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21 ST CENTURY LITERATURE FROM THE PHILIPPINES AND THE WORLD

The elements of a story are the basic parts that make up a narrative.

ELEMENTS OF THE STORY 6. PLOT - The order of the important events in the
1. CHARACTERS - The people, things, or animals that story based on how the author arranges them.
take roles in the story or other literary work.
2. SETTING - The time and place of the story happened. ELEMENTS OF THE PLOT
3. CONFLICT - The struggle of the character against 1. Exposition/ Introduction – the beginning of the
other characters story where the characters and the setting is
a. Character vs. Character revealed.
b. Character vs. Nature 2. Rising Action – the part where the struggle or
c. Character vs. Himself conflict of the main character is being presented,
d. Character vs. Society this part becomes exciting to the audience.
4. THEME - Tells what the story is all about; it is the 3. Climax – the highest point of interest and the
central idea or belief in the story turning point of the story, you tend to see if how the
5. POINT OF VIEW – angle from which the story is told. main character faces the great conflict or worst
a. First Person – uses pronouns I, me, we situation.
b. Third Person Omniscient – having free access 4. Falling Action – the events and complications
to the thoughts and feelings of the different resolve themselves, this brings the story near the
character. end, happens after the climax.
c. Third Person Limited – having access to the 5. Resolution/ Denouement – the outcome or the
thoughts and feelings of only one or two of the untangling of the events in the story, called the
characters. ending where the conflict is being given a solution.

WHAT ARE LITERARY DEVICES?

It is a technique a writer uses to produce a special effect in their writing. An identifiable rule of thumb, convention, or structure
that is employed in literature and storytelling.

Literary devices are tools writers use to express their ideas with artistic depth. These devices can clarify and emphasize
concepts, create resonance within a narrative, and invite readers to dig a little deeper into the story’s themes.
https://blog.reedsy.com/literary-devices/
Why should I understand literary devices?
✓ It improves one’s writing.
✓ It helps students to comprehend the work of others.

Literary devices take writing beyond its literal meaning. They help guide the reader in how to read the piece.
Literary devices are ways of taking writing beyond its straightforward, literal meaning. In that sense, they are techniques for
helping guide the reader in how to read the piece.
Central to all literary devices is a quality of connection: by establishing or examining relationships between things, literary
devices encourage the reader to perceive and interpret the world in new ways.
One common form of connection in literary devices is comparison. Metaphors and similes are the most obvious examples of
comparison. A metaphor is a direct comparison of two things—“the tree is a giant,” for example. A simile is an indirect
comparison—“the tree is like a giant.” In both instances, the tree is compared to—and thus connected with—something (a giant)
beyond what it literally is (a tree).
Other literary devices forge connections in different ways. For example, imagery, vivid description, connects writing richly to the
worlds of the senses. Alliteration uses the sound of words itself to forge new literary connections (“alligators and apples”).
By enabling new connections that go beyond straightforward details and meanings, literary devices give literature its power.
THE USE OF FIGURATIVE LANGUAGES
1. SIMILE – a stated comparison between two unlike things or person that have something in common. This uses as or
like to show comparison.
Ex. She is like as angel. Her smile is as sweet as candy.

2. METAPHOR – an implied comparison between two persons or things that are unlike in most respects. The word like or
as are left out.
Ex. The Lord is my Shepherd.

3. PERSONIFICATION - giving human quality to inanimate objects or abstract things.

Ex. The leaves seemed to dance freely with the wind.

4. HYPERBOLE - an exaggerated or overstatement

Ex. Thanks a million.
 5. IRONY - the use of a word to signify the opposite of its literal meaning. There are three types of irony: (a) irony of
situation – when the result differs from that is expected; (b) verbal irony – which is veiled sarcasm; and (c) dramatic
irony – the author’s intended meaning differs from the character’s expectations.
Ex. You’re so beautiful; you look like a Christmas tree!

