#criticalessay

Mike Portes the writer of the short story "Minsan mya isang p*ta" is born woman but she became part of trans community because of unfortunate events. Mike Portes also has biological children. Jumping to his work, the literary piece "Minsan may isang p*ta" was written in 2004 and was modified in 2007. This short story was originally published in April 30, 2004 at peyups.com

This short story written by Mike Portes is such a masterpiece, he used the word "p*ta" to describe the Philippines and it has a lot of meaning in the story. The writer used metaphorical words that described the suffering and pain of the Philippines embodied in a role of a woman who was abused by three foreigners. These foreigners represents the three countries who tried to take over the Philippines.

The main character here in the story is the prostitute / the Philippines, the author's relationship to the main character is that the author lives in this country. The center of attention in the story is clearly the woman / the mother. The environment being described in this story is about the cruelty of the foreign countries to the Philippines.

As you read the story, the atmosphere is emotional and reflective as it digs into the harsh reality and struggles of the protagonist. The woman expresses her desire to break free from her past and stop engaging in sex work but she is hindered by the burden of debt that she accumulated.

The short story written by Mike Portes "Minsan may isang p*ta" consists of 3 pages (online) and 1,138 words. The external conflict that is being shown in the story is how the protagonist face the world and challenges in her life and family, on the other hand, her internal problems are her mental and emotional battles.

There are many problems in the story, these problems are how the Philippines is being buried in debt, how the Philippines is being destroyed in the past because of the other countries, etc.

In the story, the one who has a problem is the mother. She was molested by the foreigners three times. The mother is also struggling on how to support her children and make a living, her other children also took advantage of her and betrayed her.

The man vs man in the story is how the three foreigners raped the mother, the man vs society is the mother's children who moved to the other countries for good and it is similar to what is happening in our country because of the government, low salary, etc. , Filipinos chose to move to other countries to live a better life. The man vs nature shown is still the rapists and the mother because of how those three countries tried to ruin and take advantage of the Philippines.

This story written by Mike Portes is such a realistic story because it reflects the reality of life and it symbolizes the past of the Philippines, it reflects the history of the Philippines.

The characters in the story is the mother / the Philippines, three foreigners, and the children. The author presents the characters as the people who lived in the Philippines and the countries during the time the Philippines was being attacked and ruled by the other countries. We see here that the main character in the story is the mother (Philippines) and the secondary character is the foreigner / the last relationship the mother had, who played a significant role in her life.

This short story takes us back in the Philippine history and the author wants to show us and tell us how our country suffered in the past and how our country was being enslaved by the other countries. The author also wants to portray how much damage these events from the past left our country and the people in our country.

Nerissa Nields As I Lay Dying and Sing, Unburied, Sing. As predicted, I now have my manuscript back for the novel Pimmit Run, the first in the series of books about The Big Idea, a family folk-rock band from a small city in Western MA. So this will likely be the last essay before I come up for air again in early November. This is the second in a series of essays about what I’ll call “road…

In the novel entitled "Little Women," It tells the story of four sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March, and the social demands put on them as women. It emphasizes the significance of hard work, which is directly linked to how women should conduct themselves in society. 

The part of the text that influenced my opinion was that by the time one of the girls focuses on their heart's desires and/or neglects their familial obligations, something horrible happens. The girls end up feeling guilty and ashamed if they focus on their personal life as opposed to their obligation to their family. Though the girls' intention for following their heart's desire was to live a meaningful personal life in order not to be a burden and a heavy-weight on their parents' shoulders. Particularly given that they are not getting any younger.

With that saying so, I don't think there is something wrong on having genuine identity. We tend to define ourselves by our social standing, our, friends and family, our basic needs and ambitions, and the emotional and intellectual expressions of our thoughts.

Eighteen million Facebook likes, his own series and thousands upon thousands of portraits, Brandon Stanton has been producing outstanding work consistantly for the past five years. Most well-known for his blog and book “Humans of New York”. Stanton is an excellent photographer, however, his ability to tell a story is how he has grabbed our attention.

We seldom engage with the unfamiliar people around us. Perhaps a smile, or occasionally a “Good Morning” yet rarely anything more. This does not apply to Stanton. He prides himself on having a level of intimacy with his subject. Having the persons trust is something Stanton found challenging during the beginning of his career as people are inherently hesitant, yet as he gained more exposure Stanton overcame this as he could display his intentions via his website and portfolio. Stanton always approaches his subject by simply asking for a photo. Then as he begins to build a rapport, he then escalates into a more meaningful conversation. This understanding of the subject allows Stanton to craft a portrait which reflects who the person truly is. Although Stanton may ask very open questions at the beginning of his interview, his aim is to delve deeper as to uncover the most emotional moments in his subject’s life. From times of great stress to overwhelming happiness, as this is where – he believes- the best stories are found. He wants to show each person as an individual hence why he strays away from statements, opinions and philosophies. This has grasped our attention because it creates a connection with the strangers around us, by exclusively focusing on their stories, we form a bond with people who we may not agree with in any other circumstance.

Stanton’s ability to form a relationship with his subject does not only set his images apart but it is also the way he creates an honest reflection of the individual. He minimally edits his photograph’s in post-processing. Showcasing these raw, virtually untouched photos contrasts against a lot of the pictures found on social media which have been cherry picked with the intention of making a person look better. This would explain why Stanton has been such a massive hit on sites such as Facebook and Twitter as he appears more genuine.

Although the thought process and the story is a key part of what has made Stanton so successful, he must also be admired for his simplicity. Whilst he is photographing he carries a camera with a singular lens yet he manages to create stunning, perfectly composed and exposed images. In addition, due to the small amount of equipment, it makes him less intimidating when speaking to strangers.

Stanton often incorporates the background into his photos to add context to the story he’s trying to tell nonetheless, the person will remain the focal point in every one of his images. He achieves this through using compositional techniques such as a shallow depth of field and leading lines. Furthermore, New York is renowned for being a vibrant and distracting city which makes this even more impressive.

Finally, Stanton must be commended for the on-going evolution of Humans of New York. Stanton has revealed how at the start of “HONY” he made a purposeful decision to find interesting looking people who would create a unique photo. As he progressed with the project he concentrated less on the appearance of the person and focused on the narrative they were telling and the emotions they displayed. Going from spending a few moments with a person, to having a meaningful twenty-minute conversation. It’s gone from a singular Facebook page to a bestselling book and now a series of successful online videos. Stanton has no limits and everyone is waiting in anticipation to see what he does next.

Sources:

Humans of New York: Stories (Book)

Chase Jarvis LIVE Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txONCwKYx14

An empty coffee cup and my notes for my critical essay on The Tragedy of Mariam by Elizabeth Cary. I have crippling critical essay fear, to the point where I have nothing but self-doubt and I question my abilities to be an English Major. My word nerd status means everything to me, but I do completely freak out when it comes to essay time.  Thankfully my professor, who is also my mentor, is well versed in talking me off of ledges, but I wanna be one of those people who can whip out a critical essay without breaking a sweat.