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11/12
21st
Century Literature from the
Philippines and the World
QUARTER 1
WEEK 2

Ca
pS
Capsulized Self-Learning Empowerment Toolkit

LE
Schools Division Office of Zamboanga City
Region IX – Zamboanga Peninsula
Zamboanga City

“Unido, Junto avanza con el EduKalidad Cree, junto junto puede!”

CapSLET

T Capsulized Self-Learning Empowerment Toolkit

Written by: MARION B. GUERRERO (SST-II) DPLMHS Stand-Alone Senior High School
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21st Century
Literature
from the
SUBJECT & Philippines
QUARTER 1 WEEK 2 DAY ----------------------
GRADE/LEVEL and the dd/mm/yyyy
World

Grade 11/12
TOPIC The Birth of Philippine Literature in English
Identify the geographic, linguistic, and ethnic dimensions of
Philippine literary history from pre-colonial to the
contemporary.
Objectives:
LEARNING Code:
 List the different literary forms introduced during the
COMPETENCY EN12Lit-Ia-21
American Occupation;
 state how a work becomes a literary canon; and
 empathize with a character from a literary text.

IMPORTANT: Do not write anything on this material.

UNDERSTAND
Philippine Literature during the American Occupation

How did the American period change Philippine literature? When the Americans colonized
us, they introduced democracy and opened public schools where English became the language used
for teaching, this made writing more accessible to many Filipinos. They also introduced new literary
forms like the short story, the one-act play (a play where the story ends in one time and place
setting) and the free verse poetry (a poem that does not have a rhyming scheme).

What does it mean to say when a literary work is considered a “literary canon”? The term
“literary canon” refers to a body of books, narratives and other texts considered to be the most
important and influential of a particular time period or place. In 1925, Paz Marquez Benitez, a
professor at the University of the Philippines, published Dead Stars which is considered as the first
Filipino modern short story in English. This showed how easy it was for us to adopt the English
language after only twenty years of American occupation. This piece greatly influenced many
succeeding Filipino writers to master English in crafting truly Filipino literary masterpieces

Paz Marquez-Benitez (1894-1983) was a member of the first freshman class of

the University of the Philippines. In 1919, she founded “Woman's Home Journal,”
the first women’s magazine in the country. Filipino Love Stories, reportedly the
first anthology of Philippine stories in English by Filipinos, was compiled in 1928
by Marquez-Benitez from the works of her students. The annually held Paz
Marquez-Benitez Memorial Lectures of Ateneo de Manila University honors her
memory by focusing on the contribution of Filipino women writers to Philippine
literature in the English.

SAQ-1: How did the English language change Philippine literature?

SAQ-2: Why do you think it was easier for Filipinos to appreciate literature during the
American Period compared during the Spanish Colonial Era?

Let’s Practice! (Write your answer on the separate sheets provided.)

Dead Stars revolves around Alfred Salazar, a 30-year old lawyer and his affairs. Esperanza is
the first woman he falls in love with and both get engaged after three years of their relationship.
Alfredo’s love for her soon fades away when he meets Julia. Julia Salas is the sister-in-law of the
Judge, who is a friend of Alfredo’s father. When Alfredo comes across her, he is strongly attracted to
her, so much that he calls her Julita as a nickname. Even he is so passionate that he does not reveal

Written by: MARION B. GUERRERO (SST-II) DPLMHS Stand-Alone Senior High School
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his engagement to Esperanza.

Directions: Read this excerpt from Dead Stars and and fill out the Empathy Table below.

Into the quickly deepening twilight, the voice of the biggest of the church bells kept ringing its
insistent summons. Flocking came the devout with their long wax candles, young women in vivid
apparel (for this was Holy Thursday and the Lord was still alive), older women in sober black
skirts. Came too, the young men in droves, elbowing each other under the talisay tree near the
church door….

Soon a double row of lights emerged from the church and uncoiled down the length of the
street like a huge jewelled band studded with glittering clusters where the saints’ platforms were….

The sight of Esperanza and her mother sedately pacing behind Our Lady of Sorrows suddenly
destroyed the illusion of continuity and broke up those lines of light into component individuals.
Esperanza stiffened self-consciously, tried to look unaware, and could not.

