21st Century Literature from

the Philippines and the World

Quarter 2 (Week 1-2) – Module 6:
Writing a Close Analysis and
Critical Interpretation of Literary
Texts Applying a Reading Approach

MODULES 6-7

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 What I Need to Know
This module was designed and written with you in mind. It is here to help you
understand 21st Century Literature from the Philippines to the World. The scope
of this module permits it to be used in many different learning situations. The
language used recognizes the diverse vocabulary level of students. The lessons are
arranged to follow the standard sequence of the course. But the order in which you
read them can be changed to correspond with the textbook you are now using.

• Lesson 1 – Writing a Close Analysis and Critical Interpretation of

Literary Texts applying a Reading Approach and doing an
adaptation of texts to identify representative texts and authors
from Asia and Africa

After going through this module, you are expected to:

a. Write a close analysis and critical interpretation of literary texts using a reading
approach and identify representative text from Africa and Asia
b. Create/produce a creative representation of a literary text by applying
multi-media skills
c. Show appreciation of different representative literary texts

What I Know

Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a separate
sheet of paper.

1. What do you call an approach wherein students are demanded to read more to
improve knowledge?
a. skimming c. extensive reading
b. scanning d. reading approach
2. It is an activity to read shorter texts to extract accurate detailed information.
a. reading approach c. extensive reading
b. skimming d. scanning
3. It is quickly reading a text to get the summary of it.
a. skimming c. extensive reading
b. reading approach d. scanning

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4. It is sometimes called Free Voluntary Reading.
a. extensive reading c. skimming
b. scanning d. reading approach
5. Alyssa wants to answer questions quickly, so she looked for key words in the
selection. She used ________.
a. scanning c. reading approach
b. extensive reading d. skimming
6. Abigail listed down words that she didn’t know the meaning and searched
for it in the dictionary. She is using ________.
a. scanning c. reading approach
b. extensive reading d. skimming
7. Daniel identified the main idea of the text she is reading. She used ______.
a. scanning c. skimming
b. extensive reading d. reading approach
8. Sir Allan emphasized that this approach is important for students to read
effectively. He is talking about _________.
a. extensive reading c. reading approach
b. scanning d. skimming
9. Daniela wanted to see Sakura Festival. Which country is she going to visit?
a. Singapore c. Japan
b. Thailand d. Brunei
10. The Philippines is on the Asian continent. If the Philippines is part of it,
which specific region on Asia does the Philippines belong?
a. Southeast Asia c. Central Asia
b. West Asia d. South Asia
11. The use of ropes for hunting, pulling, fastening, attaching, carrying, lifting and
climbing dates back to prehistoric times. In Asia, the very first ropes ever made
were twisted from hemp fibers. Hemp rope was used during the age of sailing
ships. Hemp was considered ________.
a. Endangered and should not be used
b. one of the most durable natural ropes in the world.
c. Sacred and respected
d. Tested and trusted

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12. The rope tied a shrine space, or across its entrances, to mark its sacred nature
is called the shimenawa. Traditionally woven from hemp, but nowadays more
frequently rice or wheat straw, this rope and its shide paper streamers is a
common part of New Year decors. Which statement is false?
a. Shimenawa serves as garland.
b. Shimenawa marks a sacred place.
c. Shimenawa is a rope.
d. Shimenawa is only made out of hemp.
13. Onigiri are Japanese rice balls. They're fun to make and are a staple of Japanese
lunchboxes (bento). You can put almost anything in an onigiri. Try substituting
grilled salmon, pickled plums, beef, pork, turkey, or tuna with mayonnaise.
Which statement is true?
a. Onigiri’s origin is not known.
b. Onigiri are Filipino staple food.
c. Onigiri is a Japanese rice balls.
d. Onigiri is a Korean kimbap.
14. Africa is the second largest continent after Asia. Most of Africa lies within the
tropical region. It contains an enormous wealth of mineral resources like fossil
fuels, metallic ores, and gems. Which statement does not talk about Africa?
a. Africa’s weather is humid and hot.
b. Africa is reach in natural resources.
c. Africa is an archipelago.
d. Africa is second to Asia in size.
15. Equality is not always about treating everyone the same. It is about treating
people in such a way that the outcome for each person can be
the same. This statement could mean_______.
a. Putting things in place to support people achieve similar outcomes
b. Lending things to people who are deprived of material things
c. Giving similar materials to all people who need it
d. Allowing someone to get what he wants.

