Baguio City National Science High School

Purok 12, Irisan, Baguio City

21st CENTURY LITERATURE FROM THE PHILIPPINES AND THE WORLD
Second Semester, Sy 2021-2022
Quarter 3, Week 1

INTRODUCTION TO PHILIPPINE LITERATURE

Module Developed by: Dialyn Gorio

Lesson 1: Pre-Colonial Philippine Literature

Philippine literature can best be appreciated in the context of the country’s precolonial socio-political
histories and cultural traditions. In the first activity of our lesson, you shall revisit some of the early literary
forms that existed even before the Spaniards came. These literatures reflect their traditions, beliefs, and
language. Additionally, these shall help us understand their society before and the things that were in it,
how they started and how they have changed.

Most of the early forms of Philippine literature were handed down from generation to generation
through oral lore. This proves that our country has so many oral literary traditions such as folk songs,
riddles, and folk tales during the pre-colonial period. In this part of our lesson, you are going to analyze an
example of a tanaga, one of the earliest forms of Filipino poetry which are handed down through oral
history. Here is an example of Tanaga.
NANAY
(Norbert C. Lartec)
Pagpanaw niya’y buhay
Paghikbi, paghalakhak
Paghihirap, pagsikhay
Sa bunsong nililiyag.

WRITTEN WORK 1: Tanaga Check! Answer the following questions based on the given
sample of tanaga.

1. What is the central theme of the tanaga?

A. love of a mother
B. death of a mother
C. the sacrifices of a mother
D. love of a child to his/her mother
2. Which line of the tanaga reflects the sacrifices of a mother for her child?
A. 1 C. 3
B. 2 D. 4
3. How many syllables compose each line of the tanaga?
A. 8 C. 7
B. 6 D. 9
4. Based on the above example, which of the following best describes tanaga?
A. It is a short poem.
B. It has a rhyme scheme
C. It follows a syllabication pattern.
D. all of the above
5. What does tanaga reflect about the linguistic knowledge of our ancestors?
A. For them, poetry was relevant to make meaningful communications.
B. They were aware about the aesthetic and rhythmic qualities of language.
C. They knew that language is a systematic means of communicating by
sounds.
D. All of the above

Pre-colonial inhabitants of the Philippines showcase a rich past through their literature. Let’s review
some of its characteristics as we learn to appreciate more the first period of the Philippine literary history.

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 The setting...
The oral literatures of the precolonial Filipinos reflect their community. The themes of
their literature were customarily the common experiences of the people -food-
gathering, creature and objects of nature, work in the home, field, forest or sea. From
this, we can learn that the early Filipinos lived in villages frequently found along sea
coasts, river banks, mountains- close to the major sources of food. Another major
characteristic of the community as revealed in their literatures, such as in the “Biag ni
Lam-ang”, is the “village system” that has affected their socio-political structure during
the early times.

On language...
The Philippine precolonial literatures are mostly poetic-- contain rhyme, rhythm, and
rhetorical figures of speech that show that the early Filipinos were aware of the features of their
language. Thousands of maxims, proverbs, epigrams, and the like have been listed by many
different collectors and researchers from many dialects. Writing system in the different parts of the
country was already evident during the period.

Going ethnic...
Early Filipino literature represents ethnic groups’ heritage. The language of oral literature, unless
the piece was part of the cultural heritage of the community like the epic, was the language of daily
life. Almost all the important events in the life of the ancient peoples of the country were connected
with some religious observance and the rites and ceremonies.

Literature and society...

The culture of the society is mirrored in literature and in this way, in all languages and at all times
there has been a close interaction between the two. Literature has played a large role in the
preservation of cultural heritage. It makes sure that the culture of the society is transcended from
one generation to another.

Filipino epic poetry is considered to be the highest point of development for Philippine folk literature,
encompassing narratives that recount the adventures of tribal heroes. Epics do not only portray the bravery
of the early Filipinos, but these poems also tell more about their cultures which include about their socio-
political structures.

PERFORMANCE TASK 1. Discuss three (3) pre-colonial Filipino cultures depicted in Biag ni
Lam-ang in not more than 200 words. Refer to the following summary of this
Filipino epic.