The line moved on.

Suddenly, Alfredo’s slow blood began to beat violently, irregularly. A girl was coming down
the line–a girl that was striking, and vividly alive, the woman that could cause violent commotion
in his heart, yet had no place in the completed ordering of his life.

Her glance of abstracted devotion fell on him and came to a brief stop.

The line kept moving on, wending its circuitous route away from the church and then back
again, where, according to the old proverb, all processions end.

At last Our Lady of Sorrows entered the church, and with her the priest and the choir, whose
voices now echoed from the arched ceiling. The bells rang the close of the procession.

A round orange moon, “huge as a winnowing basket,” rose lazily into a clear sky, whitening
the iron roofs and dimming the lanterns at the windows. Along the still densely shadowed streets
the young women with their rear guard of males loitered and, maybe, took the longest way home.

Toward the end of the row of Chinese stores, he caught up with Julia Salas. The crowd had
dispersed into the side streets, leaving Calle Real to those who lived farther out. It was past eight,
and Esperanza would be expecting him in a little while: yet the thought did not hurry him as he said
“Good evening” and fell into step with the girl.

“I had been thinking all this time that you had gone,” he said in a voice that was both excited
and troubled.

“No, my sister asked me to stay until they are ready to go.”

“Oh, is the Judge going?”

“Yes.”

The provincial docket had been cleared, and Judge del Valle had been assigned elsewhere. As
lawyer–and as lover–Alfredo had found that out long before.

“Mr. Salazar,” she broke into his silence, “I wish to congratulate you.”

Her tone told him that she had learned, at last. That was inevitable.

“For what?”

“For your approaching wedding.”

Written by: MARION B. GUERRERO (SST-II) DPLMHS Stand-Alone Senior High School
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Some explanation was due her, surely. Yet what could he say that would not offend?

“I should have offered congratulations long before, but you know mere visitors are slow about
getting the news,” she continued.

He listened not so much to what she said as to the nuances in her voice. He heard nothing to
enlighten him, except that she had reverted to the formal tones of early acquaintance. No revelation
there; simply the old voice–cool, almost detached from personality, flexible and vibrant, suggesting
potentialities of song.

“Are weddings interesting to you?” he finally brought out quietly

“When they are of friends, yes.”

“Would you come if I asked you?”

“When is it going to be?”

“May,” he replied briefly, after a long pause.

“May is the month of happiness they say,” she said, with what seemed to him a shade of irony.

“They say,” slowly, indifferently. “Would you come?”

“Why not?”

“No reason. I am just asking. Then you will?”

“If you will ask me,” she said with disdain.

“Then I ask you.”

“Then I will be there.”

The gravel road lay before them; at the road’s end the lighted windows of the house on the hill.
There swept over the spirit of Alfredo Salazar a longing so keen that it was pain, a wish that, that
house were his, that all the bewilderments of the present were not, and that this woman by his side
were his long wedded wife, returning with him to the peace of home.

“Julita,” he said in his slow, thoughtful manner, “did you ever have to choose between
something you wanted to do and something you had to do?”

“No!”

“I thought maybe you had had that experience; then you could understand a man who was in
such a situation.”

“You are fortunate,” he pursued when she did not answer.

“Is–is this man sure of what he should do?”

“I don’t know, Julita. Perhaps not. But there is a point where a thing escapes us and rushes
downward of its own weight, dragging us along. Then it is foolish to ask whether one will or will
not, because it no longer depends on him.”

“But then why–why–” her muffled voice came. “Oh, what do I know? That is his problem after
all.”

Written by: MARION B. GUERRERO (SST-II) DPLMHS Stand-Alone Senior High School
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“Doesn’t it–interest you?”

“Why must it? I–I have to say good-bye, Mr. Salazar; we are at the house.”

Without lifting her eyes, she quickly turned and walked away.

Had the final word been said? He wondered. It had.

To empathize means ‘to share and understand the feelings of another.’ Choose one of the main
characters –Alfredo, Julia, or Esperanza. Think as if you were this character, and then fill in the
empathy table. This can help you understand him or her more deeply.

Name of Character

What are you thinking?

What are you feeling?

What are you seeing?

What are you saying?

What are you doing?

