MARIA CLARISE B.

VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Chapter 1

Why Jose Rizal Is the National Hero?

It has always been a heated argument on who deserves to be called Philippine’s national hero, Dr. Jose
Rizal or Andres Bonifacio?
Why is Jose Rizal the national hero? It is interesting to note that Jose Rizal’s heroism was recognized first
by the colonizing Americans and later on by General Emilio Aguinaldo.
Recommended by the US Governor Taft
The Americans through the American Governor William Howard Taft recommended to the Philippine
Commission, which was sponsored by the US, to declare Jose Rizal as a national hero for the Filipinos.
The Americans recommended Rizal because of the fact that he was executed by the Spaniards and of his
peaceful way to achieve liberty. Unlike Andres Bonifacio whose desire to achieve independence for his
native land required armed approach. The Americans deemed this approach to independence of Andres
Bonifacio to be unacceptable and may inspire other Filipinos to rebel against American rule. This is why
Jose Rizal was chosen over him as the national hero. Jose Rizal was declared as the greatest Filipino hero
during the American colonization after the Aguinaldo led armed forces were subdued during the
Philippine-American war.
December 30 as national day of mourning
General Emilio Aguinaldo was the first one to declare December 30 as a national day of mourning in
honor of Rizal and others who have died fighting the Spanish tyranny.
Pen as mightier than the sword
The Philippine revolution led by Andres Bonifacio was fueled by the writings of Jose Rizal, the Noli Me
Tangere and El Filibusterismo, which made a more lasting impression. This is one of the best arguments
of those who believe that Rizal is rightfully the national hero. Rizal was truly an inspiration to many
Filipinos during the Spanish period. According to the historian Rafael Palma, Rizal was more deserving of
the national hero title. Rizal was even thought to have suggested that Antonio Luna lead the
revolutionary forces since Luna has studied military science which was a brilliant idea to lessen
casualties against the powerhouse Spanish militia. Rizal believed that only an army that was well
prepared and had enough arms would ensure victory .
Founder of La Liga Filipina
Jose Rizal founded the La Liga Filipina, a civic organization that led to the creation of the Katipunan
headed by Andres Bonifacio. This fact may already substantiate that Rizal’s title was deserving since
without the La Liga Filipina, Andres Bonifacio and his army would have been non-existent.
Everything started with Rizal. Philippine Revolution against Spain started what was known as the First
Republic led by Emilio Aguinaldo.
For Rizal, violence or armed resistance only as a last resort and considered the restoration of the
people’s dignity as a justification means of achieving national liberation and self-rule. On the other hand,
Filipinos are also grateful to Andres Bonifacio’s legacy, his advocacy to an armed revolution. We credit
both Rizal and Bonifacio to have awakened the Filipino’s patriotic spirit
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Chapter 2

Why Study Rizal?

It is of great importance that students understand the rationale behind having to take up a Rizal course
in college. For high school students, the Noli Me Tangere and the El Filibusterismo are injected into the
Filipino subject as part of the overall curriculum. In tertiary education, however, Rizal is a subject
required of any course, in any college or university in the Philippines.

Usually, during the first day of the course, the professor asks the well-overused questions:

Why study Rizal?

What is the importance of studying Rizal?
Why is Rizal one of the minor subjects taken up in college?
Why is Rizal included in the course outline?
What relevance does Rizal have in college education?

The answer to such questions can be summed up in two points:

First and foremost, because it is mandated by law.

Secondly, because of the lessons contained within the course itself.

Let us discuss those reasons one by one:

WHY STUDY RIZAL: BECAUSE IT IS MANDATED BY LAW
The teaching of Jose Rizal’s life, works, and writings is mandated by Republic Act 1425, otherwise known
as the Rizal Law. Senator Jose P. Laurel, the person who sponsored the said law, said that since Rizal
was the founder of Philippine nationalism and has contributed much to the current standing of this
nation, it is only right that the youth as well as all the people in the country know about and learn to
imbibe the great ideals for which he died. The Rizal Law, enacted in 1956, seeks to accomplish the
following goals:
To rededicate the lives of youth to the ideals of freedom and nationalism, for which our heroes lived and
died
To pay tribute to our national hero for devoting his life and works in shaping the Filipino character
To gain an inspiring source of patriotism through the study of Rizal’s life, works, and writings.

WHY STUDY RIZAL: BECAUSE OF THE LESSONS CONTAINED WITHIN THE COURSE
Aside from those mentioned above, there are other reasons for teaching the Rizal course in Philippine
schools:
To recognize the importance of Rizal’s ideals and teachings in relation to present conditions and
situations in the society.
To encourage the application of such ideals in current social and personal problems and issues.
To develop an appreciation and deeper understanding of all that Rizal fought and died for.
To foster the development of the Filipino youth in all aspects of citizenship.
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Chapter 3

José Rizal, son of a Filipino father and a Chinese mother, came from a wealthy family. Despite his
family's wealth, they suffered discrimination because neither parent was born in the peninsula. Rizal
studied at the Ateneo, a private high school, and then to the University of St. Thomas in Manila. He did
his post graduate work at the University of Madrid in 1882. For the next five years, he wandered
through Europe discussing politics wherever he went. In 1886, he studied medicine at the University of
Heidelberg and wrote his classic novel Noli me Tangere, which condemned the Catholic Church in the
Philippines for its promotion of Spanish colonialism. Immediately upon its publication, he became a
target for the police who even shadowed him when he returned to the Philippines in 1887. He left his
country shortly thereafter to return to Spain where he wrote a second novel, El Filibusterismo (1891),
and many articles in his support of Filipino nationalism and his crusade to include representatives from
his homeland in the Spanish Cortes.
He returned to Manila in 1892 and created the Liga Filipina, a political group that called for peace
change for the islands. Nevertheless, Spanish officials were displeased and exiled Rizal to the island of
Mindanao. During his four years there, he practiced medicine, taught students, and collected local
examples of flora and fauna while recording his discoveries. Even though he lost touched with others
who were working for Filipino independence, he quickly denounced the movement when it became
violent and revolutionary. After Andrés Bonifacio issued the Grito de Balintawak in 1896, Rizal was
arrested, convicted of sedition, and executed by firing squad on December 30, 1896.
Following the revolution, Rizal was made a saint by many religious cults while the United States
authorities seized on his non-violent stance and emphasized his views on Filipino nationalism rather
than those of the more action-oriented Emilio Aguinaldo and Andrés Bonifacio.
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Chapter 4

