st

21 Century Literature from

the Philippines and the
World
English – 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Quarter 1 – Self-Learning Module 1: Philippine literary history from pre-
colonial to the contemporary
First Edition, 2020

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 21st Century Literature from
the Philippines and the
World

Quarter 1

Self-Learning Module1

Philippine literary history

from pre -colonial to the
contemporary
Introductory Message

For the Facilitator:

Welcome to the 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World 11
Self Learning Module on Philippine literary history from pre-colonial to the
contemporary!
This Self-Learning Module was collaboratively designed, developed and
reviewed by educators from the Schools Division Office of Pasig City headed by its
Officer-in-Charge Schools Division Superintendent, Ma. Evalou Concepcion A.
Agustin, in partnership with the City Government of Pasig through its mayor,
Honorable Victor Ma. Regis N. Sotto. The writers utilized the standards set by the K
to 12 Curriculum using the Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELC) in
developing this instructional resource.

This learning material hopes to engage the learners in guided and independent
learning activities at their own pace and time. Further, this also aims to help learners
acquire the needed 21st century skills especially the 5 Cs, namely: Communication,
Collaboration, Creativity, Critical Thinking, and Character while taking into
consideration their needs and circumstances.

In addition to the material in the main text, you will also see this box in the
body of the module:

Notes to the Teacher

This contains helpful tips or strategies that
will help you in guiding the learners.

As a facilitator you are expected to orient the learners on how to use this
module. You also need to keep track of the learners' progress while allowing them to
manage their own learning. Moreover, you are expected to encourage and assist the
learners as they do the tasks included in the module.
For the Learner:

Welcome to the 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World 11
Self-Learning Module on Philippine literary history from pre-colonial to the
contemporary!
This module was designed to provide you with fun and meaningful
opportunities for guided and independent learning at your own pace and time. You
will be enabled to process the contents of the learning material while being an active
learner.

This module has the following parts and corresponding icons:

Expectations - This points to the set of knowledge and skills that

you will learn after completing the module.

Pretest - This measures your prior knowledge about the lesson at

hand.

Recap - This part of the module provides a review of concepts and

skills that you already know about a previous lesson.

Lesson - This section discusses the topic in the module.

Activities - This is a set of activities that you need to perform.

Wrap-Up - This section summarizes the concepts and application of

the lesson.

Valuing - This part integrates a desirable moral value in the lesson.

Posttest - This measure how much you have learned from the entire
module.
 EXPECTATIONS
This is your self-instructional learner module in 21 st Century Literature from
the Philippines and the World 11. All the activities provided in this lesson will help
you learn and understand: Philippine literary history from pre-colonial to the
contemporary.

Specifically, you will be able to:

• Identify the geographic, linguistic, and ethnic dimensions of Philippine literary

history from pre-colonial to the contemporary

• Value the contributions of literature on the language and culture of the

Filipinos

PRETEST
Write PC if the important events and/or terms stated below are under
PreColonial literature, COL for Colonial and C if Contemporary.

1. Chants (Bulong) a repeated rhythmic phrase, typically one shouted or sung in

unison by a crowd. It is also used in witchcraft or enchantments.

2. Christianity was proclaimed by the first colonizers.

3. Filipino films, comics, magazines and other publications flourished during

this time.

4. Education was the foremost contribution of the American Occupation.

5. The flowering of Philippine literature in the various languages con tinue
especially with the appearance of new publications after the Martial Law
years and the resurgence of committed literature in the 1960s and the 1970s.

RECAP
We have learned that literature derived from the Latin word litteratura
(writing) and from the word litteratus (learning). It covers both oral and written
forms of work. It also expresses permanent and universal ideas aesthetically.
 LESSON
It is necessary to trace the developments in literature during the significant
periods in our history that shaped our identities as a nation hailed as “the Pearl of
the Orient”.

Philippine Literary History from Pre-Colonial to Contemporary Period

I. Pre-Colonial Period

Pre-colonial literature is the literature of a formative past by the various groups

of people who inhabited the archipelago. A literature of varying human interest, close
to the religious and political organizations of the ancient Filipinos. The verses were
addressed to the ears rather than the eyes. These verses composed and sung were
regarded as group property.

Hereunder are the literary forms of Pre-colonial literature:

Riddles (Bugtong)- which means battle of wits among participants. (e.g. "Three eyes
have I, all in a row; when the red one opens, all freeze." The answer is traffic light.)
Proverb (Salawikain)- a phrase that gives advice and effectively embodies a
commonplace truth based on practical experience or common sense.
(e.g. Laugh and the world laughs with you, weep and you weep alone.)
Folk Songs- a traditional or composed song typically characterized by stanzaic form,
refrain, and simplicity of melody. (e.g. hele or uyayi-lullaby; harana-serenade;
ambahan-Mangyan; kalusan-Ivatan; tagay-Cebuano)

Chants (Bulong)- used in witchcraft and/or enchantment. Chant may be considered

speech, music, or a heightened or stylized form of speech.

