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The Monkey and the Turtle: A Philippine Folk Tale
Digitally enhanced by Auri Asuncion Yambao and Mary Grace Asuncion
Kung anong hina raw ni Pagong ay siyang tuso ni Matsing. Magsisimula ang kwento nila sa paghati ng puno ng saging. Alamin sa kuwento kung sino sa kanila ang mananaig.
Matsing is known for his intelligence and cunning but Pagong also has his wit and cleverness. When they both find a banana tree, the match begins. Find out who triumphs in this classic tale that has amused generations.
Kung anong hina raw ni Pagong ay siyang tuso ni Matsing. Magsisimula ang kwento nila sa paghati ng puno ng saging. Alamin sa kuwento kung sino sa kanila ang mananaig.
Matsing is known for his intelligence and cunning but Pagong also has his wit and cleverness. When they both find a banana tree, the match begins. Find out who triumphs in this classic tale that has amused generations.
31 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1978
166 people are currently reading
2916 people want to read
About the author
José Rizal
309 books465 followersSpanish exiled Philippine reformer and writer José Rizal from 1892 to 1896 for his political novels, later arrested him, and executed him for sedition; his death helped to fuel an insurrection against rule from 1896 to 1898.
José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda, a polymath nationalist, most prominently advocated during the colonial era. Poeple consider him the national hero and commemorate the anniversary of his death as a holiday, called Rizal day. His military trial made him a martyr of the revolution.
The seventh of eleven children to a wealthy family in the town, Rizal attended the Ateneo Municipal de Manila, earning a Bachelor of Arts. He enrolled in medicine and philosophy and letters at the University of Santo Tomas and then traveled alone to Madrid, Spain, where he continued his studies at the Universidad Central de Madrid, earning the licentiate in medicine. He attended the University of Paris and earned a second doctorate at the University of Heidelberg. Rizal, a polyglot, conversed at least in ten languages. He was a prolific poet, essayist, diarist, correspondent, and novelist whose most famous works were his two novels, Noli me Tangere and El filibusterismo. These are social commentaries on the Philippines that formed the nucleus of literature that inspired dissent among peaceful reformists and spurred the militancy of armed revolutionaries against the Spanish colonial authorities.
As a political figure, Rizal was the founder of La Liga Filipina, a civic organization that subsequently gave birth to the Katipunan led by Andrés Bonifacio and Emilio Aguinaldo. He was a proponent of institutional reforms by peaceful means rather than by violent revolution. The general consensus among Rizal scholars, however, attributed his martyred death as the catalyst that precipitated the Philippine Revolution.
José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda, a polymath nationalist, most prominently advocated during the colonial era. Poeple consider him the national hero and commemorate the anniversary of his death as a holiday, called Rizal day. His military trial made him a martyr of the revolution.
The seventh of eleven children to a wealthy family in the town, Rizal attended the Ateneo Municipal de Manila, earning a Bachelor of Arts. He enrolled in medicine and philosophy and letters at the University of Santo Tomas and then traveled alone to Madrid, Spain, where he continued his studies at the Universidad Central de Madrid, earning the licentiate in medicine. He attended the University of Paris and earned a second doctorate at the University of Heidelberg. Rizal, a polyglot, conversed at least in ten languages. He was a prolific poet, essayist, diarist, correspondent, and novelist whose most famous works were his two novels, Noli me Tangere and El filibusterismo. These are social commentaries on the Philippines that formed the nucleus of literature that inspired dissent among peaceful reformists and spurred the militancy of armed revolutionaries against the Spanish colonial authorities.
As a political figure, Rizal was the founder of La Liga Filipina, a civic organization that subsequently gave birth to the Katipunan led by Andrés Bonifacio and Emilio Aguinaldo. He was a proponent of institutional reforms by peaceful means rather than by violent revolution. The general consensus among Rizal scholars, however, attributed his martyred death as the catalyst that precipitated the Philippine Revolution.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
May 17, 2013
This children's book was written and drawn by the National Hero of the Philippines, Dr. Jose Rizal. The English text was written by him while he was in Paris during the 1880's and the black and white sketches were scanned in grayscale mode and converted into dark blue line drawings by digital artists Auri Asuncion Yambao and Grace Asuncion using Adobe Photoshop to fill in the colors. The effect was a very readable, entertaining and current children's book that can be enjoyed by all Filipinos both adults and children.
When asked about the moral of the story, Rizal said: "In (this) version there is a great deal of morality. It is the eternal fight between the weak and the powerful." In this children's story, he showed how the oppressed turtle (the Filipinos) had the chance to get back to the oppressor monkey. (the Spaniards). Rizal was writing his famous novel Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not) (5 stars) when this story was sketched by him in the house of the Pardo de Taveras in France.
