Republic of the Philippines

POLA COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Zone II, Pola, Oriental Mindoro

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP

BACHELOR IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

Subject: READINGS IN THE PHILIPPINE HISTORY Module 2

Date: November 9-13, 2020 Instructor: WENDY JOY N. CUYUGAN

I. TOPIC – Content and Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History :
Part I

II. TARGET LEARNING OUTCOMES:

After completing this module the students should be able to:

a. Familiarize oneself with the primary documents in different historical periods of the Philippines.
b. Learn history through primary sources.
c. Properly interpret primary sources through examining the content and context of the document.
d. Understand the context behind each selected document.

III. REFERENCES
BOOK

Candelaria, J., Readings in Philippine History. 2018. Rex Book Store (pages 13-26)

ELECTRONIC

IV. READ ABOUT IT

In this module, we are going to look at a number of primary sources from different historical
periods and evaluate these documents’ content in terms of historical value, and examine the context of
their production. The primary sources that we are going to examine are Antonio Pigafetta’s First Voyage
Around the World, Emilio Jacinto’s “Kartliya ng Katipunan the 1898 Declaration of Philippine
Independence. These primary sources range from chronicles and official documents. Different types of
sources necessitate different kinds of analysis and contain different levels of importance.

INTRODUCTION

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In the preceding module, we have discussed the importance of familiarizing oneself about the different
kinds of historical sources. The historian’s primary tool of understanding and interpreting the past is the
historical sources. Historical sources ascertain historical facts. Such facts are then analyzed and
interpreted by the historian to weave historical narrative. Specially, historians who study certain historical
subjects and events need to make use of various primary sources in order to weave the narrative. Primary
sources, as discussed in the preceding chapter. Consist of documents, memoir, accounts, and other
materials that were produced at the period of the event or the subject being studied.

Using primary sources in historical research entails two kinds of criticism. The first one is the external
criticism, and the second one is the internal criticism. External criticism examines the authenticity of the
document or the evidence being used. This is important in ensuring that the primary source is not
fabricated. On the other hand, internal criticism examines the truthfulness of the content of the evidence.
However, this criticism requires not just the act establishing truthfulness and/or accuracy but also the
examination of the primary sources in terms of the context of its production. For example, a historian would
have to situate the document in the period of its production, or in the background of its authors. In other
words, it should be recognized that facts are neither existing in a vacuum nor produced from a blank slate.
These are products of the time and of the people.

A Brief Summary of the First Voyage Around the World by Magellan by Antonia
Pigafetta

This book was taken from the chronicles of contemporary voyagers and navigators of the sixteenth century.
One of them was Italian nobleman Antonio Pigafetta, who accompanied Ferdinand Magellan in his fateful
circumnavigation of the world. Pigafetta’s work instantly became a classic that prominent literary men in the
West like William Shakespeare, Michel de Montaigne, and Giambattista Vico referred to the book in their
interpretation of the New World. Pigafetta’s travelogue is one of the most important primary sources in the
study of the pre-colonial Philippines. His account was also a major referent to the events leading to
Magellan’s Arrival in the Philippines, his encounter with local leaders, his death in the hands of Lapulapu’s
forces in the Battle of Mactan, and in the departure of what was left of Magellan’s fleet from the islands.

Examining the document reveals several insights not just in the character of the Philippines during the pre-
colonial period, but also on how the fresh eyes of the Europeans regard a deeply unfamiliar terrain,
environment, people, and culture. Locating Pigafetta’s account in the context of its writing warrants a
familiarity on the dominant frame of mind in the age of exploration, which pervaded Europe in the fifteenth
and sixteenth century. Students of history need to realize that primary sources used in the subsequent
written histories depart from certain perspectives. Thus, Pigafetta’s account was also written from the
perspective of Pigafetta himself and was a product of the context of its production. The First Voyage
Around the World by Magellan was published after Pigafetta returned to Italy.

For this module, we will focus on the chronicles of Antonio Pigafetta as he wrote his firsthand obesravtion
and general impression of the Far East including their experiences in the Visayas. In Pigafetta’s account,
their fleet reached what he called the Ladrones Islands or the “Islands of the Thieves.” He recounted:

“These people have no arms, but use sticks, which have a fish bone at the end. They are poor, but
ingenious, and great thieves, and for the sake of that we called these three islands the Ladrones Islands.”

