GEC 13

LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

Lecture 4
Poetry in the Philippines

Overview:
Riddles or bugtong is a fun game for children because they are able to use
their imagination while enjoying the game. But, did you know that before bugtong
was part of many important social gatherings in the Philippines? In this lecture,
you will be able to know riddles and other poems as well as background of poetry
in the Philippines.

Objectives:
By the end of the lecture, students should have:

1. Understood the background of poetry in the Philippines

2. Realized the impact of history in Philippine poetry
3. Identified the different kinds of Philippine poetry
4. Learned how to analyze a poem

Scope of Lecture 4:

4. Poetry in the Philippines

5. Poetry Analysis
6. Poems for Reading and Analysis

Poetry in the Philippines

In the discussion of Del Castillo and Medina (2002) in Philippine Literature

From Ancient Times to the Present “Ancient poetry is an extension of earlier
cultures of Southeast Asia, the ancestral home of most Filipino Malays” Epics,
folk songs, epigrams, riddles, chants, maxims, proverbs or sayings were the
common forms of poems during the pre - Spanish period. These are the epics
which are still read and enjoyed; Bidasari, Biag ni Lam Ang, Maragtas, Haraya,
Lagda, Hari sa Bukid, Kumintang, Parang Sabir, Dagoy at Sudsod, Tatuaan,
Indarapata at Sulayman, Bantugan, Daramoke-A-Baybay. These folk epics are
described by Manuel in Lumbera and Lumberas’ (2005) discussion as “narratives
of sustained length, based on oral tradition, revolving around supernatural events
or heroic deeds, in the form of verse, which is either chanted or sung and with a
certain seriousness of purpose, embodying or validating the beliefs, customs,
ideals or life – values of the people”
According to Maramba (2006) “There are around 28 epics known or
identified. Most of the remaining epics have been found among the peoples
“untouched” by accularative processes i.e., indigenous and ethnic groups in the
Mountain Province and in Mindanao and among Muslims. The fewest are found
among the Christian peoples. What most probably happened in regions
Christianized by the Spaniards was that the native epics were displaced and
replaced by the Pasyon (sometimes and erroneously called the Tagalog epic) and
the metrical romances of European descent (also mistakenly referred to as
“epics”) Special mention must be made of Belgian Fathers Francisco Billiet and
Francis Lambrecht who have played great parts in the preservation of the
Mountain Province; no less of Father Francisco Demetrio S.J., E. Arsenio Manuel,
F. Landa Jocano, Sister Delia Coronel and others who have all done extensive
Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 39
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department
 GEC 13
LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

research on our epics and folklore”

It is said that aside from epics, folk songs are also one of the oldest forms of
literature in the Philippines. Kahayon and Zulueta (2009) mentioned that the folk
songs in the pre – Spanish period were composed of 12 syllables. The examples of
these folk songs were; Kundiman (awit ng pag – ibig), Kumintang o Tagumpay (war
song), Ang Dalit o Imno (song to the god of the Visayans), Ang Oyayi (lullaby), Diana
(wedding song), Soliraning (song of the labourer), Talindaw (boatman’s song), etc.
The religious and political nature of Filipinos can be traced to different folk songs.
Del Castillo and Medina (2002) explained that “songs and
verses filled early religious practices: to express devotion, to atone for sins, to
minister to the sick, and to bury the dead…In like manner, verses aired love for
and loyalty to the barangay and its rulers. These were supplemented by accounts
of battle (kudanag), songs of victory (tagumpay, talindad), songs of hanging a
captured enemy (sambotan, tagulaylay) and songs expressive of manliness.”
Similar to folk songs, epigrams, riddles, chants, maxims, proverbs or
saying were being recited to different occasions. For instance riddles, they were
used in weddings, feasts, baptisms, mournings and other special gatherings.
Chants were used in witchcraft or enchantment.
Epigrams, riddles, maxims, proverbs or sayings are naturally witty.
Epigrams are like allegories or parables that give moral and philosophical
lessons. In creating epigrams there is no standard format but it is commonly
composed of two lines. Unlike in riddles and maxims, they follow versification,
syllabication and rhyme patterns. The former is made up of one or more
measured lines with rhyme and consists of four to twelve syllables. While the
latter is in rhyming couplets with verses of 5, 6 or 8 syllables, each line have the
same number of syllables.
Philippine Literature during Spanish period still continued to flourish.
Spaniards brought civilization in the Philippines including religion and education.
Some Filipinos were able to finish their formal education because there were
already schools which were built by the Spaniards. This development is can be
seen on the Spanish influences on Philippine literature.
In poetry, folk songs still existed during this period but it became more
widespread. Kahayon and Zulueta (2009) said that each region had its national
song from lowlands to mountains of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The
examples these folk songs were Leron, Leron Sinta (Tagalog), Pamulinawen
(Iloko), Dandansoy (Bisaya), Sarong Banggi (Bicol), Atin Cu Pung Singsing
(Kapampangan), Kalusan (Batanes), Song of My Seven Lovers (Lanao), Mutya
Ko Paalam (Jolo), Sa Bundok (Kalinga), Pagbati (Tinguian) etc. Spaniards even
noticed the love of early Filipinos in singing. Diego Lopez Povedano in 1578 once
said, in his observation about early Filipinos, that “They (people of Negros) have
songs which tell about the lives of their warriors and ancestors, recount the life of
their great voyages” It was said that even Antonio Pigafetta, Magellan’s
logkeeper, also mentioned that Filipinos love to sing while singing in the Visayan
seas. Early Filipinos use musical instruments to accompany their songs. They
used metal bells and gongs. There were even times where they also used native
musical instruments like kudyapi or kulintang.
Aside from folk songs, metrical tales called Awit and Corrido were also
loved by early Filipinos. In Tagalog Awit and Corrido are both called buhay. But
most of the time Awit and Corrido were interchangeably used because of vague
distinction on their characteristics. Awit is in dodecasyllabic verse while Corrido is
in octosyllabic verse. The latter is referred to narration while the former is
referred to chanting. In terms of contents, Corridos were composed of legends or
stories from European countries like Spain, France, Italy and Greece. Awit is
purely from writers’ imagination.
The known writers of buhay are Francisco Balagtas, Jose de la Cruz,
Roman de los Angeles and Pascual Poblete, Pedro Aranas, D.V. Buenaventura,
Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 40
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department
 GEC 13
LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