Childhood of Jose Rizal

The childhood of Jose Rizal can be characterized by his desire to learn, even frequenting the church
nearby his home to watch and observe people but not to be religiously inclined. Jose Rizal was not a
physically blessed or strong child however, he had a strong will guided and taught by his mother, his first
teacher. He learned almost without the use of books. His mother was the one who laid the foundation
of his great knowledge achieved in such a short time. His brilliance was also the character of the young
Jose Rizal.
Jose Rizal learned his letters at the age of 3 after insisting that he be taught to read and share the
lessons learned by his elder sister. Rizal even tried to spell out the words of his sister’s story book with
the use of a syllabary in such a way that one does when using a dictionary in a foreign language. He also
spent much of this time in a church nearby his house just watching or observing the people coming in
and out.
Three uncles who were brothers of his mother also had much influence on the early childhood of Jose
Rizal. The youngest uncle named Jose, took care of teaching regular lessons to Rizal. His huge uncle
Manuel developed his physique until he had a body of silk and steel and no longer a skinny and sickly
boy. The last uncle, Gregorio instilled in the mind of Rizal that it was not easy to obtain something until
you put effort into it.
There was a also a time when Rizal was able to draw a bird flying nearby without lifting the pencil he
was using from the paper till the picture he drew was finished. He can also draw a running horse and a
chasing dog. Clay and wax were the favorite play materials of Rizal. He used these materials in forming
modeled birds and butterflies. This animal molding activity also started his study of nature.
Jose Rizal also owned a pony and used it to have long rides into the surrounding country which was rich
in scenery. He also took long walks together with his big black dog named Usman. He also loved to play
with the doves in his neighborhood. He learned about the myths and legends in Laguna after sleeping
through the nut in a little straw hut used by Laguna farmers during the harvest season. Rizal was also
good in hand tricks which he perfected to amaze the simple folk and performed magic lantern
exhibitions.
Even in his childhood, Rizal already knew how to respect the rights of others and requested his elders to
reason with him rather than get mad at him for small offenses. He became a welcome companion for
adults even at his young age since he respected their moods and was never a hindrance to their
activities.
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Chapter 5

Ateneo Loyola Schools welcomed a new batch of freshmen and returning students this school year on
June 16, the same day in 1875 that Jose Rizal returned to Ateneo Municipal after the summer vacation.
Contrary to popular belief, Ateneo in Rizal’s time was a colegio, meaning a secondary or high school, and
not a facultad or universidad, referring to tertiary education or college in our usage. In the book I am
working on, titled “Rizal and me,” I ask Rizal about his school days.

ARO: What was a typical day at Ateneo like?

JR: I dressed like the other students—that is, I put on a coat with a ready-made necktie. With what
fervor I entered the chapel of the Jesuit fathers to hear Mass, what most fervent prayers I addressed to
God, for in my sadness I didn’t know whom else to invoke. After Mass, I went to class where I saw a
great number of boys, Spaniards, mestizos, and Filipinos, and a Jesuit who was the professor.

ARO: Aside from your “enhanced” boyhood photograph in Ateneo uniform that seems suspiciously
elongated because we all know you were short, there is a charming 19th-century painting in the Bangko
Sentral ng Pilipinas that depicts two Ateneo boys standing by a table. On that table rest some thick
leather-bound books, one of which an art critic mistook for the reading and writing primer or caton.
Ateneo boys already knew how to read and write; the book was part of their classical education (this
caton is the Spanish form for Cato the Wise). Then as now, I think you could tell the school from the
uniform. You make a nice observation in Chapter 12 of “El Filibusterismo” of students on their way to
Intramuros.

JR: Some were dressed in European attire, walking fast, carrying books and notebooks; preoccupied they
were in thinking of their lessons and their compositions. These were the Atenistas. The Letranistas could
be distinguished by their being mostly dressed in native attire or a la Filipina, being more numerous and
less loaded with books. Those from the University [of Santo Tomas] dressed more neatly and smartly,
walked slowly and, instead of books, often carried canes… Here and there the procession was made
pleasant by the graceful charm and the richness in colors of the female students of the Escuela
Municipal, ribbons over their shoulders and books on their arms, followed by their maids.

ARO: You wrote in your student diary a great tribute to the Jesuits, “I owe to this Order all, all that I am.”
What do your remember of your Jesuit teachers at Ateneo?

JR: [One] was called Father José Bech, a tall man, thin, with a body slightly bent forward, with hurried
walk, an ascetic, severe and inspired face, small, deep-sunken eyes, a sharp Grecian nose, with thin lips
forming an arc whose ends turned toward his chin. This priest was a bit crazy, so that one should not be
surprised to find him sometimes disgusted and ill-humored; other times he played like a child.

[Another] professor was a model of uprightness, earnestness, and devotion to the progress of his pupils;
and such was his zeal that I, who scarcely spoke middling Spanish, was able after a short time to write it
fairly well. His name was Francisco de Paula Sanchez. With his aid I studied mathematics, rhetoric, and
Greek to some advantage. Father Sanchez was a penetrating observer, although rather pessimistic,
always looking at the bad side of things. When we were in school we used to call him a “dark spirit,” and
the students nicknamed him Paniki, which is a kind of bat.
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

I had other professors, called Fathers Vilaclara and Minoves, the first one of whom liked me very much
and to whom I was somewhat difficult. Although I was studying philosophy, physics, chemistry, and
natural history, and in spite of the fact that Father Vilaclara had told me to give up communing with the
Muses and give them a last goodbye (which made me cry), in my leisure hours I continued speaking and
cultivating the beautiful language of Olympus under the direction of Father Sanchez.

