Dekonstruksyon

"Tong Tong Tong Pakitong Kitong" 

(Filipino Old Poem/Song) 

Tong Tong Tong 

Pakitong Kitong, 

Alimango sa dagat, 

Malaki at masarap, 

Mahirap hulihin, 

Sapagkat nangangagat. 

Pagiging kakaiba para sa akin ang sinasagisag ng alimango. Maliban sa ipinaaalala nitong hindi lahat ng tutunguhin o landas ay pa-abante tulad ng nakasanayan, nagsisilbi rin itong isang hayop na sumisimbolo ng pagkakaroon ng matinding proteksyon. 

Tulad na lamang sa tulang ito, ang "Tong Tong Tong Pakitong Kitong", sa tulang ito iuugnay o maihahali ko ang alimango bilang isang indibidwal o makapangyarihang nilalang na mayroong sinasakupan, maaring isang pulitiko, maimpluwensyang pinuno o kaya nama'y mayamang amo na kayang hawakan o paikutin ang mga tao sa ilalim ng kanyang sistema. 

"Tong tong tong pakitong kitong, Alimango sa dagat," 

Dito sa unang dalawang linya ng tula nakikita ko, gaya ng nasabi ko, ang isang maimpluwensyang tao- ang alimango, na nagpapakitong kitong lamang o sa modernong panahon ay nag-hahayahay lamang. 

"Malaki at masarap," 

Ang mga salitang ito'y naglalarawan at tumutukoy sa posisyon o kinalalagyan ng mga alimangong ito, bukod sa bigtime ang maging makapangyarihan, masarap para sa mga tulad nila ang mayroong nahahawakan at napapaikot kahit na hayahay lamang naman sila. 

"Mahirap hulihin, Sapagkat nangngagat." 

Kahit sa anong anggulo natin titingnan, tunay na hindi basta basta ang paghuli sa mga masasamang gawain at pamamalakad ng ganitong klase ng mga indibidwal. Ito ang laman ng huling mga linya ng tula. Lalo na kung pera lamang ang pag-uusapan o ang pinakamadalas na kanilang gingawa-- ang paggamit ng kanilang kapangyarihan sa mga maling bagay o pamamaraan. Halimbawa na ang pananakot, panunulsol at pananakit na kung minsa'y tutungo sa pagpaslang. 

Sa kabuuan, ipinaaalala lamang ng tulang ito ang hindi matapos tapos at patuloy pa ring pagpapahirap at pagpapaikot ng mga taong ganid sa mga walang kalaban laban na mga sibilyan na may mababang estado sa buhay. Nabibigyan ang manunulat ng kalayaang makapag-isip at mag-lathala ng higit pa sa literal na nakikita at nababasa ng mga mata. 

Ito ang nilalaman ng Teoryang Simbolismo. Napagdurugtong dugtong ang mga karakter at tema ng buong pyesa gamit ang Simbolismo. Bukod sa nabibigyan nito ng mas malalim na kahulugan ang isang pyesa, mas nagiging interesado ang mga magbabasa sapagkat nabibigyan sila ng pagkakataong masilip ang mga ideya ng manunulat at kung paano niya pinakakahulugan ang mga bagay at kilos na may mas malalim na implikasyon, ngunit sa karamiha'y itinuturing lamang na normal.

CODE YELLOW: Train Fare Hike

Trains are undeniably one of the most used mode or medium of transportation in the Philippines. Except from it is very accessible, the location area or the topographical aspect of the train stations are very well thought of. The Metro Rail Transit or better known as the MRT runs from the North Avenue to Taft Avenue. It caters to numerous people specifically those workers or employees, as well as students because of some schools or universities found in Cubao, Quezon Avenue and Pasay in which the MRT also has its stations. The Light Rail Transit Authority Line 2 or the LRTA Line 2 travels from Santolan to Recto Station; aside from it is very helpful to shoppers because it passes through malls like SM Marikina, Robinsons Magnolia, and SM Sta. Mesa etc. It is also a very big help to students, because the University Belt or the UBelt is easily reached through the use of this transportation. Same thing works with the LRTA Line 1 and the Philippine National Railways or the PNR.

Thousands of individuals whether from Metropolitan Manila or not, will agree if I say that these trains are already part of our lives as commuters. It is very basic; like riding jeepneys, eating rice or just simply taking a bath. And as it becomes a necessity for us, it must be worthy of our money and still must be affordable. In my point of view as a regular commuter, the proposal of the government about the additional 15 pesos to the original amount of the train tickets is very questionable. Yes they may provide some reasons, but as i have said, only SOME REASONS that sometimes I consider unreasonable. The subsidy that they have promised to the company or whoever he is that provided the technology for the trains should not be handled by the commuters. Well my bad, it is already the public's money that they are using, so why is it that we should also be the ones to provide for the remaining debt or subsidy or whatever it is that we have to pay.

