The Colors of the Browns: A Thematic Approach in the Teaching of Philippine Literature

Abstract

Literature has always been an instrument that reflects the life and times of people of various ages and civilizations. This is the reason why Literature subjects are incorporated in the Philippine curricula from the secondary to the tertiary level. The aim of this course is to broaden the knowledge of academic patrons as regards the realities that engulf a particular society. The researcher has foreseen the importance of Philippine Literature instruction, especially with the advent of K to 12. Thus, this literary research is the proponents’ dissertation which intends to add to the existing methodologies and approaches in the teaching of Philippine Literature in the contemporary. The researcher has come up with an instructional guide that would serve as alternative reference material for Literature teachers in the K to 12 program. However, only three (3) analyses from the instructional guide were included in this journal. This instructional guide takes a detour from the conventional instruction of Literature by focusing on the thematic approach rather than the biographical, historical and regional approach. Furthermore, the study is a breakthrough in Philippine Literature instruction since it would be the first non-empirical study to venture into the thematic facilitation of Philippine letters for grades 11 and 12. The instructional guide explores the literature written by Filipino authors in the past and present in accordance with theme, conflict, and symbol to determine their worth and merits through analytical inquiry. Each literary selection is analyzed using the text as the primary evidence. The thematic evaluation reveals the four main characteristics of the Filipinos: Filipinos are loving and passionate; they are strong and resilient; they are a product of hybridity; they have greatly suffered, but their positivity toward life is always put in the obvious.