What Is the Meaning of Maikling Kwento?

What is the meaning of maikling kwento? It is Filipino for “short story.”  A short story is usually a fictional story written in prose. Sometimes, its format is a narrative.

Compared to a novel, a short story is less complicated. It is built around one event, usually in one location, with just a few characters that interact over a short amount of time. Sometimes a short story seems to start in the middle of the action, but still has a turning point, or climax. 

Even the ending of a short story can be abrupt and even left open. Sometimes, there is a moral, or lesson, to the story. When a story tells a specific moral lesson, it is a parable or fable. So, the answer to the question, “What is the meaning of maikling kwento?” could be that it is a Filipino fable or parable, meant to convey a moral lesson. Fables can be found in religious texts to better educate and inspire the reader. The form of a short story will vary from author to author, and is not set in stone.    

Short Story History

Short stories can trace their origins to ancient practices of telling stories and anecdotes, where a situation was explained and quickly resolved. As the longer novel evolved, the short story became like a condensed novel. In the mid-1850s, the short story became a staple in magazines, which often led to fame and longer writing projects for their authors. 

Famous short story authors of the 19th century include:

• Edgar Allen Poe
• Guy de Maupassant
• Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Herman Melville
• Nikolai Gogol
• Anton Chekhov

Poe wrote tales where the main characters were affected, and sometimes destroyed, by reality. The answer to, “What is the meaning of maikling kwento?” could be that it is a story that shows how its character, or characters, deal with a problem that arises in life. Today, a collection of short stories by the same author is published in anthologies, categorized by topic or popularity. Some authors write only short stories, while others try their hand at other forms of literature. Jorge Luis Borges became well-known after writing his short story, The Garden of Forking Paths was published in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. 

Another example is O. Henry, who wrote Gift of the Magi. Some American writers skilled in shot stories include:  John Cheever, Flannery O'Connor, and Raymond Carver.  Authors who were skilled at writing both novels and short stories include:

• Virginia Woolf
• Charles Dickens
• Kurt Vonnegut
• Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Rudyard Kipling
• Ernest Hemingway
• James Joyce
• William Faulkner
• F. Scott Fitzgerald

What Is the Meaning of Maikling Kwento?

In the Philippines, there are prestigious awards for literature called the “Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature.” The foundation was established in 1950 by the heirs of Don Carlos Palanca, Sr., who stressed the importance of education and who contributed financially to educational institutions. They were established in order to help develop Philippine literature by giving incentives to deserving authors and to help make the public aware of these literary treasures.

The first awards were given in 1951 for short stories in English and Filipino, but soon, more divisions were added. Today, the prize for first place in the short story category is 15,000.00 Philippine pesos, with second place receiving 10,000.00, and third winning 8,000.00. Short stories have to be between 10 and 25 typewritten pages, and the theme of the story is open.

In 1995, the Palanca Hall of Fame was established to honor those authors who had one at least five first prizes in any categories.  The winners were: Eugene Y. Evasco, Reuel Molina Aguila, Nicolas B. Pichay, Rodolfo R. Lana, Jr., Manuel R. Buising, Luis P. Gatmaitan, M.D., Isagani R. Cruz, Reynaldo A. Duque, Leoncio P. Deriada, Alfred A. Yuson, Roberto T. Anonuevo, and Jose Y. Dalisay, Jr.  Continuing with the list are: Edgardo B. Maranan, Elsa M. Coscolluela, Ma. Luisa Aguilar-Igloria, Cirilo F. Bautista, Gregorio C. Brillantes, Ruth Elynia S. Mabanglo, Buenaventura S. Medina, JR., Jesus T. Peralta, Rolando S. Tinio,  and Rene O. Villanueva.