Dark Blue Suit
The relationship between father and son is a strong element in this story. We see the son studying his father’s mannerisms carefully, watching how he interacts with other people and how his demeanor affects them. This leads up to the closing of the story, where the son entertains the notion of trying to replicate these mannerisms himself, as a show of the way that behaviors like these are passed on between parent and child.
Accordions in the story are presented as a symbol of people chasing after success. Seeing the television host and accordionist Lawrence Welk, scores of people try to replicate that path to success, much the same way the son tries to replicate his father’s behavior. Just as information like this can be passed from parent to child, it can also be transferred from media to its audience.
The way that language is used in this story is as a barrier, which keeps certain people close together and others left out entirely. The son in this story is actually able to understand the Cebuano language, allowing him access to the “in-group” in this case, “a world I didn’t want to leave,” as he explains on page 26. Also of note is the way the language is described as having “a nice melodious tone” on page 20, setting it apart from the accordion and the hollow attempt at achieving success that it represents.
Rico
Rico’s decision to enlist is driven by a belief that he has no future in America. Specifically, on page 33 the way he says “I ain’t got no black power let-your-hair-grow-out-don’t-conk-it-shit” draws a divide in the way he views the plight of different racial minorities. Rico’s feeling is that black people at least had a growing sense of pride and the fight for civil rights, where Filipinos had nothing.
Earlier on the same page the story adequately portrays the nature of war, with our perspective character narrating how “boys from poor neighborhoods like ours carried the flag into dangerous places for powerful, arrogant, and profoundly foolish old white men.” The growing effort to have a racially integrated military after World War II offered minority groups the privilege of dying for the country that had mistreated and abused them for generations.
At the bottom of page 35, the line “In our neighborhood, emotion was for sissies and not to be shown, even to friends,” captures another sad reality. The way that men are often taught not to express their feelings is a very real issue, and one that can work its way into any culture, as exhibited by this story written from a Filipino perspective.
The Second Room
The skepticism Bruce Lee had of some of the “traditional Chinese fighting arts” is described on page 42. I thought the way this concept is then broadened to apply to other concepts including “religion, marriage, and careers” demonstrated the ways that the lessons we learn aren’t necessarily one dimensional but can be applicable in many aspects of our lives.
The way Taky is characterized in the story is very effective. While our perspective character doesn’t spend too much time with him, it’s the respect other people have for him that establishes how we are supposed to feel. Knowing what each of these characters is capable of themselves, understanding that each of them looks up to Taky makes him seem more legitimate by some sort of transitive property.
Violence and the ways that people seek it out both factor into the story. A character dubbed only “Killer” is emblematic of the sort of person who takes pleasure in exerting power over those weaker than themselves. By contrast the perspective character is pitted against opponents of equal or greater capability and pushes themselves to best them by improving his own technique (and using illegal moves sparring against the boxer).
August 1968
The tension between racial groups is felt on page 62 with the line “Were my traits now targets – entries stamped on a passport to a beating?” The beating of a Chinese boy for not being “one of us” causes these conflicted feelings in our Filipino protagonist.
This continues with the character questioning whether he will become a target in a black revolution. This story being set in 1968 places it late in the era of the civil rights movement and serves as a reminder that racial tensions at the time weren’t just between black and white.
On page 63, Aaron’s response to his friend using a racial slur against him (framed the same way as his friendly jabs from earlier, worth mentioning) is to say that he sounds “like a damn white man.” How did you feel about this interaction and the way that Aaron responds?
Home
On page 71, the way Rico notes that Buddy wasn’t in Vietnam almost gives the feeling of some resentment for that fact. It doesn’t feel like a fair thing to hold against your friend necessarily, especially knowing firsthand how affecting that experience was, but it’s also easy to see that Rico’s not really in a great place so as to be targeting his feelings at all the right people.
The sort of ritual Buddy has for Rico alone at his grave is the delivery on a promise made between them when they were young, and much better friends. The way the relationship deteriorates over time until there’s almost no communication between them anymore is a particularly tragic example of someone who felt like he had nothing losing one of the few things he did have.
The story follows on from the earlier story, paying off the line about what happens to “boys from poor neighborhoods” when there’s a war to be fought. We got a hint of the conclusion in that story, but here we see in detail the effect the experience had on Rico.
A Life Well Lived
Page 82 mentions the way that the fight against building the Kingdome was one that put the Filipinos at a strong disadvantage. Specifically, Chris’ reaction to this and the way it illustrates the many fights he’s been through, build his character quite effectively. As it says on the same page, “At his age, what mattered most was the chance to joust, whatever the outcome.”
The custom of taking pictures of the dead highlights the differing cultures experienced by Filipino-Americans. This practice of remembering the dead is made a point of comparison against forgetting the living, suggesting the way that we often choose to ignore the suffering of people around us as we go about our own lives.
Chris’s political values are brought up in detail on page 87. He’s a Stalinist, and not the sort willing to entertain any other forms of Communism, despite varying political beliefs in his friend group. The way this is outlined is in contrast to his personality. As written, “Chris’s talent – the human touch – worked in spite of his ideology, not because of it.”
The Wedding
The common of image of people coming to America is that they come here hoping to live out the “American Dream.” What we find in this story is the end result of someone who did the same but ultimately failed in their pursuits, eventually returning back to the Philippines, despite appearing to hate their home.
