21St Century Literary Genres Elements, Structures and Traditions

21ST CENTURY LITERARY GENRES
ELEMENTS, STRUCTURES AND

TRADITIONS

WHAT ARE THE LITERARY GENRES IN THE
PHILIPPINES?
Literary genre is a category of literary composition. Genres

may be determined by literary technique, tone, content, or
even (as in the case of fiction) length. The distinctions
between genres and categories are flexible and loosely
defined, often with subgroups.
The Pre-colonial Period
• Riddles – These are mystifying statements or questions phrased and
rhymed to require ingenuity in determining its answer. For the Visayans,
these are called tigmo, for the Tagalogs, bugtong. For the Ilongos,
paktakon and for the Bicolanos, atototdon. Here are the examples:
Tigmo
Baboy sa lasang (A wild pig in the forest,)
Ang tunok puro lansang. (Is covered with spikes)
Answer: Nangka (Jackfruit)

Paktakon
Ano nga tuboran Masulog sa tag-init, (What spring flow in summer)
Ginabubsan kong tag-ulan?. (and run dry on rainy days?)
Answer: Balhas (Sweat)
•
• Proverbs - These are called sawikain or salawikain in Tagalog or sarsarita in
Ilocano.
•
Ilocano on Guilt Hiligaynon on Suffering
Ti agutak, (He who cackles) Kon indi ikaw mag-antos (If you don’t sacrifice)
Isut nagitlog. (laid the egg.) Indi ka gid magsantos.( You can’t be a saint.)

• Songs – These are forms of folk lyric speak volumes of the
typical rural lives and reflect people’s aspirations and
lifestyles. Here are some song categories of our ancestors:
Folk Songs Lullaby Serenade

(Awit ng Bayan) (Oyayi) (Harana)
i. Folk Songs (Awit ng Bayan) – These are songs
with lines often described as repetitive, didactic,
and sonorous. The following are examples of
famous Filipino folk songs:
• Serenade (Harana) – These are courtship songs
used by young men to capture the heart of the
girl they love.
• Chants (Bulong) – These are used to give respect, excuse, or apology to
unseen or other elemental spirits our ancestors believed in to deliver
them from danger or harm.
•
Tabi-tabi po, Ingkong, makikiraan po lamang (Tagalog)
Bari-bari po, Apo, umisbo la ting tao. (Ilokano)
Ikaw ang nagnanakaw ng bigas ko
Lumuwa sana ang mata mo
Mamaga sana ang katawan mo
Patayin ka ng mga anito.
Epics – These are long narrative accounts of heroic exploits. Examples
of these are Darangen in Maranaw, Aliguyon at Hudhud in Ifugao,
Ibalon in Bicol.
Below is the link of a guman or epic of the Subanen people of

Zamboanga, which is chanted during Buklog or festivals.
https://www.kapitbisig.com/philippines/english-version-of-epics-mga-e
piko-the-kingdom-of-keboklagan-of-the-suban-on-tribe-of-northwester
n-mindanao_1192.html
• Myths – These are symbolic narratives, usually of unknown origin and
at least partly traditional, that ostensibly relate actual events and
are especially associated with religious belief.
•
• Legends – These are stories that explain the origin of things and
phenomena in the surrounding world.
• Fables – These are brief
stories for the children of the
native Filipinos.
The Spanish Period
• The Spanish colonizers ruled the country for over 300 years. They
used the cross to influence and impose their religion upon the
natives. For more than three centuries of colonization in the
Philippines, not only was our history as a nation altered but also our
traditions, lifestyles, and belief systems.
• Religious matters were in the form
of prose as prayer books,
novenas, biographies of saints,
and the likes.
•
ü Senakulo, a Filipino dramatization
of the life and times of Jesus
Christ presented during the Lent.
ü Pasyon, Philippine epic narrative of the life of Jesus Christ,
was written in stanzas with five lines of eight syllables each
and focused on his Passion, Death, and Resurrection.
ü Dalit (psalm), a song praising God or the Virgin Mary and
containing a philosophy of life, also became popular.
ü
• Secular or Non-religious literature also flourished. These are
prominently tales of valiance and adventure.
a. Awit (Song)– These have measures of twelve syllables
(dodecasyllabic) and are slowly sung to the accompaniment of a
guitar or banduria.
b. Kurido (Corrido) - These are metrical romances and tales that follow
a structure of a poem.
c. Karagatan - This is a poetic vehicle of a socio-religious nature
celebrated during the death of a person.
d. Duplo – This is a poetic joust in speaking and reasoning.
e. Prose Narratives – These are instructional materials that teach
Filipinos proper decorum.
f. Sarswela – This is a type of drama that originated in Spain. It includes
singing and dancing on stage with lyrics alternatively spoken and sung
in operatic and popular styles.
The American Period
• The literature during the American period was
imitative of the form of American writing. Forms of
poetry still followed the old structure but had
contents that ranged from free writing and societal
concerns under the American regime.
The Japanese Period and
the Republic
21st Century
Literature of the
Philippines
• All literary works written and published at the later part of
the 21st century (from 2001 onwards) are often
characterized as gender sensitive, technologically alluding,
culturally pluralistic, operates on the extreme reality or
extreme fiction, and questions conventions and supposedly
absolute norms.
The following are the most notable literary genres in the 21st
century:
a. Drama- It is the genre of literature with stories composed of

