Rizal’s Family, Childhood

and Education
 The Birth of Jose Rizal
• Jose Rizal was born on June 19, 1861 in
Calamba, Laguna.
• He was baptized by Rev. Rufino Collantes.
• He was baptized at Catholic Church of
Calamba, Laguna.
Rizal House in Calamba
• He was baptized on June 22, 1861.
• His godfather was Rev. Pedro Casañas.
• He was named “Jose” by his pious
mother, in honor of St. Joseph.
• His full name was Jose Protacio Rizal
Mercado y Alonso Realonda. Catholic Church of Calamba
2
 Parents
• Francisco Mercado Rizal was
born in Biñan, Laguna .
• He was born on May 11, 1818.
• He died in Manila.
• He died on January 5, 1898
• He died at the age of 80.
• He was an educated farmer
having studied Latin and
Philosophy.
• He studied at College of San
Jose in Manila.
Don Francisco • He married TeodoraAlonzo
Realonda on June 28, 1848.
3
 • Teodora Alonzo Realonda
was born in Manila.
• She was born on November
8, 1826.
• She died in Manila.
• She died on August 16,
1911.
• She died at the age of 85.
• She was a talented woman
with high culture, business
ability and literary gift.
• She studied at Sta. Rosa
College. Doña Teodora
4
 The Rizal Siblings

2. Paciano (1851-1930)
during the Philippine
Revolution, Paciano became a 3. Narcisa (1852-1939)
1. Saturnina (1850-1913) revolutionary general and retired
married to Antonio
married to Manuel T. to farming after the conflict. Lopez, a teacher from
Hidalgo of Tanauan, Though he was thought to be a Morong, Rizal.
Batangas. bachelor during his life, he
actually had his own family.
5
 6. Maria (1859-1945)
4. Olympia (1855-1887) married to Daniel
married to Silvestre
5. Lucia (1857-1919) Faustino Cruz of
Ubaldo, a telegraph
married to Mariano Binan, Laguna.
operator from Manila.
Herbosa of Calamba.

6
 7. Jose (1861-1896)

8. Concepcion (1862-1865)
died at the age of 3.

10. Trinidad (1868-1951)

a member of Katipunan,
unmarried

9. Josefa (1865-1945) head 11.Soledad (1870-1929)

of the women chapter of married to Pantaleo
the Katipunan, died Quintero of Calamba.
7
unmarried.
 The Ancestry of Rizal
• Jose Rizal was of mixed ancestry.
• His paternal great great grand
father, Domingo Lam-co was a
Chinese.
• Rizal’s ancestor was Lakan-Dula,
last Malayan king of Tondo.
• Eugenio Ursua of Japanese blood,
his maternal great great grand
Lakan-Dula
father.
8
 The Name “Rizal”
• The original name of the Rizal
family was “Mercado”.
• In english it means ‘market’.
• Governor Narciso Claveria
ordered all Filipino families to
choose new surnames from a list
of Spanish surnames, in 1848.
• Francisco Mercado chose to use
the term “Rizal” that came from
the Spanish word ‘Ricial’.
• It means green field or new
Governor Narciso Claveria pasture.
9
 The Name “Rizal”
• Jose was the first in the family to use the surname
“Rizal” dropping his second last name “Mercado” when
he enrolled at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila in 1872.

• This was done to dissociate himself from Paciano who

was linked to the martyred Filipino priests Mariano
Gomez, Jose Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora (GOMBURZA).

• At that time, Paciano was under surveillance by the

Spanish authorities.

10
 The Rizal Family
• The Rizal family was one of the
richest family in Calamba.
• They were the first to build a large
stone house in Calamba, the first to
own a carruaje (horse drawn carriage). Carruaje of Rizal Family
• First to have a home library (estimated
to consist of more than one thousand
volumes).
• The first to educate their children
in the colleges of Manila.
11
 • The Rizal family raised rice, corn and
sugar on large tracts of land rented from
the Dominican Estate of Calamba.
• It operated a sugar mill, flour
mill, and a homemade ham
press.
• Rizal family was highly esteemed and
respected.
• They participated in all social and Dominican Friars with Indios

religious activities in the

community.
• Don Francisco and Doña Teodora were
gracious hosts to all.

