Folklore is the art of the oppressed classes according to population. Such oppressed classes include the workers and peasants of a population. For the West folklore can be defined as a culture that is a peasant in nature and of one people that is of mostly the researchers’ people. There is always a possibility of scientifically studying the national cultures, but folklore is unacceptable. In a classless society, folklore should disappear and often loses its features as a product of lower strata. In a socialist society, folklore lacks meaning since there are neither upper nor lower strata. Philippine folks have characteristics of myths. These mentioned folks enter into the framework and constitution of the Philippines culture and the world view point. This essay aims at responding to several questions with regards to the folklore documents and research activities.
How can we understand the way of life and belief systems of the ethnolinguistic groups of the Philippines through their literatures?
Philippines have several linguistic groups and according to their literature, and their ways of life and belief systems are quite different depending with the linguistic group applied. There lacks a major similarity among the ethno linguistic groups of Philippines. The majority of the Philippine group consists of the ethnolinguistic groups with Austronesia languages. Religious beliefs differ amongst the people of Philippines and their literature puts it clear that not only one religion is practiced. The ethnic groups in Philippine practice Christianity whereas others practice Islam. Lowland coastal ethnic groups like the Ilocano and Tagalog are mentioned to be Christian converts. The indigenous groups that practice Islam are found in Mindanao and are often called Moros. The Negrito population of Philippines is mentioned to have a lifestyle that is free from Islamic and western influences as opposed to the other populations. The T’boli of Philippines do distinguish themselves from the rest of the linguistic groups according to their literature. The T’boli differs in their colorful clothes with ornaments that are specific to them. Such ornaments are mentioned to be earrings, bracelets, and rings. The T’ boli also differ in their religious beliefs since they were never attracted to neither Christianity nor Islam thus their religious beliefs also differ. These T’boli people thus only believe in spirits.
The languages spoken in Philippine differ so much just as their beliefs and lifestyles. The beliefs regarding rites of passage differ from one ethnolinguistic group to the other. An example of the Hiligaynon has a different belief concerning the rites of passage as compared to the Bicolano. The Hiligaynon consults with their siblings and relatives in cases of marriage before consulting the parents for any support. The boy’s parents then later visit the girl’s home and make it public to keep off other suitors. Such beliefs and practices are unlike the other linguistic groups like Bicolano, who propose for marriage before consulting the parents. There is a similar practice in the lifestyle of the Philippines whereby those who violate the norms in the society are punished depending with the linguistic group rules. Living conditions, building of houses, family structures, clothing styles, food habits, education, cultural heritage and social problems vary among the Philippines across linguistic groups.
How does the dynamics between orality and literacy come into play in these Filipino literary texts?
The literature of the Philippines and further research gives information that the development of language among the Philippines was an intrinsic feature of human evolution. Literacy is mostly discussed in contrast to orality and literacy. There is a clear distinction between magical/logical, primitive/civilized and oral/literature thought processes and the dynamics in the evolutionary continuum of the Philippines interrelate. In the Filipino literary texts, an alternative to the evolutionary view of the Philippines is identified with its consequences ( Magliocco et al., 87). The Philippines are said to several linguistic groups with different emergency. The evolution of the ethnolinguistic groups had processes and took time especially during their settlement and adaptation to the environment. After the settlement, there came other linguistic groups that were as a result of intermarriages especially with the colonialists. The morality and knowledge about these dynamics especially the changes differ in that the evolution until settlement took a long period with changes occurring from time to time. The differences in classes too revolutionized and presently the segregate gaps are narrowed. The contextual view of the dynamics between orality and literacy emphasizes a continual interaction. The Philippines were too involved in interactions during the evolution leading to other ethnolinguistic groups. Instead of a sharp division between oral and literate models, the societies involved should emphasize on the togetherness thus lowering down the dynamics.
How have traditional forms been revitalized and transformed by writers to articulate contemporary concerns such as poverty, land reform, women's issues, and human rights?
Gender dimensions of natural resource management and exploitation explore negotiations between theories, practice, and policies. Gender was before understood as a negotiated, political and contested element in relationships that were social (Vaswani et al. 67). Presently, writers have brought relevant transformation, and gender is involved amidst the efforts to mainstream the development and management of natural resource. The issues of gender especially women in the concerns of land reforms are reasonable, and women also involve themselves in managing the environment. Issues of women in the contemporary world has been improved by writers especially those that talk about gender disparities. With writing, gender issues have been presented to the public and everyone is aware of the importance of gender equality. Women have come to be appreciated, get to study and even hold top management positions. Poverty has become a critical issue especially in the third world countries and today there are aids that help solve the issue of poverty. Developmental programs that have gained insight with the present writings have also come up to fight poverty. Human rights were not taken seriously before and with several knowledgeable writings, the contours touching on human rights are getting solutions. Radical knowledge regarding human rights distributes worldwide and today even the least knowledgeable people are aware of their rights.
Works Cited
Vaswani, Jashan P. I Am a Sindhi: The Glorious Sindhi Heritage, the Culture & Folklore of Sind. New Delhi: Sterling Paperbacks, 2008. Print.
Magliocco, Sabina. Witching Culture: Folklore and Neo-Paganism in America. Philadelphia, Pa: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2004. Internet resource.
