HDB
Reintroduction to Literature
WHAT IS LITERATURE?
 Literature comes from the Latin word “LITERA” which
means an acquaintance with letters.
 It is a body of productions, oral, written or visual,
containing imaginative language that realistically
portrays thoughts, emotions, and experiences of the
human condition. ( Bwalya. L, 2006 )
 Literature is a language in use that provides insights and
intellectual stimulation of the reader. As one explores
literature, he likewise discover the beauty of language.
 Literature is an art that reflects the works of imagination,
aesthetics, and creative writing which are distinguished
for the beauty of style or expression.
 Literature is a product of a particular culture that
concretizes man’s array of values, emotions, actions and
ideas.
 LITERARY STANDARDS
How the value of text is measured.
 UNIVERSALITY
- Literature appeals to everyone regardless of
culture, race, sex and time which are all
considered significant.
 ARTISTRY
- Literature appeals to one’s sense of beauty as it
possess a distinctive aesthetic quality.
 INTELLECTUAL VALUE
- Literature stimulates critical thinking that
enriches mental processes of abstract and
reasoning.
 SPIRITUAL VALUE
- Literature elevates the spirit and the soul by
bringing out moral values. It has the power to
motivate and inspire.
 SUGGESTIVENESS
- Literature unravels and invokes man’s emotional
power to define symbolism's, nuances, implied
meaning, images and messages.
 STYLE
- The peculiar way or ways in which man or writer
sees life, form his ideas and express them (ideas).
 PERMANENCE
- Great literature endures the tests of time,
drawing out timelessness. It remains invariable
and relevant forever.
IMPORTANCE OF LITERATURE
“The greatness of literature cannot be determined solely by
literary standards though we must remember that whether it
is literature or not can be determined by literary standard.”
-C.S Eliot
 LITERARY APPROACHES
How to teach and study works of literature
 Moral or Humanistic Approach
- Literature is viewed to discuss man and its nature.
It presents man as essentially rational; that is
endowed with intellect and free will; or that the
piece does not misinterpret the true nature of
man.
 Formalistic Approach
- Literature is viewed naturally, independent of
the author, age, or any other external factor.
The study of the selection is based on the so-
called “literary elements”.
 Cultural Approach
- Literature is seen as one of the manifestations
and vehicles of a nation’s culture and tradition.
It includes the entire complex of what goes
under “culture” and considers the literary piece
in the total milieu which it was born.
 Historical Approach
- Literature operates on the premise that the
history of a nation has telling effects on its
literature and that piece can be better
understood and appreciated if one knows the
times surrounding its creation.
 Psychological Approach
- Literature is viewed as the expression of
“personality” of “inner drives”, of “neurosis”. It
has resulted in an almost exhausting and
exhaustive “psychological analysis” of characters,
of symbols and images, of recurrents themes,
and others.
 Impressionistic Approach
- Literature is viewed to explain “reaction-
response” which is considered as something
very personal, relative, and fruitful.
Unconditioned by explanations and often taking
the impact of the piece, it seeks to see how the
piece has c ommunicated.
GENRES OF LITERATURE
LITERARY GENRES
 Prose
 Poetry
 Drama/Play
 Media
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IMPORTANCE OF LITERATURE
 Literature represents a language of a people: culture
and tradition but literature is more important than just
a historical or cultural artifact.
 Ultimately, we may also discover meaning in literature
by looking at what the author says and how he/she says
it.
 Literature is important to us because it speaks to us, it is
universal, and it affects us. Even when it is ugly,
literature is beautiful.

“That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that

your longings are universal, that you’re not lonely and
isolated from anyone. You belong.”

- F. Scott Fitzgerald

“We write from life and call it literature, and literature lives
because we are in it.”

- F. Sionil Jose

“That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that

your longings are universal, that you’re not lonely and
isolated from anyone. You belong.”

- F. Scott Fitzgerald
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LESSON 2
The Legend of the Tagalogs
PRE-COLONIAL LITERATURE  This legend traces the origin of the word “Tagalog”.
 It tells the story of Maria, a maiden who gave a test to
 The pre-colonial period in Philippine literature is
her many suitors to see who among them deserves her
undoubtedly the longest.
hand. One suitor named Ilog bravely took the impossible
 Our ancestors then had already a distinct culture of
test of bringing a live wild serpent. Later on, Maria
their own.
asked to cut the snake. When she was shouting “Taga
 Means of transportation: bancas, rafts, vintas and
Ilog”, two Spaniards passed by. They were asking for the
horses
place they are in but nobody paid attention so they just
 Alphabet: Alibata
mistook the words “Taga-Ilog” as an answer to their
 Diverse language, beliefs, cultures and traditions
question and continuously repeated it until it became
 Most ancient Filipino literature are oral in nature.
Tagalog.
 Some were written in perishable materials such as dried
leaves, barks of trees, stones, and bamboo cylinders.
 Language used was the language of the daily life.

Ancient Literary Forms

Pre-colonial Literature of the Philippines

Ancient Literary Forms

 Myths, Legends, Tales and Fables
- explain the WHYS and HOWS of natural
happenings and phenomena in localities.
 Folksongs (lullabies, oyayis, heles)
- used to accompany our ancestors in almost all
types of their activities
 Riddles (bugtong) – guessing game
- part of our ancestors’ recreation or enjoyment.

 Epics (epiko)
- kilometric stories about the lives and exploits of
our ancestors' folk heroes (verse or prose) in
narratives.
 Proverbs or wise sayings
- used for moralizing or reprimanding the children
or the tribesmen of our ancestors

Characteristics of
Pre-colonial Literature of the Philippines

1. Philippine pre-colonial literature practices the art of

storytelling.
2. Common themes are the following: nature,
supernatural events, bravery of heroes, customs and
ideologies.
3. The stories told during the pre-colonial times were
considered the truth.
4. Plots were generally shorter, and characters have one
distinguishable characteristic.
5. The language used has melody and rhythm.

