The Pen and the Power of Truth

THE INQUIES SUMMER COURSE

The power of the pen is mightier than the sword, as a saying goes, because well-written pieces have the capacity to influence generations to bring a lasting change to society.

Harriet Beecher Stowe’s “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”, for instance, was one of the books that helped abolish slavery in the United States. Jose Rizal’s “Noli Me Tangere”, on the other hand, helped achieve Philippine liberation. Paul Ehrlich’s “The Population Bomb”, continues to fuel the overpopulation myth.

It can be deduced, therefore, that writing can either bring harm or benefit to society. With the influx of influential but misleading writers in today’s Internet age, there is a pressing need to develop a stronger counterbalance.

In line with this, the Center holds each year the Inquies Summer Course, a lecture and writing seminar that aims to educate the young participants on the truth behind several pertinent issues facing them. Latin for “restlessness”, Inquies suitably fits Universitas’ unrelenting search for truth convinced that the answers to the country’s predicaments have to be well thought-out, and firmly grounded on high regard for virtue and the natural law.

The Inquies Summer Course began in 2006, and since then had focused on four central themes ranging from philosophy to mass media. The central theme for this year’s course, meanwhile, was the “Culture of Life”, covering several bioethical issues in society today. Some of the speakers were Dr. Bernardo Villegas, who talked about the overpopulation hoax, and cartoonist Jess Abrera, who related several anecdotes on his career as a cartoonist and the power of media.

“Malaki talaga ang factor ng media dahil ito ang nagpapakita ng mga bagay-bagay sa mundo,” said Abrera, “Binubuo ng media ang mga ito para magkaron ang reader ng opinion… kapag may opinion ka, makakakilos ka.”

Activities such as educational tours like the one in GMA-7 provided by Mr. Mike Enriquez when he served as ISC faculty, give the students firsthand experience on the theme for the year, while sporting events, time for prayer and games provide opportunities for a healthy balance of activities. The students eventually develop a good background on the topic, helping them achieve the output of the activity to hopefully publish an article in a major daily.

To continue the discussion during the semester, Universitas also formed Inquies Biweekly. The group is a writing and critique group that trains students to write well, not only in syntax but also in forming sound arguments on paper. Each of the participants writes one article every two weeks, which is critiqued by the whole group, to help develop a knack for writing and expressing ideas well. Senator Francisco Tatad, who is renowned for his writing skills, showed his support recently through by conducting a writing workshop for the ISC participants—giving tips on good writing skills, commenting on the participants’ articles, and mentoring them on the validity of their arguments.

Inquies was inspired by the group of JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis at Oxford called Inklings. It was a literary discussion group which has changed the world of literature. It is hoped that this endeavor will do the same, not necessarily by raising Tolkiens and Lewises, but rather by forming ideas that will help change the country.