LITERATURE

Literature, in its broadest sense, is any written work. Etymologically, the term derives from Latin litaritura/litteratura “writing
formed with letters,” although some definitions include spoken or sung texts. More restrictively, it is writing that possesses literary
merit.
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/introliterature/chapter/defining-literature/

Literature, as compared to any other forms of writing, possesses distinct qualities that separate it from the rest. These include:

1. Universality
– Literature appeals to everyone, regardless of culture, race, gender, and time which are all considered significant.
This is similar to endurance in the fact that literature must appeal to a range of people across different age groups, nationalities,
cultures and beliefs.
2. Artistry
– Literature has an aesthetic appeal and thus possesses a sense of beauty.
The literature should be well written and appeal to our creative sides with beautifully crafted phrases and sentences. Sentences such
as these are often memorized and can become famous phrases.
3. Intellectual Value
– Literature stimulates critical thinking that enriches mental processes of abstract and reasoning, making man realize the
fundamental truths of life and its nature.
Literary work will usually inform us about our past, our present or the world around us. It may not be in the form of facts and figures
but it will help us understand our lives and realize truths about humanity and life in general. Literature should mentally stimulate us
and enriches our thoughts.
4. Suggestiveness
– Literature unravels and conjures man’s emotional power to define symbolisms, nuances, implied meanings, images and messages,
giving and evoking visions above and beyond the plane of ordinary life and experience.
Literature should carry many associations that lead beyond the surface meaning. Underlying suggestions usually carry an enormous
amount of emotional power, often because it is not directly mentioned but hinted at through associations that can often be more
powerful. The reader is left to establish what the author is suggesting and this captures the reader's imagination by making think
about what they are reading and engaging them into the story.
5. Spiritual Value
– Literature elevates the spirit and the soul and this has the power to motivate and inspire, drawn from the suggested morals or
lessons of the different literary genres.
Great works of literature are often thought to have an underlying moral message that can potentially make us better people. Moral
values are often written between the lines and can help us become better people.
6. Permanence
– Literature endures across time and draws out the time factor: timeliness, occurring at a particular time, and timelessness,
remaining invariable throughout time.
An important feature of great literature is that it endures. Classic literature such as Dickens is still enjoyed by readers today,
generations after it was originally written and in a completely different world to the one it was intended for. This is extremely
important because if a work of literature is not enjoyed 20 years after publication, it will simply be forgotten.
7. Style
– Literature presents peculiar way/s on how man sees life as evidenced by the formation of his ideas, forms, structures, and
expressions which are marked by their memorable substances.
The writer of literature will usually have a unique view of the world and will put thoughts to us in a way we have never considered. It
may be thoughts about the world or it may simply be thoughts about the actual words used. Words may be used in a creative and
unusual way that is entertaining and interested.
From Literatures of the World
https://nuworldlit.wordpress.com/2013/11/13/literary-standards/
https://arts-literature.blurtit.com/1120166/what-are-the-literary-standards-in-literature

LITERARY GENRES

ESSAY- A short literary composition that reflects the author's outlook or point.

A reflective essay is an essay in which the writer examines his or her experiences in life. The writer then writes about those
experiences, exploring how he or she has changed, developed or grown from those experiences.

FICTION- Narrative literary works whose content is produced by the imagination and is not necessarily based on fact.

Fable- Narration demonstrating a useful truth, especially in which animals speak as humans; legendary, supernatural tale.

Legend- Story, sometimes of a national or folk hero, which has a basis in fact but also includes imaginative material.

Allegory- An allegory (AL-eh-goh-ree) is a story within a story. It has a “surface story” and another story hidden underneath. For
example, the surface story might be about two neighbors throwing rocks at each other’s homes, but the hidden story would be about
war between countries. Some allegories are very subtle, while others (like the rock-throwing example) can be more obvious.

Short Story- Fiction of such brevity that it supports no subplots.

Satire - It is a technique employed by writers to expose and criticize foolishness and corruption of an individual or a society, by using
humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule. It intends to improve humanity by criticizing its follies and foibles. A writer in a satire uses
fictional characters, which stand for real people, to expose and condemn their corruption.

Novel- It is an invented prose narrative of considerable length and a certain complexity that deals imaginatively with human
experience, usually through a connected sequence of events involving a group of persons in a specific setting. Within its broad
framework, the genre of the novel has encompassed an extensive range of types and styles: picaresque, epistolary, Gothic, romantic,
realist, historical—to name only some of the more important ones.

DRAMA- Stories composed in verse or prose, usually for theatrical performance, where conflicts and emotion are expressed through
dialogue and action.

