Literature

MODULE 2
At present, not all written works' can be considered literature. To understand a good literary work, we
should know first the important elements of literature. It is undeniable that the medium of literature is
language, and language is composed of words that are combined into sentences to express ideas,
emotions or desires. Writers, therefore, should be careful in their choice of words and expressions of
their emotions and ideas in order to carefully organize sentences that would manifest a high sense of
value.

In other words, a writer should bear these objectives in mind:

1. To strive in raising the level of the reader’s humanity and

2. To accomplish the purpose of making one a better person, giving him a high sense of value.

The important elements of literature are:

1. Emotional appeal
2. Intellectual appeal
3. Humanistic value

Emotional appeal is attained when the reader is emotionally moved or touched by any literary work like:

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
- Elizabeth B. Browning
How Do I Love Thee?

Rizal’s two revolutionary novels, the Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, are good illustrations of
literature of intellectual appeal. Both add knowledge or information and remind the reader of what he
has forgotten. Specifically, in one of his philosophical ideas “on consecration to a great idea,” he said:

Don’t you realize that it is a useless life which is not consecrated to a great idea? It is a stone wasted in
the fields without becoming part of any edifice. (Simoun to Basilio) ’

Humanistic value can be attained when a literary work makes the reader an improved person with a
better outlook in life and with a clear understanding of his/her inner self. To illustrate, here is a stanza
from Amado V. Hernandez’s poem entitled Foreigner, which was translated by Cirilio F. Bautista into
English.

Finds faults with things that are native customs and living, food and dress - were it not for his
brown skin you'd think he was foreign and born somewhere else.

Guy de Maupassant’s The Necklace is a very good example of a literary work which has a humanistic
value. It shows that a woman’s vanity changes the normality of life, but at the same time, the change is
to the advantage of the individual for it leads to self-understanding and a clearer outlook in life.

What would have happened if she had never lost those jewels?
 Who knows? Who knows? How strange life is, how fickle! How little is needed to ruin or to save!

The above-mentioned important elements of literature are embodied in the Holy Bible, as the Gospel of
St. John 3: 16 states;

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him should
not perish, but have everlasting life.

Classification of Literature
Perrine stated that literature can be classified as escape and interpretative literature. Escape literature is
written for entertainment purposes, that is, to help us pass the time in an agreeable manner.
Interpretative literature is written to broaden and sharpen our awareness of life. Escape literature takes
us away from the real world and enables us to temporarily forget our troubles. Interpretative literature
takes us, through imagination, deeper into the real world and enables us to understand our troubles.
Escape literature has for its object only pleasure. Interpretative literature has for its object pleasure plus
understanding.

Uses of Literature
1. Moralizing literature. Here, the purpose of literature is to present moral values for the reader to
understand and appreciate; the moral may be directly or indirectly stated.

The Monkey's Point of View

Three monkeys sat on a coconut tree

Discussing things as they said to be
Said one to the others, now listen, you two,
There's a certain rumor that can't be true
That man descended from our noble race
The very idea! It’s dire disgrace!
No monkey ever deserted his wife,
Starved his children and ruined their lives.
And you've never known a mother monk
To leave her baby with others to bunk
Or pass them on from one to another
‘Till they hardly know who is their mother
And another thing, you will never see
A monk build a fence round a coconut tree
And let the coconut go to waste
Forbidding all the monk to taste.
Starvation would force you to steal from me.
Besides, what monk: would smoke a pipe
and burn the trees, pollute his air and kill himself?
Here's another thing a monk won't do
Go out at night and get a stew
Or use his gun or club or knife
 To take some other monkey’ life
Yes! Man descended, the ornery cuss,
But brother, he didn’t descend from us!!!

- Anonymous

This literary work can either be for entertainment or for the purpose of moralizing. The poem
may make the reader understand, appreciate, and make him/ her a better person.

2. Propaganda literature. This kind of literature is found not only in history books and advertising
and marketing books but also in some books describing one’s personal success and
achievements in life.
3. Psychological continuum of the individual-therapeutic value. It could be looked on as a
sophisticated modern elaboration of the idea of catharsis an emotional relief experienced by the
reader thereby helping him recover from a previous pent-up emotion.

