Caburnay, James Francis C.

JD 2

January 5, 2017

False Consciousness or Laying it on Thick?

False consciousness is a theory based on a person being led to some belief that he thinks is
his own but in reality has been passed unto him either by thick and thin versions of false
consciousness. The thick version persuades subordinate groups to believe actively in the
values that explain and justify their own subordination, while the thin version maintains that
only the dominant ideology achieves compliance by convincing subordinate groups that the
social order in which they live is natural and inevitable. I have seen this prevalent in society
although I might not be aware of its proper terms. Personally, before I have read this article,
I have sort of an idea regarding false consciousness being an avid enthusiast of personal
development, there are the so called paradigms which are super beliefs that are ingrained
into our subconscious mind and we are not aware of how we have come to belief in them, it
may have been passed on by our ancestors, by society, or by our environment, some of
these belief, if we pay a close attention to it and really examine it, we may be eventually
agree with it but thats how are mind has been programmed so we even do it even if we
dont want to, because our subconscious mind has no capacity to reject ideas passed into it,
hence the concept of paradigm shift has been introduced to overcome these paradigms.
This article is somehow related to false consciousness though this theory may come from a
different field of study.
In this article, it specifically dwells on how false consciousness is used to dominate others
such as by the leaders of certain groups with respect to their subordinates in order to
maintain their dominance and to ensure continuity of their self-serving interests. It is
particularly important and an eye opener for subordinates or ordinary people to really
examine their beliefs with respect to their own personal opinion or values because
sometimes unknowingly they compromise it with the common opinion of society with how

they should act or they are trapped or afraid to speak out and contradict with what is being
regarded as the norm in our society.
It is also important so that leaders will not be abusive or manipulative in their dealing with
their subordinates and ordinary people in society. In the end, we should be very vigilant and
we must take cognizance with these issues so that we will be able to view things that are
happening in our society objectively and in conformity with our personal beliefs and values,
and not just follow blindly on what society and the leaders of society program us to believe.

Caburnay, James Francis C. JD 2

January 5, 2017

History of the Inarticulate

This article is an eye opener especially because it is logical that the Filipino civilization at
that time was not that advanced, so it is a logical theory that there may be pieces of
Philippine history that might not have been accounted simply because the natives during
that time were not articulate or might not have the means to document history from their
own perspective. I have always thought that history is somehow manipulated or controlled
by either the leaders during that time who have the say on how history is to be written but
also based on the personal biases of the historians or from whose perspective the historian
is writing for. Prior to reading this article, I have thought of history somehow as information
controlled by the elite during their time, especially relating that with the Filipino culture of
crab mentality and power grabbing, there are theories about some Philippine heroes that
were corrupt during that time, or some were traitors to their fellow Filipinos like as how
Aguinaldo was impliedly portrayed as a traitor in the movie Heneral Luna. Still there were
theories about some heroes who were traitors to their own country, wherein they sold
their country to the enemy aliens. I have also subscribed to the idea that there are some
other unrecognized heroes in Philippine history but they did not come to be known because
they were poor or they do not belong to the elite, as when you look at the prominent
Philippine heroes, most of them are from the elite and wealthy families during their time.
Some of these facts might be written in some other books, but as far as I recall from my
history lessons during my early years in school, history as what have been taught seems to
have been sugar coated to portray some heroes with a very high stature notwithstanding
some dark secrets about them, probably the same analogy as how Disney films are told to
be child-friendly versions very different from their actual story as portrayed by their actual
authors.

As per the article, history during that time was written for the account of the Spanish settlers
in the Philippines and for Filipinos with respect to their interaction with the Spaniards. Also,
there was history of the inarticulateness of the Filipinos during this time based on
documents that would prove about their opinions on certain matters regarding Spanish
occupation. With this article, it can be said that to properly account for history, all subjects
should be viewed with partiality and on a factual basis, notwithstanding that certain
historians have different interests for covering certain historical matters during this time. It
is important since history is mostly discussed by the next generation, so that it would
present a clear picture of their ancestors as well as not to distort certain people who deserve
credit more than the other. History writing may be limited by other factors such as the
Filipinos tendency to forgive and forget those who have abused the Philippines in the
past. This is relatively important especially during these times of advanced technology,
wherein people tend to present different views or conjectures on what is currently happening
and some people basing their opinion on the common consensus in society instead of
independently evaluating the information. It would be of great help to study history if it can
be written in a more factual manner regardless of the background, biases and personal
perceptions of history writers.