PHILIPPINE LITERATURE
OF LITERATURE STARTED TO BE FELT
DURING AMERICAN PERIOD
(1898 – 1945)
HISTORY
 The Filipino Revolutionists won against the
Spaniards who colonized for more than 300
years.
 June 12, 1898 raised the Philippine Flag as a
symbol of our independence at Kawit, Cavite by
Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo – First President of the
Philippines.
 1903 – The Filipino-American war resulted in the
defeat of Gen. Miguel Malvar.
 Many Filipino started writing again and the
NATIONALISM of the people remain undaunted.
 Their writings clearly depicted their LOVE FOR
COUNTRY and their LONGINGS FOR
INDEPENDENCE.
IN 1910
 A new group started to write in English.
 Spanish, Tagalog, the Vernaculars and finally
English, were the mediums used in literature
during these times.
 The writers in Tagalog continued in their
lamentations on the conditions of the country and
their attempts to arouse love for one’s native
tongue. The writers in English imitated the
themes and methods of the Americans.
IN 1920
 The UP College Folio was later replaced by the
Philippine Collegian.
 Dead Stars by Paz Marquez Benitez stand out
as a model of perfection in character delineation,
local color, plot and message.
THE ACTIVE AROUSAL IN THE FIELD
IN THE FOLLOWING NEWSPAPER
 EL NUEVO DIA (The New Day) Established by
Sergio Osmena in 1900.
 EL GRITO DEL PUEBLO (The Call of The
Nation) Established by Pascual Poblete in 1900.
 EL RENACIEMENTO (The Rebirth) Founded by
Rafael Palma in 1900.
THERE WERE ALSO PLAYS WRITTEN,
INCLUDED HERE WERE THE
FOLLOWING:
 KAHAPON, NGAYON AT BUKAS (Yesterday,
Today and Tomorrow) written by Aurelio
Tolentino
 TANIKALANG GINTO of Juan Abad
 MALAYA by Thomas Remigio
 WALANG SUGAT by Severino Reyes
OPENING OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS
EDUCATION became a very important issue for the
United States Colonial Government, since it allowed it to
spread their cultural values, particularly the English
language, to the Filipino people.
By 1901, Public Education was institutionalized in
the Philippines, with English serving the medium of
instruction.
CHARACTERISTIC OF
LITERATURE DURING THIS
PERIOD
A. LITERATURE IN SPANISH
 CECILIO APOSTOL – wrote “A RIZAL” and
considered the best poem in praise of the hero of
bagumbayan.
 FERNANDO MA. GUERERO – he collected the
best of his poem in a book called Crisalidas, and
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 one of the poems written in this book
“INVOCACION A RIZAL”
 JESUS BALMORI – well known for his pen
name of Batikuling. He and Manuel Bernabe
participated in a debate on theb topic –
“REMEMBRANCE and FORGETFULNESS”.
He was elected Poet Laureate in spanish besting
Manuel Bernabe.
 MANUEL BERNABE – is a lyric poet. He was
more attractive to the public in a debate with
Balmori because of the melodious words he
used. He defended OLVIDO.
 CLARO M. RECTO – he collected his poems in
a book entitled BAJO LOS COCOTEROS. One
of his writings dedicated to Rizal is “ANTE EL
MARTIR”.
OTHER WRITERS IN SPANISH
 ADELINA GUERREA – was first woman poet in
the Philippines who was good in Spanish. She
obtained the Nobel Prize in her EL NIDO.
 ISIDRO MARPORI – became famous for his
four books entitled AROMA DE ENSUENO.
 MACARIO ADRIATICO – wrote of Legend of
Mindoro entitled LA PUNTA DE SALTO.
 EPIFANIO DE LOS SANTOS
B. FILIPINO LITERATURE
 LOPE K. SANTOS – “Father of the National
Language Grammar”, he was also called “apo” of
the Tagalog writers. “BANAAG AT SIKAT” was
his master piece.
 JOSE CORAZON DE JESUS – known as
huseng batute, he was also called the poet of
love in his time. “AG ISANG PUNONG KAHOY”,
an elegy, is believed to be his masterpiece.
 ARMANDO V. HERNANDEZ – was dubbed
“Poet of the Laborers”, his masterpiece is “ ANG
PANDAY”
 VALERIANO HERNANDEZ PENA – known as
Tandang Anong, he considers “NENA AT
NENENG “his masterpiece.
 INIGO ED REGALADO – a popular story teller,
novelist and newspaper man. He reach the peak
of his success by the “sumpong” of his pen.
JULIAN CRUZ BALMACEDA
CLASSIFIED THREE KINDS OF
TAGALOG POETS:
1. POET OF THE HEART (MAKATA NG PUSO)
 These included Lope K. Santos, Inigo Ed.
Regalado,. Carlos Gatmaitan, Pedro Deogracias
del Rosario, Ildefonso Santos, Amado V.
Hernandez, Nemecio Carabana, and Mar
Antonio.
2. POETS OF LIFE (MAKATA NG BUHAY)
 Led by Lope K. Santos, Jose Corazon De Jesus,
Florentino Collantes, Patricio Mariano, Carlos
Garmaitan, and Amado V. Hernandez
3. POETS OF THE STAGE (MAKATA NG
TANGHALAN)
 Led by Aurelio Tolentino, Patricio Mariano,
Severino Reyes, and Tomas Remigio.
