SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Learning Module
in
creative NONFICTION

(Week 1)
Name:_______________________________________ Grade Level: _____

(Week No.1)
LESSON 1
PRINCIPLES, ELEMENTS, TECHNIQUES,
AND DEVICES USED IN CREATIVE
NONFICTION
Learning competency/ies:
Analyze the theme and techniques used in a particular text

Objectives
This lesson aims to:

a. perform a close reading of creative nonfictional texts;

b. identify the fictional/nonfictional elements in the texts; and
c. write a draft of a short piece using multiple elements conventionally identified
with the literary genres.

Review
JUMBLED WORDS
Directions: Below are items related to creative nonfiction. Your task is to
arrange the following jumbled words and connect these concepts when
writing pieces under creative nonfiction.

1. L E A D T I S _________________________
2. S T E M E N L E _________________________
3. F L A C K S H B A _________________________
4. R A C E R S C A T H _________________________
5. E T H M E _________________________
6. M O M E R B A L E _________________________
7. N A T I V E R A R _________________________
8. A D U I N E C E _________________________
9. S R U P I R S E _________________________
10. MYSLOB _________________________

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Pre-assessment
1. If you are writing a reflective essay, which of the following should
not be prioritized?
a. feelings b. emotions c. thoughts d. research
2. Which of the following is considered as emotionally charged power
words?
a. confession b. surprise c. discovery d. laughter
3. Being a nonfiction writer, which quality refers to the goodness of
thinking new, original, and clever ideas?
a. responsive b. imaginative c. productive d. creative
4. What is the best method to use in showcasing emotions while writing
nonfiction pieces?
a. metaphor b. slang c. euphemism d. idiom
5. What bad characteristic of a nonfiction piece which should be
avoided by the writer?
a. factual b. informational c. conventional d. informal
6. Frank used some snippets of his personal stories while trying to
write his testmonio. What principle he used?
a. anecdote b. neologism c. experience d. history
7. Which of the following might not be under the essay format in writing
nonfiction pieces?
a. journalistic b. biographical c. travelogue d. journal
8. The writer constructs a true story about a time or period of his/her
life, one that had significant personal meaning and universal truth.
The writer composes the story using the first person “I.”
a. autobiography b. biography c. memoir d. journal
9. Why is reportage an important element in nonfiction?
a. Because it validates the experiences and emotions of the author.
b. Because it requires research for the author to be called reliable.
c. Because it resembles the good way of preserving facts and data.
d. Because it serves as a document for events and personal
experiences.
10. What are the reasons why the pieces for nonfiction should be
be based on fact?
a. Because fabricated stories are not only true for fiction writing
b. Because pieces for nonfiction are based on real-life situations.
c. Because the definition of nonfiction is all-encompassing
d. Because there is a high-stake if the author will publish it.

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 Introduction
In this lesson, you will understand the specific literary devices and its
functionality as you compose pieces under the realm of nonfictional
content. The creative nonfiction writer often incorporates several elements
and techniques of nonfiction when composing a blog, memoir, personal
essay, travelogue, reflective essays, biography, and so on. The following is
a brief explanation of the most common elements and techniques of
nonfiction:
1. Fact
The writing must be based on fact, rather than fiction. All entries
must not be fabricated or be made up.
2. Extensive research
The piece of writing is based on primary research, such as interview
or personal account and often secondary research, such as
gathering information from books, magazines, and newspapers.
3. Reportage/Reporting
The writer must be able to document events or personal experiences.
4. Personal experience and personal opinion
Oftentimes, the writer includes personal experiences, feelings,
thoughts, and opinions in writing nonfictional pieces like reflective
essays and memoirs.
5. Explanation/Exposition
The writer is required to explain the personal experience or the topic
to the reader to give the full understanding to the genre being written
6. Essay format
Creative nonfiction is often written in essay format. Examples:
Personal Essay, Literary Journalistic Essay, Biographical Essay.

