macarthur

Who is bob ong?

Bob Ong, or Roberto Ong, is the pseudonym of a Filipino contemporary author known for using conversational Filipino to create humorous and reflective depictions of life as a Filipino.

One reviewer notes (translated from vernacular Filipino):

" Filipinos really patronize Bob Ong's works because, while most of his books may have an element of comedy in them, this is presented in a manner that replicates Filipino culture and traditions. This is likely the reason why his first book - and those that followed it, can be considered true Pinoyclassics.

                                    Macarthur (novel)

Macarthur or the Red Book is a 2007 novel by Filipino author Bob Ong. It is the sixth published work from Ong. As with all Bob Ong's published novels, it is notable for its use of contemporary street Filipino words. It is also notable for its departure from the usual Bob Ong formula of using humor to comment on the various ironies of Filipino culture. Instead, it offers a gritty, realistic look at life in a Philippine slum community.

The title is derived from a slang term for difficult-to-flush faeces — a reference to Douglas MacArthur's famous promise, "I shall return". The cover's background, mostly obscured by the bold typeset of the title and by the red color, depicts a toilet bowl.

 

                         Characters

*Noel.      Their family was once rich until a sudden slow down of business. He first appeared in the place on where Cyrus, Voltron and Jim were talking. It was indicated that Noel was just a typical college student who eventually stopped studying because he lacks the money to afford his college test paper. After a quarrel with her sister, Lyla, he was asked by his own father to leave his house, calling him a "good for nothing". He develops a good friendship with Cyrus' grandfather, Mang Justo, until he is shot (mistook for a monster) by Cyrus. In the end, he returns to his family and, although with doubt, is welcomed by his father, along with the rest of the family.

He had to witness it all. Mang Justo’s death, Cyrus’s crazy move. He was there because he lived with Cyrus, after his father kicked him out.He’s not poor, unlike his three friends. May kaya ang pamilya nila. But because of his drug addiction, he wasted all his tuition fee on it. And he stopped school. And he steals things from his home to sell so he could get back what he lost from buying illegal drugs.

He was kicked out from his home when he was drunk and so full of his sister that keeps on calling him a ‘thief’. His Mom tolerates his behavior, and I don’t know why. But that day, when he threw a plastic chair on his sister, which missed, and then came barging in front of her and wrapped his hand on her neck, his father, who also tolerated his behavior, had enough and ordered him to leave their house.

Noel, well he’s very aware of where his actions are leading him and he’s smart. Drugs just… took away every dream he had.

He left the house and went to live with Cyrus and his tatay, Cyrus pretty much welcomed him with open arms.

That day when Mang Justo was tragically killed, he discussed a lot of things with the old man, which made him pursue his dreams and made him want to come back to his family. And then Mang Justo asked him to buy him some medicine, and when he came back… well, he had no choice but to go home.

And his family welcomed him back. Especially the father, who ordered him away.

*Cyrus.

           He’s the youngest among the four. And he’s on drugs, the four of ‘em are, and he’s a pickpocket. He steals because he and his ‘Lolo’, whom he calls Tatay Justo, doesn’t have enough money to even buy fish. He has a job, of course, but it’s still not enough. And his life story takes a curve when Mang Justo apparently has some defect in his kidney. So they needed money for the operation, and he steals two gold necklaces, three packs of shabu, some new phones, and watches. And he got beaten up by Topak, the police officer who steals from them, before he could go back and sell all the things he has stolen. And what’s weird is that he has to swallow the things he stole so that it won’t be stolen by the police officer and he can gain profit from it and he can pursue the operation for his Tatay Justo.

He’s a real scared-y cat. And the one thing that he fears the most is losing his Tatay Justo. And one normal day after the operations and Mang Justo is fine, he sees this illusions of a black cat staring at him. And suddenly the cat transforms into a dog who’s swallowing his Tatay Justo. And, days back, Noel had given him a gun which he his under his pillow. And because he wanted that dog, which he suspected is ‘Kamatayan’, to go away, he pulled the gun from under his pillow and started shooting on the animal.

