1.

Phillipine Literature

IBALON
(from Bicol)

Summary
A long time ago, there was a rich land called Ibalong. The hero Baltog, who came from
Botavora of the brave clan of Lipod, came to this land when many monsters were still roaming in its very
dark forests. He decided to stay and was the first to cultivate its field and to plant them with gabi.

Then one night, a monstrous, wild boar known as Tandayag saw these field and destroyed the
crops. Upon knowing this, Baltog decided to look for this boar with all his courage and patiend. At last, as
soon as he saw it, he fearlessly wrestled with it, with all his might. Baltog was unafraid. He was strong and
brave. Though the Tandayag had very long fangs, he was able to pin down the monstrous, wild boar and
break apart its very big jawbones. With this, Tandayag fell and died.

After this fight, Baltog went to his house in Tondol, carrying the Tandaya'g broken bones.
Then he hung it on a talisay tree in front of his house. Upon learning of the victory of their Chief Baltog, the
people prepared a feast and celebrated. The very big jawbones of the dead boar became an attraction for
everyone. Thus, came the tribes of Panikwason and Asog to marvel it.

The second hero who came to the land of Ibalong was Handyong. Together with his men, he
had to fight thousands of battles, and face many dangers to defeat the monster. As warriors, they first
fought the one-eyed monster with the tree necks in the land of Ponong. For ten months, they fought
without rest. And they never stopped fighting until all these monsters were killed.

Handyong and his men made their next attack against the giant flying sharks called Triburon
which had hardly flesh and sawlike teeth that could crush rocks. They continued fighting until the defeat of
the last Triburon.

They tamed the wild carabaos. They even drove away the giant and very fierce Sarimao which
had very sharp fingernails. And using their spears and arrows, they killed all the crocodiles which were as
big as boats. With all these killings, the rivers and swamps of Ibalong turned red with blood. It was at this
time that the savage monkeys became frightened and hid themselves.

Among the enemies of Handyong and his men, the serpent Oryol was the hardes to kill.
Having a beautiful voice, Oryaol could change its image to deceive its enemies. To capture it, Handyong
tried different ways. But Oryol escaped every one of it and disappeared.

So alone and unafraid, Handyong decide to look for Oryol in the heart of the forest. He
followed the beautiful voice and was almost enchanted by it in his pursuit. Days and nights passed until
Oryol came to admire Handyong's bravery and gallantry. Then the serpent helped the hero to conquer
monsters, thus restoring peace to the entire Ibalong.

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 In one the areas of Ibalong called Ligmanan, Handyong built a town. Under his leadership and
his laws, slaves and masters were treated equally. The people planted rice and because of their high regard
of him they named this rice after him. He built the first boat to ride the waves of Ibalong's seas. Through his
good example, his people became inspired and came up with their own inventions. There was Kimantong
who made the plow, harrow and other farming tools. Hablom who invented the first loom for weaving
abaca clothes, Dinahongm an Agta, who created the stove, cooking pot, earthen jar and other kitchen
utensils, and Sural who brilliantly thought of syllabary and started to write on a marble rock. This was a
golden period in Ibalong.

Analysis

The epic is dead. The most potent genre of literature during the Age of Homer and Virgil, which
glorified the superhuman adventures of the lofty hero of a people, died, perhaps because of the novel's
elevation to the highest echelon in the hierarchy of literary forms, thereby effecting the desecration of the
Aristotelian exegesis of Greek tragedy [Lodge, 1996] or of Modernism's attempt to dismiss history so as to
be emancipated from the shackles of tradition [Jackson, 1994].

2. What 2 lessons can you learn from the story of ibalon an epic from bicol?

A. A good leader must always be ready.

We need to remember that being a good leader takes a lot of courage to lead in change within
one specific place. A leader must learn how to empower people, lead to change, share vision
and most of all is to inspire the people around you.

B. Always be brave.

Try to be brave even if you're not. Let's be honest, we people have a lot of fears in life but if
we're not going to let go of those things nothing will happen. Be brave even if you know that
you are risking your life.
 2. Afro-Asian Literature

The Fox and the Bear

By Yssa Marie Lopez

Summary

The fox and the bear had a planned that they will plant a crop. They plant a crop and when
the crop grows they will divide it in to two. The fox decide that he will take the half that grows under the
soil. Then the bear agreed. After the fox had finished taking the half of the crop, he slipped away quietly.
And after the bear gathered her green, she carried them to her cave. Morning came then the bear woke up.
She found the leaves had begun to wither and die. She tried eating the few, but they were bitter.

She go to the fox and saw that the fox was eating. She came near to the fox and asked if
where the roots she pulled out yesterday are. In addition she said that the leaves dried. And the bear add, if
she could taste some of the carrots. The fox then said that they have a bargain.

A few weeks later, the fox appeared again to the bear . Then he said that they plant another crop and
the bear would choose now. The bear is tricked again by the fox so the bear planned to tricked the fox. The
bear is eating meat and the fox saw it. So the fox immediately went to the bear to asked if where did she
get the delicious meat. And the bear said that he get it from a horse, so the fox run quickly and bit the leg of
the horse. But the horse kicked the fox and was throwned and was stocked in a biggest tree.

POSITIVE THEMES

• Forgiveness

• Acceptance and tolerance

• Loyalty and faithfulness Bear tolerates Fox’s mischievous pranks because these are part and
parcel of the friend he loves so dearly.

NEGATIVE THEMES

• Insensitivity

• Malevolence

• Boastfulness and conceit

• Fickleness and unreliability Many of the negative aspects of friendship are embodied in Hare
and Rooster, who are conceited and narcissistic.

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 3. English-American Literature
The Gift of the Magi
By O. Henry
Summary and Analysis
The story tells of a young married couple, James, known as Jim, and Della Dillingham. The couple has
very little money and lives in a modest apartment. Between them, they have only two possessions that they
consider their treasures: Jim's gold pocket watchthat belonged to his father and his grandfather, and
Della's lustrous, long hair that falls almost to her knees.
It's Christmas Eve, and Della finds herself running out of time to buy Jim a Christmas present. After
paying all of the bills, all Della has left is $1.87 to put toward Jim's Christmas present. Desperate to find him
the perfect gift, out she goes into the cold December day, looking in shop windows for something she can
afford.
She wants to buy Jim a chain for his pocket watch, but they're all out of her price range. Rushing
home, Della pulls down her beautiful hair and stands in front of the mirror, admiring it and thinking. After a
sudden inspiration, she rushes out again and has her hair cut to sell. Della receives $20.00 for selling her
hair, just enough to buy the platinum chain she saw in a shop window for $21.00.
When Jim comes home from work, he stares at Della, trying to figure out what's different about her.
She admits that she sold her hair to buy his present. Before she can give it to him, however, Jim casually
pulls a package out of his overcoat pocket and hands it to her. Inside, Della finds a pair of costly decorative
hair combs that she'd long admired, but are now completely useless since she's cut off her hair. Hiding her
tears, she jumps up and holds out her gift for Jim: the watch chain. Jim shrugs, flops down onto the old
sofa, puts his hands behind his head and tells Della flatly that he sold his watch to buy her combs.
The story ends with a comparison of Jim and Della's gifts to the gifts that the Magi, or three wise
men, gave to Baby Jesus in the manger in the biblical story of Christmas. The narrator concludes that Jim
and Della are far wiser than the Magi because their gifts are gifts of love, and those who give out of love
and self-sacrifice are truly wise because they know the value of self-giving love.

Theme and Moral

The Gift of the Magi is a classic example of irony in literature. Irony is a literary technique in
which an expectation of what is supposed to occur differs greatly from the actual outcome. In this case, Jim
and Della sacrifice their most treasured possessions so that the other can fully enjoy his or her gift. Jim sells
his watch to buy Della's combs, expecting her to be able to use them. Della sells her hair to buy Jim a chain
for his watch. Neither expects the other to have made that sacrifice.
The irony here works both on a practical and on a deeper, more sentimental level. Both Della
and Jim buy each other a gift that ultimately seems financially foolish. Being poor, they can't afford to
waste money on things they can't use. However, what they get is something they don't expect: a more
intangible gift that reminds them how much they love each other and are willing to sacrifice to make each
other happy.

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 4. World Literature
Things fall Apart
By Chinua Achebe
Summary
Okonkwo has risen from nothing to a high position. Through hard work, he has become a great man
among his people. He has taken three wives and his barn is full of yams, the staple crop. He rules his family
with an iron fist.