Father Heras, our friend and chief, complained that the work was very tiresome. Father Pastells was my
best friend; he was the most distinguished and the best traveled among the Jesuit missionaries. He was
also very zealous. I sketched his picture from memory but Father Sánchez took it away from me… Fr.
Federico Vila was a linguist; he also spoke German, French, English, Greek, Latin, etc. I still remember
the hardships of Father Torra when he entrusted to me the first page for the Cartas de los PP, etc. Those
were happy days.

ARO: Can you tell us about the Jesuit teaching methods?

JR: You should know that in the Jesuit colleges, two empires were established to stimulate learning and
competition among the students. One was Roman and the other Carthaginian or Greek, constantly at
war, and in which the highest positions were won by challenges that were successful when the
opponent made three mistakes. They put me at the tail end. I scarcely knew Spanish, but I already
understood it.

Rizal would not recognize 21st-century Ateneo because the campus he attended is now a historic ruin.
There is a lot more he would not recognize in the Philippines we now live in. Which often makes me
wonder: If Rizal foresaw the sorry mess we find ourselves in today, if he saw the pork barrel scam,
corruption, worst airport in the world, etc., would he have allowed himself to be shot in Bagumbayan?
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Chapter 6

Rizal at the University of Santo Tomas 1877-1882

Jose Rizal, having completed his Bachiller en Artes at the Ateneo Municipal, was now eligible for higher
education at a university. His mother, Doña Teodora, had second thoughts about sending her son to
school because of the previous incident involving the execution of friars Gomez, Burgos and Zamora.
However, it was Don Francisco who decided his son should to the University of Santo Tomas, a
prestigious institution run by the Dominican order.

Undecided
Rizal, upon entering the university, was not certain which course of study he wanted to pursue. The
Jesuit priests who had been his former mentors had advised him to take up farming, or to join the order
and be a man of the cloth. However, his tastes went towards law, literature, or medicine. In the end, he
decided to sign up for Philosophy and Letters during his freshman year because of the following reasons:
It was what his father would have wanted for him.
He had failed to seek the advice of the rector of the Ateneo, Father Ramon Pablo.
As part of the course, he had to complete units in the following subjects:
Cosmology and Metaphysics
Theodicy
History of Philosophy
His report card was very impressive:

Shifting to Medicine
After completing his first year, Rizal decided to take up medicine as his university course. This change of
heart was due to two factors:
Father Ramon Pablo, rector of the Ateneo, had advised him to pursue the course.
Rizal's mother had failing eyesight and he thought he owed it to her to become a doctor and cure her
condition.
Rizal's performance at the University of Santo Tomas was not as excellent as his time at the Ateneo. His
grades after shifting to medicine had suffered as well:

Why the poor performance?

Unfortunately, Rizal was not happy at UST and this reflected on his grades (Zaide & Zaide, 1999). There
were three main factors that contributed to his unhappiness at the university, namely:
The Dominican professors were hostile to him.
Filipino students suffered discrimination.
The method of instruction at UST was obsolete and repressive.
Likewise, there were three main reasons for his struggling academic performance (Guerrero, 1998):
Rizal was not satisfied with the system of education at the university.
There were plenty of things to distract a young man in the peak of his youth.
Medicine was not Rizal's true vocation.
He would later find out that his real calling was in the arts, not in medicine.
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Chapter 7

Jose Rizal’s voyage to Europe in 1882 and his tour of Paris and other European cities prior to his return
to the Philippines in 1887. By telling how Rizal encountered and confronted Europe, it arrives at an
honest portrait of the Filipino as a traveller, which is no different from the experiences of Filipinos today
in the Diaspora.
Without Europe, Rizal could never be the Rizal anybody knew him to be in the same way that without
1872, as he himself had admitted to his fellow propagandists; he could have been a Jesuit (Guerrero,
1998). It was in Europe where he would seek the cure for the malady afflicting his beloved Filipinas. In
Europe he would sit and listen to liberal Republican professors; work with French and German doctors;
and meet its great sages. All these, however, would be too academic to deal with for someone like Rizal
who only wanted to enjoy every minute of his visit and stay in Europe in the 1880s as any traveller
would want to today.

Oceanic voyage and reptilian dreams: Manila to Madrid

But Rizal would cross oceans to see in flesh and blood the Europe he had read in Cesare Cantu’s world
history about great battles fought, of palaces and courts where royal intrigues and murders happened.
The long voyage would take him to Singapore where he was almost cheated by the carriage driver, to
Point Galle where on their way there he dreamed of snakes, and Colombo in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), to
Cape Guardafui in what is now Somalia, Gulf of Aden and its city and Suez and its famous canal. On June
7, 1882, they entered the Mediterranean Sea and four days later, they reached Naples and Sicily in Italy.
They were allowed for an hour and a half to stay ashore but he was “carried by love and curiosity” so he
went down riding in a boat, bringing with him a watch and some orders for the telegraph office (Rizal,
1977, p. 71). He saw “paved streets, squares, buildings, shops, statues” and strolled down the town of
Naples (Ibid). Quickly learning his lesson, he returned aboard “without being fooled by the guide and the
driver” (Ibid.). Two days after, the Djemnah dropped anchor in Marseille.