The purchase of the said technology was made by the government. Those in power were the ones who settled for the payment. The public do not care for whatever agreements they had. Or i must say, the public cares. We really are concerned! but if the negotiation was done privately, then the people can do nothing in actual about it. What is irritating now in my view point is that, now that the subsidy is coming short, the public are the ones to be burdened. Of course in the simplest context, this isn't fair. The public did not have a fair fight. A perfect example is the fare hike of the PNR. One of my classmates is a regular commuter of the PNR. Then comes one day, she was shocked when the fare increased to I guess 15 pesos or more. The regular fare was 10 pesos. The issue here now is aside from the lack of information dissemination,the government takes steps so fast when it comes to price hikes like this, as compared to the matters that really need an immediate action such as the FOI Bill or Cybercrime Law. Considering that these matters have long been furnished and being presented, while the trains aren't that good enough to meet the public's demands. Just like the magnetic cards and machines, the LED boards aren't working well. The voice service isn’t played exactly and is sometimes unpleasant to the ears. People won't bear for any reasons they might have, if they really want to increase train fares, they must cater the needs and services that the commuters deserve.

dhonalynesionJ

Uncertain Uncertainty (Final Draft)

Uncertainty is one of the unvarying authenticities in this society we are in. Being uncertain about someone regardless of his/her background or how he/she appears, for me is just a normal fad. These are inevitable? Yes! But we need not to live by these forever. We can always help ourselves out and lessen the ambiguity among humanity. J

           

Berger and Calabrese enumerated seven important factors - verbal communication, nonverbal expressiveness, information-seeking behaviour, intimacy, reciprocity, similarity, and liking - and described their interrelationships in any dyadic exchange in helping us reduce uncertainties. (Berger and Calabrese, 1975)

“The beginnings of personal relationships are fraught with uncertainties. (Berger, 1975)”

During my high school days, I am fond of joining pageants, actually up until now.  And then I met an aloof type guy. He was one of the male candidates then.  He always approaches me as to take pictures with me. He always smiles but speaks very little whenever we talk. To the point that I could say, you are lucky enough to hear him talk for over fifteen seconds.J 

Berger identifies this point as the Entry Stage where information about another’s age, sex, and other demographic information is obtained. (Berger, 1975)

And then after some time, he asked me to help him for his field study. Being kinda interested about him, I agreed and we started to be more comfortable than before. We started eating together, walking home together and other stuff like that including deeper understanding and concern for each other, as friends. Personal Stage begins at that moment if we take Berger’s account- this stage takes place when communicators begin to share attitudes, beliefs, values, and more personal data. (Berger, 1975)

After one or two months of hanging around with each other, we finished his field study, and shortly after that, we rarely have seen or communicate with each other, neither via phone nor in person until now.

This I believe is the Exit Phase.

The Exit Phase, according to Berger begins when the communicators decide on future interaction plans. They may discuss or negotiate ways to allow the relationship to grow and continue. (Berger, 1975)

I believe that this statement is not applicable at all times. Take my example as a proof. We did not discuss nor decide on future interaction plans during the Exit Phase, it just happened. The interaction between the two of us terminated. Simply because matters like this aren't planned, except for lovers’ break up I guess. 

INCENTIVE, I believe incentive is the reason why he made a way of somehow being close to me. DEVIATION and ANTICIPATION of FUTURE INTERACTION are the other two given by Berger, as the main reasons why people seek information. (Berger, 1975)

The Uncertainty Reduction Theory is presented as a series of axioms, but some of these aren't really reliable and dependable because even Berger himself admits that his original statements contained some propositions of dubious validity. I myself, also find two of his axioms to be contradicting:

AXIOM 3, Information Seeking: High levels of uncertainty cause increases in information-seeking behaviour. As uncertainty levels decline, information-seeking behaviour decreases.

AXIOM 7, Liking: Increases in uncertainty level produce decreases in liking; decreases in uncertainty produce increases in liking. (Berger and Calabrese, 1975)

I consider these two as contradicting axioms because I believe that if uncertainty increases, we tend to dislike the other person thus, halting ourselves to seek information about him/her.
And for the other way around, when uncertainty decreases, we tend to like the other person even more therefore, we dig deeper data and information about him/her.

We may think, some people love to live with uncertainties, so what is the use of reducing it? Well, this falls under our control. These are choices which can either make or break us. Furthermore, this is because it has been proven that people love surprises from their partners. They don’t want everything revealed as it is. We still crave for mysteries and conceal them area by area, layer by layer, and piece by piece. J

“The probability of a perfect communication is zero. (Berger, 1975)”

REFERENCES:

1.http://books.google.com.ph/books?id=3SdsNOs0RPIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=communication+theory&hl=en&sa=X&ei=R4W9Us6EFImRkQW59YDgBQ&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=communication%20theory&f=false

2. http://books.google.com.ph/books?id=rJEPG-2__w4C&printsec=frontcover&dq=uncertainty+reduction+theory+on+google+books&hl=en&sa=X&ei=noi9UqiVB4aIkAXFxYCACg&ved=0CDQQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false

DATE RETRIEVED: December 26 and 27, 2013 respectively

UNCERTAIN UNCERTAINTY

“The beginnings of personal relationships are fraught with uncertainties.”