verse or prose which is meant to be dramatically or
theatrically performed.
b. Creative nonfiction – It is also
known as literary nonfiction or
narrative nonfiction, is a genre of
writing that uses literary styles and
techniques to create factually
accurate narratives.
c. Blog – It is a web log containing
short articles called posts that can
be changed regularly.
d. Poetry – It is a verse and rhythmic writing with imagery that
evokes an emotional response from the reader.
• Mobile phone Text tula - A particular example of this poem

is a tanaga, a type of Filipino poem, consisting of four lines
with seven syllables each with the same rhyme at the end
of each line - that is to say a 7-7-7-7 syllabic verse, with an
AABB rhyme scheme.
• Hyperpoetry – It is a form of digital poetry that uses
links using hypertextmark-up. It is a very visual form,
and is related to hypertext fiction and visual arts.
• Spoken word poetry – It is a poem that has made its way
into the heartsand souls of thousands of Filipinos especially
the millennials. It is a type of poem performed or read in
artistic and emotive manner which can be accompanied by
music or presented in the- streets or bars, even café shops.
e. Fiction - Fiction has genres that can be defined as narrative literary
works whose content is produced by the imagination and is not
necessarily based on fact.
i. Short Story – This is brief fiction that can be read in one seating and is
not able to support any subplots.
ii. Chick-Lit – This is a genre which addresses issues of modern
womanhood, often humorously and light-heartedly.
iii. Flash fiction – This is a style of fictional literature or fiction of
extreme brevity. There is no widely accepted definition of the length of
the category.
iv. Realistic Fiction – It is a story that can actually happen and is true to
real life.
v. Historical Fiction - It is a story with fictional characters and events in a
historical setting.
vi. Horror – These are frightfully shocking, terrifying, or revolting stories.
vii. Mystery – It deals with unraveling of secrets and solution of a crime.
viii. Illustrated Novels – These are stories through text and illustrated
images.
ix. Graphic Novels – These are narratives in comic book formats.
x. Speculative Fiction – It is a term encompassing the more fantastical fiction
genres, specifically science fiction, fantasy, horror, weird fiction, supernatural
fiction, superhero fiction, utopian and dystopian fiction, apocalyptic and
post-apocalyptic fiction, and alternate history in literature as well as related
static, motion, and virtual arts.
a. Science Fiction – It is a story based on impact of potential
science, either actual or imagined and is set in the future or on
other planets.
b. Fantasy – It is the forming of mental images with strange or
other worldly settings or characters and invites suspension of
reality.
c. Humor – It is the faculty of perceiving what is amusing or
comical. It is fiction full of fun, fancy, and excitement which
meant to entertain. This genre of literature can actually be
seen and contained within all genres.

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21ST CENTURY LITERARY GENRES

ELEMENTS, STRUCTURES AND

Literary genre is a category of literary composition. Genres

Folk Songs Lullaby Serenade

Below is the link of a guman or epic of the Subanen people of

a. Drama- It is the genre of literature with stories composed of

• Mobile phone Text tula - A particular example of this poem

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