12
 The Rizal Home
• The house of the Rizal family was
one of the distinguished stone houses
in Calamba.
• It was rectangular in shape, of
adobe stone and hard wood with a
red tiled roof.
• Behind it were the poultry yard
full of turkeys and chickens
and the garden of tropical fruit
trees.
13
14
 • It was a happy home where
parental affection and
children’s laughter reigned.

• Both parents and children

were harmoniously united by
strong ties of affection and
understanding.
Doña Teodora and her two
daughters.
• Such a wholesome home,
naturally, bred a wholesome
family and such a family was
the Rizal family.
15
 Rizal’s Life, Works and Writings
in His Childhood Days
Artistic Talents:
• He carved figures of animals and persons out of wood.
• In his room, he kept many statuettes which he made out
of clay and wax.
• Even before he learned how to read, he could already
sketch pictures of birds, flowers, rivers, mountains,
animals and persons.
• Aside from painting, sketching, sculpture and wood-
carving, Jose had a gift for magic.

16
 Rizal’s Life, Works and Writings
in His Childhood Days
Prodigy of the Pen:
• The first poem that he wrote was a
Tagalog entitled “Sa Aking Mga
Kabata” (To my fellow children)

• Before he was eight years old he wrote

a Tagalog drama. This drama was
staged in Calamba in connection with
the town fiesta.

17
 Earliest Childhood Memories
• Happy days in the garden when he was
three years old.

• The little nipa cottage built by his

father for him to play in daytime.

• Watching different birds singing and

A Replica of Rizal's Bahay
listening “with wonder and joy” to their Kubo in his hometown in
twilight songs. Calamba, Laguna. Made
by his father.

• The daily Angelus prayer by nightfall.

18
 • The stories of his Yaya (maid) to the Rizal children
about fairies, tales of buried treasure, and other legends
and folklore, arousing Rizal’s interest.

• Evidence of his love for Calamba was his poem Un Recuerdo

A Mi Pueblo (In Memory of My Town), which he wrote
when he was fifteen years old and studying at Ateneo.

• Rizal was closest to his older brother, Paciano, whom he

consider as his second father. Their bond was stronger than
mere blood brotherhood.

• In 1865, Concha (Concepcion), died of sickness when she

was only three years old. The death of his little sister brought
him his first sorrow.
19
 Devoted Son of Church
• At age three, he began to take part in the family
prayers.
• At age five, he was able to read haltingly the
Spanish family Bible.
• He loved to go to church, to pray, to take part in
novenas, and to join the religious processions.
• Evidence of his fervent Catholic spirit is seen in
the poems which he wrote during his boyhood,
such as El Niño Jesus (1876), La Alianza Entre
La Religion y La Buena Educacion (1876), and
A La Virgen Maria (no date).
20
 • He started his life as a student in the
Ateneo in June, 1872 with a prayer,
continued it with daily prayers, and
ended it with a prayer.

• Father Leoncio Lopez was the town

priest in Calamba, whom he
esteemed and respected.
Fr. Leoncio Lopez
• He used to visit him and listen to
his stimulating opinions on current
events and sound philosophy of
life.
21
 Pilgrimage toAntipolo (June 6, 1868)
 He left Calamba with his father in order to fulfil his mother’s vow
which was made when Jose was born.
 His mother couldn’t come with them because she had just given
birth to Trinidad.
 It was his first trip across Laguna de Bay and his first pilgrimage to
Antipolo.
 They rode a casco (barge), and was thrilled by his first voyage.
 He didn’t sleep the whole night because he was awed by “the
magnificence of the watery expanse and the silence of the night.”

Old Antipolo Church

22
 Old Virgin of Antipolo Altar La Condordia College
• After prayer at the Shrine of the Virgin of Antipolo,
Jose and his father went to Manila.

• It was the first time he visited Manila.

• They went to Santa Ana and visited Saturnina, who

was then a student in La Condordia College.
23
 First Education From Mother
• At the age of three, Jose learned the
alphabet and the prayers from her.
• She was patient and loving, but
strict as a tutor. When he
misbehaved, she spanked him with
her slipper.
• She encouraged him to write poems.
• Year later, in retrospection of his
childhood memories, he wrote:
“Surely, a man owes everything to
his mother, next to God.”
24
 The Story of the Moth
• Story was about a young moth who was
told by his mother not to go near to the
light.
However the little moth did not
listen. It flew too near the flame
which caught its wings and caused
its death.
- Jose came to a lesson that what
parents tell and give their children is
all for their good and not to listen to
them may cause them harm.
25
 The Story of the Moth
• Of the stories told by Dona Teodora to Jose, that of the
young moth made the profoundest impression on him.
• The tragic fate of the young moth, which “died a martyr
to its illusions,” left a deep impress on Rizal’s mind.
• He justified such noble death, asserting that “to sacrifice
one’s life for it,” meaning for an ideal, is “worth while.”
• And, like that young moth, he was fated to die as a
martyr for noble ideal.

