Name: Joshua DC.

Cimanes Year & Section: 3 – C

Subject: Life and Works of Rizal Instructor: Ms. Angeline May L. Errazo

Assignment No. 1
Write an essay about the relevance of studying The Life and Works of Jose Rizal.
Either Tagalog or English. With introduction, body paragraphs and conclusion.

A Key to a Progressive Philippines

Joshua Dela Cruz Cimanes
It is unfortunate that many of the social ills which Jose Rizal fought against back in
the Spanish colonial times still continue to agonize the current Philippine society. For
instance, the unequal treatment of colonized nations is still the predominant feature of
neocolonialism which is nothing but a rearrangement of old colonial ties. Foreign powers,
like the Unites States, treat our country as though it is its backyard which needs to be
fortified from enemies. Also, an upstart colonizer like China has also compromised the
integrity of our national sovereignty as it takes islands from us and claims the West
Philippine Sea. Worse, the state problems relating to democratic rights that Rizal saw in
his lifetime as he dealt with guardia civil and censorship, seem to have been present in
the current President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration. The forces of Philippine National
Police roam the streets as modern-day guardia civil who prey on the helpless disguise of
maintaining peace and order. Censorship in the Spanish era has also morphed into
disinformation of fake news and attacks against press freedom.
The aforementioned points prove that we are still slaves of today’s tyrants and the
country we are living in has not yet progressed over Rizal’s era. Thus, today more than
ever, the life and works of Jose Rizal remain profoundly relevant to us 21st century
Filipinos so it is rightful to study this subject in-depth. His ideas are timeless as to how
history repeats itself over the years, decades, or even centuries so we need to further
read, understand, and appreciate Rizal. His thoughts, ideals, and principles are a
constant influence to people’s life to gain strength and wisdom in day-to-day existence so
these must carry on to generations, with the help of this mandatory subject.
Obviously, Jose Rizal made a remarkable act of writing literatures in which he
displayed courage by publicizing his criticisms of colonialism at a time of intense
repression against dissent. His “Noli Me Tangere” and “El Filibusterismo” depicted the
most important social ills that gripped the Philippine society under Spanish colonization.
These novels were scathing critiques of domination of friars and corrupt governance.
Rizal also showed in these works how some Filipinos were complicit in the colonial
enterprise: from middle-class professionals who remained silent in the face of
wrongdoings to seemingly religious churchgoers who perpetuated repressive social
structures. Moreover, he also used his real name in his novels’ bylines and was not afraid
to return to the country to act on his political beliefs despite the certainty of retaliations
from state and church reactionaries. For him, the arena of struggle was in organizing
Filipinos in the Philippines and not asking for reforms from Spaniards in Spain. His ideas
truly fueled the revolution that gave us independence from Spain. Hence, the life, works
and writing of Jose Rizal must be a constant and inspiring source of patriotism among the
youth especially during their formative and decisive years in school.
At a time when expression of democratic aspirations especially among the middle
class are more or less confined to social media posts and individual acts, Rizal’s life
should remind today’s Filipinos that actual organizing efforts, especially at the grassroots
level, are needed to achieve the changes we want to see in the country. Rizal was aware
that a single person cannot be himself carring the heavy load of improving a society
provoked by corrupt social structures. He had to work with the likes of Marcelo del Pilar,
Graciano Lopez Jaena, Antonio Luna, and Ferdinand Blumentritt. More importantly, he
made it a point to collaborate with ordinary folks, the townspeople of Calamba and
Dapitan for example, as he recognized that overturning corrupt social structures would
not happen at the level of those occupying the topmost social class but from the people
themselves desiring these changes.
It comes to a light while studying The Life and Works of Rizal as a subject that a
law proclaiming Jose Rizal as our national hero is necessary as to always remember how
he devoted his life and his compositions to shape his character, worthy to be recognized
nationally. According to the National Commission for the Culture and the Arts (NCCA),
our country has no official national hero since there is “no law, executive order or
proclamation” enacted officially and explicitly proclaiming any Filipino historical figure as
such. However, there is Republic Act 1425, the law requiring Rizal’s life and works be
taught in all public and private schools, colleges, and universities that referred to him as
“the national hero and patriot.” In fact, the notion that Rizal is the country’s national hero
is reflected even in most, if not all, school textbooks and references across all grade
levels. It seems ironic that the government had created laws on having Rizal as a
province, requiring education of his life and works, and recognizing his statue in Luneta
Park as the national monument yet there is still no law or even an executive order to
proclaim Rizal as the Philippine’s national hero worth recognizing for.
To sum up, studying Rizal’s life and works can help us understand the causes of
modern political and social problems and why they are still present and why it never really
went away. By reading and understanding Rizal’s works, we may be able to find concrete
solutions to alleviate our country’s illness. Learning everything about Rizal can also
prompt the citizens of today to be more appreciative of Rizal and his peers, who fought
for the freedoms of the country and fought for the common good.
Hence, the challenge for today’s educated Filipino citizens who regard Rizal as a
model is to shun this growing tendency to view the masses not as freeloaders, but as
partners into forming a progressive Philippines.