21st Century Philippine Literature Guide
21st Century Philippine Literature Guide
38
2 Various Dimension on Philippine Literature
6 World Literature 97
Editorial Office
Anthony S. Teo
Priscila S. Mansueto,D.M
Design/Media Specialist
3
1. Course Information
Course Title: 21st Century Literature from Philippines to the World Pre-Requisite: N O N E
Course Description: This course aims to engage students in appreciation and critical study of 21st Century
Literature from the Philippines and the World encompassing their various dimensions, genres, elements,
2. Instructor’s Information
3. Course Syllabus
Module No. Module Topic Standards Learning Competencies Learning Materials Assessment Task/
Graded Output
Content Standard Performance Standard Required Suggested
1 2st Century Philippine The learner will be able The learner will be able to Writing a close analysis and critical 21st Century Written Output
Literature to understand and demonstrate understanding interpretation of literary texts and Literature
appreciate the elements and appreciation of 21st Module
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 431–32. Print.
4
students’ region/province/town)
2 21st Century Literary The learner will be able to 1. identify the geographic, linguistic, and Written Output
Genres demonstrate understanding ethnic dimensions of Philippine literary
and appreciation of 21st history from precolonial to the
contemporary
Century Philippine literature
The learner will be able from the regions through: st
2. identify representative texts and authors 21 Century
to understand and from each region (e.g. engage in oral Literature
1. a written close analysis and
appreciate the elements history research with focus on key Module
critical interpretation of a personalities from the students’
and contexts of 21st
literary text in terms of form and region/province/ town)
century Philippine Computer/Lapt
theme, with a description of its
literature from the op & Internet
context derived from research;
regions. Connectivity
and 2. an adaptation of a text
into other creative forms using
multimedia.
3 Literary Criticism The learner will be able The learner will be able to 1. identify the geographic, linguistic, and 21st Century Written Output
Approaches for Better to understand and demonstrate understanding ethnic dimensions of Philippine literary Literature
Literary Understanding. appreciate the elements and appreciation of 21st history from precolonial to the Module
contemporary
and contexts of 21st Century Philippine literature
century Philippine from the regions through:
2. identify representative texts and authors Computer/Lapt
literature from the from each region (e.g. engage in oral op & Internet
1. a written close analysis and
regions. history research with focus on key Connectivity
critical interpretation of a personalities from the students’
literary text in terms of form and
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 431–32. Print.
5
region/province/ town)
4 Canonical authors and The learner will be able 1. identify the geographic, linguistic, and Research output
The learner will be able to ethnic dimensions of Philippine literary
works of Philippine to understand and
history from precolonial to the
National Artists in appreciate the elements demonstrate understanding
contemporary
Literature; and contexts of 21st and appreciation of 21st
century Philippine Century Philippine literature 2. identify representative texts and authors 21st Century
literature from the from the regions through: from each region (e.g. engage in oral Literature
regions. history research with focus on key
1. a written close analysis and Module
personalities from the students’
critical interpretation of a region/province/ town)
literary text in terms of form and Computer/Lapt
theme, with a description of its 3. value the contributions of local writers op & Internet
context derived from research; to the development of regional literary Connectivity
traditions
and 2. an adaptation of a text
into other creative forms using 4. appreciate the contributions of the
multimedia canonical Filipino writers to the
development of national literature
5 Study and appreciation The learner will be able The learner will be able to [Link]/compare and contrast 21st Century
of literary texts from the to understand and demonstrate understanding the various 21st century literary Literature
different regions written appreciate the elements and appreciation of 21st genres and the ones from the earlier Module
in different genres and contexts of 21st Century Philippine literature genres/periods citing their elements,
covering: century Philippine from the regions through: structures and tradition
literature from the
1. regions in Luzon, 1. a written close analysis and 6. infer literary meaning from literal
regions.
Visayas, Mindanao critical interpretation of a language based on usage
literary text in terms of form
and theme, with a description 7. analyze the figures of speech and
of its context derived from other literary techniques and devices
research; and 2. an adaptation in the text
of a text into other creative
forms using multimedia explain the literary, biographical,
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 431–32. Print.
6
The learner will be The learner will be Writing a close analysis and critical 21st Century
interpretation of literary texts, Literature
6 World Literature able to understand able to demonstrate applying a reading approach, and Module
doing an adaptation of these, require
and appreciate understanding and
from the learner the ability to identify:
representative texts and authors from
literary texts in appreciation of 21st
North America, Latin America, and
various genres century literature of Africa; Short film
across national the world through: 1. a written Produce a creative adaptation/
literature and close representation of a literary text
by applying multimedia and ICT
cultures. analysis and skills.
Infographic
critical
interpretation
of a literary text
in terms of
form and
theme, with a
description of
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 431–32. Print.
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its context
derived from
research;
2. critical paper
that analyzes
literary texts in
relation to the
context of the
writer or a
critical paper
that interprets
literary texts
critical
approaches;
and
3. an adaptation
of a text into
other creative
forms using
multimedia.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 431–32. Print.
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IV-A. Points for Graded Output IV-B. Grade Equivalent Based on Points Earned
Course Week Module Topic Output Points Initial Grade Transmuted Grade Initial Grade Transmuted Grade Initial Grade Transmuted Grade
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 431–32. Print.
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Total 100%
60 as minimum grade but will have a converted rating of 75 in the report card. The lowest grade a student can get is rather 60 for the quarterly and final grades. Remedial class is given if the final grade is below 60 and should be complied within 30 days
immediately after the close of the quarter.
V. Approval
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 431–32. Print.
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Module 1
Introduction to the Study of Literature
1. Lesson 1: 21st Century Philippine Literature (Philippine History
and Literature)
2. Lesson 2: Names of authors and their works, and backgrounds of
the literature from the region where the high school is located.
Content Standards
The learner will be able to understand and appreciate the elements and contexts of 21st century Philippine
literature from the regions.
Performance Standards
The learner will be able to demonstrate understanding and appreciation of 21st Century Philippine
literature from the regions through: 1. a written close analysis and critical interpretation of a literary text in terms
of form and theme, with a description of its context derived from research; and 2. an adaptation of a text into
other creative forms using multimedia.
Learning Competencies:
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Course Title 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Mod 1 – Lesson 1
Number of Hours 5
Required Suggested
1.
Learning Resources
2. Students shall read and understand the lesson content under “Explore”.
3. Students read the text and answer the following questions under “Apply”.
Learning Activity
4. Students shall perform the task under “Assess”.
5. Students shall submit their work through any of the following: messenger(picture), email, softcopy, or hardcopy
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Target Competency
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Learning Competencies
Engage
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Try to remember a folksong you are familiar with, a folksong that is truly product of our great ancestors from the
past. Once you have chosen one please fill in your answers on the given questions below.
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4. Do you consider this song as important part of Philippine Literary Heritage? Why?
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Explore
The Following definitions were taken from the book by Alicia Hernandez – Kajayon, and Celia A. Zueta.
The word literature is derived from the Latin term litera which means letter. It has been defined differently by
various writers.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
15
Some loosely interpret literature as any printed matter written within a book, a magazine or a pamphlet. Others
define literature as a faithful reproduction of man’s manifold experiences blended into one harmonious
expression.
Because literature deals with ideas, thoughts and emotions of man, literature can be said to be the story of man.
Man’s loves, griefs, thoughts, dreams and aspirations coached in beautiful language is Literature.
In order to know the history of a nation’s spirit, one must read its literature. Hence it is, that to understand the
real spirit of a nation, one must “trace the little rills as they course along down the ages, broadening and
deepening into the great ocean of thought which men of the present source are presently exploring.”
Brother Azurin, said that “literature expresses the feelings of people to society, to the government, to his
surroundings, to his fellowmen and to his Divine Creator.” The expression of one’s feelings, according to him, may
be through love, sorrow, happiness, hatred, anger, pity, contempt, or revenge.
For Webster, literature is anything that is printed, as long as it is related to the ideas and feelings of people,
whether it is true, or just a product of one’s imagination.
In PANITIKING PILIPINO written by Atienza, Ramos, Salazar and Nazal, it says that “true literature is a piece of written
work which is undying. It expresses the feelings and emotions of people in response to his everyday efforts to live, to
be happy n his environment and, after struggles, to reach his Creator.”
According to the article posted in 21 [Link] by Katrina Melissa Cruz. 21st century literature per
se, is anything that was written and published in the year 2000s.
Katrina Melissa cited on her blog the following examples of of literary genre in the 21 st Century Philippine Literatur.
Here are more examples of literary genres in the 21st century Philippine literature:
Creative nonfiction
It’s a rich mix of flavors, ideas, and techniques, some of which are newly invented and others as old as writing itself.
Creative nonfiction can be an essay, a journal article, a research paper, a memoir, or a poem; it can be personal or not,
or it can be all of these.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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“The Cardinal’s Sins, the General’s Cross, the Martyr’s Testimony, and Other Affirmations” by Gregorio C. Brillantes
Hyper poetry
Hypertext poetry and hypertext fiction are new genres of literature that use the computer screen as medium, rather
than the printed page. The literary works rely on the qualities unique to a digital environment, such as linked World
Wide Web pages or effects such as sound and movement. Hypertext “poetry” can consist of words, although not
necessarily organized into lines and stanzas, as well as, sounds, visual images, movement or other special effects.
Although the poem may be dazzling with sounds, perhaps of a lawnmower, while the words “mowing,” “stop,”
“Sunday,” and “morning” float across your computer screen in pseudo-three-dimensional letters, one will have been
hard pressed to identify the use of any formal poetics.
A cell phone novel, or mobile phone novel is a literary work originally written on a cellular phone via text messaging.
This type of literature originated in Japan, where it has become a popular literary genre. However, its popularity has
also spread to other countries internationally, especially to China, United States, Germany, and South Africa. Chapters
usually consist of about 70-100 words each due to character limitations on cell phones.
Chick lit
This is genre fiction, which “consists of heroin-centered narratives that focus on the trials and tribulations of their
individual protagonists”. The genre often addresses issues of modern womanhood – from romantic relationships to
female friendships to matters in the workplace – in humorous and lighthearted ways.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Speculative fiction
It covers all stories from fantasy to science fiction to slipstream to magic realism to urban fantasy — so on and so forth.
In other words (or in other worlds), it encompasses all the stories that are removed from the reality that we are
currently living in. As the introduction states, “speculative fiction is a type of story that deals with observations of the
human condition but offers the experience through a different lens…and challenges us to see what tomorrow could be
like or what the mythic past of our imagination actually is.”
Flash fiction
Flash fiction goes by many names, including microfiction, microstories, short-shorts, short short stories, very short
stories, sudden fiction, postcard fiction and nanofiction. While it can be difficult to pinpoint an exact definition of flash
fiction based on word count, consideration of several of its features can help provide clarity, like its brevity, length,
background and purpose.
Blog
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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A blog (shortening of “weblog”) is an online journal or informational website displaying information in the reverse
chronological order, with latest posts appearing first. It is a platform where a writer or even a group of writers share
their views on an individual subject.
Graphic novels
The ‘graphic novel’ has existed as an art form arguably from the time our species learned how to paint. However, the
term has only been in use since the 1960’s, and though it’s often a hotly debated issue, it’s generally accepted that a
graphic novel is a longer work or collection of works presented in ‘comics’ style.
Contemporary writers often consciously draw inspiration and ideas from the writers who have come before them. As an
outcome, many works of 21st literature deal with the events, movements and literature of the past in order to make
sense of the current times. In addition, the technological developments of the 21st century have directed other writers
to theoretically write about the future, usually to comment on the present and suggest introspection.
The content included in this part are taken down from Rex’s Publishing, 21 st Century Literature from Philippines and
the World by Marikit Tara A. Uychoco.
“Revolution”
Background Knowledge:
When people write about Noli Me Tangere in the history books, they always mention how Andres Bonifacio
was inspired to revolution, and that it was the ideological fire that forged the Katipunan. However it was no
just Andres Bonifacio who was inspired by the novel, but countless other Filipinos who felt, for the very first
time, that Jose Rizal was articulating what they felt about Philippines. According to the poet and writer J. Neil
Garcia (2011), before Rizal wrote Noli Me Tangerem there was no real concept on the Philippine Nation; that
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
19
the novel was a “Myth-making project” a “mean of imagining the special communal fantasy that was the
nation.” When Rizal wrote the Noli, the concept and dream of the Philippine nation was born.
When you think about it, it is interesting that the seeds of Philippine nationhood came from a novel.
Although some people may say that literature is not important, during those times, literature was important
enough for people to imagine a nation and be willing to fight for it.
In the excerpt of Gina Apostol’s novel The Revolution According o Raymundo Mata, the “revolutionary act of
reading” is explored through the eyes of a young man, ahigh school student from the Ateneo. Reading it
makes you imagine what it would have been like to be alive during those heady days of revolution. In this
excerpt, he reads the book Noli Me Tangere by Jose Rizal, which was given to him by his friend, Father
Gaspar, a Filipino priest. “
It was a bolt – a thunder bolt. A rain of bricks, a lightning zap. A pummeling of mountains, a heaving violent
storm at sea – a whiplash. A typhoon. An earthquake. The end of the world. And I was in ruins. It struck me
dumb. It changed my life and the world was new when I was done. And when I raised myself from bed two
days later, I thought: It’s only a novel. If I ever met him, what would my life be? I lay back in bed. But what a
novel! And I cursed him, the writer – what was his name – for doing what I hadn’t done, for putting my
worlds into words before I even had the sense to know what the world was. That was his triumph – he’d laid
out a trail, and all we had to do is follow his wake. Even then, I already felt the bitter envy, the acid retch of a
latecomer artist, the one who will always be under the influence, by mere chronology
alway```````````````````````xs slightly suspect, a borrower, never lender be. After him, all Filipinos are tardy
ingrates. What is the definition of art? Art is reproach to those who receive it. That was his curse upon all of
us. I was weak, as if drugged. I realized: I hadn’t eaten in two days. Then I got out of bed and boiled barako
for me.
Later it was all the rage in the coffee shops, in the bazaars of Binondo. People did not even hide it – crowds of
men, and not just students, not just boys, some women even, with their violent fans – gesticulating in public,
throwing up their hands, putting up fists in debate. Put your knuckle where your mouth is. We were loud,
obstreperous, heedless. We were literary critics. We were cantankerous: rude raving. And no matter which
side you were, with the crown or with the infidels, Spain or Spolarium, all of us, each one, seemed revitalized
by spleen, hatched by the woods of long, venomous silence. And yes, suddenly the world opened up to me,
after the novel, to which before I had been blind.
Still I rushed into other debates, for instance with Benigno and Agapito, who had now moved into my rooms.
Remembering Father Gaspar’s cryptic injunction - “throw it away to someone else,” so that in this manner
the book traveled rapidly in those dark days of its printing, now so nostalgically glorious, though then I had
no clue that these were historic acts, the act of reading, or that the book would be such a collector’s item, or
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
20
otherwise I would have wrapped it in parchment and sealed it for the highest bidder, what the hell, I only
knew holding the book could very likely constitute a glorious crime – in short, I lent it to Benigno.
Application
Note: The following questions below were selected and taken from the same book of Rex’s Publishing, Authored
by: Marikit Tara A. Uychoco.
1. Why did the Noli Me Tangere have such a big impression on the narrator? Could you relate to the narrator’s
experience of reading? Why or Why not?
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2. When the narrator says that the act of reading was a historic act, what did he mean? Do you think this is true
even today?
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3. During those times, do you think you would have been moved to fight against the government after reading the
novel?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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4. Given this excerpt, what do you think is the importance of literature to society? Is this still applicable today?
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Assessment
As a Filipino, what do you think is your great contribution to show the world that you love your country,
people, and most especially your identity as a Filipino.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
22
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Background Knowledge:
Did you know that Jose Rizal is not the Philippine’s national hero? According to the National Commission for Culture
and the Arts (NCCA 2011) there has been no official proclamation of any Filipino historical figure as out national
hero. The NCAA states “Even Jose Rizal, considered as the greatest among the Filipino heroes, was npt explicitly
proclaimed as a national hero. The position he now holds in the Philippine history is a tribute to the continued
veneration or acclamation of the people in recognition of his contribution to the significant social transformation
that took place in our country.”
The poem that you are about to read is an imagined narrative by a priest of the Ateneo, Padre Faura, on how
he feels about his old student, Jose Rizal.
Months ago,
Pepe came to me
In the observatory.
I thought we would talk
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
23
A blur
Between the soldiers
With their Mausers raised
And the early morning’s
Star:
Still shimmering
Even if millons of miles away,
The star itselfIs already dead.
Application
Write and perform a song about Jose Rizal and his contribution in the acquiring Freedom for the Philippines and Filipino
people.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Assess
Answer the following question below to fully understand the poem of Danton Remolo.
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3. The poem talks about the nature of stars. Can you explain what hemeans, in terms of science?
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
25
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4. Why was Rizal executed? How is this similar to the idea of a start? Relate this to Philippine History.
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5. Who do you consider as our national hero? Jose Rizal or Andres Bonifacio?
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“Authoritaranism”
Background Knowledge
Martial law began in Sept. 21, 1972 under Proclamation No. 1081, and the Marcos babies (those who were born from 1964 t
1986) are only beginning to write about this segment of the past. When martial law began, there was not much resistance to
it, as people believed that it would curb the insurgency of various rebel groups at the time. Although it did lessen crimes in the
country, anyone who went against the President Marcos was jailed, and in many cases, dissappeared without a trace.
According to the [Link], 30,000 politicians, students, and journalistswere “detained by military compounds
under the President’s command”, and many news publicaitions and television news broadcast were closed or controlled by
the Marcos government. Numerous rights violations were made during this time.
The following poem exploress the experience of martial law and waht came after it. It is written using a child’s point of view
and is complicated by his relationship with his father.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Bj Patino
There’s this man’s photo on the wall Father snapped at me once, caught me
Sneaking around his office at home
Of my father’s office at home, you
Looking at the stuff on his wall- handguns,
Know, where father brings his work,
Plaques, a sword, medals a rifle-
Where he doesn’t look strange
Told me that was no place for a boy
Still wearing his green uniform
Only men, when he didn’t really
And colored breast plates, where,
Have to tell me because, you know,
To prove that he works hard, he
That photo of Apo on the wall was already
Also brought a photo of his boss
Looking at me around,
Whom he calls Apo, so Apo could
His eyes following me like he was
You know, hang around on the wall
That scary Jesus in the hallway, saying
Behind him and look over his shoulders
Application
After you have read the poem presented, you were able to acquire information of what it looks like during the time of Martial
Law.
With the use of paint or any digital application you may find, make a short comic story from your own insights about a day of
life in the time of Martial law.
Assess
1. How would you describe the persona and the persona's father? How would describe their relationship? Would you say that
your relationship with your father is similar or different? Explain.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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2. In lines 12-13 in the poem, there is the use of the words “snappy” and “snapped”, respectively. What do these words
mean? How do they add to the poem in terms of sound? How do they add to your understanding of the relationship between
the father and the son?
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4. How would you describe the relationship between the persona’s father and Apo? What does this tells us about the father’s
perspective about martial law?
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5. What kind of values does the persona’s father want to teach to his child, specifically, about what it means to be a man? Do
you agree with this values? Why or why not?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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6. Why is Apo compared to the “scary” Jesus in the hallway? What do they seem to have in common?
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7. What do the father, Apo, and the “scary” Jesus have in common?
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8. ead the last line of the poem. What does it mean? How does this regulate the persona’s behavior?
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9. Do you think the persona’s perspective about martial law is the same as his father’s? Why or why not?
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10. How does this poem provide the reader a glimpse of what martial law was like? How did the poem make you feel.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Course Title 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Mod 1 – Lesson 2
Names of authors and their works, and backgrounds of the literature from the region where the high school is located
Module Topic
Number of Hours 4
Required Suggested
2.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Students shall read and understand the lesson content under “Explore”.