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 SYNOPSIS OF BIAG NI LAM-ANG
Namongan gives birth to a baby with incredible strength and courage, named Lam-ang. The boy asks his
mother about his father’s whereabouts and learns that he has gone to fight the Igorot. Lam-ang arms
himself with charms and decides to look for his father. From a dream, he learns that his father, Don Juan
Panganiban, had been killed.

Later, Lam-ang finds the Igorot in a sagang, a feast celebrating a successful headhunting expedition. His
father’s head is displayed in the feast. Lam-ang slays them all with his spear and mutilates the last among
them.

When Lam-ang returns home, 99 maidens wash his hair in the river. For his shampoo, he burns so many
rice straw that the communities near the river are alarmed by the smoke. The dirt from his hair kills all the
fishes in the river. He then kills a crocodile and carries it on his shoulder ashore amidst the applause of his
companions.

Lam-ang hears about a beautiful maiden named Ines Cannoyan, the daughter of the richest man in the
town of Kalanutian. He tells his mother of his desire to court the maiden. Although his mother discourages
him, he goes anyway, dressed in gold and accompanied by his pet rooster and white dog. The giant
Sumarang blocks his way and belittles him. Lam-ang defeats him in a duel and hurls him nine hills away.
Later, Sarindadan tries to seduce him but Lam-ang rejects her advances.

Reaching Kalanutian, he impresses Ines with his magic. His rooster crows and topples a small outhouse.
His dog barks and the outhouse is rebuilt. Ines invites him to the house where the rooster acts as Lam-
ang’s spokesperson. Ines’ parents ask for a bride price, which Lam-ang agrees to give.

Lam-ang returns home to prepare for the wedding and the presents. He and his townsfolk sail on two
golden ships to Kalanutian where Lam-ang and Ines have a Catholic wedding. The townspeople board the
two ships to Nalbuan, Lam-ang’s birthplace, to continue the celebration.

After the celebration, Lam-ang agrees to hunt rarang, a shellfish. He is swallowed by a giant fish, called
berkakang, as he has dreamt so. However, a diver recovers his bones. The pet rooster flaps its wings and
resurrects Lam-ang. He then rewards the diver and lives happily with his wife and pets.

— CCP Encyclopedia of Philippine Art: Philippine Literature, Volume 9 (Cultural Center of

the Philippines, 1994)

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Sentence 5 4 3 2
Structure, All sentences are Most sentences Most sentences Sentences sound
Grammar, well constructed are well are well awkward, are
Mechanics and have varied constructed and constructed, but distractingly
structure and have varied they have a repetitive, or are
length. The structure and similar structure difficult to
author makes no length. The and/or length. understand. The
errors in author makes a The author author makes
grammar, few errors in makes several numerous errors in
mechanics, grammar, errors in grammar,
and/or spelling. mechanics, grammar, mechanics, and/or
and/or spelling, mechanics, spelling that
but they do not and/or spelling interfere with
interfere with that interfere understanding.
understanding. with
understanding.

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 Baguio City National Science High School
Purok 12, Irisan, Baguio City
21st CENTURY LITERATURE FROM THE PHILIPPINES AND THE WORLD
Second Semester, Sy 2021-2022
Quarter 3, Weeks 2 and 3

INTRODUCTION TO PHILIPPINE LITERATURE

Module Developed by: Dialyn Gorio

Lesson 2: Colonial Philippine Literature

The Spaniards were the first group of colonizers who came to the Philippines. Their more-than-300-
year stay in the country has brought many literary influences, and among these are stage plays which were
mostly in poetic form. Most of the stage plays during the Spanish era had a recognizable characteristic:
Religious.
Before the Americans came, the Period of Enlightenment during the Spanish regime emerged and
led to the creation of the Propaganda Movement spearheaded mostly by the intellectual middle-class like
Jose Rizal, Marcelo del Pilar, Graciano Lopez-Jaena, Antonio Luna. Mariano Ponce, Jose Ma. Panganiban
and Pedro Paterno. The Propaganda Movement can be seen as a forerunner to Filipino demands for
independence from Spain. An example of a prose written during the period is the La Indolencia de los
Filipinos, an exploratory essay written by Jose Rizal to explain the alleged laziness of the Filipinos.
After having been occupied by the Spaniards, a new set of colonizers brought about new changes
in Philippine literature. Study the following literary influences of the American and Japanese colonizers.

Philippine literature has been greatly influenced by its colonial experiences. Let’s review the
changes in the Philippine literature during the colonial period.

