HUM014

Philippine Literature in English

Prof.Desacado
 What is
Literature?
 anything from the
everything that has earliest poems of our
ever been written ancestors to today’s
web pages

Literature

can be written in a introduces us to new

specific language and worlds of
culture experiences
 History of Literature
The word literature is derived from the
Latin term litera which means letter.

It also comes from

the French phrase Early cavemen drew
“belles lettres” images on the walls
which means of the cave.
beautiful writing

Later accompanied
by rough sounds in
Oral literature came
imitation of real
into being.
sounds.
◦ F. Sionil Jose ,Philippine
National Artist for Literature
(2001)
◦ My first real experience with
literature happened when I was
ten years old and in Grade 5.
My teacher, Ms. Soledad Oriel,
found out that I loved reading
and she gave me the very first
novels I read, Rizal's Noli Me
Tangere and El Filibusterismo,
Willa Cather's My Antonia and
that Spanish classic, Don
Quixote de la Mancha.

http://www.fsioniljose.com/blog/lit
erature-and-nation
 Aims of Literature
To propagate
To instruct beliefs
To delight (common
(information
and (for humanity,
disparities in
knowledge) pleasure) history and
culture)

To fire the
To arouse imagination of
the readers
emotions
(sharpens a
(human person
experience) aesthetically and
imaginatively)
 Aims of Studying Phil. Lit. in English

1. to acquire a perspective of local fiction

and understand its development in the
light of the country’s history;

2. to gain insight into our personal

experiences as we get to know how
Filipino writers imagine their country,
their community and their own selves.
Reasons for Studying Literature

Literature helps
us grow, both
personally and
intellectually.
Reasons for Studying Literature

It links us with the

cultural,
philosophical, and
religious world of
which we are a part
Reasons for Studying Literature

It exercises our
emotions through It encourages us to
interest, concern, appreciate,
tension, excitement, recognize and
hope, fear, regret, support talented
laughter, and and creative people.
sympathy.
Reasons for Studying Literature

It makes us
human.
 Importance of Literature

• development of society and civilization

• cultural development
• conservation of heritage
• preservation of past experiences
• manifestation of the depth of culture
and the creative genius of a race
 Classifications of Literature

prose
fiction or drama poetry
narrative

non
fiction imaginative literature (fiction)
 Fiction originally meant anything
made up, crafted or shaped, and
is based in the imagination of the
author.

prose Its purpose is to interest,

fiction or divert, stimulate, and
narrative instruct.

It includes short stories,

novels, myths, parables,
romances and epics.
 It is an imaginative awareness of
experience expressed through
meaning, sound, and rhythmic
language choices so as to evoke an
emotional response.

Rhymes and variety of rhythms

poetry are used in poetry to intensify
its emotional impact.

Poetry is a human speech at its

most intense and musical and is
considered as a literature of
performance.
 Drama is a literature
designed for stage or film, to
be witnessed by an audience.

The essence of drama is the

drama development of character
and situation through speech
and action.

Early drama was

poetry.
 It describes or interprets
facts and present judgments
and opinions.

non Truth in reporting and logic

fiction in reasoning are its major
goals.

Examples of non fiction are

historical and biographical works,
news features, essays, editorials,
textbooks, and journals.
 LITERARY
STANDARDS
1. Universality
2. Artistry
3. Intellectual Value
4. Suggestiveness
5. Spiritual Value
6. Permanence
7. Style
 UNIVERSALITY
◦ a great literary work is timeless
and timely. It is forever relevant, it
appeals to one and all, anytime, and
anywhere because it deals with an
array of individual's perceptions as
well as orientations toward
fundamental truths and universal
conditions.
Artistry
◦This is the
quality that
appeals to our
sense of beauty.
Intellectual
Value/Beauty
◦A literary work stimulates
thought. It enriches our mental
life by making us realize
fundamental truths about life and
human nature.
Suggestiveness
◦ This is the quality
associated with the
emotional power of
literature.

• Great literature moves us deeply and stirs

our feeling and imagination, giving and
evoking visions above and beyond the plane
of ordinary life and experience.
Spiritual Value
◦Literature elevates the spirit by bringing out
moral which makes us a better person.
◦The capacity to inspire is part of the spiritual
value of literature.
 Permanence
◦A great work of literature
endures.
◦It can be read again and again as
each reading gives fresh delight
and new insights and opens a
new world of meaning and
experience.
◦Its appeal is lasting.
Style
◦This is the peculiar way in which writers sees
life, forms his ideas and expresses them.
 LITERARY
STANDARDS
Literature