Students read the text and answer the following questions under “Apply”.
Learning Activity
Students shall perform the task under “Assess”.
Students shall submit their work through any of the following: messenger(picture), email, softcopy, or hardcopy.
Students will do the tasks in “Summative Assessement”. Then submit to the teacher through: messenger(picture),
email, softcopy, or hardcopy.
Written output
Analyzing text
Assessment Tasks
Target Competency 2. Compare and contrast the development of Philippine Literary eras.
Lesson 2: NAMES OF AUTHORS AND THEIR WORKS, AND BACKGROUNDS OF THE LITERATURE FROM THE REGION
WHERE THE HIGH SCHOOL IS LOCATED
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
31
Learning Competencies
ENGAGE
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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In the late 2000 to 2004 more or less, Bisrock genre of Visayan music is famous among radio stations. In this present time, let us try to remember
the uniqueness and the authenticity of this genre and let us learn what are the factors why this Bisrock genre is one of a kind.
Let’s try to go deeper in understanding the content of this song which was very famous before in their prime years. Read or sing the song and lyrics
provided below with joy and good vibes.
After singing please make sure to fill in with answers the questions given below.
Suroy-suroy
Missing Felimon
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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May mga batang naghingos ug You gonna say it cool mura pug
putos amerikano
Abi nimo'g pansit apan diay papilit The city smells of guns and goons
[Chorus:]
Si Aida, Lorna, ug di ba si Fe
[Chorus:]
Parapapapa...
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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1. How do the lyrics of the songs develop or enhance the content of the song?
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2. How does the presence if imagery affects the creativity of the song?
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3. Does the symbolism used in the song depicted the actual scenario of realities? How and Why?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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EXPLORE
Cebuano literature refers to the body of oral and written literature of speakers of Cebuano, the mother tongue of a quarter of the
country’s population who live in Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, Negros Oriental, and parts of Leyte and Mindanao. As such, it is an important
part of Philippine literature.
Cebuanos have a rich oral tradition, including legends associated with specific locales, like the Maria Cacao legends of southern Cebu
and those of Lapulapu and his father Datu Manggal of Mactan; and folktales like the fable “Haring Gangis ug Haring Leon“, which
warn of abusive behavior by the dominant group. Many of the tales carry lessons, but just as many suggest the value of humor,
keeping of one’s wit and resourcefulness, as in the Juan Pusong trickster tales.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
36
Among the early poetic forms are garay (verses), harito (shaman’s prayers), tigmo (riddles) andpanultihon (proverbs), as described
by the Jesuit Francisco Alzina (1668). The generic form for poetry is balak, characterized by the presence of enigma or metaphor
called balaybay or sambingay. Most of the poems are sung, like the occupational songs and lullabies. The balitaw is an
extemporaneous poetic debate between man and woman that is sung and danced simultaneously. Spontaneous versifying is highly
valued, also illustrated in a dramatic form called kulilising hari, a variant of the Tagalog duplo, that is usually performed at funeral
wakes.
The written literature became significant only in the late 19th century. Tomas de San Geronimo’s “Soneto sa Pagdayeg can Santa
Maria Gihapon Virgen“ (1751) is the first of many piety-laden compositions that show a loss of the enigmatic symbol and metaphor
of pre-colonial verse. The longest poetic form is the pasyon, a verse rendering of the life and suffering of Jesus Christ that is read
during Lent. Secular narratives or corridos were composed in Cebuano, but only the prose versions survive, like “Doce Pares sa
Pransiya“ and “Sa Pagmando ni Hari Arturo.” Another important influence of the Spanish period is found in the plays called linambay
(known also as moromoro because of its anti-Muslim theme), a regular fare at town fiestas that involved parti- cipation of the whole
rural community and attracted audiences from the neighboring towns.
The prose narratives developed into the sugilanon or short story, the first example of which is “Maming”(1901) by Vicente Sotto,
the “father of Cebuano letters”; and later into the sugilambong or novel. The press contributed much to the development of
literature by regularly publishing works of local writers, especially in the three decades before World War II. The Cebuano writer’s
craft was honed in early translations of European fiction and imitations of American models, as shown in the works of Juan
Villagonzalo, Uldarico Alviola, Angel Enemecio, Flaviano Boquecosa, Sulpicio Osorio, Nicolas Rafols and others. Pre-Commonwealth
fiction was mostly nationalistic and didactic in spirit, to be replaced later by more escapist fare like stories of love, detection and
adventure. A similar shift was seen in drama, but the more popular plays were a combination of social criticism and entertainment,
as in the works of Buenaventura Rodriguez, Piux Kabahar and Florentino Borromeo.
With the proliferation of publications, e.g., Bag-ong Kusog, Nasud, and Babaye, more and more poets emerged, producing around
13,000 poems before the war. Vicente Ranudo’s “Hikalimtan?” (1906) and “Pag-usara“ (1922) became models of metrical precision
and balanced structure as found in traditional Cebuano poetry. Its discourse of courtly love and its elevated tone would be replicated
in the poems of Amando Osorio, Escolastic Morre, Tomas Bagyo, Pantaleon Kardenas, Vicente Padriga and others.
Popular were light folksy pieces of political satires like Andres Bello’s fable “Piniliay sa mga Isda“ (1916) and of social criticism like
Piux Kabahar’s “Kinabuhing Sugboanon“ (1929). Of another type are the mostly occasional and non-sentimental works of poets
Emiliano Batiancila, Canuto Lim, Felipe de Leon, Vicente Kyamko, Marciano Camacho, Saturnino Abecia, Marciano Peñaranda; and
Gardeopatra Quijano, a CCP Gawad recipient for Regional Literature (1993). At the center of this group was the prolific Aglipayan
bishop Fernando Buyser, who invented the sonnet form called sonanoy. Another invention was the siniloy of Diosdado Alesna, which
is made up of one or two amphibrach lines.
Of the many publications before the war, only Bisaya has survived as literary outlet of Cebuano. Because of the rise in prestige of
English and later Tagalog, postwar Cebuano literature was relegated to third class although Cebuano was still the language of home
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
37
and street. A new vigor in poetry was contributed by bilingual writers Leonardo Dioko, Junne Cañizares, Ric Patalinjug and others,
whose exposure to Western modes and styles helped strengthen the poetic utterance with irregular rhythms, precise and concrete
diction and practical attitudes.
It is in drama that Cebuano literature is probably weakest, although a few writers like Claude Al Evangelio and Allan Jayme Rabaya
have sustained their writing. Beset by considerations peculiar to writing for theater, like rarity in publication and answering to the
demands of the stage, Cebuano playwrights have slowly turned to radio- and TV-scriptwriting. Most of the plays are written and
produced on campus, for a limited audience. There is a renewed interest in the play, however, with the support of the Arts Council
of Cebu, that has launched a program to encourage Cebuano playwrights with a contest and the production of the prize-winners.
Writers’ groups certainly contributed to literary growth, notably the Lubas sa Dagang Bisaya (LUDABI) andBathalan-ong Halad sa
Dagang (BATHALAD), which have chapters in Mindanao. The latter is an offshoot of the former, which was at one time headed by
Marcel Navarra, the “father of the modern short story in Cebuano.” By sponsoring regular workshops and contests and publishing
their outputs and entries, these groups have encouraged younger writers to start writing, and older writers to shift in style and
attitude. Some of the most-anthologized members of BATHALAD are Gremer Chan Reyes, Ernesto Lariosa, Temistokles Adlawan,
Pantaleon Auman and Rene Amper. Amper, who used to write in English, is joined by Simeon Dumdum Jr., Vicente Bandillo, Melito
Baclay, Ester Tapia and others who now write also in Cebuano. Like this second set of bilingual writers, many other Cebuanos started
out in the campus papers, like the poets Robert Pableo Lim, Don Pagusara, Leo Bob Flores and Rex Fernandez in the 70s and 80s; as
well as the recent crop consisting of Mike Obenieta, Adonis Durado and Januar Yap who are members of the Tarantula group. A
noteworthy addition is the Women in Literary Arts (WILA), founded in 1991 by seven women writers. Perhaps the only organized
women writers’ group in the Philippines today, WILA has twenty-five writers, half of whom write mainly in Cebuano, like Ester Tapia,
Ruby Enario, Leticia Suarez, Linda Alburo, Jocelyn Pinzon, Cora Almerino, Delora Sales and Marvi Gil.
Most if not all of these writers have attended the annual Cornelio Faigao Memorial Writers Workshop conducted since 1984 by the
Cebuano Studies Center of the University of San Carlos. These workshops, which the Cebuano writers may attend as fellows a few
times and as observers any number of times, provide a venue for the old and young, male and female to share works and discuss
problems. For lack of regular outlet, they hold formal and informal poetry readings with varied audiences. BATHALAD, WILA and
Tarantula conduct workshops both for their own members and for much younger writers in high schools and colleges.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Apply
I. Let us try to check if you can still remember the correct answer for each “Tigmo-tigmo” riddles listed below.
___________ 1. pula -pula, bunguton, pag imong ukabon naay lisu sa ilalum.
___________ 5. Dili tubig sa langit, dili tubig sa yuta, tubig sa tunga-tunga, pero kung imong imnon maka panindot sa huna-huna?
unsa man?
Instruction: Write down your own balak composistion below, it is an open theme balak, you can choose from the following; Love,
Socio-Political, Cebuano Culture, Family, Religious, Frienship, and etc.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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EXPLORE
1. Antonio Abad
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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4. Personal life - Antonio Abad y Mercado was born in Barili, Cebu, under the Captaincy General of the Philippines, on 10 May
1894. He was educated at the Colegio-Seminario de San Carlos in Cebu City. He married Kampampangan teacher Jesusa
Henson y Aquino., and had three sons: Gémino, Antonio Jr., and Edmundo.
5. Career - Abad frequently wrote in both, his native language, Cebuano, and Spanish. He was a strong advocate of the Spanish
language and Hispano-Filipino culture when its use was discouraged during the American colonial period in the Philippines.
Abad was one of the leading contributors of Hispano-Filipino literature during his time, producing novels and plays
criticizing the occupation of the islands by the Americans. His works would later be known as part of the Golden Age of Fil-
Hispanic Literature (1898-1941). Two of his novels went on to win the Premio Zóbel, the oldest literary award in the
Philippines, in 1928 and 1929.
Abad taught Spanish at the Far Eastern University. In 1952, he moved to the University of the Philippines Diliman to found
the Department of Spanish (now, the Department of European Languages) at the then, College of Liberal Arts. He headed
the department until his retirement in 1959. One of his last works, a multilingual dictionary of Spanish, English, Cebuano,
Ilocano and Kapampangan, remained unfinished after his death in 20 April 1970.
6. Novels – 1. El Último Romántico (1928) 2. La Oveja de Nathán (1929) 3. El Campeón (1940) 4. La Vida Secreta de Daniel
Espeña (1960)
2. Natalio Bacalso
1. was a Filipino Visayan Cebu-based writer, newspaperman, radio broadcaster, filmmaker, Constitutional Convention
delegate in 1971 representing Cebu's 2nd district, and opposition assemblyman to the Interim Batasang Pambansa in 1978.
Cebu's longest road, the Natalio Bacalso South National Highway, was named after him on 1984. On June 13, 2019, The
Freeman recognized him as one of the Top 100 Cebuanos.
2. Literature and journalism - Bacalso edited the Cebuano periodicals Bisaya from 1932 to 1934 and Manila-printed periodical
Lamdag of Malayan Publishing Company (renamed Filipinas Publishing Company). He was the founder of Tabunon, a
Manila-printed periodical published by Mariano Jesus Cuenco. Known with his pseudonym "Talyux", he published Cadena
de Amor, a collection of stories, together with Fausto Dugenio.
In 1947, Bacalso together with Vicente del Rosario was sued for libel filed separately by then Cebu municipal councilor
Marcos Morelos and Mayor Dr. Luis Espina. The complaint was about an article Bacalso published alleging Espina and
Morelos for various wrongdoings. The Supreme Court, upon the appeal by Morelos whose complaint in the local court was
dismissed, reversed the ruling and sent it back to the local court.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
41
3. Radio - Moreover, Bacalso was a noted broadcaster and hailed as Cebu's prominent radio commentator in his time. His
radio program broadcast, which were aired in radio stations DYRC and DYSS, was transmitted in Visayas and Mindanao and
enjoyed ratings between 80% to 90% among Cebuano-speaking provinces.
4. Politics - Bacalso was a political orator Mariano Jesus Cuenco and Sergio Osmeña Jr. He was also an officer in the
Malacañang Press Office, and he campaigned for Ferdinand Marcos under the Nacionalista Party in the 1965 Philippine
presidential election.
5. 1969 Philippine presidential election - However, he defected from the administration before the start of the 1969 Philippine
presidential election and supported the opposition standard bearer, Sergio Osmeña Jr. of the Liberal Party. The popularity
of his show and his talent for radio commentary undermined the Marcos' candidacy in Visayas and Mindanao and
prompted belated efforts to persuade him to switch loyalty back to the administration.
6. 1971 Constitutional Convention - On November 10, 1970, he was elected as delegate to represent Cebu's 2nd district (then
composed of Cebu City, Mandaue, Consolacion, Liloan, Compostela, Cordova, and Lapu-Lapu City) during the 1970
Philippine Constitutional Convention election. The Constitutional Convention of 1971 was tasked to amend the 1935
Constitution.
7. Pusyon Bisaya - By 1972, Marcos declared martial law in the country and remained president by virtue of transitory
provisions in the 1973 Constitution that called for Marcos to convene an interim National Assembly in a shift towards
parliamentary form of government, which he never did. In 1976, he called for a referendum to ratify amendments to the
1973 Constitution. The 1978 Philippine parliamentary election was the first national election to create a legislative body
called Interim Batasang Pambansa (IBP) during the Marcos dictatorship, and administration bets campaigned under the
Kilusang Bagong Lipunan.
The opposition party, Lakas ng Bayan, fielded candidates that included Ninoy Aquino, and in Central Visayas, Natalio Bacalso
led the local opposition party Pusyon Bisaya together with 12 other candidates that included Fr. Jorge Kintanar, Hilario
Davide Jr, Valentino Legaspi, Filemon Fernandez, Mariano Logarta, Alfonso Corominas, Julian Yballe, Eutiquio Cimafranca,
Jesus Villegas, Jun Medina, Domingo Pernes and Bartolome Cabangbang. During his campaign speeches, Bacalso exposed
the ills and human rights abuses of the Marcos regime. He was elected as assemblyman to the Interim Batasang Pambansa,
Mariano Logarta became the minority leader, and Pusyon Bisaya won all 13 seats in Central Visayas region.
8. Filmography - Bacalso was nominated for Best Director in the 1956 FAMAS Awards for the film Salingsing sa Kasakit (literal
translation: The Pangs of Pain). Among the films he directed were:
2. Magdalena
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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3. Fernando Buyser
9. also known with his pseudonym Florpinas (May 30, 1879 – November 16, 1946), was a Filipino Visayan poet, writer, and
bishop of the Philippine Independent Church. He was a prolific writer and best known as the inventor of the Cebuano
sonnet form called sonanoy and as the pioneer in the study Visayan folklore.
10. Early life - Fernando A. Buyser was born to a wealthy family, Don Gregorio Buyser y Virgeneza and Doña Eugenia Aquino y
Gumba, on May 30, 1879 in Kalunangan (known previously as Nazaret) in the town of Merida in the province of Leyte. He
grew up in Caridad, which was formerly Makahila, in the town of Baybay, Leyte.
11. Philippine revolutions - Buyser, who was 17 years old, became secretary to the Leyte guerilla force leader, Laureano Kabilin
during the Philippine Revolution 1896. During the Philippine-American War, he served under the commands of Filipino
revolutionary leaders Pedro Samson, Pablo Vivira, and Joaquin Flordelis. He also was responsible in organizing the guerilla
units in the towns of Inopakan, Hindang, and Hilongos in Leyte.
12. Priesthood - After the revolutions, Buyser became a schoolteacher in Hibakungan, Hilongos and was engaged in various
trades including a stint as officer in San Rafael II, an inter-island ship. After finishing his studies to be a priest in a seminary
of the Philippine Independent Church, he was ordained by Manila Bishop Jose Evangelista in 1905 and then assigned in the
towns of Almeria, Leyte and Placer, Surigao. Later, he married Doña Bruna Aranas in Leyte, becoming the first religious
priest to be wed.
In 1930, he was ordained bishop by Gregorio Aglipay and this new role allowed him to travel in Visayas and Mindanao as
well as to help in the religious reforms initiated by Aglipay. He became the bishop of the provinces of Cebu, Bohol, Leyte,
Samar, Masbate, and Surigao and the head of the Venerable Supreme Council of Bishops of the church.
13. Writing - He compiled Cebuano traditional oral poetry and old verse forms, which he published in anthologies that were
considered seminal in Cebuano literature: Mga Awit sa Kabukiran: Mga Balitaw, Kolilisi, Mga Garay ug mga Balak nga
Hinapid (Mountain Songs: Balitaw, Kolilisi, Verses, and Braided Poems) which was completed in 1911 and Mga Awit sa
Kabukiran (Mountain Songs) which was completed in 1912.
He wrote over 20 books in various genres, was one of the early writers who wrote short stories and initiated the study of
Visayan folklore through Mga Awit sa Kabukiran and Mga Sugilanong Karaan (Old Stories) in 1913. He also published a
newsletter called Gacetta in 1897, and the Aglipayan periodicals Yutang Natawhan (Motherland) in 1904 and Ang Salampati
(The Dove) from 1920 to 1924.
14. Poetry - Buyser, who used Cebuano and Spanish in his writings, wrote prose narratives using the pseudonyms Alibangbang
(Butterfly), Pareng Bayot (Gay Priest), or Buddy. As a Cebuano poet, he was best known as Florpinas. Ang Suga, the pre-war
Cebuano newspaper by Vicente Sotto, published his first poem in 1906. His collections of poems are published in five books:
1. Balangaw: Mga Katapusang Tinulo sa Dagang ni Floripinas (Rainbow: Last Drops from the Pen of Floripinas)
2. Balangaw: Pungpong sa mga balak ni Floripinas ug Ubang mga magbabalak nga Bisaya kinsang mga sinulat ilang
gipahinungod kang Floripinas (Rainbow: Collected poems by Floripinas and Other poets who have dedicated
poems to Floripinas)
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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5. Kasingkasing sa mga Balak: Pungpong sa mga Balak (Heart of the Poet: Collected Poems)
15. Impact - He was credited for the invention of sonanoy, a Cebuano poetic form akin to the English sonnet, although
alternative etymology was sonata nga mananoy (harmonious melody) due to the non-adherence to the sonnet's poetic
structure. The innovation utilized in sonanoy influenced the works of next generations of Cebuano poets.[ According to
critic Marjorie Evasco, "The themes of Buyser's poetry lay very much within the tradition of pastoral and Romantic poetry
where nature and the ordinary lives of ordinary people were celebrated. Buyser also wrote about the problems of human
emotion and sentiment, but his mode of approach was influenced by the techniques of illustrative metaphor and of
argument employed by the poets of the late English Renaissance.
4. Vicente Rama
1. (June 6, 1887 – December 24, 1956) was a Filipino Visayan legislator, publisher, and writer from Cebu, Philippines.
Recognized as the Father of Cebu City,[1] he authored the bill for its cityhood which was approved into law by October 20,
1936. He also founded the leading pre-war Cebuano periodical, Bag-ong Kusog.
2. Early life - Vicente Rama, also known with the honorific title, Don Vicente and Nyor Inting, was born in Cebu, Philippines on
June 6, 1887. He was the eldest child of Bernabe "Abi" Raffiñan and Engilberta "Iya Bita" Ramas, who was the child of
Laurente Ramas and Juana Enguio from Naga. He carried the last name "Rama" later on in life, providing no hint why he
decided to drop its last letter. His mother, who managed a copra-tobacco brokerage, named him after St. Vincent Ferrer
and raised him and his sister, Susana, as a single parent.
