Introduction

to the
21st Century
 At the end of the lesson, the
students should be able to:
1. State the meaning of literature
2. Discuss the meaning of literature
3. Appreciate the extent of literature in all
aspects of human environment
4. Discuss the types of literature
5. Compare and contrast the four literary genres
• It gives nostalgic feelings and enjoyment to re-
examine the comedies, tragedies and
inspiration of the beautiful Filipino poems,
stories, essays and plays.
• Going over them is a very wonderful
experience. It enables you to magnify your
appreciation of literary selections and see the
role they play in society and even grow and
evolve through your literary journey.
 Literature
• Literature seems too difficult to embrace for
people who are indifferent to it.
• However, it continues to grow and stay
because of its significance and value to man.
• Literature is an art of self-expression.
 Literature
• Literally, it means "an acquaintance with letters"
as in the first sense given in the Oxford English
Dictionary.
• In Latin, "littera" means an individual written
character. It represents a language or people;
culture or tradition, passion and dignified
thoughts.
• It introduces us to new world of experience. It
records the experience of man. It imitates and
interprets life through language. Everything that
is written is literature.
 Importance of
Literature

• Literature molds man as a total human being,

sympathetic, aware and sensitive.
• It educates and entertains. When we read
literature, we are informed of events that beset
our environment and the fictitious characters
and colorful events amuse us.
 Importance of
Literature
• Literature leads us to understand the life of man.
It is important to us because it speaks to us and it
affects us.
• Even when literature is seemingly ugly, it is still
beautiful.
• It enlivens human interest, enriches and colors our
imagination.
• It is an expression of thought, feeling, emotions
and attitudes towards life.
• It shapes our minds that make us changed
individuals.
 Importance of
Literature

• Literature shapes man not only as nurses,

engineers, accountants, teachers, doctors,
computer specialists, information
technologists, etc. but as man, his personality,
as well as his views and ideas, count.
 Literature entails
reading
• In order to appreciate a literary piece, you may
follow some guidelines to follow in reading.
1. You have to read with purpose, not just for
the story.
For example: If the story is recreational, it
should always be interesting and be able to
provide pleasure, but you should know how to
read for more than just pleasure. You should read
with a purpose.
 Literature entails
reading
• 2. You should be able to avoid reading
selections and television or video presentations
that tackle details of sin, crime and violence. If
you pursue it, do it with a good purpose.
 Literature entails
reading
3. Individual titles should be evaluated with
careful regard to the positive principles set forth
in Ellen White’s writings which make the readers
experience peace of mind and a reassurance of
soul, which tends toward sensible, moral, and
compassionate living, and that the titles can
satisfy the deepest yearnings of the human heart.
4. You should be able to discriminate between
the best and the inferior literature.
 Literature
entails reading
5. Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true,
whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things
are pure, whatsoever things are lovely,
whatsoever things are of good report, if there be
any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on
these things. (Phil 4:8)
 Types of
Literature
• Literature has two major types: oral and
written.

• Oral literature includes ballads, myth, jokes,

folktales and fables; whereas written source
has drama, novel, poetry and nonfictional
literature
 Kinds of Literature
according to Structure

• Poetry is an artistic piece of philosophical,

personal, imaginative or inspirational nature
that is laid out in lines.

• Prose is a literary piece that is written without

metrical structure.
 Kinds of Literature
according to Structure

• Literature can also be classified as either

fictional or non-fictional.
• Fictional literature is simply defined as a
product of one's imaginative mind.
• It can be a drama, short story, novel, myth,
folktale and poetry.
 Kinds of Literature
according to Structure