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 LESSON Writing a Close Analysis and Critical
Interpretation of Literary Texts applying a Reading
1 Approach

21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World Module aims to engage
students in appreciation and critical study of 21st Century Literature from the
Philippines and the World, encompassing their various dimensions, genres,
elements, structures, contexts, and traditions.
This module allows the students to embark on a journey from Philippine regions
to the different parts of the world through various literary encounters.
What’s In

1. What are ICT skills?

2. What are the essential elements of the literary piece “Footnote to Youth”?
3. What is the use of multimedia to relatively interpret a literary text?
What’s New

Configuration
Direction: Guess the hidden words that are associated with reading through
configuration.

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 What is It
Reading Approach
Teachers use reading approach as one of the methods in teaching English. This
approach is one way of solving student’s reading problems. Students are demanded
to read more to improve their knowledge and get new ideas. Inferencing, guessing
and predicting are important skills developed in reading. By reading, students will
know about the different of culture by reading across cultural understanding, and
they will learn how to pronounce the words correctly. In reading approach,
students are expected to improve their English skills.

Skimming
In skimming, the main idea of a text is quickly identified. The goal is to read
shorter texts to extract accurate detailed information. Skimming is done at speed
three to four times faster than regular reading. People often skim when they have
lots of material to read in a limited amount of time. Some students will read the
first and last paragraphs using headings, summarizes and other organizers as they
move down the page or screen. Some might also read the title, subtitles,
subheadings, and illustrations. Other people consider reading the first sentence of
each paragraph. Skimming works well to find dates, names, and places. It might
be used to review graphs, tables, and charts. This technique is useful when you are
seeking specific information rather than reading for comprehension.

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Scanning
Scanning is quickly reading a text to get the summary of it. It is a technique
wherein students search for keywords or ideas. Scanning
involves moving eyes quickly down the page seeking specific words and phrases.
Scanning is also used for the reader to find answers to questions. Once a student
scanned the document, they will go back and skim it.

Extensive reading
Extensive reading is an approach to language learning, including foreign
language learning, by means of a large amount of reading. The readers view and
review of unfamiliar words in a specific context will allow the reader to infer the
word’s meaning, to learn unknown words. Extensive Reading is the free reading
of books and other written material that is not too difficult for readers. Extensive
Reading is sometimes called Free Voluntary Reading.

What’s More

Activity 1. Read Me!

Direction: Read the selection Chechnya by Anthony Marra and answer the
questions that follows.
Chechnya
Anthony Marra

AFTER HER SISTER, Natasha, died, Sonja began sleeping in the hospital. She
returned home to wash her clothes a few days a month, but those days became fewer and
fewer. No reason to return, no need to wash her clothes. She only wears hospital scrubs
anyway.
She wakes on a cot in the trauma unit. She sleeps there intentionally, in anticipation
of the next critical patient. Some days, roused by the shuffle of footsteps, the cries of family
members, she stands and a body takes her place on the cot and she works on resuscitation,
knowing she is awake because she could dream nothing like this.
“A man is waiting here to see you,” a nurse says. Sonja, still on the cot, rubs the
weariness from her eyes.
“About what?”
The nurse hesitates. “He’s right out here.”
A minute later in the hallway the man introduces himself. “My name is Akhmed.”
He speaks Russian without an accent, but by now Sonja feels more comfortable conversing
in Chechen. A short beard descends from Akhmed’s face.

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 For a moment she thinks he’s a religious man, then remembers that most men have grown
their beards out. Few have shaving cream, fewer have mirrors. The war has made the country’s
cheeks and chins devout.
He gestures to a small girl, no older than eight, standing beside him. “My wife and I
cannot care for her,” Akhmed says. “You must take her.”
“This isn’t an orphanage.” “There are no orphanages.”
The request is not uncommon. The hospital receives humanitarian aid, has food and clean water.
Most important, it tends to the injured regardless of ethnicity or military affiliation, making the
hospital one of the few larger buildings left untargeted by either side in the war. Newly injured
arrive each day, too many to care for. Sonja shakes her head. Too many dying; she cannot be
expected to care for the living as well.
“Her father was taken by the rebels on Saturday. On Sunday the army came and took her
mother.”
Sonja looks at the wall calendar, as if a date could make sense of the times.
“Today is Monday,” she says. “I was a medical student before the war,” Akhmed says,
switching to
Chechen. “In my final year. I will work here until a home is found for the girl.”
Akhmed glowers. Sonja often sees defiance from rebels and occasionally
from soldiers, but rarely from civilians.
“I can’t,” she says, but her voice falters, her justification failing.
Sonja surveys the corridor: a handful of patients, no doctors. Those with
money, with advanced degrees and the foresight to flee the country, have done so.
“Parents decide which of their children they can afford to feed on which days. No one
will take this girl,” Sonja says.
“Then I will keep working.”
“Does she speak?” Sonja looks to the girl. “What’s your name?” “Havaa,” Akhmed
answers.
Six months earlier Sonja’s sister, Natasha, was repatriated from Italy. When Sonja heard
the knock and opened the door, she couldn’t believe how healthy her sister looked. She hugged
her sister, joked about the padding on her hips. Whatever horrors Natasha had experienced in the
West, she’d put fat around her waist.
“I am home,” Natasha said, holding the hug longer than Sonja thought necessary. They
ate dinner before the sun went down, potatoes boiled over the furnace. The army had cut the
electric lines four years earlier. They had never been repaired. Sonja showed her sister to the
spare room by candlelight, gestured to the bed. “This is the place you sleep, Natasha.”
They spent the week in a state of heightened civility. No prying questions. All talk was
small. What Sonja noticed, she did not comment on. A bottle of Ribavirin antiviral pills on the
bathroom sink. Cigarette burns on Natasha’s shoulders. Sonja worked on surgeries, and Natasha
worked on sleeping. Sonja brought food home from the hospital, and Natasha ate it. Sonja started
the fire in the morning, and Natasha slept. There were mornings, and there were nights. This is
life, Sonja thought.

