MY FATHER GOES TO COURT

By: Carlos Bulusan

Author’s Background: Carlos Bulusan (1911-1956) was a prolific writer and poet, best remembered as the author of America Is in the Heart, a landmark semi-autobiographical story about the Filipino immigrant experience.

Vocabulary:

Waft - pass or cause to pass gently through the air.

Contagious - spread from one person or organism to another, typically by direct contact.

Condemning - express complete disapproval of; censure.

Feeble - lacking physical strength, especially because of age or illness.

Morose - sullen and ill tempered.

Strut - walk with a stiff, erect, and apparently arrogant or conceited gait.

Characters:

Poor Family – Accused of stealing the spirit of certain things from their neighboring Rich family.

Rich Family – Victims of the stolen spirits by their neighboring counterpart.

Rich Father’s Lawyer – Defended the Rich man and mentioned the claims against the poor family.

Judge – Authority that is in charge of deciding the case in the law court.

Police officer – Announced to the poor family that they have a case against them.

Setting:

Court - a duly instituted organ of the government that administers justice, whether based on legislation, previous court decisions, or other authoritative services.

Summary

The poor family was struck with an unfortunate tragedy, which ended up destroying their farm. However, they remained positive and continued on with their normal everyday routine. One day, the rich family noticed something was missing in their lives ever since they started watching the poor family go on about with their family bonding. There came a time when the rich family had their chefs prepare delicious food. As a result, it happened to attract the noses of the poor family. The poor family then decided to hang out in front of their neighbor’s house to take in the irresistible scent. There were also days where the rich family continued to observe from above as if they were envious of something, though still clueless about so. The rich man realized something; he then started to close off everything to the point that no sunlight reaches them. The next day, the police officer knocked on the poor family’s door to announce that someone filed a complaint against them. Curious, the father of the poor family then went to the town’s clerk with his son to ask about it. Given the answer “He told Father the man claimed that for years we had been stealing the spirit of his wealth and food”, the father had a plan in mind for when the day in the court arrives. When the day came for them to appear in court, and after everyone was present, the rich family’s lawyer then started to mention the charges against the poor family. The father then asked to bring out the children of complaint. Afterwards, he questioned the children in regards to the case. Convinced, the father stated that he‘d pay them right away. He took off his hat and began to walk around the room, collecting coins from his family. He then started to shake his hat that is filled with coins at the back of the court. The father stood in front of the complaint and asked, “Did you hear the spirit of the money when I shook this hat?” The rich man replied with “Yes.” “And so you are paid”, the father said. The rich man opened his mouth to speak and fell to the floor without a sound. The judge dismissed the case, and they all started to laugh. 

Symbolism:

A familial bond is a strong connection between family members may it be by blood or relation. It shows that no matter how tough things may get, your family will always be there by your side. They are one of the treasure in life that makes it worthwhile.

Theme:

Family and Optimism

Lesson:

Don’t blame other people for your own mistake. As silly as the accusation may sound, the Rich father dug his own grave; he took it out on an innocent family because he lacked the said qualities they had. Instead of filing a case, it would have been better if he was to reflect upon himself, to start taking action and fixing it.