LEVELLING OF EXPECTATIONS

Meaning of Literature
Genres of Literature
Periods of Philippine
Literature and
Different Literary
Types
is derived from the Latin term
litera which means letter
 printed matter written within
a book, a magazine, or
pamphlet
 faithful reproduction of man’s
manifold experiences blended
into one harmonious
expression
story of man
man’s loves, griefs, thoughts,
dreams and aspirations
coached in beautiful language
anything that is printed, as
long as it is related to the
ideas and feelings of people
(Webster)
piece of written work which is
undying (Atienza, Ramos,
Salazar, and Nazal)
 PROSE POETRY
Consists of Refers to
those written those
within the expressions in
common flow of verse, with
conversation in measure and
sentences and rhyme, line and
paragraphs stanza and
melodious tone
 PROSE POETRY
Novel Narrative (epic,
Short story metrical tale, ballad)
Play Lyric (folksong,
Legend, fable sonnet, elegy, ode,
Anecdote psalm, awit, corrido)
Essay Dramatic (comedy,
Biography melodrama, tragedy,
News farce, social poem)
oration
Literature is ________________. It
can be divided into two general
classifications: p_____e and
p_____y. P_____e is characterized
by ________________________ while
p_____y. Examples of p_____e
include ________________________;
examples of p_____y include
p_____y
1. What literary titles do the
pictures signify? Justify your
answers.
2. Who are the leading characters
you remember in the stories
portrayed in the pictures?
3. What is the general setting or the
place where the stories happened
in each picture-story?
4. What are the themes or
main idea of these
picture-stories?
5. What Filipino values do
these stories tell about?
 Philippine literature has
achieved a stature that is
phenomenal
 The growth of written
literature is slow and
evolutionary
 History and literature are
slowly unfolding before us
 Time frames may not be
necessary in a study of
literature, but since they
are inescapably related it
has become facilitative to
map up a system which
will aid us in delineating
certain time boundaries
 These time boundaries are
not exactly well-defined
1. Pre-colonization (--BC-
1564)
2. Spanish Colonization
(1565-1898)
a. Nationalistic/ Propaganda
(1864-1896)
b. Period of Enlightenment
(1872-1898)
c. Period of Active Revolution
(1896-1898)
3. American Colonization
(1898-1941)
a. Period of Reorientation (1898-
1910)
b. Period of Imitation (1910-1924)
c. Period of Apprenticeship
(1910-1930)
d. Period of Emergence (1920-
1930)
e. Period of Self-Discovery (1925-
1941)
4. Japanese Colonization (1941-
1945)
5. The Rebirth of Freedom (1946-
1970)
6. Period of the Third Republic
7. Period of Activism (1970-1972)
8. Period of the New Society (1972-
1981)
9. Contemporary Period (1986 to
present)
 Based on oral traditions
 Shows our customs and
traditions in everyday life
 Ethnic literature may be
classified into three groups:
folk speech, folk songs, and
folk narratives
Riddle/ bugtong
(Tagalog)/ tigmo
(Cebuano)/ burburtia
(Ilocano)/ paktakon
(Ilongo)/ patototdon
(Bicol)
are like proverbs with one
main difference: demand an
answer and are used to test
the wits of those listening to
them
Rely on talinghaga
(metaphor)
called bugtong
flippant in nature
practical observation and
philosophy of everyday
Heto na si Kaka, bubuka- life
that
bukaka.is written in a
rhyming scheme
meant to entertain while
Sa araw ay bungbong,
teaching basic skills in
Sa gabi ay dahon.
surviving local life
called salawikain
Proverbs and aphorisms/
salawikain or kasabihan
(Tagalog)/ aramiga or
sasabihan (Bicol)/ panultihon
or pagya (Cebuano)/ humbaton
or hurobaton (Ilongo)/
pagsasao (Ilocano)/ kasebian
(Pampango)
are practical observations
and philosophy of everyday
life that are written usually
in a rhyming scheme
meant to entertain while
teaching basic skills in
surviving local life
called salawikain
practical observation and
philosophy
Kung ano ang ofpuno,
everyday life
that
siya angisbunga.
written in a
rhyming scheme
meant to entertain while
Kung walang tiyaga,
teaching basic skills in
Walang nilaga.
