Arzadon, Bobbie Claire L. - Written Work 1

I. Literary Periods in Philippine Literature

        Today’s work of literature is non-existent without the historical periods it had gone through. Writers and authors of past times are adventurous and purposeful in their literary works. During my past years, as a student learning the continuous literature of our country, from pre-historical periods up until this moment, I’ve gathered a summary of my knowledge. Our country, Philippines, has three major periods namely: Pre-Colonial, Colonial and Post-Colonial. Each period produced and nurtured Philippine literature. Some of which managed to still exist up to this moment, while some are amended for good.

        During the Pre-Colonial period, Native Literary Tradition was embodied. As the name suggests, people are driven by their tribes, along with their beliefs and own perception of life. Different tribes exist along our archipelago, each of them practiced different traditions and did utmost best to preserve and pass them to the next generation. Native Tradition played a big role in building and strengthening the structure of each tribe. Oral literature was mostly practiced, during those time rituals - which reflect the values, everyday experience and history of each tribe - were narrated, sung, danced and reenacted. They say that when a melody is applied, it is easy to pick up and remember by people. These are usually performed during funerals, feasts and religious rituals. Narrated literature are folk stories created by people. It contains riddles and feelings of the author. Moreover, mythological stories were also born during this period, often reflected on ethics of the community which serves as a good inspiration for children. Islam reached Philippines in the 14th-century Muslim traders arrived in Manila. Slowly, communities of Muslims started to emerge. It was said that Islam had a huge impact on the Philippines’ religion even before Spaniards came to colonize. As time goes by, Islam, found in the southern Philippines, became a dominant religion. With these, Muslims were able to influence us with their literary practices. Stories about sacrifices to prove faith and stories of their religious legends started to become widespread across our country. Authors direct their works to beliefs and rituals of Islam. The content of the work is more important than the style and form of writing used.

        In 1521, with the advancement of technology in terms of navigation, Spaniards were able to arrive in Philippines along with their Latin culture and policies: order, authority and obedience. This led to the Colonial Period of Philippines with literature, Hispanic Tradition. Narratives of Biblical characters, especially Jesus Christ, started to arise in order to further persuade people to surrender their will to God. These literary works, served as spiritual figures to those people which inspired them to apply those will in life. Furthermore, few literary pieces introduced was lyrical songs, poems, dramas, musical play, sermon, novel and essay. It was said that during this period, theater was practiced and became popular to promote the language of Spaniards. Still under Colonial Period, American arrived. They inherited democratic beliefs and reinforced liberal ideas. Also, they introduced the English language and were taught to universities. Philippine literature during this time was alive and full of creativity. Writers were experimenting with new patterns, rhyme and stanza following the American Style. Dailies and magazines contain human-interest topics and were very much widespread. Also, during this time, movies and vaudeville shows arose.

        Political works of Jose Rizal, a Philippine National Hero, vividly showed the abuse, injustice practice of Spaniards, and racial discrimination of the Philippine society. His works were used as a social critic. Propagandists and revolutionaries wrote satirical essays in a moralistic tone. They continuously insisted on the need to have an actual change in society. Tagalog became an official language when revolutionaries wanted to dedicate their work to their fellow Filipinos. Writers’ writing styles changed as a result of legitimation and identity crisis. They wrote mostly about national issues that go against the government in protest of the unfair social system they live in. With the courage of Filipinos to stand for their rights, we were able to gain our freedom and independence which led to a new formation of period, the Post-Colonial.

II. Essential Elements of the Literary Pieces under Different Periods of Philippine Literature

        All of these elements greatly contributed to our Philippine Literature. It depicts our character as it contains practices, beliefs and perceptions of Filipinos. But if I were to be asked this question, it is the element of Characterization that is the most essential element of the literary periods of Philippine Literature.

       Observe that during Colonial Period, under the colonization of Spaniards. Spain aimed to spread Christianity in order to bring us salvation. In a literary piece, it is the character that we are more curious to know, how they would think, act, and respond. Many works were written were religious and devoted to the virtues of Christianity. It mostly contains characters of those in the Bible and Jesus Christ himself. A Pasyon, Ang Mahal na Passion ni Jesu Cristong Panginoon Natin na Tola by Aquino de Belen published in 1703 showcased Jesus Christ’s sacrifices and loyalty to his faith. Also, El libro de la vida by Aniceto de la Merced, portrayed characters in a way that the readers can learn a moral story of as a Christian. Characters in the story are carefully thought by the writers as these characters can greatly affect the readers’ minds as they progress reading. The characters can serve as role models. The reader will reflect on themselves and possibly compare themselves to the character in a literary work. Moral lessons and realization can be acquired which they can apply in their lives.