Missing Laguna in the heart of beautiful Paris

After almost exactly a year of studies in Madrid, Rizal went back to France but now in Paris. More than
the suggestion of his elder brother who advised him to study there, he was really enchanted by France
(Quirino, 1997). Aboard an express train, he would notice the bare landscape of Old Castile from the
verdant topography of Hendaye, the first French town. Passing through many cities awakened his
memories of their glorious past. He arrived on June 17 and stayed at Hotel de Paris at 37 rue de
Maubeuge. “The environs of Paris are very beautiful and very picturesque” he would write to his
parents, and that “here everything is dear” (Rizal, 1977, p. 234). On his first morning he went for a stroll
and he could only imagine how big Paris in a description to his parents as the whole area comprising
Calamba, Cabuyao and Santa Rosa. He did nothing but walk perhaps to save money for the carriage fare
to see the Champs Elysées, Vendome Column, Place de la Concorde, Obelisk of Luxor and the Madeleine
Church. About the Champs Elysées, he wrote that it was “a grand avenue from the Place de la Concorde
to the Arch of the Carrousel, wide and long, filled with trees, with theatres on both sides in which plays
and concerts are held at night…” (Ibid., p.235). In the evening, he went with his Filipino friends to the
Theatre of the Opera “the most sumptuous public edifice I’ve seen until the present” (Ibid., p.236). The
following day he went to the Laennec Hospital marvelling at the advances the French were doing, then
the Bon Marché, one of the five big department stores and the Church of Notre Dame of Paris where it
reminded him of Victor Hugo.
He would leave Paris more impressed than before of French courtesy, cleanliness and orderliness and
more knowledgeable of the French language but he knew that Paris was not Europe. He would learn this
in February 1886 in Germany.
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Chapter 8
First Homecoming

Rizal’s plans of coming back home

• As early as 1884, Rizal wanted to go back to the Philippines for the following reasons:
• – Financial difficulties in Calamba
• – Desire to prove that there is no reason to fear going home.
• – His belief that the Spanish regime will not punish the innocent.
Decision to return home
• After five years of his memorable sojourn in Europe, Rizal returned to the Philippines.
• However, Rizal was warned by the following not to return to the Philippines because his Noli Me
Tangere angered the friars:
Paciano Mercado – Rizal’s adviser and only brother.
Silvestre Ubaldo – Rizal’s brother in law; husband of Olimpia.
Jose Ma. Cecilio (Chenggoy) – one of Rizal’s closest friends.
• Rizal was determined to come back to the
Philippines for the following reasons:
– To operate his mother’s eyes
– To serve his people who had long been oppressed by Spanish tyrants.
– To find out for himself how the Noli Me Tangere and his other writings were affecting Filipinos and
Spaniards.
– To inquire why Leonor Rivera remained silent.

Rizal arrives in Manila

• Rizal left Rome by train to Marseilles, a French port and boarded Djemnah, the same steamer that
brought him to Europe five years ago.
• There were 50 passengers: 4 Englishmen, 2 Germans, 3 Chinese, 2 Japanese, 40 Frenchmen, and 1
Filipino (Rizal)
• In Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), Vietnam – he transferred to another steamer, Haiphong, that brought him to
Manila.

Happy Homecoming
• When Rizal arrived in Calamba, rumors spread that he was a:
– German spy
– An agent of Otto Von Bismarck – the liberator of Germany.
– A Protestant
– A Mason
– A soul halfway to damnation

In Calamba
• Rizal established a medical clinic.
• Doña Teodora – was Rizal’s first patient
Doctor Uliman – Rizal was called this name because he came from Germany.
• Gymnasium – was opened by Rizal for the young people.
• He introduced European sports fencing and shooting to discourage them from cockfighting and
gambling.

Sad Moments in Calamba

MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

Leonor Rivera – Rizal tried to visit her in Tarlac but his parents forbade him to go because
Leonor’s mother did not like him for a son-in-law.
Olimpia Mercado-Ubaldo – died because of child birth.

Storm over Noli Me Tangere

• Governor General Emilio Terrero – wrote to Rizal requesting to come to Malacañang Palace.
– Somebody had whispered to his ear that the Noli contains subversive ideas.
– Rizal explained to him that he merely exposed the truth, but did not advocate subversive ideas.
– He was pleased by Rizal’s explanation and curious about the book, he asked for a copy of the novel.

Rizal revisited the Jesuits

• Rizal visited the Jesuit fathers to ask for their feedback on the novel.
• He was gladly welcomed by the following friars:
– Fr. Francisco de Paula Sanchez
– Fr. Jose Bech
– Fr. Federico Faura – told Rizal that everything in the novel was the truth and warned him that he may
lose his head because of it.

Jose Taviel de Andrade

• A young Spanish lieutenant who came from a noble family
• He was cultured and knew painting
• He could speak French, English and Spanish.

Attackers of the Noli

• Archbishop Pedro Payo
– a Dominican
– Archbishop of Manila
– Sent a copy of the Noli to Fr. Gregorio Echavarria, Rector of the University of Santo Tomas to examine
the novel.
• Governor-General Terrero – was not satisfied with the report of the Dominicans so he sent the novel
to the Permanent Commission of Censorship which was composed of priests and lawyers.
• Fr. Salvador Font – Augustinian friar curate of Tondo was the head of the commission.
– The group found that the novel contain subversive ideas against the Church and Spain and
recommended that the importation, reproduction and circulation of the pernicious book in the islands
be absolutely prohibited.
• The newspaper published Font’s written report
• The banning of the Noli Me Tangere served to make it popular
• The masses supported the book.
• Fr. Jose Rodriguez – Augustinian Prior of Guadalupe
– Published a series of eight pamphlets under the heading Questions of Supreme Interest to blast the
Noli and other anti-Spanish writings.
– Copies of anti-Rizal pamphlets were sold after Mass.
– Many Filipinos were forced to buy them in order not to displease the friars.
• The novel was fiercely attacked in the session hall of the Senate of the Spanish Cortes.
• Senators:
– General Jose de Salamanca
– General Luis de Pando
– Sr. Fernando Vida
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• Vicente Barantes – Spanish academician of

