READING MATERIAL

In understanding literature, there are so many things that we need to consider- it's a definition,
classification, relation to culture in association with the author's beliefs and personal backgrounds. For
you to be able to understand these concepts read and understand the details presented below.
Literature is any written works that are considered to have a long-lasting impact or importance as it
expresses permanent interest ideas. This can either be in the form of poetry or prose.
Poetry refers to verse expressions, with measures, rhymes, lines, stanzas, and melodious tone. It is not
intended merely to entertain. It has a very useful and serious function: to embody deep truths that reveal
to us about human beings.
What does it mean to interpret literature? When you interpret literature, you are trying to find the
meaning and significance of the story. You are asking yourself both what the text means and why it is
important.
One of the best ways to interpret writing is to use the text as a guide. When you use the text as a guide,
you examine the main elements of the story and see how they relate to each other to find the meaning
and importance of the story.
When the words you encounter are difficult to understand so that you can get the message of the text you
are reading, aside from consulting the dictionary, you can analyze how the words are being used in the
sentence, and we called it context clues. This refers to information that appears near a word or phrase and
offers direct or indirect suggestions about its meaning.
Moreover, to fully understand literary works' meaning, one must not forget that literature has
something to do with society-its culture, diversity, and heritage.
Culture is the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, encompassing language,
religion, cuisine, social habits, music, and arts.
The diversity refers to the existence of variations of different characteristics in a group of people. These
characteristics could be everything that makes us unique, such as our cognitive skills and personality traits,
along with the things that shape our identity.
Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on to future
generations.
Having acquired all these, we conclude that literature reflects society, its good values, and its ills. It also
projects the virtues or good values in society for people to imitate. As an imitation of human action,
literature often presents a picture of what people think, say, and do in society. It is impossible to find a
work of literature that excludes society's attitudes, morale, and values since no writer have been brought
up completely unexposed to the world around him.
 Group 1: Complete Me.
Complete the puzzle below. Refer to the given clues. Copy the puzzle and write the
answer on ATB.
Across:
1. Compilation of written works
2. Influences the views, values, and humor of people
3. Lines are expressed in verse
Down:
1. Legacy from the past, what is in today, and what to pass for the next generation
2. Lines are written in an ordinary form of language
 Group 2: Read, Analyze, and Interpret
Directions: Read the literary work. Then answer the questions that follow by writing the letter of
your answer on your ATB.

1.What is the vision of the author in the poem?

A. People need to work harder and work together to realize a vision.
B. People of Burma should not be contented
C. People of Burma should have a big or wide vision to become progressive
D. People need to dream of having freedom

2. Based from the poem, what is happening to the author's country, Burma?
A. Burma is fighting for freedom.
B. Burma is experiencing war.
C. Burma is suffering from hunger and poverty.
D. All of the above-mentioned.

3. What should the people from Burma do to overcome the problem mentioned in the poem?
A. They should extend help to one another.
B. They should help the government.
C. They should rise like a beautiful lotus.
D. They should be contented with what is happening.

4. And freedom is out of reach, eaten and battered by life, death, and diseases of the mind and
spirit swallowed up by gloominess. The underlined word means _______
A. Darkness
B. Worries
C. Alive
D. Inspiration

5. The above text is an example of ___________

A. Poetry
B. Prose
C. Short story
D. Novel
 Group 3: How I Understood it!
Directions: Read and analyze the poem, then answer the questions based on how you understood
the poem.

Questions:
1. Who is spoken to in the poem?
________________________________________________________

2. What fear is expressed? How is this fear expressed?

________________________________________________________

3. Is it common for promises not to be kept? Explain.

________________________________________________________

4. If a promise given to you were not kept, what would you do?
_______________________________________________________