Upon the death of his father from diabetes mellitus, the same illness he would be afflicted with in his later years, he
received a parcel of land. However, he seemed to have either ignored or forgotten the inheritance.
3. Education - Rama attended the Seminario-Colegio de San Carlos, now known as the University of San Carlos, from 1904 until
1908, and he excelled at school. After his graduation, Rama went to Manila for further studies as was the practice among
children of prominent families. It was also perceived as a positive attainment to possess when applying for jobs. Attending
the Escuela de Derecho de Manila in 1908, he graduated with a law degree in 1910, and he did not proceed to take the bar
exam to become a lawyer.
4. Personal life and family - Rama married Catalina (Aquilana) Genson, and the couple had 16 children: physician and Cebu
Governor Osmundo, commissioner and journalist Napoleon, Cebu City Councilor Clemente, lawyer Jesus, Fernando,
Lourdes, Laurente, Reynalda, Corazon, Resurreccion, Marianela, Dario, and Miguel. Three of the 16 offspring did not survive
childhood. The family moved from Pahina, San Nicolas to a three-hectare farm lot in Basak.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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He disciplined his children and avoided using his influence in their behalf. For instance, he did not intervene when one of his
children spent a night in jail after being involved in an altercation. Also, he did not allow his wife to use any government-
owned vehicles. He insisted that his children put more effort into their studies, and had all of his daughters sent to school
when it was customary for families to do so only with their male children.
5. Career in journalism - Rama was one of the pioneers in Cebuano journalism and literature at a time when the use of
Cebuano language in the media was peaking and the Spanish language was waning as a lingua franca. He became a
newspaper editor at age 15 and began publishing in 1906. In 1908, he was a staff member of Spanish periodical El Precursor
that was founded by election lawyer Domingo Franco and printed from 1907 until 1941. Later on, Mariano Jesus Cuenco
took over its ownership. In addition, he edited several publications including Kauswagan that was founded by Francisco
Labrador from 1912 until 1914. Likewise, he edited Vicente Sotto's Cebuano newspaper, Ang Suga (The Light), and Luz de
Vizaya, and wrote for El Renacimiento, La Democracia, and Libertas.
In May 2, 1915, he established the bilingual periodical Nuerva Fuerza, which later on became a mainly Cebuano weekly Bag-
ong Kusog (New Force). Rama was assisted by circulation manager Felipe Tabasa, and editors Julio Pongan and Eustaquio B.
Gonzales, among others. Bag-ong Kusog was one of the periodicals that enjoyed popularity and wide readership in
Cebuano-speaking provinces of Visayas and Mindanao, as well as among immigrants in Hawaii. Its contents dealt with
public life of pre-war Cebuanos and the worrying decline towards observance of attitudes and tradition dating back to the
time of Spanish colonization and the encroaching secularism brought by the American colonizers. Rama's published works
encompassed various topics such as public service, Cebuano language, and literary arts.
Between 1928 and 1934, Rama also ran an English-language weekly Progress. A sister publication of Bag-ong Kusog,
Progress was launched on December 2, 1928. Later on, it became a daily starting December 22, 1929. Additionally, it was
suspended from operation from May 15, 1931 until November 22, 1931.
6. Cebuano literature - Other than being a newspaperman, Rama wrote non-fiction, poems, short stories and novels using
pseudonyms like Datu Dakila, Kolas Tabian, Justo Recio Recto, Mahomet Ben Yakub, Rectum Clarum. He printed two story
collections: Larawan (Portrait) in 1921 and Aegri Somnia in 1922, and he also penned Sa Bung-aw sa mga Kasal-anan (On
the Precipice of Transgression), which was a novel serialized in Bag-ong Kusog from 1933 to 1934, Ang Tinagoan (The
Secret), also a novel that was printed from August 18, 1933 to March 9, 1934, and an adaptation of Jose Rizal's novel.
His newspaper, Bag-ong Kusog, also published the works of creative writers. It printed Lourdes, a novel by Gardeopatra
Gador Quijano, the first ever feminist novel written in Cebuano.
Even after Bag-ong Kusog failed to release new issues after World War II, he continued to write. In 1947, he finished the
novel Donya Marcosa and a year after, Ang Silot ni Bathala (God's Punishment). Resil Mojares on his critique of Rama's work
wrote, "Rama was not just a publisher. In and out of Bag-ong Kusog, he was a prolific writer of novels, short stories, poems,
editorials, columns and essays. What is most striking about his writings is their contemporaneity.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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7. Political career - His political career was launched when he won a seat in the municipal council of Cebu on June 16, 1916.
Then, he was elected as representative of the third congressional district of Cebu and served three terms: 1922-1925, 1925-
1928, and 1934-1935. He won as assemblyman in the fourth district of Cebu and became a member of the first National
Assembly in 1935.
8. After his bill was approved to transform Cebu from a municipality to a chartered city, he was appointed as Inaugural Mayor
of Cebu City and took oath before President Manuel L. Quezon at Malacañang Palace from 1938 to 1940. He replaced
Alfredo V. Jacinto, the first municipal mayor of Cebu City and former provincial treasurer of Cebu. Rama later resigned as
mayor in order to run for senator in 1940.
9. From 1916 to 1935, all senators were voted into office from 12 senatorial districts. By November 11, 1941, Rama ran for a
seat in the senate in the national elections. He won, receiving overwhelming electorate support in Cebu, and placing first in
Bohol and third in Davao. The outbreak of World War II prevented him and the rest of elected senators from serving their
term. During the war, he was appointed acting mayor of Carcar on May 15, 1942.
10. Rama was known to be skilled at public speaking, fluent in Spanish and English. After he retired, he wrote on the various
highlights of his political life.
5. Vicente Gullas
1. was a Filipino Visayan writer, lawyer, and educator from Cebu, Philippines. Founder of the Visayan Institute, he introduced
innovation in educational system through the establishment of working student and study-now-pay-later schemes and of
satellite schools to allow students from locations outside Cebu City. In 2019, he was hailed as one of the top 100 Cebuano
personalities.
As a writer, he published three editions of the English-Cebuano-Spanish dictionary, wrote poems that were printed in the
Cebuano periodical, Ang Suga, and published the 1938 historical fiction, Lapu-lapu: Ang Nagbuntog Kang Magellan (Lapu-
lapu: The Conqueror of Magellan), which was republished in 2007.
2. Early life and education - Vicente Gullas was born to Herminigildo Gullas and Necifora Arandia in Cebu City on January 12,
1888.[3] His brother, Paulino Gullas, was the first Cebuano to top the bar exams who perished during World War II.
His parents were of modest means, and he worked to pay for his high school studies such as getting employed as a clerk
and checker on shipping vessels operating in Cebu [Link] attended San Nicolas Elementary School, Seminario de San
Carlos, Cebu High School, and Manila High School.
As a working student, he excelled in school and became known as a skilled public speaker, becoming president of Cebu
Debating Club three times and of Manila's Rizal Debating Club. Upon moving in Manila, he became a reporter while
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
46
continuing his education and attended Manila High School in 1909 where he was schoolmates with Jose Laurel, Manuel
Roxas, and Elpidio Quirino.
He acquired his law degree at the University of the Philippines. In his time, students can take the bar examination without
completing the four-year curriculum of Bachelor of Laws. He took and passed the exams when he was a junior student and
became a lawyer on
3. Career – Educator - While he started practicing law as a profession, he shifted focus on education. He founded and became
the president of Visayan Institute in 1919. In October 1, 1921, he transformed the management of the school from sole
proprietorship to a non-stock corporation and invited friends as its incorporators such as Pantaleon E. Del Rosario, Manuel
C. Briones, Eugenio S. del Rosario, and his brother Paulino.
Renamed as the University of the Visayas in 1948, it was the first university in Cebu and the biggest school in Central
Visayas in his time. With the advocacy of providing education to students from average-income to low-income families, it
introduced innovations in the educational system such as the availability of evening classes for high school and college
students, working student programs, study-now-pay-later scheme, and establishment of satellite schools in locations
outside of Cebu City.
4. Writer - He was a writer in English and Cebuano and authored books on law, education, and civics. His poems were
published in Vicente Sotto's Ang Suga. Moreover, he published a Cebuano-English-Spanish dictionary that was printed for
three editions from 1935 to 1953. In 1938, he published the novel of historical fiction, Lapu-lapu: Ang Nagbuntog Kang
Magellan (Lapu-lapu: The Conqueror of Magellan). The book was relaunched on March 12, 2007, with introduction and
annotation by Resil Mojares and English translation by Erlinda K. Alburo. Critic Alfred A. Yuson commented that the novel
was a fictional biography of Lapu-lapu that "merged moralistic teachings with a near-mythic tale of Lapu-lapu's growth as a
young boy of athletic prowess and dauntless courage."
5. Publications
3. Lapu-lapu: Ang Nagbuntog Kang Magellan (Lapu-lapu: The Conqueror of Magellan) (2007)
APPLY
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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With all the information you have read about Cebuano writers and their contribution, let us try to value and show appreciation to what they have
contributed to Philippine Literature.
Choose one of writers and make a song, an essay or a poem/balak to be dedicated to him/her. Video record yourself while presenting your work,
upload it on our facebook group. Make sure to write your piece on the space provided below.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Assess
Analysis Writing: With all the big names of Cebuano writers listed above and their given information, write your thoughts, insights of what is the
state or condition of Cebuano Literature in this present day? How significant and relevant it is in this modern time. Does it represent the Cebuano
way of producing such masterpiece in the world of Literature?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Module 2
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Content Standards
The learner will be able to understand and appreciate the elements and contexts of 21st century Philippine
literature from the regions.
Performance Standards
The learner will be able to demonstrate understanding and appreciation of 21st Century Philippine
literature from the regions through: 1. a written close analysis and critical interpretation of a literary text in terms of
form and theme, with a description of its context derived from research; and 2. an adaptation of a text into other
creative forms using multimedia.
Learning Competencies:
1. Compare and contrast the various 21st century literary genres and the ones from the earlier genres/periods
citing their elements, structures and traditions
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Course Title 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Mod 2 – Lesson 1
Number of Hours 4
Required Suggested
3.
Learning Resources
2. Students shall read and understand the lesson content under “Explore”.
3. Students read the text and answer the following questions under “Apply”.
Learning Activity
4. Students shall perform the task under “Assess”.
5. Students shall submit their work through any of the following: messenger(picture), email, softcopy, or hardcopy
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Engage
Story telling is fun, people tend to do it most of the time during gathering regardless with the occasion. Write a short narrative of
you most memorable moment.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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What is a narrative?
According to WordWeb digital dictionary, a narrative reffers to a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course
of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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2. Characters - Characters include main characters, subordinate or supporting characters and minor characters.
3. Plot - The plot is the way in which the story develops and includes goals of the characters, obstacles they face and significant
turning points.
4. Settings - The setting includes geographical location and other facets about where the story occurs, such as in the forest or in a
small town.
The narrative below was entitled “Father goes to court” by Carlos Bulosan. This selection was taken from the book World of
Literatyre, Authored by Rebbeca D. Alcantara, Josefina Q. Cabanilla, and Alejandro J. Casambre, published by Katha publishing
Cp.,Inc.
This selection is about a family with a high sense for th enjoyment of living.
When I was four, I lived with my mother and brothers and sisters in a small town on the island of Luzon. Father’s farm had been
destroyed in 1918 by one of our sudden Philippine floods, so several years afterwards we all lived in the town though he preferred
living in the country. We had as a next door neighbor a very rich man, whose sons and daughters seldom came out of the house.
While we boys and girls played and sang in the sun, his children stayed inside and kept the windows closed. His house was so tall
that his children could look in the window of our house and watched us played, or slept, or ate, when there was any food in the
house to eat.
Now, this rich man’s servants were always frying and cooking something good, and the aroma of the food was wafted down to us
form the windows of the big house. We hung about and took all the wonderful smells of the food into our beings. Sometimes, in the
morning, our whole family stood outside the windows of the rich man’s house and listened to the musical sizzling of thick strips of
bacon or ham. I can remember one afternoon when our neighbor’s servants roasted three chickens. The chickens were young and
tender and the fat that dripped into the burning coals gave off an enchanting odor. We watched the servants turn the beautiful birds
and inhaled the heavenly spirit that drifted out to us.
Some days the rich man appeared at a window and glowered down at us. He looked at us one by one, as though he were
condemning us. We were all healthy because we went out in the sun and bathed in the cool water of the river that flowed from the
mountains into the sea. Sometimes we wrestled with one another in the house before we went to play. We were always in the best
of spirits and our laughter was contagious. Other neighbours who passed by our house often stopped in our yard and joined us in
laughter.
As time went on, the rich man’s children became thin and anaemic, while we grew even more robust and full of life. Our faces were
bright and rosy, but theirs were pale and sad. The rich man started to cough at night; then he coughed day and night. His wife began
coughing too. Then the children started to cough, one after the other. At night their coughing sounded like the barking of a herd of
seals. We hung outside their windows and listened to them. We wondered what happened. We knew that they were not sick from
the lack of nourishment because they were still always frying something delicious to eat.
One day the rich man appeared at a window and stood there a long time. He looked at my sisters, who had grown fat in laughing,
then at my brothers, whose arms and legs were like the molave, which is the sturdiest tree in the Philippines. He banged down the
window and ran through his house, shutting all the windows.
From that day on, the windows of our neighbour’s house were always closed. The children did not come out anymore. We could still
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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hear the servants cooking in the kitchen, and no matter how tight the windows were shut, the aroma of the food came to us in the
wind and drifted gratuitously into our house.
One morning a policeman from the presidencia came to our house with a sealed paper. The rich man had filed a complaint against
us. Father took me with him when he went to the town clerk and asked him what it was about. He told Father the man claimed that
for years we had been stealing the spirit of his wealth and food.
When the day came for us to appear in court, father brushed his old Army uniform and borrowed a pair of shoes from one of my
brothers. We were the first to arrive. Father sat on a chair in the centre of the courtroom. Mother occupied a chair by the door. We
children sat on a long bench by the wall. Father kept jumping up from his chair and stabbing the air with his arms, as though we
were defending himself before an imaginary jury.
The rich man arrived. He had grown old and feeble; his face was scarred with deep lines. With him was his young lawyer. Spectators
came in and almost filled the chairs. The judge entered the room and sat on a high chair. We stood in a hurry and then sat down
again.
After the courtroom preliminaries, the judge looked at the Father. “Do you have a lawyer?” he asked.
The rich man’s lawyer jumped up and pointed his finger at Father. “Do you or you do not agree that you have been stealing the spirit
of the complaint’s wealth and food?”
“Do you or do you not agree that while the complaint’s servants cooked and fried fat legs of lamb or young chicken breast you and
your family hung outside his windows and inhaled the heavenly spirit of the food?”
“Do you or do you not agree that while the complaint and his children grew sickly and tubercular you and your family became strong
of limb and fair in complexion?”
Father got up and paced around, scratching his head thoughtfully. Then he said, “I would like to see the children of complaint,
Judge.”
They came in shyly. The spectators covered their mouths with their hands, they were so amazed to see the children so thin and pale.
The children walked silently to a bench and sat down without looking up. They stared at the floor and moved their hands uneasily.
Father could not say anything at first. He just stood by his chair and looked at them. Finally he said, “I should like to cross – examine
the complaint.”
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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“Proceed.”
“Do you claim that we stole the spirit of your wealth and became a laughing family while yours became morose and sad?” Father
said.
“Yes.”
“Do you claim that we stole the spirit of your food by hanging outside your windows when your servants cooked it?” Father said.
“Yes.”
“Then we are going to pay you right now,” Father said. He walked over to where we children were sitting on the bench and took my
straw hat off my lap and began filling it up with centavo pieces that he took out of his pockets. He went to Mother, who added a
fistful of silver coins. My brothers threw in their small change.
“May I walk to the room across the hall and stay there for a few minutes, Judge?” Father said.
“Thank you,” father said. He strode into the other room with the hat in his hands. It was almost full of coins. The doors of both
rooms were wide open.
The sweet tinkle of the coins carried beautifully in the courtroom. The spectators turned their faces toward the sound with wonder.
Father came back and stood before the complaint.
“Did you hear it?” he asked.
“Hear what?” the man asked.
“The spirit of the money when I shook this hat?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Then you are paid,” Father said.
The rich man opened his mouth to speak and fell to the floor without a sound. The lawyer rushed to his aid. The judge pounded his
gravel.
“Case dismissed.” He said.
Father strutted around the courtroom the judge even came down from his high chair to shake hands with him. “By the way,” he
whispered, “I had an uncle who died laughing.”
“You like to hear my family laugh, Judge?” Father asked?
“Why not?”
“Did you hear that children?” father said.
My sisters started it. The rest of us followed them soon the spectators were laughing with us, holding their bellies and bending over
the chairs. And the laughter of the judge was the loudest of all.
Application
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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2. Who are the characters of the story and what are their charateristics and behaviours?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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The second narrative selection presented below was taken from Marikit Tara A. Uychoco’s 21 st Century Literature from the
Philippnes and the World, published by Rex’s Book store.
From the street, it is one box among many. Beneath terracotta roof tiles baking uniformly in the sweltering noon the building/s grey
concrete face stares out impassively in straight lines and angles. Its walls are high and wide, as good walls should be. A four-storey
building with four units to a floor. At dusk, the square glass windows glitter like the compound eyes of insects, revealing little of what
happens inside. There is not much else to see.
And so this house seems in every way identical to all the other houses in all the thirty-odd other buildings nestled within the gates of
this complex. It is the First Lady’s pride and joy, a housing project designed for genteel middle class living. There is a clubhouse, a
swimming pool, a tennis court. A few residents drive luxury cars. People walk purebred dogs in the morning. Trees shade the narrow
paths and the flowering hedges that border each building give the neighborhood a hushed, cozy feel. It is easy to get lost here.
But those who need to come here know what to look for-the swinging gate, the twisting butterfly tree, the cyclone-wire fence. A
curtained window glows with the yellow light of a lamp perpetually left on. Visitors count the steps up each flight of stairs. They do
not stumble in the dark. They know which door will be opened to them, day or night. They will be fed, sometimes given money.
Wounds will be treated, bandages changed. They carry nothing-no books, no bags, or papers. What they do bring is locked inside
their heads, the safest of places. They arrive one at a time, or in couples, over a span of several hours. They are careful not to attract
attention. They listen for the reassuring yelps of squabbling children before they raise their hands to knock.
It is 1982. The girl who lives here does not care too much for the people who visit. She is five. Two uncles and an aunt dropped by
the other day. Three aunts and two uncles slept over the night before. It is impossible to remember all of them. There are too many
names, too many faces. And they all look the same-too tall, too old, too serious, too many. They surround the small dining table, the
yellow lamp above throwing and tilting shadows against freshly-painted cream walls.
They crowd the already cramped living room with their books and papers, hissing at her to keep quiet, they are talking about
important things. So she keeps quiet. The flock of new relatives recedes into the background as she fights with her brother over who
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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gets to sit closer to the television. It is tuned in to Sesame Street on Channel 9. The small black and white screen makes Ernie and
Bert shiver and glow like ghosts. Many of these visitors she will never see again. If she does, she will probably not remember them.
