Southeast Asia has a diverse literary tradition influenced by its history of trade and colonization. Early literature included oral traditions and inscriptions on materials like palm leaves and metal. Major works include versions of the Ramayana epic in various countries and the Tale of Lady Kieu in Vietnam. Modern literature has been impacted by new technologies like printing presses and deals with issues of tradition, modernization, and anti-colonial sentiments. The works are often in the languages of the colonizers like Spanish, English or indigenous languages.

2. SOUTHEAST
ASIA
Prepared By: MS. ANGELICA E. PILIAS, LPT

5. BRUNEI
CAMBODIA
LAOS
INDONESIA
EAST TIMOR
PHILIPPINES
MALAYSIA
MYANMAR
SINGAPORE
THAILAND
VIETNAM

6. Overview: Southeast Asia is described as a
“Land of Gold”
Due to its richness and resources
= Indian, Chinese,
Arab and Persian
traders
British, Dutch, Portuguese,
French and Spanish have shown
interest in the trade routes and
resources of Southeast Asia.

7. Indian and Chinese influence
= HINDUISM, BUDDHISM
and CONFUCIANISM
Importance of family
Sense of “duty”
Gratitude towards nature
Islam and Christianity
were adapted into the
mix.

8. Literature:
EARLY LITERATURE
Oral traditions: riddles, puns, proverbs
legends, stories
Written traditions: stone inscriptions,
bas-relief
Verses of historical constitutions
Royal Court = often the setting for
literary invention and
reinvention

10. EARLY LITERATURE
Early forms of texts:
Etching on palm leaf or bamboo
Inscribing the surface using knife
Rubbing dark ashes to male the
cuts stand out
Writing on animal skins
Etching on hammered sheets of
metal
The authorship of most
premodern literature was
unknown.

11. MODERN LITERATURE
Printing presses gave rise to
ephemeral literary arts magazines
which published creative writing
in serial form
Various form of performances:
Dances
Leather-cut puppets
Chants, recitations, commentaries

12. Southeast
Asian LITERATURE

13. Southeast
Asian
Mainland
Literature
(Myanmar,
Thailand,
Cambodia, &
Laos)

14. Early influences in Southeast Asian
literature in Myanmar, Thailand,
Cambodia and Laos can be traced to two
main sources:
INDIGENOUS and INDIC
The epic Indian Tale of the “RAMAYANA”
had the greatest impact.
RAMAYANA = an ancient Indian epic poem which narrates the
struggle of the divine prince Rama to rescue his
wife Sita from the demon King Ravana.

15. Famous Literary Works
Ramayana localized names:
Yama Zattdaw (Myanmar)
Ramakian (Thailand)
Ramakerti (Cambodia)
Phra Lak Phra Lam (Laos)
Jataka Tales = similar to Aesop’s fables
which often ends with
moral lesson

16. Famous Literary Works
Khun Chang Khun Paen
= a lengthy poetic Thai epic
which deals with the story of
rich yet portly Kun Chang and
the handsome but poor Khun
Paen who both fought for the
love of the same woman

17. Famous Literary Works
Modern Short Stories:
Breeding Stock
= explores the persistence of traditional beliefs comparing
with rural development and modernization
Wednesday Nan by Khin Hnin Yu
= a story about how a woman who tries to reflect on the effect
of her attachment to a car while searching for answers to her
dilemma through astrologically auspicious symbols around her

18. VIETNAM

19. Vietnamese have a history of struggling
against nature.
The Chinese culture has a great
influence in this region starting from
literature and extends to language
and education.

20. Famous Literary Works:
The Tale of Lady Kieu = considered to be the masterpiece of
Vietnamese literature
= a lengthy poem about a woman of
talent and beauty who went through a
number of trials
The history of Vietnamese literature is closely linked to the country’s
ongoing political struggles.
Due to French influence, fiction in Vietnam was largely composed of
courtly romances.
Tu Ben the Actor by Nguyen Cong Hoan (critical realist)
= a story about an actor torn between duties to his craft and
his filial concerns for a passing father

21. PHILIPPINES

22. Philippines is named after King Philip II, a
16th century king of Spain.
A former colony of Spain and later, the
United States, the Philippines is
predominantly Roman Catholic.

23. Famous
Literary
Works
EARLY LITERATURE
Poetic tradition: proverbs , riddles
Ladino= a metered style with alternating lines of Tagalog
and Spanish developed by Spanish missionaries
Passion of Christ (pasyon)
Sarswela= dramatic performances in poetic verse adapted
from Spanish Zarswela
Balagtasan= named after the poet Francisco Balagtas
=combination of entertainment, public debate
and display of wit in poetic verse
Philippine literature is usually delineated along the
lines of 3 languages: TAGALOG, SPANISH and ENGLISH

24. Famous
Literary
Works
Noli Me Tangere
(Touch Me Not)
El Filibusterismo
(The Filibuster)
Short Stories:
How My Brother Leon Brought
Home a Wife by Manuel Arguilla
Wedding Dance by Amador
Daguio
Anticolonial
writings by
Jose Rizal

25. M
A
L
A
Y
S
I
A

26. The literature of Malaysia is
infused with folktales, Indian,
Javanese and Muslim (Persian-Arab)
influence.

27. Famous Literary Works:
Hikayat= grand stories that contain elements
of chronicles, romance and epic
heroism
Hikayat Hang Tuah= considered as the
highest point of classical Malay
literature
= an epic tale of heroic deeds,
diplomacy, duels and the ultimate
apotheosis of the protagonist Hang Tuah

28. Famous Literary Works:
Salina by Samad Said = the first
international
novel
= it is a work of
Realism
Abdul Rahm Kajai = the father of
short story

29. INDONESIA

30. Any literature in Indonesia is
national literature.
There are hundreds of languages spoken
throughout the islands.
The area of Indonesia covers over 17,000
islands, 6000 of which are inhabited.
The Indonesian national motto is: bhinneka
tunggal ika– “the many are one” or “unity in
diversity”

31. Famous
Literary
Works
Kekawin = an Indonesian poetry which
borrows most of its subject
matter from Hindu sources
Hindu epics- Ramayana and
Mahabharata- have great influence in
Indonesian literature
Nagarakeratagama = known as an
exceptional example of
kekawin

32. Famous
Literary
Works
“Literature is taken very seriously and authors
can easily end up in jail”.
Pramoedya Ananta Toer = a prominent
writer jailed for his
work
= His work is entitled “This
Earth of Mankind” which
talks about colonial
experience.