Esteban Castillo, SImplicio Flores, Marcelo P. Garcia, Cleto H. Ignacio, Nemesio

Magboo, Florendo Rivera, Angel de los Reyes, Padre Joaquin Tuazon and
Juanito Castillo.
“Over to hundred and fifty names found in the pages of the buhays. Most of the heroes
and heroines belong to the nobility, some to the middle class; and others to the underprivileged
few are Muslims Filipinos. Some are shepherds; others orphans and abandoned children. Some
tales deal with the famous bird, locally known as the Ibong Adarna, and of the fabulous Kay
Calabasa. The most adventurous and daring heroes of these metrical tales were the princes,
followed by the kings, then the dukes and the dons; and finally by the brave palace
captains…The princesses on the other hand, were the universal objects of spirited adventure,
giving occasion to many blood-curdling combats. ”
Del Castillo and Medina (2002)

Here are the famous males characters in buhays namely; Bernardo Carpio,
Doce Pares, Siete Infantes de Lara, Don Juan Tinoso, Don Juan Tenorio, Don
Gonzalo de Cordova, Duque Almanzor, King Asuero, Principe Alfredo, King
Adrian, Don Juan del Prado, Don Jose Flores, Principe Ludovico, Principe
Orentis, Principe Reynaldo, Don Rodrigo de Vivar, Conde Serrano, Conde
Urbano, Duke Crisauro and many others. The famous female characters in
buhays are Dona Maria of Jerusalem, Queen Tenoga of Antioch, Princess
Armolenda of Bohemia, Queen Cleotilde, Queen Elvira, Princess Aurea, Princess
Pantinople, Dona Inez, Dona Beatriz, Princess Gloriana, Dona Rogeria of
Barcelona, Princess Rogeria of Turkey, Princess Zuloma of Granada, Princess
Virginia of Turkey, Infanta Florcepida, Dona Maria of Asturias, Dona Maria of
Murcia, Dona Blanca of Valencia, Princess Isberta of Berbana, Dona Maria of
Austria, Dona Maria of Alexandria, Dona Maria of Cartage, Queen Telestres of
Temesita, Princess Florisita of Ireland, Queen Ginebra, Princess Rosamunda,
Princess Teofila of Armenia and many others.
Aside from buhays and folk songs, poetry during the Spanish period was
also about patriotism and nationalism. This period was called “The Period of
Enlightenment”. It was from 1872 to 1898. The writers during the Period of
Enlightenment were led by Jose Rizal, Marcelo H. Del Pilar and Graciano Lopez
Jaena, the pioneers of the Propaganda Movement. Jose Rizal wrote A La
Juventud Filipina (To the Filipino Youth), Mi Piden Versos (You Asked Me for
Verses), A Las Flores De Heidelberg (To the Flowers of Heidelberg), Mi Ultimo
Adios (My Last Farewell), etc. Marcelo H. Del Pilar also wrote poems like
Dasalan at Tocsohan(Prayers and Jokes), Sagot sa Espanya sa Hibik ng
Pilipinas(Answer to Spain on the Plea of the Filipinos), Dupluhan, Dalit, Mga
Bugtong(A poetical contest in narrative sequence, psalms, riddles), etc.
The other propagandists during the Period of Enlightenment were Antonio
Luna, Mariano Ponce, Pedro Paterno, Jose Ma. Panginiban, Andres Bonifacio,
Emilio Jacinto, Apolinario Mabini, Jose Palma, etc.
After the Period of Enlightenment, it was followed by The American
Regime. It was from 1898 to 1941. This period was divided into three kinds;
Literature in Spanish, Filipino Literature and Philippine Literature in English.
Spanish and Tagalog were the dominating languages used by the Filipino writers
during early years of American period. It was only in 1910 when English was
used as literary language. Writers who write in Spanish were mostly about
nationalism in recognition to Rizal and other heroes’ contribution for Philippines’
liberty. These writers were Cecilio Apostol (A Rizal), Fernando Ma. Guerrero
(Invocacion A Rizal), Jesus ‘Batikuling’ Balmori, Claro M. Recto (Ante El Martir!),
Adelina Guerrea (El Nido), etc.
For Filipino Literature, Balmaceda in Kahayon and Zulueta classified three
kinds of Tagalog poets. They were Poets of the Heart (Makata sa Puso), Poets of
Life (Makata ng Buhay), and Poets of the Stage (Makata ng Tanghalan). Filipino
Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 41
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department
 GEC 13
LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

