Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

I. Objectives

At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to:

1.) Identify representative texts and authors from Asia

II. Subject matter

Topic: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

Reference: 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World (EN12Lit-IIa-22)

Materials: White Board

III. Procedure

 Introduction
Good day class! Today, we will be going to discuss about the representative texts and authors
from Asia.

 Review of the past lesson

Before we start our new lesson let us have a short recap. Last quarter, we have learned about the
Philippine literature.

 Motivation
Before we proceed in our lesson, kindly please answer this question:

What is the largest continent in the world?

 Lesson proper
Living the Moment

Advancement in Technology has always been the hallmark of the 21st century. It has made a big
impact on people especially on lifestyle. One of the many things technologies has benefited us is through
having information and communication easier and convenient. In our present generation, people
especially the youth, is so obsessed in using gadgets.
That is why, it is undeniable to say, that the use of gadgets in this modern age has become a way
of life. It is needed in everyday lifestyle and helps us a lot in making things easier and faster. As we
become addicted in this device, we sometimes forget to live in the moment and just focus on things that
are virtual.

The Middle East is the name given to the area of land between the Red Sea and the Gulf, from
Israel in the west to Iran in the east. Along with western Asia, much of this land is inhospitable, with dry
desert in the Arabian Peninsula, and mountains in Iran and Iraq. Turkey is dominated by a high plateau,
but has plenty of fertile farmland. There are snow-capped mountains in north Lebanon and Israel, which
drop down to fertile plains along the coasts.
Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd
st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

In the past, this area of land became the sprawling area of some of the greatest ancient
civilizations in the world today, namely the Mesopotamian civilization which is known for its rich and
advance way of life.
Today, the Middle East has become the world's most militarized region and most arms sales
head there. Suppressed people that see the world from a different perspective.

Lesson
REPRESENTATIVE TEXTS AND AUTHORS
1 FROM ASIA

Arabic Literature

Arabic literature refers to the body of written works produced in the Arabic language. The
tradition of Arabic literature stretches back some 16 centuries to unrecorded beginnings in the Arabian
Peninsula. The nature of “the modern” in the context of Arabic literary history involves two
processes:
first, renewed contacts with the Western world, something that was considerably accelerated by
European imperial incursions during the 19th century, and, second, a renewed interest in the classical
heritage of the Arabic language and Islam.

The Qurʾān

It is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be

a revelation from God (Allah)The revelation of the Qurʾān to the Prophet Muhammad, beginning at some
point early in the 7th century AD, is the foundational event in Islam. Its message is conveyed in a
language of great beauty, something that is regarded as an inimitable miracle. Its contents are the primary
basis for the formulation of Islamic law and the designation of conduct by Muslims, both as individuals
and as a community. The revelation of this sacred book also needs to be viewed as the event that marks
the initial stages in the recording and study of the Arabic literary tradition.

21st Century Arabic Literature

At the turn of the 21st century, the Arab creative writer operated at a local level within a social
environment that, more often than not, constrained freedom of expression and indeed subjected
literature to strict forms of censorship. Many prominent Arab authors spent large segments of their life
in exile from their homelands for political reasons. New generation of poets across the Arabic-speaking
world were taking poetry in a variety of new directions. Among the notable poets were the Syrian
Muḥammad al-Māghūṭ, the Moroccan Muḥammad Bannīs, the Iraqi SaʿdīYūsuf, and the Egyptians
Muḥammad
ʿAfīfīMaṭar and Amal Dunqul. In the 21st-century world of global communication and of television,
video, and the Internet, Arabic poetry struggled to find a place within the public domain, but, when
political crises loomed, it was the voice of the poet that continued to express the conscience, the agony,
and the aspirations of the Arab people.

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

Read the short story below:

“Yunus On The Beach by Hassouna Mosbahi/ Arabic Translated by William M. Hutchins”

The world was still, and Yunus felt alone in existence. He walked along the shore beneath a sky
studded with stars. It was his birthday, and he was finally returning home, after his drinking buddies had
departed one by one. What was the essence of his solitude? A void and waiting… waiting for what? The
end that no one can escape. All he could hope for was that the end be without pain or suffering, as if he
were sleeping, roaming the seashore, leafing through a book, listening to one of his favorite symphonies,
lost in thought, or recalling memories from his happy past.

The void was frightening, dark, and weighty. All his reading, writing, walks, conversations with
friends, and all his other activities and endeavors wouldn’t suffice to fill even a little of its alarming
emptiness. When he had chosen to settle in Neapolis, he had thought that writing might be more
beneficial than at any previous time.
Therefore, he had decided to devote himself to it seriously; perhaps it would relieve him of his
torments and pains and restore serenity, vitality, and hope to him. But whenever he picked up a pen and
brought it toward a white piece of paper, words fled from him like birds flying away from a hunter.