Content
Literary Elements in Creative Nonfiction
Literary elements and techniques are narrative devices used to spice
up a piece of writing by giving it character and a little bit of surprise. In
the same way they are used in fictional stories, these devices help an
author of literary nonfiction to liven up a piece of writing and transform it
from presenting dull information to creating a rich world of detail and
description.

Creative nonfiction is the literature of fact. Yet, authors of nonfiction

works often use the same elements as fiction authors to tell a compelling
story.

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 The following is a list of the most common literary devices and
techniques that writers incorporate into their nonfiction writing:

1. Character/s 11. Narrative

2. Detail 12. Order
3. Dialogue 13. Plot and Plot Structure
4. Diction 14. Point of View
5. Figurative Language 15. Setting and Atmosphere
6. Flashback 16. Style
7. Flash forward 17. Symbol
8. Foreshadowing 18. Theme
9. Imagery 19. Tone
10. Motif

Character/s

Stories have characters, but in nonfiction, these characters are real

people. In order to make the work relatable or empathetic, nonfiction
writers often follow the same convention as fiction authors and develop
characters that catch the reader’s attention. The writers describe, physical
descriptions, personality traits, and detailed histories to give the
characters depth and relatability.

The nonfiction writing piece often requires main character. If a writer

is creating his/her memoir, then the writer is the central character.

Detail

Details provide pieces of information. Writers of biography and

autobiography used details to give the actual facts about a person’s life.
However, biographies do more than just relate details. The details you
choose, arrange, and examine help communicate your own opinions and
character as well as those as your subject.

Dialogue

Dialogue is a literary and a theatrical form consisting of a written or

spoken conversational exchange between two or more (“dia” means
through or across) people.

It is the flow of conversation between characters in a narrative. It is

the lines or passages in drama which are intended to be spoken.

In fiction and creative nonfiction, dialogues are typically enclosed

within quotation marks. In plays, characters’ speech is preceded by their
names.

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Diction

Diction is the author’s choice of words. The writer chooses each word
carefully so both its meaning and sound contribute to the tone and feeling
of the literary work.

The author must consider a word’s denotation – dictionary definition

and its connotation – the emotions, thoughts and ideas associated with
and evoked by the word.

A work’s diction forms one of its centrally important literary

elements, as authors use words to convey action, reveal character, imply
attitudes, identify themes, and suggest clues. We can speak of the diction
particular to the character, as in Iago’s and Desdemona’s very different
ways of speaking in Othello. We can also refer to a poet’s diction as
represented over the body of his or her work, as in Woolf’s and Twain’s
diction.

Figurative Languages

Figurative language is a type of language that varies from the norms

of literal language, in which words mean exactly what they say for the sake
of comparison, emphasis, clarity, and freshness.

Popularly known as “ornaments of language” figurative language

does not mean exactly what it says, but instead forces the reader to make
an imaginative leap in order to comprehend a writer’s point. It usually
involves a comparison between two things that may not, at first, seem to
relate to one another and can facilitate understanding because it relates
something unfamiliar to something familiar.

Oftentimes, authors incorporate sound-effect devices to make their

writing sound good and not just convey mere information.

To comprehend figurative language, it will require you to use your

imagination to figure out the writer’s references or meaning.

Flashback

Flashback (a.k.a. analepsis) is literary device in which an earlier or

past event is inserted into the present or normal chronological order of a
narrative. Various methods may be used to utilize this literary device.
Among them are: recollections of characters (e.g. The Curious Case of
Benjamin Button), narration by the characters (e.g. Unravel Me by Tahereh
Mafi), dream sequences (e.g. A Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe), and
reveries (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber).

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 Flashback are often used to recount events that happened before the
story’s initial sequence of events or to fill in the crucial backstory. Here’s
an example of flashback memory:

A woman is about to get married. As she puts on her veil, she

remembers her fiancé three years before, swearing he would make her his
wife someday. A tear comes to her eye and she prepares to walk down the
aisle.

Here, the flashback is the memory of the woman’s fiancé three years
before. The memory serves to show that her fiancé was sure of their
relationship early on, and that his prediction has come true. The memory
brings tears of happiness to her eyes.

