Antonio Samson was born in the town of Rosales in Pangasinan, his father was part of a revolt that failed which led his family homeless.With help from his older sister and a dean at a university in Manila he was able to study in America at Harvard University. During his stay there he was able to write a thesis about the Illustrados, whom he considers heroes. Antonio writes that the Illustrados were bright, young and rich men whom were aware that, because of the situation in the Philippines,they would never experience true freedom so they revolted. Early in this part of the story Antonio is shown as being a person who thinks highly of those who have fought for freedom. He is a freedom lover and is also a critical thinker. This is shown when Antonio asks if these Illustrados really did fight for the freedom of all, or for just their own freedom. This shows that Antonio wasn’t just someone whom mindlessly follows the stories of heroes but he is also someone whom thinks critically about the things that he focuses on. Antonio was also very different that other Filipinos in his time. Antonio was able to marry a very wealthy woman and lives in Manila. Other men his age would be working and enjoying the lavish life of the rich but not Antonio. Antonio focused on his studies and his fight against corruption.
BUS DRIVER STABBED TO DEATH BEFORE PASSENGERS
by Antonio Samson
It was the kind of afternoon that stirred madness
from the bottom like a spoon.
The knife went in
with blood like words
forced out of opened mouths
Passengers thought of escape
waiting for God
or something quick
They did not move
(the driver's face looked unfamiliar)
When everything was safe
the passengers discussed
their plans which were too late
(he had a knife)
They would come home
with an interesting story
to tell.
My Interpretation
The poem is not literally about a man who is mad at a driver and with much anger, he stabbed him to
death before his passengers.
lets us look at the poem in a deeper sense.
let's go back to the time of the spanish era.
The bus driver in the poem refers to the heroes of our country, the philippines and the passengers
are the filipinos.The knife,on the other hand, refers to the spaniards who want to conquer the philippines.
The knife(the spaniards) putted many people to death. Blood flowed from the bodies of innocent people. The passengers
(the filipinos) were all afraid to fight against the knife(the spaniards) so they remained silent and impulsive. their rights
were supressed until those brave bus drivers(our heroes) sacrificed and gave their lives
to regain our country's independence from the sharp knife(the spaniards).
Our history is really an interesting story to tell. It is our country's treasure
that must be retold and passed on to your grandsons for them to value the
freedom that we are experiencing until now.
