21st Century Literature from the Philippines and

the World
Quarter 1 Module 1: Lesson 2
Dimensions of Literary Text

II. Pre-Test

Activity 1.
1. b
2. c
3. b
4. c
5. a
Activity 2.
1. Spanish Colonial
2. Spanish Colonial
3. American Colonial
4. Pre-Colonial
5. Contemporary

Activity 3.
This time can you identify at least one important point that you
have learned from each period by completing the table below.
 Periods of Philippine Literature
Pre-Colonial
Spanish Colonial
American Colonial
Japanese Occupation
Contemporary Period
Characteristics
-These dealt with various subjects including
love, war, legends, the memory of the
deceased, and war heroes.
- Classified into oral and written literature.
- Used of baybayin in writings.
- Printing overtook the oral tradition.
- Spanish become the medium of all literary
texts during that time.
-Public education was institutionalized in the
Philippines, with English serving the medium
of instruction.
- Birth of short stories and novels in the
Philippines.
- Tagalog writing was favored by the
Japanese military authority and writing in
English is prohibited.
-Filipino literature was given a break during
this period.
-Filipino writers used different symbolism and
allegories for their craft.
-The blooming of the Philippine literature in
the various languages continue especially
with the appearance of new publications after
Martial Law

Activity 4.
Fill in the vocabulary word cluster below. In the box on the left are
words that you will find in the poem on page 5. Identify the part of
speech and write down two (2) words that you associate with the
word. Finally use the word in a sentence
Dare The actor dared a new
Synonyms: Challenge, Defy,
Part of speech: Stump, Provoke, Taunt
interpretation of the classic
VERB role.
Synonyms: Appreciate, It was like travelling into a far
Behold
Apprehend, Assimilate, country, such as I had never
Part of speech: Comprehend, Catch, See, expected to behold, to lie
VERB Observed, View there for one night.
Vision Synonyms: Eyesight, Sight, He had a clear visions of
Part of speech: Imagination, Dream, what he wanted to do.
NOUN Fantasize
Activity 5.
Read the short poem below from Ivatans. Read it carefully and
answer the questions by writing your answers in a separate sheet
of paper.
1. Who is the speaker in the poem?
 The author itself is the speaker of the poem.
2. Who is being addressed in the poem?
 It can be addressed to the one’s he loved.
3. What situation is being anticipated by the narrator?

 The death or separation with loved ones.

4. What situation is being anticipated by the writer?

 He is assuming what he wanted to be when his life ends.

Activity 6.

Study the information below and perform the tasks that follow.
1. Choose one geographical information about the Ivatan that excites you to explore
and explain your excitement.
Interesting Information:

 One that is simpler, laidback, quiet, but definitely revitalizing. For a country that is
known for its tropical islands, Batanes’ rock formations, quaint lighthouses, and
wild horses that roam freely in vast pastureland make it a truly unique destination
for many people.

Reason:

 If I had an opportunity to travel to the northern part of the Philippines, I would

always choose Batanes. The said place has a unique type of geography that
makes it different from the rest of the Philippines and the whole world. It has
different scenery like different rock formations or beautiful hills and mountains.
Also, the place has different iconic spots like its towering lighthouses, honesty
shops, and antique houses. And above all, the thing that makes Batanes an
 iconic place is because of is its unwavering people and culture. A place that is full
of different stories and majestic beauty.

2. Do you agree with the Ivatan’s saying that “Nobody can steal your
knowledge” Express your idea in two sentences.
 Yes, I believe that our knowledge cannot be stolen by anyone according to what
Ivantan's said. We acquire our knowledge through our experience and people
have a different status in the world that makes us different and unique. You
cannot share knowledge because it is tied to your framework for understanding
the world. However, like with stories, you can show your framework of
understanding (visualization would be one way.) People can adapt their
framework of understanding by considering yours and so they will be able to
acquire more knowledge.