surviving local life
called salawikain
 beautiful songs that are
informal expressions of our
ancestor’s experiences in
life
 range from courtship songs
(harana) or serenade, to
lullabies, harvests,
funerals, and others
Lullabyes
Love songs
Drinking songs
Work songs
Religious songs
Death songs
 Sung to put children to
sleep
 Called oyayi (Tagalog)/ ili-ili
(Ilongo)/ duayya (Ilocano)/
tumaila (Pampango/
baliwayway (Isinay and
Ilongot)/ andang (Aeta)
 May be sung and danced to
 Sometimes senseless,
always playful and light
 Reflect the child’s carefree
world
 Frequently concern romantic
love (form or strengthen
bonds between lovers)
 Some are about unrequited
love
 Courtship songs are many in
ethnic literature
 Panawagon and balitao, aliri
(Aeta), diona (Tagalog), harana
(Cebuano), ambahan (Mangyan)
 Ambahan, a poem with seven
syllables per line, the ending
syllables following a rhyme
scheme; used as a form of
social entertainment and as a
tool for teaching the young
 Sung during carousals
 Brief, always merry, almost
hedonistic
 Many originated in the
Bicol area where they are
called tigsik/ tagay
(Cebuano and Waray)
 Foster cohesiveness within
the community
 Depict the different forms
of livelihood
 Sung to synchronize the
movements of workers
 Songs for solemn affairs
 Prayer of thanksgiving
(ambaamba)
 Exorcism chant (bugyaw)
 Deaths occasion the singing
of dirges or lamentations, in
which the deeds of the dead
are recounted
 Generally called kwentong
bayan (myths, legends,
fables, and trickster tales)
 Myths are regarded as
sacred, explain origin and
goal of the cosmos
 Legends (alamat) are
believed to be about more
recent events
used to explain certain
events or phenomena in
our ancestors’ lives that
cannot be explained by the
limited practical kind of
science they knew back
then
 Fables are short tales,
usually involving animals,
which teach a moral lesson
 Trickster tale recounts the
adventures of a clever hero
who outwits authority
figures, usually coming from
the upper classes
 long-winded poems about a
hero (usually male) and his
adventures and
misadventures
 the hero is usually born with
all the pleasing qualities that
the ancestors like and has
superhuman capabilities
 the hero is usually paired with
a beautiful young maiden
 Colonization was brought
about by Industrial
Revolution
 Two great European powers
(Spain and Portugal)
 Age of Voyages and
Explorations)
 Competition over
accumulation of raw
materials, land and
territories
 Propelled by 3Gs
 Treaty of Tordesillas-
Western Hemisphere
(Spain)
 1565 Miguel Lopez de
Legazpi reached Samar
 Blood compact with Datus
Sikatuna and Gala in Bohol
 Established 1st Spanish
settlement in Phil. Soil at
Cebu (Ciudad del Santisimo
Nombre de Jesus)
 Spain’s style was different
 To change the native’s
personhood and way of life
 To be “civilized” meant to
stay in a pueblo under the
control of the Spanish king,
and be a Christian
 Reduccion (resettlement)
 The Spaniards colonized the
Philippines for more than
three centuries
 Changes in the lives of
Filipinos: they embraced
Catholic religion, changed
their names, and were
baptized
 Changes in the lives of
Filipinos: change in
lifestyles, e. g. house and
means of transportation,
fiestas, forms of recreation;
rise to the formation of
classes of society, access to
education
 Replacement of the alphabet
(ALIBATA to Roman
alphabet)
 Teaching of the Christian
Doctrine became the basis
of religious practices
 Spanish language became
the literary language
 European legends and
traditions brought here
became assimilated in our
songs, corridos, and moro-
moros
 Ancient literature was
collected and translated to
Tagalog and other dialects
 Many grammar books were
printed in Filipino, like
Tagalog, Ilocano and
Visayan
 Periodicals during these
times gained a religious tone
 Two distinct
classifications: religious
and secular
 Written literature is a
legacy of Spanish
colonial rule
 Writing during this time may be
classified into religious prose and
poetry and secular prose and
poetry
 Religious poetry may be grouped
into lyrics and narratives
 Lyrics include complimentary
verses written by so-called ladino
 Another type is the meditative
verses attached to religious
works, such as novenas and
catechisms
 Religious narrative poetry is
primarily the pasyon
 Gaspar Aquino de Belen’s Ang
Mahal na Pasion ni Jesu Cristong
Panginoon Natin na Tola (1704) is
the earliest known Filipino pasyon
 Casaysayan nang Pasiong Mahal
ni Jesucristong Panginoon Natin
na Sucat Ipag-alab nang Puso