-Charles R. Berger

Uncertainty Reduction Theory (URT) was initially presented as a series of axioms (universal truths which do not require proof) and theorems (propositions assumed to be true) which describe the relationships between uncertainty and several communication factors. URT was developed to describe the interrelationships between seven important factors in any dyadic exchange: verbal communication, nonverbal expressiveness, information-seeking behavior, intimacy, reciprocity, similarity, and liking. Charles Berger and Calabrese (1975)

This theory considers three Patterns of Developmental Stages: the Entry Stage, Personal Stage, and the Exit Phase.

Information about another’s age, sex, economic or social status, and other demographic information is obtained during the Entry Stage. And when communicators begin to share attitudes, beliefs, values, and more personal data, this is when Personal Stage begins. When communicators arrive to the Exit Phase, they decide on future interaction plans. They may discuss or negotiate ways to allow the relationship to grow and continue. However, any particular conversation maybe terminated at the end of the Entry Stage.

To understand this theory better, let me give an example.

During my high school days, I met an aloof type guy. We have common friends, so that served the way for us to meet. He always smiles but speaks very little whenever we talk. You’re lucky enough when you hear him talk for over fifteen seconds.J (Entry Stage)

And then after some time, he approached me and asked me to help him for his field study. Being kinda interested about him, I agreed and we started to be more comfortable than before. We started eating together, walking home together and other stuff like that including deeper understanding and concern for each other, as friends. (Personal Stage)

Unexpectedly after his field study, we rarely have seen or communicate with each other, neither via phone nor in person until now.L(Exit Phase)

When I learned about this theory, I agreed at some of its principles - that one reason why we seek information about someone, is because of INCENTIVE. Incentive is one of the three main reasons why we seek information according to Berger. DEVIATION and ANTICIPATION of FUTURE INTERACTION are the other two.

While I agree to these three main reasons why we seek information, I also have found drawbacks on Berger’s URT.  First is the way he explains the Exit Phase.
He states that during this phase, the communicators decide on future interaction plans. They may discuss or negotiate ways to allow the relationship to grow and continue. I believe that this statement from Berger is not applicable at all times. Take my example as a proof. We did not discuss nor decide on future interaction plans during the Exit Phase, it just happened. The interaction between the two of us terminated. Maybe because this matter isn’t planned, except for lovers’ break up I guess.

URT is presented as a series of axioms, but some of these aren’t really reliable and dependable because even Berger himself admits that his original statements contained some propositions of dubious validity.

         I myself, also find two of his axioms to be contradicting:

AXIOM 3, Information Seeking: High levels of uncertainty cause increases in information-seeking behavior. As uncertainty levels decline, information-seeking behavior decreases.

AXIOM 7, Liking: Increases in uncertainty level produce decreases in liking; decreases in uncertainty produce increases in liking.

I consider these two as contradicting axioms because I believe that if uncertainty increases, we tend to dislike the other person thus, halting ourselves to seek information about him/her.
And for the other way around, when uncertainty decreases, we tend to like the other person even more therefore, we dig deeper data and information about him/her.

Setting aside all the hitches on Berger’s theory, he did well in producing such kind of a study. He insists that you can’t predict outcome values until you reduce uncertainty. And I will say he is right about, “The probability of a perfect communication is zero”. J


SOURCES: Communication Theory (books.google.com.ph)

DATE...

"You are really getting me into my nerves! 

I already told you last night not to force me to wake up! 

I told you I need at least eight hours of sleep!

It's been long since I had one, you know. But hey! I don't mean I beg because I want it!

I beg because I need it instead!"

These are the words I want to shout at my sister's big long ears. (Mean, I am!)

But instead of starting an argument with her, because I feel so tired that I felt like I swam around the Olympics pool 50 times, I just dig in my pillow ‘til I reached for my phone.

It was past the hour of 10, Saturday morning. I slept at 1 o'clock AM so I realized, I already had more than nine hours. Good thing I held back before uttering those words. Patience is a virtue on my part now, ey? Hahaha!

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Whenever I wake up in the morning, the things that I usually think of are the things I need to do for that specific day, or events/situations I need to attend to. I got a lot of things to do. Written reports, read my notes or even just scan them honestlyJ, do house chores, thesis works and more (insert adjective that starts with F) school stuff.

But here’s a thing, none of these prevailed inside my head.

A DATE instead! Yes a DATE! I have a date today and we are going to catch a movie. I already had our movie tickets almost a week now, plus it is our first time to bond with just the two of us, so I’m kinda excited. I am thinking of what to wear. Gonna use a short dress? A blouse and shorts? How about using pants? Or an overall dress? Dressing up is what really eats my time. And I hate it actually.

I sneaked at my phone, I read his message it says, “ate, tuloy ba tayo?”

I replied yes. And then another question pops up, where to watch? Greenbelt? SM Makati? Market Market!? SM Aura? Where? My cousin and I can hardly decide about these things. And this is the thing that boggles my mind after my long sleep. Our DATE! J

*Answers come and go. Some stay because they are the ones chosen. Be sure to choose the ones you’d really like to stay. J