Activity 7.
This time, go back to the poem on page 4. Let’s practice
analyzing the linguistic dimension of the poem from the Ivatans
using the formalist perspective. Read the instructions and perform
the tasks.

1. For me, the role of a rhetorical question at the beginning is to add a dramatic effect to
the poem that makes it interesting to read.
2. The cross of San Felix symbolizes either cemetery or date.
3. The water symbolizes his memories of his life, he hesitated to drink the water to enable
himself to be remembered and not to be forgotten. The irony is that even if his loved
ones drank the water, their memories of him will not be fade but stay with them as long
as they can live.
4. Water symbolizes life while the cross of San Felix symbolizes death or cemetery.
5. The theme of the said poem is about the fear of being forgotten after one's death. He
wanted to remember by his loved ones so he said " bury me under your fingernails".
The line that supports this is line five to eleven.

Activity 8.
You have come a long way in going through analyzing the literary
selection. Now, let’s just have a recap of what you have learned
by answering the questions below.
1.What is a formalist approach? What does it look for in a literary text?

 Formalism refers to critical approaches that analyze, interpret, or evaluate the

inherent features of a text. These features include not only grammar and syntax
but also literary devices such as meter and figures of speech. The things that it
look for a literary text are the following:
-Language
-Structure
-Tone

2. What is the significance of the formalist approach in analyzing a literary text?

 The formalistic approach reduces the importance of a text’s historical,

biographical, and cultural context. It also reads literature as an independent work
of art rather than as a reflection of the author’s state of mind or as a
representation of a moment in history.

3. How does analyzing the literary text’s geographical, ethnical and linguistic
dimension help in appreciation of literary works?

 Analyzing the literary text’s geographical, ethnical, and linguistic dimensions

helps us in better understanding the culture and information of the origin of one's
literary text. There were words in some literary works that we couldn't understand
because the information or meaning about those words is only distinct in the said
place. There is some literary text composed of symbolism that we couldn't
understand because it doesn't reflect in our culture. That's why understanding
geographical and linguistic dimensions have a huge contribution to the
appreciation of literary works.

Activity 9.
This time, it is your task to analyze a poem from the 21st century
literature. This is not your typical poem, so carefully read the
poem and analyze it by following the steps in the formalist
approach.

Step 1. Note some details about the poem that made an impact on you while reading it.

1. I like the Conyo parts of the poem because I found it unique and interesting. It is
quite new to me because it is not the typical poem that you may read from
textbooks or the internet.

Step 2. Is the poem narrating a story?

 2. Yes, I believe that the poem still narrating a story despite it’s unusual format and
style.
Step 3. List down images, simile, metaphors or symbolism used in the poem that depict
geographic, ethnic and linguistic dimension of the poem.

GEOGRAPHIC ETHNIC LINGUISTIC

DIMENSION DIMENSION DIMENSION
Kolehiyala Dude
“When she says Pare
Mall talaga, that means Man
she’s lying” Tagalog
Fish balls
3.

Step 4. Who are the characters mentioned in the poem? List down the words that reveal
the character’s trait.

4. I think all of the character was male because of the usage of the words dude, man, guys,
and pare.

Step 5. What is the message being conveyed by the poem?

5. The CoNotations tells us how some of the Filipinos talk nowadays.

IV. Assessment
Activity 10.

1.c
2.d
3.c
4.c
5.d
Activity 11.
You would have noticed in the poem “Coñotation” how the words
dude, man, pare were repeated several times. Try to use these
words around your house. Take note of your family members’
reactions and how it made them feel. Write about the experience
in your journal.

 When I've tried to use those words in communicating with my family, they felt
weird and strange about my actions. It is very unusual for me to use those words
in our house because most of the time, I am surrounded by older people. I only
use those kinds of words when I'm surrounded by my friends or chatting with
people of the same age as mine. According to my family (when they hear me use
those words), they felt strange and thought that I'm going to be crazy. Thankfully,
it just a simple prank for them to enable me to evaluate. For me, using those
kinds of words is not appropriate for all types of communication specifically for
older people.