Day 68 of 160

Day 68: Ibong Adarna in Taglish

In the faculty room of a high school in Commonwealth, Quezon City, Amara (A), a young film critic who has just spoken to a class, argues with Norma (B), the Filipino teacher who teaches the Ibong Adarna every year, about a new film of the old tale in which the princes speak modern Taglish.

How to study this lesson 3 steps
  1. Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
  2. Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense.
  3. Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Tagalog. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.

Dialogue

Audio for this lesson is coming soon. For now, read the dialogue and its translation.

Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day

  1. A

    Ma'am, ngayon lang daw po naintindihan ng klase ninyo ang Ibong Adarna.

    Ma'am, your class says this is the first time they've understood Ibong Adarna.

  2. B

    Naintindihan nga, pero nasaan ang dalisay na Tagalog? Marilag ang Adarna sa tula; sa pelikula, maganda lang.

    They understood it, sure, but where's the pure Tagalog? In the poem the Adarna is majestic; in the film, it's just pretty.

  3. A

    Mas mabuti na po ang magandang naintindihan kaysa marilag na tinulugan.

    Better a "pretty" they understood than a "majestic" they slept through.

  4. B

    Trabaho kong iangat sila sa tula, hindi ibaba ang tula sa kanila.

    My job is to lift them up to the poem, not to bring the poem down to them.

  5. A

    Paano po kung ang pelikula ang hagdan nila paakyat sa tula?

    What if the film is their ladder up to the poem?

  6. B

    Hagdang puro "bro" at "bes"? Ang Adarnang walang sukat at tugma, hindi na Adarna.

    A ladder made of "bro" and "bes"? An Adarna without meter and rhyme isn't the Adarna anymore.

  7. A

    Pero kanina po, sa pagpapatawad ni Don Juan sa mga kapatid niya, nagpunas kayo ng luha.

    But earlier, when Don Juan forgave his brothers, you were wiping away tears.

  8. B

    Oo na, tumagos sa akin ang eksenang iyon. Pero sa klase ko, tula pa rin.

    All right, that scene got to me. But in my class, it's still the poem.

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