LESSON 2 History of Philippine Literature

MAKE CONNECTIONS
If you could go back in time, what time and place would you visit? Why?

If I would given a chance I would go back to the time where we're still complete and happy. I
want us to go back to Leyte where my grandparents actually lived because in that way my
grandparents will be happy and I want to bond with them more and make more memories with
them.

Literary Periods: Describe the kind of literature produced in precolonial times. Identify also the
contributions of the Negritoes, Indons, and Malays to the literary heritage of the Philippines.
Precolonial literature focuses on oral traditions. Epic poems, folk tales, oral genealogies,
riddles, wise sayings, rhymes, and other forms of storytelling are examples. These texts were
frequently metaphysical or cosmic in nature, or they were moral tales.

• Malays (Malay: Orang Melayu, Jawi: ) are an Archipelago ethnic group native to eastern
Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula, and coastal Borneo, as well as the smaller islands that lie
between these sites, forming the Malay world. The baybayin, a syllabary of seventeen symbols,
was created by Malays.

• The term Negrito (/nɪˈɡriːtoʊ/) refers to several diverse ethnic groups who inhabit isolated
parts of Maritime Southeast Asia and the Andaman Islands. Negritos contributed songs and
superstitious beliefs.

• Folktales, epics, paganistic beliefs, and legends were among the literary genres or styles
brought by the Indons.
USE READING SKILLS: Analyze Sequence of Events

1. Review the Sequence Map you created. Briefly retell the sequence of events in
writing as they occur.

It starts with Bartering of goods komedya followed by Spanish Genres which combine song and
action "Zarzuela" and Poetic drama or moro moro the earliest known form of organized theater
in the Philippines. Next is The Three Priest were executed In February 17, 1872, Fathers
Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jocinto Zamora (Gomburza), all Filipino priest, was executed
by the Spanish colonizers on charges of subversion. Fourth one is The Katipunan was formed
with its paper kalayaan which issued its first and last printing in March 1896. Followed by The
World War || caused by scarcity of paper. World War II caused several severe hunger crises
which led to many casualties. Followed by when Rizal was Captured and exiled in Dapitan on
17th of July 1892. Next is Bataan Death March. The Bataan Death March was the forcible
transfer by the Imperial Japanese Army of 60,000–80,000 American and Filipino prisoners of
war from Saysain Point, Bagac, Bataan and Mariveles to Camp O'Donnell, Capas, Tarlac, via San
Fernando, Pampanga, where the prisoners were forced to march until they died. Lastly is the
Martial Law. President Ferdinand E. Marcos signed Proclamation No. 1081 on September 21,
1972, placing the Philippines under Martial Law.

2. After looking into the events that shaped Philippine literary landscape, we may find that
we have become a society of various or heterogeneous traditions. Is this an advantage or
disadvantage? Explain your answer.

The pre-colonial period, the Spanish colonial era, the American colonial era, and the modern
period are all literary periods in Philippine literature. The Philippines' literature has changed in
tandem with the country's shifting history.