''Luha ng Buwaya'' or, "Crocodile's Tear" in translation, is a novel written by Palanca Awardee and

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

novelist Amado V. Hernandez. It consists of 53 chapters. The story is about poor farmers uniting against the greedy desires of the prominent family of the Grandes. In

idioms, "crocodiles" were used to symbolize those people who are

corrupt Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

. The "''buwaya''" ( crocodile) in the title refers to the Grandes family, who were greedy for money.

Description

''Luha ng Buwaya'', together with Hernandez's other novel '' Mga Ibong Mandaragit'', was based on his personal experiences while imprisoned in the

New Bilibid Prison The New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa, Metro Manila is the main insular prison designed to house the prison population of the Philippines. It is maintained by the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) under the Department of Justice. As of Octo ...

from 1951 until his release on bail in 1956."Mga Ibong Mandaragit" by Amado V. Hernandez
from Amado V. Hernandez: A National Artist, shvoong.com The novel was about peasants from a barrio and their leader, in the person of a school teacher, fighting against oppression and greed. Through their action, the people find renewed belief in their capabilities.
kabayancentral.com In a larger perspective, ''Luha ng Buwaya'' was Hernandez's realistic embodiment of the socio-political crisis happening in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

during the 1930s until the 1950s."Luha ng Buwaya" by Amado V. Hernandez
from Amado V. Hernandez: An Introduction, Appreciating Amado V. Hernandez, Revolutionary Proletarian Artist, philcsc.wordpress.com, August 28, 2006 Hernandez wrote the novel employing an "easy style" and contemporary Pilipino language. While writing the manuscript for Luha ng Buwaya, Hernandez was also acting as the editor of the prison newspaper named ''Muntinglupa Courier''.
from Amado V. Hernandez article, aijc.com

References

{{reflist Novels by Amado V. Hernandez 1983 novels Political novels Tagalog-language novels Philippine novels Novels set in the Philippines