T2: Charting Our Own in Southeast Asia

Introduction

Southeast Asian Countries

The area where the Philippines belongs to, Southeast Asia (SEA), is rich with its own unique
culture and history. It consists of 11 countries, and because of its expansive geography, the countries
within SEA may be archipelagos, islands, or land masses.

The countries that make up SEA are Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia,
Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Brunei, and the new nation of East Timor (which was recently
separated from Indonesia). The religions in SEA vary, too. Islam may be the majority in countries such as
Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia; however, the Philippines and Vietnam have a predominantly Catholic
population. Other countries such as Thailand have Buddhism as well. This interesting mix of geography
and beliefs make SEA a very interesting area to belong in.

One of the most interesting things about Southeast Asia is its cultural diversity. There are at least
a thousand spoken languages in SEA alone. More than that, it is a melting pot of cultures. When the
colonizers came, Southeast Asians were open to the new practices that they offered. These were
oftentimes integrated in their own local cultures.

Instruction: Search a brief history of 5 Southeast Asian Countries.

A Brief Introduction to Formalism

One way to look at a literary selection is through the lenses of formalism, or Russian formalism,
as it was also called back in the early 20th century.

What is formalism? It is partly based on Ferdinand de Saussure’s idea of semiotics and how
signs and symbols may bring about a new meaning in a literary text. Formalism aims to look at the
medium in which literature is written. The idea is to focus on the form and technique
used in literature rather than its content, so that literature becomes an autonomous
form of art which may stand on its own―without its content.

Latiff Mohidin is a poet and a painter who was born in Seremban, Negeri
Sembilan, Malaysia. He has been known as a “Boy Wonder” since he was 11
because of the artistry of his works. He has attended schools under various
scholarships in Berlin, Germany; Paris, France; and New York, USA. He is
considered to be one of Malaysia’s most treasured living artists.

Instructions: Search the summary of “The Dragon Fish” story by Audrey Chin

Includes the following:

a. Background information of the author

b. Character and its role
c. Setting
 d. Theme
e. Plot
f. Symbolism
g. Moral
h. Quote/Punch line on the story

(Note: You can sort summary from all sites for more understanding, however, please site all
the references you used.)