.gif)
Cebu (novel)
Encyclopedia
Cebu is a 1991 novel
by Filipino American
author Peter Bacho
the "most visible figure" of second-generation, native-born Filipino American writing and one of several Seattle novelists in the 1990s to explore the racial history and sociology of Seattle. The novel is also "the first novel about a Filipino American who identifies primarily with US localities," rather than with the Philippines.
named Ben Lucero, who is the son of a Filipino mother and a Filipino American father, as he makes his first trip to the Philippines. When Ben's mother dies, he takes her body to Cebu
, Philippines for burial; it is his first trip to his mother's country. In the Philippines, he stays with his mother's best friend from childhood, "Aunt" Clara Natividad, who has become a wealthy and powerful businesswoman but led guerilla fighters during the war and earned her fortune through ethically questionable business practices. The novel follows Ben's encounters with Philippine culture and tradition, both in Cebu City
and in Manila
, where he spends time with Clara's assistant Ellen but also sees the violence around him, such as a protest at the U.S. Embassy in which Philippine soldiers attacked their own people. Unnerved by his experiences in Manila, Ben returns home to Seattle, where he finds himself caught up in an escalating cycle of violence within the Filipino immigrant community. Ben is confused by his experiences, feeling like an outsider in both his mother's homeland and his own local community.
Prologue: Ben's arrival in the Philippines and reunion with Aunt Clara
Part 1: The history of Clara's friendship with Ben's mother, Remedios; how Clara became wealthy, how she rescued Remedios from the Japanese, and how Remedios married Ben's father, Albert, and moved to the States.
Part 2: The story of Clara's friend Carlito as he tries to save his daughter through personal sacrifice; more on Clara's history during the War.
Part 3: The discovery of Carlito's actions.
Part 4: Ben's stay with Ellen in Manila as he waits for a flight back to the States
Part 5: Ben's return to Seattle and resumption of his priestly duties, which involve a series of killings in the immigrant community.
, the effect of American presence in the country, and the difference between American-born Filipinos and Filipino immigrants. The Philippine concept of barkada, a notion of loyalty to one's peer group, plays an important role in his experiences in Seattle after his return.
's America Is in the Heart
and Jessica Hagedorn
's Dogeaters
.
from the Before Columbus Foundation
.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Filipino American
Filipino American
Filipino Americans are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipino Americans, often shortened to "Fil-Ams", or "Pinoy",Filipinos in what is now the United States were first documented in the 16th century, with small settlements beginning in the 18th century...
author Peter Bacho
Peter Bacho
Peter Bacho is a writer and teacher best known for his book Cebu which won the American Book Award. The book is considered literary significant among Filipino American literature because of its explorations in themes such as neocolonialism and Filipino-American identity.Bacho also won the...
the "most visible figure" of second-generation, native-born Filipino American writing and one of several Seattle novelists in the 1990s to explore the racial history and sociology of Seattle. The novel is also "the first novel about a Filipino American who identifies primarily with US localities," rather than with the Philippines.
Plot summary
The novel's main character is an American priestPriest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
named Ben Lucero, who is the son of a Filipino mother and a Filipino American father, as he makes his first trip to the Philippines. When Ben's mother dies, he takes her body to Cebu
Cebu
Cebu is a province in the Philippines, consisting of Cebu Island and 167 surrounding islands. It is located to the east of Negros, to the west of Leyte and Bohol islands...
, Philippines for burial; it is his first trip to his mother's country. In the Philippines, he stays with his mother's best friend from childhood, "Aunt" Clara Natividad, who has become a wealthy and powerful businesswoman but led guerilla fighters during the war and earned her fortune through ethically questionable business practices. The novel follows Ben's encounters with Philippine culture and tradition, both in Cebu City
Cebu City
The City of Cebu is the capital city of Cebu and is the second largest city in the Philippines, the second most significant metropolitan centre in the Philippines and known as the oldest settlement established by the Spaniards in the country.The city is located on the eastern shore of Cebu and was...
and in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, where he spends time with Clara's assistant Ellen but also sees the violence around him, such as a protest at the U.S. Embassy in which Philippine soldiers attacked their own people. Unnerved by his experiences in Manila, Ben returns home to Seattle, where he finds himself caught up in an escalating cycle of violence within the Filipino immigrant community. Ben is confused by his experiences, feeling like an outsider in both his mother's homeland and his own local community.