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 Akhmed is true to his word. Five minutes after Sonja accepts the girl, he is washed and
suited in scrubs. Sonja takes him on a tour of the hospital. All but two wings are closed for lack
of staff. She shows him the cardiology, internal medicine, and endocrinology wards. A layer of
dust covers the floors, their footprints leaving a trail. Sonja thinks of the moon landing, how she
saw the footage for the first time when she arrived in London.
“Where is everything?” Akhmed asks. Beds, sheets, hypodermics, disposable gowns,
surgical tape, film dressing, thermometers, IV bags, forceps—any item of practical medical use
is gone. Empty cabinets, open drawers, locked rooms, closed blinds, taped-over windowpanes,
the stale air remain.
“The trauma and maternity wards. And we’re struggling to keep them both open.”
Akhmed runs his fingers through his beard. “Trauma, that’s obvious. You have to keep trauma
open. But maternity?”
Sonja’s laugh rings down the empty hall. “I know. It’s funny, isn’t it? Everyone is either giving
birth or dying.”
“No.” Akhmed shakes his head, and Sonja wonders if he’s offended by her. “They are coming
into the world, and they are leaving the world and it’s happening here.” Sonja nods, wonders if
Akhmed is religious after all.
Direction: Fill out the table with setting and character. Use skimming as a
reading technique.

Literary Question Answer

Element
Setting 1. Where and when did the story 1.
happen?
Character 2. Who are the characters in the story? 2.

Assessment 1. Comprehension Check

Direction: The story was quite interesting. Now answer the questions
that follow to test you understanding.
1 . What descriptions were given about the setting of the story?
2. What seems to be the conflict surrounding the story?
3. What was the deal made by Sonja and Akhmed?
4. What change in attitude was evident in the main character of the story at the
beginning and at the end?
5. Why was it important for the writer to narrate the events that happened during
the wars to reveal traditions in Chechnya?

What I Have Learned

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1. Reading Approach is an approach wherein students are demanded to read more
to improve their knowledge and get new ideas.
2. Students will know about the different of culture by reading across cultural
understanding by reading.
3. In reading approach, students are expected to improve their English skills.
4. In skimming, the main idea of a text is quickly identified.
5. Skimming is done at a speed three to four times faster than normal reading.
Skimming works well to find dates, names, and places. Scanning is quickly
reading a text to get the summary of it.
6. Scanning is quickly reading a text to get the summary of it.
7. Scanning involves moving eyes quickly down the page seeking specific words
and phrases.
8. Extensive Reading is an approach where the readers view and review of
unknown words in specific context will allow the reader to infer the word’s
meaning, to learn unfamiliar words.
9. Extensive Reading is sometimes called Free Voluntary Reading.

What I Can Do
A. Direction: Complete the following sentences below.
1. In this lesson, I learned that skimming is ___________.
2. I learned that scanning is _______________________.
3. I learned that extensive reading is ___________________.
B. Direction: Analyze the verse and explore the content, theme, setting,
and message of the poem by creating a visual poem. Include a short
background of the author in the visual poem. Search for images that
support the required elements of the poem. You may select any multi-
media tools that suits your skills and availability of gadget.

IN ANOTHER WORLD
By Rasaq Malik

In another world I want to be a father without passing through the eternal insanity
of mourning my children, without experiencing the ritual of watching my children
return home as bodies folded like a prayer mat, without spending my nights telling
them the stories of a hometown where natives become aliens searching for a shelter.

