Literature is a term used to describe written or spoken material. Broadly speaking, "literature" is used to describe anything from creative writing to more technical or scientific works, but the term is most commonly used to refer to works of the creative imagination, including works of poetry, drama, fiction, and nonfiction.
Philippine literature had evolved much before colonization. It is full of legends and tales of colonial legacy. Mexican and Spanish dominance over the land and the people, over varying periods of time, witnessed the incorporation of English, Spanish, Filipino and native languages, to express ideology and opinion. Literature in the Philippines developed much later than in most other countries. Evidence reveals the use of a script called Baybayin that flourished in 1521. Baybayin was used to write about legends, in Luzon, during Spaniard domination

PROSE

is a form of language which applies ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speechrather than rhythmic structure (as in traditional poetry). While there are critical debates on the construction of prose, its simplicity and loosely defined structure has led to its adoption for the majority of spoken dialogue, factual discourse as well as topical and fictional writing. It is commonly used, for example, in literature, newspapers, magazines, encyclopedias, broadcasting, film, history, philosophy,law and many other forms of communication.

EXAMPLE OF PROSE

Prose comes from the Latin "prosa" which means "straightforward." Prose can be written or spoken and has no formal metrical structure. It is basically ordinary language - the way people speak.

Prose in Nonfiction

Here are examples of prose found in nonfiction sources, such as newspapers, magazines, history books and encyclopedias:

Some of the exports of Brazil are soybeans, sugar, orange juice and iron ore.

The cheetah is the fastest land animal.
Tomorrow we have a sixty percent chance of snow with a high temperature around 34 degrees.
Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan were married in 1988.
The population of Rome was 600,000 in 1900 and 3,500,000 in 1990.
The planets of our solar system are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
A family trust is formed in order to pass assets to children and other heirs.

Prose in Novels

Here are examples of prose that appear in novels:

Call me Ishmael. - Moby Dick by Herman Melville
Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. 1984 - George Orwell
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness. A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show. David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
You better not never tell nobody but God. The Color Purple - Alice Walker

Prose in Plays

Here are examples of prose that appears in plays:

All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players. "As You Like It" - Shakespeare
You can be young without money, but you can't be old without it. - "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" - Tennessee Williams
My love is like a stone tied round my neck; it's dragging me down to the bottom; but I love my stone. I can't live without it. - "The Cherry Orchard" - Anton Chekhov
In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. - "The Hobbit" - J. R. R. Tolkien
One can always be kind to people about whom one cares nothing. - "The Picture of Dorian Gray" - Oscar Wilde

Prose in Speeches

Here are examples of prose in speeches:

As for the marriage laws, they are due for a sweeping reform, and an excellent beginning would be to wipe the existing ones off the books. - Shirley Chisholm
You can see that there is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow (of death) again and again before we reach the mountain tops of our desires. - Nelson Mandela
The poor are very great people. They can teach us so many beautiful things. - Mother Teresa
I say to the House as I said to ministers who have joined this government, I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. - Sir Winston Churchill
The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. - John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Prose in Movies

Here are examples of prose from movies:

My mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get. -Forrest Gump
There are many things my father taught me here in this room. He taught me, 'keep your friends close, but your enemies closer'. - The Godfather: Part II
Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope. - Star Wars: Episode IV
If the good Lord had intended us to walk, he wouldn't have invented roller skates. - Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971)
You are a TOY! You aren't the real Buzz Lightyear. You're - you're an action figure. You are a child's plaything. - Toy Story
You know what the difference is between you and me? I make this look GOOD. - Men in Black
He's a man from outer space and we're taking him to his spaceship. - E.T.

Prose in Comedy

Here are examples of prose in comedy:

Never have more children than you have car windows. - Erma Bombeck
Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons. - Woody Allen
Chaos in the midst of chaos isn't funny, but chaos in the midst of order is. - Steve Martin
You see much more of your children once they leave home. - Lucille Ball
I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts. - Will Rogers
A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way. - Mark Twain

Prose examples, as you can see, are found in all different types of literature and entertainment.

PHILIPPINE LITERATURE Lit 111

Friday, October 4, 2013

I Introduction

II Students Output

III Own Composition

IV Contemporary Filipino Author

V Philippine Literature (Definition of Terms and Examples)