The Ladrones Islands is presently known as the Marianas Islands. These islands are located south-
southeast of Japan, west-southwest of Hawaii, north of New Guinea, and east of Philippines. Ten days
after they reached what Pigafetta called the isle of Zamal, now Samar but Magellan decided to land in
another uninhabited island for greater security where they could rest for a few days. Pigafetta recounted
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that after two days, March 18, nine men came to them and showed joy and eagerness in seeing them.
Magellan realized that the men were reasonable and welcomed them with food, drinks, and gifts. In turn,
the natives gave them fish, palm wine (uraca), figs and two cochos. The natives also gave them rice (umai),
cocos, and other food supplies. Pigafetta detailed in amazement and fascination the palm tree which bore
fruits called cocho, and wine. He also described what seemed like a coconut. His description reads.

“This palm produces a fruit named cocho, which is as large as the head, or thereabouts: its first husk is
green, and two fingers in thickness, in it they find certain threads, with which they make the cords for
fastening their boats. Under this husk there is another very hard, and thicker than that of a walnut. They
burn this second rind, and make with it a powder which is useful to them. Under this rind there is a white
marrow of a finger’s thickness, which they eat fresh with meat and fish, as we do bread, and it has the taste
of an almond, and if anyone dried it he might make bread of it (p. 72).”

Pigafetta characterized the people as “very familiar and friendly” and willingly showed them different islands
and the names of these islands. The fleet went to Humunu Island (Homonhon) and there they found what
Pigafetta referred to as the “Watering Place of Good Signs.” It is in this place where Pigafetta wrote that
they found the first signs of gold in the island. They named the island with the nearby islands as the
archipelago of St. Lazarus. They left the island, then on March 25 th, Pigafetta recounted that they saw two
ballanghai (balangay), a long boat full of people in Mazavva/Mazua. The leader, who Pigafetta referred to
as the king of the ballanghai (balangay), sent his men to the ship of Magellan. The Europeans entertained
these men and gave them gifts. When the king of the balangay offered to give Magellan a bar of gold and a
chest of ginger, Magellan declined. Magellan sent the interpreter to the king and asked for money for the
needs of his ships and expressed that he came into the islands as a friend and not as an enemy. The king
responded by giving Magellan the needed provisions of food in chinaware. Magellan exchanged gifts of
robes in Turkish fashion, red cap, and gave the people knives and mirrors. The two then expressed their
desire to become brothers. Magellan also boasted of his men in armor who could not be struck with swords
and daggers. The king was fascinated and remarked that men in such armor could be worth one hundredof
his men. Magellan further showed the king his other weapons, helmets, and artilleries. Magellan also
shared with the king his charts and maps and shared how they found the islands.

After a few days, Magellan was introduced to the king’s brother who was also a king of another island. They
went to this island and Pigafetta reported that they saw mines of gold. The gold was abundant that parts of
the ship and of the house of the second king were made of gold. Pigafetta described this king as the most
handsome of all of the men that he saw in this place. He was also adorned with silk and gold accessories
like a golden dagger, which he carried with him in a wooden polished sheath. This king was named Raia
Calambu, king a Zuluan and Calagan (Butuan and Caragua), and the first king was Raia Siagu. On March
31st, which happened to be Easter Sunday, Magellan ordered the chaplain to preside a Mass by the shore.
The king head of this plan and sent two dead pigs and attented the Mass with the other king. Pigafetta
reported that both kings participated in the mass. He wrote:

“…when the offertory of the mass came, the two kings, went to kiss the cross like us, but they offered
nothing, and at the elevation of the body of our Lord they were kneeling like us, and adored our Lord with
joined hands.”

