MODULE 1 INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE

Lesson Objectives:

At the end of this lesson, learners will be able to:

▪ Define Literature;
▪ Understand prose, poetry, and drama; and
▪ Identify the different literary techniques present in a literary text.

Week 1-Online Class

INTRODUCTION
TWO DIMENSIONS OF
WHAT IS LITERATURE? LITERATURE
• From the Latin word littera which means letters.
• It refers to anything that is written
• A body of written works produced in a particular language,
country, or age PROSE POETRY
▪ Enduring expression of a significant human experience in
words well-chosen and arranged
Figure 1.1 Dimensions of Literature
I. PROSE
A literary medium distinguished from poetry especially by its greater irregularity and variety of rhythm and its
closed resemblance to the patterns of everyday speech.

A. Biography – a story of a certain person’s life written by another who knows him well.
Example: Cayetano Arellano by Socorro O. Alberto

B. Autobiography – a written account of a man’s life written by himself.

Example: A Woman with No Face by Ms. Pilar Pilapil

C. Diary – a daily written record or account of the writer’s own experience, thoughts, activities or observation.

D. Journal – a magazine or periodical especially of a serious or learned nature.

E. Essay – a short literary composition which is expository in nature.

F. Novel – a long fictitious narrative with a complicated plot. It is made up of chapters.

Example: The Woman Who Had Two Navels by Nick Joaquin

G. Short Story – a fictitious narrative compressed into one unit of time, place and action.
Examples: Dead Stars by Paz Marquez Benitez and The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant

H. Drama/Play– it consists entirely of dialogues in prose and is meant to be acted on stage.

▪ TRAGEDY - is one of the oldest forms of drama. The

CLASSIFICATIONS OF theme of a tragedy usually revolves around the ruins
DRAMA/PLAY of a dynasty, downfall of man, emotional betrays,
moral setback, personal loss, death, and denials.
This genre tells the story through action instead of
through narrative.
MA TRAGEDY COMEDY MELODRAMA
A tragedy’s action is meant to fill the audience with
fear and pity while the action takes place; however,
Figure 1.2 Classifications of Drama/Play at the conclusion of the action the audience is meant
to leave the theater uplifted and enlightened about the
drama’s unfolded events.

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 The protagonist often have a tragic flaw – a characteristic that leads them to their downfall. This
form of drama rarely has happy endings.

▪ COMEDY – represents the sense of renewal and rebirth, which is why this genre traditionally ends
in a wedding and the expectation of a future generation. The pain and pity projected by a tragedy is
replaced with absurdity and mass intellect in comedy. Characters behave in comic and absurd
ways, serving as a mirror for society that encourages for corrective behaviors.

A ROMANTIC COMEDY
- Points out the absurdities people perform when in love, which usually lead to unsuspecting
unions.

B DARK COMEDY
- Leave the audience with a grim truth that's presented in humorous, playful seriousness.

▪ MELODRAMA – the tragedy or problem is caused by external forces outside of the protagonist’s
control. It sets itself apart from tragedy because the protagonist does not take responsibility for the
action, nor does she feel guilty. In fact, the protagonist is often the victim of circumstance. The
melodrama has clearly distinguished good and evil characters. These plays end with a strict moral
judgement that rewards the good and punishes evil in a fitting way.

II. POETRY
- A kind of writing that formulates a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience in language chosen
and arranged to create a specific response through its meaning, sound & rhythm.
- Is derived from a Greek word poesis meaning “making or creating.”
- Is a kind of language that says it more intensely than ordinary language does

TYPES OF POETRY

NARRATIVE POETRY
a. Epic – a long narrative poem recounting the deeds of a hero with supernatural powers.
Example: BIAG-NI-LAM-ANG by Pedro Bukaneg

b. Metrical Romance – a narrative poem that tells a story of adventure, love and chivalry. The typical hero is a
knight on a quest.
Examples: Ibong Adarna Florante at Laura

c. Metrical Tale – deals with any emotion or phase of life and is told in a simple, straightforward, and realistic
manner as possible.
Examples: The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer (1387-1400)
The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)

d. Ballad - a short narrative poem which could be sung.

Examples: Lord Randal, Get Up and Bar the Door, Richard Cory, Lochinvar, La Belle Dame Sans Merci

LYRIC POETRY
a. Ode – the most majestic type of lyric poetry. It expresses enthusiasm, lofty praises of some person or thing,
deep reflection, or restrained feeling.
Example: Ode to a Nightingale by John Keats

b. Elegy – a poem that voices the author’s personal grief for a loved one or a meditation on death. It is a
poem of lamentation.
Example: Break, Break, Break by Alfred Lord Tennyson

c. Sonnet – composed of 14 iambic pentameter lines. The Italian writer Francesco Petrarch was the first to write
sonnets.

d. Simple Lyric – touches every mood and emotion of the human heart.
Example: The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

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DRAMATIC POETRY – the poetic form is used to set forth life and character by means of speech and action.
Example: The Dramas of Shakespeare

Week 1-Modular Class

Activity 1: (How well do you know yourself?)

Instruction: Create a. autobiographic video stating the salient events in your life. Follow the tips and outline in
writing an autobiography. See schoology for the Guidelines and rubric. Send your work to your facilitator using
your schoology account

• Select a theme.
• Choose your point of view.
• Choose your story tense.

• To get you started, here are some common topics that are often included in your autobiographical
outline:

✓ When/where you were born

✓ Background on your father and mother
✓ Your childhood years
✓ Your teenage years
✓ Childhood friends
✓ High School
✓ Family traditions
✓ Your education
✓ Your work experience/career
✓ Hobbies/interests
✓ Entertainment
✓ Family members and relationships
✓ Hopes for the future
✓ Local, regional, national, and world events
✓ Life lessons
✓ Family tree
✓ Special occasions
✓ Retirement
✓ Travel
✓ Traditions
✓ Awards/honors
✓ Spirituality
✓ Medical history
✓ Military
✓ And much more!

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