Melodrama - It is a subgenre of drama, which is an exaggerated form of this genre. Melodramas deal with sensational and romantic
topics that appeal to the emotions of the common audience. Originally, it made use of melody and music, while modern melodramas
may not contain any music at all. In fact, a melodrama gives preference to a detailed characterization where characters are simply
drawn, one-dimensional, or stereotyped. Typically, melodrama uses stock characters including a heroes, heroines, and villains.

Closet drama- It is a drama suited primarily for reading rather than production. Examples of the genre include John Milton’s Samson
Agonistes (1671) and Thomas Hardy’s The Dynasts (three parts, 1903–08). Closet drama is not to be confused with readers’ theatre,
in which actors read or recite without decor before an audience.

Farce - It is a lighthearted comedy that centers around a ridiculous plot that usually involves exaggerated and improbable events.
Farces usually do not have much character development, but instead rely on absurdity, physical humor, and a skillful exploitation of a
situation. Farce examples also often occur in just one place where all the events occur. This can add to the sense of a pressure cooker
where all of the elements are combined to create something truly ridiculous. (Home Alone)

Problem play - It is a form of drama that emerged during the 19th century as part of the wider movement of realism in the arts. It
deals with contentious social issues through debates between the characters on stage, who typically represent conflicting points of
view within a realistic social context.

Poetry- Verse and rhythmic writing with imagery that creates emotional responses.

Narrative - Narrative or story telling developed from ritualistic chanting of myths, and has traditionally been grouped into two poetic
categories, epic and ballad.

An epic is a long non-stanzaic "poem on a great and serious subject, told in an elevated style, and centered on a heroic or
quasi-divine figure on whose actions depends the fate of a tribe, a nation, or the human race" (Abrams 51). Typical figures include
demi-gods, kings, and military heroes.

Ballads - These are story poems that could be chanted in groups about common people. When written down, they are typically
divided into abcb -rhymed stanzas to emphasize the elements of song.

Metrical romance - It is otherwise known as romantic poetry. The poem tells a story in verse form and depicts the adventures of
romantic poetry. These texts highlighted chivalric periods in history focusing upon civility and manners. Examples of these types of
work typically show the heroic deeds of a single knight on a quest to win the favor of a woman and the honor placed upon him by his
king.

Metrical Tale -It is a long poem that tells an already developed story in verse. The themes associated with the metric tale are
adventures of questing knights, courtly love and romance. Its length varies, it can either be the size of a short story, or spanning to
the length of a novel.

Lyric-It is a verse or poem that is, or supposedly is, susceptible of being sung to the accompaniment of a musical instrument (in
ancient times, usually a lyre) or that expresses intense personal emotion in a manner suggestive of a song. Lyric poetry expresses the
thoughts and feelings of the poet and is sometimes contrasted with narrative poetry and verse drama, which relate events in the
form of a story. Elegies, odes, and sonnets are all important kinds of lyric poetry.

Ode -It is a form of poetry such as sonnet or elegy. Ode is a literary technique that is lyrical in nature, but not very lengthy. You have
often read odes in which poets praise people, natural scenes, and abstract ideas. Ode is derived from a Greek word aeidein, which
means to chant or sing. It is highly solemn and serious in its tone and subject matter, and usually is used with elaborate patterns of
stanzas. However, the tone is often formal. A salient feature of ode is its uniform metrical feet, but poets generally do not strictly
follow this rule though use highly elevated theme.

Elegy - It is a form of literature that can be defined as a poem or song in the form of elegiac couplets, written in honor of someone
deceased. It typically laments or mourns the death of the individual.

Sonnet- It is derived from the Italian word “sonetto,” which means a “little song” or small lyric. In poetry, a sonnet has 14 lines, and is
written in iambic pentameter. Each line has 10 syllables. It has a specific rhyme scheme, and a volta, or a specific turn.
In literature, a novella is a type of prose fiction, which is shorter than full length novels and longer than short stories. It originates
from an Italian word “novella“, which means “new.” It is a well-structured yet short narrative; often satiric or realistic in tone. It
usually focuses on one incident, or issue with one or two main characters and takes place at a single location.

General Types of Literature

Literature can generally be divided into two types; prose and poetry. Prose consists of those written within the common flow of
conversation in sentences and paragraphs, while poetry refers to those expressions in verse, with measure and rhyme, line and
stanza and has a more melodious tone.

