Ermita by F. Sionil Jose - Are we all trying to sell ourselves?

Ermita is about the life of Ermita Rojo - a prostitute who strategically climbed the social ladder by using her beauty and the intoxicating allure of sex. As an unwanted daughter, she needs revenge against her family, who continuously treats her as trash and a threat.

The novel posits that, to a certain degree that we are all prostitutes. We "sell" ourselves to other people all the time. Every one of us sells a portion of ourselves - whether it's our intelligence, beauty, skills, or many others, we put our best foot forward to get what we want.

The author insinuates that "prostituting" ourselves is innate in all of us. The only difference between non-prostitutes and prostitutes is that the former doesn't need to have transactional sex with other people.

This novel also makes us confront our opinion towards prostitutes and prostitution. We were raised to think that prostitution and prostitutes are immoral. This belief is depicted in Ermita's manipulative attitude so that she can achieve her goal. At the same time, she is also depicted as a kind and compassionate person who do everything for her loved ones.

Macarthur, Ermita's childhood friend who was clearly in love with her, cannot get over her job as a prostitute. As much as he wants to be with her, he keeps Ermita at arm's length. Macarthur represents us as a society. We show compassion and understanding towards prostitutes, but we judge their morals.

This novel made me confront my feelings about the morality of money. It makes me think that powerful and rich people are sometimes worse than prostitutes because they lie and steal to achieve their goals. Prostitutes are at least more honest and direct. They sell sex - no more, no less. Ermita is more than just a novel. It's a social commentary on how power is gained and wielded. It asks us to form our morality towards different thorny issues of our society.

Ermita is a compelling character. You will love and hate her, but ultimately, you will root for her. Some of her actions may be unjustifiable, but you still want her to succeed. Ermita is a hero and an anti-hero at the same time. Her vulnerability makes you want to hug her tight, but her ruthlessness makes you want to slap her,

F. Sionil Jose had a controversial and sometimes shocking stance about the Philippine society. No matter how much you disagree with his politics, is is undeniable that his novels are compelling and raw. RIP, Mr. Jose