Epic-a long poem, typically one derived from ancient oral tradition, narrating the
deeds and adventures of heroic or legendary figures or the history of a nation. (e,g:
Lam-ang- Ilocano; Hinilawod- Panay; Kudaman-Palawan; Darangen-Mindanao)

Legend- is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions

perceived or believed both by teller and listeners to have taken place within human
history. (e.g. Legend of Makahiya; Legend of Pasig River)
II. Spanish Colonization Period (1565-1863)
A. Characteristics of Spanish Colonization:
1. It has two distinct classifications: religious and secular
2. It introduced Spanish as the medium of communication. B.
Literary Forms:
1. Religious Literature
a. Pasyon- long narrative poem about the passion and death of Jesus
Christ.
b. Senakulo-it is the dramatization of the Pasyon.
2. Secular (non-religious) Literature
a. Awit- colorful tales of chivalry made for singing and chanting. (e.g.
Ibong Adarna by Jose dela Cruz)
b. Korido- s a popular narrative song and poetry that forms a ballad. The
songs are often about oppression, history, daily life for peasants, and
other socially relevant topics. (e.g. Florante at Laura by Francisco
Baltazar)
c. Prose Narratives- this form describes important events in life either real
or imaginary.

III. Nationalistic or Propaganda and Revolutionary Period (1864-1896)

The Propaganda Movement was a period of time when native Filipinos were
calling for reforms. The movement’s prominent members were: Jose P. Rizal, Mariano
Ponce and Marcelo H. del Pilar. Characteristics of this Period:

1. Planted seeds of nationalism to Filipinos.

2. The language was shifted from Spanish to Tagalog.

Literary Forms:

1. The literary forms during this time were: Propaganda Literature, Political
Essays, Diariong Tagalog and La Solidaridad
2. The Political Novels were: Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo by Dr.
Jose Rizal
 3. The Revolutionary Literature were: political essays (e.g. Kalayaan) and
poetry (e.g. True Decalogue, Katapusang Hibik ng Pilipinas, Liwanag at
Dilim

IV. American Colonization Period (1910-1945)

The public-school system was introduced by Americans to Filipinos.
Thomasites were the first teachers during this period. English language was
introduced and literary themes and motifs related to the people’s search and
desire to gain autonomy and independence as well as relevant social concerns or
political issues were exhibited in most works in both prose and poetic forms.
Features of Philippine Literature during American Colonization Period:

• In the early part of American Occupation, Spanish, Tagalog and other local
languages were used and later on English was later on used.

• The use of first-person point of view in writing started to be popular.

• The comparison of urban and rural living became the common focus of the
text. Short-stories are most widespread literary form during this period.

V. Japanese Colonization (1942-1944)

During Japanese colonization, the journalistic writing was ceased and placed
under strict monitoring, there was “no freedom of speech”. Hence, the only
Filipino writers who could write freely were those who were living in the United
States. Most writers and authors were led to either go underground or write in
Tagalog. Many wrote poems, short stories, plays, etc. The common theme of
most poems during the Japanese occupation was nationalism, country, love and
life in the barrios, faith, religion and the arts.

Three types of poems emerged during this period:

1. Haiku- is a three-line poem with seventeen syllables, written in a 5,7,5 syllable

count. Often focusing on images from nature, haiku emphasizes simplicity,
intensity, and directness of expression.

Example:

“The Old Pond” by Matsuo Bashō

An old silent pond

A frog jumps into the pond—
Splash! Silence again.
 2. Tanaga (Maikling Tula)- is a Filipino style of poetry with four-line stanzas with
the syllable count of 7-7-7-7, and a rhyme scheme of AABB. It expresses
insights and life lessons.

Example: “KAIBIGAN”
ni Emelita Perez Baes
“Ang katoto kapag tunay
hindi ngiti ang pag-alay
kundi isang katapatan ng mataus na pagdamay.”