She wakes up one night. Through the thin walls, she hears the visitors arguing. She can easily pick out one particular uncle’s voice,
rumbling through the dark like thunder. He is one of her newer relatives, having arrived only that morning. All grown-ups are tall but
this new uncle is a giant who towers over everyone else. His big feet look pale in their rubber slippers, a band-aid where each toenail
should have been. He never takes off his dark glasses, not even at night. She wonders if he can see in the dark. Maybe he has laser
vision like Superman. Or, maybe-like a pirate, he has only one eye. She presses her ear against the wall. If she closes her eyes and
listens carefully, she can make out the words: sundalo, kasama, talahib. The last word she hears clearly is katawan. The visitors are
now quiet but still she cannot sleep. From the living room, there are sounds like small animals crying.
She comes home from school the next day to see the visitors crowded around the television. She wants to change the channel,
watch the late afternoon cartoons but they wave her away. The grown-up’s are all quiet. Something is different. Something is about
to explode. So she stays away, peering up at them from under the dining table. On the TV screen is the President, hisface glowing
blue and wrinkly like an-old monkeys. His voice wavers in the afternoon air, sharp and high like the sound of something breaking.
The room erupts in a volley of curses: Humanda ka na, Makoy! Mamatay ka! Pinapatay mo asawa ko! Mamamatay ka rin P
%t@ng*n@ ka! Humanda ka, papatayin din kita!The girl watches quietly from under the table. She is trying very hard not to blink.
It is 1983. They come more often now. They begin to treat the apartment like their own house. They hold meetings under the guise
of children’s parties. Every week, someone’s son or daughter has a birthday. The girl and her brother often make a game of sitting on
the limp balloons always floating in inch from the floor. The small explosions like-guns going off. She wonders why her mother serves
the visitors dusty beer bottles that are never opened.
She is surprised to see the grownups playing make-believe out on the balcony. Her new uncles pretend to drink from the unopened
bottles and begin a Laughing Game. Whoever laughs loudest wins. She thinks her mother plays the game badly because instead of
joining in. Her mother is always crying quietly in the kitchen. Sometimes the girl sits beside her mother on the floor, listening to
words she doesn’t really understand: Underground, resolution, taxes, bills. She plays with her mother’s hair while the men on the
balcony continue their game. When she falls asleep, they are still laughing.
The mother leaves the house soon after. She will never return. The two children now spend most afternoons playing with their
neighbors. After an hour of hide-and-seek, the girl comes home one day to find the small apartment even smaller. Something heavy
hangs in the air like smoke. Dolls and crayons and storybooks fight for space with plans and papers piled on the tables. Once, she
finds a drawing of a triangle and recognizes a word: class. She thinks of typhoons and floods and no classes.
The visitors keep reading from a small red book, which they hide under their clothes when sheapproached. She tries to see why they
like it so much. Maybe it also has good pictures like the books her father brought home from, China. Her favorite has zoo animals
working together to build a new bridge after the river had swallowed the old one. She sneaks a look over their shoulders and sees a
picture of a fat Chinese man wearing a cap. Spiky shapes run up and down the page. She walks away disappointed. She sits in the
balcony and reads another picture book from China. It is about a girl who cuts her hair to help save her village from Japanese
soldiers. The title is Mine Warfare.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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It is 1984. The father is arrested right outside their house. It happens one August afternoon, with all the neighbors watching. They
look at the uniformed men with cropped hair and shiny boots. Guns bulging under their clothes. Everyone is quiet afraid to make a
sound. The handcuffs shine like silver in the sun. When the soldiers drive away, the murmuring begins. Words like insects escaping
from cupped hands. It grows louder and fills the sky. It is like this whenever disaster happens. When fire devours a house two streets
away, people in the compound come out to stand on their balconies. Everyone points at the pillar of smoke rising from the horizon.
This is the year she and her brother come to live with their grandparents, having no parents to care for them at home. The
grandparents tell them a story of lovebirds: Soldiers troop into their house one summer day in 1974. Yes, balasang k4 this very same
house. Muddy boots on the bridge over the koi pond, strangers poking guns through the water lilies. They are looking for guns and
papers, they are ready to destroy the house. Before the colonel can give his order, they see The Aviary. A small sunlit room with a
hundred lovebirds twittering inside. A rainbow of colors. Eyes like tiny glass beads. One soldier opens the aviary door, releases a
flurry of wings and feathers. Where are they now? the girl asks. The birds are long gone, the grandparents say, eaten by a wayward
cat. But as you can see, the soldiers are still here. The two children watch them at their father’s court trials. A soldier waves a guru
says it is their father’s. He stutters while explaining why the gun has his own name on it.
They visit her father at his new house in Camp Crame. It is a long walk from the gate, past wide green lawns. In the hot surrey
everything looks green. There are soldiers everywhere. Papa lives in that long low building under the armpit of the big gymnasium.
Because the girl can write her name, the guards make her sign the big notebooks. She writes her name so many times, the S gets
tired and curls on its side to sleep. She enters amaze the size of the playground at school, but with tall barriers making her turn left,
right, left, right. Barbed wire forms a dense jungle around the detention center. She meets other children there: some just visiting,
others lucky enough to stay with their parents all the time.
On weekends, the girl sleeps in her father’s cell. There is a double-deck bed and a chair. A noisy electric fan stirs the muggy air.
There, she often gets nightmares about losing her home: She would be walking down the paths, under the trees of their compound,
past the row of stores, the same grey buildings. She turns a corner and finds a swamp or a rice paddy where her real house should
be.
One night, she dreams of war. She comes home from school to find a blood orange sky where bedroom and living room should be.
The creamy walls are gone. Broken plywood and planks swing crazily in what used to be the dining room. Nothing in the kitchen but
a sea green refrigerator; paint and rust flaking off in patches as large as thumbnails. To make her home livable again, she paints it
blue and pink and yellow. She knows she has to work fast. Before night falls, she has painted a sun, a moon and a star on the red
floor. So she would have light. Each painted shape is as big as a bed. In the dark, she curls herself over the crescent moon on the
floor and waits for [Link] is no one else in the dream.
Years later, when times are different, she will think of those visitors and wonder about them. By then, she will know they aren’t
really relatives, and had told her namesnot really their own. To a grownup, an old friend’s face can never really change; in achild’s
fluid memory, it can take any shape. She believes that-people stay alive so long as another chooses to remember them. But she
cannot help those visitors even in that small way. She grows accustomed to the smiles of middle aged strangers on the street, who
talk about how it was when she was thishigh. She learns not to mind the enforced closeness, sometimes even smiles back. But she
does not really know them. Though she understands the fire behind their words, she remains a stranger to their world’ she has
never read the little red book.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Late one night, she will hear someone knocking on the [Link] is a different door now, made from solid varnished mahogany blocks.
The old chocolate brown ply board that kept them safe all those years ago has long since yielded to warp and weather. She will look
through the peephole and see a face last seen fifteen years before. It is older, ravaged but somehow same. She willbe surprised to
even remember the name that goes with it. By then, the girl would know about danger, and will not know whom to trust. No house,
not even this one, is safe enough.
The door will be opened a crack. He will ask about her father, she will say he no longer lives there. As expected, he will look
surprised and disappointed. She may even read a flash of fear before his face wrinkles into a smile. He will apologize, step back.
Before he disappears into the shadowy corridor, she will notice his worn rubber slippers, the mud caked between his toes. His heavy
bag. She knows he has nowhere else to go. Still, she will shut the door and push the bolt firmly into place.
Application
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2. Who are the characters of the story and what are their charateristics and behaviours?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Assess
1. Venn Diagram: How do the two selections given above differ from developing structure of each element of narrative?
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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2. In your own opinion, as 21st century reader, what do you think are the gaps interms of literary content between the two selections
presented above?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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3. Do both selections have a touch and essence of a Filipino work? Why or why not?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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4. From your own perspective, and based from your experience in reading the 2 selection, which from the 2 selections do you
consider as unique and artistic?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Course Title 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Mod 2 – Lesson 2
Number of Hours 4
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Required Suggested
4.
9. Students shall read and understand the lesson content under “Explore”.
10. Students read the text and answer the following questions under “Apply”.
Learning Activity
11. Students shall perform the task under “Assess”.
12. Students shall submit their work through any of the following: messenger(picture), email, softcopy, or hardcopy
13. Questions from students shall be entertained anytime through class chat.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
69
Engage
Identify the figure of speech used in each sentence below. (Metaphor, Simile, Personification, Hyperbole)
_________5. Men's words are bullets that their enemies take up and make use of against them.
_________8. There had been no rain for months and all the crops were death. Some parts of the farm were beginning to look like a
desert.
_________10. Everyone wanted Ken on the swim team because he could swim like a fish.
Explore
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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According [Link] in their article about literary devices, this refers to various elements and techniques
used in writing that construct the whole of your literature to create an intended perception of the writing for the reader.
While these are very common types of literary elements, there are many more you can use to make your writing stand out in
comparison to others.
Although the term “literary devices” can be a wee bit intimidating, they’re actually pretty simple.
In fact, you’re likely using a ton when writing your book that you don’t even know you’re utilizing—and we’ll touch on which those
are in a little bit.
1. Symbolism - is when an author uses an object or reference to add deeper meaning to their story.
e. Imagery can arouse the sense of touch: “snow falling on your nose.”
3. Figures of Speech - a word or phrase used in a non-literal sense for rhetorical or vivid effect.
a. Simile - two unlike things are explicitly compared. For example, “She is like a fairy”. A simile is introduced by words such
as like, so, as etc.
b. METAPHOR - It is an informal or implied simile in which words like, as, so are omitted. For example, “He is like a lion
(Simile) “and “He is a lion (metaphor)”. In the following examples, metaphors are underlined.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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2. The childhood of the world; the anger of the tempest; the deceitfulness of the riches: wine is a mocker.
c. Personification - is an attribution of personal nature, intelligence or character to inanimate objects or abstract notions.
For example, in some phrases we use, the furious storm, the thirsty ground, and the pitiless cold. Some other examples are:
d. Hyperbole - is a statement made emphatic by overstatement. For example, “Virtues as the sands of the shore.”
e. Euphemism - By using the euphemism, we speak in agreeable and favorable terms of some person, object or event which
is ordinarily considered unpleasant and disagreeable. For example,
f. Irony or sarcasm - In this mode of speech, the real meanings of the words used are different from the intended meanings.
For example, the child of cobbler has no shoe.
g. Metonymy is meant for a change of name. It is a substitute of the thing names for the thing meant. Following examples
will clarify the concept.
These are some common figures of speech listed from [Link]. If you want to learn more of these, just visit the website
and take time to familiarize them.
Poetry
What is a poem?
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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In this part of the module we will be reading and studying how authors used literary devices sush as listed above to produce an
artistic, and one-of-a-kind poem.
Naunsyaming pag-asa
by Leona Florentino
Ako'y nagmamahal
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Ng aking kapanganakan,
Apply
Instruction: Pick out lines from the poem presented above and label it with the appropriate literary device term. Refer to the topic
on pages 54 to 55.
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2.___________________________________________________________________________________
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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3.___________________________________________________________________________________
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The next selection that you will be reading is a one of a kind in the genre of poetry. This generation calls it Spoken word poetry.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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This piece was taken out from [Link], posted by vio_girl. A Spoken word poetry written by Juan Miguel Severo entitled “Ang
Nag-iisa”
Ang Nag-iisa
“Ibibigay ko sa iyo ang iyong hiling kung tatanggapin mo ang alok kong sugal.
Kailangan mong languyin ang pinakamalalim na ilog ng lungkot at hindi ka dapat lumubog.”
lumangoy patungo sa dalampasigan ng saya at nang umahon siya mula sa kanyang sugal,
ang pagmamahal.
Sa unang pagkakataon,
maligaya,
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Kasabay nito ay dumating ang isang malakas na unos na nilunod ang lupa sa baha.
sa wakas,
Hindi ba’t mas tinataya natin ang lahat kapag hindi tayo sumugal?
Apply
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Instruction: Pick out lines from the poem presented above and label it with the appropriate literary device term. Refer to the topic
on pages 54 to 55.
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2.___________________________________________________________________________________
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3.___________________________________________________________________________________
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4.___________________________________________________________________________________
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5.___________________________________________________________________________________
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Assess
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1980. 431–32. Print.
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1. From you own understanding, what makes Tradional Poem different from Spoken word peotry?
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2. Which do you think is much better the Traditional Poem of the Spoken word poetry? And why?
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3. How do literary devices were used in these poem, and how it help the poem to be artistically good?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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4. Do these literary devices helped you or the readers to relate and comprehend more on the messages they convey? Why or why
not?
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Module 3
Content Standards
The learner will be able to understand and appreciate the elements and contexts of 21st century Philippine
literature from the regions.
Performance Standards
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
The learner will be able to demonstrate understanding and appreciation of 21st Century Philippine literature
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Course Title 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Mod 3 – Lesson 1
Number of Hours 4
Required Suggested
5.
Learning Resources
2. Students shall read and understand the lesson content under “Explore”.
3. Students read the text and answer the following questions under “Apply”.
Learning Activity
4. Students shall perform the task under “Assess”.
5. Students shall submit their work through any of the following: messenger(picture), email, softcopy, or hardcopy
1. Discuss how different contexts enhance the text’s meaning and enrich the reader’s understanding
Target Competency
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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PRISCILA S. MANSUETO,LPT,D.M.
Learning Competencies
Explore
Is a view or opinion on what a particular written work means. It is about the meanings that a reader finds in an author's literature.
The first approach of literary criticism we will study in the “Reader’s Response Approach”.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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According to [Link] in their web modular in Literary Analysis ( refer to this link: [Link] )
Reader-response criticism is a school of literary theory that focuses on the reader (or “audience”) and their experience
of a literary work, in contrast to other schools and theories that focus attention primarily on the author or the content
and form of the work.
Although literary theory has long paid some attention to the reader’s role in creating the meaning and experience of a
literary work, modern reader-response criticism began in the 1960s and ’70s, particularly in the US and Germany, in
work by Norman Holland, Stanley Fish, Wolfgang Iser, Hans-Robert Jauss, Roland Barthes, and others.
Reader-response theory recognizes the reader as an active agent who imparts “real existence” to the work and
completes its meaning through interpretation. Reader-response criticism argues that literature should be viewed as a
performing art in which each reader creates their own, possibly unique, text-related performance. It stands in total
opposition to the theories of formalism and the New Criticism.
There is no right or wrong answer to a reading response. Nonetheless, it is important that you demonstrate an
understanding of the reading and clearly explain and support your reactions. Do not use the standard approach of just
writing: “I liked this text because it is so cool and the ending made me feel happy,” or “I hated it because it was stupid,
and had nothing at all to do with my life, and was too negative and boring.” In writing a response you may assume the
reader has already read the text. Thus, do not summarize the contents of the text at length. Instead, take a systematic,
analytical approach to the text.
Write as a Scholar
When writing a reader-response write as an educated adult addressing other adults or fellow scholars. As a beginning
scholar, if you write that something has nothing to do with you or does not pass your “Who cares?” test, but many other
people think that it is important and great, readers will probably not agree with you that the text is dull or boring.
Instead, they may conclude that you are dull and boring, that you are too immature or uneducated to understand what
important things the author wrote.
If you did not like a text, that is fine, but criticize it either from:
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Choosing a text to study is the first step in writing a reader-response essay. Once you have chosen the text, your
challenge is to connect with it and have a “conversation” with the text.
In the beginning paragraph of your reader-response essay, be sure to mention the following:
1. title of the work to which you are responding;
2. the author; and
3. the main thesis of the text.
Then, do your best to answer the questions below. Remember, however, that you are writing an essay, not filling out a
short-answer worksheet. You do not need to work through these questions in order, one by one, in your essay. Rather,
your paper as a whole should be sure to address these questions in some way.
1. What does the text have to do with you, personally, and with your life (past, present or future)? It is not
acceptable to write that the text has NOTHING to do with you, since just about everything humans can write has
to do in some way with every other human.
2. How much does the text agree or clash with your view of the world, and what you consider right and wrong? Use
several quotes as examples of how it agrees with and supports what you think about the world, about right and
wrong, and about what you think it is to be human. Use quotes and examples to discuss how the text disagrees
with what you think about the world and about right and wrong.
3. What did you learn, and how much were your views and opinions challenged or changed by this text, if at
all? Did the text communicate with you? Why or why not? Give examples of how your views might have
changed or been strengthened (or perhaps, of why the text failed to convince you, the way it is). Please do not
write “I agree with everything the author wrote,” since everybody disagrees about something, even if it is a tiny
point. Use quotes to illustrate your points of challenge, or where you were persuaded, or where it left you cold.
4. How well does the text address things that you, personally, care about and consider important to the
world? How does it address things that are important to your family, your community, your ethnic group, to
people of your economic or social class or background, or your faith tradition? If not, who does or did the text
serve? Did it pass the “Who cares?” test? Use quotes from the text to illustrate.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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5. What can you praise about the text? What problems did you have with it? Reading and writing “critically” does
not mean the same thing as “criticizing,” in everyday language (complaining or griping, fault-finding, nit-picking).
Your “critique” can and should be positive and praise the text if possible, as well as pointing out problems,
disagreements and shortcomings.
6. How well did you enjoy the text (or not) as entertainment or as a work of art? Use quotes or examples to
illustrate the quality of the text as art or entertainment. Of course, be aware that some texts are not meant to
be entertainment or art: a news report or textbook, for instance, may be neither entertaining nor artistic, but
may still be important and successful.
For the conclusion, you might want to discuss:
1. your overall reaction to the text;
2. whether you would read something else like this in the future;
3. whether you would read something else by this author; and
4. if would you recommend read this text to someone else and why.
Key Takeaways
1. In reader-response, the reader is essential to the meaning of a text for they bring the text to life.
2. The purpose of a reading response is examining, explaining, and defending your personal reaction to a text.
3. When writing a reader-response, write as an educated adult addressing other adults or fellow scholars.
4. As a beginning scholar, be cautious of criticizing any text as “boring,” “crazy,” or “dull.” If you do criticize, base
your criticism on the principles and form of the text itself.
5. The challenge of a reader-response is to show how you connected with the text.
Reading Literature.
The selection presented below was taken from Rex’ Book store 21 st Century Literature from Philippines to the World
authored by Marikity Tara A. Uychoco.
Preludes
By Daryll Delgado
Delgado A man died singing. He had sung a total of three songs before he heaved his lastbreath and collaps"d o.r u chair.
It happened at the Municipal Hall. The time was three in theafternoon-. The sun was high. Heat seeped into people's
bones. Tuba warned their blood evenmore. Someone's ninth death anniversary was being celebrated. Another man's life
in that partyended. It ended on a high note. At that very moment, Nenita the wife, was at home, picking leaves for
a medicinal brew. Earlierthat day, Nenita had been lying on the sofa, slipping in and out of an afternoon sleep she
shouldnot have heeded, embracing Willy Revillame in her dreams. She had had n-o plans of taking anap. She had just
wanted to catch a glimpse of Willy after she sent off her grandson for the city, just before she resumed her cooking. At
the sala, she opened the window to let some breeze in. But the air was so dry. Outside it wasvery quiet. Everyone was at
the Hall, to attend the ninth death anniversary of the juez. Most ofthem bore the judge a grudge, but they were all there
anyway, eager to see what kind of feasthis children had prepared. The children had all come home from America and
Europe for thisvery important occasion in the dead man's journey. Nenita herself did not mind the judge really,even if
she had always found him rather severe. It was the wife whom Nenita did not feel verycomfortable with. There had
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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been some very persistent rumors involving the judge's wife thatNenita did not care so much for. As soon as Nenita was
certain that her grandson had left, she positioned the electric fan in frontof her, sat on the sof4 and turned on the TV to
catch the last segment of her favorite show. Thenext thing she knew, Willy Revillame was pulling her into his arms,
soothing her with words ofcondolences, before handing her some cash and offering his left cheek for a kiss. There was
ahuge applause from the studio audience, even if they were all weeping with Willie, shaking theirheads in
[Link] forced herself out of the dream and the motion brought her entire body up and out of thesofa. She
found herself standing in the middle of the sala, face-to-face with a teary-eyed [Link] heart was beating wildly. Her
armpits were soaked in sweat. Her hair bun had comeundone. She looked around guiltily, she thought she heard her
husband swear at her. She felther husband's presence in the living room with her, even if she knew he was at the
deathanniversary parry. She quickly turned off the TV and made her way to the [Link] should not have taken that
nap, Nenita berated herself. There was an urgent order for tendozens of suman she had to deliver the next day, for the
judge's daughters who were leavingright after the anniversary. There was already a pile of pandan leaves on the kitchen
table,waiting to be washed and warmed, for wrapping the sweet sticky rice rolls [Link] had spent all night until early
morning boiling the sticky rice and mixing it with anise,caramel and coconut milk, until her hands trembled and the veins
swelled. By the time she wasalmost done, she had to prepare breakfast and brew a special tea concoction for her
grandsonwho had spent all night drinking. Her grandson had very barely made it home-drunk as a fish,crying out a
woman's name like a fool early that morning.
