The Bougainvillea: A Critical Analysis 
 Cybille Charriz Icoy

“We need ghost stories because we in fact are ghosts”, a quote by Stephen King which is an undeniably true. Therefore, to the people who believes in ghosts and are interested to their stories but does not want to be brought far from reality, “The Bougainvillea” will be worth to read. “The Bougainvillea”, a short story authored by Maria Elena Paulma, gives realistic details and a mysterious and suspense-filled plot that will surely interest readers. It is written in a first-person perspective which magnifies the narrative effect of the story (Reed, 2019). Foremost, the story showcases the beliefs and respect of Butuanons towards the dili ingon ato’s existence, possessions, substance abuse, and sexual abuse.

The story is all about the mystery of the bougainvillea. It was during summer; the author introduced the existence of the bougainvillea that surrounds their fence. It was her mother’s pride and the flower leaves everyone in awe of its beauty. However, the mystery of the bougainvillea eventually replacing the fondness to fear. In the story, the mystery of the bougainvillea first started when his uncle visited them and was asked by her mother to trim the bougainvillea and later at that night, that uncle was brought to the hospital and almost lost his finger after being greatly swollen. Everyone suspected that the bougainvillea caused the almost tragic, unfortunate event. After the incident, the neighborhood continued living their daily routine until Bansing, whom the author’s friend, was possessed. The author’s mother and Bansing’s tiya made rituals that is believed to drive away spirits possessing the human body. In that event, everyone suspected that the spirit from the bougainvillea possessed Bansing. Month after Bansing’s possession, the author’s other friend, Elsa began acting strangely and the rumors of the bougainvillea having its new victim. Years later, they had known that everything was not caused by spirits. Bansing confessed that the night before she was possessed, her cousin crawled to the mat where she lays and as to Elsa, she was just under the influence of marijuana. 

“The Bougainvillea” is a short story that highly reflects not just the Butuanons but the Filipinos belief to the creatures that are not like us and despite the lack of evidences, still respect them as one of us that lives in this world. Filipinos belief towards spirits and their capacity to possess can be justified through Ancient Filipinos being animists and because of religion (Carpio, 2019). Animism is the idea that all things—animate and inanimate—possess a spirit or an essence (Perkins, 2019). This belief of the ancient Filipinos was eventually demonized by Catholic friars (Carpio, 2019). Nonetheless, in the Old Testament of the Bible, specifically Matthew 8: 28 – 34 which talks about the spirit world in which the pigs were possessed by demons sent by Satan to challenge Jesus. Thus, the Filipinos believing spirits and possessing things and people seems reasonable.

On the other hand, as it was discussed in the story, Bansing’s statement about her cousin crawling to the mat where she lays suggests that there is a probability that she was sexually abused basing from her actions the other day when she was believed to be possessed. Researchers have found that  in many of the areas of the world where beliefs about spirit possession are widely held, beliefs  are a standard consequence of psychological trauma and may be a way of explaining the dissociative symptoms that often accompany intense traumatic experiences (Neuner et. Al, 2012). Moreover, in Elsa’s case, she was undoubtedly caused by marijuana because according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, people who have taken marijuana may experience an acute psychosis, which includes hallucinations, delusions, and a loss of the sense of personal identity which explains her strange actions.

In conclusion, “The Bougainvillea” by Maria Elena Paulma is one great literature. It does not merely give goosebumps upon reading it but also the lesson that there is a reality that every person must deal with behind those superstitious beliefs. Well, the only downside of the story is it being lengthy, and the author was too descriptive. Nonetheless, the story is a real treasure worth keeping in your library.