews as empirical data. The researchers also did library work to collect secondary data. Employing Hewitt’s Symbolic Interactionism (2002), findings revealed that objects, social acts, and language carry symbols that are meaningful to the life of the Suluk. They influence the thinking of the Tausug, maintain the balance and harmony of their day-to-day life, and crystalize the vision of peace, understanding, and forgiveness. Indeed, symbols are fruitful tools for successful culturally and religiously sensitive mediation. The study highlights the significance of symbols in Suluk Indigenous Mediation, suggesting further exploration of cultural variations and the potential integration of symbolic elements into conflict resolution mechanisms.

Assessment of All-in-One Fertilizers and Foliar Spray for Nutrient Management of GCTCV-218 Cavendish Banana Seedlings

2024-05-01T08:19:46+00:00

With the proliferation of GCTCV-218 in the banana industry due to its promising performance against Fusarium wilt, there is a need to explore and establish an optimum and practical nutrient management, particularly in nursery management. As such, this study was conducted aiming to compare the growth performance of GCTCV-218 seedlings using conventional and all-in-one fertilization programs, evaluate the effect of a foliar spray in combination with fertilizer materials, and assess the profitability of using conventional and all-in-one fertilization programs. A 3 x 2 factorial experiment in completely randomized design (CRD) was used with four (4) replications with a total of 32 GCTCV-218 seedlings. Results show that GCTCV-218 seedlings had higher plant height grown under the combination of all-in-one fertilizer and foliar spray. Leaf surface area and root length were significantly high in the same treatment, implying a synergistic effect on the growth performance of GCTCV-218 seedlings. Cost analysis also revealed a positive return when using all-in-one and foliar spray since the desired height for planting is attained earlier (15-20 cm) than the recommended eight (8 weeks after planting (WAP). Savings of 31 cents per seedling or equivalent to PHP 580.23 on a hectare basis can be made if seedlings are released at 6 WAP using Haracoat all-in-one and foliar spray than at 8 WAP using the conventional and foliar spray. Therefore, optimal and economical nutrient management can be attained when Haracoat all-in-one fertilizer and foliar spray are applied in GCTCV-218 seedlings under nursery conditions.