A Marxist Analysis of Jose Francisco Sionil’s The God Stealer

Introduction

Sam Christie and Philip Latak were best of friends and that was possible because they
worked in the same office. On one December dawn, Sam Christie was on his way to Ifugao with
his native assistant. It was his last month in the Philippines and in a matter of days he would return
to Boston for that leave which he had not had in years.

During their journey, they talked about the grandfather of Philip and the different views in
the Ifugao. Philip encountered an acquaintance that he did not want to recognize because the latter
called him by his native name. When they had arrived on the village of Philip Latak, they met
Sadek, Philip’s brother. From there, Philip told Sam how his brother, as well as all the others in
the village, disliked him. After staying for quite some time in the house of Sadek, they went to
Philip’s grandfather; but only Philip went inside to meet and talk to the elder.

They visited the Mission the following day after having hiked to the villages. And there
Reverend Doone invited them for lunch. He told them how he reminisced San Francisco and how
he feels like home.

Going down the hill, Sam told Philip that he would not leave Ifugao without a god because
it’s more than a souvenir and it would remind him of Philip. Philip then told Sam that he would
steal a god for him since he made the vacation and the raise possible.

They hiked to the village and this time it was not as difficult as it had been the previous
day. When they reached the village, they went to the grandfather of Philip. Sam was pleased with
the prospect of being inside a native Ifugao house for the first time. He was able to see the Ifugao
god for the first time, and he witnessed the rite wherein the blood of the slaughtered pig was poured
on the head of the idol, and was returned to where it was kept.

The feast began. For some time, Sam Christie was entertained by the dances and the songs,
but soon he was bored. He told Philip that he would like to return to the boarding house.

Philip Latak went to the boarding house past midnight carrying his grandfather’s idol and
he handed it to Sam Christie. They argued if it was better that Philip returned the bloodstained god
back to his grandfather. When Sam Christie woke up it was already daylight. It was Philip Latak
who had stirred him, his voice shrill and grating. He told Sam that his grandfather is dying. The
next day, Sam was told by Sadek that their grandfather is dead and that Philip would not return
with Sam to Manila.

Philip told Sam that he would not be going back to Manila and that he was the reason his
grandfather is dead. From that moment, their friendship was broken. Philip Latak did not, even
once, face Sam. He seemed completely absorbed in his work. Sam knew then that Philip was
determined to stay and break his bonds with Sam. Sam realized that Philip was carving a new god
to replace the one he stole from his grandfather.

Analysis

The short story “The God Stealer” puts the spotlight on the economic classes and changes
in the society. It examines the relationship between culture and economy and the gaps that occur
when people change economic classes.

The God Stealer opens with two characters travelling to the Cordilleras. One character,
Sam Christie is an American with a fondness for collecting souvenirs, such as “A Grecian urn, a
Japanese sword, a Siamese mask”. His companion is Philip Latak, a native Ifugao formerly named
Ip-pig who has converted to Christianity and who has spent the last few years working alongside
Sam Christie. Aside from visiting his family specifically his sick grandfather, Philip accompanies
Sam to his hometown because he wants to repay Sam’s kindness by helping him get another
souvenir – an Ifugao god.

On the way to Philip’s village, Sam is treated better than Philip, to Sam’s discomfort. Sam
gets a good seat on the bus, and he is spoken to with high regards by Philip’s brother Sadek. When
Philip offers candies to his nieces and nephews, he is coldly snubbed, however when Sam does so
he is accepted enthusiastically.

Philip is welcomed warmly by his grandfather despite being fervently against Philip
leaving in the first place. However, he treats Sam with furious contempt. The old man states that
strangers have taken everything from him, such as tranquillity and Philip himself. Philip informs
Sam that the old man wants a feast to welcome Philip home. Regardless of Philip’s protests, Sam
insists on attending the party.

After visiting Philip’s grandfather, the pair tour around the village with matches and
candies to offer to the villagers. People treat Sam amiably, and Philip with sullen silence. They
ask the villagers where they could purchase an Ifugao God but their search is futile.

They then visit the American reverend in the village. After exchanging stories about
America, Sam and the Reverend converse about Ifugao religion. The reverend states that Ifugao
religion is based on fear and retribution and that is why Ifugaos are so attached to their gods. Sam
observes that it is very similar to Christianity, which annoys the reverend. He explains that
Christianity is based on the belief of souls. He adds that a man can lose his soul in the city when
people are corrupted by easy living, the pleasures of sense and the flesh, and mass corruption.
When Sam asks him how a man can regain his soul, the reverend says that it takes “cataclysm,
something tragic to knock a man back to his wits, to make him realize his loss”.

