21st Century Literature by Isagani Cruz

The proposed curriculum for Senior High School (SHS) contains two literature subjects 21st Century
Literatures of the World and 21st Century Literatures from the (Philippine) Regions. (It has been
suggested that the latter be changed to â Contemporary Philippine Literature and the Arts from the
Regions.)

These are derived from the two literature subjects in the old General Education Curriculum (GEC),
namely, Literatures of the World and Literatures of the Philippines. In the new GEC, these two literature
subjects are no longer included, because the new core subjects are all interdisciplinary rather than
disciplinal.

The two subjects in SHS are disciplinal. They are meant to ensure that all Filipino high school graduates
have a good understanding of what is happening today in the field of literature, and by extension, in the
arts.

Why 21st century only? Simply because SHS students were all born in or just before the 21st century.
This century is their century. For them, the 20th century is what the 19th century is to us teachers.

There is also another reason. Just as the British writer Virginia Woolf said of the turn of the 20th
century, namely, that on or about December 1910 human character changed, something major
happened to literature on or about December 2000.

C21: Centre for Research in Twenty-first Century Writings, based in the University of Brighton, puts it
succinctly: The first decade of the new millennium witnessed a range of exciting developments in
contemporary writings in English, from innovations in recognized forms such as the novel, poem, play
and short story to developments in digital writings, creative writings and genres. Alongside these
developments, the publishing industry also changed, with technological advances giving rise to the dawn
of the eBook and corporate sponsorship igniting debates about the usefulness of literary prizes and
festivals.

Just think of the most recent literary texts done in the Philippines. We have textula, a poetry genre
mastered by Frank Rivera: entire poems are written and read on mobile phones. Graphic novels are
becoming as respectable as prose novels among literary critics. Poems meant to be recited in front of
large audiences have become more fashionable than poems meant to be read silently by a single reader
(fulfilling one of Cirilo Bautista’s prophecies about the future of poetry, by the way).

Elsewhere in the world, writers are doing things they did not do much until recently. Think of prose
novels being serialized on blogs, with readers suggesting to authors (and authors obediently accepting)
that the plot or the characters should be changed. Think of hypertextual poems, where readers move
from one website to another because of embedded links in the words, sometimes not returning to the
original pages at all. Think of enhanced eBooks, where readers are treated to audiovisual clips that not
only support the narrative in a novel, but actually are crucial to the development of plot and character.
Think of flash fiction, which has been brought to an extreme with six-word and even one-word short
stories.

Of course, none of these forms of literature were born only in the 21st century. Hypertext, for example,
has been around for at least two decades.

Six-word short stories have been around for a long time. The best-known is Ernest Hemingway™s six-
word story: For sale: baby shoes, never worn. Urban legend (which may actually be true) says
Hemingway called it his best work.

Pre-21st century writers like Margaret Atwood have written such stories. Atwood, for example, wrote
this: Longed for him. Got him. Shit.

Neil Gaiman (perhaps the best example of a 20th century writer who has successfully transformed
himself into a 21st century writer) wrote this: I’m dead. I’ve missed you. Kiss?

There is a growing body of literary criticism on 21st century literature. There is, for example, an entire
journal devoted to it, œC21 Literature: Journal of 21st Century Writing.

There have been several professional conferences on the topic, such as E-reading between the lines:
21st century literature, digital platforms and literacies last July in Brighton. The paper titles reveal some
of the main trends in the emergent field: Digital Theory on Literature Reading Lists, The Digitisation of
Reader Response, Star Texts: The Next Generation, The Book App, Digital Literatures: Digital
Democracies [or] Digital Threats? The conference raised a practical question: Should readers be given
the choice of both printed and electronic formats “ or is the (printed) book set to become the vinyl of
the twenty-first century?