Flashforward

Flashforward or prolepsis is a literary device in which the plot goes

ahead of time, i.e. a scene that interrupts and takes the narrative forward
in a moment from the current time in a story.

Generally, a flashforward represents expected or imagined events in

the future interjected in the main plot revealing important parts of the
story that are yet to occur. It is an opposite of flashback or analepsis
(reveals past events). Below is an example of flashforward:

Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano

Buendia was to remember the distant afternoon when his father took him to
discover ice. At that time Macondo was a village of twenty adobe houses,
built on the bank of a river of clear water that ran long a bed of polished
stones, which were white and enormous, like prehistoric eggs. The world was
so recent that many things lacked names, and in order to indicate them it
was necessary to point. Every year during the month of March a family of
ragged gypsies would set up tents near the village, and with a great uproar
of pipes and kettledrums they would display new inventions.

Gabriel Garcia Marquez use many elements of the supernatural and

magical realism in his novel, One Hundred Years of Solitude, one is the
elasticity of time. Some characters were able to make prophecies and
predict the future. The first line, excerpted above with the following few
lines, is an example of flashforward because we see a striking image that
will come to pass, but which is beyond the chronological time where the
novel actually begins.

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Foreshadowing

Foreshadowing is a literary device in which the author hints certain

plot developments that perhaps will come to be later in the story. It is the
presentation of material in a work in such a way that the later events are
prepared for. The purpose of foreshadowing is to prepare the reader or
viewer for action to come.

To foreshadow an event in a story, the audience is given direct

and/or subtle clues about what will happen. Imagine this scene.

A professionally dressed woman hurriedly leaves the house, slamming

the front door. She frantically searches for her keys in the bottom of a giant
purse while balancing a briefcase under her other arm. She finds her keys,
gets in the car, and backs out of the driveway. As the car drives away, the
camera moves back towards the front door and into the house, where the
USB stick is sitting on a shelf next to the front door.

In this scene, it shows us the USB stick, forgotten by the woman

foreshadows a future conflict.

Imagery

Imagery refers to the “pictures” which we perceive with our mind’s

eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin, and through which we express the “parallel
world” created by the poetic language. Imagery evokes the meaning and
truth of human experiences not in abstract terms but in more perceptible
and tangible forms. This is a device by which the poet makes meaning
strong, clear, and sure. The writer uses sound words and words with color
and touch in addition to figures of speech. As well, concrete details that
appeal to the reader’s senses are used to build up images.

Motif

Motif is any element, subject, idea or concept that is constantly

present through the entire body of literature. Using motif refers to the
repetition of a specific theme dominating the literary work. Motifs are very
noticeable and play a significant role in defining the nature of the story,
the course of events, and the very fabric of the literary piece. The perfect
example of a literary piece with the good use of motif is the short story
written by Estrella D. Alfon entitled, Magnificence, where the pencil was
mentioned 21 times and it stands as a phallic symbol.

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Narrative

Nonfiction writing usually follows a timeline for a narrative that is

either linear or nonlinear, depending on how the author tells the story.
Authors can choose to tell a history from the start or jump from one time
to another to create a parallel to other characters or events. The writer
carefully chooses a narrative to enhance any dramatization. In most
nonfiction, the story told focuses on a central conflict or theme that defines
the purpose of the work.

In writing nonfiction, rather than just reportage, you are going to

borrow from traditional techniques to tell the story in an interesting and
very human way. The best stories display a common structure
characterized by rising action that builds interest to a peak before falling
again toward a satisfying resolution. This structure mirrors the shape of
the most rewarding experiences in life, so it is not surprising that stories
follow this structure. Use narrative structure whenever you want to tell a
story or narratives (real or imagined).

Order

Order is the arrangement of events in the body of literature. It is the

structure in which nonfiction pieces must be written and how writings
must be organized. The way you organize information impacts how your
audience receives it. The six informational structures below will help your
information in a clear, easy-to-follow manner.

1. Importance
2. Chronological
3. Problem-Solution
4. Cause-Effect
5. Comparison-Contrast
6. Classification

Plot and Plot Structure

The writer needs to able to tell his/her story. A good story includes
an inciting accident, a goal, challenges and obstacles, a turning point, and
a resolution of the story.

