PHILIPPINE

LITERATURE
UNIT 3 – SHORT STORY

CONTENTS
The Short Story
Elements of
Short Story
Other Literary
Terms

Intended Learning Outcomes

At the end of Unit 3, you should be able to:

a. identify the elements of short story on the literary

piece;
b. explain the values and lessons found in the story; and
c. arrange the important events of a short story.
Philippine Literature: Its Overview

E n g a g i n gA c t i v i t y :C o m p l e t et h e
graphic organizer s for your
answers . Use key words only.

1. What is short story?

Short Story

2. What are some elements of short story?

Elements of Short Story


Short Story
A short story is a piece of prose fiction
that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses
on a self-contained incident or series of
linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a
single effect or mood. The short story is one of the
oldest types of literature and has existed in the
form of legends, mythic tales, folk tales, fairy
tales, fables and anecdotes in various ancient
communities across the world. The modern short
story developed in the early 19th century.
The short story is a crafted form in its own
right. Short stories make use of plot, resonance,
and other dynamic components as in a novel, but
typically to a lesser degree. While the short story is
largely distinct from the novel or novella/short
novel, authors generally draw from a common pool
of literary techniques.
Determining what exactly separates a
short story from longer fictional formats is
problematic. A classic definition of a short
story is that one should be able to read it in one
sitting, a point most notably made in Edgar
Allan Poe's essay "The Philosophy of
Composition" (1846). According to William
Faulkner, a short story is character driven and a
writer's job is to "...trot along behind him with
a paper and pencil trying to keep up long
enough to put down what he says and does.”
Some authors have argued that a short story
must have a strict form. Somerset Maugham
thought that the short story "must have a definite
design, which includes a point of departure, a
climax and a point of test; in other words, it must
have a plot". This view is however opposed by
Anton Chekov who thought that a story should
have neither a beginning nor an end. It should just
be a "slice of life", presented suggestively.
Short story writers may define their works
as part of the artistic and personal expression of
the form. They may also attempt to resist
categorization by genre and fixed formation.
Short stories have deep roots and the power
of short fiction has been recognized in modern
society for hundreds of years. As William Boyd, the
award-winning British author and short story
writer has said: [short stories] seem to answer
something very deep in our nature as if, for the
duration of its telling, something special has been
created, some essence of our experience
extrapolated, some temporary sense has been
made of our common, turbulent journey towards
the grave and oblivion.
Longer stories that cannot be called novels
are sometimes considered "novellas" or novelettes
and, like short stories, may be collected into the
more marketable form of "collections", often
containing previously unpublished stories.
Sometimes, authors who do not have the time or
money to write a novella or novel decide to write
short stories instead, working out a deal with a
popular website or magazine to publish them for
profit.
In terms of length, word count is
typically anywhere from 1,000 to 4,000 for
short stories, however some have 15,000 words
and are still classed as short stories. Stories of
fewer than 1,000 words are sometimes referred to
as "short stories", or "flash fiction".
Short stories have no set length. In terms of
word count, there is no official demarcation
between an anecdote, a short story, and a novel.
Rather, the form's parameters are given by the
rhetorical and practical context in which a given
story is produced and considered so that what
constitutes a short story may differ between
genres, countries, eras, and commentators. Like
the novel, the short story's predominant shape
reflects the demands of the available markets for
publication, and the evolution of the form seems
closely tied to the evolution of the publishing
industry and the submission guidelines of its
constituent houses.