Madrid who formerly occupied high government position in the Philippines bitterly criticized the novel
in an article published in the Madrid newspaper, La España Moderna.
RIZAL’S FIRST TRIP ABROAD
n 3 May 1882
Rizal left Philippines for the first time Spain. He boarded the Salvadora using a passport of Jose Mercado,
which was procured for him by his uncle Antonio Rivera, father of Leonor Rivera. He was accompanied
to the quay where the Salvadora was moored by his uncle Antonio, Vicente Gella, and Mateo
Evangelista.
n 15 June 1882
He left Marseilles for Barcelona in an express train.
Rizal in Barcelona, Spain
n 20 August 1882
His article "Amor Patrio" was published in the Diarong Tagalog, a Manila newspaper edited by Basilio
Teodoro. This was the First article he wrote abroad.
Rizal in Madrid, Spain
n 2 September 1882
Rizal matriculated at the Universidad Central de Madrid. He took the following subjects: medical clinic,
surgical clinic, legal medicine and obstetrical clinic.
n 4 October 1882
Asked to deliver a poem by the members of Circulo Hispano-Filipino, there together in the effort to save
the association from disintegration, Rizal recited "Me piden versus." The meeting was held at the house
of Pablo Ortiga y Rey.
n 2 November 1882
He wrote the article "Revista de Madrid" which was in intended for publication in the Diarong Tagalog in
Manila, but was not published because the newspaper stops its circulation.
n 7 November 1882
Rizal wrote an article entitled "Las Dudas". The article was signed Laong - Laan.
Rizal in Paris, France
n 18 June 1883
With Felipe Zamora and Cunanan, He visited the Leannec Hospital to observe how Dr, Nicaise treated his
patients. He was stunned to see the advanced facilities in the accommodation in the said hospital.
n 19 June 1883
He again visited Dr. Nicaise who showed the technique of operation. Later he went to see dupytren
Museum.
n 20 June 1883
Rizal visited the Lariboisiere Hospital where Felix Pardo de Tavera was an extern. Here he observe the
examination of the different diseases of women.
Rizal Back in Madrid
n 28 September 1883
He enrolled at the central Universidad de Madrid for the second course in medicine.
n October 1883
He came to know of the imprisonment, by order of Sr. Vicente Barrantes, of the 14 rich innocent
persons in Manila. The Prisoners who knew nothing is the cause of their detention and who became sick
later, were kept in a humid prison cell. Rizal was indignant of his inhuman act.
n 2 January 1884
Rizal proposed to the member of the Circulo assembled in the house of the Pateros, the publication of a
book by association. This idea became the embryo of this first novel Noli Me Tangere .
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n 21 June 1884
He finished the degree of Licentiate in Medicine with the grade of aprobado from the Central
Universidad de Madrid.
n 25 June 1884
Rizal won first prize in Greek contest, after which he delivered a speech in honor of the two Filipino
painters, Juan Luna and Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo. The occasion commemorated the triumph of the
two, especially Luna who won the first prize for his Spoliarium during the National Exposition of Fine
Arts held in Madrid that year.
n 1 July 1884
Rizal explained the term "Filibusterismo" in the newspaper of Madrid El Progreso, calling the attention
of the Spanish authorities over the case of future of the Filipinos. He asked for freedom of the press and
the right of representation of the Spanish Cortes.
n 20 November 1884
Rizal witnessed the tumultuous scene in the Central Universidad de Madrid where the students and
professors staged a strike against excommunication imposed by the bishop on the lecture proclaiming
the freedom of science and of the teacher.
Rizal in Heidelberg, Germany
n 22 April 1886
While in Heidelberg experiencing the feeling of nostalgia for his parents and his country, Rizal wrote the
poem "A Las Flores de Heidelberg.“
Rizal in Manila
n 5 August 1887
At 9:00 o’clock in the evening, Rizal arrived at Manila after five years of study and patriotic labors in
Europe.
n 18 August 1887
In a letter, Archbishop P. Payo instructed Fr. Gregorio Echevarria, Rector of the University of Sto.
Thomas, that an information about the novel Noli Me Tangere be issued by a Commission composed of
University professors Fr. Matias Gomez, Fr. Norberto del Prado and Fr. Evaristo Fernandez Arias.
n 30 August 1887
He left Calamba for Manila to see Governor-General on the issue of the Noli Me Tangere which caused
torment among the friars in the Philippines. Governor-General Terrero asked him for a copy and Rizal,
after a few days looking for copy, handed him a worn out one.
– On the same date, the Calustro Universitario formed by the Rector of Santo Thomas upon the order of
the Archbishop of Manila, issued an order prohibiting the possession and reading of the Noli Me
Tangere.
n September 1887
Rizal decided not to leave his family within this year. His sister Olimpia died of hemorrhage while giving
birth. His father did not permit him to go out alone and eat in the house of his relatives.
n 19 October 1887
Rizal made a pencil drawing of a sailboat sailing on Lagunade Bay, which he saw with Jose Taviel de
Andrade, Lieutenant of the Civil Guards assigned by the Governor-General Terrero to protect him,
during an excursion to Los Baños. This drawing was sent to Blumentritt.
n 29 Decmber 1887
The Permanent Board Of Censure headed by Fr. Salvador Font issued a judgment absolutely prohibiting
the circulation of the Noli Me Tangere in the Philppines. Upon the recommendation of the Governor-
General, Father Font said: "…Aside of attacking so directly, as you have seen your Excellency, the
Religion of the state, institutions and respectable persons for their official character, the book is replete
of foreign teachings and doctrines; and the general synthesis of the same is to inspire among the loyal
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

