WARRIOR POET: LEANDRO BASILIO, SON OF PAMPANGA

Abstract

My collection of poems entitled "Warrior Poet: Leandro Basilio, Son of Pampanga" started years ago after I wrote my first collection of poems entitled "The Way of the General". It is an original and experimental sequel to my first collection that won me the title as Poet of the Year in English at the 11th Gawad Digmaang Rosas awards. From my record, I would like to believe that I am a Marxist poet.

In both collections, I tried to insightfully explore the power of historical fiction in poetry. Using historical references that are both concocted by the imagination and authentic in nature, I tried to weave interconnected narratives with my poems. To reflect the nature of historical materialism through the power of verse — to show the ferocity of class struggle as embodied by the ongoing people's revolution through armed struggle. Here, I tried to show how the State has historically used its coercive apparatuses and power to defend the class interest of the bourgeoisie. On the other hand, I have elucidated the valiant struggle of the oppressed and voiceless against the seemingly infallible power of capital and semi-feudalism that is being preserved by the agents of the State.

In my attempt to make a poem tell a story — to apprehend a particular feeling, idea, or event — I am also trying to challenge the limits of what is considered as poetry. I also believe that I have been more daring in terms of form in my current collection of poems. Each poem contains separate epigraphs that provide specific contextualization for the corresponding poems they are attached into. Each of the epigraphs tell a story of its own, but when pieced together with the other epigraphs and poems — it reveals a larger picture. My collection of poems may be read in part or in whole. However, its beauty lies when it is read in its totality. Here, the reader will see the dialectical unity of various parts that may not make sense if read as a singular poem.