After the Mass, Magellan ordered that the cross be brought with nails and crown in place. Magellan
explained that the cross, the nail, and the crown were the signs of his emperor and that he was ordered to
plant it in the places that he would reach. Magellan further explained that the cross would be beneficial for
their people because once other Spaniards saw this cross, then they would know that they had been in this
land and would not cause them troubles, and any person who might be held captives by them would be
released. The king concurred and allowed for the cross to be planted. This Mass would go down in history
as the first Mass in the Philippines, and the cross would be the famed Magellan’s Cross still preserved at
present day.
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After seven days, Magellan and his men decided to move and look for islands where they could acquire
more supplies and provisions. They learned of the islands of Ceylon (Leyte), Bohol, and Zzubu (Cebu) and
intended to go there. Raia Calambu offered to pilot them in going to Cebu, the largest and the richest of the
islands. By April 7th of the same year, Magellan and his men reached the port of Cebu. The king of Cebu,
through Magellan’s interpreter, demanded that they pay tribute as it was customary, but Magellan refused.
Magellan said that he was a captain of a king himself and thus would not pay tribute to other kings.
Magellan’s interpreter explained to the king of Cebu that Magellan’s king was the emperor of a great empire
and that it would do them better to make friends with them than to forge enmity. The king of Cebu consulted
his council. By the next day, Magellan’s men and the king of Cebu, together with other principal men of
Cebu, met in an open space. There, the king offered a bit of his blood and demanded that Magellan do the
same. Pigafetta recounts:

“Then the king said that he was content, and as a greater sign of affection he sent him a little of his blood
from his right arm, and wished he should do the like. Our people answered that he would do it. Besides
that, he said that all the captains who came to his country had been accustomed to make a present to him,
and he to them, and therefore they should ask their captain if he would observe the custom. Our people
answered that he would; but as the king wished to keep up to the custom, let him begin and make a
present, and then the captain would do his duty.”

The following day, Magellan spoke before the people of Cebu about peace and God. Pigafetta reported that
the people took pleasure in Magellan’s speech. Magellan then asked the people who would succeed the
king after his reign and the people responded that the eldest child of the king, who happened to be a
daughter, would be the next in line. Pigafetta also related how the people talked about, how at old age,
parents were no longer taken into account and had to follow the orders of their children as the new leaders
of the land. Magellan responded to this by saying that his faith entailed children to render honor and
obedience to their parents. Magellan preached about their faith further and people were reportedly
convinced. Pigafetta wrote that their men were overjoyed seeing that the people wished to become
Christians through their free will and not because they were forced or intimidated.

On the 14th of April, the people gathered with the king and other principal men of the islands. Magellan
spoke to the king and encouraged him to be a good Christian by burning all of the idols and worship the
cross instead. The king of Cebu was then baptized as a Christian. Pigafetta wrote:

“To that the king and all his people answered that thy would obey the commands of the captain and do all
that he told them. The captain took the king by the hand, and they walked about on the scaffolding, and
when he was baptized he said that he would name him Don Charles (Carlos), as the emperor his sovereign
was named; and he named the prince Don Fernand (Fernando), after the brother of the emperor, and the
King of Mazavva, Jehan: to the Moor he gave the name of Christopher, and to the others each name of his
fancy.”

After eight days, Pigafetta counted that all of the island’s inhabitant were already baptized. He admitted that
they burned a village down for obeying neither the king nor Magellan. The Mass was conducted by the
shore every day. When the queen came to the Mass one day, Magellan gave her an image of the Infant
Jesus made by Pigafetta himself. The king of Cebu swore that he would always be faithful to Magellan.
When Magellan reiterated that all of the newly baptized Christians need to burn their idols but the natives
gave excuses telling Magellan that they needed the idols to heal a sick man who was a relative to the king.
Magellan insisted that they should instead put their faith in Jesus Christ. They went to the sick man and
baptized him. After the baptismal, Pigafetta recorded that the man was able to speak again. He called this a
miracle.

On the 26th of April, Zula, a principal man from the island of Matan (Mactan) went to see Magellan and
asked him for a boat full of men so that he would be able to fight the chief named Silapulapu (Lapulapu).