REMEMBER
Key Points

 The American Occupation of the Philippines (1898-1946) brought many changes to Philippine
society, such as the introduction of democracy as a form of government. In the field of
literature, the Americans opened public schools which used English as a medium of
instruction.
 In terms of literary development, the Americans brought the following literary forms: short
story, one-act play, and free verse poetry.
 In 1925, the short story Dead Stars was published. Authored by Paz Marquez-Benitez, it is the
first modern short-story in English written by a Filipino, and is considered a literary canon
because of its influence and importance in the birth of Filipino literature in English.

TRY
Let’s see how much have you learned today!

Directions: Read each item carefully and answer the following questions. (Answer on a separate
sheet.)

Written by: MARION B. GUERRERO (SST-II) DPLMHS Stand-Alone Senior High School
 5

Identify whether the literary piece is a literary On the lines provided, write T if the statement is
canon or not. Write LC for literary canon or true or F if the statement is false.
N for not on the lines provided.
________ 11. The Americans prioritized
________ 1. Dead Stars literatures that were inspired by
________ 2. Harry Potter and Catholic faith.
the Sorcerer’s Stone ________ 12. The first modern short-story in
________ 3. Ibong Adarna English by a Filipino was written
________ 4. lesson plan by Paz Latorena.
________ 5. laboratory findings ________ 13. A one-act play has a storyline
________ 6. Noli me tangere that starts and ends in one time
________ 7. news article and place setting.
________ 8. Romeo and Juliet ________ 14. English was the medium of
________ 9. research manuscript instruction of public schools
________ 10. survey report during the American Period.
________ 15. Free-verse poetry follows a
rhyming pattern.

TOPIC Philippine Literature in the Contemporary Times

Identify the geographic, linguistic, and ethnic dimensions of
Philippine literary history from pre-colonial to the
contemporary.
LEARNING Code: Objectives:
COMPETENCY EN12Lit-Ia-21  Discuss social realism as a theme of contemporary
Philippine literature; and
 interpret a representative text of literature of
circumvention.

UNDERSTAND
Contemporary Philippine Literature

How did the years after World War II change Philippine literature? The Philippines formally
became and independent country in 1946, and the years that followed it were full of social issues such
as economic inequality and agrarian reform. Literary works were now not merely made for
entertainment or for its sake (aestheticism), but sought to reflect the many changes in society (social
awareness/realism).
Bueno, let’s get it over with.
Post-War Philippines encouraged the publication of
It’s a long walk to the depot.
works in the regional languages and most importantly,
Tama na ang sophistication-
in Filipino as literary artists were no longer expected to
sophistication.
only write in English. Writers also began experimenting
with the rules of language, like the use of Taglish. Take
Sa steep incline, pababa sa highway
for example this excerpt on the right from National
Where all things level, sabi nga,
Artist for Theatre and Literature Rolando S. Tinio’s
There’s a flurry, ang gentle-gentle.
Valediction sa Hillcrest:
Pagwhoosh-whoosh ng paa ko,
The snow melts right under:
What was the effect of the Martial Law Period
(1972-1981) to Philippine literature? Martial Law
Nagtutubig parang asukal,
closed down many publishing houses, newspapers,
Humuhulas,
radio and television networks, and so production of
nagsesentimental.
literature was greatly affected, but the period also gave
birth to the literature of circumvention or literature
which sought to expose and criticize political issues without risking the imprisonment of its author.
Social realism and social protest became the common themes of poems.

Written by: MARION B. GUERRERO (SST-II) DPLMHS Stand-Alone Senior High School
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Jose Maria F. Lacaba (1945- ) is a journalist, poet, translator, university

lecturer, screenwriter, and show business specialist. His poetry collections
include Mga Kagila-gilalas na Pakikipagsapalaran (1979, 1996), Sa

SAQ-1: Does literature need to reflect social issues? Why or why not?
SAQ-2: What is the importance of literature in ensuring our rights and freedoms?

Let’s Practice! (Write your answers on a separate sheet.)

Published in Focus Magazine on July 14, 1973, the following is a poem by Jose Maria F. Lacaba
which he wrote under the pseudonym (an alias or fake name) Ruben Cuevas.