The following are examples of therapeutic poems.

Don't Quit
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill
When the funds are low and the debts are high
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh
When care is pressing you down a bit...
Rest if you must but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns

As every one of us sometimes learns
And many a person turns about to leave
When they might have won had they stuck it out
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow...
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the struggler has given up

When he might have captured the victor’s cup
And he learned too late when the night came down
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out...

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are
It may be near when it seems afar,
‘So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit...
It’s when things seem worst that you mustn't quit.

- Anonymous
 I Am Somebody

“| may be young; I may be old,”

But lam somebody,
For I am God's child.

“I may be educated; I may be unlettered,”

But I am somebody,
For I am God's child.

“I may be black; I may be white,”

But l am somebody,
For I am God's child.

“I may be rich; I may be poor,”

But l am somebody,
For I am God's child.

“I may be fat; may be thin,”

But l am somebody,
For I am God's child.

“I may be married; I may be divorced,”

But l am somebody,
For I am God's child.

“I may be successful; I may be a failure,”

But l am somebody,
For I am God's child.

“I may be a sinner, | may be a saint,”

But l am somebody,
For I am God's child.

From: Schuller, Robert H. Self-Esteem: The New

Reformation U.S.A. Tyndale House Publishers,
Wheaton, Illinois, 1982

Don't Give Up... Pray

When everything else goes rough and tough
And when problems seem endless and hopeless,
When you feel like quitting because you think
No one’s as pitiful as you are... My friend,
Don't give up, pause for a moment and pray,
With faith in Jesus our savior, and soon you'll
Realize that things are not as bad as they seem.
 Just think...

You have a roof to cover your head,

While so many are hopeless,
You have shoes on your feet,
While so many are footless,
You have clothes to warm you up,
While so many chill to death,
You have meals to fill up your tummy
While so many are starving,
You have a family with so much love to give,
While so many are orphaned and thirsty
You have so much to live for
While so many still wonder why they
still have to live

- Merafe Herranz

Elements of Poetry
Poetry is as universal as language and almost as ancient. The most primitive peoples have used it, and
the most civilized have cultivated it. Among the types of literature, poetry writing is the most
challenging for the following reasons: first, the choice of proper words or grammar; second, the
denotative and symbolical meaning of the chosen grammar and third, the limitation imposed by the
structure and rhythm of sounds. It is the last reason, however, that makes a poem beautiful and
appreciated by the reader.

1. Denotation/Connotation. Denotation is the actual meaning of a word derived from the

dictionary. The word “home” for instance, by denotation means a place where one lives.
Connotation is the related or allied meanings of a word. The same word “home” suggests
warmth, comfort, security, love, and other meanings that are associated with its denotative
meaning.

Unless a young one tries

Unless an old one tries
There'll always be a wall

“Thoughts”
Czarina Roldan

In the stanza above, the word wall is clearly associated with hindrance or obstruction that will
lead to the communication gap between two generations: the old and the young.

2. Imagery. This may be defined as the representation of sense experience through language.
Images are formed as we see, hear, taste, smell, and touch; or we may say that an “image” is the
mental duplication of a sense impression. The most common imagery is visual, as we are made
to see what the author is talking about.
 G. Burce Bunao’s “Change” is filled with the poet’s own personal imagery.
Things change:
No longer do I,
Recovering from the shock
Of a huge branch falling
At my feet
No longer do I
Cower in fear
No longer run to my altar In the woods,
The fire of prayer in my mouth.

The poet imagines his previous fear of falling, his recovery from the shock, and realization that
the fall is a part of a child’s growth and development.

3. Figurative Language. The most commonly used and the most important of the figurative
language are the simile and the metaphor. Both simile and metaphor are used as a means of
comparing things that are essentially unlike. The only distinction between them is that in a
simile, the comparison is expressed by the use of some words or phrases, such as like, as, than,
similar to, resemble or seem; in a metaphor, the comparison is implied, that is, the figurative
term is substituted for or identified with a literal term.