According to Kierkegaard, life makes sense only when a person looks backward, but the only
way to live is to look forward all the time—in other words, toward something that does not exist. The
future also alarmed Yunus because all he could envision was a bleak, desolate, thorny desert. The past,
though, was an enjoyable, comforting expanse. There he was—sixty years ago—a baby. His mother
delivered him at dawn on a Thursday. It was the day of the weekly market in al-‘Alla. While screaming in
labor, she was able to hear the clamor of men exchanging their morning greetings and preparing to head
to the market. Yunus’ father had hosted a magnificent banquet for the village’s dignitaries to celebrate the
new baby. His mother’s sister Salima, who was an expert cook, oversaw the preparations. The guests ate
couscous with mislan. They stayed up late that night, enjoying panegyric songs, Sufi chanting, and
Qur’anic recitations. The Qur’anic sura “Yunus” was recited more than once, because when his mother
was pregnant with him, she had had an amazing dream: She had seen herself swimming in the sea in her
green wrap that she wore to feasts and weddings. Around her waist she had fastened a brilliantly colored
sash. She was as light as a butterfly, and the sea was calm, blue, and as vast as the sky above. Her dream
was amazing because she had never seen the sea and the tales she had heard about it would not have
sufficed to create a clear image in her mind.

She told her dream to her friend Dhahabiya, who was renowned for her skill and expertise in
deciphering the riddles of dreams. Dhahabiya thought about it for a long time. When she failed to
interpret it, she suggested his mother seek out Ammar, the teacher at the Qur’anic primary school. He
was a thin man who was said to resemble a scorched piece of firewood. Cross-eyed, he spoke extremely
slowly—as if the words were imprisoned inside his chest and could escape only with difficulty. He
pondered her dream silently, his brow furrowed, almost oblivious to her sitting before him covered with
the green cloak she had worn in her dream. Her heart was pounding quickly and powerfully. It was
winter, and Kesra Mountain was covered with snow. A camel was wailing in the distance, because they
had slaughtered her calf to celebrate the ample olive harvest.

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

Then Master Ammar cleared his throat and—with the slow delivery for which he was renowned
and loved by the people of the village—began to tell her about a prophet called Yunus, who was a
generous ascetic. “God sent him to his people, and he began to preach to them, counsel them, and guide
them to goodness, although none of them responded. When he gave up and left them, he was extremely
angry, promising them a painful punishment that would befall them in three days. When he reached the
sea, determined to quit his people for good, he boarded a ship that was sailing to a distant land. He did so
without realizing that God was displeased with him because he had not shown the patience it takes to
deliver a divine message. Even so, despair and hopelessness quickly spread to his soul for not properly
performing the mission entrusted to him. Back in the village, God granted belief to the hearts of Yunus’s
people before He punished them. So they repented, and the men, women, and children wept.
Meanwhile a violent storm rocked the ship on which the Prophet Yunus was a passenger. The
waves raged high around it and began to toss it about, threatening to drown those on board. They
considered this storm to be a sign that one of their fellow passengers had sinned. For this reason they
decided to throw the sinner into the sea; perhaps that would decrease God’s anger and He would save
them from imminent destruction. After discussing the matter, they drew arrows. Yunus drew the losing
arrow, and they were all astonished, because he was renowned for righteousness and veracity. Then they
drew arrows twice more, but each time Yunus drew the losing one. So he cast himself into the sea, where
a whale swallowed him whole.
“God, however, commanded the whale not to harm His prophet. During the course of three
nights, Yunus remained shaded by three degrees of darkness: the darkness of the whale’s belly, the
darkness of the sea, and the darkness of the night. This was a divine test for him. After the third night, the
whale spat him out. He stood naked and emaciated on the shore. Over his head grew a gourd plant with
large, tender leaves that shaded him and were unmolested by flies or other insects. Once the Prophet
Yunus regained his health, God sent him back to his people. All of this was part of God’s plan, may He
be praised and exalted. This strange story enthralled his mother, who continued to gaze at Master Ammar
with fascination, as if she were in the presence of an angel who had delivered her from darkness and
shown her the light. Master Ammar spoke again; he admitted he had not understood her dream well but
advised her to name her baby Yunus, if it was a boy. Then he placed his hand on her belly and prayed for
her and the Muslim community, hoping they would enjoy goodness and blessings, health and happiness.
When she gave birth, his mother followed Master Ammar’s advice and named her son Yunus.
Once he became conscious of the world around him, his mother liked to entertain him from time to time
with the unique tale of the Prophet Yunus. It was the most captivating story he ever heard. When she
finished, he would close his eyes to see himself first aboard a ship rocked by the waves, next in the
whale’s belly enveloped by the three darknesses, and finally standing stark naked on the beach with a
blessed gourd plant over his head while his people stared at him, fascinated and astonished. When he was
five and had begun to memorize the Qur’an, he was in a hurry to reach the sura “Yunus.” With a speed
that astonished the schoolmaster, he memorized the short suras and then the long ones. Whenever he
finished one of the Qur’an’s sixty sections, he would parade through the village with the slate on which
he had written the revelatory verses with resin, decorating the center and margins with egg yolk. Then
men and women would bless him, stroking his small head with their hands while praying for his success
and achievement, by the grace of God, of His Messenger, and of the righteous saints.
After he finished memorizing the sura of Yunus, his heart overflowed with all the rapture of a
voyager who has reached a verdant oasis where he hopes to rest after the hardships of a long journey.
Whether he was alone on the footpaths, watching the sun set behind the hill, or wandering through the
fields, his eyes moist with tears, he would repeat in a whisper: “If only the town had believed and

