ORIGINAL TEXT:

Abstract

The rich countries in the West have a hegemonic grip over the economy, politics, and cultures of the world, including theorizing in general and feminist theorizing in particular. In this paper, I examine the contributions of GABRIELA, a Third-World women’s movement in the Philippines, to both feminist theory and practice which hitherto are unrecognized. This paper combines post-coloniality, critical theory, and feminism to develop a new insight on feminism as women in a Third-World country live it and envision it. This paper deals with how a women’s movement in the Third World work for the construction of a just society by struggling against the constraining social, economic, political and cultural structures. In the countries of the South, male domination and poverty in general cause the oppression and marginalization of women. The study revealed that GABRIELA members in particular struggle against patriarchy, imperialism, corruption, and feudalism as well as struggle for social and national liberation. This paper examines the role of social movements as a learning site which empowers women.

CONVERSION: Trivia

Do you know that…

1.      Gabriela is a Third-World women’s movement in the Philippines

2.      By examining their contribution to the practice of feminist theory, we can learn how they work for the construction of a just society where women are empowered.

3.      A study revealed that members of this movement in particular struggle against patriarchy, imperialism, corruption, and feudalism as well as for social and national liberation.

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The original text is very formal compared to the latter. The first is a paper examining the role and significance of GABRIELA in Philippine society while the latter is a trivia about Gabriela. The first text is long and full of details while the latter is more straightforward. Even though their form and function differs, the same message was successfully convey on both texts.

 ORIGINAL TEXT: The 1987 Philippine Constitution

Article III: Bill of Rights

Section 1. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, nor shall any person be denied the equal protection of the laws.

CONVERSION: Poem                               Equality

Life is precious,

That no one should lose,

Freedom is a treasure,

Especially to the poor.

All that we own,

Let it be known,

No one can get it,

Unless the law allows it.

Equality should prevail,

And should not fail,

To give protection,

Not oppression.

Explanation:

            The original text is only one sentence, a compound sentence. It is composed of two main clauses. On the other hand, the poem is composed of sentences that are cut informally to achieve rhyme. Nouns are dominant and simple words are use in both texts. Since the original text is a section under the bill of rights, it is clear and straightforward to be easily understood by the reader. In contrary, the poem use the adjective “precious” and figurative phrase (freedom is a treasure) to wake the emotions of the readers. Even though the form and function differs, both texts convey the same meaning.

ORIGINAL TEXT: Song

You Can't Hurry Love

by Phil Collins

Songwriters: HOLLAND, BRIAN / HOLLAND, EDWARD JR. / DOZIER, LAMONT

I need love, love 
Ooh, ease my mind 
And I need to find time 
Someone to call mine; 

My mama said 
You can't hurry love 
No, you'll just have to wait 
She said love don't come easy 
But it's a game of give and take 
You can't hurry love 
No, you'll just have to wait 
Just trust in a good time 
No matter how long it takes 

How many heartaches must I stand 
Before I find the love to let me live again 
Right now the only thing that keeps me hanging on 
When I feel my strength, ooh, it's almost gone 

I remember mama said 
You can't hurry love 
No you'll just have to wait 
She said love don't come easy 
It's a game of give and take 
How long must I wait 
How much more must I take 
Before loneliness 
Will cause my heart, heart to break? 
No, I can't bear to live my life alone 
I grow impatient for a love to call my own 
But when I feel that I, I can't go on 
Well these precious words keep me hanging on 

I remember mama said 
You can't hurry love 
No, you'll just have to wait 
She said love don't come easy 
Well, it's a game of give and take 
You can't hurry love 
No, you'll just have to wait 
Just trust in a good time 
No matter how long it takes, now break! 

Now love, love don't come easy 
But I keep on waiting 
Anticipating for that soft voice 
To talk to me at night 
For some tender arms 
Hold me tight 
I keep waiting 
Ooh, till that day 
But it ain't easy (Love don't come easy) 
No, you know it ain't easy 

My mama said 
You can't hurry love 
No, you'll just have to wait 
She said love don't come easy 
It's a game of give and take...

CONVERSION: Essay

           

All of us need love. Some people already found the love of their lives while others are still waiting. It is really sad to be one of the latter. We all want someone that we can call our own.

Back to our teenager days, our mothers kept telling us that we can’t hurry love and that we need to wait patiently for it. They told us that our own time will come no matter how long it takes. Despite these words, we keep asking ourselves the same questions every day: How long must we wait? How much heartache do we need to experience before finding our own true love?

It’s hard to live alone and most of us can’t bear it. We grow more impatient each day but when we feel like giving up, let us remember those precious words our mothers said. Remember? Mother knows best. J

Explanation:

            In the song, nouns and pronouns are in singular form (I, me, my, mine, you, she, mother) and these help to focus the message of the song in the personal experience of the singer/composer. On the other hand, when I convert the song into an essay, I changed the nouns and pronouns in plural form (we, us, our, mothers, they). I did this to change the perspective of speaking from one experience only (which in the case of an essay is the writer) into a general perspective that is possibly shared by everybody. By changing the form of the nouns and pronouns, I was able to generalize the experience and message of the text. Besides changing the form, almost all the words in the song are also use in the essay. Thus, lexical and grammatical cohesion were maintained.

In terms of tenses, just like how the song shifts from present to past then present progressive, the same goes in the essay. It helps to convey the message that just like the singer, others are also experiencing the same process: from being impatient, remembering the advice of their mothers and in the end still waiting for love. Therefore, both texts share the same meaning.

Even though both texts achieve the purpose of conveying the same message to the listeners/readers, the song can be more entertaining to a larger number of people. However, the objective of the first sentence in the first paragraph of the essay is to attract potential readers. Since essays are more straightforward than songs, there is no need to repeat lines/stanzas as long as the necessary information is provided.

Source: http://www.lyricsfreak.com/p/phil+collins/you+cant+hurry+love_20108022.html