Our man-child is wild

As tempest, as north wind,
As jungle, as rapids,
As tiger, as broncho
As all these are wild!

“Our Children”
Lucia Zabarte Parcero

We can clearly notice above that the author compares the child of the man to the wildest in
nature and the wildest of animals.

I gave myself to him.

And took himself for pay.
The solemn contract of a life.
Was ratified this way.

“I Gave Myself to Him”

Emily Dickinson

This stanza is imaginatively unified by an extended metaphor, in which a marriage contract is

compared to a sales contract (or the entering into a love relationship is compared to a
commercial transaction). The woman is both the seller and the merchandise, the man both the
purchaser and the payment.
 4. Rhythm and Meter. Our appreciation of rhythm and meter is rooted even deeper in us than our
love for musical repetition. It is related to the beats of our hearts and the intake and outflow of
air from our lungs. Rhythm is a part of our lives as there is rhythm in the way we walk, the way
we talk, the way we swim and other similar activities. Meter, in language, is the accents that are
so arranged as to occur at apparently equal intervals of time. Metrical language is called verse.

Out of the night that covers me.

Black as the Pit from pole to pole.
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

“Invictus”
William Ernest Henley

At present, there are poets who are not so particular on rhyme and meter, and they call such a
style as “free verse.”

What I am
at any given moment
in the process
of my becoming
a person,
will be determined
by my relation with
those who love me
with those whom I
love or refuse
to love.

“On Being a Person”

Lory Jao, 1981

5. Meaning and Idea. The meaning of a poem is the experience it expresses. Here, we can
distinguish between the “total meaning” of a poem and its “prose meaning.” The total meaning
is the idea in a poem which is only a part of the total] experience it communicates. The value
and worth of the poem are determined by the value of the total experience, not by the truth or
the nobility of the idea itself. Prose meaning does not necessarily have to be an idea itself. It
may be a story, a description, a statement of emotion, a presentation of human character or a
combination of these.

Elements of the Short Story

As mentioned earlier, literature can be classified as escape and interpretative literature. A story
becomes interpretative as it illuminates some aspects of human life or behavior. An interpretative story
presents us with an insight large or small into the nature and condition of our existence. It gives us a
keener awareness of what it is to be a human being in a universe that is sometimes friendly, sometimes
hostile. It helps us understand our neighbors and ourselves. A story has certain elements:
1. Plot. It is the sequence of incidents or events of which a story is composed. It might consist
merely of a sequence of related actions. The Life of Cardo by Amador T. Daguio is an example of
a short story with related incidents or events. Plot ina short story means arrangement of action.
The action refers to an imagined event or happening or to a series of such events.

2. Character. Reading for character is more difficult than reading for a plot, for character is much
more complex, varied, and ambiguous. Most short stories are focused on or evolves in just one
character.

3. Theme. It is the controlling idea or the central insight in a literary work. It is the unifying
generalization about life stated or implied by the story.

In many stories, the theme may be the equivalent to the revelation of human character. In
stating the theme in a sentence, we must pick the central insight, the one that explains the
greatest number of elements in the story and relates them to each other. The theme gives a
story its unity.

The equivalent of the theme in literature and combined arts is the subject in painting, sculpture,
and music.

Story writers perform a service to us: they interpret life for us, they either give us new insights
or refresh and strengthen old ones.

4. Symbol and Irony. A literary symbol is something that means more than what it is. It is an
object, a person, a situation, an action or some other item that has a literal meaning in the story
but suggests or represents other meanings as well.

Irony is a term with a range of meanings, all of them involving some sort of discrepancy or
incongruity. It is a contrast in which one term of the contrast in some way mocks the other term.
According to Perrine, there are three kinds of irony:

a. Verbal irony is a figure of speech in which the opposite is said from what is
intended. The discrepancy is between what is said and what is meant.

b. Dramatic irony is the contrast between what a character says and what the reader
knows to be true.

c. Irony of situation is the discrepancy between appearance and reality, between

expectation and fulfillment, or between what is said and what would seem
appropriate.