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 One of the notable literary contributions of the Japanese is haiku. The haiku is said to be the
counterpart of our own tanaga. Review the following examples of haiku about Baguio City and note the
similarities and differences of a haiku and a tanaga.

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 Bio Note: Melvin C. Magsanoc, teacher and poet, is an Ibaloy from Kabayan, Benguet and Baguio City. He
writes poetry in Ibaloy and in English.

PERFORMANCE TASK 2. Write TWO (2) haikus regarding the changes in Philippine literature during
the colonial period

Lesson 3 (Week 3): Post-colonial Philippine Literature

Very Good! You have already finished two lessons in this module. In Lesson 1, we dealt with the
pre-colonial Philippine literature which enlightened us that our country has already rich literature, especially
oral, even before colonization. Printed literature flourished during the colonization period as we have
learned in Lesson 2. In this last lesson of the module, we shall deal with the post-colonial, specifically the
contemporary literature of the Philippines. We shall take note of the transitions of the Philippine literature
after the settlement of the Spaniards, the Americans, and the Japanese in our country.
Study the timeline of events in the Philippine literary history, and reflect what kind of war the
Filipinos battled during the post-colonial period.

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WRITTEN WORK 2: Write TRUE if the statement is correct, FALSE if otherwise.
1. Legends and epics are examples of prose.
2. The main characters in myths are usually gods, demigods or supernatural humans; while
Legends generally feature humans as their main characters.
3. The early Philippine literature used different dialects of the country.
4. Pre-colonial Philippine literature was handed down from generation to generation.
5. Our ancestors had their own writing system even before colonization.
6. The Spanish period featured several kinds of stage plays.
7. Philippine literature during the American period was pessimistic.
8. Filipino language was mostly used during the American period.
9. Propaganda Movement emerged only during the Spanish colonization.
10. Freedom of speech was boundless during the Japanese period.
11. Martial Law was declared during the Rebirth of Freedom period.
12. English was the main language of writings during Post-EDSA 1.
13. Liwayway was not published during the Period of Activism.
14. Light themes such as the beauty of nature emerged during the New Society period.
15. There was no freedom of speech during the Rebirth of Freedom period

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 Baguio City National Science High School
Purok 12, Irisan, Baguio City
21st CENTURY LITERATURE FROM THE PHILIPPINES AND THE WORLD
Second Semester, Sy 2021-2022
Quarter 3, Weeks 1, 2, and 3
Name: ________________________________
Year and Section: _______________

Date Tasks/Activities to be Accomplished Page No. of Items/

Nos. Points
Week 1: Pre-colonial Literature (February 7-11, 2022)
Febuary 8, Written Task: Read the sample tanaga and choose the
2022 letter of the best answer for each question that follows. 1 ______
5 pts
Febuary 10, Performance Task. Read the excerpt of Baig Ni Lam-ang
2022 and discuss three pre-colonial Filipino cultures depicted in 2-4 ______
the epic in not more than 200 words. 20 pts

Written Work 1
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Performance Task 1
Content : 10 8 6 4
Organization: 5 4 3 2
Grammar/Sentence Structure/Mechanics: 5 4 3 2
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Date Tasks/Activities to be Accomplished Page No. of Items/

Nos. Points
Weeks 2 and 3, 2022 : Lesson 2: Colonial Literature; Lesson 3: Post Colonial Lit.
(February 14-18, 21-24, 2022)
February 16, Performance Task 2: Write TWO (2) haikus regarding
2022 the changes in Philippine literature during the colonial 7 ______
period. 30 pts
February 23, Written Work 2. In the context of the lessons, Write
2022 TRUE if the statement is correct, FALSE if otherwise. 8 ______
15 pts

Written Work 2. Write TRUE if the statement is correct; FALSE if otherwise.

1. 5. 11.
2. 7. 12.
3. 8. 13.
4. 9. 14.
5. 10. 15.
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Performance 2. Write TWO (2) haikus regarding the changes in Philippine literature during
the colonial period

Prepared:
GENEVIEVE C. TUDLONG
DARIELLE A. APILAS
CHERYL JOVEN
Subject Teachers

Reviewed:
PIA D. DULIGAS
Asst. Principal/MT II

Noted:
MA. JOAN D. ANDAYAN
School Principal
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