THE DOG EATER

BY: LEONCIO P. DERIADA

Leoncio P. Deriada is a Filipino writer and professor emeritus of creative

writing and literature at the University of the Philippines in the Visayas in Iloilo.

Leonardo P. Derieda, the writer of Dog Eater, is an award-winning local

writer who was born in Iloilo yet was raised and finished his education in
Davao City. Derieda finished his English degree in Ateneo de Davao as a cum
laude and further earned his Masteral in English in Xavier University, later on,
he received Ph.D. in English and Literature in late 1981.

He was born on January 13, 1938 in the town of Barotac Viejo, in the
province of Iloilo in central Philippines but spent most of his life in Davao City
in the island of Mindanao. He went to school at the Davao City High School and
graduated in 1955. He earned his BA English degree at the Ateneo de Davao
University where he graduated cum laude in 1959. He later received his MA in
English from Xavier University in 1970 and went on to receive his PhD in
English and Literature with a specialization in creative writing from Silliman
University in 1981 where he later on served as professor and chairperson of
the English Department.

He is a multi-lingual writer having produced works in English, Filipino,

Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a and Cebuano. He served as professor and chairperson in
Siliman University. Derieda, as a multi-lingual writer, has already written a lot
of literary pieces in different codes including Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a, English, and
Filipino. Derieda’s Dog Eater, which have touch millions of readers, won third
prize in Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Short Story.
 His seventeen Palanca Awards include works in English, Filipino and
Hiligaynon. Of these seventeen, five are first-prize winners, and these include
“The Day of the Locusts” (Short Story, 1975), “Mutya ng Saging” (Dulaang May
Isang Yugto, 1987), “The Man Who Hated Birds” (Short Story for Children,
1993), “Medea of Siquijor” (One-Act Play, 1999), and “Maragtas: How
Kapinangan Tricked Sumakwel Twice” (Full-Length Play, 2001). He became a
Palanca Hall of Famer on September 1, 2001.

Aside from his Palanca awards, he has garnered other awards such as
the Gawad CCP para sa Sining, Gawad Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas
(awarded by the Unyon ng mga Manunulat sa Pilipinas), Asiaweek, Graphic,
Focus, Yuhum Magazine (Iloilo), and Blue Knight Award from Ateneo de Davao
for Outstanding Achievement in Literature. In 2002, he was one of
Metrobank’s Outstanding Teachers.

He is Professor Emeritus at the University of the Philippines Visayas,

where he was the head of the Sentro ng Wikang Filipino. He was also an
associate of the U.P. Institute of Creative Writing.

Deriada died in Iloilo City on April 3, 2019. [4]In the same year his book
Ang Kalye nga Wala sing Kamatayon: The Palanca Award-winning Short Stories
of Leoncio P. Deriada was published posthumous by the Division of Humanities
of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas. This anthology was edited by
his daughter, Dulce Maria V. Deriada, also a Palanca award-winning writer.

The Dog Eaters tells the story of a couple’s disintegrating marriage

against a backdrop of poverty. Mariana, the distressed wife of a husband
lacking in ambition, explodes when her husband’s friends invite him for a drink.
These friends have prepared a canine treat for their drinking bout. The food
disgusts Mariana. She feels that eating dog meat is indecent and inhumane.
But when she realizes that the people around her do not have any problems
with this, her cup is filled and takes certain matters into her hands as a
desperate attempt to escape her squalid realities.
 SUMMARY OF THE STORY

SETTINGS:
Place: Artiaga Street, Davao City (Specific Place: Mariana and Victor’s
Home, Sergio’s Store)

Time: In the Year, 1970s

Victor who is a former Body Builder and Club Bouncer married Mariana
who is an Undergraduate College because she gets pregnant. Victor and his
friends (The Dog Eaters of Artiaga Street) are always drinking Tuba early in the
morning at Sergio’s store with Dog dishes as their pulutan. Mariana was very
mad because it is not the life she expected to have. She takes care of their 8
months old and now she’s bearing another one in her womb.

She can’t stand it anymore and try to abort her child by drinking some
herbal liquid which she bought desperately from Aling Elpidia for 40 pesos. She
and Victor had a quarrel. Victor threw a bottle of herbal liquid out of the
window and it was broken. Marian pounded Victor with her fist but the man
carried it. Suddenly, Mariana saw Victor’s Dog Ramir, she killed the Dog. And
for a long time living in Artiaga Street, Mariana cried.
 REFLECTION:

Dog-Eaters is story about the consequences that happened in our life.

Throughout the story it revealed the suffering of the two couples Victor
and Mariana. Victor who is a former body builder and club bouncer eloped
with Mariana who is an undergraduate college student because she gets
pregnant. From that phenomenon, it turn their lives into misery especially that
she’s bearing another one in her womb. She can’t stand it anymore especially
that they always fight with each other and that, she tried to abort her child by
drinking some herbal liquid which she bought desperately from Aling Elpidia.
She and Victor had a quarrel.