Plot refers to the series or sequence of events that give a story its
meaning and effect. These events arise out of conflict experienced by the
main character. As the character makes choices and tries to resolve the
problem, a story’s action is shaped and plot is generated.

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 The plot is built around a series of events that take place within a
definite period. It is what happens to the characters. No rules exist for the
order in which the events are presented.

In some stories, the author structures the entire plot chronologically,

with the first event followed by the second, third, and so on, like beads of
rosary.

In traditional literary terms, a unified plot includes an exposition, a

rising action, climax, a falling action or denouement, and resolution or
conclusion.

However, many other stories are told with flashback techniques in

which plot events from earlier interrupt the story’s present events. All
stories are unique, and in one sense there are many plots as there are
stories.

In personal essay, there might be only one event. In memoir, there

are often several significant events.

DETOUR: AESOP’S FABLE (QUIZLET ON PLOT)

Every story has a plot, or a sequence of events. There are five parts
to a good plot.

Exposition – the story begins and characters are introduced.

Rising Action – something happens to make the story more

interesting; the characters have problem

Climax – the most suspenseful part of the story; the characters must
finally face their problems and make decisions

Falling Action – the character has made a decision about how to

handle the problem, and now the story is coming to a close

Ending – the story concludes as the action comes to an end

Read the following version of the “The Tortoise and the Hare.” Then list the
events of the story on the plot diagram below.

A speedy hare bragged about how fast he could run. He challenged

Tortoise to race, and all of the animals in the forest gathered to watch.

When the race started, Hare ran very quickly down the road, while
the Tortoise plodded along slowly. Hare yelled back at him, “You will never
win this race! You are too slow!” Then, Hare decided he had time to rest,
and he fell asleep.

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 Tortoise continued to move along slowly, and while Hare slept, he
passed Hare and headed toward the finish line. The other animals cheered
loudly for Tortoise as he got closer. When their cheers woke Hare up, he
could see that Tortoise was almost at the finish line. He tried to catch up
to Tortoise, but it was too late. Tortoise won the race.

All of the animals cheered, and Hare no longer bragged about how
fast he could run. He had learned a lesson: Slow and steady wins the race.

Point of View

Point of view refers to the perspective from which the story is told. It
determines which character readers will follow throughout the story and
from what distance.

Types of Point of View

1. First-Person POV – The narrator is one of the characters in the story

and narrates the story from his own observation. He may be the
main character (protagonist), an observer, a minor character or the
writer himself. It uses the pronouns “I” and “me”.
2. Second-Person POV – normally for instructions like manuals, how-
to guides a, and self-help books. It uses the pronoun “you” and
“your.”
3. Third-Person POV – The narrator is not a participant in the story.
It uses pronouns “He” or “She”

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 a) Third-Person Omniscient POV – The narrator is “all present.” He
knows what’s going on in the minds of the characters, and he
comments on it.

b) Third-Person Limited POV – It keeps readers in only one

character’s perspective for the story’s duration.

Memoirs and autobiographies are told in first-person point of view.

Most biographies are told in the third person by someone who is

relating the information he has gathered about the story.

Famous examples:

First-Person POV

“Look, I didn’t want to be a half blood. If you’re reading this because

you think you might be one, my advice is: close this book right now. Believe
whatever lie your mom or dad told you about your birth, and try to lead a
normal life.” – Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

Second-Person POV

“There is darkness everywhere. A small amount of light is radiating from

the halfmoon floating in the sky overhead. There are no stars. It is cold and
humid. You look around you and find your friends gone. You are completely
alone.” – from joeduncko.com

Third-Person POV

“When the bus came, Sharon got on, carrying her pink backpack. It
was the first day of school, and Sharon was nervous. She smiled, though,
when she saw her best friend Kevin sitting in the back. Kevin was nervous,
too. So, he was thrilled to see Sharon. Maybe this day would not be so bad
after all.” Carry Me Over by Nadine Burr

DETOUR: PROVE THE POV (QUIZLET FOR POINT OF VIEW)

Point of view refers to the perspective from which a story is told.

