Philippine Speculative Fiction
People who believe that Filipinos do not know
how to write science fiction, horror, or fantasy
are wrong There is a burgeoning growth in
Philippine Speculative Fiction today. The
komiks of the old are now developed into short
stories, poems, and graphic novels perfect for
the child in everyone.
Although some consider speculative fiction as
escapist, Philippine speculative fiction is firmly
rooted in our culture and has something to say
about the Philippine situation. They might even
have resonance in other countries experiencing
the same problems we are going through.
Speculative Fiction
- speculative fiction is used as an umbrella
term for various non-realist genres and
subgenres like science fiction and fantasy
Other times, speculative fiction is itself
considered a specific form of non-realist
writing, with features distinct from science
fiction or other genres.
Sometimes called “what if” books, speculative
literature changes the laws of what’s real or
possible as we know them in our current
society, and then speculates on the outcome.
- speculates as to what society may be like in
the future
- reflects current social, cultural, or political
issues
- often takes one specific aspect of society and
postulates what would happen if that aspect
continued or became more prevalent
- set in the future
- present a future that has our present as its
past
- reflect a current attribute of our society
Sub-genres of Speculative Fiction
Science fiction stories with imagined
technologies that don’t exist in the real world,
like time travel, aliens, and robots.
Sci-fi fantasy fiction sci fi stories inspired by
mythology, folklore, and fairy tales that
combine imagined technologies with elements
of magical realism.
Supernatural fiction sci fi stories about secret
knowledge or hidden abilities including
witchcraft, spiritualism, and psychic abilities.
Space opera fiction a play on the term “soap
opera,” sci fi stories that take place in outer
space and center around conflict, romance,
and adventure.
Horror stories are meant to scare, startle,
shock, and even repulse readers. Generally
focusing on themes of death, demons, evil
spirits, and the afterlife, they prey on fears with
scary beings like ghosts, vampires,
werewolves, witches, and monsters.
Urban fantasy fiction fantasy stories that take
place in an urban setting in the real world but
operate under magical rules.
Utopian fiction stories about civilizations the
authors deem to be perfect, ideal societies.
Dystopian fiction stories about societies
deemed problematic within the world of the
novel, often satirizing government rules,
poverty, and oppression
Apocalyptic fiction stories that take place
before and during a huge disaster that wipes
out a significant portion of the world’s
population. The stories center around
characters doing everything they can to stay
alive for example, running from zombies or
trying to avoid a deadly plague.
Post- apocalyptic fiction stories that take
place after an apocalyptic event and focus on
the survivors figuring out how to navigate their
new circumstances for example, emerging after
a global nuclear holocaust or surviving a total
breakdown of society
Alternate history fiction stories that focus on
true historical events but are written as if they
unfolded with different outcomes.
Superhero fiction stories about superheroes
and how they use their abilities to fight
supervillains.
Philippine Speculative Fiction
Six from Downtown by Dean Francis Alfar
The Singer’s Man by M R R Arcega
Keeping Time by F H Batacan
Dreaming Valhalla by Douglas Candano
The Sugilanon of Epefania’s Heartbreak by Ian
Rosales Casocot
Philippine
God Equation by Michael A R Co
The Family That Eats Soil by Khavn De La
Cruz
The Dues to the Unbound by Pocholo Goitia
A Ghost Story by Francezca C Kwe
Pedro Diyego’s Homecoming by Apol Lejano
Massebieau
The Forgotten City by Vincent C Sales
Character Roles
Protagonist
The main character of the story is the
protagonist They should be carefully crafted
with a logical backstory, personal motivation,
and a character arc over the course of the story
Often the story will be told from their point of
view.
From a heroine like Katniss Everdeen in The
Hunger Games to a miserable wretch like
Doestoevsky’s Underground Man, the
protagonist is the character the audience is
most invested in.
Antagonist
The villain of the story is the antagonist Think
of Lex Luthor, Lord Voldemort, or Dr Charles
Nichols in The Fugitive Note that an antagonist
is not the same as an anti hero like the Joker or
Walter White Anti heroes are villainous people
who function in a protagonist’s role.
