Unit III.

Nation and Nationalism

Justin Francis Bionat, MA
College of Arts & Sciences, West Visayas State University
Outline of Topics

❖ Nation and Nationalism

❖ Emerging Nationalism
❖ Imagining a Nation
❖ Jose Rizal and Heroic Traditions: A Sense
of National Identity by Pablo S Trillana
III
I. State, Nation, and Nation Building
Defining the State

● The term State refers to the political structure of an organized community

that lives under a government. The state is related to but not synonymous to
government and country, which refer to elements that compose the state.
● The elements of the state include:
○ Population - refers to the people that compose the state.
○ Territory - refers to the place where the people that compose the state are located, and
includes, land, natural resources and airspace.
○ Government - the institution empowered by the people to control and administer the state.
○ Sovereignty - ability of the state to conduct its affairs and enact its authority without
interference from outside forces.
Understanding Nationhood

● A nation is a large group of people who share common characteristics such

as language, traditions, and ethnicity.
● The people that comprise a nation also share a common culture and history.
● They also identify themselves as a distinct and unified group, with common
interests and aspirations.
● In modern political discourse, the nation is considered a political and
cultural entity and is often studies alongside the state.
The Emergence of Nationhood

● The emergence of the nation is closely tied with the concept of identity and
ethnicity.
● People primarily identify their belongingness to a community based on
ethnicity determined by similarities in physical traits, language, traditions,
and beliefs.
● In the Philippines, many communities come together to form large
ethnoliguistic groups such as the Tagalog, Ilocano, Bicolano, Hiligaynon,
Waray, Tausug or Maranaw.
● Over the centuries, the varied ethnoliguistic groups in our country have come
together through common experiences, struggles, and aspirations, and have
identified themselves as a single Filipino nation.
The Emergence of Nationhood

● The historian Benedict Anderson describes the nation as “an imagined

political community… [that is] both inherently limited and sovereign.”
● The sense of nationhood is considered an idea or feeling among like-minded
individuals who share the same background and identity.
● Nations often identify a certain territory as their domain, and nations
throughout history have emerged, vanished, or assimilated with other
nations.
● Achieving nationhood is a lengthy process as cultural, historical, social and
political factors all come into play in the formation of a nation.
The Emergence of Nationhood

● Many states throughout the world have a single national identity, and that
identity is reinforced and further developed by the state through nation
building.
● One example of nation building in the Philippines is Pre. Manuel L. Quezon’s
decision to create a national language for the Philippines in 1937. By virtue
of an executive order, President Quezon identified Tagalog as the basis of a
national language that will be developed and used by all citizens of the
Philippines. This national language was later on called Filipino.
II. Emerging Nationalism
Emerging Nationalism

● When Rizal published El Filibusterismo in 1891, he dedicated the book to the

three martyred priests, GOMBURZA. In his dedication, he wrote:
“I have the right to dedicate my work to you as victims of the evil
which I undertake to combat. And while we await expectantly upon
Spain some day to restore your good name and cease to be
answerable for your death, let these pages serve as a tardy wreath
of dried leaves over your unknown tombs, and let it be understood
that every one who without clear proofs attacks your memory
stains his hands in your blood!”
Cavite Mutiny

● On January 20, 1872, approximately 250 Filipino soldiers and workers rose
in revolt at an arsenal in Cavite. Eleven Spaniards were killed during the
mutiny, but an immediate assault led by government forces put an end to the
uprising after three days.
● An oft-cited reason for the mutiny was a decree released by
Governor-General Izquierdo. The decree ordered that the arsenal workers
would no longer be exempt from the tributo* and polo, a privilege they had
enjoyed in the past.
○ *tributo - system of taxation imposed by the Spanish colonial government on the Filipinos in
order to generate resources for the maintenance of the colony.
Cavite Mutiny

● Unfortunately, the mutiny failed and the Spanish government used the
incident as a means to suppress the increasing calls for a more liberal
administration.
● As a result of the revolt in Cavite, several priests and laymen were arrested
on the orders of Governor-General Izquierdo.
● Among those who clamoured for reforms were Filipino secular priests. To
understand how the Filipino secular priests became involved in the Cavite
Mutiny of 1872, a brief historical background on missionary efforts in the
Philippines shall first be discussed.
Secularization Movement