I. PROSE

There are many types of prose. These include novels or biographies, short stories, contemporary dramas, legends, fables, essays,
anecdotes, news and speeches.

a. Novel. This is a long narrative divided into chapters. The events are taken from true-to-life stories…and span a long period of time.
There are many characters involved. Example: WITHOUT SEEING THE DAWN by Steven Javallena.

b. Short Story. This is a narrative involving one or more characters, one plot and one single impression. Example: THE LAUGHTER OF
MY FATHER by Carlos Bulosan.

c. Plays. This is presented on a stage, is divided into acts and each act has many scenes. Example: THIRTEEN PLAYS by Wilfredo M.
Guerrero.

d. Legends. These are fictitious narrative, usually about origins. Example: THE BIKOL LEGEND by Pio Duran.

e. Fables. These are also fictitious and they deal with animals and inanimate thins who speak and act like people and their purpose is
to enlighten the minds of children to events that can mold their ways and attitudes. Example: THE MONKEY AND THE TURTLE.

f. Anecdotes. These are merely products of the writer’s imagination and the main aim is to bring out lessons to the reader. It can be
stories about animals or children. Example: THE MOTH AND THE LAMP.

g. Essay. This expresses the viewpoint or opinion of the writer about a particular problem or event. The best example of this is the
Editorial page of a newspaper.

h. Biography. This deals with the life of a person which may be about himself, his autobiography or that of others. Example:
CAYETANO ARELLANO by Socorro O. Albert

i. News. This is a report of everyday events in society, government, science and industry, and accidents, happening nationally or not.

j. Oration. This is a formal treatment of a subject and is intended to be spoken in public. It appeals to the intellect, to the will or to
the emotions of the audience.

II. POETRY
There are three types of poetry and these are the following:

A. Narrative Poetry. This form describes important events in life either real or imaginary.
The different varieties are:

1. Epic. This is an extended narrative about heroic exploits often under supernatural control. Example: THE HARVEST SONG OF
ALIGUYON translated in English by Amador T. Daguio

2. Metrical Tale. This is a narrative which is written in verse and can be classified either as a ballad or a metrical romance. Examples:
BAYANI NG BUKID by Al Perez

3. Ballads. Of the narrative poems, this is considered the shortest and simplest. It has a simple structure and tells of a single incident.
There are also variations of these: love ballads, war ballads, and sea ballads, humorous, moral, and historical or mythical ballads. In
the early time, this referred to a song accompanying a dance.

B. Lyric Poetry. Originally, this refers to that kind of poetry meant to be sung to the accompaniment of a lyre, but now, this applies to
any type of poetry that expresses emotions and feelings of the poet. They are usually short, simple and easy to understand.

1. Folksongs (Awiting Bayan). These are short poems intended to be sung. The common theme is love, despair, grief, doubt, joy, hope
and sorrow. Example: CHIT-CHIRIT-CHIT

2. Sonnets. This is a lyric poem of 14 lines dealing with an emotion, a feeling, or an idea. These are two types: the Italian and the
Shakespearean. Example: SANTANG BUDS by Alfonso P. Santos

3. Elegy. This is a lyric poem which expresses feelings of grief and melancholy, and whose theme is death. Example: THE LOVER’S
DEATH by Ricaredo Demetillo
4. Ode. This is a poem of a noble feeling, expressed with dignity, with no definite number of syllables or definite number of lines in a
stanza.

5. Psalms (Dalit). This is a song praising God or the Virgin Mary and containing a philosophy of life.

6. Awit (Song). These have measures of twelve syllables (dodecasyllabic) and slowly sung to the accompaniment of a guitar or
banduria. Example: FLORANTE AT LAURA by Franciso Balagtas

7. Corridos (Kuridos). These have measures of eight syllables (octosyllabic) and recited to a martial beat. Example: IBONG ADARNA

C. Dramatic Poetry

1. Comedy. The word comedy comes from the Greek term “komos” meaning festivity or revelry. This form usually is light and written
with the purpose of amusing, and usually has a happy ending.

2. Melodrama. This is usually used in musical plays with the opera. Today, this is related to tragedy just as the farce is to comedy. It
arouses immediate and intense emotion and is usually sad but there is a happy ending for the principal character.

3. Tragedy. This involves the hero struggling mightily against dynamic forces; he meets death or ruin without success and satisfaction
obtained by the protagonist in a comedy.

4. Farce. This is an exaggerated comedy. It seeks to arouse mirth by laughable lines; situations are too ridiculous to be true; the
characters seem to be caricatures and the motives undignified and absurd.

5. Social Poems. This form is either purely comic or tragic and it pictures the life of today. It may aim to bring about changes in the
social conditions.

http://bihirangpanitikangpilipino.blogspot.com/2013/07/types-of-literature.html
https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-a-reflective-essay-definition-format-examples.html
https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/rl/litrlgenres.asp
https://www.storyboardthat.com/articles/e/literary-genres
https://www.britannica.com/art/novel
https://theatrelinks.com/problem-play/
https://csmt.uchicago.edu/glossary2004/narrativelyricdrama.htm