"May Day Eve" is a

story Story or stories may refer to: Common uses * Story, a narrative (an account of imaginary or real people and events) ** Short story, a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting * Story (American English), or storey (British ...

written by

Filipino National Artist The Order of National Artists of the Philippines (Filipino: ''Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas'') is an order bestowed by the Philippines on Filipinos who have made significant contributions to the development of Philippin ...

Nick Joaquin Nicomedes "Nick" Marquez Joaquin (; May 4, 1917 – April 29, 2004) was a Filipino writer and journalist best known for his short stories and novels in the English language. He also wrote using the pen name Quijano de Manila. Joaquin was conferr ...

. Written after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, it became one of Joaquin's “

signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...

stories” that became a

classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...

"May Day Eve" from Nick Joaquin Collection
, filipinaslibrary.org in

Philippine literature in English 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 ...

. Together with Joaquin's other stories like ''The Mass of St. Sylvester'', ''Doña Jeronima'' and ''Candido’s Apocalypse'', ''May Day Eve'' utilized the theme of " magic realism" long before the genre was made a

trend A fad or trend is any form of collective behavior that develops within a culture, a generation or social group in which a group of people enthusiastically follow an impulse (psychology), impulse for a short period. Fads are objects or behavior ...

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...

novels."May Day Eve" from Biography of Nick Joaquin
, rmaf.org.ph Published in 1947, it is a story originally intended for adult readers,Hidalgo, Cristina Pontoja

, panitikan.com.ph but has later become a required and important reading material for

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 ...

students.May Day Eve: Nick Joaquin Dies at 86
Philippine Daily Inquirer, page 19 (A17), news.google.com, April 30, 2004

Character Description

The major characters in ''May Day Eve'' are Badoy, Agueda, Anastasia, Warren, Agueda's daughter, and Badoy's Grandson.Nick Joaquin's May Day Eve
ateneo.edu Agueda and Badoy have different personalities. Agueda was described to be a bold, liberated, and a non-conformist young

woman A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...

who was “ahead of her time”. While Badoy was characterized in the beginning as a

promiscuous Promiscuity is the practice of engaging in sexual activity frequently with different Sexual partner, partners or being indiscriminate in the choice of sexual partners. The term can carry a moral judgment. A common example of behavior viewed as pro ...

young

man A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromos ...

who wanted to prove his

machismo Machismo (; ; ; ) is the sense of being " manly" and self-reliant, a concept associated with "a strong sense of masculine pride: an exaggerated masculinity". Machismo is a term originating in the early 1930s and 1940s best defined as hav ...

, he realized that he was “deliriously in love” with Agueda.

Plot summary

As Don Badoy Montiya comes home to his old home at

Intramuros Intramuros (Latin for "inside the walls") is the historic walled area within the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It is administered by the Intramuros Administration with the help of the city government of Manila. Present-day I ...

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

late at night he finds his grandson chanting an old spell in front of a mirror, memories of his youth came back. He recalled how he fell in love with Agueda, a young woman who resisted his advances. Agueda learned that she would be able to know her future husband by reciting an incantation in front of a mirror. As she recited the words: “''Mirror, mirror, show to me him whose woman I will be'',” Badoy saw Agueda. Badoy and Agueda got

married Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

. Don Badoy told his grandson that every time he looks at the mirror, he only sees a "

witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

"(Agueda). However, Don Badoy learned from his grandson that he was described by Doña Agueda (through their daughter) as a "

devil A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of t ...

" when she originally performed the same ritual. Don Badoy ponders on love that had dissipated. The truth was revealed, Badoy and Agueda had a “bitter marriage”, which began in the past, during one evening in the month of May in 1847. The tragedy of the story is Badoy’s heart forgot how he loved Agueda in the past. They were not able to mend their broken marriage because their love was a “raging passion and nothing more”."May Day Eve" from Literary Analysis Paper - The Tradegy [sic] in Love
freeonlineresearchpapers.com

Adaptations

The short story had been adapted as an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

by a group of actors and actresses from the College of Music of the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

.Lanot, Marra PL
"May Day Eve" from The Trouble with Nick
1999, bulatlat.com The Tanghalang Ateneo of the

Ateneo de Manila University , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Jesuits) , academic_aff ...

, under the direction of Alberto S. Florentino, also adapted Joaquin's ''May Day Eve'' into a play, which was described as a "tragic tale of love found and love forgotten" and "disillusionment" set in a Philippine

patriarchal Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of Dominance hierarchy, dominance and Social privilege, privilege are primarily held by men. It is used, both as a technical Anthropology, anthropological term for families or clans controll ...

society during the 19th century. The stage version was performed in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and later in

. The latter was based on the translation done by Jerry Respeto.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Aguila, Augusto Antonio A., Joyce L. Arriola and John Jack Wigley. Philippine Literatures: Texts, Themes, Approaches. Espana, Manila: University of Santo Tomas Publishing House. Print...

External links

May Day Eve Summary
at seasite.niu.edu

at palhbooks.com

at angelfire.com

{{Nick Joaquin 1947 short stories Philippine short stories Works by Nick Joaquin