The Good Example
-Vincent Riva Palacio
The message of the author is justified by the title, itself. The setting of the story is pure nature and the details of the environment effectively reflect the taste of Don possessed with the virtues of a good teacher. All that Don holds is expected in every teacher is dedicated to his job. His nature becomes so hospitable that even the students and the pets follow as the parrot does in the story. For his noble qualities and full commitment to his regular duties, Don was quoted far and wide in the village. In the villager's eye, Don Lucas was a true follower of the course of action, who cares nothing about the return of the students from his efforts to teach them. So, Don was quoted as a good model of the teaching community and as a veritable martyr.
Don as a good example of teaching cared for the student's needs as he did for his own. So he encouraged Perico, the parrot to share with his regular refreshment. Similarly, the parrot should be appreciated for acquiring the good qualities of a good company or of all those around. Even babbling with Don Lucas as a friend and listening to the pupils singing in the chorus at the school, the parrot learned alphabets, words syllables exactly as pronounced by the school children. The tale shows that a teacher is the best source for the pupils to learn the best about the good principles and conduct of life. This is shown in the industry by the passion of the parrot for imitation paving the path of Don to teach his neighbours as taught to himself to chant Ba, Da, ...Ge, Je, etc even in the far distance from the master.
Despite all these, the story is tilted towards throwing a satire on the education system based on memory that of Mexico in the 19th century. The writer is much convinced if the learning process is as such then the school can be opened and run by the other creatures as well. To exemplify the very statement, he has intentionally brought about the case of Perico pet tamed by Don Lucas. To mug up something is terrible, monotonous and boring. Repetition of something to set in our mind indeed kills our creative power and intuition.
Education is not something we should gain out of memorizing. Rather it should be assimilated and implemented into our practical affairs by understanding. It is a satire in the sense that the education system of Mexico in the 19thcentury was not inclined towards encouraging students towards comprehension and promoting their creative aspect. Rather it was a forcible and tiring process that the writer did not prefer. That is why he attacked it in a mild and literary way.
The Good Example
There was a village in the region of the southern part of the Mexican republic at the foothills of the Sierra Madre near the Pacific Ocean. There were little white houses barely touched by the rays of the tropical sun as they were under the cool shade of coconut and other gigantic trees. Don Lucas Forcida ran the school. Florida was a magnificent person. He was loved by all his neighbours. He was never careless in his duty so to speak, he was also a victimized martyr as another long-suffering teacher.
There was a traditional sort of teaching which exercised the antique pattern of the worn-out system. The students would have to follow the ideas repeating everything their master with annoying monotony. They would have to learn, in a single cacophonous chorus, about the alphabet, syllables, religious catechisms and even multiplicities table. At that time children were sent very far trying to see who among these could yell loudest or best. Don Lucas was just the silent watcher paying no heed about it.
The children would learn the school by 4 o’clock, yelling and throwing stones. Then, Don Lucas could be free. He could carry a chair to the sidewalk, and a servant would give him a cup of hot chocolate and a big cake. A gust of cool breeze would strike on Lucas’ bald head. Lucas would share his light Tiffin with his friend i.e., his parrot.
Lucas had kept the parrot lovingly somewhere in his heart. The parrot was kept in a cage above the school door under the show of the palm leaves. There was a good understanding in between the parrot and Don Lucas. Due to the row of the school children, the parrot could hardly learn the words from Don Lucas.
As soon as the school children left the ground Lucas would start to share his affection to parrot taking the hot chocolate in his hand. The parrot would go up and down his perch (cage) babbling about everything he knew and didn’t know. Lucas would offer him the crumbs of cake.
The moving (heart-touching) incident repeated every day several years passed by Don Lucas had a firm belief in the parrot (Perico). He thought of releasing the parrot. However, one morning about 10 o’clock, he heard the student shouting, “Don Lucas, Perico is flying away!” Having heard this, the teacher and the student rushed outside but, they ran in vain. Their attempt to bring the parrot back was futile, far they could not recognize him in the multitude of the forest-dwelling parrots. Don Lucas returned to his seat and continued the lesson.
Everyone seemed to have forgotten the terrible incident. Several months passed by Lucas would have forgotten about the parrot. One day, he was going to make a trip to his neighbouring village. He had to ride the horse for the journey. It was passed in the hot afternoon. There was no draught of air and he was feeling extremely hot. The birds were hiding in the thick foliage Lucas could only hear the faint chirping of cicadas
Don Lucas horse was marching ahead. Meanwhile, he heard the familiar voice of children chanting syllables, words and catechisms.
Don Lucas thought in the beginning that it might have been his hallucination It was due to extreme heat. But, as he came nearer, it was obvious that there was a school even in the desolate forest.
Having seen this, he was astonished. He found a flock of parrots chanting in unison ba, da, fa, ga, ja, be, fe, ge, je. Behind the flock, he noticed Perico, who bowed his head to have seen his master. At once, Perico panted, “Don Lucas, I have a school now.”Since then, they disappeared in the shadow of obscurantism.