Victor threw the bottle of herbal liquid out the window and it was
broken. Mariana pounded Victor with her fists but the man carried it.
Suddenly, Mariana saw Victor’s dog Ramir, she killed the dog. She was being
blinded by her feelings and emotions towards Victor that leads her life into
depression and despair. The story tells that in every decision that a person will
takes, there is also a corresponding consequences that will lead his/her life be
successful or be living his/her in misery. And if he/she can’t handle these
actions his/her life aybe ruined and regrets at the end.

A person should also learn to stand on his/her own if he/she wanted to

continue in his/her life because after all he/ she made this happen.
 Analysis of “The Dog Eater” Using a Moralistic
Approach
The Dog Eater is a short story written by Leonardo P. Deriada that gives
the reader possible events in a marriage life.

Filipino setting is being portrayed on the short story. It is in a rural

setting typically a barrio since it mentioned that around ten a.m people were
already drinking tuba and those type of activity were commonly done by
citizens who are staying on that kind of place. Their rentedhouse is located
near the street since it is mentioned that Marianahung up classic curtains
thatcould not completely ward off the stink from the street.

The Dog Eater foretells a story of a couple in a hassle, who are

imprisoned in their forced marriage. In the story, the author gives an apparent
result of a marriage out of liability. The Dog Eater also disposed a behavior,
which normally is not accepted by the norms.

A Moralistic Approach in a literary criticism will discriminate literature

between the false and true, the deformed and normal; preachers of harmony
and proportion and order, prophets of the religion taste.

Furthermore, it emphasized that is it the critic’s duty, to determine the

moral tendency of literary works and judge them on that basis. In layman’s
term, a moralistic approach is concerned with the content and values. In using
a moralistic approach to scrutinize the short story Dog Eater, the critics will
dispose two moral issues present in the story; the early marriage at the early
age and the slaughtering of dog for dog meat, and also the critics will reveal
the moral lesson the author wants to impart.
 The marriage at the early age is an issue very well known to young
people nowadays. According to social law, marriage is rightful only if in the
right age or if both people willing to marry have a stable life. In the story,
Victor only married Mariana because he got her pregnant and because of the
liability of having the baby, they enter marriage life without preparing or
anticipating what life they could have. In a moralistic approach, using the view
of the social law, critics could say that the marriage of Victor and Mariana
resulted to scrape.

The author emphasized that from the beginning, though there are
possible that Victor loved Mariana, Victor felt the lust towards Mariana which
results to her pregnancy. Early marriage at the early age because of pregnancy,
though some accepted it, would still be considered as an issue especially today
that practical needs of a family are unreachable. In the story, the author then
wants the reader to apprehend what consequence of having early marriage at
the early age could give.

Another ethical issue presented in the story is the slaughtering of dogs

for dog meat. Biblically speaking, killing is a sin and every life are equally
valuable whether it is in the highest form or lowest form of animals. In the
story, people at Artiaga St. slaughter dog for their pulutan.

Though some people or some countries practice this kind of activities, in

the Philippines, killing of animals is strictly prohibited. In a moralistic approach,
the critics could consider those people, who killed a dog for dog meat,
murderers. Dogs and humans, according to Biology, belong to the same
kingdom; Kingdom Animalia. This proves that whether it’s a human or a dog,
taking their life is a sin. As stated in the Ten Commandments “Thou shalt not
kill” (Ex. 20 v.13). Its only God’s job to take the life of his creation.
 Deriada, the author of the Dog Eater, wrote the story not just to tell a
story but rather to impart a lesson. The Dog Eater Story dispose a lot of social
and biblical issues that are presently rampant in the society. Derieda, as a
concerned citizen, foretells the story that could give readers a lesson to think
first before doing or coming to a decision.

In a moralistic approach, the critics could conclude that all of Victor’s

and Mariana’s adversity came from their mischief. It is evident in the story that
the couple created a lot of wrong decision; firstly, when Victor and Mariana
stop attending school and marry each other without proper orientation to
marriage life which leads them to an atrocious relationship as spouse,
secondly, when Mariana decides to abort their second child which ending up a
skirmish between the two of them, and lastly when Mariana unconsciously
killed their own dog Ramir.

The Dog Eater is a short story of Leonardo P. Derieda, a Carlos Palanca

Memorial Awardee, is truly a story that gives not only entertainment,
information but also lessons. In this paper, the critics who used Moralistic
Approach, which seek only the content and values of a literary piece, have
deciphered two ethical issues present in the society and a lesson that a lot of
people could consider. The critic showed that early marriage at the early age
could lead to a destruction of a household, the unprepared marriage is not
normally accepted in the norm. Also, the critics implied that the killing of
animals is just like killing a human, taking one’s life is biblically not accepted.
And lastly, the critics want the reader to understand the lesson of the story,
the story serves as a warning to the readers to be more cautious about their
acts.
 “In every action there’s an equal and opposite reaction.”

-Isaac Newton’s Law of Interaction

In every decision that a person will take, there is a corresponding

consequences that either will lead his life to success or will lead his life to
misery. If an individual is not able to handle the cost of the action taken, it will
ruin and turn his life into wretchedness. The short story which is to be analyze
is written by Leoncio P. Deriada entitled The Dog Eaters. The theme, the
setting and the character (protagonist) will be the basis in analyzing the text.