“Philippine literature in the pre-colonial years can be

classified as oral in nature, simple and boculic”
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Lesson 3  Ancient Literature was collected and translated to
Tagalog and other dialects
Philippine Literature in the Spanish Era  The first Filipino alphabet, ALIBATA was replaced
by the ROMAN ALPHABET.
Historical Background  Many grammar books were printed in Filipino, like
Tagalog, ilocano and Visayan
Spaniards came with
1. Swords - Territorial Expansion
Doctrina Christiana
2. Cross - Evangelization
- By: Fr. Juan de Placencia & Fr. Domingo Nieva in
Tagalog ang Spanish
Spanish Colonization brough about great cultural changes
- first book printed in the Philippines in 1593 in
which also greatly altered the literature’s:
xylography
 Content
- contains the Pater Noster (Our Father), Ave Maria
 Medium
(Hail Mary), Regina Coeli (Hail Holy Queen), The Ten
 Form
Commandments of God, The Comma
Content of Literature:
Francisco “Balagtas” Baltazar
- Most religious
- Florante at Laura, his narrative poem about the tyranny in
- lives of Saints, Religious books, Prayers, Psalms,
Albania perceives the tyranny in his Filipino homeland
Marian Hymns, The Pasyon.
Gregoria de Jesus
Medium of Literature: - Wife of Andres Bonifacio, wrote noblt Tagalog poem.
- Tri-lingual: Castillan Language, Tagalog and dialects of
some communities.
Leona Florentino
- Literature began to appear in print. - was a Filipino poet in the Spanish and Ilocano languages.
- Alibata was replaced by the Roman Alphabet. She was considered as the “Mother of Philippine Women’s
Literature”
Forms of Literature: Dr. Jose Rizal
 European metrical Romance (corridos and awits) - Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo
 Recreational Plays (duplo, moro-moro, and - Chronicle the life of Ibarra
zarzuela, juego de prenda) - a Filipino educated abroad to reform his country through
education.
Literature’s Role:
- catalyst of change
Gaspar Aquino De Belen
- Become a tool for the awakening of the Filipinos. - most gifted ladino
- predecessor of the many literary works to come - Ladinos: Bilingual natives
Learned to read and write
Philippine Literature during Spanish Colonial Period
Our Mother Tongua
Historical Background A Poem by Dr. Jose Rizal
- Philippine literature in Spanish includes all the poems,
stories, novels, and essays written by Filipinos in the If truly a people dearly love
Spanish language. This literature began as a tool in The tongue to them by Heaven sent,
the religious and political conquest of the Philippines They’ll surely yearn for liberty
in the 16th century, but eventually blossomed into a Like a bird above in the firmament
literature of protest against the spanish colonizers
and later the American rulers.  People’s mother tongue is a gift from heaven.
 People would yearn for the freedom to build an
Characteristics identity for themselves.
 Religious
 Devotional
Because by its language one can judge
 Secular and Formal
A town, a barrio, and Kingdom;
 Naturalistics
And like any other created thing
 Academic
Every Human being loves his freedom
Spanish influences on the PH. Literature
 Periodicals this time gained a religious tone  Language is the standard by which outsiders judge
 European legends and traditions brought here a community, a culture, civilization.
became assimilated in our songs, corridos and
moro-moros.
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One who doesn’t love his native tongue,

Is worse than putrid fish and beast;
And like a truly precious thing
It therefore deserves to be cherished Lesson 4

 A nation’s language is a treasure to be valued and Beside the Pasig by Jose Rizal
cherished.

The Tagalog language’s akin to Latin, Background of the Play

To English, Spanish, angelical tongue;  Written by Jose Rizal and staged on December 8,
For God who knows how to look after us 1880
This language He bestowed us upon  Staged on the feast of “Immaculate Conception of
the Virgin Mary”
 Native tongue is just like English, Spanish, and even
the language of the angels. Description of the Play
 Filipino language/native tongue shall now be  A one-act zarzuela (recreational play)
treated as inferior to other languages.  Religious in theme
 Written in Spanish language (originally)
As others, our language is the same  Divided into 7 scenes
With alphabet and letters of its own,
It was lost because a storm did destroy
On the lake the bangka’ in years by gone Characters of the Play

 Letters unique only to the Filipino language could 1. Leonido

be traced back to Baybayin.  The protagonist in the story
 A young Filipino who has strong faith to the Virgin
THEME: Mary
 Take pride in own native language to achieve  Played by Isidro Perez
freedom.
2. Satan ( Supporting character)
MORAL VALUE:  The antagonist
 Nationalism and Patriotism  Introduced himself as God of Filipinos
 Love for Language  Disguised himself as a Diwata.
 Symbolizes Spanish authority
 Played by Isidro Perez.
“He who does not love his own language is worse than an
animal and smelly fish.” 3. Angel ( other Supporting character)
- Dr. Jose Rizal.  The one who saves Pascual in the wrath of the
devil and the battle against it
 Played by Pedro Carranceja

4. Pascual, Candido ( other Supporting character)

 The Friends of Leonido who are excited for the
feast.
 Pascual (Aquiles R. de Luzulaga)
 Candido (Antoni Fuentes)

Setting of the Play

 Pasig riverbank
 During the feast of Virgin Mary
 The setting of the play reflects the culture of
Filipinos in celebrating feasts of patrons or saints
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