What he didn’t know is that the animal was just his illusion and it was really Mang Justo. So don’t ever take illegal drugs.

*Voltron.

         Also known as Denver and Amadeus. His siblings are Stephen, Brooke, Joshua, Kurt,and Gwyneth. Voltron is skinny and has a big chest, small head, big hands and feet and looks like a robot that rains saliva when talking. He gets salvaged by a gangster. He’s the one who has a lot of money from stealing stuff. But he got it bigtime when he negotiated with Edwin, the one who hires people to deliver drugs to their customers.At first, he did not want anything to do with Edwin. But because it included $$$ he said yes.And then, I think a night after they brought Mang Justo the hospital, he got killed. By the same people who hired him for the money. Probably to keep his mouth shut.

*Jim.

       23 years old, oldest in the group, has a big body which can lift a sack of rice and a small brain which is enough to carry a foil that will burn crystal meth. He has a wife and son, and is persuaded to leave Manila for the province because of his family's needs. He wasn’t really emphasized in the story. He’s a drug addict, too. But he has his own family. A wife and one son. And probably the only problem he has is that he can’t really support his family. They live on free water, illegal electric support and cable. And his wife just had enough of their life when their son got sick. So he kinda  just went home to his wife’s parents. Mostly because his wife was attempting to leave without him.

                             bob Ong’s Macarthur

                         I have bought a copy of Bob Ong's latest work, Mac Arthur last Tuesday, I finished it off in around four hours. This is, so far, the best Bob Ong book, for me.It’s not funny nor is it scary. It takes up a really serious story about four friends and how life sucks because they don’t have enough money. It’s not a touching story but it is very heartbreaking.

            What can I say? It's not like any of his previous books. I suppose a lot of his avid fans would be surprised with this. Wait, surprised is an understatement. Shocked would be more appropriate. While this is not his first work of fiction, Alamat ng Gubat being his debut piece on the genre, Mac Arthur presents a totally different aspect of Bob Ong's writing.
            In his first books, Bob Ong always spoke with his trademark wit and humor, but here, he takesa very serious tone.
            Mac Arthur is an unflinching depiction of life in the Philippine urban underworld, and the characters that move within it. The author did not pull any punches. The image he portrayed in this short novel is as graphic as it can get. It's ugly, it's disturbing, it's disgusting, but all too real. Truth be told, I am a bit shaken by this. It reminds me of J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, sans the first-person narrative.
            I won't be surprised if Mac Arthur gets a lot of disapproval from the readers because of its gritty style. But like most truths, it's always unpleasant, but what the f*ck, it's the truth. Before picking this book up, leave your inhibitions at the door, and steel yourself for impact.

            

                           

                                

                                Bob Ong’s Macarthur

          His 6th book, Macarthur, is not a collection of stories, jokes or essays from the internet like the way his previous books are patterned. Neither is it about Bob Ong’s supposed life experiences. This time, the book ventures more into the sad realities of being poor and underprivileged in the country via Voltron, Jim, Noel and Cyrus’ tupsy-turvy lives. Yes people, Bob Ong has sunk his teeth into writing non-fiction.

Macarthur, as in General Douglas McArthur of WWII, is actually about human feces, well at least for me in it’s lightest sense. But if you dig deeper into the story, it’s not just about Voltron’s feces or the regurgitated food in his throat: thebook is about breaking the bad habits that we do over and over again. For some, breaking the rules is fun but if you break the LAW, get in jail and hurt others in the process, that’s misdemeanor.

We’ve heard stories about dirty and indecent policemen who take care of certain snatchers, robbers and some other hooligans only to set them loose on the streets and loot innocent bystanders. These policemen would then act to chase or imprison these criminals but in truth, they get a share in their bounty. Of course, policemen are just small fry when compared to the big time thieves: public officials. But let me make it clear: stealing in any way is still bad, whether you steal from the streets or from the national treasury. Either way is evil and should not be tolerated.

