Philippine E-Journals

A Feminist Approach to Edilberto Tiempo’s Novel To Be Free

Lilia Maria Sevillano

Discipline: Literature, Feminism

 

Abstract:

Luisa Consuelo, securing to possess the attributes of the new woman, is shown as being conquered by those same attributes which, though admirable in men, may bring the downfall of women.

 

Edilberto Tiempo's novel, To Be Free, was originally a series of separate short stories depicting Philippine life and culture. These were eventually compiled into chapters to constitute the novel. However, the charm of this work of fiction is that it is possible to take each chapter as a separate unit, even as each section functions as part of the whole. As Francisco Arcellana described it, "this is not a minor miracle. It is a triumph of the narrative art: the novel is seamless."