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Joanne Kathleen Rowling and her authorized publishers and Warner Bros. own the rights to the Harry Potter books, films, and trademarks. This website is made by a fan for the fans, and is a non-profit personal project. All non-original material are properly credited.
This website: Copyright November 2003 by prof_skywalker and Pinoy Harry Potter (Hogwarts Philippines)
BEST HOMEWORK
Lesson 2: The Television and Pinoy Muggle Culture
The challenge: Reserve a slot in the Muggle Studies Laboratory to watch a Pinoy Muggle television show of your choice. (consult the program schedule in the Laboratory Technician's office). You may opt to watch either a noontime variety show, a primetime situation comedy, a primetime original Pinoy telenovela, or a primetime foreign soap opera dubbed in the local dialect. Write a short account of your experience and answer the following questions. What does your chosen program tell you about Pinoy Muggle culture? How do you think does your chosen program influence Pinoy Muggle culture and lifestyle? What is your initial reaction to watching a Muggle television program? How different is it from wizard forms of entertainment?
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by: camillle | 3rd year | ravenclaw
Click.
I opened the television, excited at the thought of watching a Muggle television program. I scanned the program schedule for the channel of my chosen program. Actually, it wasn't much of a choice, since it was the only program that would suit my messed-up schedule. I scanned for the title of my chosen program, Sana'y Ikaw Na Nga--a primetime original Pinoy telenovela--swiftly, as I was hoping that the show hadn't started yet. Soon after I found the channel: Channel 2, in which the giant television network ABS-CBN operates.
It was already eight o'clock, and good thing that I turned to the right channel right away, as the program started shortly after I turned to Channel 2. There was an introduction thing with the title shown first and the theme music played, then the show started. It started with the arrival of DVV or Dona Valeria Valencia, together with this funny-looking actress with fake hair, at this hacienda, where Grace or otherwise known as Ara was hiding.
I thought it was very funny that they called the villain DVV, while we called the person who sets off evil and vile things here in the wizarding world as You-Know-Who. Anyway, it was so dramatic, with the music escalating with the climax or falling with the resolution of the story. You'll just find yourself getting carried away with the plot and shouting your throat hoarse because DVV's about to see the sketch of Grace; hence, she'd be able to know that Grace's hiding there.
From what I've watched, I think that Pinoy Muggles love drama--even if it isn't found in their own lives. These telenovelas are so full of drama; emotion is so apparent in these that you'll be able to feel the same remorse or happiness felt by the characters. Or, you'll just be seething with mad rage at the villainous lady in a catsuit whose plans of sweet revenge on the hero endangers the life some major character who the masses adore.
Aside from this, I think the Pinoy Muggles are great actors, because they were able to bring out emotion from the audience--even from me. I think that's great talent, since not everyone can make another person cry by a simple facial _expression, or laugh by a ridiculous gag. From this, I think that the Pinoy Muggles are very talented and gifted, even if they don't possess magic.
I think that my chosen program influences Pinoy Muggle culture a lot, because the actors portraying the various characters in the show are looked up to by the people. They actually have fans, who imitate their actions or their appearances. Also, this show entertains the Filipinos, and I think that's very important in today's world. Besides these, I think my chosen program--its plot, designs, etc.--is part of Pinoy Muggle culture and lifestyle, since the television is part of their culture and lifestyle. Moreover, I think people make these kind of shows, so that the people will have something to escape to. It's like with the fantasy books and novels: there's this other world where you can escape life's struggles and not be yourself for once. You can be the heroine or the villain or the sidekick, because you can imagine yourself in their shoes. Or, possibly, you can actually relate to these characters.
I was, as I said above, excited at the mere thought of watching a Muggle television program. Of course, I was exposed to Muggle television programs ever since I was young, but the thought of watching television as a homework was exciting and fun. I suppose it brought out the Muggle part in me.
I think it's very different from wizard forms of entertainment. For one thing, wizard forms of entertainment, i.e. dueling, wizard chess, are a bit violent for my liking. Though Muggles television programs may show violence one way or another, our forms of entertainment show brutal violence, especially wizard chess. I mean, the chess pieces actually chop each other up right in front of your eyes. But then, wizard chess entails you to use your brain, while Muggle television programs use your emotions.
The program ends with Grace answering the phone as DVV left the hacienda. It was Christian, her ex-lover who she still loves. She was too dumbstruck to answer. From there, the screen blackens, and soon after the theme music plays again while the credits rolled.
It was already the end, and I turned off the television, wondering what will happen in the next episode.
Click.
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by: hayhay | 5th year | ravenclaw
I love watching Pinoy sitcoms; the really funny ones, anyway. Years ago, there was the Palibhasa Lalaki which I couldn't get enough of watching. It influenced me a lot that I even called my muggle barkada by the name of the characters there: Tikboy, Best Friend Johnny, the gwapings, stuff like that. But as the famous cliché goes, good things never last. But Channel 7 somehow revived the truly Pinoy humor with the premier of Kool Ka Lang. It was almost as funny as Palibhasa Lalaki but with darker hilarity. Eventually, its popularity died. But Pinoys just can't live without comedy, so there was Okay Fine, Whatever of Channel 2.
I love watching this sitcom, just as I loved watching Palibhasa Lalaki and Kool Ka Lang. It airs on Mondays, 9:00 in the evening, at channel 2. It is not so different from the sitcoms I used to watch when I was a kid. The jokes, they may be corny or "gasgas" are still funny to me. The show lasts for an hour. And sometimes, it seems that an hour isn't enough.
These sitcoms show that Pinoys have great sense of humor. The serious things in life, the dirty politics, the pathetic economy, the poor plight of the country, they face these problems through humor. They do not run away from the problems, instead they face it, not with determined and hard hearts, but with smile and laughter. I realized that it's easier to solve the problems if we face them with smile and laughter like the Pinoy muggles.
It's not so different from the wizard forms of entertainment. They have the same humor and wit. We have our own "magic" and they have their own "magic," - laughter.
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>A MUGGLE ENCOUNTER
by: kimi18
I’m no fan of telenovelas, a result of the presence of cable TV in my Muggle province, the only place where I can watch TV all day as opposed to Manila where all I do is study and face the computer screen. But last night, I went ahead and watched a telenovela and while watching the program, I was asking myself are Muggle Pinoys really like this?
I began to see, through the perspective of the people responsible for the plot of the telenovela, the conditions of the Muggle Pinoys in this country. Violence was prevalent in the country. Some people to get what they want use guns, the metal thingies that can be likened to wands. Some also discriminate people that are different from them. The discriminated people in the program were diminutive people or unanos, very much like the house-elves here in Hogwarts. One unano resorted to violence to gain revenge for his friends who were thrown into jail. When the program ended, I realized the Muggle world was no different from our magical world (except of course, for us being magical), as the people all seem to behave similarly.
Discrimination. Violence. All these would have an effect on the program’s audience, if they are that gullible and are not able to discern facts from what they see in television. People might believe that guns can help in obtaining their likes and the only way to protect themselves so they might start obtaining guns for the sake of what was mentioned above. They might start to believe that unanos should be shunned from the community, and also everyone that looks different and acts different.
Nevertheless, I wasn’t surprised at all on what I’ve seen, as I could also see these things here in the magical world. Duels to get what we want, house-elves enslaved... oh well. But I was a bit disappointed because the people in the TV did not even wave back when I waved at them. Hmp.