But the ills of our society do not end with theft, drugs, unemployment and poverty. It includes our social, justice, political, economic and agricultural systems. When I look at these things, the solution I think of is rather inappropriately simple: initiating the change within ourselves first. Yeah, I know, cliche, cliche…but what else can we do? People Power has long been drained of it’s convincing capabilities, impeachment, The Office of the Ombudsman and the Blue Ribbon Committee are just practical jokes and the Genuine Opposition is a paradox! I mean, really, what other things can we think of to solve our rotting core systems? And remember, Philippines is the MOST CORRUPT in Asia this year. It may seem a small solution and an incomprehensible one at that, but it seems to make a lot more sense than to give our continued support to the crackpots up in Congress.

              This is what I feel whenever I read a Bob Ong book; vigilant and overly conscious and concerned about the country. Although his last four books, including this one, are not as funny as his first two, I still love Bob Ong’s efforts to reach out and appeal to our patriotic senses. Even with his small and unassuming books, the man tries his best to help and encourage us to do better for the nation. And I second his motion.

                                      MacArthur                                 

            

           So many times,I’ve been asked, why is the book entitled ‘MacArthur’. Before reading the book, I used to ask the same question but after raping its pages. I think I knew the answer. ( Yes,I’m unsure. Always.)

It’s his sixth book. The story of the book revolved around four friends who lives in a hard life slaved by poverty.  

Sa book na ‘to. Parang nagkukuwento lang siya,katulad nung ‘Alamat ng Gubat’ niya. Alam ng mga mambabasa niya kung gaano kakwela at bumanat ang naturang manunulat pero sa libro niyang ito ay naging seryoso ang kanyang tono na tila ba isa itong indie film na isinalibro.

Nung una ko ‘tong basahin,parang inayawan ko na. First page pa lang. May nagmumura kasi. Haha. Eh syempre,good girl pa ako nun kaya nagulat ako. Pero tinuloy ko na rin kasi gusto ko talaga si Bob Ong. Naisip ko naman kasing kailangan ko malaman kung bakit ‘MacArthur’ ang title ng book.

Basta nagandahan ako sa story. Medyo naging emosyonal lang ako ng konti dun sa pahuling part. ‘yung tipo na nagilid ‘yung luha ko. Hahahaha. Pero hindi naman ako umiyak. Tapos nun inulit ko.

May isang linya dun sa book na di ko makalimutan. Ewan ko kung bakit. Eto:

‘Ayokong mabuhay sa mga bagay na pwede namang wala sa buhay ko.’

‘Kung kailangan natin yan,matagal na sana tayong patay!’

Hindi ko alam kung tama ba ‘yung statement na yan pero basta ganyan yung idea. :)

Bob Ong, “Macarthur”

Title: MacArthur

Author: Bob Ong

Language: Tagalog / English

Category: Humor Filipino Culture

Merong matigas
Merong malambot
Merong tuwid
Merong kulot
Merong buo
Merong durog
At merong mga taong
Hindi basta-basta lumulubog.

Batung-bato ka na ba?
ROCK-ROCKAN NA!

Ito ang ika-anim na likha ni Bob ong. Sa totoo lang ito ang pinaka paborito ko sa lahat. Alam naman nating lahat na karamihan sa likha niya ay puro patawa at paputol putol ang mga kwento.  iba ang librong ito  kahit manipis ang librong ito pero hitik na hitik sa laman. Para ba itong Nescafe 3 in 1 dahil kumpleto siya mapa Jokes, Drama at mapa Action din. Hindi nasayang ang aking isang daang piso.haha.

“Hikayatin mo lahat ng kakilala mo na magkaroon ng kahit isa man lang paboritong libro sa buhay nila. Dahil wala nang mas kawawa pa sa mga taong literado pero hindi nagbabasa.” 
— Bob Ong

 

macarthur

 

          Manipis lang ang libro at mabilis ang daloy ng isto­rya kaya nat­a­pos ko ito sa loob ng isa at kala­hat­ing oras.

