INTRODUCTION TO

A MARXIST
READING OF TEXT
WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?

◌ identify representative
text and authors from
each region
WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?

◌ value the contributions of

the local writers to the
development of the regional
literary traditions
WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?

◌ explain the literary, biographical,

linguistic, and sociocultural
contexts and discuss how they
enhance the text’s meaning and
enrich the reader’s understanding
Marxism
 Marxism is a social,
political, and economic
philosophy named after
Karl Marx from
Karl Marx
 It examines the effect of
capitalism on labor,
productivity, and economic
development and argues for a
worker revolution to
overturn capitalism in favor
Marxism in the
Philippines
 Marx introduced us to new
way in viewing a society’s
progress in a different
perspective. In this theory, he
stated that all industrial
societies are divided into two
Marxism in Philippine
Literature
 The Philippines is a
country beaten with
internal strife and social
struggle.
MINDANAO: Land of
Promise
 Government
SULTAN - similar to king or
emperor
DATU - chief under sultan
 Clothing: Women
required to wear long sleeves and have the neck
of their coat-like blouse cut high and closed
sarong

silk sarongs with beautiful colors and designs

dress is decorated with by many beautiful
pearls
 Clothing: Men
tight-fitting jacket with tight sleeves
trousers are either tight-fitting or very
wide and loose
turban or fez on their heads
Blue Blood of Big
Astana
Ibrahim Jubaira
LITERARY
ELEMENTS
WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?

◌ identify the guidelines in

developing a short fiction;
◌ utilize its literary conventions;
and
◌ present a short story concerning
various literary elements.
 Literary Elements

Character Point of View

Setting Conflict

Plot Theme
Character
A character is a figure in
a literary work.
Characters can be major
or minor.
 Characters are classified into:
Flat, when they are defined by a
single idea of quality and does not
change too much from the start of the
narrative to its end
Round, when they possess the
complexity of real people
 Characters can also be:
Protagonist, the main character with whom the reader is
meant to identify, also the person is not necessarily good
by any conventional moral standard, but he/she is the
person in whose plight the reader is most invested.
Antagonist, the character who opposes the main
character, also the counterpart to the main character
and source of a story’s main conflict; may not be “bad”
or “evil” by any conventional moral standard, but
he/she opposes the protagonist in a significant way.
 Her face was not young, but it was
simple; it was not fresh, but it was
mild. She had large eyes which were
not bright, and a great deal of hair
which was not ‘dressed,’ and long
fine hands which were–possibly–not
clean.
Setting
 Setting refers to the time and
place where a story occurs. It
can be used to create the mood
or atmosphere within a story.
 Details of a setting include:

Time/Historical Period – It is the general period of

the plot and the main location of the story.

Physical Features – It refers to the physical look of

the location where the story happened.

Geographic Location – It is the actual location of the

place.
 The first spring of 1946, he
had stumbled out of the
darkness of war and into a
Florentine coffee house, where
he was served by a waitress
truly like the sun.
Plot
 The plot is the
sequence of events in a
story.
 Elements of a Plot
Introduces the characters and dramatic situation of the
Exposition
story or play

Rising Action Introduces the conflict of the story or play

Introduces the central movement of crisis that defines
Climax the
conflict
Introduces the aftermath of conflict (whether it is
Falling Action resolved
or not)
Introduces the moment of insight, discovery, or
Resolution revelation
of the character after the falling action
Point of View
 Point-of-view refers to the
identity of the narrative voice.
It is the person or of the entity
through whom the reader
experiences the story.
 Point-of-view may be:
Third-person, where a narrator describes
what is seen but as a spectator
Second-person, using the pronoun “you”
to narrate the story
First-person, when we are seeing events
through the eyes of the character telling
the story
Conflict
 A conflict showcases the
opposing objectives of the
protagonist and the
antagonist, or inside the
protagonist.
 Conflicts can exist as:
Man versus man, the typical scenario between the
protagonist and antagonist
Man versus nature, where the character is
tormented by natural forces such as storms or
animals
Man versus self, where the conflict develops from
the protagonist’s inner struggles, and may depend
on a character trying to decide between good and
evil or overcome self-doubts
 Conflicts can exist as:
Man versus society, where a character
must take on society itself, stands at odds
and realizes the necessity to work against
these norms
Man versus fate, where a protagonist is
working against what has been foretold
for that person
Theme
A theme is a central
topic, subject, or
message within a
narrative.
 The Fault
in our Stars
 Pride
and
Prejudice
Harry
Potter
The Lovely
Bones
Gone
Girl
The public-houses, with gas-lights
burning inside, were already
open. By degrees, other shops
began to be unclosed, and a few
scattered people were met with.
 Don Quixote by Miguel de
Cervantes tells the story of two
men who essentially embark on
an epic road trip. The ties that
bond their friendship make all
their adventures
 Her skin glistened in the neon
light coming from the paved
court through the slits in the
blind, her soot-black lashes
matted, her grave gray eyes more
vacant than ever.
Harry demonstrates courage and
selflessness in his stand for justice
against Voldemort's violent
tyranny that seeks to expand
power by eliminating threats and
by manipulating his followers.
Wonder by R.J. Palacio focuses on
love, but not necessarily romantic
love. We see the love that the main
character's family shows to him, as
well as the differences between the
friends who love him and the
antagonists who give him a hard
I am a man of substance, of flesh
and bone, fiber and liquids -- and
I might even be said to possess a
mind. I am invisible, simply
because people refuse to see me.
 It had a black canal in it, a river
that ran purple with ill-smelling
dye and vast piles of buildings full
of windows where there was a
rattling and a trembling all day
long.
 Christopher McCandless
abandons civilization to live in
the Alaskan wilderness where
he struggles to survive in the
face of extreme natural
conditions.
 I saw my Master had adorned
himself in a thick tunic and beautiful
dark blue doublet which I’d hardly
noticed before. He wore soft sleek
dark blue gloves over his hands,
gloves which perfectly cleaved to his
fingers.
Rubric
 Rubric
Content 10 points
Organization 10 points
Delivery 10 points
Overall
10 points
Presentation
TOTAL 40 points