CRITICAL ANALYSIS: Lover Boy by Lilia Pablo-Amansec

Name: Ulep, Chuck Daniel Natividad

Block: PCED-02-301A

Date: October 17, 2020

Genre: Dark Desires, Tragic

Introduction

Pablo-Amansec is an award winning author in 1996 Palanca Awards. She won 1st place in short story English, Lilia

Pablo Amansec was born in 1931 and died in 19—, a Filipino Citizen. His writing was published in the year of 1965. Her has

not been in the mainstream, The Ustetika recognized Lilia Pablo Amansec for her valuable contributions to Philippine literature.

Some of her most memorable literary worksinclude her Palanca award-winning pieces “Lilies of Yesterday” (2nd place, 1957),

“Dream Tiger” (2nd place, 1963), and “Loverboy” (1st place, 1964). Writer-critic Isagani Cruz included her masterpiece

“Loverboy” in the best-selling anthology, “100 Filipino Short Stories in English,” which compiled the best short fiction in the

20th century

Lilia Pablo-Amansec use the necrophilia theme to showcase her masterpiece. Lover Boy hasn’t been in the

mainstream media, even though it was a great story. Lover boy is a story where fiction and non-fiction story unite.

Plot & Structure

Lover Boy is a short story that seen as an award winning master piece, but it in the long run the author and the book

hasn’t been a good thing in the main stream, The story is about Rabutnik who has a desires dark desires for the dead, He has

a mental order where he is obsessed in the dead, sexual desire for the dead, he was triggered by his fear, because as the

story told that rabutnik is one of the ugliest person they ever seen. Rabutnik obviously showed how the three psyches tried to

overpower each other. He showed several defense mechanisms. First one is repression, it is shown when he was very angry

with True Jade’s unfaithfulness to him. He was clearly angry and depressed but he tried to hold it back. Next mechanism is
displacement. Displacement occurs when a person is trying to satisfy an impulse with a substitute object. This is shown when

he resulted to necrophilia. He thought of True Jade and since he could not have her, he had intercourse with the dead women.

Projection is also shown closely to displacement. While in the other hand Edmund has been in the same situation wherein he

is been betrayed and shows unfaithfulness of a wife too, He is a married man but one day he feels hisr wife wasn’t been very

faithful to him, Even though he didn’t caught his wife in the bed with his bestfriend. But In the end of the day Edmund accept

the fact that his wife love’s his bestfriend than him. While Lulu is the one being the one listening to Rabutnik’s story that has

been told by rabutnik to Edmund. After the long conversation Lulu still can’t manage to realize if the story that has been told

by edmund is tale or not.

Over all the plot is unfolding the story gradually or naturally, I should say that the story is classical wherein resurrection of the

body is still being stated, The story of the Lover Boy is not an ordinary tragic story that we almost see in some novels. It gives

you more than a story. Rabutnik’s situation can be a defense mechanism on what her wife did to her, he wants to or he have

a sexual desire towards her late fiancé, he gradually have the desire to have a sexual content to a woman because he want’s

to feel what “honeymoon” feelis like and one day Litte Moon Lady that has same looks and same physique just like his fiancé

that’s why he did it, and the resurrection of the dead has been inlvoe which is kinda fictional

Character

Rabutnik- has a desire for women and has a psychological disorder.

Edmund Sanchez- the one who told a story about Rabuniks’ experience.True Jade- fiancée of Rabutnik who died in Kowloon

due to accident in taxi and died with thearms of her Filipino-Spanish lover.

Helen Wang- the person being embalmed by Rabutnik and being desire by Rabutnik knowingthat she’s dead and she became

way to back Rabutniks’ good condition.

Lulu- the girl in the bar who listened to the story of Edmund.

Mr. Chang- the embalmer from “The Happy Landing Grounds” and who taught Rabutnik toembalm.

Mr. Yao- the owner of “The Happy Landing Grounds” or funeral in the city.

Little Lady Moon- the dead elder woman who embalmed by Rabutnik and being desired by him.
Point of View

Combination of 1st person and 3rd person point of view, wherein in the first is Edmund and Lulu having a conversation about

Edmunds life, While the 3rd person point of view is when Edmunds telling the story of Rabutnik to Lulu. This approach is kinda

confusing when you didn’t start the story.

Analysis

The lover can analyze by the use of Freudian approach wherein the id, ego and superego can be seen, Freud’s

psychoanalysis found ways to make this story interesting and have more depth with Rabutnik’s character development which

had influenced how the story “Lover Boy” will go. And another thing I analyze in the story is even though the book itself is a

very great master piece, won an award. But in the long run the story hasn’t been in the main stream media, maybe one of the

factor is the author wasn’t be successful too, Lilia Pablo-Amansec became a fortune teller after her career ended, I think if the

author be successful enough to put her work in the main stream media it could won many awards not just one, it could be

published even more greater. Next thing is how the story grows, at first it was a normal conversation with the people hanging

in the bar, but gradually it became more deep just like in a real life, as the time goes by the story becomes more explicit in

terms of Edmunds life story towards Lulu, In Rabutniks story is kinda confusing because we all know that resurrection of the

dead body isn’t true or have some scientifical fact, that’s why ratbuniks story might be a tale from Edmund he might be got

drunk because per the story they’re drinking beer so that I made a statement in my mind that rabutnik is just a tale that has

been told to Lulu.