Writing a Close Analysis and Critical Interpretation of Literary Texts and Doing an Adaption of These

Require From the Learner

Precolonial Literature

 The precolonial literature includes all literature produced before the Spanish colonization like
chants, proverbs, songs, and folk narratives.
 These were all passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth.
 Philippine folk narratives are varied and distinct.
 They depict the people’s livelihood, customs, and traditions.

1. Folktale – This is a characteristically anonymous, timeless, and placeless tale circulated orally
among a people. Hal. Kuwentong Milagro ni Apung Bastian – Pintakasi ng Kabisera ng Tarlak.
2. Fable – This features animal characters or inanimate objects that behave like people. Hal. The
Monkey and the Crocodile – (A Tagalog Fable).
3. Legend – This is presented as history but is unlikely to be true. Hal. Alamat ng Arayat.
4. Myth – This is told to explain a belief, a practice, or a natural phenomenon. Hal. Si Malakas at si
Maganda (A Tagalog Myth).
5. Epic – This narrative poem Celebrates the adventures and achievements of a hero. Hal. Biag ni
Lam-Ang – Pedro Bukaneg.

Philippine Literature during Spanish Regime

 The most evident influence of Spanish regime in Philippine literature is our spiritual belief.
 Spanish taught Filipinos different Christian gospels using native language.
 Eventually, natives became fluent in Spanish and they were called ladinos. Christianity was
introduced.
 Today, influence of Spanish is still evident in modern days.
 The annual Pabasa/Pasyon of Catholics an example.
 It focuses on his Jesus’ Passion, Death, and Resurrection.
 The indigenous form of the Pasyon was first written down by Gaspar Aquino de Belén in “Ang
Mahal na Pasión ni Jesu Christong Panginoon Natin na Tola” (“The Sacred Passion of Jesus Christ
Our Lord that is a Poem”), written in 1703 and approved in 1704.
 Philippine Literature during the Spanish occupation was mostly influenced by Christianity as well
as the European ideals of liberty and freedom through trade.
 Filipino writers either wrote in Spanish or in their own tongue or both.

Famous Filipino Writers during Spanish Regime

 Native literature continued.

 Though the Spaniards destroyed the written literature in their effort to replace it with their own,
the oral tradition survived and flourished in areas beyond the reach of the Spaniards.
 Below are brief biographical notes of Filipino writers whose writings became contributed to the
rich Philippine literature.
1. Francisco Baltazar (1788- 1862), the master of traditional Tagalog poetry, became well-known
for his work Florante at Laura (1838- 1861), the most famous metrical romance of the country.
2. Pedro Paterno (1857-1911) wrote Sampaguitas y poesias varias (1880), the first poetry collection
in Spanish by a Filipino; and the novel in Spanish Ninay (1885), considered to be the first Filipino
novel.
3. Jose Rizal (1861-1896), a prominent ilustrado and the country’s national hero, is famous for the
novels Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.
• These novels portray the corruption and abuse of the Spanish officials and the clergy.
4. Andres Bonifacio (1863- 1897), the founder of the Katipunan, wrote the poem "Pag-ibig sa
Tinubuang Lupa."
• This poem appeared in the Kalayaan, the official newspaper of the Katipunan, in March 1896.
5. Leona Florentino (1849-1884), known as the "mother of Philippine women's literature," was a
poet in both Ilocano and Spanish.
• Twenty of her poems were preserved and exhibited in Europe.
• The poems were included in the Encyclopedia International des Oeuvres des Femme in 1889.

Philippine Literature during American Regime

  The production of literary works in English is the direct result of the American colonization of the
Philippines.
 The first collection of poetry in English is Filipino Poetry (1924), edited by Rodolfo Dato.
 The short story “Dead Stars” (1925) by Paz Marquez Benitez is considered as the first Filipino
modern short story in English.
 A Child of Sorrow (1921) by Zoilo M. Galang is the first Filipino novel in English.
 The novel His Native Soil (1940) by Juan C. Laya won first prize in the First Commonwealth
Literary Awards in 1940.
 Filipino writers in English during the apprenticeship period (1900-1930) imitated American
writing.
 The poet Fernando Maramag writes in the Romantic tradition in his sonnet "Moonlight on
Manila Bay" (1912).
 Filipino fictionists copied Sherwood Anderson, William Saroyan, and Ernest Hemingway.
 Jose Garcia Villa used the Anderson pattern.
 Manuel Arguilla and N. V. M. Gonzalez were influenced by Anderson and Hemingway.
 Francisco Arcellana was influenced by Saroyan.

