Guillermo, Abigail Jan B. - Written Work 2

 A Critical Analysis on the ‘Philippine Literature’ by Frank R. Blake

The ‘Philippine Literature’ is an article from 1911, written by Frank R. Blake. The main topic discussed in the article is the Philippines, its people, the languages used, and the Philippine literature. The author mentions the many languages spoken in the country, within the three main groups living in the archipelago. Also, by providing factual and correct information throughout the passage, the author’s purpose is to inform the readers about the topic. In the article, the author argues that the literature of the Philippine languages in literature only in the broader sense of written speech. He also stated that the Philippine languages have produced little to nothing that can be considered literature in terms of artistic and elegant writing.

 

There were several main ideas mentioned. First, the groups that occupied the Philippine Islands. These are the mountain pagan tribes, the Mohammedan Moros, and the Christian tribes. The biggest difference between these tribes is the languages they speak. Because they live in different regions, they developed different languages, and are most likely to only converse with their people. Among the many languages used before, a few of the languages mentioned in the passage are Sulu, Magindanaw, Bisaya, and Tagalog. While this article focused on the Filipinos, the Spaniards were also mentioned, as well as how they influenced the Philippines and the country’s literature. With the different terms and unfamiliar words used, it could be confusing to remember and understand. The structure, which showed the introduction, body, and conclusion helped in locating information in the article. To give more information, the description and examples were provided as the author discusses each tribe and each language. The way the passage transitions from one idea to another also shows how well-written it was. The readers can also be assured that the information is legit by the references given by the author. Through this, we can make sure that any knowledge we gain from the article read is true. Evidence like this is important, especially when learning about things as important as the country’s literature. Presenting factual information with details to back them up also means the author has met his purpose of informing the readers.

 

While reading the article, it was interesting to know the different languages used in the country. Without a national language, it would’ve been hard to communicate with people from different tribes. The languages used in each region, by each tribe show the unique traits of each group. Although living close to each other, if a person were to visit or talk to a person from another group, it would be challenging for them to understand because each tribe has a language different from others. However, it wasn’t pleasing to see how the Philippines lost one of its unique traits after the Spanish colonization. The author also had his thoughts about the Philippines and the Philippine literature. The author presents Philippine literature as something close to being non-existent. According to him, the languages used in the Philippines have not produced anything that can be considered as a literary work. He also mentioned that fusing the many languages used by the different tribes in the country as one would be “certainly impracticable”, although a national language would possibly be the way for real, national literature.

 

Another idea to discuss is how the author discussed the significant developments in Philippine Literature. Knowing the country had been colonized by the Spaniards for hundreds of years, the article proved that the Philippine literature had been influenced heavily by the colonization. Although the Spaniards weren’t the only ones to colonize the Philippines, because of their long stay, their influence is the most prominent. Pieces of evidence of this can be found in several parts of the article. From religion to language, it cannot be denied that the years of colonization affected the Philippines and its people. Another proof is some words from this period that sound similar to some Spanish words. As well as Religious works distributed during this period, which are simply translations from Spanish. Although there were original Filipino works, some of the proverbs or riddles are still borrowed from Spanish. However, among the many Spanish writers, there were also native Filipinos who were able to make a name for themselves like Francisco Baltazar, Mariano Perfecto, and Joaquin Tuason.

 

Overall, the article was well-written. The article focused only on Philippine literature and did not mention or include information that wasn’t relevant to the topic. The author also explained the content well and gave context to content that the readers may be unfamiliar with. Even the smallest details were explained which allowed the readers to be aware and informed. The choice of words and the flow of ideas were understandable, and it was well-researched. Although some terminologies were not explained nor discussed, a little bit of searching will help. Each sentence and paragraph provided sufficient information to make the readers aware of the topic being discussed. Due to its length, readers might hesitate to read it, thinking it will be time-consuming or complex. However, as mentioned earlier, each detail and word have been expounded for readers to read the article with ease. Since the author’s purpose is to inform, it is his responsibility to make understandable content. Aside from being accessible, information should also be understandable.

 

The article showed how the Philippines once had little to no literary works. Due to the long colonization of different countries, the Philippines couldn’t have any freedom to do anything. Though there were native writers, their works weren’t enough to have our Philippine literature. It was a challenge for them to compete with colonizers who had more knowledge and more freedom than they could ever have. Not having something to call national language also had an impact on establishing the country’s literature. Many things kept the people from having something to call their own. Indeed, it was a long journey, but now, we have a wide spectrum of writers and literary works that make up the Philippine literature.