Nestor Vicente Madali Gonzalez,

commonly known as NVM Gonzalez

He was born on September 8, 1915
in Romblon, Philippines and died on
November 28, 1999
His mother was a teacher and his
father was a school supervisor.
He was a fictionist, essayist, poet,
and teacher, articulated the Filipino
spirit in rural and urban landscapes.
 N. V. M. Gonzalez's Writing Style

 N. V. M. Gonzalez's first love and first job

was playing music. As a young boy in
the Philippines, Gonzalez earned money
as a violinist at weddings.
 This background in music can be seen
in Gonzalez's style of writing, especially
in his poetry and fiction. Gonzalez has
also stated in interviews that his second
love after music was poetry and that it
had set the foundation for his prose
writing style.
Themes in N. V. M. Gonzalez's writing

 N. V. M. Gonzalez was born and raised

in Romblon, where the region has a rich
and unique ethnic culture.
 It is both Southern Tagalog, the native
Romblon dialect, and influences from
nearby Bicol and Visayas regions.
 He uses his experiences and
observations growing up on the island in
his literary works.
NVM GONZALEZ: NOTABLE AWARDS, PRIZES,
AND OTHER HONORS

• Honorable mention in the First Commonwealth

Literary Contest (1940) for The Winds of April;
• Rockefeller grants in 1949-1950, 1952, and 1964
• Republic Award of Merit (1954)
• Republic Cultural Heritage Award (1960) for The
Bamboo Dancers
• National Artist Award for Literature (1997)
• Philippines Centennial Award for Literature
(1998).
NVM GONZALEZ
• The awards attest to his triumph in
appropriating the English language to
express, reflect and shape Philippine
culture and Philippine sensibility.
• He became U.P.’s International-Writer-In-
Residence and a member of the Board
of Advisers of the U.P. Creative Writing
Center.
• In 1987, U.P. conferred on him the Doctor
of Humane Letters, honoris causa, the
highest academic recognition.
WORKS OF NVM GONZALEZ
  Major works of N.V.M Gonzalez include the
following:
• The Winds of April
• Seven Hills Away
• Children of the Ash-Covered Loam and
FAMOUS •
Other Stories
The Bamboo Dancers
WORKS OF • Look Stranger, on this Island Now
NVM • Mindoro and Beyond: Twenty -One Stories
• The Bread of Salt and Other Stories
GONZALEZ • Work on the Mountain
• The Novel of Justice: Selected Essays
1968-1994
• A Grammar of Dreams and Other Stories.
 FAMOUS
WORKS OF
NVM
GONZALEZ
 FAMOUS
WORKS OF
NVM
GONZALEZ
 The Bamboo Dancers is a historical novel by
Filipino novelist NVM Gonzalez. Published in 1959
by Bookmark
 This novel follows the travels of an Americanised
Filipino man and his struggles to embrace his own
roots in rural culture. Praised for its subtlety and
careful handling of culture clashes.
 Gonzalez uses bamboo dancing as a symbol.
Bamboo dancing is a traditional Filipino dance
which involves the beating of bamboo sticks
together.
 This symbolises the clashing of two ideologies –
local Filipino culture and imported Western
elements. It may also serve as a reminder of the
dangers inherent in traveling and losing a sense of
identity.