Famous Filipino Writers during American Regime

1. Paz Marquez Benitez

 Biography: (3 March 1894-10 November 1983) was a Filipina short-story writer,
educator and editor.
 Her career as a woman educator as well as her contributions as a writer are seen as an
important step within the advancement of woman in professional careers as well as in
the development of Philippine literature.
 Literary Works: Dead Stars (1925), A Night in the Hills (1925)
2. Zoilo M. Galang
 Biography: (July 27, 1895 – 1959) was a Filipino writer from Pampanga.
 He is credited as one of the pioneering Filipino writers who worked with the English
language.
 He is the author of the first Philippine novel written in the English language, A Child of
Sorrow, published in 1921.
 Literary Works: A Child of Sorrow (1921) – first Philippine novel in English, Tales of the
Philippines (1921) first volume of Philippine legends and folk tales written in English, Life
and Success (1921) – first volume of Philippine essays in English, The Box of Ashes and
Other Stories (1924) – first volume of Philippine short stories in English.
3. Juan C. Laya
 Biography: a novelist born in San Manuel, Pangasinan on July 12, 1911.
 His parents were Telesforo Laya and Alejandra Cabreros.
 He became the first school principal of Manila North High School now Arellano High
School.
 Died on August 03, 1952 in Bataan, Philippines due to automobile accident.
 He became a superintendent of schools.
 Literary Works: A Humiliation of His Children (1931), Out of Storm (1939), His Native Soil
(1940).
4. Fernando Maramag
 Biography: was born on January 21, 1893 in Ilagan, Isabela .
 He worked as teacher at the Instituto de Manila, which later became the University of
Manila.
 He was also writer and editor at several magazines, including Rising Philippines, Citizen,
Philippine National Weekly, Philippines Herald, and The Tribune.
 He also served in the Publication Division of the Department of Justice, and then
transferred to the office of the President of the Senate under Manuel L. Quezon.
 He passed away on October 23, 1936.
 Literary Works: Cagayanon Labor Song, A Translation of an Orphan’s Song, Cagayano
Peasant Song, To a Youth, The Aetheist, Moonlight on Manila Bay.
5. Jose Garcia Villa
 Biography: Jose Garcia Villa was a Filipino literary critic, poet, painter, and short story
writer.
  He was born on August 5, 1908 in Manila.
 He gained both local and international recognition for his works.
 He was named as the National Artist for Literature in 1973, and he was also a recipient
of the Guggenheim Fellowship.
 During his college years, he wrote Man Songs, a collection of controversial poems that
was considered too bold by the University of the Philippines and became the ground for
his suspension from the said institution.
 Some of his well-known literary works are “Mir-i-nisa” (won in the Philippines Free Press
in 1929), and “Footnote to Youth” (published in 1933).
 Literary Works: Man Songs, Mir-i-nisa, Footnote to Youth, Comma Poems, Doveglion,
First a Poem Must be Magical
6. Manuel E. Arguilla
 Biography: Nagrebcan, Bauang, June 17, 1911 - beheaded, Manila Chinese Cemetery,
August 30, 1944) was an Ilokano writer in English, patriot, and martyr.
 He married Lydia Villanueva, another talented writer in English, and they lived in Ermita,
Manila.
 Here, F. Sionil José, another seminal Filipino writer in English, recalls often seeing him in
the National Library, which was then in the basement of what is now the National
Museum.
 Literary Works: How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife, Midsummer, Heat.
7. N. V. M. Gonzalez
 Biography: (September 8, 1915 – November 28, 1999) was a Filipino novelist, short
story writer, essayist and, poet.
 Conferred as the National Artist of the Philippines for Literature in 1997.
 N.V.M. González was proclaimed National Artist of the Philippines in 1997.
 He died on 28 November 1999 at the age of 84.
 As a National Artist, Gonzalez was honored with a state funeral at the Libingan ng mga
Bayani.
 Literary Works: The Winds of April (1941), A Season of Grace (1956), The Bamboo
Dancers (1988), The Land And The Rain, The Happiest Boy in The World, Bread of Salt.
8. Francisco Arcellana
 Biography: (September 6, 1916 – August 1, 2002) was a Filipino writer, poet, essayist,
critic, journalist and teacher.
 He was born on September 6, 1916. Arcellana already had ambitions of becoming a
writer early in his childhood.
 His actual writing, however, started when he became a member of The Torres Torch
Organization during his high school years.
 Arcellana continued writing in various school papers at the University of the Philippines
Diliman.
 Later on he received a Rockefeller Grant and became a fellow in Creative Writing at the
University of Iowa and atThe Breadloaf Writers’ Conference from 1956-1957.
 Literary Works: Selected Stories (1963), Poetry and Politics: The State of Original Writing
in English in the Philippines Today (1979), The Francisco Arcellana Sampler (1991).

