It is not a secret that many Filipinos are unfamiliar with much of the country's literary heritage, especially those that were written long before the Spaniards arrived in our country. This is due to the fact that the stories of ancient time were not written, but rather passed on from generation to generation through word of mouth. Only during 1521 did the early Filipinos became acquainted with literature due to the influence of the Spaniards on us. But the literature that the Filipinos became acquainted with are not Philippine-made, rather, they were works of Spanish authors.
So successful were the efforts of colonists to blot out the memory of the country's largely oral past that present-day Filipino writers, artists and journalists are trying to correct this inequity by recognizing the country's wealth of ethnic traditions and disseminating them in schools through mass media.
The rise of nationalistic pride in the 1960s and 1970s also helped bring about this change of attitude among a new breed of Filipinos concerned about the "Filipino identity."
A faithful reproduction of man's manifold experiences blended into ones harmonious expression that deals with ideas, emotion of man coached in beautiful language. It expresses the feelings of people to society, to the government, to his surroundings, to his fellowmen, and to his divine creator. Written works which deals with themes of permanent and universal interest characterized by creativeness and grace of expression.