The story is about the monkey and the turtle seeing a floating uprooted banana tree on the river. They decide to split the tree with the monkey getting the upper part thinking that it will grow because it has leaves already while the turtle settles for the lower half. The monkey's tree dies and the turtle's bears fruits. The problem is that the turtle cannot go up the tree to harvest the banana. What follows is how the turtle takes revenge of the monkey's selfishness and deceit.
Like Ambeth Ocampo who wrote the beautiful introduction to this book, many Filipino children are told first the foreign folktales before reading our own. It's time to pick up this book and know how good Rizal was as storyteller of short crisp literature for children. This is not a reproduction or retelling. This book is all original.
When asked about the moral of the story, Rizal said: "In (this) version there is a great deal of morality. It is the eternal fight between the weak and the powerful." In this children's story, he showed how the oppressed turtle (the Filipinos) had the chance to get back to the oppressor monkey. (the Spaniards). Rizal was writing his famous novel Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not) (5 stars) when this story was sketched by him in the house of the Pardo de Taveras in France.
The story is about the monkey and the turtle seeing a floating uprooted banana tree on the river. They decide to split the tree with the monkey getting the upper part thinking that it will grow because it has leaves already while the turtle settles for the lower half. The monkey's tree dies and the turtle's bears fruits. The problem is that the turtle cannot go up the tree to harvest the banana. What follows is how the turtle takes revenge of the monkey's selfishness and deceit.
Like Ambeth Ocampo who wrote the beautiful introduction to this book, many Filipino children are told first the foreign folktales before reading our own. It's time to pick up this book and know how good Rizal was as storyteller of short crisp literature for children. This is not a reproduction or retelling. This book is all original.
May 19, 2013
Ito ang pinakamagandang kuwentong pambata ng sinulat ng Pambansang Bayani ng Pilipinas na si Dr. Jose Rizal. Sinulat niya ito para sa kanyang mga pamangkin sabay sa kanyang pagsasalin ng limang kuwento ni Hans Christian Andersen, Mariang Makiling at The Baptism of Two Brothers. Ang kuwentong ito ay unang nalimbag noong Hulyo 1889 sa Trubner's Oriental Record.
Nabasa ko kahapon yong original na teksong nasusulat sa ingles. Oo, ingles ang original na ginamit ni Rizal para sa kuwentong ito. Sa version namang ito ng Pambansang Alagad ng Sining sa Panitikan na si Virgilio S. Almario, may mga idinagdag siya na mga diyalogo at tagpo kasama na rito yong pangangatwiran ni Pagong na maliit daw sya kaya siya dapat ang kumuha ng itaas ng puno ng saging. May tagpo rin dito na kinagat ni Pagong ang buntot ni Matsing noong nagaalis ito ng tinik na mula sa ilalim ng puno ng saging. Wala ito sa mga original na teksto.
"Tuso man daw ang matsing, napaglalalangan din" ay ang kasabihang pinauso ng aklat na ito. Napaglalangan ni Pagong si Matsing pero alam naman nating di puwedeng di aahon sa kati si Pagong dahil sa kati sila nangingitlog (granting na babae nga si Pagong). Kaya't kahit natapos na ang kuwento, may pagasa pa rin si Matsing na mahuli si Pagong upang tadtarin hehe.
Maganda ang kuwento. Pagpapatunay na si Rizal ay isang pantas sa paghahabi ng mga kuwentong tatagal ng maraming maraming henerasyon ng mambabasang Pinoy.
Nabasa ko kahapon yong original na teksong nasusulat sa ingles. Oo, ingles ang original na ginamit ni Rizal para sa kuwentong ito. Sa version namang ito ng Pambansang Alagad ng Sining sa Panitikan na si Virgilio S. Almario, may mga idinagdag siya na mga diyalogo at tagpo kasama na rito yong pangangatwiran ni Pagong na maliit daw sya kaya siya dapat ang kumuha ng itaas ng puno ng saging. May tagpo rin dito na kinagat ni Pagong ang buntot ni Matsing noong nagaalis ito ng tinik na mula sa ilalim ng puno ng saging. Wala ito sa mga original na teksto.
"Tuso man daw ang matsing, napaglalalangan din" ay ang kasabihang pinauso ng aklat na ito. Napaglalangan ni Pagong si Matsing pero alam naman nating di puwedeng di aahon sa kati si Pagong dahil sa kati sila nangingitlog (granting na babae nga si Pagong). Kaya't kahit natapos na ang kuwento, may pagasa pa rin si Matsing na mahuli si Pagong upang tadtarin hehe.