When a character in the story is telling the story, it is the first-person point
of view. When the story is told by a narrator outside of the story, it is called
third-person point of view.

Read each short text. Determine if the point of view is first- or third-person.
Write your answer on the line provided.

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 When the bus came, I get on, carrying my pink backpack. It was the
first day of school, and I was. I smiled, though, when I saw my best friend
Kevin sitting in the back.

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

When the bus came, Sharon got on, carrying her pink backpack. It
was the first day of school, and Sharon was nervous. She smiled, though,
when she saw her best friend Kevin sitting at the back.

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

Joseph was confused. He was supposed to meet Laura at the library

to work on science project, but she was nowhere to be found. Wondering
if he had gotten the time to leave, he saw Laura rushing through the front
doors. “Sorry, I am late!” she said. “You won’t believe what happened!”

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

The decorations are up. The cake is in the center of the stable. Ice
cream is in the refrigerator. There are snacks for everyone. I look at the
time, and it is almost 03:00. I better hurry. The guess will be here any
minute for Lee’s birthday party.

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

The lights in the mall were beautiful. There were red, green, and gold
decorations everywhere. I couldn’t wait to start shopping for presents for
all of my friends. “Are you ready to go?” “Yes!’ I exclaimed. “Let’s shop!’

Setting and Atmosphere

The writer creates scenes that are action-orient and contain vivid
descriptions. Setting is the story’s time and place. Atmosphere, on the
other hand, is the feeling that the setting evokes i.e. eerie, mysterious,
happy.

The elements making up a setting are: the geographical location, its

topography, scenery, and such physical arrangements as the location of
the windows and doors in a room; the occupations and daily manner of
living of the characters; the time and period in which the action takes
place, for example, period in history or season of the year; and the general

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environment of the characters, for example, religious, mental, social, and
emotional conditions.

Style

Style refers to the language conventions used to construct the story.

A writer can manipulate diction, sentence structure, phrasing, dialogue,
and other aspects of language to create style.

Thus, a story’s style could be described as richly detailed, flowing,

and barely controlled or sparing and minimalist to reflect the simple
sentences structures and low range of vocabulary. Predominant styles
change through time, therefore the time period in which the piece was
written often influences its style.

Style is the manner of expression of a particular writer, produced by

choice of words, grammatical structures, use of literary devices, and all the
possible parts of language use. Style is the way writer uses words to create
literature. It is difficult to enjoy a story’s characters or plot without
enjoying the author’s style. The style of an author is as important as what
he is trying to say.

Symbolism

A symbol is a sign, word, phrase, image, or other object that stands

for or represents something.

There are two distinctions for symbols: The Traditional or

Conventional Symbols and the Personal Symbols.

Traditional or conventional symbols are those that are part of our

general cultural inheritance. (e.g. “The Lamb,” by William Blake is a
conventional symbol for “peace, gentleness, and innocence.”)

Additionally, conventional symbolism is often based on elements of

nature. (e.g. Youth for greenery or springtime, Middle Age for Summer, Old
Age for Autumn/Winter).

Conventional symbols are also borrowed from religion and politics

(e.g. cross for Christianity, crescent for Islam, Color red for Marxist
ideology).

On the other hand, personal symbol those that are created by

particular authors for use in particular works (e.g. “The Tyger,” by William
Blake is a symbol specifically created for this poem).

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Theme

Theme is the central idea, concern, or purpose in a literary work. In

a serious literary work, the theme is usually expressed indirectly rather
then directly. A light work, one written strictly for entertainment, may not
have a theme.

Principles in Stating the Theme of a Story

▪ It reports for all major details of the story.

▪ It may be avowed in more than one way.
▪ It is stated in complete sentence.
▪ It asserts a sweeping statement about life.
▪ It avoids statements that condense the theme to some familiar
adage, aphorism, dictum, maxim, saying, or value.

A theme could be a moral (a lesson taught by a literary work),

dramatic premise (is a typical ending of a story that suggests what will
happen and had happened on the characters and the story itself), or
insight (the clear and often sudden understanding of a complex situation
based on the story).

