Sunday 8 January 2012

Tell it to Mando Plaridel That the "elite" should be heroes.

Tell it to Mando Plaridel That the "Elite" should be the heroes.


 Reminds of desperate people justifying a caste society clothed in a trappings of equality as they tend to speak things such as that in a modern day world. For sure they act intelligent enough to say that are the intelligentsia wanting to reform society including its culture well. In fact, this writer was reading a post about a recommendation making the elite as protagonists in a movie, tv shows or I should say in contemporary culture instead of the masses.

Here are the words being said so:

“Instead of focusing on slums, slums, slums, and whore, whores, whores, show a rich person who’s doing it right in life, and show how he’s trying to correct the lazy poor and helping them get their lives on track! I have YET to see that kind of movie. It’s always rooting for the underdog. This time, root for the overdog!”

"The Elite show how a person should behave in society, properly make decisions, have excellence and have a true sense of justice. That is the ideal hero... This should be shown in the movies and TV shows."

At first, it is kinda idealistic to read those passages to say an idea of an Elite as a protagonist, that there are chances of having an Elite enlightened and educating the rest of the people living in 7,107 islands; but then on the other side it obviously speaks the idea how these people really tend to justify having a caste society by  admitting that equality is merely a word in the dictionary, that social equality is impossible; it may sound trying hard Nietzschean isn't it? Especially as they are tired of realism such as slums and whores in every movie as this writer would say-that made them think "why not the enlightened Elite be the protagonist" instead of the poor? Or what is equality anyway?

 Well, Kinda desperate than idealistic rather to insist their  view over what is realistic. As not all rich people are "Enlightened." In fact, if they're against the Elite, the Oligarchs,  might as well think that "The Old Bones are Frailing" and should be smashed.

Yes, there may have been "enlightened elitists" around but whose background anyway? For sure these enlightened would be the oligarchs who desperately escape obligations by using corporate philanthropy, or students that once idealists that end up getting contented in what they are doing such as to earn and having a family. The idea of an "enlightened elite", like Jose Rizal or Del Pilar for example somehow would also meant conspiratorial in its idea, the way Rizal's Noli me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, Marcelo Del Pilar's La Solidaridad became means to further agitate the masses against the ills of society;  it can be also like Mando Plaridel from Hernandez's "Ibong Mandaragit"' but is Mando Plaridel a member of the elite to consider that he is enlightened by setting up a school for the people after having Simoun's jewelry found in the sea? He's even a poor person from the start according to the story, being a part of a household in the Montero family. Otherwise, they may wanted traitorous ones such as Pedro Paterno who still loved Spain despite being an official to the first republic and to the American regime.  

 The idea of an "enlightened elite" may result to a two way road taking look at the reality such as wanting people benefited from education or to be contented as they were as that elite benefits it's own using words and gestures.

Anyway, to those who dare to think, not all Elite and its wannabes are enlightened. Will they immerse themselves to the squatters if they dare to do so? Not all dare to immerse in order to know the problem, as most would say that they're ignorant, tardy, or just simply looking at them without understanding, or babbling that they know the problem out of books or watching it on the television.

Obviously, if there are amongst the Elite who is enlightened, they'll end up similar to the one carrying the nitroglycerin bomb. They may likely to be beyond books as they are willing to immerse into the field seeking for problems and solutions better than charity and contentment in a rotten structure. Good indeed to think and recommend that  Filipino entertainment, especially those from Movie and Television should change its content and message, that would rather contribute to society’s betterment by showing the solutions rather than sensationalizing the ills as the system insists today. 

...But what kind of solution should be?
Will it be for the masses or for the elite?
Is it radical change or just change of names and patterns?
Will it be superficial or not?
Will it be Idealistic or Realistic?

Tell it to Mando Plaridel that the "Elite" should be the heroes.