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Such chief, according to Zula, refused to obey the king and was also preventing him from doing so.
Magellan offered three boats instead and expressed his desire to go to Mactan himself to fight the said
chief. Magellan’s forces arrived in Mactan in daylight. They numbered 49 in total and the islanders of
Mactan were estimated to number 1,500. The battle began. Pigafetta recounted:

“When we reached land we found the islanders fifteen hundred in number, drawn up in three squadrons
attacking us on the flanks, the third in front. The captain then divided his men in two bands. Our
musketeers and crossbow-men fired for half an hour from a distance, but did nothing, since the bullets and
arrows, though they passed through their shields made of thin wood, and perhaps wounded their arms, yet
did not stop them. The captain shouted not to fire, but he was not listened to. The islanders seeing that the
shots of our guns did them little or no harm would not retire, but shouted more loudly, and springing from
one side to the other to avoid our shots, they at the same time drew nearer to us, throwing arrows, javelins,
spears hardened in fire, stones, and even mud, so that we could hardly defend ourselves. Some of them
cast lances pointed with iron at the captain-general.”

Magellan died in that battle. The natives, perceiving that the bodies of the enemies were protected with
armors, aimed for their legs instead. Magellan was pierced with a poisoned arrow in his right leg. A few of
their men charged at the natives and tried to intimidate them by burning an entire village but this only
enraged the natives further. Magellan was specifically targeted because the natives knew that he was the
captain general. Magellan was hit with a lance in the face. Magellan retaliated and pierced the same native
with his lance in the breast and tried to draw his sword but could not lift it because of his wounded arm.
Seeing that the captain has already deteriorated, more natives came to attack him. One native with a great
sword delivered a blow in Magellan’s left leg, brought him face down and the natives ceaselessly attacked
Magellan with lances, swords, and even with their bare hands. Pigafetta recounted the last moments of
Magellan:

“Whilst the Indians were thus overpowering him, several times he turned round towards us to see if we
were all in safety, as though his obstinate fight had no other object than to give an opportunity for the
retreat of his men.”

Pigafetta also said that the king of Cebu who was baptized could have sent help but Magellan instructed
him not to join the battle and stay in the balangay so that he would see how they fought. The king offered
the people of Mactan gifts of any value and amount in exchange of Magellan’s body but the chief refused.
They wanted to keep Magellan’s body as a memento of their victory.

Magellan’s men elected Duarte Barbosa as the new captain. Pigafetta also told how Magellan’s slave and
interpreter named Henry betrayed them and told the king of Cebu that they intended to leave as quickly as
possible. Pigafetta alleged that the slave told the king that if he followed the slave’s advice, then the king
could acquire the ships and the goods of Magellan’s fleet. The two conspired and betrayed what was left of
Magellan’s men. The king invited these men to a gathering where he said he would present the jewels that
he would send for the King of Spain. Pigafetta was not able to join the twenty-four men who attended
because he was nursing his battle wounds. It was only a short time when they heard cries and
lamentations. The natives had slain all of the men except the interpreter and Juan Serrano who was
already wounded. Serrano was presented and shouted at the men in the ship asking them to pay ransom
so he would be spared. However, they refused and would not allow anyone to go to the shore. The fleet
departed and abandoned Serrano. They left Cebu and continued their journey around the world.

Analysis of Pigafetta’s Chronicle

The chronicle of Pigafetta was one of the most cited documents by historians who wished to study the
precolonial Philippines. As one of the earliest written accounts, Pigafetta was seen as a credible source for
a period, which was prior unchronicled and undocumented. Moreover, being the earliest detailed
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documentation, it was believed that Pigafetta’s writings account for the “purest” precolonial society. Indeed,
Pigafetta’s work is of great importance in the study and writing of Philippine history. Nevertheless, there
needs to have a more nuanced reading of the source within a contextual backdrop. A student of history
should recognize certain biases accompanying the author and his identity, loyalties, and the circumstances
that he was in and how it affected the text that he produced. In the case of Pigafetta, the reader needs to
understand that he was a chronicler commissioned by the King of Spain to accompany and document a
voyage intended to expand the Spanish empire. He was also of noble descent who came from a rich family
in Italy. These attributes influenced his narrative, his selection of details to be included in the text, his
characterization of the people and of the species that he encountered, and his interpretation and retelling of
the events. Being a scholar of catography and geography, Pigafetta was able to give details on geography
and climate of the places that their voyage had reached.

