A central theme in accounts of Philippine literary history is that our national body of work evolved in direct relation to our historical experiences. It is now a foundational concept to view the emergence of Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere not just as a creative spark, but as a direct reaction to colonial oppression during the Spanish occupation.
This perspective suggests that literature is deeply embedded in history. While some argue that literature is merely a product of a writer’s individual creativity, viewing it through a historical lens enlarges our understanding. It shows how the “symbolic representation of human experience” can actually change how we live, interpret, and experience our reality.
Literature and the “Imagined Community”
In his landmark work Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism, Benedict Anderson uses the realism of the Noli as a paradigmatic example of how narrative creates a nation. Anderson proposes that a nation is an imagined political community.
The novel, as a form made possible by “print capitalism,” allows a cast of characters to share a common past, present, and future. Because Rizal addressed a Filipino public still under Spanish rule, readers experienced the story’s events as “real time” synchronicity. This shared movement through time allowed readers to imagine themselves as a united community of “Filipinos” with a common historical sentiment.
Understanding Genre as a Linguistic Contract
To understand Philippine literature, we must be critical of genres. While we often use genre as a simple label (like “short story” or “poetry”), it is actually a specific organization of language that shapes meaning.
Consider the phrase “not guilty.” In casual conversation, it is ordinary speech. However, when written as NOT GUILTY in a large font, the linguistic conventions of print journalism cue us to see it as an important news headline. Similarly, a phrase like “Once there was a family” cues us to expect a fairy tale. In a Filipino context, the line “ang mamatay nang dahil sa yo” is deeply meaningful because we recognize it as the final line of our national anthem; we are addressed as a community with a shared past.
Thus, a genre is a “linguistic contract” between an aesthetic and its public. Genres emerge, mutate, or die based on historical specificity, making them a manifestation of a specific moment’s ideology.
The Evolution of Philippine Genres: Spanish and American Periods
The colonial periods introduced several foreign genres that Filipinos appropriated and reshaped as a response to colonial presence.
- Religious and Stage Narratives: Borrowed forms included the pasyon (Christian narrative poem), the sinakulo (passion play), and the komedya (drama derived from Spanish ballads).
- The Rise of Nationalism: In the late 19th century, literature became a tool for nationalist consciousness. Pedro Paterno’s Ninay (the first Filipino novel) and the essays of Marcelo H. del Pilar became dominant forms.
- The Rizal Legacy: Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo remain the essential starting points for any consideration of Philippine nationalism.
From Realism to Fantasy
Since the time of Rizal, Realism has been the dominant mode in Philippine fiction, valued for its ability to represent social realities. However, the last fifteen years have seen a surge in alternative modes such as science fiction, fabulation, magic realism, and fantasy.
While writers like Nick Joaquin and Gilda Cordero-Fernando pioneered early fantasy elements, the roots of these stories go back to our oral lore.
Pre-colonial Literature and Oral Lore
Before written “literature” intended for a reading public, the Philippines had a rich tradition of oral lore, including:
- Epics, Myths, and Legends: These explain realities and native knowledge.
- Folktales: The most fictive category, which includes fables, trickster tales, and religious tales.
According to Damiana Eugenio, a leading scholar in Philippine folk literature, these stories belong to the collective imaginary of the community rather than a single author.
The Distinction Between Fairy Tale and Modern Fantasy
It is important to distinguish between the traditional fairy tale and modern fantasy:
- Setting: Fairy tales are set in “mythic time,” detached from history. Modern fantasy typically begins and ends in the “here and now” of the reader.
- Plot Structure: Fantastic plots usually start in the real world. A protagonist (often a child) encounters a supernatural element that transports them to a parallel world, leading to a transformation when they return to reality.
- Character Complexity: Characters in fantasy are often ambiguous and complex, whereas fairy tale characters tend to be archetypes of “good” or “evil.”
- Meaning: Fairy tales often function on an allegorical or symbolic level to provide a moral (e.g., Snow White representing the triumph of innocence). Fantasy, while it may borrow motifs from myths and legends, is a modern work written by an author to explore the boundaries between reality and the supernatural.