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia
benefited!

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

Only the people of Yunus did. So, when they believed, We freed them from the punishment of ignominy
in their worldly pursuits and allowed them to enjoy their lives.’” Two years before she died, he brought
his mother to the capital. Accompanied by his wife and their daughter Maryam, he took his mother to the
seashore for the first time, at the harbor beach, early in the summer. They spent three hours there. When
they were preparing to return, he asked her, “What did you think of the sea?”
She smiled and replied, “Exactly like the sea I saw in the dream when I was pregnant with you!”

How he wished he might recall only happy memories. But his memories were constantly
threatened with annihilation beneath the weight of time. Rilke was wrong when he believed that old age
could bring happiness. No, it was hideous and unfair. The satirist Swift, who created incredible worlds—
after he was placed in a care facility he himself had founded when he was younger—liked to stand before
the mirror, contemplating his face, and shout with self-loathing, “What a miserable old man you are!”
Perhaps, before long, Yunus would do the same thing. Then he would fall over dead amidst the heap of
his defeats. The victories he had encouraged his soul to anticipate had never been achieved, and his
marriage had failed miserably.

Suddenly there was a commotion on the beach where Yunus was walking alone, and figures
approached him rapidly. He stopped walking only to find himself surrounded by a group of young men,
all of them drunk. They were glowering, and sparks flew from their eyes.

“Didn’t I tell you?” one of them said in a harsh voice coarsened by rage and rancor. “He’s one of
those dogs!” The others replied, “You’re right!” “Son of a bitch! He strolls along the beach in a fancy
suit!” “In fancy shoes too!” “Yesterday he and his brothers were picking up cigarette butts and eating
crumbs. Today they’ve become the lords of the country!” “They piss on us from dawn to dusk, and no
one can punish them.” “Bastards! Thieves!” “Crooks!” “Sicilian Mafia!”
“Their sister, the whore, protects them and spoils them!” “How vile!” “She’s become the mistress
of the country. She gives speeches, she commands, she appoints government ministers.” “Not to mention
ambassadors, and she builds mansions and buys private planes!” “Without any limits, as if buying
children’s toys.” “The hussy!” “And her husband, the general, obeys her like a dog!” “Fuck them!” “This
wretch—what shall we do to him?”
“We’ll fuck his mother and his sister.” Yunus broke his silence and shouted at them, “Listen, guys!”
But they attacked him and began kicking him. They shouted gruffly while cursing and insulting
him, spitting at him. Then they ripped his suit off and cast it into the sea. Blood began to flow, and he
was about to pass out.
“Not so fast, fellows,” he heard one of the young men say. “This isn’t one of them!” “How can
he not be one of them?” “I know this man!” “Who is he?” “He’s that sad professor who sits in the
Albatross and prowls alone on the beach.” “Ah, true, true!” “The poor man, you’ve treated him badly.”
“What shall we do now?”
“Let’s get out of here. He’s to blame for strolling on the beach in a fancy suit at this hour of the
night!”
They departed. He remained where he had been dumped on the cold sand, unable to move. Bruises
covered every part of his body, and blood smeared his face. With difficulty he opened his eyes. The
world was black: no sky, no sea. He was falling into a deep, dark void. He remembered Abu Hayyan al-
Tawhidi’s words:

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

Life is short. The hours fly past. Motion is perpetual. Opportunities glitter brightly. When strings
play music, they approach each other and then separate. As souls expire, they dissolve and catch fire.

About the Writer

Hassouna Mosbahi

Hassouna Mosbahi, who was born in 1950 near Kairouan, Tunisia, is a

literary author and critic, as well as a freelance journalist for Arab and
German newspapers and magazines. In Arabic, he has published five
collections of short stories, six novels, and some nonfiction. He has
additionally made a name for himself as a travel writer, biographer, and translator from French into
Arabic– translating Henri Michaux, René Char, Samuel Beckett, and Jean Genet. His biography of Saint
Augustine was published in Arabic in Tunisia in 2010. In 2012, he wrote and lectured in the United
States. Mosbahi won the Tunisian Broadcasting Prize in 1968 for some of his short stories and the
National Prize for the Novel from Tunisia in 1986. He was awarded the Tukan Prize in Munich in 2000.
His short story entitled “The Tortoise” was short-listed for the Caine Prize for African Writing in 2001. A
Tunisian Tale (2011) was his first novel to be published in English.