In reading Pigafetta’s description of the people, one has to keep in mind that he was coming from a
sixteenth century European perspective. Hence, the reader might notice how Pigafetta, wheter implicitly or
explicitly, regarded the indigenous belief systems and way of life as inferior to that of Christianity and of the
Europeans. He would always remark on the nakedness of the natives or how he was fascinated by their
exotic culture. Pigafetta also noticeably emphasized the natives’ amazement and illiteracy to the European
artillery, merchandise, and other goods, in the same way that Pigafetta repeatedly mentioned the
abundance of spices like ginger, and of precious metals like gold. His observations and assessments of the
indigenous cultures employed the European standards. Hence, when they saw the indigenous attires of the
natives, Pigafetta saw them as being naked because from the European standpoint, they were wearing
fewer clothes indeed. Pigafetta’s perspective was too narrow to realize that such attire was only appropriate
to the tropical climate of the islands. The same was true for materials that the natives used for their houses
like palm and bamboo. These materials would let more air come through the house and compensate for the
hot climate in the islands.

It should be understood that such observations were rooted from the context of Pigafetta and of his era.
Europe, for example, was dominated by the Holy Roman Empire, whose loyalty and purpose was the
domination of the Catholic Chruch all over the world. Hence, other belief systems different from that of
Christianity were perceived to be blasphemous and barbaric, even demonic. Aside from this, the sisteenth
century European economy was mercantilist. Such system measures the wealth of kingdoms based on
their accumulation of bullions or precious metals like gold and silver. It was not surprising therefore that
Pigafetta would always mention the abundance of gold in the islands as shown in his description of leaders
wearing gold rings and golden daggers, one of the rich gold mines. An empire like that of the Spain would
indeed search for the new lands where they could acquire more gold and wealth to be on top of all the
European nation. The obsession with spices might be odd for Filipinos because of its ordinariness in the
Philippines, but understanding the context would reveal that spices were scarce in Europe and hence were
seen as prestige goods. In that era, Spain and Portugal coveted the control of Spice Islands because it
would have led to a certain increase in wealth, influence, and power. These contexts should be used and
understood in order to have a more qualified reading of Pigafetta’s account.

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The KKK and the “Kartilya ng Katipunan”2

The Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK) or Katipunan is arguably
the most important organization formed in the Philippine history. While anti-colonial movements, efforts,
and organizations had already been established centuries prior to the foundation of the Katipunan, it was
only this organization that envisioned (1) a united Filipino nation that would revolt against the Spaniards for
(2) the total independence of the country from Spain. Previous armed revolts had already occurred before
the foundation of the Katipunan, but none of them envisioned a unified Filipino nation revolting against the
colonizers. For example, Diego Silang was known as an Ilocano who took up his arms and led one of the
longest running revolts in the country. Silang, however was mainly concerned about his locality and
referred to himself as El Rey de Ilocos (The King of Ilocos), The imagination of the nation was largely
absent in the aspirations of the local revolts before Katipunan. On the other hand, the propaganda
movements led by the ilustrados like Marcelo H. del Pilar, Graciano Lopez Jaena, and Jose Rizal did not
envision a total separation of the Philippines from Spain, but only demanded equal rights, representation
and protection from the abuses of the friars.

In the conduct of their struggle, Katipunan created a complex structure and a defined value system that
would guide the organization as a collective aspiring for a single goal. One of the most important Katipunan
documents was the Kartilya ng Katipunan. The original title of the document was “Manga [sic] Aral Nang
[sic] Katipunan ng mga A.N.B.” or “Lessons of the Organization of the Sons of Country.” The document was
written by Emilio Jacinto in the 1896. Jacinto was only 18 years old when he joined the movement. He was
a law student at the Universidad de Santo Tomas. Despite his youth, Bonifacio recognized the value and
intellect of Jacinto that upon seeing that Jacinto’s Kartilya was much better than the Decalogue he wrote,
he willingly favored that the Kartilya be distributed to their fellow Katipuneros. Jacinto became the secretary
of the organization and took charge of the short-lived printing press of the Katipunan. On 15 April 1897,
Bonifacio appointed Jacinto as a commander of the Katipunan in Northern Luzon. Jacinto was 22 years old.
He died of Malaria at a young age of 24 in town of Magdalena, Laguna.

The Kartilya can be treated as the Katipunan’s code of conduct. It contains fourteen rules that instruct the
way a Katipunero should behave, and which specific values should he uphold. Generally, the rules stated in
the Kartilya can be classified into two. The first group contains the rules that will make the member an
upright individual and the second group contains the rules that will guide the way he treats his fellow men.

