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We Who Cannot Be Daughters
Elena Tacio was supposed to have started her family’s curse: the mothers would not be real mothers and the daughters cannot be daughters, as the mother dies upon giving birth to a daughter. Elena fell in love with a Spanish Alferez and betrayed her husband, who fought with the wine toddy conspirators against the Spanish friar and officials. The Elena-Alferez affair would produce a daughter, who would be named Maria. The girl would be born on the eve of the departure of the friars from the islands because of an uprising. Elena’s friend, the Chinese mestizo migrant Sito, would take Maria to the city and take care of her. The two would be separated and Maria would be adopted by Theodore, an American missionary-turned-businessman. He would rename her Maria Sarah.
Maria Sarah would also grow up believing she was indeed an American daughter, though she had always felt that something was not right with her. Sarah’s destiny would eventually be revealed to her in a dream, and she would understand her fate. Her transgression would be her betrayal of her two friends Roberto and Auring. From Maria Sarah would descend future daughters, Laura, born in the time of Japanese Occupation, and Carmen, who would be born in the time of political chaos under an authoritarian government. They would also know about the stories of their ancestors and their destinies through the dream; but their understanding of their past would remain fragmented. They would commit their own transgressions, because that is what their dream has always counseled. Carmen though would not understand her fate and instead of the one committing the betrayal, she would be betrayed.
Maria Sarah would also grow up believing she was indeed an American daughter, though she had always felt that something was not right with her. Sarah’s destiny would eventually be revealed to her in a dream, and she would understand her fate. Her transgression would be her betrayal of her two friends Roberto and Auring. From Maria Sarah would descend future daughters, Laura, born in the time of Japanese Occupation, and Carmen, who would be born in the time of political chaos under an authoritarian government. They would also know about the stories of their ancestors and their destinies through the dream; but their understanding of their past would remain fragmented. They would commit their own transgressions, because that is what their dream has always counseled. Carmen though would not understand her fate and instead of the one committing the betrayal, she would be betrayed.
179 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
4 people are currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
Clarissa V. Militante
4 books7 followersClarissa V. Militant, an AB Literature at the De La Salle University, Manila (1985) undergraduate, started writing as a journalist.
Her debut novel "Different Countries" had been long-listed in the 2009 Man Asia Literary Prize and was published by Anvil Publishing in 2010. It was also a finalist in the 2011 UP Madrigal-Gonzalez Best First Book Award.
Her debut novel "Different Countries" had been long-listed in the 2009 Man Asia Literary Prize and was published by Anvil Publishing in 2010. It was also a finalist in the 2011 UP Madrigal-Gonzalez Best First Book Award.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 1, 2014
The author was able to bring the setting and time into life through vividly describing the scenarios the characters were in. She did not settle for easy descriptions, like for example, if I were to say, "the girls were sleeping on a mat", the author would write in such a way where you are given specific details that would lead you to the authenticity and origin of the story; she would write, "an old hand-woven anahaw mat with frayed edges protected the three from the cold..." (p.1). Her choice of Tagalog words to use as objects of references helped put myself in the story because of familiarity; words such as "alcade" (p.3), "guardia civil" (p.47), and "barkada" (p.172) are just some of the many terms we use in the Philippines that brought the story alive.
As for the time, Clarissa related it to the present with flashbacks to support the flow of the story; telling us what is in the now and then giving details on the background of each given situation. One example would be, "...Adora, whose bloodline had never been ascertained, who never even knew that she bore sons twice...", the statement would then be followed with, "Sito's mother was an orphan who grew up in a convent" (p.32); the author starts with what has already happened (which made my mind think on possible histories the characters experienced) then moved into the past experiences of it; this made me realize that, just like when we live our lives, we look back to our own past to answer the future we will have to avoid unnecessary setbacks.
The details of the different settings: San Vicente, Manila, and the convent, together with the Spanish, American, Japanese, and authoritarian regime on time, created a smooth transition of the characters growth throughout the entire story.