Tone

Tone is the writer’s attitude toward his or her subject matter. For
example, the tone of a biography can be admiring or critical, fawning or
hostile. Many biographies start with a reverential attitude toward their
subject, become antagonistic as the work bogs down, and end on a
worshipful tone.

For instance, if the author is listing reasons and answering likely

objections in advance, the tone is argumentative or persuasive. If the writer
goes on and on about the snowy, picture-perfect holidays of childhood,
nostalgia is a good bet.

When you’re determining tone, “hear” the writing in your head. Put
yourself in the author’s shoes and imagine what she feels. Examine the
language closely, and bring your own experience to the writing.

Popular examples:

Patriotic Tone

“And so, my fellow Americans: Ask not what your country can do for
you-ask what you can do for your country.” – John F. Kennedy

Aggressive Tone

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 “Can someone tell me what the hell is going on here?”

Sarcastic Tone

“All morons hate it when you them a moron.”

“If a girl looks well when she meets you, who gives a damn if she’s
late? Nobody.”

“Catholics are always trying to find out if you’re Catholic.” – Holden

Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Gloomy Tone

“And the trees all died. They were orange trees. I don’t know why
they died, they just died. Something wrong with the soil possibly or
maybe the stuff we got from the nursery wasn’t the best. We
complained about it. So we’ve got thirty kids there, each kid had his
or her own little tree to plant and we’ve got these thirty dead trees.
All these kids looking at these little brown sticks, it was depressing.”
– The School by Donald Barthelme

Unhappy Tone

“I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”
– The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Self-Check Activities
IF IT’S NOT YOU, IT’S THE OTHER YOU KNOW
Directions: Read each item carefully and choose the correct answer from
the given two choices.

1. “Purple puppies like playing on the playground." This is an example

of:”
a. figurative language b. symbolism
2. "Hope is the things with feathers that perches on the soul,
And sings the tune without words and never stops at all."
(Emily Dickinson) This poem contains an example of:
a. tone b. rhyme

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 3. The irony is when an event or response occurs that is the ___________
of what is expected.
a. opposite b. correct
4. What could be the conventional symbol for “peace?”
a. lion b. dove
5. Which tone is present in the line, “Goddamn money. It always ends
up making you blue as hell.”
a. mysterious b. sarcastic
6. What is the commonly used point of view by the writers?
a. third-person POV b. first-person POV
7. Manila, 1989, Byzantine Period, In the cold morning of August, COVID
Era are all examples of?
a. setting b. flashforward
8. In the movie, Schindler’s List, a young girl wearing a red dress was
repeatedly projected and this was viewed as innocence. What literary
technique was utilized by the film makers?
a. style b. motif
9. What is the other name for “falling action?”
a. denouement b. prolepsis
10. In writing memoir, who is usually our central character?
a. writer b. antagonist

Key Concepts
• In writing creative nonfictional literature, the authors should bear in
mind that the pieces must be based on facts and figures while retaining
the literary devices and techniques just like writing fictional or
imaginative stories.
• There are 19 most commonly used literary devices and techniques and
these are: character/s, detail, dialogue, diction, figurative language,
flashback, flashforward, foreshadowing, imagery, motif, narrative,
order, plot or plot structure, point of view, setting and atmosphere,
style, symbol, theme, and tone.

Evaluation
Read the passage below. Underline the portion which are fictional (based on
imagination) and encircle the elements which are nonfictional (based on
facts). Then, create a draft and determine the multiple elements found in the
passage.

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 Boat from Banago
(An excerpt story taken from the anthology of local stories in PEN Lectures)

I came from the College English Association (CETA) conference in Bacolod.

It was my first conference since I joined UP in the Visayas in Iloilo and I was quite
excited.

It was a horror to take the boat at the Banago pier in Bacolod but somehow,
I managed to be one of these Negros Navigation boats that later sink and killed
so many people, decreasing the population of Negros Occidental by a few
thousands.

