Review to the essay
“A HERITAGE OF SMALLNESS”
By Nick Joaquin
The Philippine population increases much faster than our economy. Our country indeed has been as slow as snail when it comes to the aspect of development. It takes a lot of years, even decades for us to be able to take a leap towards one step of modernization. Other countries like for example our neighbor, Singapore, which has been colonized by other more powerful country had been able to get up and make them selves more productive. But throughout the years, the Philippines had remained stagnant with their status in the world. Instead o becoming more globally competitive, we tend to just always sit down and relax and just accept the fact that our development is deteriorating.
In Nick Joaquin’s essay, “A Heritage of Smallness”, he emphasized how the Filipino people can be so much contented with all that is small, all that is little and all that is just enough. A child who was born from a poor family would most likely be poor for the rest of his life. It would be a common scenario that they, too, will adopt the way of living of their parents. Instead of finding a way for them to have money, they will be contented and just continue blaming whoever they want to blame.
“What most astonishes foreigners on the Philippines is that this is a country, perhaps the only one in the world, where people buy and sell one stick of cigarette, half a head of garlic, a dab of pomade, part of the contents of a can or bottle, one single egg, one single banana.” --- This statement without a doubt confirms the Filipino mentality when it comes to finding a source of living. Yes, on the brighter side, it may show or represent how the Filipinos are willing to do anything and everything to have money. But what Nick Joaquin probably wants us, Filipinos to do is that we should think of a realistic and achievable way for us to have money. A way wherein we would be able to suffice our everyday needs and at the same time save money. If for example, a cigarette vendor sells P1.25 per one stick of cigarette. If let’s say that he was able to sell 100 sticks for the day. His income for the day would only be P125.00. This is just enough for a man without a family to support. But what if this cigarette vendor has a wife and has 3 children? How will he be able to meet the needs of his family and at the same time save money? Impossible! This man would most likely still be a cigarette vendor after ten years.