26
 Rizal’s Three Uncles
Uncle Gregorio
• Instilled into the mind of Jose a great love for books.
• Taught him to work hard and think for himself, an
also to observe life keenly.
Uncle Jose
• Encouraged his nephew to paint, sketch, and
sculpture.
Uncle Manuel
• Encouraged Rizal to learn swimming, fencing,
wrestling, and other sports.
27
 Lakeshore Reveries

• He spent many hours by the shore of Laguna de Bay, and

meditate on the sad condition of his oppressed people.

• Watching the waves, he wondered if in the lands which lay

across the lake, the people lived in the same way.

• The Spanish misdeeds awakened in his boyish heart a

great determination to fight tyranny.
28
 Early Schooling
 The first teacher of Rizal was  His father hired an old man,
his Mother. Leon Monroy.
 He learned the Latin and ➢ To give Rizal the first lesson in
Alphabet and the Catholic Latin.
prayers. ➢ But he died five months later.

 Maestro Celestino and  Jose send to a private

Maestro Lucas Padua school in Biñan
 Give further instructions  Little Jose was 9 yrs. Old that
to Jose. time.

29
 Jose Goes toBiñan
(1870-1871)
• June 1870 he left Calamba for Biñan.
• He was accompanied by Paciano, who acted his Old Biñan Church
second father.
• Two brothers rode in a Carromata, after one and
one-half hours drive, they proceeded to their
Aunt’shouse.
• Almost night when they arrived.
• The same night Jose with his cousin Leandro
went sight seeing the town.
Carromata

30
 School Days inBiñan
• First schooling of Rizal near Calamba (1870 -1871)
• Paciano brought his younger brother Jose to the school of Maestro
JustinianoAquino Cruz.
• Under Maestro Cruz, it was an education with much religion and
overly strict discipline. Rizal was whipped by the teacher to make him
learn his lessons or to behave well.

• Jose described his teacher in Biñan asfollows:

“ He was a tall, thin , long necked man with a sharp nose and a body bent
slightly forward. He usually wore a Sinamay shirt woven by skillful
hand of batangueñas. He knew by heart grammars Nebrija and
Gainza. Add to this a severity which, to my mind, was excessive, and
you have a picture I have of him.”
31
 • Jose became depressed because of homesickness.

“Bythe light of the moon,”he recounted “I remembered

mynative town, and I thought with tears in myeyesof
mybelovedfather, myidolized mother and mysolicitous
sisters. Howsweetto me wasKalamba, myowntown,
evenif it wasnot so rich asBinyang!”.

32
 First School Brawl

 Pedro – bully
 Jose was angry at this bully because for making fun of him
during his conversation to his teacher.
 He challenge Pedro to a fight.
 Jose having learned the arts of wrestling from his athletic Uncle
Manuel to defeat the bigger boy.
 Jose defeated Pedro.
 Andres Lakundanan challenge him to arm wrestling match.
 Jose, having a weaker arm and lost.

 In succeeding days he had other fights with Biñan boys.

 He was not quarrelsome by nature but he never away from a fight.
 He won some and lost some.

33
 Painting Lesson inBiñan

• Juancho Father in Law of theTeacher

• Freely gave him lessons in drawing and painting.

• Jose Guevarra classmate of Jose

- Also loved painting become apprentice of the
old painter.

34
 Best Student inSchool
• In studies Jose beat all Biñan boys.
• Some of older classmates were
jealous of his intellectual
superiority.
• Thus Rizal, years later, said that
“in spite of the reputation I had of
good boy, the day was unusual
when I was not on a bench and given
five or six.”
35
 End of Biñan Schooling
• December, 1871, Jose received a letter
from his sister Saturnina in forming
him of the arrival of the steamer Talim
which would take him from Biñan to
Calamba.
• He left Biñan on Saturday afternoon,
December 17, 1871.
• It was the first time he ever rode on asteamer. Talim

• On board a Frenchman named Arturo Camps,

a friend of his father took care of him.
• The Christmas of 1871 was a joyous and
memorable one for him.
36
 Injustice to Jose Rizal’s Mother
• After the happy Christmas holiday in 1871, Don Francisco thought
of sending Jose to Manila to study.