• Non-fictional literature is opposite to fiction as

it comes out of one's personal experiences, a
true and factual account of varying
information.
• It comprises the interesting facts with analysis
and illustrations.
• It includes autobiography, biography, essay,
literary criticism, journal, newspaper, diary,
magazine, etc.
Literary
Genres
(Forms)
 Poem
• is a composition written in verses having standard
measurements and written with a higher intensity
of artistic beauty.
• William Wordsworth puts it as “the spontaneous
overflow of powerful feelings in tranquility.”
• The poet employs the following in constructing a
poem; diction that includes denotation and
connotation of words, imagery, symbolism,
figurative language, rhythm and rhyme. These are
explained in the lessons that follow.
 Poem
• Interpreting poems is not easy. Poems are
difficult to understand. It is very important that
we need to use literary approaches and
historical backgrounds in reading this literary
form.
 Classification of
Poems
• Lyric poem refers to short poems which
express the personal thoughts or emotions of
the poet. It can be a song, ode, elegy or sonnet.
It is intended to be sung.
• Narrative poem tells a story. It can be a ballad
or an epic.
 Classification of
Poems
• Dramatic poetry is a theatrical dialogue
performed on stage. It can be a tragedy,
comedy, melodrama or tragicomedy.
 Short Story
• is a small commercial fiction, true or
imaginary, and smaller than a novel.
• It is composed with an easy beginning
illustrated in its exposition, a conflict that
holds the problem to be solved in the selection,
a concrete theme that presents the subject
matter of the story, some dialogs and actions
that picture the rising action and climax, an
ends with a resolution.
 Short Story
• They are oral and short-lived. Some examples
are gossip, joke, fable, myth, parable, hearsay
and legend.
• However, short stories are now written for
appreciation and evaluation.
 Essay
• is a literary composition that presents the
author’s point of view about any particular
topic in a detailed way.

• Essay has simple way of narrating the main

subject; therefore, they are descriptive,
lengthy, subject-oriented and comparative.
Different types
of essay
• Personal essay
• expository essay type
• response essay, process essay
• persuasive essay
• argumentative essay
• critical essay type
• interview essay
 Different types
of essay
• reflective essay type
• evaluation
• observation essay
• comparison type of essay
• application essay, compare and contrast essay
and
• narrative essay type
 Elements
of
Short Story
• Do you enjoy narrating your experiences to a
friend or a party of friends?
• You probably do. Telling stories is fun and
entertaining. It is also a very old tradition that
everyone likes to do. During the early days,
storytelling was done orally.
• Today, stories may be written in books,
newspapers, magazines, and other such
medium
• Have you observed why stories appear very
appealing to you and to other people?
• It is because stories concern people. You are
curious about other people and also about
yourselves.
• Stories are very attractive to you because of the
suspense they create. A good and entertaining
story brings you to life.
• You often react when you see the actor tortured
by his opponent. You fight back with him, love
with him and be inspired along with him
especially when he experiences good fortune in
the story.
• At the end of the lesson, the students should be
able to:
1. Define a short story
2. Discuss the elements of a short story
3. Discuss the guidelines for reading a short
story and
4. Draw out values from the stories
 Short Story
• is a short piece of fiction containing elements
described in the chart on these pages.
• It is a prose that has one unit of place, time and
action. It is a “bite size” version of a novel.
• You can finish reading it in just one sitting. It
is written by someone with serious artistic
intentions who hopes to broaden, deepen, and
sharpen your awareness of life.
 Short Story
• It brings you into the real world enabling you
to understand the difficulties of life and to
empathize with others.
• The short story has eight elements to help you
understand and enjoy reading it.
• These elements are plot and structure,
character and characterization, theme, setting,
point of view, tone and style, symbol, allegory
and fantasy, humor and irony.
 Elements
of
Short Story
 Plot and
Structure Plot
• It is a reflection of motivation and causation.
• It is the sequence of incidents or events
through which an author constructs a story.
• The plot is not merely the action itself, but the
way the author arranges the action toward a
specific end (structure).
 Structure
• It defines the layout of the work.

