What is an

Epic Definition

•An Epic (from the Ancient Greek ,

from (epos) "word, story, poem

Epic Definition

•An Epic is a long narrative

poem that relates the great

deeds of a larger-than-life hero

who embodies the values of a

particular society.

1. Folk epic• A folk epic is such a story that evolves

from the people of a civilization and their

lives.

• It rises above the facts of those lives,

although it is grounded in those facts, to

the commonality of their human

experiences, wisdom, and values.

2. Art Epic• An art epic , on the contrary, is a

deliberate creation by the artist-

writer about a civilization or a

people.

• It, too, may be based on a long-ago

histories or on long-ago literature.

3. Mock Epic• A mock epic is a long, heroic-comical

poem that merely imitates features of the

classical epic.

• The mock epic focuses frequently on the

exploits of an antihero whose activities

illustrate the shallowness of a class or

group he represents.

• This style of epic is a satire.

Elements of the Epic

Epic Hero

Heroic Quest

Valorous Deeds

Divine Intervention

Great Events

Epic HeroGreat Stature-

Larger than Life

Possesses the character traits most valued by society (i.e. determination, courage, wit, wisdom)

Heroic Quest• Long, Dangerous Journey

• Proves Heroism

• Wins Honor and Renown

• Aids Others

Valorous Deeds

• Demonstrate Hero’s Courage, Strength, or Virtue

• Make up most of the Action

• Battles Evil Forces• Saves Others

Divine Intervention• Hero receives Help:

God/Supernatural Force takes interest in Hero’s Quest

Great Events• Historical/Mythological

events as Backdrop for Epic

• E.g.: The Iliad, Trojan War

Characteristics of Epic Poetry

• The hero is a figure of great national or

international importance.

• The setting is large in scale, sometimes

world-wide, or at least of the known world

• The actions involves heroic deeds in battle or a long and arduous journey intrepidly accomplished.

• In these great actions, the immortals and other supernatural beings themselves take an interest and active part.

• An epic poem is a ceremonial performance.

• The poet begins by stating his theme, then invokes the Muses to help him with his undertaking.

• The narration usually begins in the middle point of the action and at a crucial point; the events that happened before the narrative opening are introduced later on.

• There are catalogues of some of the main characters, introduced to the reader in formal detail.

EXAMPLE OF PHILIPPINE EPIC

BIAG NI LAM-ANG

What is the epic of "Biagni Lam-ang?"

Brief history of the Story"Biag ni Lam-ang" is an epic poem of

the Ilocano people dating from the pre-Hispanic era of the Philippines.

The famous Ilokano epic.

The story is a mix of adventure and romance with exciting and unpredictable outcomes

The title translates to "The

Life of Lam-ang," and the story

reveals the details of this

man's birth and life.

The poem was written down in

1640, allegedly by a blind

Ilocano bard named Pedro

Bucaneg.

• The epic poem showed some of the earlier customs, culture, tradition and belief of the Ilocano people of the Philippines

• Recited and written in its original Iloko, the poem is believed to be a composite work of various poets who passed it on through the generations

• It is originally written in the Ilocano language but as time goes it has been translated to different languages

Pedro Bukaneg

Pedro Bukaneg (March 1592 –1630) was a Filipino poet. Blind since birth, he is the

acknowledged author of the Ilokano epic Biag ni Lam-ang (Life of Lam-ang). He is considered the "Father

of Ilokano Literature ."

His surname is lent to the Bukanegan, the

Ilocano equivalent of the Balagtasan of the

tagalog.

Main Characters of the story Biag niLam-ang

• Don Juan – father

• Namongan – mother

• Lam-ang – son

• Ines Kannoyan – love affection of Lam-ang

• Marcos – diver

• White Rooster – friend of Lam-ang

• Gray Dog – friend of Lam-ang

• Bercacan- monster fish

THEME

•Bravery, when displayed positively, makes one honorable.

•NALBUAN (now part of in the northern part of the Philippines.)

Setting

Origins of the place

• The term “Ilocano” was derived from the words “i-“(from) and “looc” (cove or bay), which when combined means “People of the bay”

• The Ilocanos are the third largest ethnolinguisticgroup in the Philippines

• The Ilocano dialect is related to the languages Indonesian, Malay, Fijian, Maori, Hawaiian, Malagasy, Samoan, Tahitian, Chamorro, Tetum and Paiwan

• Today, the Ilocano dialect is the third most spoken language in the Philippines

Life of Lam-ang(Summary)

Don Juan an his wife Namongan lived in Nalbuan. They had a son named Lam-ang. Before Lam-ang was born, Don Juan went to the mountains in order to punish a group of their Igorot enemies. While he was away, his son Lam-ang was born. It took four people to help Namongan give birth and asked that he be given the name Lam-ang. He also chose his godparents and asked where his father was.

After nine months of waiting for his father to return Lam-ang decided he would go look for him. Namongan thought Lam-angwas up to the challege but she was sad to let him go. During his exhausting journey, he decided torest for awhile. He fell asleep and a dream about his father’s head being stuck on a pole by the Igorot. Lam-ang was furious when he learned what had happened to his father. He rushed to their village and killed them all, except for one whom he let go so that he could tell other people about Lam-ang’s greatness.

Upon returning to Nalbuan in truimph, he was bathed by women in the Amburayan river. All the fish died because of the dirt and odor from Lam-ang’s body.

There was a young woman named Ines Kannoyan whom Lam-ang wanted to woo. She lived in Calanutian and he brought along his white rooster and gray dog to visit her. On the way,Lam-ang met his enemy Sumarang, another suitor of Ines whom he fought and readily defeated.

Lam- ang found the house of Ines surrounded by many suitors all of whom were trying to catch her attention. He had his rooster crow, which caused nearby house to fall. This made Ines look out. He had his dog bark and in an instant the fallen house rose up again. The girl’s parents witnessed this and love of Lam- ang. The parent’s agreed to a marriage with their daughter if Lam- ang would give them a dowry valued at double theirs wealth.

Lam- ang had no problem fulfilling this condition and he and Ines were married. It was a tradition to have a newly married man swim in the river for the rarang fish. Unfortunately, Lam-ang dove straight into the mouth of the water monster Berkakan. Ines had Marcos get his bones, rooster crowed and his dog barked and slowly the bones started to move. Back alive, Lam-ang and his wife lived happy ever after with his white rooster and gray dog.

Prepared by:

Crispe, Mary Grace

De la cruz, Helen

Duran, Colleen Faith

BEED2- A