poetry existed for a century and four decades though it was brief it still marked in
the hearts and minds of the Filipinos.
Philippine Literature in English is divided into three periods. They were
Period Re-orientation (1898 - 1910), The Period of Imitation (1910 – 1925), and
The Period of Self-Discovery (1925-1941). Since English language was still new
to Filipino writers, it was said that not much of literary worth was produced during
the Period of Re-orientation. Writers who write in English were still trying to
master how to write in English. For poetry, Sursum Corda by Justo Juliano was
the first published poems written in English. Then it was followed by Jan F.
Salazar’s My Mother and Air Castles in 1909. Also, on the same year, Proceso
Sebastian wrote his poem To My Lady in Laoag. The Period of Imitation is
undoubtedly the period of imitation. Writers during this time patterned their style
to some American writers like Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, Ralph
Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, John Irving, etc. The pioneers of English
poetry were Victoriano Yamson, Vidal A. Tan, Maximo Kalaw, Francisco M.
Africa, Jose M. Hernandez, etc. The last period is a contrast of the second
period. The writers had already acquired mastery and competence in the English
language. The poets during this period were Marcelo de Gracia Concepcion,
Jose Garcia Villa, Angela Manalang Gloria, Abelardo Subido, Trinidad Tarrosa
Subido, and Rafael Zulueta da Costa. It was said that they did not only write love
poems but they also included other possible themes like religious poems. Jose
Garcia Villa was one of those poets who tried to create unconventional poems in
terms of forms and themes.
The American Regime was followed by The Japanese Period (1941-
1945). After acquiring mastery in writing poems in English, poets were forced to
write in Filipino. Filipino poetry during this period was about nationalism, religion
and arts. The three types of poems arose during this period were; Haiku, Tanaga
and Karaniwang Anyo. Haiku and Tanaga were both lyric poems. Haiku is
composed of three lines with five syllables on the first and third lines and seven
syllables on the second line. Tanaga is patterned to Haiku, it has also 17
syllables but has measure and rhyme.
English language does not sleep for long. When Americans came back in
1945, Philippine Literature in English was again back in action. There were more
and more poems were written and published including the following works; Heart
of the Islands by Manuel Viray, Philippines Cross Section by Maximo Ramos and
Florentino Valeros, Prose and Poems by Nick Joaquin, etc. Filipinos continue to
write and to love literature.
Aside from English there were still poets who write in Tagalog. Most of the
subjects and themes were about Japanese cruelties and its effects to the Filipino
people. It was said that “The people’s (Filipinos)love for listening to poetic jousts
increased more than before and people started to flock to places to hear poetic
debates”
Poetry in the Philippines continues to flourish. It becomes a vehicle for
Filipino youths to be heard and be heard. Poetry played important role in the
Period of Activism from 1970 – 1972. Youth led the country to cry for freedom
because of the oppression during the Martial Law in 1972. It was a total literary
revolution not only on poetry but also on the other genres of literature. Most of
the themes during this period were pertained to Marcos administration. Jose F.
Lacaba in Kahayon and Zulueta’s book described this period as “The first quarter
of the year 1970…It was a glorious time, a time of terror and of wrath, but also a
time of hope. The signs of change were on the horizon. A powerful storm whose
inexorable advance on earthly force could stop, and the name of the storm was
history..”
After a decade of military rule, there were already some changes in the
lives of the Filipino people. But it still cannot be denied that there were still
suppression and oppression. The common form of poetry during the Third
Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 42
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department
 GEC 13
LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