● The introduction and the strengthening of the Catholic faith were largely
through the efforts of two types of clergy: the regular priests and the secular
priests.
● The regular clergy, whose jurisdiction fell on their elected prelates, were
better prepared for missionary work because of their standards of discipline
and asceticism.
● In the Philippines, five religious orders took on this task: the Augustinians
who arrived in 1565, the Discalced Franciscans who arrived in 1578, the
Jesuits who arrived in 1581, the Dominicans who arrived in 1587, and the
Augustinian Recollects who arrived in 1606.
Secularization Movement

● The introduction and the strengthening of the Catholic faith were largely
through the efforts of two types of clergy: the regular priests and the secular
priests.
● The regular clergy, whose jurisdiction fell on their elected prelates, were
better prepared for missionary work because of their standards of discipline
and asceticism.
● In the Philippines, five religious orders took on this task: the Augustinians
who arrived in 1565, the Discalced Franciscans who arrived in 1578, the
Jesuits who arrived in 1581, the Dominicans who arrived in 1587, and the
Augustinian Recollects who arrived in 1606.
Secularization Movement

● The secular clergy, on the other hand, were priests who “live in the world”.
They were under the authority of bishops and not members of a religious
order. Their primary task was the management of the religious communities
and ideally, the continuation of the work already laid down by the regular
clergy.
● Two issues were particularly contentious among the clergy in the
Philippines.
○ Episcopal Visitations
○ Management of the parishes
Execution of GOMBURZA

● Although the public execution of the three priests was meant to instill fear in
the Filipinos, it had the opposite effect. In his work, La Revolucion Filipina,
Apolinario Mabini stated:
“The friars wanted to make an example of Burgos and his companions so that the Filipinos
should be afraid to go against them from then on. But that patent injustice, that official crime,
aroused not fear but hatred of the friars and of the regime that supported them, and a profound
sympathy and sorrow for the victims. This sorrow worked a miracle: it made the Filipinos
realize their condition for the first time. Conscious of pain, and this conscious of life, they
asked themselves what kind of a life they lived. The awakening was painful, and working to
stay alive more painful still, but one must live, How? They did not know, and the desire to know,
the anxiety to learn, overwhelmed and took possession of the youth of the Philippines. The
curtain of ignorance woven diligently for centuries was rent at last: fiat lux, let there be light,
would not be long in coming, the dawn of a new day was nearing.”
III. Imagining a Nation
Imagining a Nation

● Towards the end of the nineteenth century, economic conditions in the Philippines
had improved in such a way that it was possible for many creole* and mestizo
families to send their sons to school not only in Manila, but also in Europe. The
young Filipino students’ sojourn to the Peninsula would awaken in their minds
ideas about progress and love for their motherland.
● The young students also observed a difference in the position of the Church in
Spain. While the Constitution of 1876 declared Catholicism as the religion of the
state, private practice of other religions was tolerated. More significantly, the
Church had little influence on political matters.
*creole - a Spaniard born in the Philippines
Imagining a Nation

● The earliest attempt to unite Filipinos studying in Spain was the formation of
the Circulo Hispano-Filipino, an organization under the leadership of a creole,
Juan Atayde.It had the support of Spaniards who were sympathetic towards
Filipinos. The Circulo published a bi-weekly newspaper titled Revista del
Circulo Hispano-Filipino in 1882, but the newspaper and the organization
itself were short-lived and lasted only until 1883.
Imagining a Nation

● In 1882, a periodical called Los Dos Mundos came out with the intention of
demanding for the overseas Hispanic colonies equality of rights and equal
opportunities for progress. Although it could not be determined whether the
newspaper was a Filipino project, Filipinos such as Graciano Lopez Jaena
and Pedro Govantes y Azcarraga were involved as staff members. Other
Filipinos including Rizal and Eduardo de Lete also contributed articles
concerned with socio-political and economic reforms in the Philippines.
Imagining a Nation

● During the time Rizal’s first novel, Noli me Tangere, came out in 1887,
another newspaper titled Espana en Filipinas began its publication through
the support of Filipinos, creoles, and mestizos in Madrid. The newspaper
was short-lived as well because of glaring differences and internal feuding
among its staff. With the end of the newspaper emerged a stronger Filipino
community united in its purpose to continue working for Filipino rights.
Imagining a Nation