6. IMAGERY - Imagery can be both literal and figurative, and it relies on the interplay of language and sensation to
create a sharper image in your brain.
Types of Imagery:
a. Sight imagery: The tree spread its gigantic, sun-flecked shoulders
b. Sound imagery: The forest was hushed, resounding with echoes of the tree’s stoic silence
c. Touch imagery: The tree felt smooth as sandstone
d. Taste imagery: The tree’s leaves tasted bitter, like unroasted coffee beans
e. Smell imagery: As we approached the tree, the air around it smelled crisp and precise.
f. Organic imagery: The tree felt its xylem collapse at the news. (This is also an example of personification, since trees
can’t “feel” the way people feel.)
g. Kinesthetic imagery: The tree cooled down as its own leaves rushed against its bark.

7. OXYMORON – Putting together in one statement two contradictory terms.

Ex. Romeo describes love using several oxymorons, such as “cold fire,” “feather of lead” and “sick health,” to suggest
its contradictory nature.

8. PARADOX – reveals something true which at first seems contradictory.

Ex. You can save money by spending it.

9. FORESHADOWING – Where future events in a story, or perhaps the outcome, are suggested by the author before they
happen. Foreshadowing can take many forms and be accomplished in many ways, with varying degrees of subtlety.
However, if the outcome is deliberately and explicitly revealed early in a story (such as by the use of a narrator or
flashback structure), such information does not constitute foreshadowing. Willy’s concern for his car foreshadows his
eventual means of suicide.

10. ONOMATOPOEIA – is a word that imitates the sound it represents.

Ex. Crunch zap tick-tock whoosh

11. ALLITERATION – It refers to the same consonant sounds in words coming together. For example:
Ex. Better butter always makes the batter better.

12. ANAPHORA – In writing or speech, it is the deliberate repetition of the first part of the sentence in order to achieve an
artistic effect.
Ex. “Every day, every night, in every way, I am getting better and better.”

13. ASSONANCE – This figure of speech is similar to alliteration because it also involves repetition of sounds. But this time
it’s vowel sounds that are being repeated. Assonance creates internal rhyming within phrases or sentences by repeat
vowel sounds that are the same
Ex. “On a proud round cloud in white high nigh

14. REPETITION – Where a specific word, phrase, or structure is repeated several times, to emphasize a particular idea.
Ex. The work here is rush, rush, rush.

15. SYMBOLISM – The use of specific objects or images to represent abstract ideas. This term is commonly misused,
describing any and all representational relationships, which in fact are more often metaphorical than symbolic.
Ex. A symbol must be something tangible or visible, while the idea it symbolizes must be something abstract or
universal.

16. MOOD – The atmosphere or emotional condition created by the piece, within the setting.
Ex. The mood of Macbeth is dark, murky and mysterious, creating a sense of fear and uncertainty.

17. TONE – The apparent emotional state of the speaker/narrator/narrative voice, as conveyed through the language of the
piece.
Ex. The poem has a bitter and sardonic tone, revealing the speaker’s anger and resentment. The tone of Gulliver’s
narration is unusually matter-of-fact, as he seems to regard these bizarre and absurd occurrences as ordinary or
commonplace.

18. APOSTROPHE – In literature, apostrophe is a figure of speech sometimes represented by an exclamation, such as
“Oh.” A writer or speaker, using apostrophe, speaks directly to someone who is not present or is dead, or speaks to an
inanimate object.
Ex. “Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand?
 21 S T CENTURY LITERATURE FROM THE PHILIPPINES AND THE WORLD
ACTIVITY WORKSHEET

OBJECTIVES:
1. Read the literature and identify the elements of the story; and
2. Answer the following questions about the literary piece read.

ACTIVITY:
Instructions: Do the activity by pair (2s) or by triad (3s). Answer in a whole sheet of paper what are
asked. No need to copy the questions, answer only.