About the Translator

William Maynard Hutchins is an American academic, author and translator of

contemporary Arabic literature. He is currently a professor in the Department
of Philosophy and Religion at Appalachian State University in Boone, North
Carolina. Hutchins graduated from Yale University 1964, where he majored
in art history.

The text that you have just read is a short story. A short story is a short work of fiction.
Fiction, as you know, is prose writing about imagined events and characters. Prose writing differs from
poetry in that it does not depend on verses, meters or rhymes for its organization and presentation.
Novels are another example of fictional prose and are much longer than short stories. Some short stories,
however, can be quite long. If a short story is a long one, say fifty to one hundred pages, we call it a
novella.

Elements of Short Story

 Setting- The time and location in which a story takes place is called the setting. For some stories
the setting is very important, while for others it is not. There are several aspects of a story's
setting to consider when examining how setting contributes to a story.
a) place - geographical location.
b) time - When is the story taking place?
c) weather conditions - Is it rainy, sunny, stormy, etc?
d) social conditions - What is the daily life of the characters like?
e) mood or atmosphere - What feeling is created at the beginning of the story?

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

 Plot- The plot is how the author arranges events to develop his basic idea; It is the sequence of
events in a story or play. The plot is a planned, logical series of events having a beginning,
middle, and end. There are five essential parts of plot:
a) Introduction - The beginning of the story where the characters and the setting is revealed.
b) Rising Action - This is where the events in the story become complicated and the conflict in
the story is revealed
c) Climax - This is the highest point of interest and the turning point of the story
d) Falling action - The events and complications begin to resolve themselves.
e) Denouement - This is the final outcome or the untangling of events in the story.
 Conflict - It is the opposition of forces which ties one incident to another and makes the plot
move. Conflict is not merely limited to open arguments, rather it is any form of opposition that
faces the main character.
 Character -Can be defined as any person, animal, or figure represented in a literary work.
 Theme -The theme in a piece of fiction is its controlling idea or its central insight. It is the
author's underlying meaning or main idea that he is trying to convey. The theme may be the
author's thoughts about a topic or view of human nature. The title of the short story usually
points to what the writer is saying and he may use various figures of speech to emphasize his
theme, such as: symbol, allusion, simile, metaphor, hyperbole, or irony.

IV. Evaluation

I. Instructions: Choose the letter that best corresponds the answer, then write it on the answer sheet
provided in your module. AVOID ERASURES.

1. It refers to the body of written works produced in the Arabic Language.

a. European Literature b. Arabic Literature c. Latin American Literature

2. Author of “Yunus on the Beach” .

a. Hassouna Mosbahi b. William Hutchins c. Muhammad Al Maghut

3. It is the central religious texts of Islam.

a. Vedas b. Bible c. Quran

4. Who translated the short story “ Yunus on the Beach” ?

a. William Hutchins b. Hassouna Mosbahi c. Amal Dungul

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

5. From the elements of short story, it is how the author arranges events or sequence of events in

the story.

a. Plot b. Settings c. Characters

6. It is the time and location in which story takes place.

a. Plot b. Theme c. Settings

7. It can be defined as any person, animal or figure represented in a literary work.

a. plot b. characters c. settings

8. A part of a plot wherein the beginning of the story where in the beginning of the story where the

characters and settings is revealed.

a. Introduction b. rising action c. climax

9. This is the final outcome or the untangling of events in the story.

a. falling action b. climax c. denouement

10. It is the opposition of forces which ties one incident to another and makes the plot more.

a. conflict b. theme c. settings

II. Instructions: Copy and fill the graphic organizer below with answers based on the short story
"Yunus on the beach."

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World
 Republic of the Philippines
Department of Education
Region III-Central Luzon
Schools Division of Bulacan
Asian Institute of Science and Technology
Plaza Naning Victoria Bldg. Baliwag, Bulacan
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
21 st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World
Lesson 1: Representative Texts and Authors from Asia

V. Assignment

Research about the North American Literature.

Prepared by:
Charlene V. Villadarez
Teacher

Submitted to:

Mrs. Noelyn F. Tiemsin

Guidance Coordinator

Approved by:

Editha A. Bulos
School Principal

Date:

Date: October 7-11, 2024 Week: 1 Quarter: 2nd

st
21 Century Literature from
Subject: Grade: 11 and 12 Semester: First
the Philippines and the World