It was such a pleasant afternoon to sail toward Guimaras and its famous
Siete Pecados islets. One of then carried the Lopez mansion called La Roca
Endantada. The wind became cooler the moment the boat docked at Iloilo City’s
Muelle Loney.

I was in the second deck and I waited for the passengers of the lower deck
to unclog the gangplank. I stood learning on the railing and looked down at the
people milling around to meet close relatives or friends.

I was shocked to see two people. It was my brother-inl-law Chito standing

beside my own self! I felt a chill enveloping my whole body and I cleared my throat
thrice but no sound came.

Chito was wearing his usual white shirt and maong pants. He was very
handsome. I was wearing my favorite shirt a pique-like fabric with subtle spots of
brown. I had pictures taken with my wife letty, my boy Dino, my girl Dulce, and
my mother-in-law Lilia taken at the Manila Zoo with me wearing this shirt. We
posed in front of an elephant and later in front of a giraffe.

I waved my hand but the two did not react. Then they turned their eyes on
the people going down the gangplank.

I felt groggy at the sight. I carried my light luggage and went down from
the upper deck and on the gangplank while I mentally marked the spot where
Chito and myself were standing.

There were not many people anymore. The two people I wanted to see again
were not there. I walked a distance and found a taxi that took me to the Molo.

When I arrived home, Chito was listening to Bombo Radyo. I did not tell
anybody about what I saw from the second deck of the boat from Banago.

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 Enrichment Activities

LITERARY JOURNEY
Directions: Read the essay below and answer the following questions
comprehensively.

THE SCHOOL
by: Donald Barthelme

Well, we had all these children out planting trees, see, because we figured
that ... that was part of their education, to see how, you know, the root systems
... and also the sense of responsibility, taking care of things, being individually
responsible. You know what I mean. And the trees all died. They were orange
trees. I don’t know why they died, they just died. Something wrong with the soil
possibly or maybe the stuff we got from the nursery wasn’t the best. We
complained about it. So we’ve got thirty kids there, each kid had his or her own
little tree to plant and we’ve got these thirty dead trees. All these kids looking at
these little brown sticks, it was depressing.

It wouldn’t have been so bad except that just a couple of weeks before the
thing with the trees, the snakes all died. But I think that the snakes – well, the
reason that the snakes kicked off was that ... you remember, the boiler was shut
off for four days because of the strike, and that was explicable. It was something
you could explain to the kids because of the strike. I mean, none of their parents
would let them cross the picket line and they knew there was a strike going on
and what it meant. So, when things got started up again and we found the snakes
they weren’t too disturbed.

With the herb gardens it was probably a case of overwatering, and at least
now they know not to overwater. The children were very conscientious with the
herb gardens and some of them probably ... you know, slipped them a little extra
water when we weren’t looking. Or maybe ... well, I don’t like to think about
sabotage, although it did occur to us. I mean, it was something that crossed our
minds. We were thinking that way probably because before that the gerbils had
died, and the white mice had died, and the salamander ... well, now they know
not to carry them around in plastic bags.

Of course, we expected the tropical fish to die, that was no surprise. Those
numbers, you look at them crooked and they’re belly-up on the surface. But the
lesson plan called for a tropical fish input at that point, there was nothing we
could do, it happens every year, you just have to hurry past it.

We weren’t even supposed to have a puppy.

We weren’t even supposed to have one, it was just a puppy the Murdoch
girl found under a Gristede’s truck one day and she was afraid the truck would
run over it when the driver had finished making his delivery, so she stuck it in
her knapsack and brought it to the school with her. So, we had this puppy. As
soon as I saw the puppy I thought, Oh Christ, I bet it will live for about two weeks

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and then... And that’s what it did. It wasn’t supposed to be in the classroom at
all, there’s some kind of regulation about it, but you can’t tell them they can’t
have a puppy when the puppy is already there, right in front of them, running
around on the floor and yap yap yapping. They named it Edgar – that is, they
named it after me. They had a lot of fun running after it and yelling, “Here, Edgar!
Nice Edgar!” Then they’d laugh like hell. They enjoyed the ambiguity. I enjoyed it
myself. I don’t mind being kidded. They made a little house for it in the supply
closet and all that. I don’t know what it died of. Distemper, I guess. It probably
hadn’t had any shots. I got it out of there before the kids got to school. I checked
the supply closet each morning, routinely, because I knew what was going to
happen. I gave it to the custodian.