CHARACTERISTIC OF LITERATURE
DURING THIS PERIOD
A. PHILIPPINE LITERATURE IN
ENGLISH
 In a way, we can say that we can trace the
beginnings of the Philippine Literature in English
with the coming of the Americans. For this
purpose, we can divide this period into three time
frames, namely:
THE PERIOD OF RE-
ORIENTATION (1898-1910)
 English as a literary vehicle came with the
American occupation in August 13, 1898 and as
they say, a choice bestowed on us by history.
 By 1900, English came to be used as a medium
of instruction in the public school. From the
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 American forces were recruited the first teacher
of English.
 By 1908, the primary and intermediate grades
were using English. It was also about this time
when UP, the forerunner in the use of English in
higher education, was founded.
THE PERIOD OF IMITATION
(1910–1924)
 By 1919, the UP College Folio published the
literary compositions of the first Filipino writers in
English. They were the pioneers in short story
writing.
 They were then groping their way into imitating
American and British models which resulted in a
stilted, artificial and unnatural style, lacking
vitality and spontaneity.
PERIOD OF SELF-DISCOVERY
AND GROWTH (1925-1941)
 By this time, Filipino writers had acquired the
mastery of English writing. They now confidently
and competently wrote on a lot of subjects
although the old-time favorites of love and youth
persisted. They went into all forms of writing like
the novel and the drama.
ZARZUELA
 is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates
between spoken and sung scenes, the latter
incorporating operatic and popular song, as well
as dance.
 derive from the name of a Royal hunting lodge,
the Palacio de la Zarzuela near Madrid.
 this type of entertainment was first presented to
the court
 The palace was named after the place called "La
Zarzuela" because of the profusion of brambles
(zarzas) that grew there, and so the festivities
held within the walls became known as
"Zarzuelas"
Two main forms of zarzuela
1. Baroque zarzuela
>> the earliest style
>> a mixture of gods, mythological creatures and
rustic or pastoral comedy characters.
2. Romantic zarzuela
Zarzuela in the Philippines
 a strong tradition in the Philippines where it is
also known as sarswela/sarsuela.
 reflects the culture and different scenarios of life
in the Philippines
 It was influenced by the Spaniards when they
colonized the country, and it became a part of the
Philippine culture.
 “the zarzuela was brought to Manila in 1879…”
WALANG SUGAT BY
SEVERINO REYES
Severino Reyes
>> He was the fifth child born in Santa Cruz, Manilla in
1861.
>> Reyes would complete his Bachelor of Philosophy
from the University of Santo Tomas
>> one of the most renowned literary talents of Filipino
descent and he is considered to be one of the most
talented writers and playwrights of Tagalog literature.
>> He is very well-known and respected for his literary
talents. In fact, for many, he is known as the “Father of
Filipino Plays”
>> Reyes was famous for writing "Mga Kuwento ni Lola
Basyang" (Tales of Lola Basyang), a series of fairy tale
stories told by Lola Basyang, an old woman with loadful
of ancient stories stuck in her ancient baul
.
>> He was nicknamed "Don Binoy".
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>> One of the most cited and famous plays that he
created was the zarzuela "Walang Sugat" (No Wounds)
. PLOT
>> Reyes died on September 15, 1942 at the age of 81.
WALANG SUGAT FEATURES:
 Meaning “no wound” or “unwounded”
 An 1898 Tagalog Language Zarsuela
 Music by a Filipino composer Fulgencio
Tolentino
Written by Filipino playwright Severino Reyes
CHARACTERS:
 Tenyong - a person who loves his family, love
ones and country
 Julia - the “love of my life” of Tenyong
 Juana - mother of Julia
 Lucas - Tenyong’s grantor of favors
 Miguel - person who wants to marry Julia
 Tadeo - father of Miguel
- has a secret love for Juana
 Kapitan Inggo - father of Tenyong
- husband of Putin
 Kapitana Putin - mother of Tenyong
- wife of Inggo
 General - close friend of Tenyong
 Kura - the priest who listened to Tenyong’s
confession
 Mediko - cured Tenyong
 Monica - Tenyong’s grantor of favors
 Marcelo - who leads the city
 Religioso 1 and Religioso 2 - cruel priests
Exposition
Tenyong and Julia were lovers during at the time
of Spaniard Rulings.
Rising Action
At the time being, the Philippine Revolution arose
and many Filipinos joined in the revolution.
Climax
Tenyong was one of those Filipinos that joined in
the revolution. This instance causes the two lovers,
tenyong and Julia to be apart.
During those times, Julia was pressured to marry
someone else.
Falling Action
While the battle prolongs, there were no words
from Tenyong and so Julia gave in to marry Miguel.
Denoeument
During the wedding ceremony of Julia, it was
interrupted by someone telling that Tenyong was fatally
wounded and he returns with a dying wish.
Out of the knowledge of Julia that it was just a
trap to stop and interrupt the wedding so that they can
live together again.
THEME
“Love always prevails.”
“Promises are meant to be fulfilled.”
“Fight against oppression of rights and injustice.”
MORAL
1. Forgiveness
2. Fight for your own right
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