1.

What were the most important economic changes in the Philippines during the 19 th

century? Explain your answer.

The most important economic changes in the Philippines are inarguably the elimination
of the restrictive Mercantilist policy of not allowing Philippines to trade with other
countries which resulted to the opening of the Philippines’ trading power and by
extension its many ports such as Manila, Iloilo, Cebu, Sual, Pampanga and Zamboanga
for exportation to not just Spain and Mexico but also to other foreign merchants such as
the British and the Germans. This paved the way for Philippines to use handsomely their
cherished lands for business as the Philippines has rich and fertile lands which grew out
of it agricultural products that other countries want like sugar, coffee, abaca, tobacco,
dyestuff, rice, and many more.

 By 1834, this mercantilist policy of not allowing the Philippines to trade with
other countries was scrapped with the opening of Manila to world trade.
 Other ports in the colony like Iloilo; Cebu; Sual, Pangasinan; and Zamboanga
followed.
 There was brisk demand for Philippine products such as sugar, coffee, abaca,
tobacco, dyestuff, and rice.

2. How did these economic changes affect the lives of Filipinos during that time?

This economic changes of liberalizing the Philippines to be able to trade with other
foreign merchants such as the British and Germans has made it easy for the Filipinos
back then to get rich quick and take advantage of the lands that they have which by
time enough this growth of commercial agriculture made many affluent families and the
formation of the middle class.

In this rising of the people’s lifestyle and status from commoners to being middle class,
out of it made these hardworking people to go gain and have some more respect for
themselves buying themselves better houses and sending their children to colleges and
universities for tertiary education inevitably awakening the ignorance of the children to
the world which made these children be more seeking and aspiring with the proper
rights, respect, treatment, and welfare of their fellow Filipino who has been treated
badly in their own nation upon the education of their minds Eventually, the quest for
equality became the cry of the times upon the growth and development of the people
as they recognize the atrocities they face and the proper treatment they deserve.

 The growth of commercial agriculture resulted in the appearance of a new class.

 This created economic opportunities as many families began trading these products for
the international market. These families were mostly mestizos consisting of Spanish and
Chinese families. They intermarried with natives who were farmers that became traders.
 In the process, they became more affluent and formed the nucleus of the middle class.
 The increased wealth allowed middle-class families to have better houses and sent their
children to colleges and universities for tertiary education. They obtained higher
education degrees which they thought made them equal with the Spaniards.
 Eventually, they became concerned with issues of equality including secularization.
 By the time of Rizal's youth, the quest for equality was the cry of the times. It influenced
Rizal throughout his life and it became his lifelong quest.

3. Based on your personal assessment, how were these events in the 19 century crucial to
th

the formation of Rizal’s love for his country?

These events were especially crucial to the formation of Rizal’s love for his country as
these economic changes led to the growth and development of the Filipinos with the
rise in foreign capital and trade with other foreign merchants which enriched commerce
in the Philippines that benefited Rizal’s family later on as clearly explicated in history as
Rizal’s family was pretty affluent compared to the commoners which is why he was able
to go to elite schools and universities and later on be able to go overseas for work and
education also. These economic changes also made the people to be more seeking in
having higher status and position in the society as they have been held down and
treated badly for by the Spaniards for so long paving the way for people to have thought
leaders at that time who preaches or promotes the coveted equality and good welfare
of the Filipinos. These economic changes of interacting with other foreign merchants
have also led to Filipinos having more interaction and business with other foreigners
which has expanded the Filipinos’ mind to being respected and be on equal footing with
these other foreigners as well.

 These events were crucial to the formation of Rizal's love for his country because he
observed the many injustices which were being done to the Filipinos.
 He observed in his childhood and sophomore years how the Filipinos were being
deprived of their religious rights. He also observed that the Filipinos had to live
depending on the government which did not care about them.
 All these events led Rizal to form his essay love for his country.
4. Reflect on the importance of a person’s context and his or her awareness of the various
problems in society. What are the different problems in your community today? How do
these problems affect your daily life? How can these problems be addressed by an
ordinary student or a citizen? 

It is very important for a person to have context and awareness of the various problems
in society as that is what is what makes us see the world in a light that clears up how
things move in the world as a worldview is necessary to navigate this world in terms of
avoiding dangers, making proper decisions, having goals, and being inspired to help
society and bring out your talents to the fold and to the test for such challenges dealt in
us in the world.

The different problems in my community that I see today are the ongoing pandemic that
still continues to ravage the social norms that we were once privy to before like freedom
of movement, and freedom of social interaction which resulted to people having a
sadder outlook in their daily lives as brought about by the apparent continuing symbol
of people social distancing and wearing masks. This problem affect me in the fact that it
affects every other person in my community and that I too suffer the consequences of
the lockdown restrictions of moving and interacting around that which affects me in
hindrance of knowing and approaching people.

Another problem that I see today in my community is still of course the poverty as still is
seen in every places in the Philippines as we are after all still a developing third world
country that with the pandemic with its grave implications of lockdowns and restrictions
has sadly made it hard for small business owners particularly to hold on, deter the
losses, avoid firing of employees and closing down shop. This problem affects me in that
it is a saddening sight to see homeless people who beg for money in the streets and that
pains me to see it as I see that our government still fails to treat and take care of
beggars in the street with all the billions of funds they have.

Another problem that I see today in my community is the inflation of basic products like
electricity, gas and food which makes it very hard for people to buy anything they want
nowadays as their disposable income becomes lesser and lesser. This problem affects
me in that with the high prices of basic goods, it affects other products as well and it is
very disadvantageous and negative to me as I am still a student and I have limited
resources with many things to want to buy.

Another problem that I see in the community is pollution as I still see litters of garbage
being thrown upon in random places by irresponsible people which denigrates the
beauty of the surroundings and invites others to do more pollution which is bad for the
environment as these trashes could clog down on sewages in times of rain and flood.
This problem affects me in that pollution pollutes the soil which is very harmful to
humans as it attracts pests in there, pollutes the air as the pollution creates a foul smell
and toxic air, and pollutes the water as the particulates and dirt dissolves into water
which circulates with other bodies of water as well that could harm me in the long run.

As a citizen and a simple citizen of this humble country, I can address the problem of
pandemic through the promotion of proper treatments like strengthening the immune
system of people with vitamins, nutritious foods, exercising, getting enough daily
sunlight, getting sufficient sleep, and also encouraging early treatments for people who
get the virus so as to avoid getting hospitalized. Also by following the protocols and
being a responsible person in that I can agree to do so as to have a smooth operation
and not to cause more troubles.

In the problem of poverty, I can somehow address this by being responsible in my

expenses and working to earn more through decent revenues with sheer effort and will
so as I can be able to share some of my blessings and be charitable to people in need.
In the problem of inflation of basic goods and services, I can address this by being
minimalist and essentialist in buying things so as I can manage my finances and
surgically spend off my money into the things that will bring ease, convenience, and
growth into my life. In the problem of pollution, I can address this by cleaning up things
unprompted that catch my attention even a simple plastic bottle so as to even a little bit
create a more beautiful surroundings and environment for all people in the surrounding
area there. I can also clean up my own surroundings in my house and cultivate my
garden and plant so as to help contribute in making a greener and cleaner air and
environment.