Shiloh Noel S.

Marcelo
BS REM 2-1
The White Horse of Alih

Mig Alvarex Enriquez was born on the year 1925. He is a Filipino by birth. He started writing at
the age of 20. He is a novelist, story write and playwright. Among his famous literary works are:
Blood on the Moon, A tale of two Houses, Cachil Kudarat (Sultan of Mindanao) or Caachil
Corrala and Labaw, Dongoon. All of this short stories won Palanca Awards.

Origin
The setting of the story happened on July 4 in a town with a parade of people. A Moro
Village in Zamboanga during the American occupation. It is to celebrate the Filipino-
American Friendship Day. Since the author was born on 1925, the current situation in
that time influenced his work.

Summary
The White Horse of Alih has five main characters. Alih, a Moro who plans for killing the
people celebrating an American Holiday. Omar, the older brother of Alih who dictates
him on what to do in every aspects of his life. Imam the village priest who tried to
dissuade the two brothers, he explain to them that the prophets did not teach to kill
people. Lucy, girl who lived in the reservation area where the Americans live. And
Fermina, a beautiful bar maid with a mole near her mouth. Alih likes her so much but the
woman doesn’t like him because of his impertinent manner towards her. It all started with
Alih and his brother Omar having a gruesome plan about a mass assassination in the
Moro Village wherein at that time the town were celebrating an event for Filipino –
American Friendship Day. Back in the day, Alih and Omar were merchants, they sold
their house, boats, fishing net and even their mother’s pearl.

As the time goes by, they got a chance to work with a Chinese Merchant whose name is
Lim Chang. Unfortunately their luck with that work was destroyed by men with guns and
clubbed that robbed them. After that, they went back to the sea and stayed there for a
long time. After so many days their supplies eventually run out and because of that, Omar
had an idea of killing and dying, “by killing we can wash our shame away”. This idea
was originally meant to clean their name because their father was accused of killing a
man that he did not kill. The Americans assumed that it was their father’s fault just
because he had a “hadji” attached to its name. So now they want to return the favor to
everyone that attended the event. By doing their plan, so that people will have fear in
them and respect them afterwards. While watching every movement in the parade, Alih
saw a familiar face which resemble his friend that he rode with in the carousel. He
confirmed his curiosity when he saw the little black mole in the corner of the girl’s
mouth. He uttered the name of Fermina while looking at them with her friends in the
float. As he was about to hold her completely, he suddenly saw his brother who was
drunk, unsheathed his sword and started to kill every person he saw. Omar was about to
reach and kill Fermina, but Alih protected his friend and killed his brother despite their
plans to gain the white horse for him. Many speculations were made of what happened.
Some said he intentionally killed his brother and some said he always hated his brother
because of controlling his life so much. But the thing is Alih didn’t want his white horse
anymore and the authorities picked him and put him in jail.

Philippine Values/ Culture/Tradition

The mentality that Filipino people are culturally resilient in adapting and overcoming
adversity and yet so culturally fractured in our identity. Despite this cultural resiliency
and being able to adapt and overcome by taking the best of one culture (in particular
Spanish and American culture) and using it as their own, Filipinos become more
culturally fractured in regards to their own self-identity, losing a little more of ‘what it
means’ to be Filipino as they do so. I found this ironic because while I was there trying to
be Filipino, many Filipinos there were trying to be more American.

Theme
This is a story of shame, dishonor, and redemption. Like most of Mig Alvarez Enriquez’s
Work. The white horse of alih is about the quaint Spanish/ American colonial culture of
the people of Zamboanga set picturesquely against an Islamic Background. It details the
rich Islamic Culture cultivated in most Moro-Islamic area as they define themselves
against the slow emergence of a new culture during the Spanish and American
Occupations.

Symbolism
The eponymous white horse comes from a Moro legend which explains that if a Moro
should kill someone (and be killed in the process), Allah shall send for a white horse to
retrieve his soul and bring it to paradise, where thousands of houri (women) are waiting
for him.

Real Life Connections

In Real Life Situations we have Racial Discrimination, Religion Disagreement and
Psychological Impact. In Racial Discrimination and Religion Disagreement is somewhat
the same, this applies to the father of Alih and Omar. Wherein they blamed the father just
because of his name, “hadji” (the name that you will get if you’ve been gone to mecca)
and they intently accused him of the wrong doings that he is not really involved. They
claimed that he is a terrorist due to the religion and race of a person. And lastly the
Psychological Impact. Omir and Alih was left alone in the sea for a very long time, and
because of stress and hunger combined, the mind of omir was eventually turn out to be
impulsive and full of revenge. And that is the reason why omir made all those mistakes.
Message
Being in the family wherein you are the youngest member, we have the common
knowledge that you should always follow the rules of the oldest one on the room. Even
though it’s right or wrong. But the story conveyed us a different lesson.
*At first Alih was just following the steps of Omar (who was by then consumed
by his dark side to take revenge for their father) but eventually Alih saw some hope to
change his decision and stopped his brother from doing the killings even more. This just
shows that everyone can have the dignity and courage to do what is right. And not to be
in a dark place forever. For it is better to have a voice of your own.

Reference
https://www.slideshare.net/ReivenHuge23/jri-orion-stem-a21stlitregion9
https://whitehorseofalih.wordpress.com/2014/10/02/white-horse-of-alih/