• Before June came Doña Teodora was arrested.

• On malicious charge that she aided her brother, Jose Alberto, in

trying to poisonAlberto’sWife.

• Jose Alberto a rich Biñan landowner he had gone to Europe on a

business trip.

• When he returned, he found her living with another man.

Enraged infidelity he planned to divorce her.
37
 • The wife of Jose Alberto connived with the lieutenant of the
Guardia Civil to fabricate evidence that her husband attempted to
poison her with Doña Teodora as an accomplice.

• Lieutenant had an ax to grind against the Rizal Family

- because one time Rizal’s father refused to give him fodder for his
horse.
- He arrested Doña Teodora, he was brutal in placing her
under
arrest.

• The Judge, who had also been a guest many times at Rizal home,
was a vengeful. He nursed a grudge against the Rizal family
because he imagined that he was not accorded greater respect than
the Filipino guest in Rizal home.
38
  The Judge he ordered that DoñaTeodora be sent to the provincial jail in
Santa Cruz, Capital of Laguna.
 The lieutenant forced the hero’s mother to walk on foot from Calamba
to Santa Cruz. Adistance of more than 50 kilometers. Until it reached
the Supreme Court(RoyalAudiencia).

39
 The Martyrdom of Gom-Bur-Za
• January 20, 1872, the Cavite Mutiny flared up, followed by the execution
of the Fathers Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora on February 17th.
• Paciano Older brother of Jose, student of College of San Jose, was
boarding with Father Burgoshisbeloved professor and friend.
- Paciano was also a trusted assistant of Burgos in the fight for the
Filipinization of the parishes.
• After the execution of Gom-Bur-Za , Paciano quits to College and
returned to Calamba and related the story of Burgos’martyrdom to Jose.
• Jose was nearly 11 yrs old when the tragic martyrdom of Gom-Bur-Za took
place. Despite his tender age, he was deeply affected.
• It was another Spanish injustice, like that done to his own mother.
• It further buttressed his determination to consecrate his life to combat the
evil force of his time.

40
A Manila Student: The Ateneo Years, 1872-1877
• June 10, 1872 – Jose was accompanied by Paciano took the entrance
examination at the Colegiode San Juan de Letranand Ateneo Municipal de
Manila and both passed it.
• He returned to Calamba to stay for a few dayswith his family.
• His father who first wish him to study at Letran but Jose chose Ateneo
instead.
• Upon Jose’s return to Manila, he wasn’t accepted by Fr. MaginFernando, SJ,
who was a college registrar for two reasons:
1. he was late for registration and
2. he was sick and undersized for his age.

41 OldAteneo in Intramuros
 Rizal’s First Year in Ateneo (1872-1873)

Jesuit Priests in
Ateneo Compound

 Rizal’s first professor in Ateneo was Fr. Jose Bech,S.J.

 Being a new comer and knowing little Spanish, Rizal was placed at the
bottom of the class.
 He was an externo, hence he was assigned to the Carthaginians occupying
the end of the line.
 Rizal took private lessons in Santa Isabel College.
 He paid 3 pesos for those extra Spanish lessons.
 He placed second at the end of the year, although all his grades were still
marked “excellent”.
42
 SecondYear in Ateneo(1873-74)
• He regained his lost class leadership and became an
emperor.
• He received excellent grades and a gold medal.
• He again went to Calamba for his summer
vacation.

Third Year inAteneo (1874-75)

• His mother was released in prison.
• He won one medal in his Latin
• He failed to win the medal in Spanish
• At the end of the school year (March
1875)
43
 Teenage Interest in Reading
• He became interested in love
stories and romantic tales.

• His favorite novel was “The

Count of Monte Cristo.”

• He persuaded his father to

buy him a costly set of Cesar
Cantu’s historical work
entitled “Universal History.”
44
 Fourth Year in Ateneo
• On June 16, 1875, he became an interno in
theAteneo.
• One of his professors this time was Fr.
Francisco de Paula Sanchez, SJ a great educator
and scholar
• Rizal wrote Father Sanchez in loving terms,
showing his affection and gratitude.
• He describe the Jesuit professor as “model of Fr. Francisco de Paula Sanchez,SJ
uprightness, earnestness, and love for the
advancement of his pupils”.