And then there was this Korean orphan that the class adopted through the
Help the Children program, all the kids brought in a quarter a month, that was
the idea. It was an unfortunate thing, the kid’s name was Kim and maybe we
adopted him too late or something. The cause of death was not stated in the letter
we got, they suggested we adopt another child instead and sent us some
interesting case histories, but we didn’t have the heart. The class took it pretty
hard, they began (I think, nobody ever said anything to me directly) to feel that
maybe there was something wrong with the school. But I don’t think there’s
anything wrong with the school, particularly, I’ve seen better and I’ve seen worse.
It was just a run of bad luck. We had an extraordinary number of parents passing
away, for instance. There were I think two heart attacks and two suicides, one
drowning, and four killed together in a car accident. One stroke. And we had the
usual heavy mortality rate among the grandparents, or maybe it was heavier this
year, it seemed so. And finally the tragedy.

The tragedy occurred when Matthew Wein and Tony Mavrogordo were
playing over where they’re excavating for the new federal office building. There
were all these big wooden beams stacked, you know, at the edge of the excavation.
There’s a court case coming out of that, the parents are claiming that the beams
were poorly stacked. I don’t know what’s true and what’s not. It’s been a strange
year.

I forgot to mention Billy Brandt’s father who was knifed fatally when he
grappled with a masked intruder in his home.

One day, we had a discussion in class. They asked me, where did they go?
The trees, the salamander, the tropical fish, Edgar, the poppas and mommas,
Matthew and Tony, where did they go? And I said, I don’t know, I don’t know. And
they said, who knows? and I said, nobody knows. And they said, is death that
which gives meaning to life? And I said no, life is that which gives meaning to life.
Then they said, but isn’t death, considered as a fundamental datum, the means
by which the taken-for-granted mundanity of the everyday may be transcended
in the direction of – I said, yes, maybe. They said, we don’t like it. I said, that’s
sound. They said, it’s a bloody shame!

I said, it is. They said, will you make love now with Helen (our teaching
assistant) so that we can see how it is done? We know you like Helen. I do like
Helen but I said that I would not. We’ve heard so much about it, they said, but
we’ve never seen it. I said I would be fired and that it was never, or almost never,
done as a demonstration. Helen looked out the window. They said, please, please
make love with Helen, we require an assertion of value, we are frightened.

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 I said that they shouldn’t be frightened (although I am often frightened)
and that there was value everywhere. Helen came and embraced me. I kissed her
a few times on the brow. We held each other. The children were excited. Then
there was a knock on the door, I opened the door, and the new gerbil walked in.
The children cheered wildly.

1. What do these lines mean, “And they said, is death that which gives
meaning to life? And I said no, life is that which gives meaning to life?”
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. List down at least 3 objects or concepts found in the essay. Give also their
meaning or symbolism.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. Describe the atmosphere and the tone of the essay. Is the author happy,
sad, or worried? Why or why not?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

Bibliography
Books

Jacobs, D. & Campbell, J.L. (2000). Genres in Context. Harcourt Custom

Publishers and Harcourt College Publishers. United States of America.

Solmerano, E.T. et. al (2017). Creative Nonfiction. Fastbooks Educational

Supply. Sampaloc, Manila, Philippines.

Torres, J.V. (2013). Pen as Swords: The Philippine PEN Jose Rizal Lectures.
Solidaridad Publishing House. Ermita, Manila, Philippines

Websites

Barthelme, D. (2015). The School from Six Stories. Retrieved from:

https://legacy.npr.org/programs/death/readings/stories/bart.html. Retrieval
date: June 15, 2020

Cross, B. (2018). How Literary Devices Impact Works of Nonfiction. Retrieved from:
https://study.com/academy/lesson/how-literary-devices-impact-works-of-
nonfiction.html. Retrieval Date: June 15, 2020

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