Tagalog literature; a historico-critical study.

AMERICAN ERA: MINSTRELS 13T
galado's Ang Pinagbangunan (The Foundation) though belong,
ing to epic poetry may also be classified under nature poems.
The description of Balintawak is a just rendering of that famous historical place. The board of judges in acknowledgement
its merit gave the author the prize. Gatmaitan is now becoming a nature poet. Jose Corazon de Jesus wrote Ang Bato (The
Stone), Ang Saga (The Jem) and other such topics. But above
all of them, stands Lope K. Santos, with his Ang Bundok (The Mountain), the greatest single piece of poetry of the
author. Besides its excellent description, as if a real bluishgreenish huge land-scape is placed before us, the poem contains
an endless ennumeration of the benefits derived by mankind
from the mountain. The author manifests erudition and a good
handy knowledge not only of nature itself but also of books: history, literature, geography and the Bible. We may reasonably
prophesy that there will come a time when Ang Bundok will be
placed side by side with To a Skylark, To a Waterfowl, Forest
Hymn, and Early Spring.

The Modern Minstrels. Another class of poets which we
have today is what we shall call, for lack of better name, the
modern minstrels, or in common parlance the balagtaseros or
declaimers. They have appeared just very recently. Balagtasan
which means a literary poetical joust or debate, very much simi.
lar to the duplos of the preceding epochs, but much more extended and elaborated, is an occasion for these poets to show
up. They appear on the stage usually dressed in barong Tagalog (Tagalog camisa usually made of Pifia, sinamay, or hagonoy)
in imitation of the immortal Bigaa bard, and recite and sing
their verses, accompanied by gestures of the hands, which is
described by some as the movements of the hands and limbs of
a drum major, while by others as Demosthenian gestures. The
subject usually pertains to pressing national problems, or local
customs. For example some of the topics debated were: 1. Re:
solved: "That the Democrata Administration of the City of
Manila is a failure." 2. "The Belo Act is an injustice to the
Filipino people." 3. "Mother's love is sweeter and more sublime than the love of a wife." 4. "The women of yesterday
are more virtuous than the women of today." This poets:: e n*T?
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