Mahusay ang pagkaka­su­lat, lalo na sa mga eksena at mga karak­ter sa libro. Parang nakikinig ako ng mga awitin ng Eraser­heads o River­maya dahil hindi nagkakalayo ang buhay, sit­wasyon at karanasan ko sa mga nang­yari, nai­isip, nararanasan at pinag­daanan ng mga karak­ter sa libro.

Pero hindi ako nag­do­droga, nang-​agaw ng mga celfon at alahas, o nag­nakaw sa mga kapit­ba­hay. Ang ibig kong sabi­hin ay kapareho ko ang mga karak­ter sa libro sa pun­tong, sa aming kabataan ay kay dami nang prob­lema at suli­ran­ing kinaka­harap, ginusto man namin o hindi.

Sa gitna nito, naroon ang pagha­hanap ng katwiran sa mga bagay-​bagay sa mundo, ang halaga at dahi­lan kung bakit nabuhay at higit sa lahat ang pagkaka­roon ng mga pan­garap sa buhay, gaano man kasim­ple o engrande, at kung paano ito mabibi­gyang katuparan.

Tulad ng dati, natawa talaga ako sa mga hirit, linya at mga pan­gan­gatwiran ng mga karak­ter sa libro tulad ng sumusunod:

"O, nasan ni Noel?" tanong ni Cyrus.
"Umuwi sa inyo. Magti­tikol."
"Ano?"
"Maliligo daw muna sya."

Mahusay din ang pagsasalarawan ni Bob Ong sa mga lugar sa kwento, ang mga eskinita, ang palengke, ang squat­ters' area, at ang public CR. Detalyado at malu­pet din ang pagkaka­su­lat ni Bob Ong sa mga pangya­yaring aksyon, mga nai­isip ng mga karak­ter at ang mga nararanasan nila. Ramdam mo ang mga bawat suntok ng buwayang pulis kay Cyrus, pero bago yun, ang pag­ba­lik­tad ng iyong sik­mura mat­a­pos lunukin niya ang pakete ng shabu na nahu­log sa inidorong barado at puno ng "cham­po­radong" gawa ng bituka ng tao.

          At isa pa dahil sa kahirapan kaya naisusulat ang lahat ng kwento ni bob ong dahil din sa mga nakikita natin na nangyayari dito sa ating bansa sari saring problema minsan nga bigla ka nalang mapapaisip eh paano kung ganito tayo? Paano kung sa atin lahat mangyari ang problema na hindi naman natin alam kung kalian dadating o masosolusyonan? MINSAN NGA PO NAISIP KO SANA SI BOB ONG NALANG ANG PRESIDENTE siguro naitama niya ang mga mali na nagawa ng gobyerno. Sana siguro hindi tayo naghihirap ngayon, siguro walang pag nanakaw, walang mga nag dodroga, walang masasamang apekto sa ating bansa.

          Anu't ano pa man, ang kat­a­pu­san ng kwento ay simple lang. Mat­a­pos ang lahat-​lahat ng kag­u­luhan, kataran­taduhan, pag­subok, suli­ranin at pagkaka­ma­l­ing nagawa ng mga karak­ter, buma­lik sila sa kani­lang pinag­mu­lan at tila ba, magig­ing maayos na din ang lahat kahit hindi ito pinag-​usapan para mag­a­wan ng solusyon. Basta ganoon na lang nag­ta­pos ang kwento.

Walang kamatayang "the prodi­gal son" na gustung-​gusto ng mga kon­ser­bat­i­bong reli­hiyoso at matatanda.

Pero hayaan na lang, mahusay naman ang pagkaka­su­lat ni Bob Ong sa MacArthur.

I really like how the book tackled the one problem in the Philippines today Social and

Moral standing. The state of society is depicted in a very familiar way. The way the story

was told feels like it really happened. It is such a moving story. ^_^