As a point of reference for the genre writer,
the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America
define short story length in the Nebula Awards for
science fiction submission guidelines as having a
word count of fewer than 7,500 words.
Short Story
The following elements of the short story are
taken from the book entitled Philippine
Literature: Through the years by Kahayon and
Zulueta (2000, pp.338-340).
1. Plot - is a series of events or episodes that make
up the action. It is the skeletal structure of the
story. The parts of the plot are:
a. Motivation - the cause or reason that
compels a character to act as he does.
b. Struggle or conflict - the clash
between two opposing forces of ideas
or beliefs. There are two kinds of
conflicts:
 1. Inner conflict - a struggle a. Omniscient - a story is told by the
between conflicting forces author using the third person
within the heart or mind
of the protagonist b. Limited Omniscient - author
associates with a major or
2. External conflict - a struggle minor character; spokesperson
between the protagonists and or mouthpiece
the antagonist or between the
protagonist and the forces of c. First Person - story is told using the
nature. first person "I"; focus of the story is
with the narrator
c. Complication - somebody or something
that interferes with the wishes or 6. Style - the distinctive manner in which a writer
destiny of the main character. The uses language, his choice and arrangement
character works cross purposes. of words.
d. Suspense - struggle and complication 7. Symbol - an object that stands for, or
led to suspense. It is the reader's represents an idea, belief, superstition,
feeling of excitement, curiosity or social or political institution
expectation about the outcome of the
struggle.
e. Climax - the point of highest interest or
dramatic intensity. Usually it marks a Other Literary Terms
turning point in the action, since the
reader is no longer in doubt about the
1. Hero - the male character who is usually the
outcome.
central or main character, also called a
f. Outcome - the part when the character protagonist
gets what he wants and the result is
2. Heroine - the female counterpart of the hero.
satisfactory or his wishes go
unsatisfied and the ending is either 3. Antagonist - the force (usually a person)
happy or sad. that appears as the main character
(protagonist) in his attempt to solve a
g. Denouement - the final action. It is the
problem, and thus resolve the conflict in
unveiling of the plot, following the
which he is involved. He is also called the
climax in which the writer explains
villain.
how and why everything turned out
as it did. The denouement should not 4. Poetic justice - an outcome of event that
be confused with the climax. rewards the virtues and punishes the vicious
and ending in which each character gets
2. Characters - the persons in a play or story:
exactly what he deserves.
sometimes an animal or an object.
5. Foreshadowing - the cropping of important
a. Dynamic character - a character who
hints by the author to prepare the reader
changes or develops during the
for what is to come and to help him to
course of the story.
anticipate the outcome.
b. Static character - a character who does
6. Epigram - a short witty statement sometimes
not change or develop in the course
having a satirical or ironical meaning
of the story
7. Realism - a manner of writing in which people,
3. Atmosphere - a general over-all feeling of a
women and events are presented as
story conveyed in large part by the setting
they are in real life, without romantic or
and the mood. Atmosphere includes setting,
realistic coloring.
the time, the place, the occupation
and the conditions. 8. Moral - the lesson or teaching that is brought
out through the action or is explicitly
4. Theme - the idea, general truth or commentary
stated or implied by one of the characters.
on the life or people brought out in the story
9. Flashback - dramatic device by which the
5. Point of view - the method used by the author
author interrupts the episode to present a
to tell his story: the position, psychological
situation or incident which occurred at an
as well as physical, from which he presents
earlier time.
what happens and the character involved in
it. 10. Resolution - the events following the climax;
sometimes called falling action.