Upon leaving the reverend, Sam reiterates that he must have an Ifugao God, stating that it
would help remind him of Philip and of the Ifugaos. Philip then answers that he can steal a god for
Sam. Sam is horrified but Philip assures him that they can just make another god. He convinces
Sam that he can do this as thanks for everything Sam has done for him.
 Before the welcome party for Philip, he takes Sam to see his grandfather. The grandfather
allows him to enter his house, but does not welcome him warmly. The old man then takes out his
Ifugao God, the pours pig’s blood over it while reciting a prayer. After that, he picked up the god
and returned it to its niche.

Sam quickly got bored of the party and returned to the room he shared with Philip to get
some sleep. He is awakened by a drunken Philip, who triumphantly tells him that he has stolen his
grandfather’s god. Sam is aghast and urges Philip to return the stolen god. Philip drunkenly rants
that his grandfather is wrong to love Philip so much when Philip does not believe in the old ways
anymore. Philip mocks him when Sam continues to protest.

The next morning, Philip leaves Sam when he gets news that his grandfather is dying. Sam
wanders the village and he meets the chief of police who treats him with obsequiousness. Sadek,
Philip’s brother, arrives Sam notices that he is wearing Philip’s clothes. Sadek is uncomfortable
with Sam’s stare, but he still relates the news that their grandfather is dead and Philip will not be
leaving anymore. Sam goes looking for Philip with Sadek. He asks Sadek how his grandfather
died, to which Sadek replied that it was the loss of the god, the one that Philip had stolen. Sam is
sceptical about this but Sadek is certain about his news. He states that his grandfather died in
Philip’s arms, and he expresses worry about his brother.

When Sam finds Philip, Philip is adamant that he will not be returning to the city. Philip
lashes out at Sam, saying that he killed his grandfather who loved him because he wanted to be
grateful. He tells Sam that he can buy anything, even gods. Sam then sees that Philip is wearing
traditional Ifugao costume and he is making another god. Sam leaves with a heavy heart.

Throughout the story, we see two social classes in the personas of Sam and Philip. Sam
Christie is the upper class, while Philip Latak is the lower class. Even their names are indicative
of their status. Sam can be an allusion to America (Uncle Sam) and Christie can be Christianity.
Philip can stand for the Philippines, while Latak means residue, or anything that is worthless and
fit only to be thrown away. This can reference that the persona of Philip is the residue of when he
left Ifugao.

Sam as a rich foreigner is treated with high regards and respect while Philip, regardless of
what he achieved is treated with contempt. This shows that the lower class is not only oppressed
and looked down upon by the other classes; they do this to themselves as well. Even Philip himself
is indifferent of his culture. Marxism attempts to reveal the ways in which our socioeconomic
system is the ultimate source of our experience. The villagers are aware that Sam is upper class so
they treat him as such, and they see Philip as a lower class pretending to be something else. Despite
their contempt of Philip, we see that some of them want to be Americanized or upper class, as
evidenced by Sadek wearing Philip’s cast-off clothes and the eager acceptance of candies and other
products. On the other hand, Philip’s grandfather is openly disdainful of Sam and the upper class.
It is a love-hate relationship that is similar to crab mentality. The lower class want to be upper
class yet they hate people who are becoming part of that class.

Marxist criticism follows the material dialectic, wherein they believe that what drives
historical change are the material realities of the economic base of society, rather than the
ideological superstructure of politics, law, philosophy, religion, and art that is built upon that
economic base. This can be seen when Philip stole his grandfather’s Ifugao God. He openly defies
and disrespects his family and former religion because his material reality has changed. He lives a
more comfortable life in the city and with the help of Sam has gotten a raise. He sees that reality
as better he is grateful, grateful enough to forsake what his family believes in.

The material dialectic asserts that stable societies develop sites of resistance: contradictions
build into the social system that ultimately lead to social revolution and the development of a new
society upon the old. In the case of the God Stealer, there is contradiction between Philip and his
old family. They have different beliefs now, as influenced by their social classes. His family, being
lower class, believes in the old ways. Philip, who is now upper class, has a different set of beliefs
now. This tension ultimately led to a revolution, namely Philip stealing his grandfather’s beloved
god.

This event can be examined using the reverend’s words. He stated that a man can lose his
soul when he is corrupted by an easy life.

References:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1521340.The_God_Stealer_and_Other_Stories
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090108181827AAKsJ49
http://vincesantoalla.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/the-god-stealer/
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_Analysis_of_God_stealer
http://jackliao.blogspot.com/2002_07_21_archive.html