5. Language and Style. Language refers to the idiom used and how it is used. Style, on the other
hand, is a term which may refer to the precise use of language, both literary and figuratively; it
may refer to the total working out of the short story, taking all the other elements (character,
plot, theme, and setting) into consideration. (Edilberto Dagot et al., 1974)
 Carmen Arcilla stated that symbolism has truly found its place in the Filipino short story in
English. This was revealed in her study on the “Symbolism in the First Prize Winning Short
Stories of the Philippines Free Press from 1956-1965.” An example is her study of the short story
of Wilfredo Nolledo’s “The Last Caucus,” with JC and Bruno as principal characters. The two
names are symbolical, for JC is actually the initial of Juan Cruz, who was betrayed by his friend
Bruno. The betrayal of JC by Bruno can be compared to Brutus’ betrayal of Julius Caesar, two
characters in a Shakespearean drama.

Elements of the Essay

An essay is simply defined as a literary composition on a particular subject. It is usually short and it
expresses the author’s personal thoughts, feelings, experiences, or observations on a phase of life that
has interested him (Irene Mabel Rich, 1965). Biography, history, travel, art, nature, personal life, and
criticism are among the innumerable subjects in the field of choice of an essayist. Essay writers are
usually people who have plenty of time for reflection.

The essay can be roughly grouped as formal and informal. It is considered informal when the essay is
light, humorous, and entertaining; and formal when the essay is heavy, informative, and intellectually
stimulating.

When reading an essay, the following elements should be considered:

1. The issue introduced. This reflects the actual purpose of the writer.
2. The writer’s viewpoint and thought. The final stand of the author, whether he is for or against
the issue he has discussed.
3. The relevance of the issue to the life of the reader. This refers to the reader’s perception,
responsiveness, and enjoyment of the theme.

Love is man’s very pulse. Filipinos, therefore, consider love no less significant. They value love, as
much as life, which is precisely why they have this, peculiar sense of humor, this sense of
balance. Like life, they do not take love too seriously. They prefer to come out of it alive and
admirable! Why? They have that sense of humor which Bishop Fulton Sheen describes as “seeing
things through,” If a beloved dies, then there’s another chance at love. Or if one gets jilted, this
heartpain is only a prelude to a forthcoming happiness in love.

The paragraph above is taken from Visitacion de la Torre’s essay entitled The Filipino as Lover.
This is a very good example of an informal essay, for the issue is treated lightly and humorously,
and the style is entertaining. The purpose of the author here is to give us a clear picture of
Filipinos as lovers; they are serious in love but when frustrated, they are brave enough to take
the pains lightheartedly. Such attitude is based on its desire to harmonize with nature through
equilibrium-maintenance (pagkakapantay, di-pagkatalo) according to Fr. Leonardo Mercado.

Elements of the Novel

The novel is particularly applicable to a long work of prose fiction dealing with characters, situations, and
scenes that represent those of real life and setting and action in the form of a plot. The purpose of
fiction, whether long (the novel) or short (the short story), is to recount a narrative which gives us moral
lessons and brings us pleasure (Van De Bogart, 1973).

Novels, like the other genres, have important elements such as setting, plot, characters, theme, and at
times a moral lesson.

The setting of a novel covers the time, the place, and the background. It involves not only geography but
also the entire climate of beliefs, habits, and values of a particular region and historical period (Van De
Bogart, 1973). Sometimes, it emphasizes a certain locality like Chinatown in Sta. Cruz, Manila in Edgardo
Reyes’ Sa Mga Kuko Ng Liwanag. It is essential that the setting is in keeping with the story that is told.

The plot is the skeleton or framework which gives shape and proportion to the novel. It can also be
described as the story itself, the actual events or happenings in the novel, the most important substance
which concerns human activity and the changes which occur from the beginning to the end of the story.
The conflict is an important element of the plot. It may be caused by the physical environment like
hostile nature, social environment like the conventions, customs or traditions that exist in a cultural
community, other characters, or it may be a physical, emotional, and mental handicap within the main
character himself.

