Pia Alba
“Pia Alba”
A fresh and beautiful woman who came from a rich family in Sta. Cruz. That is Pia Alba. She is a divine woman who never forgets to go to church. Also, she was a very cheerful woman but then changed to being gloomy when she became pregnant. Pia Alba married Capitan Tiago. As a wife, she commended that her husband will also engage in farming and should buy a parcel of land. Their marriage did not bear a child for 6 years so Pia Alba followed the advice of Padre Damaso regarding the dance but it turned out that she was raped by the friar. This is the reason why her joyful character has changed to being melancholic. It was hard for her to accept and ashamed that she was impregnated by another man. She died after giving birth to Maria Clara. The character of Pia Alba symbolizes the women who had been mistreated by the clergy and remained in silence by their humiliation. She may also symbolize women who wanted to give their husband something that would entail a great sacrifice on their part.
The character of Pia Alba can be represented by the silent women victims of clergy sexual abuse. The reason for their silence is in respect to the Church or fear of scandal. In a culture where there is a long history of control by the Catholic Church, there is respect to them. So the victims feel embarrassment and as a result, they are afraid to report what happened. Victims keep the abuse to themselves because they don’t want the disgrace accompanying with it and because they feel a dishonor if they revealed what happened. Just like Pia Alba, she did not want anybody else to know regarding the sexual abuse by Padre Damaso because it is very shameful that it was not her husband who impregnated her.
A fresh and beautiful woman who came from a rich family in Sta. Cruz. That is Pia Alba. She is a divine woman who never forgets to go to church. Also, she was a very cheerful woman but then changed to being gloomy when she became pregnant. Pia Alba married Capitan Tiago. As a wife, she commended that her husband will also engage in farming and should buy a parcel of land. Their marriage did not bear a child for 6 years so Pia Alba followed the advice of Padre Damaso regarding the dance but it turned out that she was raped by the friar. This is the reason why her joyful character has changed to being melancholic. It was hard for her to accept and ashamed that she was impregnated by another man. She died after giving birth to Maria Clara. The character of Pia Alba symbolizes the women who had been mistreated by the clergy and remained in silence by their humiliation. She may also symbolize women who wanted to give their husband something that would entail a great sacrifice on their part.
The character of Pia Alba can be represented by the silent women victims of clergy sexual abuse. The reason for their silence is in respect to the Church or fear of scandal. In a culture where there is a long history of control by the Catholic Church, there is respect to them. So the victims feel embarrassment and as a result, they are afraid to report what happened. Victims keep the abuse to themselves because they don’t want the disgrace accompanying with it and because they feel a dishonor if they revealed what happened. Just like Pia Alba, she did not want anybody else to know regarding the sexual abuse by Padre Damaso because it is very shameful that it was not her husband who impregnated her.