Love interest
The love interest is the protagonist’s object of
desire A good love interest will be compelling
and three dimensional, like Daisy Buchanan in
The Great Gatsby or Rhett Butler in Gone With
the Wind.
Confidant
This type of character is the best friend or
sidekick of the protagonist, the Sancho Panza
to their Don Quixote Often the protagonist's
goal flows through the confidant although not
every story needs one A particularly famous
confidant is Horatio in Shakespeare’s Hamlet,
as is Hermione in Harry Potter.
Deuteragonists
These characters often overlap with confidants
A deuteragonist is close to the main character,
but the story’s main plot does not directly
correspond with their own character arc Horatio
doubles as a deuteragonist In Tolkien’s Lord of
the Rings trilogy, Samwise Gamgee is a
deuteragonist In Shakespeare’s Romeo and
Juliet, Benvolio is a deuteragonist who doubles
as a confidant, while Mercutio is a
deuteragonist but not a confidant.
Tertiary characters
Tertiary characters populate the world of the
story but do not necessarily link to the main
storyline These minor characters serve any
number of functions and may have varying
degrees of personal dynamism Think of Padma
and ParvatiPatil in the Harry Potter series or
Father Zosima in The Brothers Karamazov In
Spider Man, various tertiary characters help fill
out the world of Peter Parker’s New York.
Foil
A foil character primarily exists to bring the
protagonist’s qualities into sharper relief This is
because the foil is effectively the opposite of
the protagonist In the Star Trek series, Captain
Kirk and Mr Spock serve as each other’s foils
since their personalities are so notably different
Draco Malfoy is a foil to Harry Potter.
Round character
Closely related to a dynamic character, a round
character is a major character who shows
fluidity and the capacity for change from the
moment we meet them. By contrast, some
dynamic protagonists do not change until
actions in the story force that change. Round
characters can be noble, like Konstantin Levin
in Anna Karenina, or morally dubious, like
Humbert Humbert in Lolita.
Static character
A static character does not noticeably change
over the course of a story Sometimes known
as a flat character, these characters often play
tertiary roles in a narrative (think of various
parental figures in Roald Dahl’s children's
books) Many villains are also static They were
evil yesterday, they’ll be evil today, and they’ll
be evil tomorrow.
Stock character
A stock character is an archetypal character
with a fixed set of personality traits
Shakespeare’s various fools are stock
characters, as are some of his comic creations
like Sir Andrew and Sir Toby in Twelfth Night.
Symbolic Character
A symbolic character represents a concept or
theme larger than themselves. They may have
dynamic qualities, but they also exist to subtly
steer an audience’s mind toward broader
concepts. Most are supporting characters, but
some stories have symbolic protagonists, such
as Dostoevsky’s The Idiot When it comes to
symbolic supporting characters, Boo Radley in
To Kill A Mockingbird is an example,
representing a much larger legion of outcasts.
PATRIARCHY
✣ Patriarchal (adj describes a general
structure in which men have power over
women
✣ Society (n is the entirety of relations of a
community
✣ A patriarchal society consists of a male
dominated power structure throughout
organized society and in individual
relationships.
✣ A social system where characteristics
such as intelligence, strength, and success
are attributed to men.
✣ “it is the totality of male domination and
its pervasiveness in women’s lives
✣ A system created by and for men at the
direct expense of women
✣ term used to describe the society in
which we live today, characterized by
current and historic unequal power
relations between women and men whereby
women are systematically disadvantaged
and oppressed
✣ This takes place across almost every
sphere of life but is particularly noticeable
in women’s under representation in key
state institutions, in decision making
positions and in employment and industry
✣ Male violence against women is also a
key feature of patriarchy

CORE ATTRIBUTES OF PATRIARCHY
 Holds up the traditional male qualities as
central, while other qualities are considered
subordinate
 Dualistic and gendered thinking of roles
 Male domination
 Protection of traditional patriarchal social
structures
 Reinforcement of other types of oppression
HOWEVER, “patriarchy is generally not an
explicit ongoing effort by men to dominate
women It is a long-standing system that we are
born into and participate in, mostly
unconsciously.
