PASCUAL, Jonathan Term Paper no.

1
BSED 2-1B English March 6, 2020
English 2235 (Survey of Philippine Literature in English)

“Truth Inside of You: A Choice or Preference”

“If you dig up one grave, you have also unlocked the one that lie below”

(Father Melchor, P.217)

Part I. INTERPRETATION
The order of Melkizedek by Nick Joaquin is about the social reality of human
movement, belief and culture. Religion has been part of human history brought by the
pre-colonial and pre-Christian persuasion about power and ideology. Sid Estiva flew
back in the Philippines and was asked by her sister Adela to help their youngest sister,
Guia from the hands of religious leader who worshiped cults, while trying to bring back
the ancient order of pagan worshipper through the newly and altered Christian rebellion.
Here in the order of Melkizedek, it shows that, your own choice dictates your own
fortune in life, it connotes who you are as a person, what you want to be according to
your own preference, and how many entrances, exits and options that might happen as
we enter the vast number of choices. One good example is that when Mrs Tuazon had
some appointment in a fortune-teller, because her baby did not seem to be going right.
When Guai asked to have her own apartment and decided to take a solo flight in her
life, and through her bad choice in life, Sid Estiva mentioned it as, “one crazy thing after
another”, because she never weigh all of the decisions she made. She became part of
an awful young writer, then a beatnik gang, and went to advertising and all those media
people, then afterward became part of nationalism and now her religion. Also, the
prophet named Melkizedek who have had three names and his followers made some
“hey presto” or a way to convince people to be part of their religionism. In one of the
passage, Sonya Borja mentioned that—they all speak of the power of his eyes and the
charm of his voice, as a means to get all their entire concealed agenda for those who
believe and who will render their wealth for the expansion of their blind faith.
Another thing is when Sid Estiva asked Guia to leave her religion and start her
new life again, but her preference over her common good revealed once more, when
she rested a quiet cheek on his breast and saying—“ Give me until tomorrow night”.
Lastly, when father Melchor, who’s in the story, a prophet Melkizedek trying to coax Sid
to continue the legacy of their altered Christian belief regressing to paganism, yet Sid
had the right choice not to linger, but he placed and stood it up in the niche—as stated
in the last part of the story. And burned it along with the plane ticket— a flame tool in the
void, steady before the standing toothbrush.
Part II: ANALYSIS
“You ‘found yourself’ a number of times, before you know.”
(-Guia)
The analysis that I have formulated was based on how I presented my theme
and one element of fiction that suits on my analysis would be the character. It was
presented through the omniscient point of view.
Firstly, Guia, youngest sister of Sid Estiva and Adela, her personality was shaped
by the people around her. In the story, it was mentioned when she went-off outside her
box; she became new, knowing that, it was her choice, which is crazy. Her environment
dictates her personality, when she became an awful young writer, then a beatnik gang
and jumped-off to her religion. All of it contains a certain choice, because at the first
place, she had a decent life, yet she wants to discover the world of independent life,
away from the people who can truly help her which is her family. Sid then described her
fads, because in the story, everything that she involved to was all impermanent or short-
lived. Choices have two sides, the good one and the bad one, and every choice we
make, it contains certain consequence, just like how she devoted herself in her blind
religion, zealous with her commitment, fervent with her belief to the point wherein she
must decide whether family or her modern Christian proselytism involvement. She fails
to choose the right path and die because of her own misdeeds when Mr. Lao shot her
and calling her a witch.
I can also relate her life with a ‘toothbrush” having a smooth bristle, which is one
of the major symbols of the story. Then, maybe, her life is as smooth as the bristle of
the toothbrush. Having a good toothbrush affects the quality of our oral hygiene. We
must know the size which is fit to our mouth and a soft bristle in order for us to
comfortably clean our teeth. Yet, on the story, Guia chose toothbrush that contains
tough bristles, which she thought that it was good to her life, but it was not, she fell into
the pit of impostor knowing that it does not conform to the standards of true religion, that
her involvement cause her a lot, just like giving wealth to be a member and having a
sacrifice on their abominations
Isidro Estiva commonly known as Sid is the main character of the story and I can
connect his life to a “plane ticket’’. In the story, he became the plane ticket that helps
him travel the different culture, religion, belief and way of living in the Philippines after a
decade of living in other country and reveal the lurking agenda of Guia’s religious
movement. Also, when he opened the door around the niche and found out that it was
empty—it was stated in the final page of the story, then he placed the toothbrush along
with the plane ticket and burned it. He did not accept the offer of father Melchor, which
is a good choice. It also emphasizes the flame where Sid burned it without hesitation;
this means that, it was a choice not to be attracted with good proposals with
unscrupulous principle. The idea of flame or fire on the last statement, wherein he
looked back seeing it slowly fading which means choices dictates our fortune in life, we
chose to burned it, to lay to rest the unwanted memory or to preserve it just like what
Sid Estiva mentioned—but so old, so forgotten, so carefully shoved back by
civilizations, it now emerges as something completely new. But, through his good
choice, he was able to close a door that needs to deprecate and put an end by burning
it and slowly watching the ashes scattering around. Choices are something invented in
our mind, to think rationally or irrationally. The truth within us facilitates our decisions in
life, to choose to be in order, or in chaos. Our moral beings sometimes put us to decide
between, doing it because it satisfies me, or not doing it because troubles will happen
through my actions or impulsive decisions.
That is why; the title is about order, a point where our mind commands us to
make a great decision in all walks of life. Order also means instruction and we need to
discipline ourselves according to those assembled guidelines, which will help escort us
to reflect conferring to the order.