Literary Criticisms

Tolentino, Fenina Gabrielle M.
11074523
January 8, 2013
Assignment #1

1. What are the different types of Literary Criticisms? * New Criticism / Formalism - This type of criticism concerns itself with the parts of a text and how the parts fit together to make a whole. Because of this, it does not bring in any information outside of the text: biography of the author, historical or literary allusions, mythological patterns, or the psychoanalytical traits of the characters (except those traits specifically described in the text.) * Archetypical or Mythic – This type of criticism looks at traditional meanings in literature. It uses clues such as symbols and images. * Empowerment – This type of criticism concerns the portrayal of social biases toward specific groups and forces readers to understand thematic content since many biases deal with issues such as independence, self-discovery, etc. * Marxist – This type of criticism concerns the representation of social classes, socioeconomic distinctions, and disparities, and the material conditions in which character functions. * Didactic or Moral – This type of criticism looks at the noble attempts literature makes to elevate readers above physical existence into the realm of moral goodness. It asserts that good literature should strengthen us by teaching us what having integrity and values means for society as well as the individual. * Auto/Biographical – This type of criticism attempts to understand literary works through the author’s life (including perceptions and beliefs) * Psychoanalytic – This type of criticism us based on Freudian Principles, it is best explained by briefly discussing and simplifying some terminology used. * Historical or New Historical – This type of criticism examines events surrounding the setting of a work and analyzes it within that context. It emphasizes the age during which the author lived and wrote to construct meaning within a literary work. * Feminist – This type of criticism is concerned with the literary representation of the females. * Deconstructionism – This type of criticism is the fundamental biases in language. This means that language cannot mean one thing. * Reader Response – This type of criticism focuses on the intellectual and emotional connections readers make with a work. It relies on the reader’s reaction to the literature. This type of criticism attempts to describe what happens in the reader’s mind while interpreting a text

2. History of Philippine Literature * August 13, 1898 – The American Forces occupied Manila. * 1899 – English Newspapers were published: The Courier, Insular Press, and Manila Freedom. * April 1900 – President William McKinley directed the Philippines Commission to make English the Official Medium of Instruction for all public schools. * 1900 – The Daily Bulletin was founded. * August 1901 – 600 American Teachers arrived on the transport of Thomas. They replaced the soldiers as Teachers. * 1901 – The Philippine Normal School was founded. This school trained Filipinos in the art of Teaching so that they could eventually take charge of Elementary Education. * 1902 – The Cablenews started. * 1905 – The Philippine Free Press began edited by F. Theodore Rogers. It was a bilingual weekly in English and Spanish. * 1908 – The Philippine Press published the first Filipino Short Stories in English. * 1908 – 1914 – Some students at the University of the Philippines collected and retold, in English, old Filipino Tales. These writings were published and gather by Dean S Fansier on Filipino Popular Tales in 1921. * 1921 – Graduates of the Manila High School published their English Writings in the Coconut. * 1913 – The Philippine Normal School introduced its publication, The Torch. * 1920 – the Philippines Herald began publication. Manuel Quezon founded it and Paz Latorena, Loreto Paras, Hose Garcia Villa, Casiano T. Calalang, and others edited its magazine section. * 1924 – Hartendorp became the editor f the Philippine Education Magazine. * 1925 – Pree Presso began paying for original manuscripts and offered Php1, 000.00 for the best stories. The Manila Tribune was founded, along with Graphico, the Woman’s Outlook, the Woman’s Home Journal, and the Philippine Collegian. Also, the Philippine Writer’s Association was organized with Rizal G. * 1927 – The Writers’ Club was founded at the University of the Philippines. * 1929 – The First Filipino Novel in English was A Child of Sorrow. And His Awakening by Ernest Lopez. * 1900 – 1930 – Significant writing of Essays, Short Stories, and Poems.

Essays. The essay was a popular form of expression for the early writers. As early as 1926 essayist expressed the need for literature that was native and national. Many essays first appeared as newspaper columns and later they were published in anthologies. In 1921 Zoilo M. Galang published Life and Success, the first volume of essays in English. In that year Zoilo M. Galang also published another book of essays, Master of Destiny.

Short Stories, Virginia R. Moreno has described the literary years 1910 – 19o24 as “ … a period of novices with their experiences both infliction-making and the use of the new language. 1925 – 1931 was the period of phenomenal growth among the practitioners in the art.” It is true that the early short stories were the work of novices. The tales were often romantic and the adventures, themes, and plots were sometimes imitated. There were difficulties in grammar and at times their wows a tendency toward sentimentalism. But gradually, certain writers appeared who showed that the novitiate periods were ending. Critics for their high literary quality praised Jorge Bacobo’s “Horrible Adventure” in the Philippine Review for May 1916, and Paz Marquez Benitez’s “The Siren of 34 Real” in the Philippine Review for July 1917. On September 20, 1925 The Philippines Herald published “Dead Stars” by Paz Marquez Benitez. This story was quickly recognized as one of the best short stories yet written by a Filipino.

Poems. The first known Filipino poem in English is “Sursum Corda” by Justo Juliano. It appeared in the Philippines Free Press in 1907. This poem, along with others of that period, has been criticized as being too artificial and overwritten in order to achieve intensity. The early poems in book often borrowed images and similes from English or American poets. The first collection of poems in book form was Reminisces, by Lorenzo Paredes, in 1921. In 1922, Procopio Solidum published Never Mind, a collection of Filipino poetry in English. Rodolfo Dato edited an anthology of Filipino poems in 1924 under the title Filipino Poetry. In 1926 he published his own poems in Manila.

Most critics agree that Marcelo de Garcia Concepcion was a leading poet of the early period. His Azucena was published in New York in 1925. His poems reveal simple images with deep sensitivity and original thought. Some poets who belonged to the early period of Philippine Literature were: Aurelio S. Alvero, Marcelo de Gracia Concepcion, Rafael Zulueta da Costa, Luis Dato, Vicente L. del Fierro, Virgilio Floresca, Angela Manalang Gloria, Jose M. Hernandez, A.E. Litiatco.

References: http://quizlet.com/10480063/types-of-literary-criticism-flash-cards/ http://hhh.gavilan.edu/kwarren/LitCrit.html
http://litgroupone.blogspot.com/2009/07/history-of-philippine-literature.html

References: http://quizlet.com/10480063/types-of-literary-criticism-flash-cards/ http://hhh.gavilan.edu/kwarren/LitCrit.html http://litgroupone.blogspot.com/2009/07/history-of-philippine-literature.html