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By Hansel Palarca
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May. 6, 2004 |
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The title, When the Elephants Dance, may create the image of a whimsical children's story with pictures of twirling elephants; however, this assumption is wrong.
The book is an intriguing tale about the Philippines during World War II.
The deceptive title, which is short for the adage "When the elephants dance, the chickens must be careful," refers to the huge world powers, Japan and the United States, trampling small chickens the Philippine Islands.
Tess Uriza Holthe, who attended Lowell her freshman and sophomore years from 1980 to 1982, tells the story of a fictional Filipino family struggling to survive the Japanese occupation of the Philippines.
 | | Tess Uriza Holthe, author of When Elephants Dance |
Holthe delivers an engaging view of Filipino culture and the horrifying effects of war on their society.
Although the book occasionally feels like a cheesy Filipino wartime soap opera, the novel spotlights ugly truths of war that other books tend to sugar coat.
What sets When the Elephants Dance apart from other war novels is that it does not focus on the battles.
Rather, Holthe centers the novel around a small cast of characters: the Karangalan family and their friends.
The group, fighting to survive the chaos of war through unity and storytelling, encounters tragedies such as soldiers bayoneting babies and raping children.
By narrating the story from the point of view of the civilians rather than Japanese or American soldiers, Holthe presents war in a different light there is no winner, and those who suffer most have little to do with the conflict.
The Filipino narrators provide a fresh change from the one-dimensional characterizations of "natives" often seen in traditional Western storytelling.
One of the novel's strongest points is its structure.
Told through the eyes of three separate characters, 13-year old Alejandro Karangalan, his sister Isabelle and guerrilla fighter Domingo, Holthe presents different perspectives of the same war.
She seamlessly intertwines mystical folklore into the central plot, resulting in little stories within the novel.
The tales, told by different characters, range from cautionary stories of greed and bitterness to fantastical myths, meant to take the children's minds off the stress of their situations.
These short stories are interesting and sometimes even more engaging than the central plot.
The mythical tales are not the only cultural aspects of the book.
The novel is brimming with references to Filipino food, customs and language.
Holthe even writes certain lines of dialog in Tagalog (with translations).
Sadly, some of the dialogue is flawed. Readers who don't know the language will not be affected, but those familiar with Tagalog will be frustrated, wanting to correct the text themselves.
Although this isn't a fatal error, the inaccuracies prevent the novel from accurately portraying the Filipino language.
However, for a population struggling to find its identity, When the Elephants Dance is a treasure, unifying Filipinos through shared history.
Though the novel is not without its shortcomings, it's a way for non-Filipinos to experience the customs and struggles faced by a people mainstream media often overlooks.
Holthe delivers with an engaging story of strength, courage and the effects of war on society.
The novel is a worthwhile experience for Filipino's and non-Filipinos alike, filled with poignant images, engaging characters and touching stories. |