Below is the translated version of the rules in Kartilya:

I. The life that is not consecrated to a lofty and reasonable purpose is a tree without a shade, if
not a poisonous weed.
II. To do good for personal gain and not for its own sake is not virtue.
III. It is rational to be charitable and love one’s fellow creature, and to adjust one’s conduct, acts
and words to what is in itself reasonable.
IV. Whether our skin be black or white, we are all born equal: superiority in knowledge, wealth and
beauty are to be understood, but not superiority by nature.
V. The honorable man prefers honor to personal gain; the scoundrel, gain to honor.
VI. To the honorable man, his word is sacred.
VII. Do not waste thy time: wealth can be recovered but not time lost.
VIII. Defend the oppressed and fight the oppressor before the law or in the field.
IX. The prudent man is sparing in words and faithful in keeping secrets.
X. On the thorny path of life, man is the guide of woman and the children, and if the guide leads to
the precipice, those whom he guides will also go there.

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 XI. Thou must not look upon woman as a mere plaything, but as a faithful companion who will
share with thee the penalties of life; her (physical) weakness will increase thy interest in her
and she will remind thee of the mother who bore thee and reared thee.
XII. What thou does not desire done unto thy wife, children, brothers and sisters, that do not unto
the wife, children, brothers and sisters of thy neighbor.
XIII. Man is not worth more because he is a king, because his nose is aquiline, and his color white,
not because he is a priest, a servant of God, nor because of the high prerogative that he
enjoys upon earth, but he is worth most who is a man of proven and real value, who does
good, keeps his words, is worthy and honest; he who does not oppress nor consent to being
oppressed, he who loves and cherishes his fatherland, though he be born in the wilderness
and know no tongue but his own.
XIV. When these rules of conduct shall be known to all, the longed-for sun of Liberty shall rise
brilliant over this most unhappy portion of the globe and its rays shall diffuse everlasting joy
among the confederated brethren of the same rays, the live of those who have gone before,
the fatigues and the well-paid sufferings will remain. If he who desires to enter has informed
himself of all this and believes he will be able to perform what will be his duties, he may fill out
the application for admission.

As the primary governing document, which determines the rules of conduct in the Katipunan, properly
understanding the Kartilya will thus help in understanding the values, ideals, aspirations, and even the
ideology of the organization.

Analysis of the “Kartilya ng Katipunan”

Similar to what we have done to the accounts of Pigafetta, this primary source also needs to be analyzed in
terms of content and context. As a document written for a fraternity whose main purpose is to overthrow a
colonial regime, we can explain the content and provisions of the Kartilya as a reaction and response to
certain value systems that they found despicable in the present state of things that they struggled against
with. For example, the fourth and the thirteenth rules in the Kartilya are an invocation of the inherent
equality between and among men regardless of race, occupation, or status. In the context of the Spanish
colonial era where the indios were treated as the inferior of the white Europeans, the Katipunan saw to it
that the alternative order that they wished to promulgate through their revolution necessarily destroyed this
kind of unjust hierarchy.

Moreover, one can analyze the values upheld in the document as consistent with the burgeoning rational
and liberal ideals in the eighteenth and nineteenth century. Equality, tolerance, freedom, and liberty were
values that first emerged in the eighteenth century French Revolution, which spread throughout Europe and
reached the educated class of the colonies. Jacinto, an illustrado himself, certainly got an understanding of
these values. Aside from the liberal values that can be dissected in the document, we can also decipher
certain Victorian and chivalrous values in the text. For example, various provisions in the Kartilya
repeatedly emphasized the importance of honor in words and in action. The teaching of the Katipunan on
how women should be treated with honor and respect, while positive in many respects and certainly a
significant stride from the practice of raping and physically abusing women, can still be telling of the
Katipunan’s secondary regard for women in relation to men. For example, in the tenth rule, the document
specifically stated that men should be the guide of women and children, and that he should set a good
example, otherwise the women and the children would be guided in the path of evil. Nevertheless, the
same document stated that women should be treated as companions by men and not as playthings that
can be exploited for their pleasure.

