This document provides an overview of different literary genres including prose, poetry, and drama. It discusses common subgenres such as novels, short stories, poems, and plays. For each genre and subgenre, examples from Philippine literature are given. The document also covers basic elements of fiction such as characters, setting, plot, theme, and point of view. Overall, the document serves as a primer on literary genres and terminology.

1. 21st Century Literature from
the Philippines and the World
Nathaniel C. Puda

2. LITERARY GENRES
DIRECTIONS: Arrange the
jumbled letters to form a word
related to literature.

3. S P O E R
It is known for a conversational
language presented orally or in
writing.
PROSE

4. L O V E N
It is a long narrative in written
form that has a very complicated
plot.
NOVEL

5. A V E L L O N
A work of fiction intermediate in
length and complexity between a
short story and a novel.
NOVELLA

6. H O R T S R O Y S T
It is shorter than a novella and has a
simpler plot. Sometimes written in a
simple linear plot and is often showcasing
a singular, simple setting.
SHORT STORY

7. G E N D E L
LEGEND

8. H Y M T
MYTH

9. B A F L E
FABLE

10. A B L E R A P
PARABLE

11. 3 MAIN LITERARY GENRES
•PROSE
FICTION
ELEMENTS OF FICTION
NONFICTION
•POETRY
•DRAMA

12. LITERATURE
•Literature from its Latin origin
which is LITERA that means
‘’letters’’ have been transforming
and progressing as what we are
enjoying in the 21st Century.

13. Drastic Change of Literature
•Oral tradition – way of preserving
•Written works – aimed to free the
nation from being oppressed

14. Through time literature has branched out
into different genres which continually
growing because of the creative minds of
the emerging writers and of course the
changing interests of the readers.

15. GENRE
•It is a category of artistic,
musical, or literary composition
characterized by a particular
style, form, or content.

16. PROSE
•It is known for a conversational language
presented orally or in writing.
•This genre, unlike poetry, does not follow any
rhyming sequence nor go after any metrical
regularity.
•It is composed of phrases, clauses, sentences,
and paragraphs.

17. PROSE
•Can also employ the use of figurative
language to create an added aesthetic
effect just like poetry and drama.

18. TYPES OF PROSE
•FICTION
•NONFICTION

19. FICTION
•It is a genre that represents real-life
experiences situation in imaginary
narratives, yet its essence can be based
on factual and verifiable events.
Example: Noli Me Tangere and El
Filibusterismo by Dr. Jose Rizal

20. SUBGENRES OF FICTION
•NOVEL
•NOVELLA
•SHORT STORY
•LEGEND
•MYTH
•FABLE
•PARABLE

21. NOVEL
•It is a long narrative in written form that has
a very complicated plot.
•Usually divided into chapters that are crucial
to the story’s main plot.
•Should at least have 50,000 words but still
vary depending on the genre.

22. EXAMPLES:
•NOLI ME TANGER AND EL
FILIBUSTERISMO by Dr. Jose Rizal
•MGA IBONG MANDARAGIT by
Amado V. Hernandez
•SALAMANCA by Dean Francis Alfar

23. NOVELLA
•A work of fiction intermediate in
length and complexity between a
short story and a novel.

24. EXAMPLES:
•THREE FILIPINO WOMEN: NOVELLAS by
F. Sionil Jose
•THE SEAMTRESS WITH THE SAMPAGUITA
FLOWERS by Aurora Castillo Puildo
•Before I do by Kath Eustaquio-Derla

25. SHORT STORY
•It is shorter than a novella and has a
simpler plot. Sometimes written in a
simple linear plot and is often
showcasing a singular, simple setting.

26. EXAMPLES:
•DEAD STARS by Paz Marquez
Benitez
•ALL OVER THE WORLD by Vicente
Rivera Jr.
•Turtle Season by Timothy R. Montes

27. LEGEND
•More often secular than sacred, and
their principal characters are human.
These stories tell of migrations, wars,
and victories, deeds of past heroes,
chiefs, and kings, and successful in ruling
dynasties.

28. EXAMPLES:
•THE STORY OF PIÑA
•LEGEND OF MARIA MAKILING

29. MYTH
•It is a story that explains the origin of
the world, humanity, death, or natural
phenomena. It also has dealings with
gods and folkloric creatures.

30. EXAMPLES:
•HOW THE WORLD WAS MADE
•THE CREATION
•HOW THE MOON AND STARS CAME
TO BE

31. FABLE
•A story about animals that can behave
like humans. Stories that are classified
under this genre contain morals that
apply to humanity.

32. EXAMPLES:
•THE MONKEY AND THE TURTLE
•THE LAZY DOG
•THE INTELLIGENT FROG

33. PARABLE
•A story found in the sacred scriptures. It
contains symbols that, when
interpreted, can teach a life lesson in
accordance with Christian faith and
teaching.