Short Story Example
ANG SALINGSING
ni Edgar S. Godin
(First prize for short story in 2002,
BATHALADD-
MINDANAO)
MADASIGONG nanaytay si Dodong sa
siotong dalan nga nagtadlas padulong sa ilang uma
niining udtoha. Nakahunahuna siya pagkuhag
kamunggay didto aron nila sa paniudto. Gimingaw
na siyag sud-an. Gihidlaw na ikasuwa siya sa
linaw- oyng kamunggay. Kaganinang buntag,
kinudkod nga lubi lang ang ilang gisuwa sa
kamoteng tinanok nga ilang pamahaw. Kagabii ang
nahabiling tulo ka Haon sa putong balanghoy nga
mikaging na- kay niadto pa man kining using
adlaw giluto - maoy ilang sipanihapon nga
giparesag linugawng binlod. Hinuon, naanad na si
Dodong niining matanga sa mga pagkaon. Mao na
kini namat-an niyag buot.
Ang ilang abot nga mais dili gayod
makalahutay hangtod sa sunod nga tingsanggi
busa gikinahanglan nga abagan kinig mga duma.
Sa sud-an, labi pa silang altaw. Pariagsa da kuayo
silang makatilaw og lab-as. May mga hayopan unta
sila santa mga manok, kanding ng baboy apan
sagad nga kabaligya kini - kanang wala na gayod
silay laing mahikap aron iseguro pagpalit og bugas.
Mao nga ang utan kamunggay usa na ka lamang
sud-an alang kang Dodong. Kiniy ilang madali.
Lamian ang linaw-ayng kamunggay nga butangag
tangad ni Nanay niya bisan walay subak. Labi na
kon una sa ginamos ang itempla, pastilan,
panington gyod si Dodong og hinigop sa dalag-
dalag nga sabaw.
Nakurat si Dodong sa iyang nakita
pagdangadanga na niya sa ilang uma. Maoy iyang
nalantawan ang usa ka tawo nga nagdalag sundang
ug nanghabas sa ilang mga tanom nga Jamunggay.
Misamot pagkitiw ang mga tiil sa bata aron
pagsuta gayod sa iyang nakita. Ug sa iyang
paghiduol, dali siyang nangutana dihang nailhan
niya ang tawo: "Nganong imo mang gipamutol
ning atong mga kamunggay, Tay?
"Guwang na kini, Dong, busa akong gipul-ongan."
"Apan wala na hinuon tay mautan niini sa sunod
adlaw, Tay!“
“Sagdi lang. Dong. Mangita lang god tag laing
ikasud-an, Naa may daghang mautan: ba. Hala,
dad-a hinuon og una karang akong gilain aron
mautan og sayo ni Nanay nimo.”
Gikabyonan man sa kahinugon ug kalibog,
igo na lamang sa pagtuman si Dodong sa mando sa
iyang amahan. Kamagulangang anak si Dodong.
May edad na ang iyang amahan kay ikaduha na
mung asawa nini ang iyang nanay. Wala kiniy anak
sa unang asawa nga namatay sa kanser sa uterus.
Haruhay ang iyang mga ginikanan kaniadto sa
nagnegosyo pa kini didto sa Sugbo. Apan
gidemalas kini. Gilungkab sa mga tawong supat og
balatian ang ilang tindahan ug nahurot-hurot ang
mga baligya. May diyotayng nahabilin apan wala
na kini makabangon pas
Sa nahitabo, napugos pagbalik ang iyang
amahan sa yuta. Namauli sila sa Bohol, dala ang
duha pa lang ka liwat siya ug si Atoy nga parehong
wala pay kabuot niadtong tungora. Sa Bohol,
naglisod pag-ayo sila. Hilabihan kapait ang
panguma sa ilang dapat tungod sa tuman
kabatoong yuta ug sa grabeng paspanghasi sa
siawng mga unggoy, Sipat kaayo ang maong mga
amo nga kinahanglan gayong bantayan kay listisin
man niini ang mabisan unsang matang sa tanom.
NING gabhiona, walay ganang mikaon si
Dodong sa ilang pagpanihapon. Nanumbalay ang
kahumot sa pinadukot nga kamote apan
nagtimitimi ang bata. Laay ang matag ingkib niya
salabo kaayong duma. Tulo na ka adlaw nga
kamote ang ilang gikaon ug wala pa gayoy sud-an.
Ang asin nga ilang gidildil, alang kang Dodong, dili
gayod mosangay sa kamote. Dili siya lamian.
Nakamatikod ang inahan sa iyang
pagtimitimi, midasig kini, "Kaon na, Dong. Gusto
nimong bahogan og tubig?" Ampay ni Dodong ang
kamoteng init nga butangan og tubig. Nasayod ang
inahan niini.Apan wala mokilo ang
bata.Naglinuktok kini. Ingon sa muy lawom nga
gihunahuna.
"Ingon nimo, Tay, mangita tag ikasud-an.
Wa man lagi!" Kalit nga namulong si Dodong sa
basag nga tingog. Dihay nikagalkal sa iyang
tutunlan. "Unsaon man, Dong, wa may nakalugar,
alam-alam sa amahan, "Nag-agpas si Nanay nimo