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In the contemporary eyes, the Katipunan can be criticized because of these provisions. However, one must
not forget the context where the organization was born. Not even in Europe or in the whole of the West at
that juncture recognized the problem of gender inequality. Indeed, it can be argued that Katipunan’s
recognition of women as important partners in the struggle, as reflected not just in Kartilya but also in the
organizational structure of the fraternity where a women’s unit was established, is an endeavor advanced
for its time. Aside from Rizal’s known Letter to the Women of Malolos, no same effort by the supposed
cosmopolitan Propaganda Movement was achieved until the movement’s eventual disintegration in the
latter part of the 1890s.

Aside from this, the Kartilya was instructive not just of the Katipunan’s conduct toward other people, but
also for the members’ development as individuals in their own rights. Generally speaking, the rules in the
Kartilya can be classified as either directed to how one should treat his neighbor or to how one should
develop and conduct one’s self. Both are essential to the success and fulfillment of the Katipunan’s ideals.
For example, the Kartilya’s teaching on honoring one’s word and not wasting time are teachings directed
toward self-development, while the rules on treating the neighbor’s wife, children, and brothers the way that
you want yours to be treated is an instruction on how Katipuneros should treat and regard their neighbors.

All in all, proper reading of the Kartilya will reveal a more thorough understanding of the Katipunan and the
significant role that it played in the revolution and in the unfolding of the Philippine history, as we know it.

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 NAME: DATE:
COURSE/ YEAR: SCORE:

IV.WRAP-UP

ACTIVITY 1
Directions: Identify a primary source in Philippine history from the examples provided in this module. Write an essay
discussing (1) the importance of the text, (2) the background of the text’s author, (3) the context of the document, and
(4) the text’s contribution to understanding Philippine History.

10 | M o d u l e 2 R e a d i n g s i n t h e P h i l i p p i n e H i s t o r y
 V. Evaluation Tool
Outputs will be evaluated using the rubric below.

NEEDS
VERY GOOD GOOD POOR
IMPROVEMT

INTRODUTION Define the Problem Introductory Introduction does Introduction

Background Well-developed paragraph contains not adequately was not
introductory some background explain the presented. (0
paragraph contains information and background of the points)
detailed background states the problem, problem. The
information, a clear but does not explain problem is stated,
explanation or using details. (4 but lacks detail. (2
definition of the points) points)
problem. (5 points)

BODY Main Argument is well Argument was Argument was Argument was
PARAGRAPHS developed with presented with presented but lacks not presented.
supporting examples. some supporting examples. (2 (0 points)
(5 points) examples. (4 points)
points)

CONCLUSION Conclusion was Conclusion was Conclusion was Conclusion

presented. Opinions presented. Some presented but no was not
and suggestions for suggestions for suggestions for presented.
change are logical change are evident. change and/or
and well thought out. (4 points) opinions are (0 points)
(5 points) included.

(2 points)

11 | M o d u l e 2 R e a d i n g s i n t h e P h i l i p p i n e H i s t o r y
 NAME: DATE:
COURSE/ YEAR: SCORE:

V.BOOST UP YOUR LEARNING

A. TRUE OR FALSE: Please read and answer each item carefully. Read the directions first before
answering each questions. Failure to follow will result in point reduction. Write TRUE if the statement is
correct. If false, underline the word(s) that makes the statement wrong and write the correct answer.

________1. Non-written documents are not useful as primary sources in conducting historical research.
________2. Apolinario Mabini penned the “Kartilya ng Katipunan”
________3. Magellan and his fleet received a warm welcome from all of the chieftains and local leaders in
the Philippine Islands.
________4. The forces of Magellan were successful in defeating and conquering Lapulapu.
________5. Emilio Jacinto is known as the Father of Revolution.

B. IDENTIFICATION.

__________________1. A Philippine revolutionary society founded by anti-Spanish colonialism Filipinos in

Manila in1892.
__________________2. It refers to educated Filipinos during the Spanish Period.
__________________3. It serves as the guidebook for the organization as a collective aspiring for a single
goal.
__________________4. He wrote the Decalogue of Katipunan.
__________________5. A person who writes accounts of important or historical events.

C. ESSAY.

1. What was the importance of Magellan’s expedition?

REMINDER

You have now reached the end of Module 2. Before you proceed to the next module, make
sure you have completed the activities and assessment.

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