Philippine E-Journals

TWO ESSAYS ON PHILIPPINE POETRY: Godofredo Reyes/Jose Ma. Basa

Marcelino A. Foronda Jr.

Discipline: Literature

 

Abstract:

DR. GODOFREDO S. REYES is one of the most respected Ilokanos today. A renowned surgeon, Dr. Reyes is also a former congressman and governor of Ilocos Sur, and a former member of the highest echelon of the Nacionalista Party. A civic and religious leader active in the Knight of Columbus and cursillo movements, and one of the few Ilokanos ever honored by the Pope with a Papal Knighthood of St. Sylvester, he is also one of the most popular writers in Northern Philippines who is proficient in English, and, of course, even more so in his native lIokano. Practically obsessed with the development of Iloko Literature, Dr. Reyes has been the guiding spirit, inspiration, and support of young Iloko writers. He also paints, although he still has to exhibit his paintings in public.

 

While many Filipinos are familiar with Jose Ma. Basa (one of the better known members of the Propaganda Movement who resided in Hongkong), it is very unlikely that apart from members of his immediate family, relatives, friends and colleagues, only a very few have heard of his namesake and nephew Jose Basa y Mañalac, a Filipino poet in Spanish.