Directions: Read the poem. Write the letter of the correct answers of Questions 1-4.

1. What words does each letter of the line in the

Prometheus Unbound first stanza of the poem spell?
A. MARKS
Mars shall glow tonight,
B. MARCOS
Artemis is out of sight.
Rust in the twilight sky C. MARCUS
Colors a bloodshot eye, D. MARS
Or shall I say that dust
Sunders the sleep of the just? 2. What social issue or event did this poem
‘protest’ against?
Hold fast to the gift of fire! A. Cold War
I am rage! I am wrath! I am ire! B. EDSA Revolution
The vulture sits on my rock, C. Martial Law
Licks at the chains that mock D. World War II
Emancipation’s breath,
Reeks of death, death, death.
3. This poem is qualified to be a literature of
Death shall not unclench me. circumvention because?
I am earth, wind and sea! A. Its true subject is hidden by its lines.
Kisses bestow on the brave B. Its true subject is in the title.
That defy the damp of the grave C. Its true subject is about Greek
And strike the chill band of mythology.
Death with the flaming sword of love. D. Its true subject is the author

Orion stirs. The vulture 4. The author of this poem is?

Retreats from the bard, pure A. Ruben Cuevas
Thrust of the spark that burns, B. Adolf Hitler
Unbounds, departs, returns
C. Jose Maria Lacaba
To pluck out of death’s fist
A god who dared to resist. D. Ferdinand Marcos

REMEMBER
Key Points

 The Contemporary Period of Philippine literature covers the period after World War II and the
EDSA Revolution of 1986. It was a progressive period, ranging from experimentations in
language or medium to themes and subjects that reflect current social issues or events.

Written by: MARION B. GUERRERO (SST-II) DPLMHS Stand-Alone Senior High School
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 The movements that played an important role in literary development include aestheticism,
realism, social realism and protest literature.
 Martial Law gave birth to literature of circumvention –or literature which sought to expose
and criticize political issues without risking the imprisonment of its author

TRY
Let’s see how much have you learned today!

Directions: Read each item carefully and answer the following questions. (Answer on a separate
sheet.)

If the subject follows aestheticism, write A on On the lines provided, write T if the statement is
the space provided and SR if the subject is an true or F if the statement is false.
example of social realism.
_______ 11. The Contemporary Period covered
_______ 1. Harvesting rice. the Spanish times.
_______ 2. Celebrating a town fiesta. _______ 12. Protest literature is an example
_______ 3. Graft and corruption. of aestheticism.
_______ 4. Teenage pregnancy. _______ 13. Contemporary literary artists
_______ 5. Playing the guitar. experimented with language forms.
_______ 6. A religious procession. _______ 14. Literary artists wrote freely during
_______ 7. Urban poor families. Martial Law.
_______ 8. Out-of-school youth. _______ 15. The Contemporary Period in
_______ 9. A song for a young lady. Philippine literature was marked by
_______ 10. Malnutrition among students. social awareness among writers.

For further readings:

BOOKS
Source: Bienvenido L. Lumbera, Philippine Literature: A History and Anthology, ed.
Cynthia N. Lumbera Mandaluyong City: Anvil Publishing, 2005, 1-458

Source: Cheeno Marlo M. Sayuno, ed., 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and
the World, Makati City: DIWA Learning Systems, Inc., 2019, 1-267

WEBSITES
Source: “Valediction sa Hillcrest by Rolando S. Tinio,” Wordpress, accessed July 13,
REFERENCE/S 2020, https://frankgomendoza.wordpress.com/2013/07/07/valediction-sa-hillcrest

Source: “The Major Collections: Filipino Writers in English,”Ateneo de Manila

University, accessed July 13, 2020, http://rizal.lib.admu.edu.ph/aliww/
english_pmbenitez.html

PHOTOGRAPHS
Source: Kahimyang, Paz Marquez Benitez, photograph, n.d., accessed July 13, 2020,
https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/972/today-in-philippine-history-march-3-1894-

Source: Panitikan, Jose F. Lacaba, photograph, n.d., accessed July 13, 2020.
http://panitikan.ph/2014/06/06/jose-f-lacaba/

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Written by: MARION B. GUERRERO (SST-II) DPLMHS Stand-Alone Senior High School