LITERATURE 111

The purpose of teaching literature in schools has often been debated especially during the recent concern of our "failing educational system" and the importance placed on high stakes tests. However, teaching literature not only improves reading fluency through the expansion of vocabulary, but also increases students' reading comprehension skills. Comprehension skills not only include retelling main events, but also include the ability to identify the author's choice or words, central themes, character development, symbolism, irony, etc. Including literature especially classical literature supports the idea of teaching a truly integrated curriculum. For example, classical literature can be used to teach history and language arts. One does not need to have a specific course designed solely around reading classical literature. It can be used in history and writing classes to encourage higher level thinking skills.

Today it seems that students need to not only learn from literature, but also understand how it applies to their lives. Instead of having students read the whole of a "literary classics", teachers should begin to incorporate newer texts and excerpts from the classics can teach them the same lessons is becoming vitally important. Students need to feel they can relate to what they’re reading; otherwise English and literature teachers will find themselves losing their audiences. Turning students off from literature is doing them a disservice, teachers need to ensure that their students cannot only read but can analyze and question the texts they are reading.

BACKGROUND ON PHILIPPINE LITERATURE
Ancient Philippine literature is a composite product of the rich cultural heritage of the Filipinos
linked closely with the religious beliefs and ceremonies of the time, and enriched with the influences of the Chinese, Arabs, Persians, and other foreigners who came to trade with them. The literature
reflects the culture of the original inhabitants of the Philippine Archipelago. The Spanish conquest gave rise to marked Spanish influences not only in content – Christianity – but also in form – passion, moro-moro, comedia, among others. Later as the Filipino
grew in social awareness, a rich output of nationalistic and revolutionary literature was stimulated. PRE-SPANISH LITERATURE
Long before the Spaniards came to the Philippines, the Filipinos already had their own culture.
It was similar in some aspects to that of the Malays but was enriched through their contact with other Asians like the Chinese and the Japanese and with the people India and some Arab countries. According to the early missionaries, the Filipinos had their own alphabet. The early Filipinos wrote on clay, barks of trees, bamboo tubes or palm leaves – materials that were easily destroyed,
thus, explaining the lack of written literature of the time. For pens, they used the point of a knife, a
piece of iron, or any pointed instrument like bird’s quills. Soot and sap from certain trees were used
for ink.Much of Philippine literature was oral. It consisted of folk narratives, riddles, proverbs, songs, ritual chants, and epics. The literature was community-bound and sprang from the experiences and
observations of the people. The most substantial of pre-Spanish literature is the epic. The Filipino epic is a long narrative
revolving heroic deeds and supernatural events. It embodies beliefs, customs, ideals, or life-values of
the people and used to be sung or chanted in communal gatherings like the celebration of a good
harvest, a tribal victory, or at ceremonies mournings the death of chieftain. The epic hero is imbued with characteristics of idealism – courage, wisdoms, beauty, endurance, chivalry, and justice. His legendary adventures are full of obstacles put up by

supernatural forces or by people with supernatural powers. To overcome these supernatural obstacles, the hero has to be aided by friendly supernatural beings.

Philippine literature

is the literature associated with the Philippines and includes the legends of prehistory, and the colonial legacy of the Philippines. Most of the notable literature of the Philippines was written during the Spanish period and the first half of the 20th century in Spanish language. Philippine literature is written in Spanish, English, Tagalog or other native Philippine language

Prose- is a form of language which applies ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure (as in traditional poetry). While there are critical debates on the construction of prose, its simplicity and loosely defined structure has led to its adoption for the majority of spoken dialogue, factual discourse as well as topical and fictional writing. It is commonly used, for example, in literature, newspapers, magazines, encyclopedias, broadcasting, film, history, philosophy, law and many other forms of communication.

Different Types Of Prose.

Short Story

A prose narrative limited to a certain word limit is defined as a short story. It generally includes descriptions, dialogues, and commentaries. However, one characteristic that distinguishes a short story from the other kinds of prose is the concentration on a compact narrative with detailed character drawing. In general, short stories are believed to have existed decades back, even before the art of writing was known to man. The oldest recorded example of a short story is considered to be the Egyptian tale of “The Two Brothers” dated around 3200 BC.

Novel

Similar to a short story, a novel includes uncertain information since it centers on different types and possibilities. However, the length of a novel is highly undecided due to the numerous characters and situations included in it. In short, a novel is a comprehensive narrative on a large scale, in particular. Just like short stories, novels, too, have known to exist ever since literature came into existence. Amongst all the prose kinds, the novel dominates the industry, both in terms of quality and quantity. However, considering its quantity, its only rival is the magazine short story.

Fable

A fable is a short allegorical tale emphasizing on a moral or any principle of behavior. The characters of fables are usually animals that portray like human beings, though they keep their animal traits intact. The moral of these fables is highlighted towards the end of the story in the form of a proverb and is generally enacted. The oldest fables describe stories of why crows are black, or why different animals display different characteristics, such as a sly fox, a dignified lion, and so on. The earliest fables came from Greece and India, while the oldest Western fables were those of Aesop.

Fairy Tale

Stories of kings, princesses, poor farmers, and queens are not new to any one of us. They are generally guided by supernatural or magical events that fascinate us to get engrossed in them. These short stories are nothing but fairy tales. They are distinguished by generalized characters without being individualized or localized; thus, the names ‘a king’, ‘a queen’, ‘a poor farmer’, and ‘a princess’. Fairy tales begin with misfortunes graduating towards undergoing adventures and solving mysteries, and ending in a happily-ever-after mode, thereby rewarding the virtue. These stories often revolve around charms, magic, disguise, and spells. Hans Christian Andersen (Danish), Basile (Italian), the Grimm Brothers (German), Perambulate (French), and Weightless and Broker (English) are known to create some of the most famous collections of fairy tales.

Tale

A tale is a kind of prose narrative that describes strange and wonderful events in the form of somewhat bare summary. However, the main character is not focused on or given due importance. In fact, the goal or purpose of the tale is highlighted and given front seat rather than the main protagonist himself. For example, in the tale English folk of ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’, the beanstalk and the giant are highlighted instead of Jack’s personality.

LITERATURE 111

Monday, September 16, 2013

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

I. INTRODUCTION

II. OWN COMPOSITION

III. CONTEMPORARY FILIPINO AWTHOR

IV. PHILIPPINE LITERATURE

V. STUDENT OUTPUT