To understand the plot better, we should determine the ideals, motives, ambitions or aspirations of the
main characters. As in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the hero's only motive in life is to regain the love of
Daisy Buchanan, who is his only dream in life. The same can be observed in Edgardo M. Reyes’ Sa Mga
Kuko Ng Liwanag, which narrated the story of Julio, whose main objective in going to Manila was to look
for his sweetheart, Ligaya. .

The theme of the novel is compared to the subject of a painting. It is the universal truth found in the
novel, the main idea or topic. In Boris Pasternak’s Dr. Zhivago, the theme is one’s inhumanity to fellow
human beings. A theme does not mean moral value, for the latter is the message that teaches the
reader.

The characters are the moving spirit of the novel. They do not only act but also manifest the moral,
emotional, and intellectual qualities endowed to them by the author. The characters may be animated
like Ikabod Bubwit or Boomer, or extra-terrestrial beings like Uncle Martin in the TV series, “My Favorite
Martian” (Ortiz, 1976).

Characters involve two qualities: morality and personality. Character in the first sense, morality, has the
older status as a technical concept in literary criticism. This will tell us the good guys from the bad guys.

Character in the second sense, personality, is a more modern concept. Character, as personality,
includes speech, hairstyle, hobby, attitude toward work, and all of the complex attitudes and feelings
that define the individual. Character as personality is important in literature because, as most authors
have discovered, people are interesting.

The consistency of character traits is essential in the story but this does not mean that a character
cannot change as a result of the circumstances through which he passes. The narrator, Nick Carraway, in
Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, changed his naiveté at the beginning of the story to complete adulthood
at the end. Another change in character traits is manifested in Efren Abueg’s Dilim Sa Umaga, where the
main character, Antero, showed materialism and selfishness at the beginning and became selfless and
nationalistic at the end of the novel.

Elements of Drama
Drama, like prose fiction, utilizes plot and character, develops a theme, arouses emotion or appeals to
humor, and may be either escapist or interpretative in its dealings with life. Like poetry, it may draw
upon all the resources of language, including verse. Much drama is poetry, but drama has one
characteristic peculiar to itself. It is written primarily to be performed, not read. It normally presents its
action 1) through actors, 2) on a stage, and 3) before an audience.

Despite the immense diversity of drama as a cultural activity, all plays have certain elements in common.
They are: 1) plot, 2) character, 3) thought, 4) language (dialogue), 5) theme, 6) climax /denouement, 7)
music and spectacle, 8) costume and make-up, 9) scenery and lighting.

1. Plot. It is the term sometimes used to mean a summary of a play’s story. It is concerned with
what happens in the story. More properly, it seems to be the overall structure of a play. In this
sense, it is the most important element of drama. Most plots follow the same general pattern.
At the beginning of the play, the author briefly and quickly introduces the characters and
provides information about the earlier events and the present situation. This introduction is
called the exposition. Although the exposition is brief, the information presented is very
important for it helps to explain what happens later or why a character acts the way he does.

2. Character. The characters must be shaped to fit the needs of the plot, and all Parts of the
characterization must fit together.

Unless the people in the play seem to be real people, the play will not hold audience interest.
We will find them believable only if we know what they are like and can understand why they
act the way they do. The playwright, therefore, must make the characters credible to the
audience.

In addition to understanding what the characters are like, we should recognize each one’s role
in the story. The main character, the person who is attempting to resolve the problem, is called
the protagonist. The conflict he/she faces, frequently involves a struggle with some force
outside himself/herself (external conflicts) as with an antagonist, and/or a struggle within
himself/herself (internal conflict).

3. Thought. Every play, even the most lighthearted comedy, involves thoughts in its broadest
sense. In dramatic structure, thoughts include the ideas and emotions implied by the overall
meaning of the play, sometimes the theme. Not all plays explore significant ideas, but every play
makes some comment on human experience either through direct statement or more
commonly by implication.