and submissive sons of Spain in these distant islands, profound,and furious hate to the mother
country…"
n 3 February 1888
Rizal, after staying in the Philippines for almost six months, left Manila for Hongkong, bringing with him
P5,000 which he earned from his medical practice.
Rizal in Hong Kong
n 19 February 1888
With Jose Maria Basa, Jose Sainz de Veranda and some Portuguese, Rizal left Hongkong for Macao on
board the Kui Kiang. In Macao, they lived in the house of Juan Lecaroz. Rizal went around for
observation, especially the botanical garden.
n 22 February 1888
After staying in Hong Kong for almost two weeks, he left for Japan on board the Oceanic.
Rizal in Japan
Rizal in America
Rizal Bound for England
Rizal in London
Rizal in Paris
Rizal Back in Spain
Rizal Back in Madrid
n 23 August 1890
He reported to Juan Luna what transpired between him and Antonio Luna. They had a quarrel and they
also had a duel.
Rizal Biarritz, France
n 29 March 1891
He finished writing his book El Filibusterismo. He planned, however, of revising some chapters.
Rizal in Brussels, Belgium
n 1 May 1891
In a letter sent to Basa, Rizal reiterated [again] his desire to be in Hong Kong, reminding the former of
the amount he was borrowing for his fare.
n He also informed Deodato Arellano of his plan to move from Europe to either Hongkong, Philippines
or Japan, and to renounce the receiving of pension from the Propaganda.“
n 30 May 1891
Rizal set ready for printing 20 chapters of the manuscript of the El Filibusterismo. He was waiting for an
amount to defray the publication expense.
Rizal in Ghent, Belgium
n 9 July 1891
He was financially hard up. He did not receive for three months up to this date any pension from home.
He was living in the most difficult situation, renting a small room and eating the modest food in order to
economize and able to publish the Fili. He had already pawned all his jewels.
n September 1890
El Fili was publish in Ghent using the donations from Rizal’s friends.
Rizal in the Philippines
n 26 June 1892
Rizal arrived in the Philippines from Hongkong on board the boat Don Juan. After having been inspected
by the custom men, he boarded in the Oriente Hotel where he occupied room No. 22, facing the
Binondo church. His sister, Lucia, accompanied him in his return to the Philippines. In the evening, he
attended the reunion held in the house of Don Ong-junco, a Chinese mestizo, who was living in the
MARIA CLARISE B. VILLAMAYOR REFLECTION BSAT-4

district of Tondo. Here he met many Filipinos who were later arrested and executed as a consequence of
the discovery of the Katipunan.
n 3 July 1892
Rizal had again an interview with Governor-General Despujol. He thanked Governor-General Despujol
for lifting the order of exile for his sisters. The Governor told him to come back the following
Wednesday.

In the evening, he attended a meeting at a house on Calle Ylaya to discuss the proposed Liga Filipina.
Exiled to Dapitan
n 6 July 1892
Rizal held the last interview with the Governor-General. The governor-general confronted him for anti-
friar bills supposedly found in the baggages of his sister Lucia. He was ordered imprisoned in Fort
Santiago (from July 6-15).
n 15 July 1892
At 1:00 on the morning, Rizal was shipped on board the boat S. S. Cebu to Dapitan. He was given good
cabin, but well guarded.
In Daptian
n He engaged in agriculture, fishing and business; he maintained and operated a hospital; he conducted
classes- taught the pupils English and Spanish languages and the arts
From Dapitan to Fort Santiago
n When the Philippine Revolution started on August 26, 1896, his enemies lost no time in pressing him
down. They were able to enlist witnesses that linked him with the revolt and these were never allowed
to be confronted by him. Thus, from November 3, 1986, to the date of his execution, he was again
committed to Fort Santiago.
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Chspter 9

Second Travel of Rizal

TRAVELS OF RIZAL

Second Travel (1888 – 1892)

· February 3, 1888: Zafiro · May 6, 1889: Universal Exposition in Paris

· February 8, 1888: Hongkong1 o Eiffel Tower
o Jose Ma. Basa, BalbinoMaurico and Manuel o Kidlat Club, Indios Bravos, International
Yriarte Association of Filipinologists
o Shadowed by Jose Sainz de Varanda o Wrote Filipinas Dentro de Cien Años, Sobre La
· February 18, 1888: Kiu-kiang Indolencia de los Filipinos, Por Telefono(D.A.)
o Macao2 o Project for Filipino College in Hongkong
· February 22 – April 13, 1888: Oceanic · January 28, 1890: Belgium7
o Japan3 o Presentiment of Death
o Invited by Juan Perez Caballero to live at o Romance with Suzanne “Petite” Jacoby
Spanish legation · April 1890 – February 1891: Madrid8
o Met O-Sei-san (Seiko Usui) o Misfortunes:
· April 13 – April 28, 1888:Belgic § Failure to get justice for his family
o USA4 § Death of JOMAPA
o Tetcho Suehiro (“Nankai-No-Daiharan”or § Duel with Antonio Luna and Wenceslao Retana
Storm Over the South Sea and O-unabara or The § Infidelity of Leonor Rivera
Big Ocean) § Rival with M. del Pilar
· May 4, 1888 · February 1891: Biarritz9
o San Francisco o Stayed with the Bousteads (Nellie)
o Nevada · May 30, 1891: Ghent, Belgium10
o New York “big town” o Finished El Filibusterismo
· May 16, 1888: City of Rome o Valentin Ventura
o Liverpool, England5 · November 1891 – June 1892: Melbourne
· May 1888 – March 1889 o Hongkong11
o Boarded at Beckett (Gertrude “Gettie”) o Family Reunion
o Bad news: o Ophthalmic Surgeon: Dr. Lorenzo P. Marques
§ Persecution of Filipino patriots who signed the o New Borneo Colonization Project
Anti-Friar Petition of 1888 o La Liga Filipina constitution
§ Persecution of Calamba Tenants o Last Hongkong letters: To my Parents, Brethren
§ Furious attacks to him by Sen. Salamanca and and Friends and To the Philippines
Vida in Cortes and by Pesengaños § Letter to the Young Women of Malolos
(WenceslaoRetana) and Quiopqiap (Pablo Feced) § Specimens of Tagalog folklore and Two Eastern
in Spanish newspapers, etc. Fables
o Annotate Antonio de Morga’s Sucesos de Las
Islas de Filipinas
o Met Marcelo H. del Pilar and Mariano Ponce
(in Spain6)
o Master Mason of La Solidaridad
Assosacion (Los Agricultores Filipinos)
o Wrote:
§ La Vision del Fray Rodriguez (Dimas Alang)
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Chapter 10