Nenita then remembered that she also had to prepare the medicinal tea her husband needed totake with his dinner. She
had yet to complete the five different kinds of leaves, Ampalaya,Banaba, Bnyabas, Dumero, Hierba Buena; the last one
she purchases from a man who onlycomes to town on Thursdays. She was getting ready to pick Ampalaya and Bayabas
leavesfrom her garden when she heard her husband's voice again his singing voice. She realized thatthe sound was
coming all the way from the Hall. The sound was very faint, but more thanperceptible, and certainly unmistakable to
[Link] was the only sound she could hear when she stepped out of the house and started picking theleaves. Everything
else around her was quiet and still .It seemed as though the entire town-thedogs, the frogs, and the birds included-had
gone silent for this very rare event her husbandsinging [Link] had not heard her husband sing this way in a very long
time, ever since he became ill-whenthe sugar and alcohol in his blood burned the sides of his heart, almost getting to the
core of [Link] there he would get out of breath when he sang. And he also easily forgot the lyrics,especially to the
Italian classics, and some of the Tagalog Kundiman he used to be very wellknown [Link] herself never understood all
the fuss about her husband's singing, and the fuss hisbrothers and sisters made when he stopped singing. She could not
even understand half of thesongs he sang. They were mostly in ltalian; Spanish, and Tagalog. He rarely sang Bisayasongs,
the ones she could understand, and actually liked, even if she herself could not carry atune to save her life. Thankfully,
their grandson was there to indulge her husband in music [Link] was happier listening to the two of them talk and
sing, and strum guitar strings, from [Link] used to feel slighted whenever her siblings-in-law recalled with such
intense, exaggeratedregret, the way their brilliant brother squandered his money and his talent and oh, all the
wrongdecisions he made along the way. Including, though they would never say directly, his decisionto marry Nenita.
They liked to remind their brothel, themselves, and anyone who cared to listen,of what their brother used to be what he
could have been, whom he could have been married [Link] ceased to mind this, and them, a long time ago. She had
forgiven all of them. They wereall dead now save for one brother who lived in the city. She never stopped praying for
theirsouls, but she was not very sorry that they [Link] knew that her husband was happy the way he was. She
never heard him complain. Hehad nothing to complain about. She took him back every time his affairs with other
womenturned sour. She took care of him when he started getting sick, when the part of his heart thatwas supposed to
beat started merely murmuring and whistling. Thankfully, her friend, theherbalista, had just the right concoction for this
ailment. Even the doctors were delighted withher husband's [Link] took her husband back again when, with
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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the money her in-laws sent for his medicationhe went away to be with one of his women. People say her husband went
to Manila with the judge's widow. Nenita never confirmed this. Nenita never asked- She just took her husbandback.
Nursed him back to health again. After that, tough, Nenita noticed that he spent more andmore time alone, in the toilet.
And when she asked if he needed help with anything, he would just mumble incoherently. So she let him be.
She could have prepared him then that other brew her herbalista friend had suggested at thetime, the one that would
make his balls shrink, give him hallucinations, make his blood boil untilhis veins popped. But she didn't, of [Link] did
buy and continued to keep the packet of dried purple leaves said to be from a rare vinefound only in Mt. Banahaw. She
didn't even know where Mt. Banahaw was, only that it was upthere in the North. She did know that she would never use
the herbs, even if she wanted tokeep, see, touch, and feel the soft lump of leaves in her palm, every now and then. She
derivedsome sense of security, a very calming sense of power, in knowing that she had that littlepacket hidden in one of
the kitchen [Link] listened more closely to her husband's singing. She closed her eyes and trapped herbreath in
her throat, the way she did when she listened to the beats and murmurs of herhusband's heart at night. Listening to the
air that carried her husband's voice this way, shealmost caught the sound of his labored breathing, and his heart's
irregular [Link] was singing a popular Spanish song now about kissing someone for the last time.
Nenitaremembered being told by her husband that that was what it was about. Kiss me more, kiss memore, that was
what the man wanted to tell the woman he loved. Nenita found that she couldenjoy this one; the song was
recognizable. She laughed lightly as she found herself swaying inslow, heavy movements, to the music of her husband's
[Link] started imagining herself as a young woman, dancing with this beautiful dark man whoeventually became her
husband. And then she heard him choke, heave a breath before hesang: Perderte. Long pause. Perderte. Another Pause.
Despises. And then there was applause,in which Nenita joined, still laughing at her silliness. After that, all was quiet
[Link] gathered the leaves and went back inside the house. Just as well, because it wasstarting to be very,
intolerably, hot outside. Certainly hot enough to boil an old man's blood and pop his veins, she thought.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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2. In the story, cite a very disturbing scene and how it affects you as a person and as a male/female?
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3. What are the important lesson you have acquired and learned from the story?
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4. Discuss how you find the connection of text within the story and how it helped develop the content of the story.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Assess
The selection presented below was taken from Rex’ Book store 21 st Century Literature from Philippines to the World
authored by Marikity Tara A. Uychoco.
By the time Vince arrives at the Philippine Airlines departures terminal, it is already bustling with restless souls who,
with their balikbayan boxes, have transformed the terminal into a warehouse, as if they’re returning to the motherland
on a cargo ship rather than Asia’s first airline carrier. Comedians use these durable cardboard boxes as materials for
their Filipino-flavored jokes. “How is the balikbayan box like American Express to Filipinos? Because they never leave
home without it.”
Everywhere Vince turns are boxes, boxes, and. more boxes. Boxes secured by electrical tape and ropes. Boxes with
drawstring covers made from canvas or tarp. Boxes lined up like a fortified wall behind check-in counters or convoying
on squeaky conveyor belts of x-ray machines. Boxes blocking the Mabuhay Express lane for first-and business-class
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
91
passengers. Boxes stacked up on carts right beside coach passengers standing in queues that are straight only at their
starting points before branching out to form more-or converge with other-lines, bottlenecking as they near the ticket
counter.
Boxes that ought to be the Philippines’ exhibit at the next World’s Fai1, Vince tells himself as he navigates his cartload of
Louis Vuitton bags in and out of the maze. An exhibit that should take place none other than here, at the Honolulu
International Airport, he laughs, as he imagines an entire terminal buried in the Filipinos’ most popular-and preferred-
pieces of luggage.
With a balikbayan box Filipinos can pack cans of Hormel corned beef, Libby’s Vienna sausage, Folgers, and SPAM;
perfume samples; new or hand-me-down designer jeans; travel-sized bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and body lotion
gleaned from Las Vegas hotels; and appliances marked with first-world labels that, as anyone who’s been to the
Philippines knows, can easily be purchased at Duty Free right outside the airport or from any of the crypt-like malls that
are so gargantuan they’re a metropolis unto themselves.
Filipinos will even throw themselves into these boxes, as was the case of the overseas contract worker in Dubai. The
man, an engineer was so homesick that, unable to afford the ticket-most of his earnings went to cover his living
expenses and the rest to his wife and children-he talked his roommate, who was homebound for the holidays, into
checking him in. He paid for the excess baggage fee, which still came out cheaper than a round-trip airfare. En route to
Manila, he died from hypothermia.
Vince, who had heard the story from his older sister Jing, didn’t buy it. There were too many loopholes, too many
unanswered questions, like wouldn’t an x-ray machine in the Middle East detect a Filipino man curled up inside a box?
He simply dismissed it as a “turban legend.”
“You’re missing the point brother,” Jing said. “It’s not the mechanics that matter. It’s about drama. The extremes a
Filipino will go to just to be back home for Christmas with his family.”
II. Write and analysis essay about your personal views of the following:
a. Homesickness.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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1980. 431–32. Print.
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Module 4
Content Standards
The learner will be able to understand and appreciate the elements and contexts of 21st century Philippine
literature from the regions.
Performance Standards
The learner will be able to demonstrate understanding and appreciation of 21st Century Philippine
literature from the regions through: 1. a written close analysis and critical interpretation of a literary text in terms of
form and theme, with a description of its context derived from research; and 2. an adaptation of a text into other
creative forms using multimedia.
Learning Competencies:
1. Identify the geographic, linguistic, and ethnic dimensions of Philippine literary history from precolonial to the
contemporary
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Course Title 21st Century Literature from Philippines and the World.
Mod 4 – Lesson 1
Number of Hours 4
Required Suggested
6.
16. Students shall read and understand the lesson content under “Explore”.
17. Students read the text and answer the following questions under “Apply”.
Learning Activity
18. Students shall perform the task under “Assess”.
19. Students shall submit their work through any of the following: messenger(picture), email, softcopy, or
hardcopy
20. Questions from students shall be entertained anytime through class chat.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Literature
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Learning Competencies
Engage
Instructions: Identify the jumble by understanding each definition provided below eacg item.
1. R U T S O A H
Answer: __ __ __ __ __ __ __
2. N C N O A
- In literature, this is the collection of works considered representative of a certain genre and period.
Answer: __ __ __ __ __
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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3. C B O N R O U T I T I N
- Act of giving in common with others for a common purpose especially to a charity.
Answer: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
Explore
CANON – in literature, this is the collection of works considered representative of a certain genre and period.
CANONICAL AUTHORS – writers whose works have been well appreciated and considered representatives of certain
genres of literature. Take note: When we study canonical authors and their works, we can glean new appreciation for
them in modern perspective.
NATIONAL ARTISTS FOR LITERATURE – is the highest national recognition given to Filipino writers who made significant
contributions to the development of Philippine Literature. What else should you know?
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1980. 431–32. Print.
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works are characterized by a remarkable fusion of style and substance, of craftsmanship and insight. Born on April 22,
1919 in Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya, her poems are intricate verbal transfigurations of significant experiences as
revealed, in two of her much anthologized pieces, “The Little Marmoset” and “Bonsai”. As fictionist, Tiempo is as morally
profound. Her language has been marked as “descriptive but unburdened by scrupulous detailing.” She is an influential
tradition in Philippine literature in English. Together with her late husband, Edilberto K. Tiempo, she founded and
directed the Silliman National Writers Workshop in Dumaguete City, which has produced some of the country’s best
writers.
Tiempo’s published works include the novel A Blade of Fern (1978), The Native Coast (1979), and The Alien Corn (1992);
the poetry collections, The Tracks of Babylon and Other Poems (1966), and The Charmer’s Box and Other Poems(1993);
and the short story collection Abide, Joshua, and Other Stories (1964).
2. BIENVENIDO LUMBERA
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1980. 431–32. Print.
100
member of the Board of Advisers of the U.P. Creative Writing Center. In 1987, U.P. conferred on him the Doctor of
Humane Letters, honoris causa, its highest academic recognition.
Major works of N.V.M Gonzalez include the following: The Winds of April, Seven Hills Away, Children of the Ash-Covered
Loam and Other Stories, The Bamboo Dancers, Look Stranger, on this Island Now, Mindoro and Beyond: Twenty -One
Stories, The Bread of Salt and Other Stories, Work on the Mountain, The Novel of Justice: Selected Essays 1968-1994, A
Grammar of Dreams and Other Stories.
4. VIRGILIO S. ALMARIO
Many Filipino writers have come under his wing in the literary workshops he founded –the Galian sa Arte at Tula (GAT)
and the Linangan sa Imahen, Retorika at Anyo (LIRA). He has also long been involved with children’s literature through
the Aklat Adarna series, published by his Children’s Communication Center. He has been a constant presence as well in
national writing workshops and galvanizes member writers as chairman emeritus of the Unyon ng mga Manunulat sa
Pilipinas (UMPIL). He headed the National Commission for Culture and the Arts as Executive Director, (from 1998 to
2001) ably steering the Commission towards its goals. But more than anything else, what Almario accomplished was that
he put a face to the Filipino writer in the country, one strong face determinedly wielding a pen into untruths, hypocrisy,
injustice, among others.
5. CIRILO F. BAUTISTA
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acknowledged by peers and critics, and the nation at large as the foremost writer of his generation. Throughout his
career that spans more than four decades, he has established a reputation for fine and profound artistry; his books,
lectures, poetry readings and creative writing workshops continue to influence his peers and generations of young
writers.
As a way of bringing poetry and fiction closer to the people who otherwise would not have the opportunity to develop
their creative talent, Bautista has been holding regular funded and unfunded workshops throughout the country. In his
campus lecture circuits, Bautista has updated students and student-writers on literary developments and techniques. As
a teacher of literature, Bautista has realized that the classroom is an important training ground for Filipino writers. In De
La Salle University, he was instrumental in the formation of the Bienvenido Santos Creative Writing Center. He was also
the moving spirit behind the founding of the Philippine Literary Arts Council in 1981, the Iligan National Writers
Workshop in 1993, and the Baguio Writers Group.
hus, Bautista continues to contribute to the development of Philippine literature: as a writer, through his significant
body of works; as a teacher, through his discovery and encouragement of young writers in workshops and lectures; and
as a critic, through his essays that provide insights into the craft of writing and correctives to misconceptions about art.
Major works: Summer Suns (1963), Words and Battlefields (1998), The Trilogy of Saint Lazarus (2001), Galaw ng Asoge
(2003).
6. Nick Joaquin
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1980. 431–32. Print.
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Among his voluminous works are The Woman Who Had Two Navels, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino, Manila, My
Manila: A History for the Young, The Ballad of the Five Battles, Rizal in Saga, Almanac for Manileños, Cave and Shadows.
Nick Joaquin died April 29, 2004.
7. F. SIONIL JOSE
F. Sionil Jose is also a publisher, lecturer on cultural issues, and the founder of the Philippine chapter of the international
organization PEN. He was bestowed the CCP Centennial Honors for the Arts in 1999; the Outstanding Fulbrighters Award
for Literature in 1988; and the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts in
1980.
8. Amado V. Hernandez
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Hernandez’s other works include Bayang Malaya, Isang Dipang Langit, Luha ng Buwaya, Amado V. Hernandez: Tudla at
Tudling: Katipunan ng mga Nalathalang Tula 1921-1970, Langaw sa Isang Basong Gatas at Iba Pang Kuwento ni Amado V.
Hernandez, Magkabilang Mukha ng Isang Bagol at Iba Pang Akda ni Amado V. Hernandez.
9. LAZARO A. FRANCISCO
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.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Ever the champion of Filipino culture, Roces brought to public attention the aesthetics of the country’s fiestas. He was
instrumental in popularizing several local fiestas, notably, Moriones and Ati-atihan. He personally led the campaign to
change the country’s Independence Day from July 4 to June 12, and caused the change of language from English to
Filipino in the country’s stamps, currency and passports, and recovered Jose Rizal’s manuscripts when they were stolen
from the National Archives.
His unflinching love of country led him to become a guerilla during the Second World War, to defy martial law and to
found the major opposition party under the dictatorship. His works have been published in various international
magazines and received numerous national and international awards, including several decorations from various
governments.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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received critical recognition when it appeared in New York in 1942 that, soon enough, honors and fellowships were
heaped on him: Guggenheim, Bollingen, the American Academy of Arts and Letters Awards. He used Doveglion (Dove,
Eagle, Lion) as penname, the very characters he attributed to himself, and the same ones explored by e.e. cummings in
the poem he wrote for Villa (Doveglion, Adventures in Value). Villa is also known for the tartness of his tongue.
Villa’s works have been collected into the following books: Footnote to Youth,Many Voices, Poems by Doveglion, Poems
55, Poems in Praise of Love: The Best Love Poems of Jose Garcia Villa as Chosen By Himself, Selected Stories,The
Portable Villa, The Essential Villa, Mir-i-nisa, Storymasters 3: Selected Stories from Footnote to Youth, 55 Poems:
Selected and Translated into Tagalog by Hilario S. Francia.
Aside from his collections of poetry (Sitsit sa Kuliglig, Dunung – Dunungan, Kristal na Uniberso, A Trick of Mirrors) among
his works were the following: film scripts for Now and Forever, Gamitin Mo Ako, Bayad Puri and Milagros; sarswelas Ang
Mestisa, Ako, Ang Kiri, Ana Maria; the komedya Orosman at Zafira; and Larawan, the musical.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
106
Some of his short stories are Frankie, The Man Who Would Be Poe, Death in a Factory, Lina, A Clown Remembers,
Divided by Two, The Mats, and his poems being The Other Woman, This Being the Third Poem This Poem is for Mathilda,
To Touch You and I Touched Her, among others.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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(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.
His book Maps and Views of Old Manila is considered as the best book on the subject. His other books include Quezon,
Man of Destiny, Magsaysay of the Philippines, Lives of the Philippine Presidents, Philippine Cartography, The History of
Philippine Sugar Industry, Filipino Heritage: The Making of a Nation, Filipinos at War: The Fight for Freedom from
Mactan to EDSA.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Apply
Role - Vlogger
Setting - Netizens
Intructions: In this Fast-phased generation, mostly everything is availanle through online. To jive the demands of this era
everyone must adapt to bring significant especially in information. You are now an official social media
influencer/vlogger, you are tasked by the National Artists of the Philippines Association to make a review on selected
National Artists, their workds and contribution in the Philippine Literature. Upload your video on our facebook page and
make sure to write your review manuscript on the space given below.
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Assess
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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I. Graphic Organier: Choose your Top 5 national artists and write your insights why they deserve such rank compare with
others.
Top 1: _________________
Top 2: __________________
Top 3: ____________
Top 4: ___________________
Top 5: ________________
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
111
II. Written Analysis: Take your time in ready the song provided below.
Ng magagandang himig
1. In you own understanding, what do you think are the factors why this song is very famous and still enjoyed by our
fellow Filipinos during Christmas season?
Answer:
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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2. What makes this song so timeless? Do you consider this song as a Literary Heritage? Why or Why not?
Answer:
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3. What are some Filipino culture you can extract from the song, and why it is considered to be pure Filipino Culture?
Answer:
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Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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4. Base from the song? Can you describe the Author’s Personality, his love for arts, music and country?
Answer:
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III. Extracting Details: Read the short story of Alejandro R. Roces “We Filipinos are Mild Drinkers”.
We Filipinos are mild drinkers. We drink for only three good reasons. We drink when we are very happy. We drink
when we are very sad. And we drink for any other reason. When the Americans recaptured the Philippines, they built an
air base a few miles from our barrio. Yankee soldiers became a very common sight. I met a lot of GIs and made many
friends. I could not pronounce their names. I could not tell them apart. All Americans looked alike to me. They all looked
white.
One afternoon I was plowing our rice field with our carabao named Datu. I was barefooted and stripped to the waist. My
pants, that were made from abaca fibers and woven on homemade looms, were rolled up to my knees. My bolo was at
my side.
An American soldier was walking on the highway. When he saw me, he headed towards me. I stopped plowing and
waited for him. I noticed he was carrying a half-pint bottle of whiskey. Whiskey bottles seemed part of the American
uniform.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
114
That was usually the first question American soldiers asked when they visited our barrio.