The Philippine Diaspora
Often, Filipinos believe that when one leaves
the Philippines, one’s life will automatically
prosper and be better than those who are left
behind That is NOT necessarily true There are
many problems that Filipinos go through when
they are abroad, and the most common is
probably deep aching for home.
Ron Darvin is a PhD student and Vanier
Scholar in the Department of Language and
Literacy Education, University of British
Columbia His research focuses on how social
class differences shape divergent identities and
digital literacies. Interested in the intersection
of technology, transnationalism, and the
political economy of language learning, he has
published, together with Bonny Norton, in the
Journal of Language, Identity, and Education
2014 Education Matters 2014 and Annual
Review of Applied Linguistics (in press, 2015).
Waiting
TheWaiting is a play about a family that was
split by a mother who tried to give her child a
decent life Sacrifice and family love are the
key. The agony of being separated from them
and doing a job outside your comfort zone just
for your family's needs. It's all about fighting
and staying strong in a nation far from home
The Waiting is a play by a family with the
conditions of a mother who wants to give her
child a decent life.
Irony
- This is a technique used in literature when
there is a difference between what is said and
what is meant, as well as what is expected and
what actually occurs
3 Types
- Verbal Irony
- Situational Irony
- Dramatic Irony
Verbal Irony
- is when something that is said actually means
the opposite It is employed when people are
sarcastic toward one another or are involved in
wordplay.
Situational Irony
- is when what we expect to happen turns out
to be the opposite.
Dramatic Irony
- is when the character, usually the protagonist,
is mistaken, misled, or confused about what
happened, while the audience (or reader) has
full knowledge of it.
Professor Jose Wendell P Capili obtained
degrees from UST, UP Diliman, University of
Tokyo, University of Cambridge and The
Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies
(now School of Culture, History Language,
College of Asia and the Pacific) of The
Australian National University, where he
earned his PhD He published 7 books and over
300 articles in Asia, Europe, North America
and Australia He received Carlos Palanca
Cultural Center of the Philippines and National
Book Awards for Literature as well as
scholarships, grants and fellowships from
Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Singaporean,
Hong Kong, Philippine, Australian, British and
US governments.
Cronulla Beach
- Almost 15 years ago, racial violence broke
out in the usually tranquil beach suburb of
Cronulla, with attacks directed towards those of
Middle Eastern appearance on Dec 11 2005. It
was later dubbed as the Cronulla Riots.
- The riots were spurred by a long run of racial
and ethnic tensions between Caucasian
Australians and young men reported to be of
Middle Eastern background from Sydney's
western suburbs.
In Sydney’s Cronulla Beach, more than 5 000
white Australians descended on the sands,
attacking anybody who looked Middle Eastern
or Asian Revenge followed Men of color
rampaged through Cronulla with baseball bats,
smashing storefronts and windshields.
Setting
is the time and place (or when and where) of
the story It’s a literary element of literature
used in novels, short stories, plays, films, etc
and usually introduced during the exposition
( of the story, along with the characters The
setting may also include the environment of the
story, which can be made up of the physical
location, climate, weather, or social and cultural
surroundings.
There are various ways that time and place
indicate setting Time can cover many areas,
such as the character’s time of life, the time of
day, time of year, time period such as the past,
present, or future, etc. Place also covers a lot
of areas, such as a certain building, room in a
building, country, city, beach, in a mode of
transport such as a car, bus, boat, indoors or
out, etc. The setting of a story can change
throughout the plot The environment includes
geographical location such as beach or
mountains, the climate and weather, and the
social or cultural aspects such as a school,
theatre, meeting, club, etc.
Setting is an extremely important aspect of
almost every piece of fiction and drama, and is
an important element in poetry as well In many
narrative examples the setting can act almost
as a nonhuman character, affecting the
characters in many different large and small
ways Indeed, most plot lines are so tied to their
settings that they could not be put in other
places, time periods, or socioeconomic
environments.