4. Language (dialogue). Language is a means of expressing the character and the thoughts
dramatically. Language in the theater refers to the dramatic dialogue, which may be in prose or
in verse. Prose dialogue may be naturalistic or rhetorical. Naturalistic dialogue is the actual way
 people talk, while the rhetorical dialogue is popularly described as high flown, florid, and
oratorical. Verse dialogue makes use of the conventions of poetry for the purpose of drama.

Dialogue is the conversation between two or more characters in a play.

5. Theme. It is what a story means. It is a conviction about the real world we live in, and it may be
stated in several ways. Theme tends to be complex, and may include contradictory evaluations
(Colwell, 1968).

Theme may be directly or indirectly stated. The stated theme, rather than the enacted theme, is
the heart of a play. Theme is enacted throughout the plot.

6. Climax/Denouement. The climax is the scene or incident that is the fruition of the accumulated
suspense, and that stirs the most intense feelings or emotions. It can also be described as the
turning point of the story. It is very likely to be the most elaborately presented scene in the play.
A full-length play will have several big scenes, but the climax is to be distinguished from the
other big scenes by its greater intensity and its structural relationship to the denouement and
development.

Denouement is the working out of the plot, following the climax. In this final part of the play,
usually brief but sometimes a full act, the playwright brings the conflict to an end and explains
how and why everything turned out the way it did.

It is the phase of the final part in the plot-pattern that clarifies or simplifies the complicated
situation, and the solution, the phase that gives the answer, whether favorable or unfavorable
to the question that the plot has presented, developed, and carried through a conclusion.

In a full-length play, it is frequently possible to assign certain incidents in the falling action to
denouement and certain incidents to the solution. In the one-act play, however, the
denouement and the solution are frequently indistinguishable.

7. Music and Spectacle. Aside from “background” music, there is music of speech and of
movement. Spectacle intensifies emotions, whatever these emotions are. In the theater, the
element of a spectacle heightens the atmosphere, whether of vitality or terror or sorrow.

Music and spectacle were an integral part of the performance of Greek dramas. We know from
historical evidence that the choir danced and sang their choral odes. Aristophanes’ later
comedies called for spectacular costumes, especially for the choirs who played the role of frogs,
or clouds, or birds. Shakespeare resorted quite frequently, if not always, to the use of music in
the production play. The Elizabethan playhouse had a gallery reserved for musicians. Modern
productions of Greek and Elizabethan plays have increasingly made use of these two elements.

8. Costume and Make-Up. Every costume should be comfortable and securely put together so that
the performer does not have to worry about it once it is on. Before the dress rehearsal, all the
parts of each costume should be hung together and tagged. A dressing crew from the costume
committee should be on hand to help.
 The make-up crew should be allowed plenty of time to do their work after each actor is dressed.
Everything in the make-up box should have its own place and be covered when not in use.
Make-up pencils should be sharp, sponges should be clean, and when grease paint and other
materials are running low, they should be replaced before they are needed.

9. Scenery and Lighting. Scenery and lighting, furniture-painted backdrops, or large props, should
be real. The scenery may be simple, for it is supposed only to suggest the scene. The imagination
of the audience will complete the picture.

Proper lighting can add a great deal to the realism of the play. Consider brightness, color, and
direction in lighting the play. Does the action take place in the bright light of morning, or in the
dull-gray of evening?

Is the scene gay or mysterious? White, yellow, amber, and pink lights brighten the stage and are
happy colors. Blue and green dull the scene and produce a cold effect. Red and purple are
mysterious.

Stage lighting is always electrical, and only the assigned and responsible persons should touch
the electrical equipment. An open flame such as a candle or a lantern is never used on the stage.

Importance of Reading Literary Works

Literary works of art like poetry, stories, novels, and plays are worth reading for they not only entertain
us or give pleasure. From some of the characters of the stories or novels, we learn moral values that can
improve our life. Reading literary works helps us acquire knowledge and information particularly the
individual’s progress and achievement, thus serving as inspiration.