Reaction Paper on Imelda

          Imelda Marcos is a mythical figure. The Filipino consciousness has blown her up to herculean proportions, as Ferdinand has also been. The documentary Imelda, which the lady herself has tried to censor, provides a straightforward account on the character and history of Imelda as both the myth and the reality.

          Her youth was not short of spectacular as her later years were. She was acquainted with some of the most preeminent historical figures, including Douglas MacArthur. She was the epitome of beauty, grace, and talent. The people who surrounded her were no less convinced that she was, in fact, perfect.

          More so were her life as Mrs. Marcos, when she graced Ferdinand’s presidential campaign and led him to win by landslide. There was no doubt that she was used as a mechanism for the win, but she was immediately paid in power, ruling beside (and not behind) her husband.

          Everything she’s done in the Marcos Regime – from the manifestation of her so-called edifice complex to controlling the birth rate – had a massive impact, even after they had fled to exile. Imelda saw life from the point of view of beauty, and even her perception of Martial Law was such.

          When asked before what the biggest contribution of Martial Law was, Imelda answered that it was the ‘restoration of democracy,’ sincerely and charismatically, as if she believes it. This is what surprised me most: Imelda saw history differently, she absolved her family of any guilt, and chose to blur out the not-beauty, when the whole world saw a dictatorship and the destruction of democracy.

          All in all, Imelda painted a picture of the Steel Butterfly with all her beauty and crooked edges, realistically bringing to life the myth that is Imelda Marcos to the mortal comprehension.

Christine Joy L. Galunan

2013-50860