• It presents how each event causes or

leads to the next.
Elements of Plot
 Conflict
• It is where plot is often created.
• It is a controlling impulse in a connected
pattern of causes and effects.
• It is a major element of plot because it arouses
curiosity, causes doubt, creates tension and
produces interest.
• Remember that if there is no tension there is
no interest. Great stories do have a conflict.
 Conflict is
classified into two:

• An external conflict is one between a

character and an outside force, such as another
character, nature, society, or fate.
• An internal conflict takes place within the
mind of a character who is torn between
opposing feelings or between different courses
of action. This is also called dilemma, a
conflict within or for one person.
 Most plots develop
in five stages:

1. Exposition introduces the story’s characters,

setting, and conflict.
2. Rising action occurs as complications, twists,
or intensifications of the conflict occur.
3. Climax is the emotional high point of the
story. It is the most exciting part of the story.
 Most plots develop
in five stages:

4. Falling action is the logical result of the

climax.
5. Resolution presents the final outcome of the
story. It may be happy, unhappy or
indeterminate.
Elements of Plot
 Character
and
Characterization
 Character
• is a verbal representation of a human being.
Every story needs characters: people, animals,
or any other creatures.
• The character is either a protagonist (“the good
guy”) or antagonist (“the bad guy”).
 Types of
Characters
• Flat Character usually has one or two
predominant traits. The character can be
summed up in just a few lines.

• Example: A father who is strict from the

beginning to the end of the story.
 Types of
Characters
• Round Character is complex, many
faceted and has the qualities of real
people.

• Example: In the story, he is a father, a

goon, an executive, etc.
 Types of
Characters
• Static Character is a character that remains
essentially the same throughout.

• Example: The daughter who remains a baby

from start to finish.
 Types of
Characters
• Developing Character is a character that
undergoes a significant change during the
story.

• Example: A daughter, who suffers from the

beginning, strives hard to improve her life and
become rich, helps her parents and becomes
happy at the end, or vice-versa.
Three conditions that regulate
change:
1. It must be consistent with the individual’s
characterization as dramatized in the story.
2. It must be sufficiently motivated by the
circumstances in which the character is placed.
3. The story must offer sufficient time for the
change to take place and still be believable.
Characterization

• is the quality of the character which is disclosed

through actions, descriptions, both personal and
environmental, dramatic statements and thoughts,
statements by other characters and statements by
the author speaking as storyteller, or observer.
• Example: Character: Sonia, the protagonist
Characterization – tall, with fair complexion, with
long hair, happy, humble, obedient, studious, etc.
 Setting
• The setting of a story is its overall context- where,
when and in what circumstances the action
occurs.
• Setting as Place - The physical environment
where the story takes place. The description of the
environment often points towards its importance.
• Setting as Time - includes time in all of its
dimensions. To determine the importance, ask,
“What was going on at that time?”
 Setting
• Setting as Cultural Context (Condition) -
Setting also involves the social circumstances
of the time and place. Consider historical
events and social and political issues of the
time.
• Effects of Setting - Creates atmosphere, gives
insight to characters, and provides connections to
other aspects of the story.
• Example: In this paragraph from a short narrative:
… For Cindy Mae, who is now a mother of two, the
farm from when she was still a child where she lived
with her parents, is what makes the terrible things that
happened during the war – the things she, Leo, Homer,
Fae and the others had to do – all worthwhile. It is where
she belongs.
• Setting: Place - home in the farm
• Time – during her childhood
• Cultural Context (Condition) – war
 Point of View
(POV)
• Point of view refers to whoever is telling the
story.
• It is the speaker, narrator, persona or voice
created by the author to tell the story.
• To determine the POV, ask “who is telling the
story”, and “how much do they know?”
 Point of View
(POV)
• The point of view relies on two factors namely the
physical situation of the narrator as an observer and the
speaker’s intellectual and emotional position
First person = I, we
Second person = you (uncommon)
Third person = He, she, they (most common)
Point of view may be:
– Dramatic/objective = strictly reporting
– Omniscient = all-knowing
– Limited omniscient = some insight
• Example: In this paragraph from a short
narrative:
… For Cindy Mae, who is now a mother of
two, the farm from when she was still a child
where she lived with her parents, is what makes
the terrible things that happened during the war –
the things she, Leo, Homer, Fae and the others
had to do – all worthwhile. It is where she
belongs.
• Point of View: Omniscient
 Theme
• is the central idea or message of a story, often
a perception about life or human nature.
• Stated themes are directly presented in a
story.
• Implied themes must be inferred by
considering all the elements of a story and
asking what message about life is conveyed.
• Theme: life experience of a child during a
calamity like the war
Tone and Style

