Pasig Catholic College

SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

School Year 2020-2021
PCC@108: “Bringing the Good News to all Faiths in all Seasons amidst Life’s Challenges”

Subject: 21st Century Literature from the Date:

Philippines and the World
Subject Teacher: Miss Dia Sielo D. Carabaña

MODULE 5 – NATIONAL ARTIST FOR LITERATURE

OBJECTIVES

By the end of this module students will have completed the following objective:

1. be able to recognize who the Filipino National Artists in Literature are; and
2. become familiar with some of these national artists’ body of literary works.

LEARNING EXPERIENCES

o What is a Filipino National Artist in Literature?

o Who Selects the Filipino National Artist in Literature?
o What are the privileges of becoming a National Artist?
o National Artist for Literature

LECTURE NOTES

PHILIPPINE NATIONAL ARTISTS IN LITERATURE

What is a Filipino National Artist in Literature?

 The form and content of their writings created a sense of nationhood or instilled nationalism
 Pioneered a unique style of creative expression in the literary arts that inspired younger generations of
writers
 Displayed consistent excellence in the quality of their works
 Gained recognitions and awards from prestigious national or international literary institutions
Who Selects the Filipino National Artist in Literature?
 Panel of literary experts
 Commissioners of the National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA)
 Board of Governors of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP)
 President of the Republic of the Philippines
What are the privileges of becoming a National Artist?
• The rank and title of National Artist, as proclaimed by the President of the Philippines
• The National Artist gold-plated medallion minted by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and citation
• Lifetime emolument and material and physical benefits comparable in value to those received by the ighest
officers of the land
• A place of honor, in line with protocular precedence, in state functions, national commemoration
ceremonies, and all other cultural presentations

National Artist for Literature

1. Amado V. Hernandez (1973) was born in Hagonoy, Bulacan but grew up in Tondo, Manila. His poems
and novels written purely in the Filipino mother tongue tackle issues of the poor and working class.

2. Jose Garcia Villa (1973) was also a Manileño, from Malate’s Singalong St.; he was known here and
abroad as the “master of the comma poem” a unique style he created.

3. Nick Joaquin (1976), a versatile Filipino from San Juan, was a journalist, poet, novelist, historian,
playwright, scriptwriter and biographer. But it was his mysterious and suspense- filled novels that became
his trademark style. His pen name is QUIJANO DE MANILA

4. Carlos P. Romulo (1982), a 4’ 11” son of Camiling, Tarlac was a WW2 soldier, UN diplomat and foreign
affairs secretary under eight Philippine presidents. He wrote 18 books, mostly memoirs about him,
Douglas McArthur, Pres. Quezon and especially Russian Andre Vishinky who he silenced with this quote
 in a UN Assembly: “It is the duty of the little Davids of this world to fling the pebbles of truth in the eyes
of the blustering Goliaths and force them to behave!”

5. Francisco “Franz”” Arcellana

 Writer, poet, essayist, critic, journalist and teacher
 Torres Torch Organization
 Rockefeller Grant
 lyrical-prose-poetic form of short story
 “Prayer”

6. Rolando Santos Tinio

 poet, dramatist, director, actor, critic, essayist and educator
 National Artist for Literature and Theatre
 “Payo sa Bumabasa ng Tula”

7. Nestor Vicente Madali Gonzalez (NVM Gonzales) (1997), a native of Romblon island, was a poet,
essayist, novelist and teacher who depicted with his pen the Filipino spirit in rural and urban settings.
Besides the book featured on the left, his other works also focus on nature like The Bamboo Dancers, The
Winds of April, Seven Hills Away and Work in the Mountains.

8. Levi Celerio (1997)

Levi Celerio is a prolific lyricist and composer for decades. He effortlessly translated/wrote anew the lyrics to
traditional melodies: “O Maliwanag Na Buwan” (Iloko), “Ako ay May Singsing” (Pampango), “Alibangbang” (Visaya)
among others.
Born in Tondo, Celerio received his scholarship at the Academy of Music in Manila that made it possible for him
to join the Manila Symphony Orchestra, becoming its youngest member. He made it to the Guinness Book of World
Records as the only person able to make music using just a leaf.
A great number of his songs have been written for the local movies, which earned for him the Lifetime Achievement
Award from the Film Academy of the Philippines. Levi Celerio, more importantly, has enriched the Philippine music
for no less than two generations with a treasury of more than 4,000 songs in an idiom that has proven to appeal to all
social classes.

9. Edith Tiempo (1999), who hails from Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya was a poet, a novelist, a literary critic,
a teacher and the only female National Artist for Literature. Her masterpieces are famous for her use of
vivid metaphors and vibrant description that are fluid and not burdened with trite details.

10. F. Sionil Jose (2001) is a native of Rosales, Pangasinan. He often gleans local legends and epics from his
hometown as well as from the Ilocos region to include in his short stories and novels. His works are also
consistent in depicting the themes of class struggle, colonialism, social justice and national sovereignty.

11. Virgilio S. Almario (2003)

 RIO ALMA
 Chairman of the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (KWF)
 “Ang Makata sa Panahon ng Makina” (1972)
 Modernism and Formalism

12. Alejandro Roces (2003) is a short story writer and essayist, and considered as the country’s best writer
of comic short stories. He is known for his widely anthologized “My Brother’s Peculiar Chicken.” In his
innumerable newspaper columns, he has always focused on the neglected aspects of the Filipino cultural
heritage. His works have been published in various international magazines and has received national and
international awards.

13. Bienvenido Lumbera

 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communications
 National Book Awards from the National Book Foundation
 Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards
 “Taglish Hanggang Saan?”

14. Lazaro Francisco (2009) has developed the social realist tradition in Philippine fiction. His eleven novels,
now acknowledged classics of Philippine literature, embodies the author’s commitment to nationalism.
Francisco gained prominence as a writer not only for his social conscience but also for his “masterful
handling of the Tagalog language” and “supple prose style”. With his literary output in Tagalog, he
contributed to the enrichment of the Filipino language and literature for which he is a staunch advocate.
He put up an arm to his advocacy of Tagalog as a national language by establishing the Kapatiran ng
mga Alagad ng Wikang Pilipino (KAWIKA) in 1958.
 - “Master of the Tagalog Novel”
- Ama
- Bayang Nagpatiwakal
- Maganda Pa Ang Daigdig
- Daluyong

15. Cirilo Bautista (2014) is a poet, fictionist and essayist with exceptional achievements and significant
contributions to the development of the country’s literary arts. He is acknowledged by peers and critics,
and the nation at large as the foremost writer of his generation.

SUPPLEMENTAL CONTENT

Literature, whether precolonial or colonial, are to be cherished for they show the ever-evolving lives of
the Filipinos and the extensive colorful history of the country.

REFERENCES

National artist - Alejandro Roces. (2015, June 2). Retrieved from https://gwhs-
stg02.i.gov.ph/~s2govnccaph/about-culture-and-arts/culture-profile/national-artists-of-the-
philippines/alejandro-roces/

Ocay, J. (2018, June 28). National artists for literature and their contributions. Retrieved from
https://www.slideshare.net/jahwella/national-artists-for-literature-and-their-contributions

The order of national artists | GOVPH. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/the-order-of-

national-artists/

Rex Bookstore. (2017). 2_Philippine_National_Artists_in_Literature [PowerPoint Slides]