A. Read the text “Why the Sea is Salty?”.

B. Answer the Questions briefly.
1. Who are the main characters in the story?
2. What do we learn about Ang-ngalo's personality based on his actions?
3. Where does the story take place?
4. What problems do the villagers face at the beginning of the story?
5. How does Ang-ngalo help resolve their problem?
6. What is the main conflict in the story? Why do you think so?
7. Who is telling the story? Ho can you say so?
8. How does the narrator’s tone affect how you feel about Ang-ngalo and the villagers?
9. What might the mountain of salt symbolize? How about the ants?
10. List three (3) imagery presented in the story. State what kind of imagery it is.
11. How ironic does the description of the ants biting Ang-ngalo help you understand his fear?
12. What lessons or morals can we learn from the story? Explain your answer

WHY THE SEA IS SALTY?

Long ago, the sea was not salty. People got their salt from the mountain of salt across the sea. One day, the
people in the village ran out of salt. But they could not set out to sea because the waves were high and the wind
was strong. Their small boats would not withstand the strong wind. Needing salt very badly, the villagers
remembered Ang-ngalo.

Ang-ngalo was a huge giant who lived in a mountain close to the village. When Ang-ngalo went fishing, the
water was only up to his knees. When he walked around the mountains, the highest mountain stood no higher
than his ankles.

“Why don’t we ask the giant Ang-ngalo to stretch his legs across the sea? Then we don’t have to ride our small
boats!” exclaimed an old man.

“Yes, indeed,” agreed the others. “Let’s go and ask Ang-ngalo to help us.”

So the people went to see the giant. They begged him, “Ang-ngalo, we are running out of salt. The mountain of
salt is across the sea but we could not use our small boats because of the strong winds. Please allow us to use
your legs as bridge to cross the sea.”

Ang-ngalo was a kind giant. He was willing to help the people. So he went to the other side of the sea and sat
by its shore. He extended his legs which reached the island where the people waited. The men and women with
their empty sacks and pails climbed on his legs and walked toward the mountain of salt. “Please be careful not
to move your leg while we are crossing,” they reminded Ang-ngalo.

Unknown to Ang-ngalo, his heel landed on a hill of red ants. Before long, the ants were crawling all over his
legs. Ang-ngalo was afraid of ants. He trembled with fear at the sight of the ants. He closed his eyes and waited
until the last villager reached the other side of the shore. Then he quickly bent his knee and washed the red ants
with seawater. Ang-ngalo was relieved.

Soon the villagers came back with their sacks and pails full of salt. “Put back your leg now, Ang-ngalo. We are
ready to go home,” the men shouted.

But Ang-ngalo was overcome with his fear of the bites of red ants, so, he refused to stretch his leg.
“Please, Ang-ngalo,” pleaded the women. “We need salt to dry fish and meat. Without salt all our food will get
spoiled.”

Ang-ngalo pitied the men and women. Because of his kindness, he stretched again his leg across the sea.
“Hurry!” he told the men. “The red ants might crawl on my leg again.”

“Yes,” answered the villagers. But they laughed and talked as they walked slowly on the giant’s leg.

“Hurry! Hurry! The ants are crawling on my leg now,” he trembled with fear.

“Such a big man who’s afraid of ants,” laughed the men. They walked slowly as before.

“Hurry! Hurry!” shouted Ang-ngalo again. “The ants are biting me now!” But the villagers did not listen to him.
They walked slowly and told Ang-ngalo not to mind the ants.

Ang-ngalo’s leg was full of ants now. They started biting him and his leg was burning with itchiness. At last the
giant could not help lifting his leg. He dipped his itchy leg in the water to get rid of the biting ants.

The men were caught off guard. They fell into the sea with their bags and pails of salt. Ang-ngalo saved the life
of each villager. But the salt the villagers dropped all dissolved in the water, which is why, to this day, the sea is
salty.

Make sure to pass all the activity today, January 24, 2025 before your class in
my period ends. Late papers shall be deducted 2 points per hour late.

Presidents please collect the activities of your classmates and pass them in my
cubicle. Thanks so much.