The novel also argues that the mothers cannot be mothers because they die when their daughters are born, as seen in pages 51, "The sight of the bloodied flesh fascinated him that he forgot about Elena who had just expired", 122, "Maria Sarah would die upon giving birth to her daughter, and 139, "By that time, Rosa had survived cutting the umbilical cord and cleaning both the baby and the sleeping Laura", but that is the literal sense of the novel. I came to understand that it was their way of thinking about the dream they all had about a cave woman, who represents each of them, throwing herself to the fire that made them believe in the destiny of them not being mothers. In reality, they still are the mothers of their respective daughters; besides the close resemblance of each one of them and their husbands, the values, beliefs, and history they all shared and was past down from generation to generation is what makes them still mothers. No matter what destiny or death brings, they still live as memories in the present through knowing that the future is already won since they create their own destiny.
As for the time, Clarissa related it to the present with flashbacks to support the flow of the story; telling us what is in the now and then giving details on the background of each given situation. One example would be, "...Adora, whose bloodline had never been ascertained, who never even knew that she bore sons twice...", the statement would then be followed with, "Sito's mother was an orphan who grew up in a convent" (p.32); the author starts with what has already happened (which made my mind think on possible histories the characters experienced) then moved into the past experiences of it; this made me realize that, just like when we live our lives, we look back to our own past to answer the future we will have to avoid unnecessary setbacks.
The details of the different settings: San Vicente, Manila, and the convent, together with the Spanish, American, Japanese, and authoritarian regime on time, created a smooth transition of the characters growth throughout the entire story.
The novel also argues that the mothers cannot be mothers because they die when their daughters are born, as seen in pages 51, "The sight of the bloodied flesh fascinated him that he forgot about Elena who had just expired", 122, "Maria Sarah would die upon giving birth to her daughter, and 139, "By that time, Rosa had survived cutting the umbilical cord and cleaning both the baby and the sleeping Laura", but that is the literal sense of the novel. I came to understand that it was their way of thinking about the dream they all had about a cave woman, who represents each of them, throwing herself to the fire that made them believe in the destiny of them not being mothers. In reality, they still are the mothers of their respective daughters; besides the close resemblance of each one of them and their husbands, the values, beliefs, and history they all shared and was past down from generation to generation is what makes them still mothers. No matter what destiny or death brings, they still live as memories in the present through knowing that the future is already won since they create their own destiny.
September 26, 2015
For me, Clarissa V. Militante is the Isabel Allende of the Philippines.
The reason is that both of them are excellent women writers whose works mainly center on families, particularly generations of them. Both also use local milieu very effectively as they have the ability to make the scenes in their novels alive as if you are there witnessing the events as they unfold. Based on their works that I've so far read, both employ a touch of magic realism and feminism. After all, Isabel Allende has been called the female Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
We Who Cannot Be Daughters tells the story of four women who did not have the chance to meet their mothers. Their mothers died during their childbirth. Thus, the title, they who cannot be daughters because they don't have mothers. When I picked and bought this book from MIBF 2014, I thought that this had something to do with lesbian or gay men. I'd read Militante's Different Countries (4 stars) two years ago and I really liked it so, gay-themed or not, I promised that I would read all of Militante's works as long as my eyes and my wallet can afford.
What I really liked about this book is the symbolism of the Philippines via its four main female characters. Elena during the Spanish regime, Sarah Maria during the Japanese and American occupations, and Laura and Carmen during the post-war until the Marcos regime. The people they meet in the story seem to parallel the events that happened in the country: from the cavewoman Oriana, the chinese merchant Sito to the American missionary Theodore. In my mind, the parallelism should stop there though. I couldn't and wouldn't like to think that Militante implies that there is a curse that manifests when the main character is dreaming at night. This dream tells the female characters that they are doomed and so the poor ladies accept their fates and don't even attempt to fight against it.
Overall, I still really liked this book. Militante's writing is flawless. She took the time to show and don't tell the reader and so I did enjoy reading this. It is as if Militante was already alive during the Spanish or American occupation of the Philippines. Her craftsmanship is one of the best, if not the best, among the females Filipino writers in English.
I am just wondering why the National Book Development Board did not include this in this year's finalist for Novels in English category. How could they miss an excellent work like this. Are they really reading all the works published the previous year?
Well done, Clarissa Militante! Keep on writing.