• Tone is the method by which writers and

speakers reveal attitudes or feelings.
• Example:
… For Cindy Mae, who is now a mother of two, the farm
from when she was still a child, where she lived with her
parents, is what makes the terrible things that happened
during the war – the things she, Leo, Homer, Fae and the
others had to do – all worthwhile. It is where she belongs.
• Tone: nostalgic, misses her childhood days
 Style
• is the manner in which an author uses words,
constructs sentences, incorporates non-literal
expressions, and handles rhythm, timing, and
tone.
• When you are asked to discuss style, you are
being asked to describe how or explain why
the words, sentences, and imaginative
comparisons are effective in terms of what is
being created.
 Diction

• is central to an author’s style. It

includes vocabulary or the choice of
words and syntax.
 Vocabulary -
Choice of words
• a. Simple words - Everyday word choice. (“She
was sick for a long time.)
• b. Complex words - Flexing intellectual muscle
(“Garages and cotton gins had encroached and
obliterated even the august names of that
neighborhood.)
• c. Concrete words - Things we can touch, see,
etc. (Jeans, book, flowers, car, telephone...)
• d. Abstract words - Words that express
intangible ideas (freedom, heritage, marriage,
something)
 Syntax
• this refers to the arrangement of words, their
ordering, grouping and placement within
phrases, clauses, and sentences.
• the style used by the author is the use of
simple words in straight sentences.
Symbolism,
Allegory
and
Fantasy
• Symbolism and allegory are modes that
expand meaning.

• Symbol creates a direct, meaningful

equation between a specific object, scene,
character, or action and ideas, values,
persons or ways of life.
 Symbols may be:
• Cultural (universal) when they are known by
most literate people:
• Examples: white dove, color black, etc.

• Contextual (authorial) when they are created

by the author and are private.
 Allegory
• is a symbol that is complete and self-
sufficient.

• Example is: “Young Goodman Brown”,

“Juan dela Cruz”, “Uncle Sam”
 More examples of allegory
• Fable – It is a story about animals that possess
human traits.
• Parable – It is an allegory with moral or
religious bent. Example: Biblical stories.
• Allusion is the use of other culturally well-
known works from the Bible, Greek and
Roman mythology, famous art, etc.
• Fantasy - A nonrealistic story that transcends
the bounds of known reality.
 Humor and Irony

• Humor and irony, like many other elements,

are intended to create an emotional impact on
the reader.
• We must FEEL the truth of a story not just
understand it.
• Irony is when things work out the opposite of
what they're supposed to, or expected to
 Humor and Irony

• Example:
• … Brother learns that one brother is supposed to
love and protect another brother, especially
when that other brother needs protection. The
irony is that he learns this only after he loses his
brother...
 Humor and Irony
• Humor is difficult to define but because some
humor theorists say that humor is a literary
element of surprise, humor can be safely defined
as a literary element of surprise or be surprised
without threat or promise. In humor, you must
have an expectation of how the world works.
When something happens contrary to that
expectation, you are surprised.
• Example: Why didn't the chicken cross the road?
Because there was a KFC on the other side!
 Guidelines in
reading a short
story
• You read a short story for enjoyment and
understanding. You appreciate a short
story if you are equipped with the
necessary skills and techniques in reading
it.
 Guidelines in
reading a short
story
• First Reading
Determine what is happening; where,
what, who is involved, or the major
characters of the story.
• Make a record of your reactions and
responses
• Describe characterizations, events,
techniques and ideas
 Guidelines in
reading a short
story
• Second Reading
– Trace developing patterns
• - Write expanded notes about characters,
situations, actions
• Write paragraph describing your reactions and
thoughts
• - Write down questions that arise as you read
(in the margins)