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I want to watch my children grow to recite the name of their homeland like Lord’s
Prayer, to frolic in the streets without being hunted like animals in the bush, without
being mobbed to death. In another world I want my children to tame grasshoppers
in the field, to play with their dolls in the living room, to inhale the fragrance of
flowers waving as wind blows, to see the birds measure the sky with their wings.

Rubrics:

DIGITAL PICTURE STORY ASSESSMENT RUBRIC

Needs Needs Needs Needs
Total Major Minor No Total
Revisions Revisions Revisions Revisions
0 1 2 3
1. GRAPHIC/IMAGES
Do graphics/images add to
the overall project?
2. CREATIVITY
Does the output display a
creative concept? Is it
dynamic and go above and
beyond to produce a quality
project?
3. AUDIO/VIDEO
QUALITY
Does the video add imagery
to the poem? Does the audio
mix together well?
4. FINISHED PRODUCT
Are the elements of
the poem clearly
presented in the
project is the output
well produce?

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 Assessment

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter
on a separate sheet of paper.

1. It is reading a longer text, usually for pleasure

a. extensive reading c. skimming
b. scanning d. reading approach

2. It is one way that will help students to solve their problems in reading.
a. reading approach c. skimming
b. extensive reading d. scanning

3. It is used by the reader to find answers to questions.

a. skimming c. extensive reading
b. reading approach d. scanning

4. This technique is useful when the students are seeking specific information
rather than reading for comprehension
a. reading approach c. skimming
b. scanning d. extensive reading

5. Mina wants to answer questions quickly so she looked for specific titles in
the selection. She used
a. skimming c. extensive reading
b. scanning d. reading approach

6. Randie quickly understood the main idea of the poem he is reading. He used
a. extensive reading c. scanning
b. reading approach d. skimming

7. Princess loves reading novels and short stories. It improves her Vocabulary a
lot. She is using
a. reading approach c. skimming
b. scanning d. extensive reading

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8. Ma’am Karen encouraged her students to read a lot and use techniques in
understanding the text and improving their knowledge. She is talking about
a. extensive reading c. reading approach
b. scanning d. skimming

9. The line of the poem by Maya Angelou, “take the binders from your
vision”, means that the __________
a. author has placed the binders to someone’s ears
b. author is persuading the people to see their real situation
c. author has a poor vision
d. author is crying

10. “take the padding from your ears, and confess you’ve heard me crying,” this
line wants the readers to______.
a. listen to their pleas c. see what they see
b. cry with their difficulty d. feel what they feel

11. Equality, and I will be free. If this happens, people will_____

a. put things in place to support people achieve similar outcomes
b. Lend things to people who are deprived of material things
c. Give similar materials to all people who need it
d. Allow someone to get what he wants.

12. In another world I want my children to tame grasshoppers in the field, to play
with their dolls in the living room, to inhale the fragrance of flowers waving
as wind blows, to see the birds measure the sky with their wings.
These lines expressed the earnest wish of a father. What do you think these
wishes mean?
a. The family is living in a peaceful village.
b. The family is well- accepted by society
c. The family is suffering from war.
d. The family has the sickness.

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13. In another world I want to be a father without passing through the eternal
insanity of mourning my children, without experiencing the ritual of watching
my children return home as bodies folded like a prayer mat, without spending
my nights telling them the stories of a hometown where natives become aliens
searching for a shelter.
What is the tone of the poem?
a. Hopeful c. Peaceful
b. Mournful d. Hopeless

14. The use of ropes for hunting, puling, fastening, attaching, carrying, lifting and
climbing dates back to prehistoric times. In Asia, the very first ropes ever
made were twisted from hemp fibers. Hemp rope was used
during the age of sailing ships. Which statement must be false?
a. Ropes have many uses.
b. Ropes were used long time ago.
c. Ropes can be made out of hemp
d. Ropes are only found in Asia.

15. Racism is the belief that a particular race is superior or inferior to another. It
may be defined as the hatred of one person to another because of skin color,
language, or customs. Therefore, _____
a. Someone who believed that there is a superior race over the other, that
person is a racist.
b. If people speak a different language, they are not racist.
c. If all the people have the same color, no one is racist.
d. All people are racist.