34. Examples:
•The Parable of the Wheat and the
Tares
•Parable of Ten Virgins
•Parable of Sower

35. ELEMENTS OF FICTION
•SETTING
•POV
•THEME
•PLOT

36. CHARACTERS are the actors in the story.
Usually, a character embodies a trait or a
human attribute that the authors intends to
include in the narrative in order for readers
to see the pros and cons of people acting in
such a manner.

37. CLASSIFICATION OF CHARACTERS
PROTAGONIST ANTAGONIST
The main character, his/her
presence is crucial because it
propels the plot forward. The
entire plot revolves around
the protagonist’s decisions
and the consequences of
those decision.
The protagonist’s
opponent who
challenges and
obstructs the
protagonist’s success.

38. ROUND FLAT
ROUND – undergo a
certain change (character
arc) as these characters
have complex personalities
that are strategically
unraveled throughout the
story.
The exact opposite of
round. They remain
constant or do not change
throughout the story.

39. SETTING
The time and place/environment of
the story.

40. PLOT
The sequence of events in the story.

41. 1. EXPOSITION
The introduction of the story. This is the
part where the protagonist and other
characters, setting, and even the first
conflict are described and presented.

42. 2. RISING ACTION
Speaks a lot about the progress of the
story because of the conflicts faced by the
protagonist.

43. Types of Conflict
•Person vs person
•Person vs nature
•Person vs society
•Person vs self
•Person vs technology

44. 3. CLIMAX
The highest peak of emotion and
tension is found in this part of the story.
Usually, this is the part where the
problems severely affect the protagonist
or where secrets explode like fireworks
in the night sky for all to see.

45. 4. FALLING ACTION
The cooling phase of the story
linking to the resolution.

46. 5.
RESOLUTION/DENOUEMEN
T
Either reveals the happy ending or the
opposite. Others use this as an opportunity to
close one door and open another for a brand-
new story. This is the part that describes how
the protagonist addresses the main conflict
and how he or she finally finds a solution to
the problem.

47. Types of POV
•1st Person Point of View
•2nd Person Point of View
•3rd Person Point of View

48. 6. THEME
The central binding thought or
topic of the story.

49. NONFICTION
The subgenre that deals with
FACTS AND REVEAL EVENTS. It
anchors its content to what is
usually set in the REAL WORLD.

50. SUBGENRES OF NONFICTION
•AUTOBIOGRAPHY
•BIOGRAPHY
•MEMOIR
•ESSAY
•DIARY
•JOURNAL

51. POETRY
•Follows rhyming, rhythm, and meter.
•Similar to prose, it also uses figurative
language, symbolism, and other literary
devices.
•The persona narrates what ideas or what
transpires within the poetic work.

52. SUBGENRES OF POTERY
[Saymo et.al (2004)]
•NARRATIVE POETRY
•LYRIC POETRY
•DRAMATIC POETRY

53. NARRATIVE POETRY
•A poem that describes important details
in order of events whether real or
imaginary.

54. 1. EPIC
A poetry about HEROIC DEEDS of a
person with extraordinary abilities.

55. 2. METRICAL TALE
Written in verse that relates to real or
imaginary events in simple,
straightforward language.

56. 3. METRICAL ROMANCE
A metrical tale revolving around chivalry
and love that became popular during the
middle ages. Francisco Balagtas’
‘’Florante at Laura’’ is a good example of
this in the Philippine setting.

57. 4. BALLAD
Metrically simple and concerned with
some strongly emotional event. It is
halfway between the lyric and the epic.
Also, ballads are songs that usually
accompanied with dances and whose
authors are typically not known.

58. BALLAD

59. LYRIC POETRY
•HAIKU
•ODE
•ELEGY
•SONNET

60. HAIKU

61. ODE
•Serious poetry that commemorates
public events. It consists of stanzas with
the same pattern of rhythm and rhyme

62. ELEGY
•Poem that deals with life and death

63. SONNET
•Poems that deals with love and
mostly consist of 14 lines.

64. DRAMATIC POETRY
It tells stories like the narrative poetry, but
is usually in a form of dialogues in plays
with rhymes, repeating rhythms, and other
poetic elements. One of the most famous
dramatic English playwright is William
Shakespeare.

65. DRAMA
A literary genre that can use both prose and
poetry. It can differs through the use of
dialogue. This genre is typically intended to
be performed on stage or in motion pictures.
As a result, the characters are now referred
to as actors.

66. SUBGENRES OF DRAMA
•TRAGEDY
•HISTORICAL
•MELODRAMA
•MUSICAL

67. TRAGEDY
The plot of the story will lead to a tragic
ending. One example is Wilfredo Ma
Guerrero’s HALF AN HOUR IN A
CONVENT.

68. HISTORICAL
Sometimes called period drama for it
showcases stories that took place in a
particular, specific significant time in
history. Lualhati Bautista’s DEKADA ‘70
falls in this type.

69. MELODRAMA
Strong emotion is present in this drama

70. MUSICAL
The use of singing and dancing during the
execution of the drama. Singing and
dancing are always integral and part of
the development of the plot. RAK OF
AEGIS by Liza Magtoto is an example.