nang Sinomang Babasa (Pasyong
Genesis) became the most popular
and was translated into other
languages
 Religious narrative prose consists
of the various kinds of prose
narratives written to prescribe
proper behavior
 These were channels for
instruction in the Catholic faith
and for colonialization
 Include forms as the dialogo
(dialogue), the manual de
urbanidad (conduct book), ejemplo
(exemplum), and the tratado
(polemical tract)
 Religious narrative prose consists
of the various kinds of prose
narratives written to prescribe
proper behavior
 These were channels for
instruction in the Catholic faith
and for colonialization
 Include forms as the dialogo
(dialogue), the manual de
urbanidad (conduct book), ejemplo
(exemplum), and the tratado
(polemical tract)
narrative poem about the life
of Jesus Christ, beginning
from his birth up to his death
usually sung during Lenten
season
Written in octosyllabic verse
dramatization of the passion of
Christ
highlights the sufferings and
death of Jesus Christ
done during the Lenten season
Set in dodecasyllabic
quatrains
Metrical romance
Colorful tale of chivalry
made for singing and
chanting
E. g. Florante at Laura
Set in octosyllabic quatrains
Metrical romance
Colorful tale of chivalry made
for singing and chanting
E. g. Ibong Adarna
Comedia de Capa y Espada
blood-and-thunder melodrama
depicting the conflict of
Christians and Muslims
usually about battles to the
death and the proofs of faith
play that uses shadows as its
main spectacle
A form of dramatic
entertainment performed on a
moonless night during a town
fiesta
created by animating figures
made from cardboard, which
are projected onto a white
screen
dramatic reenactment of St.
Helena’s search for the Holy
Cross
St. Helena is the mother of
Constantine and is oftentimes
credited to have influenced
her son to be the great
Christian leader he is known
today
A poetic vehicle of a socio-
religious nature celebrated
during the death of a person
A ritual is performed based
on a legend about a princess
who dropped her ring into the
middle of the sea who offered
her hand in marriage to
anyone who can retrieve it
Replaced the Karagatan
Poetic joust in speaking and
reasoning
The roles are taken from the
Bible and from proverbs and
saying
Usually played during wakes
for the dead
Deabate in verse
Replaced the duplo and is
held to honor Francisco
“Balagtas” Baltazar
Poetical joust done almost
spontaneously between
protagonists who debate over
the pros and cons of an issue
Considered the father of the
drama
one of the most famous forms
of entertainment back in the
Spanish era
musical comedies or
melodramas that deal with the
elemental passions of human
beings
follows a certain plot
 Spearheaded mostly by the
intellectual middle-class;
three principal leaders
were Jose Rizal, Marcelo
del Pilar, and Graciano
Lopez Jaena
 Sought reforms and
changes
1. To get equal treatment for the
Filipinos and the Spaniards under
the law
2. To make the Philippines a colony
of Spain
3. To restore Filipino representation
in the Spanish Cortes
4. To Filipinize the parishes
5. To give the Filipinos freedom of
speech, of the press, assembly
and redress of grievances
 Known for his pen names
Laong Laan and Dimasalang
 Died by musketry in the
hands of the Spaniards on
December 30, 1896 on
charges of sedition and
rebellion against the
Spaniards
 NOLI ME TANGERE exposed
the evils in society
 EL FILIBUSTERISMO
exposed the evils in the
government and in the
church
 Known for his pen names
Plaridel, Pupdoh, Piping
Dilat, and Dolores Manapat
 Established Diariong
Tagalog in 1883 where he
exposed the evils of the
Spanish government in the
Philippines
 Known writer and orator in
the Philippines
 Established LA
SOLIDARIDAD (which later
became the official voice of
the Assosacion Hispano de
Filipinas)
 Because Filipinos did not get the
reforms they demanded, they
decided that there was no other
way except to revolt
 The gist of literature contained
mostly accusations against the
government and was meant to
arouse the people to unite and to
prepare for independence
 Noted leaders: Andres Bonifacio,
Emilio Jacinto, and Apolinario
Mabini
 Father of Filipino
Democracy; Father of the
Katipunan
 What he learned he got
from the school of
experience
 Pag-ibig sa Tinubuang Lupa
 Sublime Paralytic; Brains of
the Revolution
 Became the right-hand of
Emilio Aguinaldo when the
latter founded his Republic
in Malolos
 El Verdadero Decalogo (The
True Decalogue or Ten
Commandments)
 Intelligent assistant of
Andres Bonifacio
 He edited Kalayaan, a