Arrest, Exile, Incarceration and Death

Upon his return to the Philippines in 1892, he was arrested by the Spanish government for being a
subversive and for his reported involvement in the rebellion. He was then exiled to the island of the
Dapitan in the southernmost island group of the Philippines, Mindanao. There he established a school
that taught English to young boys, he worked on agricultural projects on abaca, a plant used for rope,
and he continued to practice medicine, eventually meeting one of the most famous women in his life,
Josephine Bracken.
Although Jose Rizal has repeatedly said that he advocated peaceful reforms in the Philippines, the
Spanish government were correct in assuming that his novels would indeed stir up a hornet’s nest of
unrest in the islands. One of the leaders of the revolutionary group called Katipunan, Andres Bonifacio,
had read the Rizal’s novels and had used these as a basis for the revolution. So influential was Rizal that
even without his permission they named him as a member and Katipuneros shouted his name as part
of the their battlecry.
With no wish to be further implicated in the revolution, Rizal asked and was granted permission by then
governor General Ramon Blanco to travel to Cuba, another Spanish Colony at the time, to support in the
medical efforts needed to suppress an outbreak of yellow fever. On the way to Cuba, Rizal was arrested
and incarcerated in Barcelona due to the political manoeuvrings of the friars which saw Blanco removed
from office and replaced by Camilo de Polavieja.

Rizal’s ExecutioRizal was then brought back to the Philippines to face charges of rebellion due to his
reported association with the revolutionary movement. The court found him guilty and sentenced him
to death. Jose Rizal was executed by a firing squad on December 30 1896, at 7:00am, in Bagumbayan
(now called Rizal Park) and his remains were buried in an unmarked grave in the nearby Paco Cemetery.
Through the years, Rizal’s works and ideals have been cited by many reformists, such as Jawaharlal
Nehru, Sun Yat Sen and even Ghandi as the means for peace reforms. As the national hero of the
Philippines, his works, are required reading for all students and streets, buildings, and parks have been
named after him and the 30th of December, his death anniversary, was declared a national holiday.
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Chapter 12

RIZAL AS A NOVELIST
"Rizal's fame as a novelist rests on his two published novels -- Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.
These 2 novels are the gems of Philippine literature. They portray the miserable conditions of our
country under Spanish rule -- the brutalities of Spanish officials and sufferings of our oppressed people.
By reading them, our patriots were inspired in 1896 to rise in arms against Spain and fight for our
freedom. Rizal tried to write a third novel. He began writing his third novel in October, 1891, during his
sea voyage from Marseilles to Hong Kong. He failed to finish this third novel which had no title.
The hero of Rizal's unfinished third novel was "Kamandagan", a descendant of Lakan Dula, last Filipino
king of Tondo. "Kamandagan" planned to overthrow Spanish rule and regain the lost freedom of our
people.
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Chapter 13

MANY Filipino heroes, like Andres Bonifacio and Apolinario Mabini, assiduously collected and read
books and pamphlets. But Jose Rizal stands out as the foremost bibliophile, his interests ranging from
the literary to the scientific.
ADVERTISEMENT
Even as a three-year-old, according to his elder sister Narcisa, Rizal was determined to learn his alphabet
from the cartilla, memorizing the letters and their pronunciation within a day. He was deeply indebted
to his mother, Teodora Alonso, who taught him simple prayers, folk songs and nursery rhymes
As a student at the Ateneo Municipal, he wrote, “By this time I began to devote myself in my leisure
hours to the reading of novels, though years before I had already read ‘El Último Abencerraje,’ but I
didn’t read it with ardor. Imagine a boy of twelve years reading the ‘Count of Monte Cristo,’ enjoying the
sustained dialogues, and delighting in its beauties and following step by step its hero in his revenge.”
Rizal wrote to Dr. Ferdinand Blumentritt on Nov. 8, 1888, “In my town of only 5,000 to 6,000
inhabitants, there are some six small private libraries. Ours is the largest, consisting of more than one
thousand volumes; the smallest may have twenty or thirty. The Indio, in general, is very fond of reading
and studying…”
During trips to Europe, Rizal frequented the bookshops of Antonio Rosés, Pedro Vindel, Fernando Fe,
and Cuevas in Madrid, tracking down rare Spanish books that detailed preHispanic Filipino culture and
other ethnographic materials.
Prized possessions
Noted historian Dr. Esteban de Ocampo indicated that, through these forays, the hero collected some
2,000 volumes. Rizal considered his collection important, and was angered by those who would steal his
books: “Tell me if the book that was taken by a soldier had been returned already, and if not, what book
it is. How good it is that while I economize money to buy books, anyone takes them away. You give me
the temptation of buying everything in Germany with the certainty that there will be no lieutenant of
the Civil Guard who understands them, but I will not do this for you, because you would not get any
benefit…The books I have here are as many or more than what are there; see to it then that none will
get lost, thanks that those gentlemen put up a library with involuntary donations.”
Unfortunately, Rizal’s valuable library, left in the care of his friend Jose Maria Basa in Hong Kong and
sent back to the Philippines before World War II, was presumed to have been destroyed during the
conflict.
In 1960, De Ocampo compiled a list of books and pamphlets collected by Rizal throughout his life. It
appeared, from the list, that Rizal’s artistic and political preoccupations were shaped by the ideas and
principles of Western thinkers.
Among the political theorists Rizal read was the British philosopher Herbert Spencer, whose atypical
views on colonial reforms seemed to have been expounded in the hero’s second novel “El
Filibusterismo.”
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Chapter 14