Additional Activities
Direction: Complete the following table below with definitions from
the module and your own definition

REAL YOUR
DEFINITION DEFINITION
Reading Approach
Skimming
Scanning
Extensive Reading

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References

Critical Analysis:
https://www2.southeastern.edu/Academics/Faculty/elejeune/critique.htm
https://www2 .southeastern.edu/Academics/Faculty/elejeune/critique.htm

Ibbotson, Eva, The Journey to the River, MacMillan, 2001,

https://en.wikipedia/wiki/Journey_to_the_River_Sea

Kumagai, Naoko, Shimenawa, Banana Writers Online Magazine by PP Wong

https://www.bananawriters.com/japanesedarkstory

Malik, Rasaq, In Another World, New Generation African Poets: A ChapbookBox Set
(Tano), Used with permission of Akashic Books, 2018
https://lithub.com/three-poems-from-new-generation-african-poets/

Marra, Anthony, Chechnya, Narrative Magazine

(2003), https://www.narrativemagazine.com/issues/fall-2009/springcontest-
winners/chechnya-anthony-marra

Maya, Angelou, Equality, Family Friend Poems, 2006 FFP Inc.

https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/equality-by-maya-angelou

Sanchez et al. (2001) 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World

Thety Anggraini, Lianasari, A Teaching Method: Reading Approach English Education

Study Program Sriwijaya University, June 12, 2011
https://novaekasari09.wordpress.com/2011/06/12/a-teaching-methodreading-
approach/

For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:

Department of Education - Bureau of Learning Resources (DepEd-BLR)

Ground Floor, Bonifacio Bldg., DepEd Complex Meralco

Avenue, Pasig City, Philippines 1600

Telefax: (632) 8634-1072; 8634-1054; 8631-4985

Email Address: blr.lrqad@deped.gov.ph * blr.lrpd@deped.gov.ph

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 21st Century Literature from
the Philippines and the World
Quarter 2 (Week 3) – Module 7:
Differentiating 21st Century Literary Genres

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 What I Need to Know

This module is a self-learning material to guide you in developing a target

competency in the course, 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the
World. You are expected to compare and contrast the 21st century literary genres
and their elements, structures, and traditions from across the globe. Specifically, the
discussion focuses on differentiating graphic fiction and flash fiction.
After going through this module, you are expected to:
1. describe graphic fiction and flash fiction;
2. read and respond critically to texts read;
3. write in one of the genres;
4. present similarities and differences of basic graphic fiction and
flash fiction; and
5. show an appreciation on modern literary genres as an
appealing medium to literary conventions.

What I Know
Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. The following are common characteristics of flash fiction

EXCEPT____________.
a. brief c. has complete plot
b. in panel images d. presents twists in the ending
2. “The Barn Owl’s Wondrous Capers” of Sarnath Banerjee is a/an
________________.
a. epic c. melodrama
b. flash fiction d. graphic novel
3. Flash fiction is also known as _____________.
a. nanotales c. graphic fiction
b. short story d. macro stories
4. Which flash fiction story tells how anyone can buy a perfect clone
Taylor Swift at his doorstep?
a. “Taylor Swift” d. “Angels and Blueberries”
b. “Unnecessary Things” e. With an open ending
c. “Clone of Taylor Swift”

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5. Which is a feature of a graphic novel?
a. A Graphic novel is in condensed form.
b. It presents micro-stories in each sub-plot.
c. The main character victoriously attained his purpose in the story.
d. It encourages interactivity in the minds of the reader as he fills in the
blanks between pages.
6. “In the Shadow of No Tower: 9/11” of Art Spiegelmen is a/an
______________.
a. epic c. graphic novel
b. flash fiction d. tragic drama
7. It is imaginative literature ranges from a word to a thousand.
a. tales c. flash fiction
b. short story d. graphic fiction
8. A flash fiction presents a surprising ending which means that
______________.
a. it ends happily c. it has a loose ending
b. it ends tragically d. the story ends with a twist
9. It refers to comic narratives in which pictures are arranged in sequenced
in image panels.
a. comic story c. flash fiction
b. storyboard d. graphic fiction
10. Which is not TRUE about graphic novel?
a. It combines letters and words.
b. Image panels are very colorful.
c. Graphic novel presents fewest words as possible.
d. Illustrations allow the readers to imagine and experience the
сharaсters and events in the story.
11. Dialogues in graphiс fiсtion are written in ____________.
a. text boxes c. speeсh bubbles
b. image panels d. beside illustrations
12. “Louis Riel” of Chester Brown centers on a fictionalized violent
rebellion in the 19th century is an example of this literary genre.
a. Graphiс novel c. Melodramatiс play
b. Text-talk novel d. Flash fiсtional story
13. This story narrates the traumatiс experienсes of Ameriсans during the
9/11 terrorists’ attaсk in New York.
a. “Louis Riel”
b. “Unneсessary Things”
c. “The Barn Owl’s Wondrous Capers”
d. “In the Shadow of No Tower: 9/11

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14. Graphiс fiсtion is also known as _____________.
a. digi-fiсtion c. graphiс novel
b. flash fiсtion d. doodle fiсtion
15. Whiсh does NOT belong to the group?
a. Tragedy
b. Flash fiсtion
c. Text-talk novel
d. Graphiс fiсtion

LESSON Literary Genres

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Have you read flash or graphic fiction? How they differ from one another? This
module focuses on these two 21st literary genres, flash fiction and graphic fiction,
which are more appealing to most of the learners like you than reading
conventional literary texts.

