American and
Graphic, among others.
Japanese Periods
Philippine Literature
during the
American Colonial
Period
• On April 11, 1899, an agreement
was signed by John Hay, the US
Secretary of State, after the
Spanish–American War. In this
agreement, Spain surrendered the
remaining Spanish empire, Cuba,
Puerto Rico, Guam, and the
Philippines to the United States, which
also involved a payment of 20 million
dollars to Spain.
• Education was first headed by
American soldiers. In 1901, around
600 teachers who arrived onboard the
ship USS Thomas replaced the
soldiers. These teachers were called
•
Thomasites.
Public education was made free, and
the medium of instruction used was
English. This created a new educated
middle class in the country. Alongside
the use of English in education,
Filipinos also learned American
,
models of thought culture, and ways
of life.
• Other newspapers and magazines
helped boost the use of the English
language in the Philippines. Some of
these were the Manila Times, Manila
Daily Bulletin, Cable News, the
Independent, Philippines Free Press,
Philippine Review, the Philippine
Herald, the Manila Tribune, and
• Famous short stories in English
emerged like “Dead Stars” by Paz
Marquez-Benitez and“Footnote to
Youth” by José Garcia Villa. These
short stories showcased the writers’
distinct styles that were not like the
styles used by American writers.
Dead Stars is a short story of an over thirty years
old bachelor, Alfredo Salazar who was about to
get married to his fiancée, Esperanza. His love
and passion for his fiancé started getting fade as
he was attracted to another woman named
Julia Salas. As Alfredo knew that his family
will disapprove his desire of having another
woman, he unwantedly married with
Esperanza and started his own family. Later,
after eight years, Alfredo went on a
business trip to Julia’s place. In his visit to
Julia, to his surprise, he recognized that he
no more feel attracted to her anymore. He
compared his love for her as dead stars, his
memory of a long way to get a girl he
thought he loved.
• Filipino Author
during the American
Colonization: Aurelio
Tolentino
• One of the prolific writers during the
American colonial period was Aurelio Tolentino
(October 13, 1867–July 5, 1915).
« Tolentino obtained a bachelor of arts
degree at Colegio de San Juan de Letran
and took up law at the University of Santo
Tomas. He stopped schooling when his
father died.
« He helped in the printing and distribution
of the newspaper La Solidaridad.
« He became known as the Father of
Tagalog Drama for his play Kahapon,
Ngayon, at Bukas.
« He also founded El Parnaso Filipino, a
school that promotes Tagalog literature
Philippine Literature
during the Japanese
Occupation
 During World War II, the Philippines
was occupied by the Japanese from
1941 to 1945. The occupation of the
Philippines began when Japan
bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on
December 8, 1941.
 During the war between Japan and
the United States, President Manuel L.
Quezon and Douglas MacArthur fled
to the United States. But before
leaving, MacArthur left a promise to
the Filipino people, “I shall return,”
which is popular up to this day.
Douglas MacArthur
came back to Leyte in 1944
 The Fall of Bataan and the
Death March, which killed
thousands of Filipinos and
Americans, was the result of
the final major battles of the
Japanese invasion. Japanese
rule in the Philippines came
after they subdued all
Philippine and American
military forces in the country.
 English plays during this period were
translated into Filipino or the
vernacular. Plays were also one of the
more popular forms of entertainment
because the Japanese banned
American films.
 During the Japanese colonial period,
there was only a limited number of
Filipino literature in English that was
written and published. However,
Philippine literature in general
. flourished in this period.
 Without Seeing the Dawn, a novel
written by Stevan Javellana, was
published in the United States in 1947.
It depicts the experiences of Filipinos
during the war between the
Americans and the Japanese. This
novel was later on adapted into a
movie entitled Santiago!, directed by
Lino Brocka, which stars Fernando Poe
Jr. and Hilda Coronel.
 Among the most gruesome stories
during the war were those about
comfort women, and among them was
María Rosa Henson or Nana Rosa as
she was fondly known. She wrote an
autobiography, Comfort Woman: Slave
of Destiny, which was published in
1996.
 Some famous Filipino writers who
lived during this period were
Bienvenido Santos, Manuel Arguilla,
Marcelo Agana, Jr., and Nick Joaquin.
Filipino Author during the
Japanese Occupation:
Manuel Arguilla
 One of the famous Filipino writers in
English during the commonwealth
period and the Japanese occupation
was Manuel Arguilla.
 He was born in Bauang, La Union on
June 17, 1911.
 He finished an education degree in
1933 at the University of the
 Philippines and became a member
and president of the UP Writers Club
and editor of the Literary Apprentice.
 His short story “How My Brother Leon
Brought Home a Wife” won first prize
in the Commonwealth Literary Contest
in 1940.
 In 1944, Arguilla was one of the
guerillas who were beheaded by the
Japanese government after a mock
trial. His body, along with those of
other guerilla members who were
executed that time, was no longer
found.

 Have you heard about a

provinciano whose girlfriend is
from the city? How do you think
will this man present his loved
one to his family in a barrio
whose culture and traditions are
different from hers?
 How will theman’s family react
to this situation?