Dr. Florangel Rosario Braid

Many writings about Rizal deal about his heroism, his courage, and how he had awakened the heroic
spirit of his countrymen through his two novels, Noli me Tangere and El Filbusterismo. But except for his
Ultimo Adios (My Last Farewell), little is known about the other 38 poems and the three plays – St.
Eustachius, Martyr, The Council of the Gods, and Beside the Pasig that he had written.
In The Complete Poems and Plays of Rizal, National Artist and foremost writer Nick Joaquin, who had
translated Rizal’s works from Spanish to English, noted that Rizal started writing poetry at an early age
but was advised to give it up. Thus, for a while, he stopped writing but this gift clung to him and later, he
picked it up reluctantly, at the bidding of others.
In this volume, Joaquin describes Rizal as a bard more than he was a poet, and that the old bardic strain
of prophecy ran in him. Rizal could have become a great poet had he been free to develop his talent in
this direction. Joaquin explains that the most compelling force that made him turn away from poetry
was “the soul of a nation needing to be expressed. Thus, this intellectual aristocrat became a bard and a
“voice of the people.” Although Rizal felt that his vocation was in the literary or scientific cloister, the
need of the country at that critical period was for a hero. Thus, after resisting his fate for a lifetime, he
finally accepted it. He gave up his earlier plan to go to Cuba and instead joined the other leaders of the
revolutionary movement.
Rizal started writing at a young age. It is presumed that he wrote his first poem which was in Tagalog
and about Tagalog before he turned 12. In this poem dedicated to his childhood friends, he described
Tagalog as “the speech of an angel,” and said, “He who does not love his own tongue is far worse than a
brute or stinking fish.”
Besides his advocacy for the national language, Rizal had this firm belief that it is “through education
that the nation is glorified.” In the last stanzas of the poem, he conveys his ideas on how education can
contribute to nation-building:
Because of this tendency to dwell on ominous themes, he gave up writing poetry for prose. In Noli me
Tangere and El Filibusterismo, one would note that he could be lighthearted at times.
Joaquin further delves into the thought processes of Rizal after his Dapitan exile.
“That what Rizal may have been running away from all his life was, not death, but heroism. He was the
perfect anti-hero: a man of letters, not a man of action: a contemplative, not a leader. Rizal was
complex, sensitive, solitary, finicky, sad, and pensive. He knew what he should do, or rather what his
countrymen expected him to do, until they became exasperated by his indecision. At that time, Rizal
was expected to come out openly for separatism and revolution. But he had his reasons: the time was
not ripe, the people were not ready, the arms were not enough.
In Ultimo Adios, Joaquin notes that Rizal’s use of the hexameter (a line of verse consisting of six metrical
feet) or the so-called “heroic line” for the first time. In the earlier poems, he used ballads, but in this
final poem, he speaks in heroic lines. It is stronger in the opening stanzas and grows fainter as the poem
ends. The mighty music is echoed in the line “Perla del mar de oriente, nuestro perdido Eden!” and “Y
cuando en noche oscura se envuelva el cementerio.” The test of a good translation of the Adios, Joaquin
notes, is how closely it approximates, the music of the hexameter without using the hexameter.
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Chapter 15

Jose Rizal, a young doctor-writer, municipal physician, Engineer, Artist, Educator and Farmer-
businessman is regarded as the father of the Philippines. He criticized the Spanish government in the
Philippines in two novels and drummed up nationalist sentiments, but called for peaceful reform under
colonial rule. In one of his novels Rizal referred to the Philippines as the "Pearl of the Orient Seas." Rizal
was arrested and executed on December 30, 1896 by Spanish officials when he was just 30. He was later
recognized by some historians as Asia's first nationalists. His contemporaries include Gandhi and Dr. Sun
Yat-sen. Gandhi was reportedly influenced by him.
Rizal was a scholar and scientist, as well as a physician and and writer, and most outstanding member of
the Propagandist movement. Born in 1861 into a prosperous Chinese mestizo family in Laguna Province,
he displayed great intelligence at an early age. He began learning to read and write at age two and grew
up to speak more than 20 languages, including Latin, Greek, German, French, and Chinese. His last
words were in Latin: "Consummatum est!" ("It is done!")
After several years of medical study at the University of Santo Tomás, he went to Spain in 1882 to finish
his studies at the University of Madrid. During the decade that followed, Rizal's career spanned two
worlds: Among small communities of Filipino students in Madrid and other European cities, he became a
leader and eloquent spokesman, and in the wider world of European science and scholarship--
particularly in Germany--he formed close relationships with prominent natural and social scientists. The
new discipline of anthropology was of special interest to him; he was committed to refuting the friars'
stereotypes of Filipino racial inferiority with scientific arguments. [Source: Library of Congress *]
Jose Rizal’s greatest impact on the development of a Filipino national consciousness was his publication
of two novels–“Noli Me Tangere” (“Touch Me Not”) in 1886 and “El Filibusterismo” (“The “Reign of
Greed”) in 1891. Rizal drew on his personal experiences and depicted the conditions of Spanish rule in
the islands, particularly the abuses of the friars. Although the friars had Rizal's books banned, they were
smuggled into the Philippines and rapidly gained a wide readership. *
Rizal’s Austrian friend, Professor Ferdinand Blumentritt, rector of the Imperial Atheneum of Leitmeritz,
said "Rizal was the greatest product of the Philippines and his coming to the world was like the
appearance of a rare comet, whose rare brilliance appears only every other century." Another friend,
the German Dr. Adolf B. Meyer, director of the Dresden Museum admired Rizal’s all around knowledge
and ability. He remarked "Rizal’s many-sidedness was stupendous." Our own Dr. Camilo Osias pointed to
him as the "versatile genius."