Physically Distanced, Critiquing an Essay About the Philippines During the Pandemic

           Francine Abueva’s overall essay entitled “The Effects of the Pandemic” revealed her positive yet slightly hesitant reaction to the Philippine government’s actions toward economic and health-related threats to the country. The essay resonated a lighthearted and sincere tone as I was gradually reading the author’s prompt reaction to the country’s lockdown in response to the Coronavirus Pandemic. The meaningfully constructed one-paragraph essay contained a few significant points by Abueva that truly expressed hope and understanding to the country’s status quo. For this assessment, I will critique Francine Abueva’s perception on the country’s struggle and its government’s actions in response to the struggle, and her reaction to such actions all in the midst of the Coronavirus Pandemic. I will also evaluate Francine Abueva’s construction of her essay, as well as recognize the creativity and uniqueness of her statements.

Abueva opened her essay acknowledging the pandemic’s “destruction” to the country and its economic state, which is a clear fact that she is aware of the dire effects of the current health crisis. She then talked about the country’s struggle in the middle of this pandemic, indicating the sudden failure of not only its government but as well as its citizens. She appreciated the closure of financial markets for the growth of the country’s economic state, however after researching on such idea I have realized that it might be theoretically true that a closed economy can flourish but still not as much as an opened one. Nevertheless, her appreciation to the government’s vital decision to close, or somehow control, its trading systems in some way diminished when she expressed her sympathy to the struggling Filipino citizens who, to her realization, were also very much affected by the severity of this pandemic.

Loss of hope seems to have endued Abueva the will to share words of hope to the readers of her essay. She impelled her readers to look at the brighter side of everyday living in the middle of this pandemic. A portion of Abueva’s essay was imbued with much hope and acceptance to the current issue at hand. It was pleasant for me to read a glint of assurance in her brief essay. She provided assurance in contrast to pointing out the fated struggle of all aspects of the nation, which can be a good way to conclude her essay.

In addition to her finishing statements, I have observed that she did not only indicate the closure of the country’s economic market but also other facets such as the Filipino citizens’ ability to endure hardships, peace and order, and the recognition of vaccines. From what I have recollected, I believe that her statements hold symbolisms. Abueva makes use of pronouns such as our, we, their, and us. She also tells her own opinion, indicating a pronoun of “me” in one sentence. Nonetheless, the recurrence of plural pronouns would most likely indicate that she was speaking on behalf of the Filipino citizens, or even the entirety of the Philippines. Abueva is recognizing the fact that she is part of this country, and that the historic events transpiring within it are also affecting her in a way that can be read in her essay.

Abueva’s essay is fairly constructed, to which I hoped she simply revised as she finished her writing process. Nevertheless, it might have been the case that she just oversaw grammatical errors and spellings in her essay while writing it. But then again, I was genuinely keen on her use of certain figures of speech. In a statement, she wrote about the country’s development tumbling down like dominos. She personified an abstract concept to a non-living object “tumbling down” in relation to the economy’s dwindling status due to the pandemic. Abueva wrote another distinctive statement illuminating over the similarities of the country’s condition during the pandemic to bees after losing their queen, making use of the preposition “like” to compare such ideas. After further researching and understanding Abueva’s claim, I suppose it is not entirely the case that the queen bee is responsible for keeping her hive in order, but to provide a certain hormone that keeps the colony alive and to produce more offspring for the colony to thrive. Perplexingly, I could also say the same for the country’s state; the queen bee of society might not be a person but an aspect of the country, it could be the economic status or the governing system. Writing about losing the “sight” of “hope” and telling her readers that staying alive can be an indication that there is still “hope” at the end of the “tunnel” is a remarkable statement of optimism. Hope is abstract, though Abueva indicates the fact that merely recognizing blessings in everyday living can be seen as catalysts of hope and that it could help one in passing through the tunnel which can be regarded as the struggles.

Abueva’s essay is a personal and sincere piece that echoes her true sentiments about the state of her country and its people. Though the essay was not written with such expertise as of a well-regarded writer, but what spoke more to me were Abueva’s unfiltered and honest sentiments. She truly knows and acknowledges the fact that the country, its citizens, and the economy are all struggling as an effect of the wrath of the Coronavirus Pandemic. Nevertheless, she opted to inspire her readers to become more optimistic during these trying times. Francine Abueva’s “The Effects of the Pandemic” did truly impart the worst and the best of the society during the pandemic to its readers through the means of reading such a lighthearted and concise essay.