Katipunan newspaper
 Kartilya ng Katipunan
 Treaty of Paris-ceded the Philippines
to the US, $20M
 1901 public education was
institutionalized
 600 educators in the SS Thomas
(Thomasites)
 Changes: democracy; Westernization
of Filipino taste in food and clothing;
Americanized manners; deterioration
of close family ties; emancipation of
women; popular education
 Period of Re-orientation
 English as a literary vehicle came
with the American occupation in
August 13, 1898
 Writers were still adjusting to the
newfound freedom after the
paralyzing effect of repression of
thought and speech under the
Spanish regime
 Period of Imitation
 By 1919, the UP College Folio
published the literary compositions
of the first Filipino writers in English
(pioneers in short story writing)
 Writers were then groping their way
into imitating American and British
models which resulted in a stilted,
artificial and unnatural style
 Models included Longfellow and
Hawthorne, Emerson and Thoreau,
Wordsworth and Tennyson, Thackeray
and Macaulay, Allan Poe, Irving, etc.
 Writers of the folio: Fernando Maramag
(best editorial writer), Juan F. Salazar,
Jose M. Fernandez, Vicente del Fierro,
Francisco Africa, Victoriano Yamzon
(pioneered English poetry)
 For informal essay, criticism and the
journalistic column: Ignacio
Manlapaz, Godefredo Rivera,
Federico Mangahas, Francisco B.
Icasiano, Salvador P. Lopez, Jose
Lansang and Amando G. Dayrit
 Short Stories: DEAD STARS by Paz
Marquez Benitez stand out as a
model of perfection in character
delineation, local color, plot and
message
 Period of Apprenticeship (1910-
1930)
 New literary forms were
introduced, chiefly, free verse, the
modern short story, and the
critical essay
 Filipino writers imitated English
and American models
 Poems were amateurish and
mushy
 Period of Emergence (1920-
1930)
 Highly influenced by Western
literary trends (Romanticism
and Realism)
 Short stories were the most
prevalent literary form
 Period of Self-Dicovery and Growth
 By this time, Filipino writers had
acquired the mastery of English
writing
 Competently wrote on a lot of
subjects (although old-time
favorites: love and youth)
 Went into all forms of writing like
the novel and the drama
 Period of Self-Dicovery and
Growth
 Poetry: not only love poems;
patriotic, religious, descriptive
and reflective
 Free verse, in odes and sonnets
 Poetry was original, spontaneous,
competently written, incorporated
social consciousness
 Period of Self-Dicovery and Growth
 The Short Story: flourished during
these times
 Characteristics: still remnants of
Spanish influence in the use of
expressions that were florid,
sentimental, exaggerated and
bombastic
 Influence of the W. culture was
also evident
 Period of Self-Dicovery and Growth
 Essays during this period improved
in quality and quantity, in content,
subject, and style
 Essayists like Carlos P. Romulo
became even more eminent
editorial writers
 Political, social reflective; critical;
personal or familiar
 Philippine literature in English
came to a halt
 This had an advantageous
effect on Filipino Literature
which experienced renewed
attention because writers in
English turned to writing in
Filipino
 The common theme of poems
was nationalism, country, love,
life in barrios, faith, religion, and
the arts
 Three types of poem emerged:
haiku (free verse with 17
syllables divided into 3 lines[5-7-
5]), tanaga (short but had
measure and rhyme, 17
syllables), karaniwang anyo
practical toobservation
Attributed Ildefonso Santos
and
Monorhyming heptasyllabic
philosophy of everyday life
quatrain which expresses
that is written in a
insights and lessons on living
rhyming scheme
Extended form of wise saying
meant to entertain while
Parang talang
teaching marikit
basic skills in
May taglay na pang-akit
surviving local life
Hangad niyang makamit
called salawikain
‘Wag sanang ipagkait
 Drama experienced a lull
 The field of the short story
widened because many wrote
short stories
 Writings that came out during
this period were journalistic in
nature
 Americans returned in 1945
 On July 4, 1946, the Philippines
regained its freedom
 “struggle of mind and spirit”
posed by the sudden
emancipation from the enemy
and the wild desire to see print
 Filipinos had learned to express
themselves more confidently
 Proliferation of newspapers
 Gradually, as normality was
restored, the tones and themes of
the writings turned to the less
pressing problems of economic
survival
 Some Filipinos who had gone
abroad came back to publish their
works