Republic were songs. It was the period of realism. Most of the songs dealt with
grief, poverty, freedom, etc. because the whole nation grieved over Ninoy
Aquino’s death. There was even a revival of Jose Corazon de Jesus and C. de
Guzman’s Bayan Ko just to show the love for country and fellowmen. It was sung
and revived by Freddie Aguilar. This way of writing stays until 1986. The song
Bayan Ko remained to be the favourite song of the Filipinos.
After those atrocious chapters of Philippine history, lives of the Filipinos
continue to go on similar to its literature. Through the years, poetry in Philippines
managed to keep up despite all the hurdles. Filipinos still aspire and inspire to
write meaningful and artistic poems.

Poetry Analysis

The lecture for poetry analysis was adapted from the discussion of Gomez,
How to Read a Poem cited by Ang (2012). Then, it will be followed with a sample
reading and analysis of the poem entitled The Portrait written by Stanley Kunitz.
The poem was not from Philippine poetry because sole purpose of its use in this
discussion was to show how to read and analyze a simple lyric poem.

HOW TO READ A POEM

1. Read the poem aloud

Always do this so you can hear the sound of the poem and get a sensory
feel of it. The net effect, too, is that you hone your auditory imagination.
2. When you read a poem, start with just the text:
a. On the most literal level of meaning, what’s going on or what is the poem
about?
b. To read the text in other ways, or to go beyond the literal meaning,
examine:
⚫ Images - to examine images, imagine them. What do they look, taste, feel
sound or smell like?
⚫ Metaphors - are generally a matter of comparing on thing to
another. ⚫ Tone of voice - comes from choice of words diction, syntax,
rhythm.
⚫ Structure of the poem - which mark shifts in thought, the way paragraphs do
and stanzas how lines are cut, every line is a unit of meaning, in free verse.
There are two basic line cuts : end-stopped where lines are cut at its natural
syntactical cut or where there is punctuation.
⚫ Rhyme and meter
⚫ Choice of words or diction

3. Other points of words or diction

Apparently in poetry, the syllable, word, line and stanza constitute units
of meaning.
Punctuation and line cuts (whether punctuated or not) imply pauses of
various lengths. A period is the longest pause and gives a line a sense of
finality, a comma is shorter, etc. When you look the line, remember that the
first and last words have the greatest weight, i.e. there is an emphasis.

Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 43

Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department
 GEC 13
LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

SAMPLE READING

The Portrait
By: Stanley Kunitz

My mother never forgive my father

for killing himself,
especially at such an awkward time
and in a public park,
That spring
When I was waiting to be born.
She locked his name
in her deepest cabinet
and would not let him out,
though I could hear him thumping.
When I came down from the attic
with the pastel portrait in my hand
of a ling-lipped stranger
with a brave mustache
and deep brown level eyes,
she ripped it into shreds
without a single word
and slapped me hard
In my sixty-fourth year
I can feel my cheek
still burning.
Literal Level Notes:
⚫ Basic Situation
A family
3 people
Father, mother, child
Father killed himself in public before the child was born.
“mother” never forgives “father”
Child senses: “mother” still thinks about and feels for “father”
and “mother” slaps child and tears photo
Years later, child still remembers the slapping

⚫ Persona
Speaker in the poem is the child
Sex or gender of the child is not explicit in the text

⚫ No specific setting or time or atmosphere, except the narrative of the poem

takes place in some country where there are focus seasons (spring)

Beyond the Literal Level

A. Suicide
⚫ Father commits suicide and no explicit reason is given in the text.
⚫ Studies on the suicides show that in most cases, the person who kills himself
or herself leaves no clear no reason for doing so; the effect on others is a
complex of emotions including guilt and anger and grief over sudden,
unexpected death.
⚫ Suicide had been said to be the most painful thing one person can do to
another because it is complete and utter rejection of other’s love and
personhood.
Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 44
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department
 GEC 13
LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