The reason is that both of them are excellent women writers whose works mainly center on families, particularly generations of them. Both also use local milieu very effectively as they have the ability to make the scenes in their novels alive as if you are there witnessing the events as they unfold. Based on their works that I've so far read, both employ a touch of magic realism and feminism. After all, Isabel Allende has been called the female Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
We Who Cannot Be Daughters tells the story of four women who did not have the chance to meet their mothers. Their mothers died during their childbirth. Thus, the title, they who cannot be daughters because they don't have mothers. When I picked and bought this book from MIBF 2014, I thought that this had something to do with lesbian or gay men. I'd read Militante's Different Countries (4 stars) two years ago and I really liked it so, gay-themed or not, I promised that I would read all of Militante's works as long as my eyes and my wallet can afford.
What I really liked about this book is the symbolism of the Philippines via its four main female characters. Elena during the Spanish regime, Sarah Maria during the Japanese and American occupations, and Laura and Carmen during the post-war until the Marcos regime. The people they meet in the story seem to parallel the events that happened in the country: from the cavewoman Oriana, the chinese merchant Sito to the American missionary Theodore. In my mind, the parallelism should stop there though. I couldn't and wouldn't like to think that Militante implies that there is a curse that manifests when the main character is dreaming at night. This dream tells the female characters that they are doomed and so the poor ladies accept their fates and don't even attempt to fight against it.
Overall, I still really liked this book. Militante's writing is flawless. She took the time to show and don't tell the reader and so I did enjoy reading this. It is as if Militante was already alive during the Spanish or American occupation of the Philippines. Her craftsmanship is one of the best, if not the best, among the females Filipino writers in English.
I am just wondering why the National Book Development Board did not include this in this year's finalist for Novels in English category. How could they miss an excellent work like this. Are they really reading all the works published the previous year?
Well done, Clarissa Militante! Keep on writing.
May 25, 2015
I'm going to be using my Philippine Literature in English paper as a review of this book:
Describe / narrate the conflict/s (in any form, “identity” for example) of the following characters:
Elena
•As the eldest daughter of Felicia, she was forced to marry for financial reason; this created her unhappiness in the marriage that led to her betrayal.
•The curse and the dreams that have manipulated her has controlled her fate which made her felt helpless.
•The Hispanized and Catholic setting of the story produced outcasts like Oriana and Adora. It also repressed female sexuality that is in Elena into shameful misconduct. In the book’s 39th page, the parish priest is described to have angels as spies. This would lead the villagers in constant watch of their demeanor that pressured both Felicia and Elena to act. The religious setting also contributed to the banishment of the matriarchal religion of the pre-colonial island and deemed it as witchcraft.
•She was pregnant with another man. Her husband’s in jail. Her future is uncertain. Her baby’s future uncertain. This makes the story altogether depressing for Elena.
•Sito’s appearance in the story made it more complicated because he was an outcast – he had no mother to identify and so he kills Oriana who could have helped Elena interpret her dreams.
Maria / Maria Sarah
•The problem of Maria or Maria Sarah was that she had no concept of her identity because no one told it to her. She was forced to create it herself. She did not have any idea on who her mother was. And her multiracial identity contributed to her confusion or “ambivalence.” For the first four years, she was surrounded by nuns and then a Chinese family.
•She was always lost. Sito decided to abandon her. Madame Yan decided to abandon her. Her parents are unknown.
•Because of Sito and the linguistic setting of the story – the story is in between transitions and there were many languages used during the time – Maria Sarah could not express herself clearly as a child.
•In addition, an American adopted her. This created the hybridity of her identity as multiracial.
•The dream that Elena had also manipulated her fate. She decided to betray her adoptive father.
Laura
•As a product of strange families and companions, Laura’s identity were as confused as her mother and her mother before.
•The curse that had manipulated her mother and her mother has also manipulated her in a way.
•The death of his half-brother Victor has terrified Rosa for a child must not come out with a dead man unburied contributed to the conflict of her story.
•The Japanese soldiers that have savaged her.
Carmen
•She was betrayed by her husband Arnan because of Elisa, her best friend.
•She also suffered the curse.
•She has this desire as a child to be friends with a lot of people but she couldn't. She was not allowed to.
What would you consider to be the main turning points (dilemmas, decisions, or revelations) in the novel?
•The death of Oriana by Sito revealed the Sito could be a psychopath and that he could possibly not abide by his promises.
•The betrayal of Elena through the Spaniard Alfonso.
•The betrayal of Maria Sarah and her move to Baguio.
•The adoption of Mariah Sarah
•The betrayal of Arnan.
•The departure and arrival of American and Japanese colonies.
PART 2: ANALYSIS. 50 points (10 points each).