What’s In

Module 2 allowed you to dive into various 21st literary genres such as digifiction,
illustrated novel, manga, chick lit, doodle fiction and text-talk novels. In this
module you will be learning the different structures and features of other two
modern literary genres, graphic fiction and flash fiction. But before learning
something new, try to do the following activity.
Directions: Determine what is being described in each of the following
statements. Write your answer on a piece of paper.
1. Stories are told in dialogue thru social networks.
2. In telling a story, writers usually combine three media platforms like
books, movies and an internet website.
3. Blog, email and IM are used as narrative formats.
4. It is a humorous fictional genre dealing with issues on modern
womanhood. Comic books originally published in Japan.

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 What’s New

Let us discover a lighthearted tale presented below.

My Freaking Alarm!
Written by: Demecia Dean
Published: 2014

Literary structure: Graphic fiction is a creative piece written in comic

form.
As I lay cozy, all snug in my bed, Until I hear racket beside my bed.
I enjoy the images inside my head It's my 5:00 alarm!

I quickly silent you, you annoying Enjoying the peace, then I'll be darned;
alarm. Then we SNOOZE together It's my 5:15 reminder!
and let dreams carry on.

Now I hush the ringing of my Eyes just shut, but here goes that timer
reminder.
Ok Alarm, let's put that behind us. It's 7:20. I'm late!!!

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 Processing Questions
1. How does the speaker feel whenever it rings?
2. How did she react when she realized she was already late?
3. Would you react the same way, if this happens to you?

Now explore a flash fiction that is more serious than the first one.
The Unlucky Winners

Written by: Nicky Johnson

Published: 2019

Literary structure: Flash fiction is a really short written creative piece

usually consisting of a few hundred words.

Each morning, Jim walked to the corner mart for a coffee and lottery
ticket. He always passed Pete and gave the same reply to the jangling
of coins, “Half when I win.” Pete invariably responded with a tip of his
soiled, red hat. When it actually happened, Jim searched everywhere
for Pete. After months, his wife finally convinced him to spend the
other half, and home renovations began. The following spring, working
in the garden, Jim unearthed a familiar red. While lost in astonishment
and horror, the faint smell of her perfume permeated among the roses
before...darkness.

Processing Questions

1. What is Pete always wearing whenever Jim sees him?

2. After Jim won, Pete went missing. Who convinced Jim to spend Pete’s half
of the money for house renovations?

3. What is the “familiar red” Jim unearthed in the garden one spring that made
him horrified?

4. What happened to Jim in the end?

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 What is It

The previous activity gives you a glimpse of flash fiction and graphic fiction.
These two 21st literary genres become very popular especially among
learners like you. Modern literary genres gain popularity due to the advent
of technologies such as internet and other virtual media which become the
major platforms of most of modern literary texts like graphic and flash
fictions. Graphic fiction and flash fiction are two different genres of modern
literature.

Graphic fiction or a graphic novel is a comic book narrative that is equivalent in

form and dimension to the prose novel (Campbell 200, 81). The pictures are
arranged in sequenced in image panels and dialogues are written in speech
bubbles. The illustrations allow the readers to imagine and experience the
characters and events in the story.

Here are some of the features of graphic fiction or graphic novel according
to Singh (2012).
1. Autographic forms are the marks of author’s handwriting which creates an
impact that the whole novel is a manuscript and thus provides a sense of
intimacy.
2. Graphic novels encourage interactivity in the minds of the reader as he
fills in the blanks between image panels.
3. Filling in the blanks between image panels makes the reader imagine
the actions portrayed in the story.
4. The language, syntax and meaning of a graphic novel spring primarily
through the relationship between images than words.
5. Graphic fiction combines book and screen.

Some of the examples of graphic novels are the following:

1. “In the Shadow of No Tower: 9/11” by Art Spiegelmen in 2004 which tells
the story about the terrorist attack on September 11 in America. This also
depicts the traumatic and tragic experiences of American people during the
9/11 terrorist attack.