B. There are three relationships implied in the text:

Husband and wife
Father and child
Mother and child

1. Father and child

⚫ Child grows without a father; longing is implied int child’s
scrounging around in the attic and retrieving photo.
⚫ The child looking in the attic (the highest, most remote and
unused part of the house)

2. Husband and wife

My mother never forgave my father
For killing himself

⚫ Mother never quite gets over the whole thing

⚫ Consider the enjambed line: the line ends with “father” , not only
do the two lines talk about how the mother never quite gets over
the father’s suicide, but also, because the lines with “father” the
first line implies that relationship between mother and father -
that mother never forgave the father, period. There is a hint here
about the character of the mother being “unforgiving” or in all
probability difficult to live with, not necessarily meaning that she
was the cause of the father’s suicide, but that their relationship
wasn’t exactly the happiest one.

3. Mother and child

⚫ Mother’s mode of communicating with child-well, she doesn’t
really, she keeps her feeling to herself, and when she sees the
child with the photo, she reacts violently and without explanation:
child knows father lingers in mother’s heart:
She locked his name
In the deepest cabinet
And would not let him out,
Though I could hear him thumping
⚫ Years after the slapping (when the child id close to retirement at
64), the relationships and even itself remain unresolved in the
child.

C. Other Formal Elements

1. Tone of Voice - detached, questioning tone, with some emphasis on the

mother slapping the child - note the line cuts:
She ripped it into shreds
Without a single word
And slapped me hard

The above lines are cuts at the natural syntactical moments (had above
been a sentence). These syntactical moments are also moments in the event
itself: she rips the photo, says nothing, slaps the child. The event is extremely
memorable. The moments of pause/emphasis/weight within the poem.

Despite the seeming detachment, the child has some unresolved ill
feelings toward the mother, perhaps even blaming the mother for the father’s
suicide. We see this especially because the description of the man in the
portrait is flattering one:
Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 45
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department
 GEC 13
LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

With a brave mustache

And deep brown level eyes

2. Dominant metaphor

The main metaphor, we take from the title, the portrait, the portrait is a
photo of a person, usually a photo that attempts to capture the character of
the person. Of course, photos are flat icons of a person, place, thing,
event,etc. They don’t capture the essence of the person, place, event, etc.
They don’t capture emotional content.
So, what you have in the photo is both presence ( in the form of icon) and
absence (in the lack of essence or emotional content). The photo is a
metaphor for the father’s continuing “presence” in their lives in the form of
remnants and memories, and “absence” because he is literally dead.

Photos have the power to trigger memory. This is why the mother slaps
the child. But in the child’s case, there is no memory to trigger. The slapping
becomes the child’s key family memory (family meaning “father, mother,
child”), and this is why the whole thing remains unresolved in the child.

It is important to note that in analyzing poems, readers should also

consider other elements in poetry like theme, symbol, and other literary
devices. They can also include the background of the author. However,
Gomez (nd) said that never take the author’s gender or sex of the poem’s
persona; never take the author as the main character of the person/speaker of
the poem even if the author uses the first person point of view. The only
exception to this way of reading is when the poem belong to the “confessional
poetry” genre - like the poems of Path and Sexton, for example.
Paraphrasing in prose translation each verse in order to get the literal
meaning is also helpful in getting the deeper meaning of the poem.

Example:

Original poem “All Things Can Tempt Me”
by W. B. Yeats
All things can tempt me from this craft of verse:
One time it was a woman’s face, or worse—
The seeming needs of my fool-driven land;
Now nothing but comes readier to the hand
Than this accustomed toil…
A paraphrased version of “All Things Can
Tempt Me” by W. B. Yeats
Anything can distract me from writing poetry
Once I was distracted by a woman’s face, but I
was even more distracted
By the requirements of my country which is
governed by idiots.
At this point in my life, I find any task easier
Then the work, I’m used to doing

Source: http://www.paraphraseexample.org/one-reasonable-online-paraphrasing-service/example-of-paraphrasing-a-poem/

Furthermore, Queddeng (2013) listed the following for the content of written
poetry analysis.
1. Definition/discussion of the classification
2. Background of the author
3. Oral reading
4. Paraphrase
5. Interpretation
6. Imagery (illustration or description)
Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 46
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department
 GEC 13
LITERATURE OF THE PHILIPPINES

7. Mood
8. Rhythm, foot, meter
9. Rhyme/stanzaic form
10. Subject matter
11. Theme
12. Tradition
13. Literary devices

Lastly, readers can refer to various literary theories to support their analysis
and justify their criticism.

Maria Gloria R. Beco-Nada,MA 47

Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
Languages, Literature and Humanities Department