In our country, graphic novels such as Ferdinand Benedict G. Tan and Jonathan A. Baldisimo’s œTrese 5:
Midnight Tribunal and Carlo Vergara’s Zsazsa Zaturnnah sa Kalakhang Maynila 1 are challenging the
traditional definition of fiction. Even more in-your-face is Alan Navarra’s Ang Panlimang Alas ay
Nakabaon sa Iyong Dibdib, a literary text that defies classification into any of the traditional categories
of poetry, fiction, and drama. (Even if we added the genre-come-lately Creative Nonfiction, Navarra’s
work still does not quite fit in.)

Since curricular reform happens only every decade, the SHS curriculum will still be in place by the year
2022. By that year, the 20th century will no longer be in the memory of our students. We pre-digital
teachers of the two literature subjects must ensure that their frame of reference will be theirs and not
ours.
Questions:

1. How can literature be applied in real life? Why is it essential to include in theory and practice?

Literature is usually written and put into words, wherein it contains cultures, historical events
and has a deep meaning. In Literature, we can see and understand the message of the literature
through its message. It is essential to include in theory and practice because I personally think
that with the help of theory and practice, we can fully understand the real message of the
literature. Especially in every culture, if we allow ourselves to embrace our own literature to
further know the answer to all questions on the back of our minds. I also think that theory and
practice should always go together; we cannot understand any literature without one of it.

2. How does 21st Century Literature different from traditional literature in terms of:

 Milieu
Modern literature, also known as 21st-century literature, is now inventive and must combine
conventional, online, and hybrid learning options, especially now that we are amid a pandemic.
It focuses on more recent works of literature. In addition, it covers a wide range of digital
resources and methods for accessing, evaluating, and synthesizing knowledge.
 Genre
Traditional literature, in my opinion, primarily deals with myths, fantasies, fables, epics, folklore,
folktales, and Biblical stories (parables). Furthermore, I have seen that contemporary literature
in the twenty-first century emphasizes fiction, nonfiction, romance, passion, human connection,
etc.
 context/theme
I noticed that most themes in traditional literature were myths, fantasies, fables, parables, epics,
and folktales are more likely to have originated in oral tradition: cultural values, good against
evil, stupidity, and a hero journey. Meanwhile, love, stereotyping, intertextuality, the culture of
technology, and a liberal viewpoint today and culture are prevalent topics in 21st-century
literature.
 subject
Based on my responses to the preceding questions, the subject of the twenty-first century is
most likely to deal with reality or recent events. Hence, I infer that the issue is mainly based on
responses to and discussions of contemporary forms of expressive culture, lifestyle, and real-life
occurrences.

3. What is the role of the digital age in 21 st Century Literature? Why?

Since the 21st century is a phase wherein most technologies were invented, it will be primarily
used through the help of any modern technology. Through this, we can review essential data,
reliable sources, images, and videos that can also encourage others about the literature we
have.
4. As a generation Z reader, what motivates you to read? Why? Does the ‘digital age’ affect your
choices of literature? Why or why not?

As a gen Z reader, the things that I am interested in are the ones that motivated me to read. I
am not a fan of reading books, reading in general; I usually go with audiobooks or videos. I think
that the "digital age" has left a massive impact on my literature choices because of how modern
this generation is, wherein everything can be easily found on the internet. I think that not only
to me but also to the other gen Zs out there can relate to this.

5. Traditional literature mostly focuses on oral or written texts. Do you think ‘graphic novels’,
comics, or manga must be included in 21 st Century Literature? Why or why not?

As we all know, the 21st Century was all about technologies; that is why I think that graphic
novels, comics, or even manga should be included in 21st Century Literature. These were made
to show people messages and promote their own culture; using those modern technologies that
we all know today; they have made a different kind of literature unique from the old one.
However, we should not forget where we started and how our literature is made.

6. What standards must be set to ensure balance between learning traditional and 21 st century
Literature? Why?
The standards that must be set to ensure balance between learning traditional and 21 st Century
Literature are
7. Bonus Questions:
 Do you believe Wattpadd Stories must be included in the 21 st Century Literature? Why or not?
 What other ‘genre’ or ‘works’ must be included in 21 st Century Literature? Cite examples.