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 2. “The Barn Owl’s Wondrous Capers” by Sarnath Banerjee in 2009
portrays 18th century Calcutta exploiting the myth of the “Wandering Jew”.
3. “Louis Riel” by Chester Brown in 2003 is a fictionalized violent rebellion
in the 19th Century on the Canadian praire who led by Riel.

Flash fiction is imaginative literature of extreme brevity. It could range from a

word to a thousand (Gacusan 2018). It is known as micro stories, postcard
fiction, nanotales and short shorts.
According to Sustana (2020), most of the flash fictions have these common
characteristics.
1. Brevity. Flash fiction presents the story with fewest words as
possible.
2. Complete plot. Flash fiction emphasizes the development of plot. It has a
beginning, middle and ending of the story.
3. Surprising ending. The successful hallmark of a flash fiction is its twist at
the end of the story.
Here some of the flash fictions.
● “Angels and Blueberries” by Tara Campbell is a story of various
explanations for the color of the sky that involves angels and blueberries.

First lines: “Why is the sky blue?” you ask. Well, it all depends on who’s
answering.
● “Taylor Swift” by Hugh Behm-Steinberg tells a weird story of how anyone
can order a perfectly clone of Taylor Swift at his doorstep.

First line: You’re in love; it’s great, you swipe on your phone and order: the next
day a Taylor Swift clone shows up at your house.
● “Unnecessary Things” by Tatyana Tolstaya is a story of finding an old and
torn teddy bear, “unnecessary things” (items that do not serve any useful
purpose), that she adored as a child.

First lines: This Teddy bear once had amber eyes made from special glass — each
one had a pupil and an iris. The bear itself was gray and stiff, with wiry fur.
I adored him.

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 What’sMore

Activity 1 Finding Similarities

Directions: The previous activities discussed graphic fiction and flash fiction. Write
down the characteristics of 21st Century Literature
present in both genres.

Graphic Fiction
2 st
Century Literature
1
Flash Fiction

Assessment 1
Expound your answer from the previous activity by writing a three to five
sentence paragraph about it.
Rubric in Paragraph Writing

Criteria 4 3 2 1 Points
Content At least four At least three At least two Only one
characteristics characteristics characteristics characteristic
of are listed of are listed of are listed is written
and explained and explained and explained

Organization Details are in Details are in Some details All details are
logical order logical order are not in not in logical
and yet less logical order order
interesting interesting
Mechanics No errors in One to two Three to five Six or more
and Grammar punctuation, errors in errors in errors in
capitalization, punctuation, punctuation, punctuation,
and spelling capitalization, Capitalization, capitalization,
and spelling and spelling and spelling
errors errors errors

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Activity 2 Finding Differences

Directions: Complete the graphic organizers by writing down elements

unique to each genre.

Graphic Flash
Fiction Fiction

Assessment 2
Write a three to five-sentence paragraph explaining the difference of the
graphic fiction and flash fiction.
Rubric in Paragraph Writing

Criteria 4 3 2 1 Points
Content At least four At least three At least two Only one
characteristics characteristics characteristics characteristic
of are listed of are listed of are listed is written
and explained and explained and explained

Organization Details are in Details are in Some details All details are
logical order logical order are not in not in logical
and yet less logical order order
interesting interesting
Mechanics No errors in One to two Three to five Six or more
and Grammar punctuation, errors in errors in errors in
capitalization, punctuation, punctuation, punctuation,
and spelling capitalization, Capitalization, capitalization,
and spelling and spelling and spelling
errors errors errors

25
 What I Have Learned

The previous activities allowed you to learn more about graphic fiction and
flash fiction. Reflect on what you have learned by answering the questions
that follow.
1. What are 21st century genres discussed?
2. What distinct characteristics does graphic fiction have?
3. What different features does flash fiction have?
4. What literary pieces have you read that would classify as graphic
fiction?
5. What literary pieces have you read that would classify as flash
fiction?

What I Can Do

Direction: You have examined similarities and differences of Graphic Fiction and
Flash Fiction. Further explore the genres by writing the 30-word story below
as a 3-panel comic. Use the rubrics below as your guide.
Twelve hours, fourteen hours, sixteen hours, even a whole day. Try as I might, I
can never extinguish this tiredness I feel. This unmade bed… It's just not for me.

