LIT 111A

CHAPTER III LESSON 1

Name: Christine Noella Marie F. Sales Date: November 21, 2022

Yr/Crs/Sec: 3 - ABPhilosophy Subject: LIT11A

OPEN-END QUALITY
By Lilia Lopez-Chua

Lilia Lopez-Chua (1956) is a graduate of Creative Writing from Boston University. Lopez Chua’s poetry
has been published in three special issues of the “Road Map Series” in Davao

I like open ends too,

a house with front door
and a back open
where you can skip in and out
and not be some bread stuffed into a toaster
charred and burnt
with no other choice
but to lie in there
‘til some nut comes
to help you out.

I do not want to be helpless

like some jack-in-the box
always waiting for Jackie Boy

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 to loosen an end
to stick my neck out
only to be smashed
flat, till the tip of my head
meets the base of my feet.

I want to stretch my arms

and legs far and wide
to shed off my shadow
if I like-
to take off my head, body
legs and arms and
run around only with myself
naked and perfect
an open-end quality.

Direction: Read the poem and grasp its suggestions and implications.

A. Fill in the table with the appropriate information taken from the text. Number one has
been done for you. What are the things that the speaker likes, doesn’t like, wants,
doesn’t want?

What she likes/wants What she doesn’t like/want

1. Open ends Not some bread
2. A house with front door and a Do not want to be helpless
back open
3. To stretch arms and legs far and
wide
4. To take off my head, body, legs,
and arms

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B. Answer the following questions.

1. What must be the speaker’s struggle?

- The speaker is deprived from freedom and that’s what the speaker struggle.
When you comprehend properly the poem, the speaker is being chained by
something maybe, her family or by the society. She is always hiding in the
skeleton in the closet, as she can’t be herself because she is controlled by
someone.

2. What kind of situation is the speaker in?

- The kind of situation the speaker is in is same with the situation in jail. Where
you don’t have freedom to do whatever you want to do because you are being
observe or watch. Your actions are limited and are based on rules or
regulations that you must follow. You are not the one who gets to decide
about what’s best for you or what you should do because that might be
against with their aspirations or rules.

3. Why do you think she is in this situation?

- In my own perspective, the speaker is in this situation because of the people
around him/her. The speaker is afraid to show who truly he is for he think that
people or society might judge, criticize, and laugh at him. The speaker is
afraid that people especially his loved ones wouldn’t accept him for who he
really are. A lot of us chose to hide in the closet because of the prejudices
other people might throw to us.

4. What kind of like does she want?

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 - She likes to have her freedom where she can freely express her thoughts and
emotions. She wants to feel comfortable in everything that she do, and she
want to be herself not someone who isn’t her. The speaker wants to decide
on her own without being controlled by someone.

5. What kind of feeling is expressed in this line: “always waiting for Jackie Boy to
loosen an end, to stick my neck out, only to be smashed flat”?
- The feeling expressed in the line “always waiting for Jackie Boy to loosen an
end, to stick my neck out, only to be smashed flat” is the feeling of helpless. It
means that you need someone to help you out decide on how to live your life.
Just like the nails, that in order to achieve its purpose it need the hammer to
smash it. In reality, it is like you are depending on your family to decide about
what you should do and must not do.

6. Recall and retell the times in your life when you just wanted to be free and be
yourself.
- There were a lot of times where I wanted to be free and be myself but,
decided not to. Deciding to be not yourself is hard like you are a ticking bomb
where anytime you might explode. There are times where I really want to be
myself however, every time I am trying to be myself I hurt someone that’s why
I always chose not to be. Choosing not to be myself is sad and pathetic but, it
is the best for everyone. I better hurt myself than hurt others. In terms of
being free, I am lucky to say that my parents never deprive me of that but,
they still have rules I need to follow that I know, it is for my safety and best.

7. How can the men in society help liberate women?

- For me, men in society can help in liberating women through encouraging
them and helping them boost their confidence. It is the greatest help a man

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 can do for a women because, women build their confidence through
appreciating them. With this, it can be big tool to help women get liberate.

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