nga mahuman ang iyang sigamang banig aron
ikabaligya na. Ako pod, dili nako kabiyaan ang
atong maisan nga nagbanay na kay naay daghang
unggoy. Gisugdan na man gani bisas mao pay
pagpamuhok-buhok."
"Kon wa pa lang nimo pamutla ang atong
kamunggay, makautan pa unta taron.” Nangahulog
na gayod ang luha ni Dodong. Nahimukdalan ang
amalan.Ngano ba tuod nga gidungan man niyag
pamulong ang ilang kamunggay? Mihari karon sa
iyang galaman ang pagmahay. Apan ulahi na.
Busa: "Dong," niini pa, guwang na ang atong
kamunggay. Ug kay guwang na man, dili na kini
makahatag og maayong dahon. Paingon na kini sa
pagkusandaw."
 "Bitaw, Dong," sıkgaw sa inahan. "Kon dili “Oo, D-Dong, m-m-may s-salingsing na...
na maayog dahon ang punoan, ang salingsing lugsanay na maalsa ang kamot sa hamtong nga
kalaoman." mikusukuso paghinay sa buhok sa anak.
Sa nadungog, bisan wala makatugkad, "Tana, lagi, TaylAyawg higaa.. ayawg tulog."
mikalma si Dodong. Naghingos-ltingos na lamang Gibitad ni Dodong ang bukton sa amahan aron
kini. Unya mipunit siyag dakong kamote ug pabangonon. Apan wala na kini mokihol.
miingkib. Kala, sa kahidlaw sa sud-an, nilupad ang
iyang hunahuna sa paghandom sa mga lamang "Tay...I Tana lagi, Tay!" padayong bitad ug
sud-an nga iyang natilawan, Maoy gibunhaw sa yugyog ni Dodong. "Tana, Tayl Ayawg tulog dinhi,
iyang kaisipan kadtong gidala siyas pamista Tatay Tayl Tay... Tay !"
niya didto s Nagtuwang. Ang tinuod, niini lamang
mga okasyona nga makakaon silag lamang sud-an.
Panagsa, kanang dunay kaslon ug usab, kon dunay ANG KATAPUSAN
mamatay.
SAYO nga miadto sa ilang uma sila si
Dodong ng ang iyang tatay niining buntaga. Gidala
sa anahan ang anak aron mabata kini sa buhat ug
usab, aron makatabang pagbantay sa ilang maisan
Activi ty #1 :
nga taros na niining tungora- ang edad sa mais nga
kinaham sa mga unggoy.
Comprehension Check: Answer the following
Samtang nagbuwag pagbantay ang anuhag questions.
anak sa ilang kamasan, takulaluw lang misibaw
ang tingog ni Dodong. 1. Why did Dodong cry one supper? What was his
problem?
"Tay..! Tay..." Puno sa kadasig ang tingog ni
Dodong nga misuot sa kamaisan aron pangitaon 2. What was the news that Dodong excitedly
ang amahan. "Tay...! Tay...!" padayong singgit sa wanting to tell to his parents?
bata samtang kusog nga misuot. "May salingsing 3. What would you do if you were in Dodong’s
na ang mga kamunggay, Tay...” shoes and your father was bitten by a snake?
Unya, sa tunga-tunga sa kamaisan, muoy
nakita ni Dodong ang iyang amahan nga daw
hubog nga naglakaw. Nagsusapinday.
"Hala, naunsa man ka, Tay?"
Activi ty #2 :
"Napaakan kog ha's, Dong...la's nga
ugahipon."
“Tana, Tay. manguli ta. Ako pod sultihan si Think-Pair-Share: Choose one of your classmates
Nanay nga may salingsing na ang mga to be your partner and fill in the chart below.
kamunggay.”
"Dali, Dong, patukorn ko...pugunita ko sa
imong abaga."
Nanglakaw sila.Apan hinay kaayo. Lugsanay
nang mabikang sa amahan ang mga tiil niini.
"Dong, pagtinarong gyod sa imong pag-
eskuyla. Ayaw pasagdi si Nanay nimo. "Oo, Tay.
Moeskuyla gyod ko aron lami na pirme atong sud-
an. Parchas ni Nong Dario ba, nagtrabaho sa
banko, di daghan siyag kuwarta kanunay, di ba.
Tay?“ “Taym pa, Dong... mopahulay sa ko."
Ug inanayng nalusno ang amahan.
Nahayaka kini sa yuta ug dayong kaligdas. "Dong,
tabangi gyod si Nanay nimo, ha. Panggaa sab ang
imong nunghod..."
"Tana, Tay... magdali ta kay ako sultihan si
Nanay nga may salingsing na ang atong
kamunggay."
Questions What I What my What
Thought Partner We Both
Thought Share
1. How does
Dodong perceive
life?
2. What is the
symbol of the
“Salingsing” in
the story?
3. Relate
yourselves in the
situation of
Dodong. What
can you learn
from him?
A c t i v i t y# 3 :

Fill in the chart below and answer the following elements of short story.

Title Author Point of Setting Type of Characters Character Theme

View Conflict Development