“Here, have a swig. You have been working too hard,” be. said, offering me his half-filled bottle.
“No, thank you, Joe,” I said. “We Filipinos are mild drinkers.”
“I drink lambanog.”
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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“I have some you can have, but I do not think you will like it.”
“I’ll like it all right. Don’t worry about that. I have drunk everything—whiskey, rum, brandy, tequila, gin, champagne,
saki, vodka…” He mentioned many more that I can not spell.
“I not only drink a lot, but I drink anything. I drank Chanel Number 5 when I was in France. In New Guinea I got soused
on Williams’ Shaving Lotion. When I was laid up in the hospital I got pie-eyed with medical alcohol. On my way here in a
transport I got stoned on torpedo juice. You ain’t kidding when you say I drink a lot. So let’s have some of that jungle
juice, eh?”
“All right,” I said. “I will just take this carabao to the mudhole, then we can go home and drink.”
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
116
I unhitched Datu from the plow and led him to the mudhole. Joe was following me. Datu lay in the mud and was going:
“Whooooosh! Whooooosh!”
Flies and other insects flew from his back and hovered in the air. A strange warm odor rose out of the muddle. A carabao
does not have any sweat glands except on its nose. It has to wallow in the mud or bathe in a river about every three
hours. Otherwise it runs amok.
Datu shook his head and his widespread horns scooped the muddy water on his back. He rolled over and was soon
covered with slimy mud. An expression of perfect contentment came into his eyes. The he swished his tail and Joe and I
had to move back from the mudhole to keep from getting splashed. I left Datu in the mudhole. Then, turning to Joe, I
said: “Let us go.”
“What is it like?”
“Oh, it is tall and stately. It goes straight up to the sky like a skyscraper. It symbolizes America.”
“Well,” I said, “the coconut tree symbolizes the Philippines. It starts up to the sky, but then its leaves sway down to
earth, as if remembering the land that gave it birth. It does not forget the soil that gave it life.”
In a short while, we arrived in my nipa house. I took a bamboo ladder and leaned it against a tree. Then I climbed the
ladder and picked some calamansi.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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“Philippine lemon,” I answered. “We will need this for our drinks.” “Oh, chasers.”
I fill my pockets and then went down. I went to the garden well and washed the mud from my legs. Then we went up a
bamboo ladder to my hut.
It was getting dark, so I filled a coconut shell with coconut oil, dipped a wick in the oil and lighted the wick. It produced a
flickering light. I unstrapped my bolo and hung it on the wall.
Joe sat down on the floor. I sliced the calamansi in halves, took some rough salt and laid it on the foot-high table. I went
to the kitchen and took the bamboo tube where I kept my lambanog.
Lambanog is a drink extracted from the coconut tree with pulverized mangrove bark thrown in to prevent spontaneous
combustion. It has many uses. We use it as a remedy for snakebites, as counteractive for malaria chills, as an insecticide
and for tanning carabao hide.
I poured some lambanog on two polished coconut shells and gave one of the shells to Joe. I diluted my drink with some
of Joe’s whiskey. It became milky. We were both seated on the floor. I poured some of my drink on the bamboo floor; it
went through the slits to the ground below.
“Hey, what are you doing,” said Joe, “throwing good liquor away?”
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“No, Joe,” I said. “It is the custom here always to give back to the earth a little of what we have taken from the earth.”
“Well!” he said, raising his shell. “Here’s to the end of the war!”
I gulped my drink down. I followed it with a slice of calamansi dipped in rough salt. Joe took his drink, but reacted in a
peculiar way. His eyes popped out like a frog’s and his hand clutched his throat. He looked as if he had swallowed a
centipede.
I gave him a slice of calamansi dipped in unrefined salt. He squirted it in his mouth. But it was too late. Nothing could
chase her. The calamansi did not help him. I don’t think even a coconut would have helped him.
He was panting hard and tears were rolling down his cheeks.
“Well, the first drink always acts like a mine sweeper,” I said, “but this second one will be smooth.”
I filled his shell for the second time. Again I diluted my drink with Joe’s whiskey. I gave Joe his shell. L-noticed that he
was beaded with perspiration. He had unbuttoned his collar and loosened his tie. Joe took his shell but did not seem
very anxious. I lifted my shell and said: “Here is to America!”
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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We both killed our drinks. Joe again reacted in a funny way. His neck stretched out like a turtle’s. And now he was
panting like a carabao gone amok. He was grasping his tie with one hand. Then he looked down on his tie, threw it to
one side, and said: “Oh, Christ, for a while I thought it was my tongue.”
As Joe exhaled, a moth flying around the flickering flame fell dead.
He stared at the dead moth and said: “And they talk of DDT.”
“Well, how about another drink?” I asked. “It is what we came here for.”
I poured the juice in the shells and again diluted mine with whiskey I handed Joe his drink.
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Joe took some of his drink. I could not see very clearly in the flickering light, but I could have sworn I saw smoke out of
his tears.
He threw the remains of his drink on the nipa wall and yielded: “Blaze, goddamn you, blaze!”
Just as I was getting in the mood to drink, Joe passed out. He lay on the floor flat as a starfish. He was in a class all by
himself.
I knew that the soldiers had to be back in their barracks at a certain time. So I decided to take Joe back. I tried to lift him.
It was like lifting a carabao. I had to call four of my neighbors to help me carry Joe. We slung him on top of my carabao. I
took my bolo from my house and strapped it on my waist. Then I proceeded to take him back. The whole barrio was
wondering what had happened to the big Amerikano.
After two hours I arrived at the air field. I found out which barracks he belonged to and took him there. His friends
helped me take him to his cot. They were glad to see him back. Everybody thanked me for taking him home. As I was
leaving the barracks to go home, one of his buddies called me and said:
Guide Questions:
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2. List down some Filipino Cultural details you can find from the story, and share your personal experience of the same.
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3. In this generation, Alcoholic drinks are easy to acquire and many of our young fellow Filipino are very active when it
comes to drinking session, do you think Filipinos drink on the same reasons the story have mentioned? Why or Why not?
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Module 5
Literature from regions in Luzon,
Visayas, Mindanao
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
Content Standards
The learner will be able to understand and appreciate the elements and contexts of 21st century Philippine
literature from the regions.
Performance Standards
The learner will be able to demonstrate understanding and appreciation of 21st Century Philippine literature
from the regions through: 1. a written close analysis and critical interpretation of a literary text in terms of form and
theme, with a description of its context derived from research; and 2. an adaptation of a text into other creative
forms using multimedia.
Learning Competencies:
1. Idifferentiate/compare and contrast the various 21st century literary genres and the ones from the earlier
genres/periods citing their elements, structures and traditionsIdentify representative texts and authors from
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Course Title 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Mod 3 – Lesson 1
NAMES OF AUTHORS AND THEIR WORKS, AND BACKGROUNDS OF THE LITERATURE FROM THE REGION WHERE THE HIGH
SCHOOL IS LOCATED
Module Topic
Number of Hours 4
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Required Suggested
7.
9. Students shall read and understand the lesson content under “Explore”.
10. Students read the text and answer the following questions under “Apply”.
Learning Activity
11. Students shall perform the task under “Assess”.
12. Students shall submit their work through any of the following: messenger(picture), email, softcopy, or hardcopy
13. Questions from students shall be entertained anytime through class chat.
Target Competency 7. Analyze the figures of speech and other literary techniques and devices in the text
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Engage
BIAG NI LAM-ANG (Life of Lam-ang) is a pre-Hispanic epic poem of the Ilocano people of the Philippines. The story was handed
down orally for generations before it was written down around 1640 assumedly by a blind Ilokano bard named Pedro Bucaneg.
Don Juan and his wife Namongan lived in Nalbuan, now part of La Union in the northern part of the Philippines. They had a son
named Lam-ang. Before Lam-ang was born, Don Juan went to the mountains in order to punish a group of their Igorot enemies.
While he was away, his son Lam-ang was born. It took four people to help Namongan give birth. As soon as the baby boy popped
out, he spoke and asked that he be given the name Lam-ang. He also chose his godparents and asked where his father was.
After nine months of waiting for his father to return, Lam-ang decided he would go look for him. Namongan thought Lam-ang was
up to the challenge but she was sad to let him go.
During his exhausting journey, he decided to rest for awhile. He fell asleep and had a dream about his father’s head being stuck on a
pole by the Igorot. Lam-ang was furious when he learned what had happened to his father. He rushed to their village and killed them
all, except for one whom he let go so that he could tell other people about Lam-ang’s greatness.
Upon returning to Nalbuan in triumph, he was bathed by women in the Amburayan river. All the fish died because of the dirt and
odor from Lam-ang’s body.
There was a young woman named Ines Kannoyan whom Lam-ang wanted to woo. She lived in Calanutian and he brought along his
white rooster and gray dog to visit her. On the way, Lam-ang met his enemy Sumarang, another suitor of Ines whom he fought and
readily defeated.
Lam-ang found the house of Ines surrounded by many suitors all of whom were trying to catch her attention. He had his rooster
crow, which caused a nearby house to fall. This made Ines look out. He had his dog bark and in an instant the fallen house rose up
again. The girl’s parents witnessed this and called for him. The rooster expressed the love of Lam-ang. The parents agreed to a
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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marriage with their daughter if Lam-ang would give them a dowry valued at double their wealth. Lam-ang had no problem fulfilling
this condition and he and Ines were married.
It was a tradition to have a newly married man swim in the river for the rarang fish. Unfortunately, Lam-ang dove straight into the
mouth of the water monster Berkakan. Ines had Marcos get his bones, which she covered with a piece of cloth. His rooster crowed
and his dog barked and slowly the bones started to move. Back alive, Lam-ang and his wife lived happily ever after with his white
rooster and gray dog.
I. Graphic Organizer: The Hero in Focus. Complete the web to describe the main character of the myth Epic story.
His Title:
Goal Physical
Appearance:
Traits: Relations:
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1980. 431–32. Print.
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II. Name the Positive, Interesting, and Negative traits if the characters in the Epic story. Use the chart below to write answers.
TRAITS OF CHARACTERS
1. Lam-ang
2. Ines Kannoyan
3. Sumarang
Explore
Region 1: Ilocos Region its literature is known as one of the most colorful regional Filipino literatures. Prior to Spanish colonial
period, the Ilocano literature is purely alive in form of written and oral literature. Ancient poets expressed themselves through folk
and war songs.
Pedro Buc(k)aneg
2. A Filipino poet
3. Was a foundling, who shortly after floating in a basket between Bantay and Vigan was found by an old woman
6. Took lessons in Latin and Spanish and also learned the local dialects and Ilocano Isneg
8. Although blind, he dictated the text of his poems, songs and translations as someone wrote it down.
9. Translated Doctrina Cristiana to Ilocano which was printed in 1593 as one of the first book in the Philippines and was
intended for the use in the local poplyaltion.
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10. 1621, the ilocano translation was printed in the Augustinian Convent in Manila.
11. Arte de Lengua Iloca, the first grammar book, co-authored with Fr. Francisco Lopez
12. Born March 1592 and died circa 1630, his works of literature are preserved to be written in history.
Leonora Florentino
3. At the age of 10, she can write poems in Ilocano and speak well in Spanish.
4. Was really intelligent, yet she wasn’t allowed to study due to her gender.
5. She was instead tutored by her mother and a series of private teachers.
6. Fr. Evaristo Abaya flourished her Spanish skills and help her voice out her thoughts in poems. She married a politician, Elias
de los Reyes at the age of 14. Together had 5 children.
7. Due to the feminist nature of her writings, she was shunned by her husband and son, she lived alone in exile and separated
from her family.
8. Her well knowns literary pieces are Rucronoy (Dedication), Naangaway a Cablaw (Good greetings), Nalpay a Namnama
(Vanishing Hope), Benigna, Para ken Carmen, Panay Pacada (Farewell) and more
9. Most of her works got lost but the preserved ones are in the library of Madrid, Londres at Paris.
10. Although Florentino died at a young age, her works are known not only in the Philippines but through out Europe.
4. Originally founder of Aglipayan Church, an indepondent Christian protestant church in the catholic tradition.
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12. While being there, he got influenced by the writings of European socialists and Marxists.
13. Returning to Philippines in 1901, he founded the first labor union in the country.
15. After serving the Ph in the 1920s, he settled into private life and religious writing.
17. Works
4. Oficio divino
5. Catequesis (catechism)
6. Plagerias(prayers)
9. Calendario Aglipayano
Carlos Bulosan
2. November 2, 1913
4. His hometown is the starting point of his famous semi-autobiographical novel, America is in the Heart.
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6. Upon arriving in Seattle, he met with racism and was forced to work in a low paying job.
7. He worked as a farmworker, harvesting grapes and asparagus, and doing other types of hard work in the fields of California.
He also worked as a dishwasher with his brother in the famous Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo.
8. Works
4. My Father’s Tragedy
7. America Is In the Heart “The old world is dying, but a new world is being born. It generates inspiration from the
chaos that beats upon us all. The false grandeur and security, the unfulfilled promises and illusory power, the
number of the dead and those about to die, will charge the forces of our courage and determination. The old world
will die so that the new world will be born with less sacrifice and agony on the living.”
F. Sionil Jose
1. December 3, 1924
3. Ilocano descent whose family had migrated to Pangasinan to flee from poverty.
6. Awards
1. Pablo Neruda Centennial Award (2004) Philippine National Artist for Literature (2001)
3. Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature and Creative Communication Arts (1980)
4. City of Manila Award for Literature (1979 Carlos Palanca Memorial Award for Literature (1959, 1979, 1980, 1981)
7. Attended UST after WW2 but dropped out and plunged into writing and journalism in Manila.
8. Edited various literaty and journalistic publications, started a publishing house and founded the Philippine branch of PEN,
an intr’l organization for writers.
9. His writings talk about social justice and change to better the lives of average Filipino families.
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10. Inspired him to make the five volume novels: Rosales Saga.
11. Is one of the most widely read Filipino writers in the English Language. His novels and short stories depict the social
underpinnings of class struggles and colonialism of Filipino society.
12. Jose’s works written in English have been translated into 22 language ls including Korean, Indonesian, Russian and Dutch.
13. Owns a bookshop that sells hard to find filipiniana reading materials.
14. ‘Why are we shallow’ Hindsight, The Philippine Star September 12 2011
3. Known as a poet, playwright and editor in Pampanga’s dialect. • Wrote moro-moro and sarsuela.
4. Works
1. Pula’t Puti
3. During her senior year, she moved to St. Scholastica’s College in Malate, Manila where her writing started to get noticed.
5. Was the author of Revolt from Hymen, a poem protesting against marital rape which caused her denial by an all-male jury
from winning the Ph’s Commonwealth Literary Awards in 1940.
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Apply
Naunsyaming pag-asa
by Leona Florentino
Dahil mayroon silang karamay Kung namatay ako nang ako'y isinilang.
Answer: ____________________________________________________________________________________
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Assess
Pagbating babiro
by Leona Florentino
I. Explain each line with the use of literal language for better understanding. Write your explanation on the space provided.
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1. Lantang hasmin ang makakatulad, _______________________________________________
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Pag byente-otso na ang iyong edad,
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Kaya tunay lamang at karapat-dapat, __________________________________
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2. Dahil anuman ang iyong gawin,
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Di na pweden pang pigilin, __________________________________
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3. Kaya nga ngayon pa ma'y iyo nang iwasan, _______________________________________________
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Ang landas ng kapos-kapalaran, __________________________________
Ipagparangyaan ang iyong kariktan,
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4. Sapagkat lalo ka pang didilag _______________________________________________
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Sa pagtatakal mo ng alak, _______________________________________________
Marami ang sa iyo'y ninanakawan
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Ni G na may katarayan.
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5. Pamalagiing masigla ang iyong isipan, _______________________________________________
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Tingnan mo nga kung maglambingan _______________________________________________
Sina D at M ang mga hukluban, __________________________________
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6. Siya, siya, kung ganyan ang ikikilos mo,
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Walang duda, baka sakaling kamtin mo _______________________________________________
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Ang ikapitong sakramento
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Na idudulog ni Don Domongo!
[Link] Essay: In your own perspective how can you describe the gap between old fashioned and new school ways of writing poetry
regardless with the theme.
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Module 6
WORLD LITERATURE
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Content Standards
1. The learner will be able to understand and appreciate literary texts in various genres across national
literatures and cultures.
Performance Standards
The learner will be able to demonstrate understanding and appreciation of 21 st century literature of
the world through:
1. a written close analysis and critical interpretation of a literary text in terms of form and theme, with a
description of its contexts derived from research;
2. critical paper that analyzes literary texts in relation to the context of the reader and the writer or a
critical paper that interprets literary texts using any of the critical approaches; and
Learning Competencies
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Course Title 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Mod 4 – Lesson 1
1. Identify: representative texts and authors from North America, Latin America, and Africa.
2. Writing a close analysis and critical interpretation of literary texts, applying a reading approach.
3. Produce a creative representation of a literary text by applying multimedia and ICT skills.
Learning Competencies
Number of Hours
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2. What literary text from 21st century Philippine and world literature can be used for a literary adaptation?
Study Questions
Required Suggested
6. Students shall read and understand the lesson content under “Explore”.
7. Students read the text and answer the following questions under “Apply”.
Learning Activity
8. Students shall perform the task under “Assess”.
9. Students shall submit their work through any of the following: messenger(picture), email, softcopy, or hardcopy
10. Questions from students shall be entertained anytime through class chat.
Assessment Tasks Writing of Literary Journal, and Making the literary adaptation or infographic
Target Competency
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1980. 431–32. Print.
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Learning Competencies:
3. Analyze literary meanings in context through the use of critical reading strategies.
“ENGAGE”
Read the poem below and answer the questions that follow:
(George Orwell)
“EXPLORE”
We have our different purposes why we read a certain literary material. We construct new sets of ideas as we sense a
printed text. Often times we make criticisms with divergent methodologies as we evaluate a certain literary piece. Through literary
criticisms, new avenues of thinking help us to understand and deepen our perspective the way we see works of literature. It takes us
to a higher level of cognitive thought as we place the work of each literary work not only in its own context, but also in the deeper
context of critical thinking.
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In textual reading approach, the reader concentrates on the structure of the text rather than the deeper meaning beyond its
context. This includes the author’s creativity and invention, arrangements of style and personal choice of language. The structure of
the literary text allows the reader to critically appreciate the text without going deeper to its hidden meaning.
1. Philology
It refers to the history of language in relation to the historical meaning of the text.
2. Rhetoric
It refers to the author’s choice of words to create an impressive visual image to its readers. This also involves selection of
themes and organization of materials in order for the text to promote its purpose.
3. Stylistics
It refers to the study and interpretation of texts in regard to the author’s language and style. The personal style of the
author aims to account how literary texts project its meaning to the readers.
4. Semiotics
It refers to the symbols and significations in a literary text wherein readers study how meaning is created and not by what it
is.
5. Deconstruction
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It refers on how the readers outlook critically in the relationship between the text and its meaning.
In contextual reading approach, the reader examines and criticizes on the different forms of text such as the history and framework
of the text which reflects to the attitudes, cultures and values of the community that sustain them.
a. Biographical Criticism
It is a form of criticism wherein the readers need to gain insights by the knowledge of the author’s life. This believes on the
idea that “You are what you write.” ‘ Through understanding of the author’s background, the readers will be able to have a deeper
comprehension and understanding of what the literary text is all about.
b. Historical Criticism
It is a form of criticism wherein the readers need to investigate the social, cultural and intellectual context of a literary
work. The reader as a critic should look back during the period and era wherein the literary text was produced. He/she should
understand how the literary material created impact and effect to its original readers.
c. Feminist Criticism
It is a form of criticism wherein the readers examine ways in which the literary material reinforces the oppression of women
in all aspects of life.
d. Formalist Criticism
It is a form of criticism which emphasizes to the unity and form of a literary material. Readers look at the form, structure
and imagery of the text in order to determine how such elements' work together with the content to shape its effects upon readers.