How did the novel present/illustrate the gender binary/dichotomy between women and men?
•One of the aspects that represented the gender binary is nominal. Most of the names of men ended in the letter o and most of the name of women ended in the letter a. This aspect is influenced mostly by the Spaniards.
•Mothers are nurturers like Felicia and fathers are imprisoned by death, prison itself, or lack of knowledge or capacity to be otherwise. For example, the nuns are considered nurturers while the priests are deemed antagonists. The mothers mostly in the first part of the story tend to be the ones who warn their daughters never to go near the Mountain of Outcasts for example. They were the ones who guide their children.
•In terms of religion, the pre-colonial religious tradition of those who live in San Vincente is matriarchal. When Padre Cielo and Catholicism arrived, it became patriarchal as he becomes the head of the religion there.
Would you consider this a feminist novel? Why or why not?
•Yes. The main characters of the novel are female and they are well-developed, from their youth to their maturity. They are rounded characters and they have chosen their own paths which were their different forms of betrayal. These betrayals are acts of defiance against their fate, faith and what society required them to be.
•Yes. In Elena’s story, the presence and the glorification of the Mother represented in a way feminism. The cave in Oriana’s “we all came from caves” refers to wombs and thus creates a novel with equal treatment for women.
•Yes. Though the characters are victims of fate and the society back then, they made choices for their own.
How did the medium (English) contribute to the shaping of the novel? Would it have been better or more appropriate, for instance, were it written in Filipino?
•The novel written in English helped in understanding the novel helped because the characters in the story are multilingual. There are those that speak Chinese. Some speak bastardized Spanish. Some Japanese. Some English. Some speak islander’s language or Filipino. This one unified language helped in the creation of a universal truth.
•One of the reason writers write in English and not in their maiden tongue is to reach a wider audience. With the depiction of colonizers in the story, the novel would help foreigners to understand the historical and postcolonial identity of the Filipino.
•I think however that some of the phrases should have been translated to its language together with its English translation. It would feel more sincere and honest.
What would this novel’s contribution to the contemporary Filipino literary landscape?
•The novel is a feminist epic novel of four to five generations of women from Spanish colonization up to the Japanese written in English.
Who would be the novel’s audience? Or, to whom would you recommend this novel? Why?
•Those who have read and adored Nick Joaquin and Jose Rizal because of its highly reminiscent of the Spaniards and the American colonization. This elegant piece could create a discourse on the treatment of women back then and the religious setting of the story. It also has magical realism.
•To anyone who is otherwise, reading something unfamiliar will open the mind.
•Filipinos first before the foreigners. Filipinos must first read the novel which I will categorize as a historiographic metafiction to reflect on their identity. Foreigners must also read the novel to contextualize and visualize Filipinos in colonial turmoil.
Describe / narrate the conflict/s (in any form, “identity” for example) of the following characters:
Elena
•As the eldest daughter of Felicia, she was forced to marry for financial reason; this created her unhappiness in the marriage that led to her betrayal.
•The curse and the dreams that have manipulated her has controlled her fate which made her felt helpless.
•The Hispanized and Catholic setting of the story produced outcasts like Oriana and Adora. It also repressed female sexuality that is in Elena into shameful misconduct. In the book’s 39th page, the parish priest is described to have angels as spies. This would lead the villagers in constant watch of their demeanor that pressured both Felicia and Elena to act. The religious setting also contributed to the banishment of the matriarchal religion of the pre-colonial island and deemed it as witchcraft.
•She was pregnant with another man. Her husband’s in jail. Her future is uncertain. Her baby’s future uncertain. This makes the story altogether depressing for Elena.
•Sito’s appearance in the story made it more complicated because he was an outcast – he had no mother to identify and so he kills Oriana who could have helped Elena interpret her dreams.
Maria / Maria Sarah
•The problem of Maria or Maria Sarah was that she had no concept of her identity because no one told it to her. She was forced to create it herself. She did not have any idea on who her mother was. And her multiracial identity contributed to her confusion or “ambivalence.” For the first four years, she was surrounded by nuns and then a Chinese family.
•She was always lost. Sito decided to abandon her. Madame Yan decided to abandon her. Her parents are unknown.
•Because of Sito and the linguistic setting of the story – the story is in between transitions and there were many languages used during the time – Maria Sarah could not express herself clearly as a child.