Prologue: Ben's arrival in the Philippines and reunion with Aunt Clara
Part 1: The history of Clara's friendship with Ben's mother, Remedios; how Clara became wealthy, how she rescued Remedios from the Japanese, and how Remedios married Ben's father, Albert, and moved to the States.
Part 2: The story of Clara's friend Carlito as he tries to save his daughter through personal sacrifice; more on Clara's history during the War.
Part 3: The discovery of Carlito's actions.
Part 4: Ben's stay with Ellen in Manila as he waits for a flight back to the States
Part 5: Ben's return to Seattle and resumption of his priestly duties, which involve a series of killings in the immigrant community.
Characters in "Cebu"
- Ben Lucero
- Remedios Lucero
- Albert Lucero
In Seattle
- Teddy
- Johnny Romero: a local cop who works in Ben's section of town; he is half-Filipino and half-Native American, and although he is raised Filipino, he uses his Native American ancestry to get a college degree and government money; he illustrates the impossibility of pinning minorities to either "Filipino" or "white," and he exemplifies the ways minority groups get ranked in a hierarchy of importance and/or respect
- Carmen "Zorro" Gamboa: a Mexican girl who moves into Ben's neighborhood while they are still in school; Teddy calls her Zorro because she has facial hair, and the nickname becomes popular with the schoolkids; only Ben is friendly with her, but she is upset to find out that he is not romantically interested in her; when she dies a few months later after getting involved with a "bad crowd," Ben blames himself until he finds out that she came from a bad home and was all but destined for a bad life
Major themes
The novel features themes around the differences between American and Philippine culture and between American and Philippine Roman Catholicism. Other themes covered include the history of the Philippines from the final days of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the effect of American presence in the country, and the difference between American-born Filipinos and Filipino immigrants. The Philippine concept of barkada, a notion of loyalty to one's peer group, plays an important role in his experiences in Seattle after his return.
Literary significance and reception
It is often discussed in scholarly surveys of Filipino American literature, alongside such seminal works as Carlos BulosanCarlos Bulosan
Also known as Julius Zafra , a Filipino, an English-language novelist and poet who spent most of his life in the United States, and is best known for the semi-autobiographical America Is in the Heart.-Life and career:Carlos Bulosan was born to Ilocano parents in...
's America Is in the Heart
America Is in the Heart
America Is in the Heart, sometimes subtitled A Personal History, is a 1946 semi-autobiographical novel written by Filipino American immigrant poet, fiction writer, short story teller, and activist, Carlos Bulosan...
and Jessica Hagedorn
Jessica Hagedorn
Jessica Tarahata Hagedorn is a Filipino-American playwright, writer, poet, storyteller, musician, and multimedia performance artist.-Biography:...
's Dogeaters
Dogeaters
Dogeaters is a novel written by Jessica Hagedorn and published in 1990. Hagedorn also adapted her novel into a play by the same name. Dogeaters, set in the late 1950s in Manila , addresses several social, political and cultural issues present in the Philippines during the 1950s.The title is a...
.
Allusions to actual history, geography and current science
Besides the descriptions of life in Cebu City and Manila, the novel refers to the general history of the Philippines from the time of Japanese control to the beginning of the revolt against the Marcos regime, including the student protests at American Embassy in 1970.Awards and nominations
The novel won the American Book AwardAmerican Book Award
The American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
from the Before Columbus Foundation
Before Columbus Foundation
The Before Columbus Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1976 by Ishmael Reed, Victor Hernández Cruz, Shawn Wong and Rudolfo Anaya to be "a multi-ethnic organizing dedicated to promoting a pan-cultural view of America," especially through the promotion of multicultural writers.One of...
.
Publication history
- 1991, USA, U of Washington P ISBN 978-0295971131, Pub date November 1991, hardback and paperback