The theme of the short story is suffering the consequences of the actions
being done. Basically, the text revolves on the consequences on the decisions
and actions done by the characters in the story. On the first part, Victor who is
a former body builder and club bouncer eloped with Mariana who is an
undergraduate college student because she gets pregnant. From that
phenomenon, it turn their lives into misery especially that she’s bearing
another one in her womb. She can’t stand it anymore especially that they
always fight with each other and that, she tried to abort her child by drinking
some herbal liquid which she bought desperately from AlingElpidia.

ALL ACTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES

Everything we think and say and do has consequences for ourselves and
for others. Like ripples on a pond our actions spread out and affect others
because everything is interconnected. And we need to remember that our
actions are irreversible.

Consequences are where our thoughts and actions meet reality. We

can’t always foresee all the consequences of our actions and trying to be 100%
sure we are doing the right thing 100% of the time would lead to anxiety and
indecisiveness. However, we can resolve to try to choose those actions that
lead to true happiness and not to unhappiness – to avoid selfish actions and to
choose actions that have beneficial consequences for all – actions that
promote connection and unity and harmony.

INTENTION is the key. Our intention can be to do no harm and to try to

be helpful to all our fellow beings.

When we know and FEEL that we are all connected, then we don’t want
to hurt anyone. We know that would make us unhappy too. Feeling our
interconnectedness makes us sensitive to how our actions affect others.

Ultimately, LOVE is the purest motivation for our actions. Love is

wanting others to be happy too. It motivates goodwill, friendliness, kindness,
compassion for those who are suffering, and a desire to be of service to all.

Experience can be an excellent teacher, if we reflect on our actions and

their consequences. We then consider our actions more carefully and cease
being merely reactive to situations. Over time we become wiser and more
skilful in our actions. REFLECTING on our behaviour is the key to changing.

We can also consider what the wise have said about actions. Wise
people in all times and places have suggested rules or guidelines that promote
a way of living that is harmonious with everyone and that contributes to a
stable peace of mind and a life free of fear and strife for the individual.
Respect for others, and ourselves, is the underlying basis for such principles.
Ethical actions consider the long-term interests of all.

We can start with rules or guidelines but potentially we can go beyond

following rules and act from understanding; and even beyond that, we can act
from a feeling of being connected to all other beings and to the whole of
nature.

To build a harmonious and peaceful world we need mutual tolerance

and understanding. The most promising avenue is to be found in a system of
secular ethics grounded in a deep appreciation of our common humanity.

– The 14th Dalai Lama

Actions come from our state of mind. So, when our state of mind changes,
then our actions change. If we make a conscious effort to develop our innate
goodness, then that becomes our usual state of mind.

By becoming a kinder person we will be less likely to act in a negative way. We

can practise being generous when we realise we are being selfish, patience
when angry, and loving kindness to those we have difficulty with. We can
focus on being thoughtful before speaking or acting. Gradually more of our
true nature shines through in our everyday actions.

Living with a spirit of kindness and generosity takes our focus off ourselves
which expands our life and our true happiness.

We see we need to take full RESPONSIBILITY for ourselves and our actions. As
we grow we learn how to act in wise, practical and creative ways. Developing
a gentle self-discipline and thoughtfulness brings our actions into line with our
understanding and our higher intentions.

We may need to patiently train ourselves out of the habits of the way we have
been living. Self-control – over our thoughts, feelings and actions – is
necessary for success in life. Self-control often means overriding our habitual
impulses. We can endeavour to cease acting/reacting impulsively or recklessly.
This story Particularly we need to be careful when seeking pleasure or
excitement. Being caught up in pleasure or excitement we might not think
properly about the consequences. Some pleasures may bring pain and
suffering in their wake.

Self-interest or selfishness, including the desire for pleasure, has such a strong
influence on our attitudes and behaviour. If we can see that in the long term,
bigger picture the consequences are not good, then we see the need to resist
impulses and to act in line with our understanding.

Taking responsibility for our actions is EMPOWERING. We open up the

opportunity and the freedom to shape our own lives. We realise that we are
the main agent in our own life – we are not just at the mercy of other agents.
We have the power to change ourselves and so change our lives, and we
understand that everything we do affects how our life unfolds. We can be
creative and find satisfaction in our achievements, becoming more confident
and effective. Acting responsibly, we earn the trust and respect of others.

Changing our own attitudes and behaviour is within our control and capacity.
Changing the attitudes and behaviour of others is not – although we may be
able to influence them and indeed may have a responsibility to do so.

Although all our actions have consequences we should not think that
everything that happens to us is caused by us. We may be a victim of events
and circumstances beyond our control such as natural disasters, major social
upheavals or selfish or reckless individuals.

Realising the consequences of our actions will sometimes cause us to regret

them and resolve to avoid such actions in the future. We may need to be
accepting and forgiving of ourselves at the same time as we look for possible
ways to make amends for any harm done. We will sometimes need to forgive
those whose actions have harmed us. Being unforgiving or revengeful
prolongs any suffering and often initiates a new round of harmful actions.
Acceptance and forgiveness allow us to move forward and not fix on the past.