This idea is first introduced on page 91, with Vince returning to the Philippines to marry, and sharing stories of the “Wonderland” he’ll be taking her to. Despite Vince turning out better than Leo would, it’s mentioned that “the America of Filipino dreams” fell apart on the first night after arriving.
The thing that drives Leo’s decision is the feeling that America is “too hard for old men,” as stated on page 101. Despite living and working in America for twenty years, Leo is left with nothing to show for it. There are similarities between Leo here and Rico earlier, whose decision to enlist in the army is based on his feeling that he has no future in America. Difference is the realization for these characters comes to them at very different stages in their lives.
A Manong’s Heart
On page 109 we get an illustration of the differences between the generation that first came to America and the generation after. The younger generation is described as remembering the past in a way that is “clean and detached” when it is remembered at all, while the older generation, having lived through the process of coming to America and the subsequent disillusionment, still remembers and holds on to that history.
The way that boxing provided young Filipinos the rare chance to be judged as equals is a fascinating point. It sheds some light on the way that non-white people are valued in America, that they would be good for the spectacle of prizefighting, but rarely afforded any privilege outside of the ring. The comparison to “the days of dogs, pits, and bears” on 110 is apt.
The importance of sports and games, also elaborated on page 110, is of similar interest. There are several quotes here that really stand out: “Organized sport in America magnifies the insignificant… In this competition, symbols are held dearest by those who hold the least of anything else.” This does a really great job at explaining the highly personal stakes a lot of people have in the success of their favored athletes or teams, especially when it comes to, as described, “competition between religions, classes, or races.”
Stephie
The tension in the relationship here comes from Stephie’s decision to leave Buddy for a white man, a decision driven by her mother, who seems to think this will be what is best for her half-Filipino child.
As a recurring theme by this point, Mildred believes Buddy has no future. So it was with Rico, so it was with Leo. This idea that there was no future for Filipinos in America must have been a pervasive one for how often it appears throughout these stories.
In the argument that breaks out Stephie raises some points about her own experience being the child of a white mother and Filipino father. On page 120, “You had uncles, Buddy. You had the Community. You had it made. It was easy for you to be who you are, to be Filipino. Mom and me were outcasts, Buddy. Lepers.”
A Matter of Faith
Page 128 brings us the revelation that Buddy, despite his closeness, doesn’t actually know Kikoy’s real name. This might seem like it was trying to say that he didn’t actually know him as well as he thought, but the point this beat makes in the story is actually to emphasize just how close they really were. “For Filipinos, nicknames meant closeness, a key granting access to the intimate. I didn’t know his real name, didn’t have to.”
The “matter of faith” referred to in the title is a theme in the story of religion as it relates to the family and their culture. Specifically, Kikoy and Buddy’s mother are presented as the faithful people in the story, practicing their religion, and in Kikoy’s case trying to share the experiences he has had with the younger generation represented in Buddy.
By contrast, Buddy and his father are non-religious. It’s not until Kikoy’s death that Buddy entertains the notion of using Kikoy’s necklace to invoke any of the faith it had given his uncle overseas. Also of interest is the way Buddy tries to use faith to ensure his uncle that he will make it to the hospital before he dies. This ultimately doesn’t work out, and yet Buddy turns to faith again in the closing of the story.
Dancer
The story depicts a rather complicated schism in the family that, unless I’m misremembering, wasn’t mentioned before. It kind of falls in line with the way that Sonia says (on page 140) that the family never even asked about her. The way she was cast out and was relegated to a sort of silence among the family is in keeping with the way we were kept unaware as readers until now.
Buddy’s reaction to being told what happened by Sonia on page 138 is telling. At the fact that his mother may have been responsible for pushing Sonia out he immediately feels an urge to deny the allegation or defend her in some way, but ultimately resists the urge and continues to listen rather than objecting.
A similar thing happens with Sonia in regard to her and Buddy’s father on page 139. Despite the feelings of abandonment and all the resentment that brings, as Sonia says, “the bitch of it is, I still love ‘im.” The ways both characters feel about their family despite the events that occurred shows a sort of resilience in the family relationship. They understand that what happened was wrong and that it complicates their feelings towards the people responsible, but they still love them as family regardless.
A Family Gathering
The story depicts a difference between generations of immigrants. Page 143 describes the later generation as having “landed on a much softer place” thanks to the foundation built for them by generations prior.
There’s a sort of parallel here with the relationship between Buddy and his father. On page 147, we get a description of the way his dad worked for what he called blood money: “He did this, I knew, so his kids could avoid a life of blood money.” As one of the early immigrants and as someone who worked hard to ensure a better life for his children, Buddy’s father is an example of the ways that people should try to do what they can to leave behind a better world than the one they inhabited.
In describing his relationship with his father on page 146 there is a comparison to the model American family as seen on TV: “I had the impression, dashed by age ten, that fathers and sons were supposed to talk, to hold long heart-to-heart marathons like Ward and Beaver.” The comparison might make the relationship Buddy had with his father seem cold, but the reality is the relationship presented on TV is artificial. We see the love Buddy’s father had for his son manifested in real ways, just nothing so up front as the ways we usually see love expressed in fiction.