Titser

By Liwayway Arceo

     Titser is a 1995 novel written by award-winning author and journalist Liwayway Arceo, and published by the Ateneo de Manila University Press. It is based on several serials published in the aptly named Liwayway magazine during the 1950s.

     The novel was written in Tagalog and follows the story of Amelita Martinez, a public school teacher from a provincial town in the Philippines. Thematically, it incorporates the modern Filipina’s right to freedom both in her love life and her career, and the realities and fulfillment of becoming a teacher. Central to the story are Amelita’s family and how they each react to her choice of profession, whether it be with unyielding support or blatant disapproval.