● By January 1889, the Filipino community in Barcelona began preparations

for the publication of a new periodical. Among the early supporters who
helped with finances were Mariano Ponce and Pablo Rianzares. On the other
hand, Graciano Lopez Jaena offered his services as editor. Marcelo H. del
Pilar, having arrived from Manila at this time, also joined the efforts.
● The newspaper, La Solidaridad, released its first issue on February 15, 1889.
In its first article, the staff defined its program as, “to combat all reaction, to
impede all retrogression, to applaud and accept every liberal idea, to defend
all progress.”
Imagining a Nation

● Among the reforms the newspaper sought were: Philippine representation in

the Cortes, freedom of press, and the end of the practice of exiling residents
without due process.
● La Solidaridad often ran articles dealing with Spanish politics, attacks on
friars, and reforms for the Philippines.
● Support for the newspaper gradually increased and its roster of writers
grew. Among those who eventually contributed articles were Jose Rizal,
Antonio Luna, and Ferdinand Blumentritt.
Imagining a Nation

● The periodical continued to publish only until 1895. Because of lack of funds
and internal feuding, the newspaper released its final issue on November 15,
1895. In its final issue, its editor, del Pilar, had written, “We are persuaded
that no sacrifices are too little to win the rights and the liberty of a nation
that is oppressed by slavery.”
IV. Jose Rizal and Heroic Traditions: A Sense of
National Identity by Pablo S Trillana III
The Ilustrado Paradigm

● By the mid-nineteenth century, there emerged the ilustrado, a new wealthy

social class made up of the scions of mestizo and principalia families.
Mostly schooled in Europe, where they imbibed Western liberal ideas that
opened their eyes to the inequities in their homeland, they initiated the
clamor for reforms.
● Eventually, they sought freedom from colonial rule, and in the process gave
birth to the idea of a Filipino nation. History remembers them as the first
Filipinos.
The Ilustrado Paradigm

● This emerging Filipinism was earlier articulated by Rizal in El Filibusterismo.

Addressing Basilo, Simoun said:
“You ask parity of rights, the Spanish way of life, and you do not realize that
what you are asking is death, the destruction of your national identity, the
disappearance of your homeland, the ratification of tyranny. What is to
become of you? A people without a soul, a nation without freedom;
everything in you will be borrowed even your defects.”
The Ilustrado Paradigm

● In this respect, Rizal echoed the aspirations of Filipinos on the other

end of the social spectrum - the dispossessed, unlettered and
abused indios who expressed their dreams for their native land
through the simple language of their faith. Their concept of
kalayaan (freedom) sprang from a fervent longing to restore laya
and layaw, a life of nurture made possible by a caring Motherland.
The Ilustrado Paradigm

● Ultimately, by word and example, Rizal made it perfectly clear what

Filipinos must do: build a nation of both moral and material worth.
His vision for the people across the archipelago was not only
patriotic and separatist - it was also holistic and transforming.
● Rizal gave up his life, symbolically planting the banner that rallied
Filipinos to claim the future he foresaw for them. His sacrifice
inspired the Philippine Revolution against Spain.
● In declaring our independence in 1898 and establishing the Malolos
Republic in 1899, we became the forerunners of the freedom
movement in all of colonized Asia.
Toward a Sense of National Destiny

● Nationalism and purity of heart go hand-in-hand in the Philippine

context of spirituality. In his Dekalogo, Andres Bonifacio equated
love of the native land as the purest form of homage to God:
“Gunamgunamin sa sarili tuwina na ang matapat na
pagsampalataya sa Kanya ay ang pag-ibig sa lupang tinubuan
sapagkat ito ang tunay na pag-ibig sa kapwa.”
Toward a Sense of National Destiny

● In the words of Corrin McLaughlin and Gordon Davidson:

The Soul of each nation holds the inner pattern for the nation’s
development. This includes its historical unfoldment; integration of major
ethnic and racial constituencies; understanding of national karmic issues
that need to be lived through and resolved; fulfillment of its higher purpose;
and, ultimately, self-transcendence and identification with the whole.”
References/Sources

● “The Life and Works of Jose Rizal”, Rhodalyn Wani-Obias, Aaron Abel Mallari,
and Janet Reguindin-Estella, 2018
● “Philippine Politics and Governance for Senior High School”, Arnel E. Joven,
2017
● “Rizal and Heroic Traditions: A Sense of National Destiny”, Pablo S. Trillana,
III, 2006