One day, a neighboring clan commits an offense against Umuofia. To avoid war, the offending
clan gives Umuofia one virgin and one young boy. The girl is to become the offended party's new wife. The
boy, whose name is Ikemefuna, is to be sacrificed, but not immediately. He lives in Umuofia for three years,
and during that time he lives under Okonkwo's roof. He becomes like a part of Okonkwo's family. In
particular, Nwoye, Okonkwo's oldest son, loves Ikemefuna like a brother. But eventually the Oracle calls for
the boy's death, and a group of men take Ikemefuna away to kill him in the forest. Okonkwo, fearful of
being perceived as soft-hearted and weak, participates in the boy's death. He does so despite the advice of
the clan elders. Nwoye is spiritually broken by the event.

Okonkwo is shaken as well, but he continues with his drive to become a lord of his clan. He is
constantly disappointed by Nwoye, but he has great love for his daughter Ezinma, his child by his second
wife Ekwefi. Ekwefi has born ten children, but only Ezinma has survived. She loves the girl fiercely. Ezinma is
sickly, and sometimes Ekwefi fears that Ezinma, too, will die. Late one night, the powerful Oracle of
Umuofia brings Ezinma with her for a spiritual encounter with the earth goddess. Terrified, Ekwefi follows
the Oracle at a distance, fearing harm might come to her child. Okonkwo follows, too.
Later, during a funeral for one of the great men of the clan, Okonkwo's gun explodes, killing a boy. In
accordance with Umuofia's law, Okonkwo and his family must be exiled for seven years.

Okonkwo bears the exile bitterly. Central to his beliefs is faith that a man masters his own
destiny. But the accident and exile are proof that at times man cannot control his own fate, and Okonkwo is
forced to start over again without the strength and energy of his youth. He flees with his family to Mbanto,
his mother's homeland. There they are received by his mother's family, who treat them generously. His
mother's family is headed by Uchendu, Okonkwo's uncle, a generous and wise old man.
During Okonkwo's exile, the white man comes to both Umuofia and Mbanto. The missionaries arrive first,
preaching a religion that seems mad to the Igbo people. They win converts, but generally the converts are
men of low rank or outcasts. However, with time, the new religion gains momentum. Nwoye becomes a
convert. When Okonkwo learns of Nwoye's conversion, he beats the boy. Nwoye leaves home.

Okonkwo returns to Umuofia to find the clan sadly changed. The church has won some
converts, some of whom are fanatical and disrespectful of clan custom. Worse, the white man's
government has come to Umuofia. The clan is no longer free to judge its own; a District Commissioner
judges cases in ignorance. He is backed by armed power.

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 During a religious gathering, a convert unmasks one of the clan spirits. The offense is grave,
and in response the clan decides that the church will no longer be allowed in Umuofia. They tear the
building down. Soon afterward, the District Commissioner asks the leaders of the clan, Okonkwo among
them, to come see him for a peaceful meeting. The leaders arrive, and are quickly seized. In prison, they are
humiliated and beaten, and they are held until the clan pays a heavy fine.

After a release of the men, the clan calls a meeting to decide whether they will fight or try to
live peacefully with the whites. Okonkwo wants war. During the meeting, court messengers come to order
the men to break up their gathering. The clan meetings are the heart of Umuofia's government; all
decisions are reached democratically, and an interference with this institution means the end of the last
vestiges of Umuofia's independence. Enraged, Okonkwo kills the court messenger. The other court
messengers escape, and because the other people of his clan did not seize them, Okonkwo knows that his
people will not choose war. His act of resistance will not be followed by others. Embittered and grieving for
the destruction of his people's independence, and fearing the humiliation of dying under white law,
Okonkwo returns home and hangs himself.

Theme
Gender
Much of the traditional Igbo life presented in this novel revolves around structured gender
roles. Essentially all of Igbo life is gendered, from the crops that men and women grow, to characterization
of crimes. In Igbo culture, women are the weaker sex, but are also endowed with qualities that make them
worthy of worship, like the ability to bear children.
Family
There are a few key ideas that form the basis of an ideal family: mutual respect for each
other, a reverence for all past fathers, and unity. The father is not only the provider for the family, but
defender of its honor and teacher of his sons. The mother’s main duty is to add to the family line by
bearing healthy children and also to please her husband. Children are the inheritors of the future and
are raised to continue the values of the older generation.
Religion
Gods are mostly manifestations of nature and its elements, which makes sense because they
are an agricultural society that depends on the regularity of seasons and natural phenomena to survive.
They worship the goddess of the earth and are always careful to avoid committing sins against her for fear
of vengeance that might wipe out an entire generation.

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 Project
In
st
21 Literature

Submitted by:
Maryjane B. Demadante

Submitted to: