Atenean wins Spanish literary competition

Joshua John Cabal, a fourth-year AB European Studies student, received multiple awards at the recent 4th Premio Rafael Palma literary contest. Cabal's poem 'El Indio' won First Place, while his short story 'Mano a Manu' received Third Place. He previously won Second Place in 2021 and 2020.

The Spanish-language writing competition, launched in 2019, is geared toward young Filipino students enrolled in Philippine universities and colleges. Named after the late Filipino writer Rafael Palma, the contest aims to promote "the study, practice, and use of Spanish and the awareness of Hispanic-Filipino literature among the youth of the country."

Cabal, who is also taking up a Spanish and French Minor Program in the Modern Languages Department, says, "El Indio talks about constructions of Filipino identity which have been greatly influenced by perceptions of the West, particularly that of Spain. I talk about what it meant to be Filipino then and what it means to be one in today's context. What mainly inspired me to write this was the reclamation of the racial slur that was used against black people."

His short story, 'Mano a Manu,' is an "LGBT-themed YA-inspired short story centered on one's experience of high school prom."

"It's a tribute to many LGBTQIA+ teens who didn't really embrace getting to be themselves at a time of self-exploration and discovery because of how heteronormative society is," he adds.

A language enthusiast, Cabal speaks 5 languages: English, Filipino, Spanish, French, and Italian. He adds that learning a different language fosters interactions, connections, and relationships. 

"While English has become the universal language, learning a foreign language opens that door for communicating with billions of non-native English speakers. With foreign languages, you can gain deeper interactions, connections, and relationships that wouldn't have otherwise formed if you didn't speak their language. It gives you a wider understanding and appreciation of the world and its diversity. There's so much more the world has to offer than the boxes we fit ourselves into."

Premio Rafael Palma is organized by the Department of European Languages at the University of the Philippines, Revista Filipina, Asociación Filipina de Enseñanza del Español lengua extranjera, UP Círculo Hispánico, and the Embassy of Spain in Manila.