List problems or issues that Filipinos of today

face or experience and categorize them as

indicated in the chart. With a partner, discuss
these issues and then prepare to share your
conclusions with the class.
Issues presented in your chart are usually
the same issues presented in pieces of literary
works. As the discussion on literature continues,
you will encounter some of these issues and
these may be presented in some or all of the
periods in our Philippine literature history.
INDIVIDUAL FAMILIAL COMMUNAL NATIONAL
 Cut out a picture from a magazine
or any source of something that
represents the pre-colonial literature
for you as a student. This is the period
when we did not have papers and pens
to use. How do you think did our
ancestors write their literary works and
pieces? How do you think did they
communicate their stories?
 oral and written literatures were present in
our culture even before colonizers came. We had
our own alphabet that our Malayan ancestors
used. The written literacy forms did not last
because of the materials used such as:
1) Leaves
2) Bamboo canes, and
3) The ground
Such materials did not last long because of
its organic composition. But the oral literature
continued by word of mouth like:
1) Riddles
2) Proverbs
3) Folksong and folktales
4) Myths and legends, etc.
 The way our ancestors live during the early
days in evident in the contents of these literary
forms. Work and activity songs described how
people earn their livelihood like farming, fishing
pottery and a lot more. An example is the popular
song by Tagalogs –”Magtanim ay di Biro”(Planning
Rice is Never Fun)
• Riddles
Riddles are generally poetic in form and come
in one, two ,three or four lines. During the pre
colonial period, riddles serve as a form of folk
speech and are about the battle of the wits. Riddles
use one or more images to refer to an object to be
guessed. The use of obscure words has been
invented for the purposes of rhyme and meter.