It believes that the more complex the themes are within, the better work is considered. This theory also rejects any extra-textual
influences and ideas.
e. Psychoanalytic Criticism
It is a form of criticism wherein the reader looks at the psychological state of the character. It involves analysis of fictional
characters using the language and methods of psychology. Its fundamental figures include Sigmund Freud’s notion and thinking that
dreams and wishes allow such psychic explorations of course and analogy between literary works and dreams.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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It is a form of criticism for interrogating all societies and their texts in terms of certain specific issues including race, class,
and the attitudes and norms shared within a given culture.
Anamika is an award-winning and contemporary Indian poet, essayist, and fiction writer. She is also a social worker and a professor at the
Department of English at Satyawati College, University of Delhi.
She authored collections of poetry, novels, and literary criticisms which most serve as reflections as regards socio-politics and feminism. She has
won several _ awards such as Bharat Bhushan Award for Poetry (1996), the Girija Mathur Samman (1998), the Sahityakar Samman (1998), the
Parampara Samman (2001), the Sahityasetu Samman (2004) and Kedar Samman (2007).
Background Knowledge
The Feminist movement addresses social, cultural, and political challenges of women with regard to gender inequalities with the
advocacy to promote equal rights and privileges between men and women. This is a movement that has been conceived centuries ago yet still an
alien terminology for some Asian and African countries. There are still miserable conditions of women in some parts of the world given preferences
for a male child, gender based violence, and unequal opportunities and treatment given to women in different aspects of the society. These can be
attributed to the history, culture, and philosophy of , some countries that are patriarchal. The clash between modernity and tradition impedes me
development of acceptance and respect for various races; genders, and cultures.
Several South Asian literature such as from India depict the status and roles of women in the 21st century. This may be the same reality
that many women from different parts of the world experience. Perhaps, tradition and culture are not the only factors to be considered; the
economic status and the level of literacy and education can be very powerful weapons that people can use to eradicate several forms of violence
and discrimination and to promote respect, acceptance, and empowerment for any person of any gender and any preference.
Salt
Anamika
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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it sinks in shame
There stands
a government building-
the revolutionaries.
as the girl-guava-sellers.
this is salt
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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1. What does it mean for men to have a heart that is “salt mountain”?
3. What three (3) or more metaphors for salt are presented in the poem? Do you agree or disagree? Explain your answer?
4. What allusions are made in the poem? What is the reason for the use of it?
5. What does the author mean with the idea that God’s tears and man’s sweat balance the earth?
APPLY
Directions: Make a Feminist critical paper for the poem “Salt” using the guide questions written below. Write your work in a short
bond paper.
1. What images and metaphors for salt are presented in the poem? What does this say about salt’s relevance to the world?
2. How are women depicted in the poem? What are the reasons for this depiction?
3. What does the author mean with “all those who could’nt betray their masters and have annoyed the seven seas and the
revolutionaries”?
4. What is the essence of salt for the women, for the men, and for the earth?
5. In the 21st century, what status and roles of women do have in India, In Asia, and in the world? How has it changed or
remained throughout the course of history?
6. How does salt in the poem serve as a weakness and at the same time a strength for women?
7. Can you say that the world promotes equal rights and privileges for both men and women? What about other people with
different gender preference?
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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8. Write your insights and opinion as regards gender equality or inequality in the world today.
BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE
The excerpt below is written from the perspective of Lulu, an American woman, who will eventually own and operate a
courtesan house in China, made up of Chinese and Western courtesans. Given this, what kind of childhood do you think she had to
be able to do this in the future? What kind of personality do you think she had?
[Excerpt]
Amy Tan
(USA)
At the age of eight, I was determined to be true to My Self. Of course, that made it essential to know what My Self
consisted of. My manifesto began the day I discovered I had once possessed an extra finger in each hand, twins to my pinkies. My
grandmother had recommended that the surplus be amputated before leaving the hospital, lest people think there was a familial
tendency toward giving birth to octopuses. Mother and Father were Freethinkers, whose opinions were based on reason, logic,
deduction, and their own Opinions. Mother, who disagreed with any advice my grandmother had to give, said: ”Should the extra
fingers be removed simply to enable her to wear gloves from a dry goods store?” They took me home with all my fingers in place.
But then an old family friend of my father’s, Mr. Maubert, who was also my piano teacher, convinced them to turn my unusual ham
5 into ordinary ones. He was a former concert pianist, who, early in his promising career, lost his right arm during the siege of Paris
by the Prussians. ”There are only a few piano compositions for one hand,” he said to my parents, ”and none for six fingers. If you
intend for her to have musical training, it would be a pity if she had to take up the tambourine due to lack of suitable instruments.”
Mr. Maubert was the one who proudly informed me when I was eight that he had influenced the decision.
Few can understand the shock of a little girl learning that part of her was considered undesirable and thus needed to be
completely removed. It made me fearful that people could change parts of me, without my knowledge and permission .And thus
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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began my quest to know which of my many attributes I needed to protect, the whole of which I named scientifically ”My Pure Self-
Being.”
In the beginning, the complete list comprised my preferences and dislikes, my strong feelings for animals, my animosity
toward anyone who laughed at me, my aversion to stickiness, and several more things I have now forgotten. I also collected secrets
about myself, mostly what had wounded my heart, and the very fact that they needed to be kept private was proof of My Pure Self-
Being. I later added to my list my intelligence, opinions of others, fears and revulsions, and certain nagging discomforts, which I later
knew as worries. A few years later, after I stained my undergarments, Mother explained to me ”the biology that led to your
existence”-the gist of which was my beginning as an egg slipping down a fallopian tube. She made it sound as if I had been a
mindless blob and that upon entry into the world I took on a personality shaped through my parent's guidance.
GUIDE QUESTIONS
1. What was Lulu’s reaction when she found out about the operation? Do you think her reaction is normal? Why or why not?
2. Do you think the parents made a mistake in Operating on Lulu’s fingers? Why or why not?
4. Why did the narrator dislike the way her mother described reproduction?
6. What does it mean, that the narrator wanted to be true to her Self?
7. Have you ever felt the same way? Why or why not?
APPLY
Directions: Make a Biographical Critical paper for the story “The Valley of Amazement” using the guide questions
written below. Write your work in a short bondpaper.
1. Research on the background of the Amy Lee the author of “The Valley of Amazement”.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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Paulo Coelho, born on August 24, 1947, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was a rebellious teenager when he was young.
He wanted to be a writer but was strongly discouraged by his parents, prompting them to send him into a mental asylum
three times. Giving in to his parents’ desire he abandoned his dream of becoming a writer and enrolled in law school.
However he could concentrate on his studies and dropped out after one year. He became a hippie and traveled all over
South America, North Africa, and Europe. When he traveled to Spain, he had a spiritual awakening on the trip and
realized that it was time he started writing seriously.
His most influential work is “The Alchemist”, which sold 65 million copies, and is now the most translated book
in the world by any living author. This made him the all-time bestselling Portuguese language author. He founded the
Paulo Coelho Institute in 1996 which provides aid to impoverished children and elderly people. He had been given
different literary awards since 1995, and has been a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters since 2002, and in
2007, he was appointed United Nations Messenger of Peace. He is also the most followed author on social media.
Background Knowledge
After experiencing numerous wars and struggles within and outside their countries, one thing remained
constant with the Latin Americans – their reverence to their religion from practicing Animism in the olden times, to
developing Christianity and Catholicism, the spirituality of the people have been constantly shaped by their need to
hope for a better life in their regions and for the establishment of their identity in the world. Religion has helped
transform the people and their mindset towards their country and their self.
Today, Latin Americans have been set to be openly accept spiritual messages with roots coming from the
fantastic, magical realism and social realism, as depicted in most of their literature. They value personal change, and
believe in hope that their humanity will prove constant despite the struggles that they have had and in spite of those
that they are still to face.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Many of the literatures of 21st century Latin America depict the daily struggles of the people, most of the time
overstressing the conflict through romanticism. Still, 21 st century Latin American literature always include the presence
of a supernatural higher being, often using different names, that oversees the people in these struggles, and guide them
in their search for truth. The stories show how forgiveness can be given to the past, and hope to the future.
(an excerpt)
Paulo Coelho
The first person he saw as he walked back to the village was a young woman sitting V beside one of the many temporary
rivers that formed whet; the ice melted high up in the mountains. She looked up from her book, acknowledged his presence, and I
resumed her reading; doubtless her mother had to know and so he went over to her.
“Hello,” he said. “Very hot for the time of year." She nodded in agreement. The stranger went on: “I’d like you to come and
look at something." She politely put down her book, held out her hand, and introduced herself.
“My name’s Chantal. I work in the evenings at the bar of the hotel where you’re staying, and I was surprised when you didn’t come
down to dinner, because a hotel doesn’t make its money just from renting rooms, you know! but from everything the guests
consume. You are Carlos from Argentina and you live in Colombia ' Street; everyone in the village knows that already, because a man
arriving here outside of the hunting season is always an object of curiosity. A man in his fifties, with greying hair, and the look of
someone whom has been around a bit.”
“And thank you for your invitation, but I’ve already seen the landscape 'around Viscos from every possible and imaginable
angle; perhaps I would be better if I showed you places you haven't seen, but I suppose you must be very busy.”
“I'm 52, my name Isn’t Carlos, and everything I wrote on the form at the how is false."
Chantal didn't know what to say. The stranger went on: “It's not Viscos I want to show you. It’s something you’ve never seen
before."
Without trace. For a moment she was afraid, but her fear was quickly replaced by a desire for adventure: after all, this man
wouldn’t dare do anything to her when she had just told him that everyone in the village knew all about him even if none of the
details were actually true. “Who are you?” she asked. “If what you say is true, surely you realize I could turn you in to the police for
passing yourself off with a false identity?”
“I promise to answer all your questions, but first you have to come with me, because I really do want to show you
something. It’s about live minutes’ walk from here.”
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Chantal closed her book, took a deep breath and offered up a silent prayer, while her heart beat in fear and excitement. Then she
got up and followed the stranger, convinced that this would prove to be yet another disappointing encounter, one which started out
full of promise and turned into yet another dream of impossible love.
The man went over to the Y-shaped rock, indicated the recently dug earth, and suggested she uncover what lay buried
there.
“I'll get my hands dirty,” protested Chantal. “I’ll get my dress dirty too." The man grabbed a branch, broke it and handed it
to her to use as a spade. She found such behavior distinctly odd, but decided to do as he asked.
She did as she was told. The man led her to the next hiding place. Again she began digging, and this time was astonished at
the quantity of gold she saw before her.
“That’s gold too. And it’s also mine,” said the stranger.
Chantal was beginning to cover the gold over again with soil, when he asked her to leave the hole as it was. He sat down on
one of the rocks, lit a cigarette, and stared at the horizon.
“Why did you want to show me this?” she asked. He didn't respond.
“Who are you exactly? And what are you doing here? Why did you show me this, knowing I could go and tell everyone
what's hidden here on the mountain?"
“So many questions all at once," the stranger replied, keeping his eyes fixed on the mountains, as if oblivious to her
presence. “As r9: telling the others, that’s precisely what I want you to do."
“You promised me that, if I came with you, you would answer any questions I asked you."
“In the first place, you shouldn’t believe in promises. The world is full of them: promises of riches, of eternal salvation, of
infinite love. Some people think they can the promise anything; others accept whatever seems to guarantee better days ahead, as, I
suspect, is your case. Those who make promises they don’t keep end up powerless and frustrated, and exactly the same fate awaits
those who believe those promises.”
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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“Right, then, since you won't tell me anything about the gold you showed me, I’ll just thank you for the walk and return to
my river and my book.”
“Just a moment!"
“Of course I’ll explain about the gold; why else would I e brought you here?"
“You’re obviously a man with a great deal of experience, someone who could teach me a lot." "
That was it. Gently slacken the rope and then lavish a l e light praise on your prey so as not to frighten him off. That was an
important le to follow.
“However, you have a dreadful habit of making long speeches about promises or about how we should behave, instead of
replying to a simple question. I’d be delighted to stay if only you'd answer the questions I asked you at the start: who exactly are
you? And what are you doing here?"
The stranger turned his gaze from the mountains and looked at the young woman in front of him. He had worked for many
years with all kinds of people and he knew almost for certain what she must be thinking. She probably thought he had shown her the
gold in order to impress her with his wealth ,just as now she was trying to impress him with her youth and indifference. “Who am I?
Well, let’s say I'm a man who, for some time now, has been searching for a particular truth. I finally discovered the theory, but I’ve
never put it into practice.”
“About the nature of human beings. I discovered that confronted by temptation, we will always fall. Given the right
circumstances, every human being on this earth would be willing to commit evil." ’
“I think..."
“It’s not a question of what you or I think, or of what we want to believe, but of finding out if my theory is correct. You want
to know who I am. Well, I’m an extremely rich and famous industrialist, who held sway over thousands of employees, was ruthless
when necessary and kind when I had to be."
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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“I’m a man who has experienced things that most people never even dream of, and who went beyond all the usual limits in
his search for both pleasure and knowledge. A man who found paradise when he thought he was a prisoner' to the hell of routine
and family, and who found hell when he could at last enjoy paradise and total freedom. That’s who I am, a man who has been both
good and evil throughout his life, perhaps the person most fitted to reply to my own question about the essence of humanity -and
that’s why I'm here. I know what you're going to ask next.”
Chantal felt she was losing ground. She needed to regain it rapidly.
“You think I’m going to ask: “Why did you show me the gold?" But what I really want to know is why a rich and famous
industrialist would come to Viscos in search Of an answer he could hand in books, universities, or simply by consulting some
illustrious philosopher.”
The stranger was pleased at the girl’s intelligence. Good, he had chosen the right person as ever. ,
“I came to Viscos because I had a plan. A long time ago, I went to see a play by a writer called Diirrenmatt, whom I’m sure
you know ..." His comment was merely intended to provoke her: obviously a young woman like her would never have heard of
Diirrenmatt, and he knew that she would again try to appear indifferent, ' as if she knew who he was talking about.
“I'm glad to see you know his work, but let me just remind you about the particular play I mean.” He measured his words
carefully so that his remarks would not sound too sarcastic, but would also make it clear that he knew she was lying. “It’s about a
woman who makes her fortune and then returns to her home town with the sole intention of humiliating and destroying the man
who rejected her in her youth. Her life, her marriage and her financial success have all been motivated by the desire to take revenge
on her first love."
“So then I thought up my own game: I would go to some remote place, where everyone looked on life with joy, peace and
compassion, and I would see if I could make the people there break a few of the Ten Commandments.”
Chantal looked away and stared at the mountains. She knew the stranger had realized that she had never heard of the
author he was talking about and now she was afraid he would ask her about those Ten Commandments; she had never been very
religious and had not the slightest idea what they were.
“Everybody in this village is honest, starting with you," the stranger went on, “I showed you a gold bar, which would give
you the necessary financial independence to get out of here, to travel the world, to do whatever to it is young women from small,
out-of-the-way villages dream of doing. The gold is going to stay there; You
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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know it’s mine, but you could steal it if you wanted. And then you would be breaking one of the commandments: “Thou shalt not
steal.”
“As for the other ten gold bars," he went on, “they are worth enough to mean that none of the inhabitants of this village
would ever need to work again. I didn't ask you to re-bury the gold bars because I'm going to move them to a place only I will know
about When you go back to the village, I want you to say that you saw them and that I am willing to hand them over to the
inhabitants of Viscos on condition that they do something they would never ever dream of doing.”.
“It’s not an example, it’s something very concrete. I want them to break the commandment “Thou shalt not kill”.”
“What?”
The stranger saw the young woman’s body go rigid and realized she might leave at any moment without hearing the rest of
the story. He needed to tell her his plan quickly.
“I’m giving them a week. If, at the end of seven days, someone in the village is found dead it could be a useless idle man, or
someone with an incurable illness, or a mental defective who requires constant attention, the victim doesn’t matter then the money
will go to the other villagers, and I will conclude that we are all evil. If you steal the one gold bar but the village resists temptation, or
vice versa, I will conclude that there are good people and evil people which would put me in a difficult position because it would
mean that there’s a spiritual struggle going on that could be won by either side. Don’t you believe in God and the spiritual world, in
battles between devils and angels?”
The young woman said Homing, and this time he realized that he had mistimed his question and ran the risk of her simply
turning on her heel and not letting him finish. He had better cut the irony and get to the heart of the matter.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
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“If I leave the village with my eleven gold bars intact, then everything I wanted to believe in will have proved to be a lie. I
will die having received an answer I would rather not have received, because I would find life more acceptable if I was proved right
and the world is evil."
“I would continue to suffer, but knowing that everyone else is suffering too would make the pain more bearable. But if only
a few of us are condemned to suffer terrible tragedies, then there is something very wrong with Creation.”
Chantal’s eyes filled with tears, but she managed to light them back. “Why are you doing this? Why did you choose my village?”
“It’s nothing to do with you or with your village. I’m simply thinking of myself; the story of one man is the story of all men. I
need to know if we are good or evil. If we are good, God is just and will forgive me for all I have done, for the harm I wished on those
who tried to destroy me, for the wrong decisions I took at key moments, for the proposition I am putting to you now for He was the
one who drove me towards the dark.”
“But if we’re evil, then everything is permitted, I never took a wrong decision, we are all condemned from the start, and it
doesn't matter what we do in this life, for redemption lies beyond either human thought or deed.”
“You may decide hot to co-operate, in which case, I'll tell everyone that I gave you the chance to help them, but you
refused, and then I’ll put my proposition to them myself. If they do decide to kill someone, you will probably be their chosen victim."
1. What is the “truth about the nature of human beings” that the man discovered and believes in?
2. Recall the Ten Commandments as stated in the Catholic Bible. What are these statements? What do these
statements promote?
3. What was the man’s plan for his “game” in Viscos? What does he intend to learn out of this game?
4. What are the possible outcomes of the man’s game? What results does the man want to achieve? Whys is
that?
5. If you were Chantal, how would you have reacted? What would you have done?
6. If you were on of the villagers, after hearing about the man’s game, how would you have reacted? What would
you have done?
7. How is “goodness” portrayed in the game of the man? How is “goodness” portrayed by Chantal?
8. How is “evilness” portrayed in the game of the man? How is “evilness portrayed in Chantal?
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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10. Do you believe that there is goodness in all humans? Where does this goodness come from? Explain your
answer.
APPLY
Directions: Make a Psychoanalytic Critical paper for the story “The Devil and Miss Prym” using the guide questions
written below. Write your work in a short bond paper.
1. What scenarios from the story had something to do with inner battle?
ASSESS
SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Literary Journal
Directions: Choose a Literary Approach that you think best present the analysis of the short story “It’s a Night Job” by
Joanita Male then write a literary analysis using the chosen approach. Refer to the attached rubric so that you may
know how your work will be graded. Encode your work in a short bond paper using the following format:
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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Font Size: 11
Paragraph: Justified
Spacing: 1.5
(Note: You may choose to write it using your own handwriting but make sure that the texts are clean and legible.)
Joanita Male
(Africa)
You have to understand, I did not to choose this life - it chose me. My childhood had somehow prepared me for
this job – if you can call it a job that is. My mother had the same job and her mother as well. I guess I couldn’t escape it.
It’s a cold evening, and it's around 7 pm. I’m sure it will not rain today. The rain cuts business down almost to
zero. You see, the street side is not a place to be during a downpour. The sky is a dark blue with a few stars spread out,
that’s how I know it will not rain. I’ve been told stars are a sure sign that the skies will hold back. Thank God!