 The themes of most poems dealt
with the usual love of nature, and
of social and political problems
 Longer and longer pieces were
being written by writers
 Philippine literature in Tagalog was
revived during this period
 Most themes in the writings dealt
with Japanese brutalities, of the
poverty of life under the Japanese
government and the brave guerilla
exploits
 Newspapers and magazine
publications were re-opened
 Tagalog poetry acquired not only
rhyme but substance and
meaning
 Short stories had better
characters and events based on
facts and realities and themes
were more meaningful
 Novels became common but
were still read by the people for
recreation
 Plagued with postwar
problems:
Ravaged land
Cities and towns in ruins
 Poems were romantic and
revolutionary; writers openly
wrote about their criticism
against the government
 Songs dealt with themes that
were true-to-life
 Sex films were unabated
 Oppressed media
 “Philippine literature is
definitely changing”—Isagani
Cruz
 Change in direction of greater
consciousness in content and
form
 Change in the number of
readers and writers and the
kind and class of writers
 Resurgence of Balagtasismo
and the continued dominance
of Modernismo
 Birth of a new poetic
movement still dims in outline
 Apparent merging of the
erstwhile separate streams of
oral and written literature
 According to Ponciano Pineda,
youth activism in 1970-72 was
due to domestic and worldwide
causes
 Because of the ills of society,
the youth moved to seek reforms
 Many young activists were
imprisoned in military camps
together with rebel writers
 The seeds of activism resulted in
the declaration of Martial Law in
1972
 The youth proved that it is not
the constant evasion that shapes
our race and nationalism
 The youth became completely
rebellious (not only in bloody
demonstrations but also in
literature)
 Almost all themes dealt with the
development or progress of the
country
 Tried to stop pornography or those
writings giving bad influences on
the morals of people
 All school newspapers were
temporarily stopped
 Government took part in reviving
old plays
 The CCP, Folk Arts Theater and
the old Metropolitan Theater were
rebuilt to have a place for plays
 Singing in both Filipino and
English songs received fresh
incentives
 Themes of most poems dealt with
patience, regard for native
culture, customs and the beauties
of nature and surroundings
 The forms of literature that led
during this period were essays,
debates, and poetry
 Short stories, novels, and
plays were the same as those
written before the onset of
activism
 Life goes on and the world
continues in its process of
undergoing a real historical
transition…inevitably leaving its
imprint in literature
 “Absolute divorcement from the
world by writers is impossible, for
literature is, in some way, rooted
in the earth of human experience”
–(Salvador Lopez)
 The writer must be a man of
historic propensities
 The years 1986-1999 (14 years)
cover the careers of three
presidents
 Spates of literary enthusiasm
continue unabated, unhampered
by compelling handicaps, hard
times and the transient problems
of the period
 The undaunted expression of the
Filipino propensities revealing the
Filipino psyche
 Contemporary poetry manifests a
skillful manipulation of symbolic
representations and is more
insightful and abstract
 Essays address societal issues,
are more free and daring, however
pointing out moral degradation
 Popular topics were on happy (or
tragic) experiences—abortion,
separation, alternative routes in
life and new-found happiness
 Short story is still the more
popular venue of writers
 Scriptwriting, developing
literature form
 Substantial awards in film-making
 Expansion to cater to children’s
needs
 Popularity of Taglish
 Notion of seeking popularity and
ratings through exposure
 Creative writing workshops
 Novels did not continue to
flourish; novel writers settled in
their twilight years
 Contemporary Philippine literature is a
product of troubled times, the see-
sawing balance between
cosmopolitanism and nationalism,
elitism and democracy, art and politics,
leaving a body of writing of
considerable variety.
 Filipino today is no longer a sentimental
choice; it is necessary choice because
it is the language that allows writers to
communicate with the masses
“If you don’t know history, then
you don’t know anything. You
are a leaf that doesn’t know
that it is part of a tree” –
Michael Crichton
Work in groups.
Pick a particular
literary period 20 minutes

and make a
concept map to
describe such
period.
End