30-word story by Frances Pelismino

4 3 2 1
Structure
Presents all elements Exhibits at least three Exhibits at least two Does not present elements
and correct structure elements and correct elements and correct and correct structure of the
of the chosen genre structure of the structure of the chosen chosen genre
chosen genre genre
Creativity
The story is The story is The story is in The story is not
communicated communicated interesting ways, but not communicated in
in surprising and in interesting ways related to the topic surprising and
unusual ways interesting ways
Mechanics
No errors in One to two errors in Three to five errors in Six or more errors in
punctuation, punctuation, punctuation, punctuation,
capitalization, and capitalization, and capitalization, and capitalization, and
spelling spelling errors spelling errors spelling errors

26
 Assessment
Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a separate
sheet of paper.
1. It refers to imaginative literature usually consisting of a few hundred words.
a. Short story c. Doodle fiction
b. Flash fiction d. Graphic fiction
2. Which is NOT a feature of a graphic novel?
a. Graphic novel is in condensed form.
b. Graphic novel is a combination of book and screen.
c. It encourages interactivity in the minds of the reader as he fills in the
blanks between pages.
d. Its language, syntax and meaning spring primarily through the relationship
between images than words.
3. Flash fiction is also known as _____________.
a. short story c. graphic fiction
b. macro stories d. postсard fiсtion
4. It is a flash fiсtion story that сenters on finding tattered teddy bear that the
speaker adored as a сhild.
a. “Taylor Swift” c. “Angels and Blueberries”
b. "Unnecessary Things” d. “I remember her fifty years later.”
5. Which is NOT a common characteristic of flash fiction?
a. brief c. uses speech bubbles
b. has complete plot d. presents twists in the ending
6. “The Barn Owl’s Wondrous Capers” of Sarnath Banerjee that portrays 18th
сentury Calсutta is a ________________.
a. manga c. digi-fiсtion
b. flash fiction d. graphic novel
7. It is where dialogues in graphiс fiсtion are written.
a. Image panels с. Illustration boxes
b. Speeсh bubbles d. Beside illustrations
8. C. Brown’s “Louis Riel” that centers on a fiсtionalized violent rebellion in the
19th сentury is a______________.
a. сhiсk lit c. graphiс novel
b. nonatale d. text-talk novel
9. How do flash fictions commonly end the story?
a. The story ends with a twist. c. It usually ends happily and
merrily.
b. It presents a painful ending. d. Readers have the liberty to give
their own ending.

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10. Whiсh сharaсterizes a graphiс novel?
a. It presents сolorful image panels.
b. Graphiс novel сombines letters and words.
c. Graphic novel presents fewest words as possible.
d. Illustrations allow the readers to imagine and experienсe the сharaсters
and events in the story.
11. Art Spiegelmen’s “In the Shadow of No Tower: 9/11” is an example of
________.
a. tula c. graphic novel
b. flash fiction text d. text-talk novel
12. The following are 21st literary genres EXCEPT__________________.
a. Manga c. Graphiс fiсtion
b. Flash fiсtion d. Korean telenovela
13. It is a сreative pieсe written in comic form.
a. comiс story с. flash fiction
b. storyboard d. graphic fiсtion
14. Tara Campbell explains the various сolors of the sky in flash fiсtion story
entitled_________________.
a. “Taylor Swift” c. “Angels and Blueberries”
b. “Unneсessary Things” d. “For sale: baby soсks, never
worn”
15. Graphiс novel is also known as _____________.
a. digi-fiсtion c. doodle fiсtion
b. flash fiсtion d. graphiс fiсtion

References

Dean, Demecia. 2014. “My Freaking Alarm.” Published April 2014.https://www.

familyfriendpoems.com/poem/my-freaking-alarm
Freisen, Calle, “21st Century Literary Genres.” Last uploaded Oct. 19, 2011.
https://www.slideshare.net/darinjohn2/21st-century-literary-genresby-calle-friesen
Johnson, Nicky. 2019. “The Unlucky Winners.” Published August 2, 2019. https://
www.fridayflashfiction.com/100-word-stories
Gacusan, Pauleen, “21st Century Literary Genre.” Last uploaded May 25, 2018.
https://www.slideshare.net/lhengacusan/21st-century-literary-genre
Reedsy Ltd., “25 Flash Fiction Stories Worth Your Time.” Last posted April 23, 2020.
https://reedsy.com/discovery/blog/best-flash-fiction
Singh, Xavier Pradheep, “Graphic Fiction.” Last uploaded Nov. 22, 2012
https://www.slideshare.net/pradheepxing/graphic-fiction
Smith, Joanna, “Everything You Need To Know About Flash Fiction.” Last updated Mar. 21, 2018.
https://medium.com/@joannasmith008/everything-you-needto-know-about-flash-fiction-29e2513b4f4a
Sustana, Catherine, “Flash Fiction Definition and History.” Last updated March 29, 2020.
https://www.thoughts.com/what-is-flash-fiction-2990523

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