I’m wearing the white dress, the stretchy one that shows the curve of my hips clearly. White is a good colour
when you’re trying to be noticed among several other girls, especially when your complexion is as dark as mine. My
make-up has been applied. My mum taught me how to wear make-up. Maroon lipstick (red was for the light skinned
ones) and a bit of eye shadow. I’m wearing six inch heels, not so much for fashion but more to be noticed easier. At 5’
1”, I am one of the shorter girls here. I’m not wearing any underwear; I have learnt that sometimes the only way to get
customers is to give a preview of what’s to come.
I’m standing on Burton Street, the small stretch before the roundabout to Yusuf Lule road. Most of the girls are
already there. This street has no lights at all. I like that about it, any sign of lights means we have a potential client. The
buildings on this street are homes that were turned into offices. They have domineering gates with large signposts at the
entrance. There isn’t a sound from them at this time.
Lights. I quickly bend over, enough to give the driver a glimpse of what he will be getting if they choose me. I
manage to bend yet still twist my body so they can see a bit of my face. I’m smiling. I’m good at that now. It comes with
practice; I don’t have to be happy to smile. I can conjure up a smile at your slightest bidding…it’s one of the
requirements of the job.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
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A white corona slows down next to me, I can tell by the car that this client might not pay as handsomely as I
would like, but I learnt a long time ago not to pass up any offers, you might go hungry if you do.
A dark face is staring at me all I see are wide eyes and sparkling teeth.
“Get in,” he shouts with impatience. He has to drive off before anyone sees him. I jump in, still smiling, I’m not sure
where we are going, but I have to be clear on my prices.
“Long or short?” I ask loudly, with my eyebrows raised, it’s something I always do.
“Okay,” he blurts out as we drive off to what I assume is Ntinda. Getting home won’t be too expensive, I stay in
Naalya and that’s pretty close to where we’re going. We pull up at Max’s motel. Everyone that stays in Ntinda uses this
spot. We come out of the car and he rushes out. I follow after him like an unwanted puppy. They always act this way at
first, like they’re doing you a favour. I hate this part!
We get to the room and he wastes no time taking off his clothes. He lays there on the double bed covered with a
thick brown blanket. Everything about this motel is dull. Ugly brown curtains to match the blankets, cream walls and
basic furniture, everything looks as if they were dragged out of the nearby primary school.
Everything about this motel is dull apart from the people. The different clients that is. They range from the
boda-boda rider who decides to pleasure himself with the day’s earnings to the city tycoon who tries to remain
inconspicuous on his visits.
I look down at him and he is well built, much better than most of my usual clients. He looks at me waiting. I hate
this part too. The beginning. I pull up my dress. Even though he’s paying for ‘long’ I am determined to give him ‘short’.
I’m not in the mood to do too much today. I’ll please him enough to the point where he can’t tell the difference. We are
at it now; this is the part that I don’t hate so much, the satisfaction I give them. All of them. We rock away as the motel
bed creaks. I can partly hear the beds in the neighbouring rooms making the same sound; it’s like a song matching
rhythms, matching beats. His face is twisted almost as if he is in pain. I know that means I am doing a good job.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
163
He’s a first timer. I’m sure of it. He asked the price. No one ever asks the price.
It’s over now. I’m thinking about it and I am pretty sure this is the part I actually hate the most. The self-loathing. The
moment I start to blame all of this on my mother, the point where I am flooded with memories of listening to my
mother cry every night when they left. The different men she brought home, that is. I always wondered what made her
so unhappy. She had enough money to look after us on her own and she was a good mother. It’s only now that I am
older that I understand.
I am not smiling any more. When it’s time to get paid it helps not to smile.
“But, you’re expensive,” Of course now that it’s over, he realizes. I don’t say anything, arguing never works, I just look at
him, stare actually. He pulls out a crumpled fifty thousand shilling note. The old notes, the ones that are larger and much
paler. I grab it and stick it in my bra before he changes his mind. He goes to the tiny bathroom to wash off.
I waste no time rummaging through his trousers. Nothing. I check his shirt, there’s a wallet, a few crumpled ten
thousands, I grab them and then I’m gone.
Max’s motel is conveniently or should I say inconveniently situated away from the main road. This means I have to call
my boda-boda guy. Great!
I’m home now. I throw on pair of leggings before I got home; I wonder what girls did before leggings were in
vogue. Mother opens the door. She is smiling at me; she knows I have some money for her. She stopped bringing the
men home a long time ago; there isn’t a large market for hookers over fifty. How did I get myself into this? I can’t even
explain to myself. Maybe it was because of the several daddies I had or watching my mother apply make-up every day
and somehow look after us. Or maybe it’s the fact that I was raised on the words “Look after your body, you never know
when you’ll need it to make a living.” Maybe that’s it.
It’s the receptionist job I have, that’s where I get the money. This is what I tell her, this is what she pretends to
believe. Maybe she does believe it, I don’t really know. Mother sticks out her small hand, waiting. Even at fifty she’s still
in great shape even though she isn’t as beautiful as she used to be. The job took its toll on her. There’s a shadow of
regret behind every smile she wears, maybe this is the effect of the night job. That’s why I’m going to stop, seriously.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
164
Soon, someday. I greet her and hand over the fifty thousand note, she’s still smiling as she goes on about how much I
make her proud. Okay, I’m certain now, this really is actually the part I hate the most, my mother’s adoration.
I walk to my room, I have a long day tomorrow, my university class has a sociology test to sit.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
165
Comprehensiveness of the
Literary Approach Used Reflects a strong Reflects a developing Reflects a limited but growing Does not reflect or fails to develop
understanding of Literary understanding of Literary understanding of the Literary an understanding of the Literary
Approaches Approaches Approaches Approaches
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
166
Entries show evidence of Entries include some reflection Entries missing significant Reflection about what was read or
reflection about what was about what was read. reflection about what was read discussed was missing.
read. or discussed
Depth of Reflection Used
(x2)
Critical thinking obvious Usually attempts to show critical Minimal effort to show critical Missing critical thinking that
that connects learning to thinking to connect learning to thinking. Learning not connects text to learning and class
the text and class the text and class discussion connected to text or class discussions
discussion discussion
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
167
Learning Competencies
ENGAGE
1. How do you feel about your body? Are you proud of your body? Why or why not?
2. What kind of body is idealized in today’s society? Do you agree with this ideal? Why or why not?
3. Do women have a harder time that men do when it comes to standard of society regarding beauty and body
image? Or do they both have to deal with the same issues today?
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
168
EXPLORE
Literary adaptation is the adapting of a literary source (e.g. a novel, short story, poem) to another genre or
medium, such as a film, stage play, or video game. It can also involve adapting the same literary work in the same genre
or medium just for different purposes, e.g. to work with a smaller cast, in a smaller venue (or on the road), or for a
different demographic group (such as adapting a story for children). All these types of adaptations required the
involvement of a specific type of writer. If a novel or a short story is adapted for the stage, it needs to be rewritten as a
play. (Requiring a playwright) If a play is rewritten as a story, it takes the shape of a novel or a short story.(Then, it calls
upon a writer.) If a text is adapted to an opera (operetta or musical), it is to be rewritten as a libretto. (This necessitates
a librettist.) If an original work is adapted to film, then it is reworked as a scenario (by a screenwriter.)
Physical Appearance
Because the stage and film are a visual medium they show more than the novel possibly could about the
physical nature of people, places and things. In a visual medium, the images presented determine the response of the
audience. What aspect of the imagery described in a book will become useless on stage or on screen? (Will the
audience accept the physical appearance of the actors, singers, dancers, selected? or that of the whole image that has
been created?)
Characters
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
169
A novel usually contains a larger number of main characters than a staged work. (reduction of characters, or
combination into fewer characters) A short story or poem usually develops fewer characters. (manipulation or addition
of characters)
Time factor
We can read a book for as long as we wish. A staged work is usually limited to two hours. A musical work
requires musical space. A visual work requires scenic space.
Language
The writer communicates through verbal language. The screenwriter, or librettist, conveys narrative thought
through visual and verbal means. For example: If the novelist wrote: “Don José stabbed Carmen in front of the arena.”
The librettist or the screenwriter must show a man stabbing a woman in front of an arena.
Expression
In a visual setting, the author is more limited than the writer of a book. The stage or the screen do not lend
themselves well to abstract ideas. How can the internal life of a person be staged? (thoughts, emotions, feelings,
memory)
Ways of adapting
In adapting a print text or theater production to film, directors can stick quite close to the original text to create
a highly literal reproduction of text, or you can create a totally different version of the original text.
Loose Adaptation uses the original situation, story idea, or characters but bears little resemblance to the text.
Literal Adaptation are similar to older video versions of play productions. It has limited use of cinematic
techniques.
Faithful Adaptations recapture the original text as closely as possible. This is a careful translation of the original
into film. The characters, storylines, and most events are retained.
1. Film adaptations of literature help struggling readers develop interest and become motivated.
2. In a flash, a student might perceive one of the movie’s characters, themes, or settings as relatable.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
170
3. Film adaptations of literature build students’ critical-thinking skills. By comparing film adaptations to the books
from which they originated, students can sharpen and refine their analytical skills.
4. Film adaptations of literature aid students who are “visual learners”. Visual learners may not always “get the
picture” from reading words on a page. As primarily visual media, films can be worthwhile tools for these
students.
5. Film adaptations of literature illuminate history. Film adaptations based of history are able to transport the
reader to a long-ago time and place, using the sensory advantages of the medium.
Literary Text 1
Background:
Many people believe that the fashion industry and women’s magazines construct a negative body image for
women. The standard of beauty around the world tends to lean toward fair skin, western features, and thin bodies. This
has resulted in women Opting for skin whitening creams, plastic surgery, and damaging eating disorders such as
anorexia and bulimia.
Although there are products that try to promote a positive body image celebrating differences in body types,
skin colors, and features, these are in the minority compared to those that feature the opposite in commercials,
magazines, fashion shows, and the media. In this modern age, this has become the case for men as well.
The excerpt you are about to read comes from the play The Good Body, which is a series of monologues
performed by different women. In this part, we hear what the protagonist, Eve, has to say about her body.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
171
My body will be mine when I’m thin. I will eat a little at a time, small bites. I will vanquish ice cream. I will purge
with green juices. I will see chocolate as poison and pasta as a form of self-punishment. I will work not to feel full again.
Always moving toward full, approaching full but never really full. I will embrace my emptiness, I will ride into holy zones.
Let me be hungry. Let me starve. Please.
Bread is Satan. I stop eating bread. This is the same as not eating food. Four days in, a scrawny actress friend
tells me, ”Eve, your stomach has nothing to do with diet." What? ”It’s the change of life,” she says. ”All you need is some
testosterone." I try to imagine what I would be like, totally bread deprived and shot up with testosterone. ”Serial killer”
comes to mind.
I'm walking down a New York City street, and I catch a glimpse of this blond, pointy-breasted, raisin-a-day
stomached smiling girl on the cover of Cosmo magazine. She is there every minute, somewhere in the world, smiling
down on me, on all of us. She’s omnipresent. She’s the American Dream, my personal nightmare. Pumped straight from
the publishing power plant into the bloodstream of our culture and neurosis. She is multiplying on every corner. She was
passed through my mother’s milk and so I don’t even know that I’m contaminated. Don’t get me wrong. I pick up the
magazine. No, no, no. It’s the possibility of being skinny good that keeps me buying. I discover a Starbucks maple walnut
scone expanding in me, creeping out. Flabby age leaking through the cracks. Big Macs, French fries, Pizza Land, four
helpings, can’t stop. My stomach is America. I want to drown in the cement. Obviously I'm missing something. Maybe if I
go find the woman who thought this up, she’ll reveal the secret.
Literary Text 2
Ang babayng way bilbil kay morag baybay nga way kimba.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
172
APPLY
Directions: For the application task, you may choose any of the tasks listed below depending on the resources that you
have at home.
1. Perform a monologue about body image and have it video recorded. The monologue should not exceed 5
minutes in length.
2. Write a 500-word essay about the way you feel about your body. Have it encoded/written in a short bondpaper.
ASSESS
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
173
The Philippine Association for Psychology (PAFP) has approved your multimedia proposal to feature an
adaptation of a contemporary text. The chosen text should highlight the advocate workable solutions to end body
shaming. As a production manager, you and your team are tasked to produce a creative adaption of your approved
chosen text.
Choose among the given literary text from both Philippine and foreign literature Ang Babayeng Way Bilbil by
Adonis Dorado and The Good Body(Excerpt) by Eve Ensler. Interpret the literary texts through any of the following
methods:
1. Short film adaptation (it can be a short movie, music video, documentary, commercial, Tiktok, etc.)
2. Infographic
Please refer to the attached rubric so that you may know how your work will be graded.
1 2 3 4
10 %
Dialogues do not contribute Dialogues sometimes add Dialogues are related to the Dialogues are related to the
to the story at all. No meaning to the story. scenes and the story, often story, and the connections are
Lines from the epic or narrative captions. Connections are very adding meaning to the story. easy to understand. The words
paraphrased from the epic are general, or not always Most plot points have add significantly to the
correctly formed to dialogues clear. Many plot points are narrative captions. meaning conveyed, as all are
of the characters. missing narrative captions. properly denoted by narrative
captions.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
174
20%
Composition is not neat. Composition is not Composition is fairly neat. Composition is neat. Structure
Adaptation was put particularly neat. Structure Structure and grammar is and grammar is very much
Layout is done neatly. Proper together without thought. and grammar is observed observed. Originality is well- observed. Originality is
structure of sentences and No original content is finely. Originality is established. established and did not
paragraphs are observed. present. established. sacrifice the adaptation of the
selected epic.
10%
Characters are not related Characters are vaguely Characters are related to Characters clearly relate to
to originals. No support of related to epic’s original original but are inconsistent. originals and are based on
Characters are properly formed character adaptations. characters. Characters add Characters are entertaining original ideas. Characters are
and are related to the original Characters are distracting little to the adaptation. but confusing at times. relevant and add to storyline.
set of characters in the epic. from original epic’s
meaning
10%
No planning evident in Inconsistent color palette Good use of color. Some Clear and interesting design
design scheme. Color is not and some use of costumes, shots do not contain clear scheme with vibrant color
A clear and original design considered or distracting. props and scenery. costumes, props, or scenery. palette and clear use of
scheme is used to organize planning in costumes, props
work. and scenery.
Material
20% Story was not made for Adaptation of story is Adaptation of story is made Adaptation of story is really
film. Story lines are not attempting to be for film. for film but with minimal made for film with its story plot
contemporary or modern. Story lines show some distractions that imaginable for a story
contemporary or modern differentiate it from screenplay. Contemporary or
Story adaptation is made for
elements. narratives. Story lines modern elements are very
film material.
suggest contemporary or much present in the
modern elements. adaptation.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
175
1. Topic and title 4. Topic and title are 7. Topic and title 10. Topic and title are not
are mostly mostly clear and difficult to clearly identified
clear and easily identified identify 11. No main idea
easily 5. Main idea is 8. Main idea is not 12. Illustrations do not
Focus 20%
identified appropriate to clearly stated complement purpose of
2. Main idea is topic 9. Few visual
clearly 6. Most illustrations illustrations
appropriate complement complement
to topic purpose of visual purpose of
3. All visual
illustrations
complement
purpose of
visual
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
176
References
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria
Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 431–32. Print.
Hasley, Louis. “James Thurber: Artist in Humor.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 11. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale
Research, 1980. 532–34. Print.
Iser, Wolfgang. The Act of Reading: A Theory of Aesthetic Response. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1981. Print.
indner, Carl M. “Thurber’s Walter Mitty—The Underground American Hero.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria
Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research, 1980. 440–41. Print.
Thurber, James. “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” Literature: An Introduction to Critical Reading. Ed. William Vesterman. Fort Worth:
Harcourt Brace, 1993. 286–89. Print.
Tompkins, Jane P. “An Introduction to Reader-Response Criticism.” Reader Response Criticism: From Formalism to Post-
Structuralism. Ed. Jane P. Tompkins. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1980. ix-xxvi. Print.
Elias, Robert H. “James Thurber: The Primitive, the Innocent, and the Individual.” Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 5. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Detroit: Gale Research,
1980. 431–32. Print.
Educational materials for 21st Century Philippine literature emphasize critical literary analysis by encouraging students to engage with texts through close reading, interpretation of themes, and contextual understanding. Students are tasked with writing analytical essays and conducting detailed discussions on the geographical, linguistic, and cultural dimensions of literary works. These activities are designed to deepen literary appreciation and enhance critical thinking skills .
21st Century Philippine literature incorporates regional diversity by acknowledging and promoting the unique linguistic, cultural, and historical contexts of various regions across the Philippines. Each region contributes distinct literary forms and themes that are often reflective of local experiences and traditions. This diversity is significant as it not only enriches the national literature canon but also fosters a deeper understanding and appreciation of the country's multifaceted heritage, promoting cultural inclusivity and national unity .
Historical context plays a crucial role in interpreting Philippine literature from different regions as it provides insight into the societal, cultural, and political influences that shape literary works. Understanding the historical backdrop allows readers to appreciate how literature reflects regional histories, struggles, and identities, which are essential for grasping the full meaning and significance of the texts. This context highlights the interconnectedness of literary expression and historical experience .
The study of canonical authors contributes to a student's understanding of Philippine literature by providing insight into key figures who have shaped the literary landscape. These authors' works serve as benchmarks for literary excellence and cultural representation. Studying their texts helps students recognize the evolution of literary forms and themes, understand historical and cultural contexts, and appreciate the complexity and diversity of Philippine literary contributions .
The concept of regional literature complements the national literary canon in the Philippines by introducing diverse voices and perspectives, enriching the overall literature landscape. It challenges the homogenization of the national canon by emphasizing linguistic, cultural, and historical specificities unique to different regions. This inclusion fosters a more inclusive understanding of Philippine literature, highlighting local realities while contributing to a unified national narrative .
Folk songs contribute to preserving the literary heritage of the Philippines by encapsulating historical narratives, cultural values, and the linguistic richness of diverse communities. They serve as oral histories that maintain cultural continuity and communal identity. However, in the modern era, they face challenges such as cultural homogenization, the decline of oral traditions, and the waning intergenerational transmission, which threaten their survival and relevance .
The narrative structure significantly impacts the themes presented in literary works by shaping how stories unfold and how readers engage with the text. In 21st Century Philippine literature, narrative structure often intertwines personal and communal stories, reflecting broader cultural and societal themes. The structure, be it linear or non-linear, can emphasize themes of identity, resilience, and cultural heritage, allowing for a multifaceted exploration of themes relevant to contemporary Philippine society .
Multimedia adaptations in understanding Philippine literature are important because they allow for creative reinterpretation and wider dissemination of texts, making literature more accessible and engaging. By transforming written works into multimedia forms, such as visual arts or performance, students can explore new dimensions of the texts, which aids in appreciating the nuances of themes and cultural contexts. This process also enhances students' digital literacy and expressive capabilities .
Literary criticism approaches enhance the understanding of 21st Century literature from the Philippines by providing various lenses through which to analyze and interpret texts, such as formalist, historical, cultural, or feminist perspectives. These approaches allow for deeper exploration of themes, forms, and societal impacts within literary works, helping readers appreciate the layered complexities and significance of the literature .
The integration of technology in the study of literature from the Philippines presents several challenges and opportunities. Challenges include ensuring access to digital resources and addressing the digital divide among students. Opportunities arise in the form of increased accessibility to diverse literary works, interactive learning experiences, and the ability for students to engage with multimedia adaptations. Technology also opens doors to global communication and collaboration, enriching the understanding and appreciation of Philippine literature .