Maganda ang kuwento. Pagpapatunay na si Rizal ay isang pantas sa paghahabi ng mga kuwentong tatagal ng maraming maraming henerasyon ng mambabasang Pinoy.
December 1, 2024
Honestly, I discovered this book through “Penerbit Kakatua,” a publisher known for its diverse market segment, publishing short stories, poetry, as well as novels and philosophy books, among others.
After some digging, I found out that this work was written by Jose P. Rizal, a Filipino independence fighter who was mentioned in one of Pram’s tetralogies.
What surprised me was that this man was a polymath. He worked as an eye surgeon and was also a writer.
How come people back then were so brilliant? It feels like such individuals are exceedingly rare in this era.
From the story’s perspective, well, The Monkey and the Turtle reminds me of Hans Christian Andersen’s works, and it’s said that Rizal translated some of Andersen’s tales into Tagalog during his lifetime. Unfortunately, Rizal only lived until the age of 35, but even with such a short life, his contributions were extraordinary.
His brilliance and dedication to both literature and science must be an immense source of pride for the Filipino people. Not only did he fight for their independence, but his polymathic nature also made him a symbol of intellectual and cultural excellence. Truly an inspiring figure from history!
After some digging, I found out that this work was written by Jose P. Rizal, a Filipino independence fighter who was mentioned in one of Pram’s tetralogies.
What surprised me was that this man was a polymath. He worked as an eye surgeon and was also a writer.
How come people back then were so brilliant? It feels like such individuals are exceedingly rare in this era.
From the story’s perspective, well, The Monkey and the Turtle reminds me of Hans Christian Andersen’s works, and it’s said that Rizal translated some of Andersen’s tales into Tagalog during his lifetime. Unfortunately, Rizal only lived until the age of 35, but even with such a short life, his contributions were extraordinary.
His brilliance and dedication to both literature and science must be an immense source of pride for the Filipino people. Not only did he fight for their independence, but his polymathic nature also made him a symbol of intellectual and cultural excellence. Truly an inspiring figure from history!
May 19, 2013
This is a wonderful story which I read in a text book when I was six years old and until this moment I still talk about it as if I've just read it yesterday. I love the story of the monkey and the turtle. It's a book I'll recommend for anyone to read it's not only fun and entertaining it also teach the lesson of how important it is to share and not to become to greedy.
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November 16, 2015it is awesome
January 16, 2016
Arrogance is a bliss.
January 27, 2016
I was six, and i remember this by heart still.
November 12, 2016
good and astig
December 22, 2016
A short story about the monkey who fell in a turtle trap, and the turtle leave the other monkeys eat the meat of this dead monkey, and that is why monkeys don't eat meat :)
March 8, 2017
I thought this was a good book that could tie into a good lesson on how important it is to share with others.
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February 2, 2021Place and time?
October 30, 2020
(4)
Bruh, I'm that turtle! LOL. This is a fun read! Yeah, swear!
Bruh, I'm that turtle! LOL. This is a fun read! Yeah, swear!
March 18, 2021
OMSGADSDSDDDS
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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May 21, 2021How to read it here?
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November 16, 2021HHOOW TTO REEAADD TTHIISS
June 6, 2023
I was pleased and excited that Tahanan Books, a Filipino publisher had a satellite office in Seattle, Washington. I couldn’t resist getting some titles to add to my library.
One of the books I bought was The Monkey and the Turtle, a Philippine folk tale retold- and apparently illustrated- by José Rizal. I only knew him as a Philippine national hero who wrote novels- his most famous being Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not)– that criticized the Spanish rule over the Filipinos.
You can watch my review here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VDtX...
One of the books I bought was The Monkey and the Turtle, a Philippine folk tale retold- and apparently illustrated- by José Rizal. I only knew him as a Philippine national hero who wrote novels- his most famous being Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not)– that criticized the Spanish rule over the Filipinos.
You can watch my review here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VDtX...
June 20, 2021
I love it. I'm the turtle because it's so smart. The author is Jose Rizal. He's the National Hero. Thank you so much for saving the Philippines. I love the story so very very very very much. (Alon, 6)
July 9, 2014
yyyyyyeeeeeeeesssssssssss
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February 4, 2015masaya ito..
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December 10, 2016Si pagong at si matsing
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August 5, 2017its so amazing
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February 3, 2018i cant find ? how to read this story?
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews