Dogeaters

Dogeaters, by Jessica Hagedorn, depicts the Filipino peoples as immersed in American culture. The character’s fascination with the glamour of Hollywood through movies and actors dominates their view of the Filipino identity. Because of this, Western culture is interwoven with every aspect of their lives, giving the characters a false sense of identity and placing them in a state of continual desire. This idea may be seen through the characters by their use of movies to explain and justify their behavior, scenes in the movies, and the continual association of movies and Hollywood when referring to other peoples.
The characters in Dogeaters want to identify with the American way and therefore constantly reference Hollywood and movies to justify their actions and those of others. This may be seen when Andres’ lover, Eugenio/Eugenia, leaves him. Andres rationalizes that the reason for Eugenio/Eugenia’s course of action is simply because Andres couldn’t land him ...