3. Karaniwang Anyo (Usual Form)- the usual and common form of poetry.
Noteworthy writers during this period:

• A few of the playwriters were: Jose Ma. Hernandez (he wrote Panday Pira)
and Francisco Soc Rodrigo (Pula, sa Puti)

• Noteworthy writer of the period was Carlos P. Romulo who won Pulitzer Prize
for his bestsellers “I saw the fall of the Philippines” and I see the Philippines
Rise” and his “Mother America and my Brother Americans”

VI. Contemporary /Modernism Period (Period Of The New Society 1972- 1980)

• Almost all themes in most writings dealt with the development or progress of the
country- like the green revolution, family planning, proper nutrition, environment,
drug addiction and pollution.
• The new society tried to stop pornography or those writings giving bad influences
on the morals of the people.
• All school newspapers were temporarily stopped and so with school organizations.
• The themes of most poems dealt with patience, regard for native culture, customs
and beauties of nature and surroundings.
• Filipino poetry was romantic and revolutionary. Bilingual education was initialized.
• Filipino Songs dealt with the themes that were really true-to life like those grief,
poverty, aspirations for freedom, love of God, of country and of fellowmen.
Notable writers and their works:
1. Manuel Arguilla – “How my Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife?
2. Aurelio Tolentino- “Kahapon, Ngayon at Bukas”
3. Wilfredo Ma. Guerrero- “Wanted: A Chaperon”
4. Jose Garcia Villa – “First, Poem must be magical” and “Footnote to youth”
 5. Alejandro Roces- “Poems 55” and “My Brothers Peculiar Chicken”
6. Edith Tiempo- “The Charmer’s Box”; “Bonsai”; “A blade of Fern”; and “His
Native Coat”
7. Francisco Arcellana- “The Man Who Could Be Poe”; “Death In a factory”; and
“The Other Woman”
8. F. Sionil Jose- “The pretenders”; “My brother”;“My executioner”; and “Po-On”
9. Cirilo Bautista- “The trilogy of Saint Lazarus” and “Galaw ng Asoge”
10. Nick Joaquin- “The Sorrows of Vaudeville”; “The woman who had two navels”;
and “Summer Solstice”

ACTIVITIES
Activity 1
A. Let’s try a few items as practice exercise. Fill-in the crossword puzzle
with the correct words that are being defined in the two boxes on the bottom
right and left sides. Write your answer in your answer sheet.
B. Write True in th blank if the sentence is correct and False if it’s not.

1. The pre-colonial period was characterized by shared lifestyle, values and

beliefs.
2. The colonial literature is a literature of a formative past by the various group
of people who inhabited the archipelago.
3. Pasyon is the most popular form of religious literature.
4. Two Periods during the US Colonial Rule: → Period of Apprenticeship and
Period of Propaganda
5. A play on the passion and death of Christ. Performed during the Holy Week is
known as Sinakulo/Cenaculo.

Activity 2
Write critical analysis in 3-5 paragraphs regarding the question, “what is
the contribution of Literature on the language and culture of the Filipinos?”

WRAP-UP
To wrap everything up, answer the following questions to check your
own understanding.

1. How can these pre-colonial, colonial and contemporary forms of literature be

of use to your life right now?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
 2. Do you think you can still use the lessons they teach in your daily life? Explain
your answer.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

VALUING
Just because the past didn’t turn out like you wanted it to, doesn’t mean your
future can’t be better than you even imagined. Everything happened for a reason, God
sustains our country, Philippines and He protects us since pre-colonial era up to the
present time. He will never leave us nor forsake us.

POSTTEST
Choose the letter that bares the correct answer. Write on the space provided
before each number.

1. What era of Philippine Literature in which all literary forms produced were
passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth?
A. Contemporary B. Pre-Colonial C. During Spanish Colonization

2. Legends were presented as history which are unlikely to be true. Which of the
following is an example of a legend?
A. Biag ni Lam-ang B. The Turtle and the Rabbit C. Juan Gathers Guava

3. It is a native drama that depicted the war between Christians and Muslims.
A. Sarsuela B. Moro-moro D. Pasyon
4. The following were themes of most poems during Contemporary Period,
except_______.
A. patience B. beauty of nature C. heroes

5. It is a Filipino style of poetry with four-line stanzas with the syllable count of
7-7-7-7, and a rhyme scheme of AABB. It expresses insights and life lessons.
A. Haiku B. Tanaga C. Karaniwang anyo
 KEY TO CORRECTION

References
Dayao, Pam. Pre-Colonial up to Present Philippine Literature. June 28, 2016
https://prezi.com/gmjdqhhxbdz4/pre-colonial-literature-up-to-
modern/?fbclid=IwAR195xPQCplhpUbIy96pKhEhMECB9beA_dw3PlwsLhSKj
LMw2gptZN6ST0k

Teacher RAZ. Philippine literature pre-colonial period ppt. May 28, 2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xK4cMxZ2a3s