•In addition, an American adopted her. This created the hybridity of her identity as multiracial.
•The dream that Elena had also manipulated her fate. She decided to betray her adoptive father.
Laura
•As a product of strange families and companions, Laura’s identity were as confused as her mother and her mother before.
•The curse that had manipulated her mother and her mother has also manipulated her in a way.
•The death of his half-brother Victor has terrified Rosa for a child must not come out with a dead man unburied contributed to the conflict of her story.
•The Japanese soldiers that have savaged her.
Carmen
•She was betrayed by her husband Arnan because of Elisa, her best friend.
•She also suffered the curse.
•She has this desire as a child to be friends with a lot of people but she couldn't. She was not allowed to.
What would you consider to be the main turning points (dilemmas, decisions, or revelations) in the novel?
•The death of Oriana by Sito revealed the Sito could be a psychopath and that he could possibly not abide by his promises.
•The betrayal of Elena through the Spaniard Alfonso.
•The betrayal of Maria Sarah and her move to Baguio.
•The adoption of Mariah Sarah
•The betrayal of Arnan.
•The departure and arrival of American and Japanese colonies.
PART 2: ANALYSIS. 50 points (10 points each).
How did the novel present/illustrate the gender binary/dichotomy between women and men?
•One of the aspects that represented the gender binary is nominal. Most of the names of men ended in the letter o and most of the name of women ended in the letter a. This aspect is influenced mostly by the Spaniards.
•Mothers are nurturers like Felicia and fathers are imprisoned by death, prison itself, or lack of knowledge or capacity to be otherwise. For example, the nuns are considered nurturers while the priests are deemed antagonists. The mothers mostly in the first part of the story tend to be the ones who warn their daughters never to go near the Mountain of Outcasts for example. They were the ones who guide their children.
•In terms of religion, the pre-colonial religious tradition of those who live in San Vincente is matriarchal. When Padre Cielo and Catholicism arrived, it became patriarchal as he becomes the head of the religion there.
Would you consider this a feminist novel? Why or why not?
•Yes. The main characters of the novel are female and they are well-developed, from their youth to their maturity. They are rounded characters and they have chosen their own paths which were their different forms of betrayal. These betrayals are acts of defiance against their fate, faith and what society required them to be.
•Yes. In Elena’s story, the presence and the glorification of the Mother represented in a way feminism. The cave in Oriana’s “we all came from caves” refers to wombs and thus creates a novel with equal treatment for women.
•Yes. Though the characters are victims of fate and the society back then, they made choices for their own.
How did the medium (English) contribute to the shaping of the novel? Would it have been better or more appropriate, for instance, were it written in Filipino?
•The novel written in English helped in understanding the novel helped because the characters in the story are multilingual. There are those that speak Chinese. Some speak bastardized Spanish. Some Japanese. Some English. Some speak islander’s language or Filipino. This one unified language helped in the creation of a universal truth.
•One of the reason writers write in English and not in their maiden tongue is to reach a wider audience. With the depiction of colonizers in the story, the novel would help foreigners to understand the historical and postcolonial identity of the Filipino.
•I think however that some of the phrases should have been translated to its language together with its English translation. It would feel more sincere and honest.
What would this novel’s contribution to the contemporary Filipino literary landscape?
•The novel is a feminist epic novel of four to five generations of women from Spanish colonization up to the Japanese written in English.
Who would be the novel’s audience? Or, to whom would you recommend this novel? Why?
•Those who have read and adored Nick Joaquin and Jose Rizal because of its highly reminiscent of the Spaniards and the American colonization. This elegant piece could create a discourse on the treatment of women back then and the religious setting of the story. It also has magical realism.
•To anyone who is otherwise, reading something unfamiliar will open the mind.
•Filipinos first before the foreigners. Filipinos must first read the novel which I will categorize as a historiographic metafiction to reflect on their identity. Foreigners must also read the novel to contextualize and visualize Filipinos in colonial turmoil.
November 7, 2024
Superstitions are deeply rooted in Asian cultures, and this book evidently shows that through a generational curse put upon the women of a clan due to an affair
December 28, 2022
a lot of wtf moments
July 24, 2017
I'd give it 4.5 but goodreads won't let me. This is a good read overall. I great metaphor for the history of the Philippines, I often find myself stopping after each chapter trying to dissect subtle symbolism.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews