ST. JOHN BERCHMANS HIGH SCHOOL INCORPORATED.

3312 Magsaysay, Cordon, Isabela

Ramos, Talitha Micah, Albano March 02,2024

10 – Saint Matthew Score: ____________

A READER’S RESPONSE TO THE STORY” THE WIND HEARS YOU” BY

SOPHIA BONOAN

Unsolved cases, did you ever think why they became left unsolved? Left as a
mystery? Gossiping, people’s hobby. Have you ever wondered why people are more
interested in the lives of others than in their own? Sophia Bonoan’s story, “The Wind
Hears You”, a great story. A story that gives us different set of scenes which leads
the reader to feel different kind of emotions.

The story is all about gossiping, its implied readers are everybody. For it gives
signs or awareness to people about gossiping. The story has a cliff hanger which I
became annoyed in, imagine that, the story was at its best part then suddenly the
story already ended, which makes readers confused about what really happened.

The text evokes different thoughts, experiences and knowledge. When I started
reading the story, I was shocked because at the first two sentences it stated that
Ligaya, Armando’s wife was already dead, she was found nakedly floating at the
end of the river where people out there usually wash their clothes on. I also
experience what happened to Armando. Losing the one you love, same as him it
was very painful and sad, it feels like half of me also died and I do not know how to
live without them.

Gossiping has become a bad habit of many individuals right now. And as for the
story gossiping is one of the main problems, for Alma the one narrating the story
loves to stick her nose into Armando and Ligaya’s tragic love story, especially on
Carmina, their neighbor. As I read the story I felt different emotions, I somehow
became annoyed to Alma because of what she is doing, I understand her that she is
one of those “concerned citizens” but I think it is too much, for her gossips are
unending. New day, new topic, its like she cannot live without knowing the latest
news about those human beings.

Furthermore, I also became confused to what happened to Ligaya’s case, why the
investigators stopped investigating about her death? If all of the gossips were true
or not? What is the reason why she died like that? Was she killed? Who killed her?
Another one is Roy, Carmina’s husband. This was also left to me as a big question.
Why did he suddenly disappear? Is he still alive or not? What happens in the forest?

The story also gave me chills and the feeling of creepiness. Because aside from it
being a cliff hanger I was also creeped out when Carmina was inviting Alma and her
family to have a dinner with her at her house, especially when the author used a
form of imagery which she described how Carmina smiled to Alma but her eyes’
emotion did not change, it was creepy for me especially when it was stated that
Carmina was just staring at Alma’s window.
ST. JOHN BERCHMANS HIGH SCHOOL INCORPORATED.
3312 Magsaysay, Cordon, Isabela

Moreover, at that part of the story, aside from being creeped out at Carina, I was
also amazed by her, for she has the guts to make Alma feel goose bumped on what
she just stated. It was the best for it is giving a strong personality type of vibe which
I love,

As we go further with the story and if we will base on its title, ‘wind’ was
mentioned there, and as we analyze the whole story, we can realize that the ‘wind’
is symbolized as the gossipers. And as we continue the title ‘wind hears you’, it
likely symbolizes that any news or a small talk could be spread out a blink of an
eye, for news has ears, eyes and wings, just like a bird.

In addition to the overall story, it was a great story even though its cliff hanged
the readers including me. The choices of words were very nice, for it has something
to do with everybody because the story is like an awareness for each and every one
of us that gossiping should not be normalized, for it can ruin someone else’s life and
it has no benefit to us because we do not need to know every information about
someone instead, we should just let them live their lives as we live ours.
ST. JOHN BERCHMANS HIGH SCHOOL INCORPORATED.
3312 Magsaysay, Cordon, Isabela
Ramos, Talitha Micah, Albano March 02,2024
10 – Saint Matthew Score: __________

“THE MEMOIR OF GEISHA”

Historical criticism is a way of criticizing that investigates the origins of ancient

Back then in Japan, there were performers. They were called geisha, a geisha is a
female Japanese performing artists and entertainers who were trained in traditional
Japanese performing art styles, such as dancing, music or even singing. Geishas
perform on banquets, meals and a range of other occasions. They are usually
dressed with a long kimono and traditional hairstyles. And Chiyo, a girl from a small
town called Yoroido was sold to an old man to become a geisha. It felt sad as I see a
girl being sold just for money, but if we base on the time these happened, it is
normal for them, plus geishas were really popular back then not just like today that
there are only a few of them.

The story depicts the time in which it was set very well, for the actors and
actresses portrayed those times in a very realistic way for Chiyo was sold and
trained to become a geisha, and based on the movie, its main idea is all about
endurance, on how one will survive and overcome obstacles and face problems. Its
like a survival of the fittest, to see if how Chiyo will survive.

Watching the movie, it reflects to different attitudes and beliefs of the time where
it was occurring, such as when there were still a lot of geishas in Japan. For they are
considered high-class and expensive, Japanese courtesan. Geishas at that time were
also very honored and respected, for their work is still a respectable profession in
Japan. And as I wonder why the writer of this movie had thought to write a movie
like this is that maybe they want to show how were geishas back then, how they
survived the trainings, how they endured all of the pain and how they secretly fall in
love with someone. Because in the movie geishas were viewed as weak, for the
movie showed their true wellbeing because all of them had painful histories.