Philippine Literature during Japanese Occupation

 During the occupation, publications were censored by the military.

 Also, Tagalog was declared an official language (together with Nihonggo).
 In effect, Philippine literature in English came to a halt.
 Some Filipino writers then turned to writing in Filipino.
 The Tagalog short story reached its maturity during the period.
 The best works were compiled by the Liwayway magazine editors in Ang Pinakamabuting
Maikling Kathang Pilipino ng 1943, which came out in 1944.
 It is a collection of stories that won a contest sponsored by the Japanese.
 The top four stories were “Lupang Tinubuan” by Narciso G. Reyes, “Uhaw ang Tigang na Lupa” by
Liwayway Arceo, “Nayon at Dagat-dagatan” by N. V. M. Gonzalez, and “Suyuan sa Tubigan” by
Macario Pineda
 The American occupation of the Philippines spurred the writing of Filipinos in English.
  On the other hand, the Japanese occupation censored literary works yet contributed to the
maturity of the Tagalog short story.
 Haiku is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan.
 Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a kireji, or “cutting word”, 17 on
(a type of Japanese phoneme) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a kigo, or seasonal reference.
 However, modern haiku vary widely on how closely they follow these traditional elements.
 Haiku originated as an opening part of a larger Japanese poem, known as a renga.
 These haiku that were written as an opening stanza were known as hokku and eventually writers
began to write them as their own stand-alone poems.
 Haiku was given its current name by the Japanese writer Masaoka Shiki at the end of the 19 th
century.
 Postwar and contemporary literature include all literary works written and published in the
Philippines from 1946.
 After World War II, the Philippines had to deal with the economy and the need for rehabilitation
and reconstruction of infrastructures.
 There was political, economic, and social confusion, as well as great poverty, and these issues
found their way into the short stories and novels during that time.
 During the postwar period, Filipino writers got their inspiration from American teachers and
were able to learn their techniques, which also helped in mastering the English language.
 Writers wrote fiction that focused on courageous deeds as well as the sacrifices and suffering in
the lives of Filipinos.
 It was also common for writers to write about the experiences of the Filipino people under the
Spanish and American rule and the Japanese Occupation.
 Other subjects and themes include: religious faith, superstitions, fantasy, social problems,
poverty, politics, nationalism, and morality.

Carlos P. Romulo

 Carlos P. Romulo was a Filipino diplomat, statesman, journalist, and soldier.

 He was born on January 14, 1898 in Intramuros, Manila and grew up in Camiling, Tarlac.
 He was the first Filipino journalist who was awarded with the Pulitzer Prize in Journalism.
 He was also the first Asian who served as the president of the United Nations General Assembly.
 "I am a Filipino" is one of the many essays written by Carlos P. Romulo.
 It was published in The Philippines Herald in August 1941.
 He also wrote the book entitled I Saw the Fall of the Philippines, in which he narrated his
personal experiences as an aide-de-camp to General Douglas MacArthur in Corregidor.
 This book was followed by a sequel, I See the Philippines Rise, a journalistic account of the
Philippine War in 1944.
 Among his other famous literary works are Mother America: A Living Story of Democracy, a
discussion of his political ideals about American democracy in the Philippines, and I Walked with
Heroes, his autobiography.
 He was conferred as National Artist for Literature in 1982. He died on December 15, 1985.

About the Essay I am a Filipino

 I am a Filipino is one of the valuable contributions of Carlos P. Romulo to Philippine literature.

 Analyzing it would help one understand what he thinks of the Filipino and what it means to be
One.
 In the essay, the author speaks of the pride and dignity of the Filipino race, which is something
he wants the future generation to uphold and cultivate.
 The essay also explains the Filipino identity as a product of the fusion of Western culture
(Spanish and American) and Eastern culture (Japanese occupation and Malayan roots).
 Carlos P. Romulo stresses that the fight for freedom sprung up from one’s pride of being a
Filipino.
 He takes pride in the bravery and sacrifices of the heroes who fought for freedom like Lapu-
Lapu, Diego Silang, Jose Rizal, Gregorio del Pilar, Antonio Luna, and Manuel L. Quezon.
 He also emphasizes the beauty of the Philippines as blessed with bountiful natural resources and
colorful history and culture.
 Carlos P. Romulo is a profound writer who wrote the essay I am a Filipino, which is one of the
great contributions to Philippine literature not only because it shows one’s love for his country
and freedom but also of being proud as a Filipino.