45
 Last Year inAteneo
• June 1876 – He returned to Manila for his last year.
As a matter of fact, he excelled in all his subjects and
he became the most brilliant Atenean of his time, he
was truly “the pride of the Jesuits.”

• Rizal graduated at the head of his class.

• On March 23, 1877, Rizal who was only 16 yrs old

received from his alma mater the degree of Bachelor
of Arts, with highest honors.

• But to Rizal, Commencement Day was a time of biter

sweetness, a joy mellowed with poignancy.
46
 Extra Curricular Activities in Ateneo
• He was active in extra curricular activities.
• He was an active member, later a secretary, of a
religious society the Marian Congregation.
• He was a devotee of Our Lady of the Immaculate
Conception, the college patroness.
• Rizal was also a member of the Academy of the
Spanish Literature and the Academy of the
Natural Sciences.
Our Ladyof the
• He cultivated his literary talent under Father Immaculate Conception
Sanchez.

47
 • He devoted his spare time to fine arts.

• He studied painting under the famous Spanish

painter, Agustin Saez and sculpture under Romualde
de Jesus noted Filipino sculptor.

• He also engaged in gymnastic and fencing.

• He thereby continued the physical training he began

under his sports-minded Tio Manuel.
48
 Sculptural Works in Ateneo
• Rizal impressed his Jesuit professors in Ateneo
with his artistic skill.
• He carved the image of The Virgin Mary on a
piece of batikuling.
• Rizal made an image of the Sacred Heart of Rizal’s Virgin Mary
Jesus upon request of Fr. Lleonart, SJ, a Jesuit
professor in Ateneo.
• It was placed at the front door of the
dormitory for Ateneo students.
• Toserve as a reminder that Rizal was an
alumni of Ateneo.
49 Rizal’s Sacred Heart of Jesus
 Anecdotes on Rizal, theAtenean
• Felix M. Roxas, one of Rizal’s contemporaries in
theAteneo.
• He shared an incident of Rizal’s forgivingness.
• Ateneans, Manzano &Lesaca quarreled and
violently hurled books at each other when Rizal
was hit.
• He did not protest, no bitterness nor rancor
towards the other Ateneans.
50
 • Manuel Xeres Burgos, owner of the boarding house
Rizal boarded.
• In his story it showed Rizal’s predilection to help the
helpless at the risk of his own life.
• One Thursday afternoon the boys flew their kites from
the azotea.
• Julio Meliza from Iloilo was crying because his kite was
caught by the vines.
• Other bigger boys were laughing at Julio.
• Rizal closed his Spanish book and told Julio not to cry
for he will get the kite.
• He courageously climbed the high cathedral tower and
successfully recovered the kite.
51
 Poems Written inAteneo
• Doña Teodora who first discovered the poetical genius of
Rizal, she first encouraged him to write poems.

• Father Sanchez influenced Rizal to improve his poetical

skills by enriching influence of the world’s literature.

• Mi Primera Inspiracion (My First Inspiration) he

wrote this poem for is mother’s birthday in1874.

52
 In 1875, inspired by Father Sanchez he wrote more poems such as:

1. Felicitacion (Felicitation);

2. El Embarque: Himno a la Flota de Magallanes (The Departure:

Hymn to Magellan’s Fleet);

3.Y Es Espanol: Elcano, el Primero en dar la Vuelta del Mundo

(And He is Spanish: Elcano the First to Circumnavigate the
World);

4. El Combate: Urbiztondo,Terror de Jolo (The Battle:

Urbiztondo, Terror of Jolo).
53
 In 1876, Rizal wrote poems on various topics:

1. La Tragedia de San Eustaquio (The Tragedy of St. Eustace);

2. Un Recuerdo a Mi Pueblo (In Memory of my Town) – tender poem in

honor of Calamba.;

3. Alianza Intima Entre la Religion y la BuenaEducacion(Intimate Alliance

Between Religion and Good Education);

4. El Cautiverio y el Triunfo: Batalla de Lucena y Prision de Boabdil –

describes the defeat and capture of Boabdil (the Captivity and Triumph: The
Captivity and imprisonment of Boadbil);

5. LaEntarda Triunfal de los Reyes Catolicos en Granada(The Triumphal Entry

of Catholic Monarchs into Granada).
54
 In 1877, he wrote more poems:

1. El Heroismo de Colon (The Heroism of Columbus) – poem that

praises Columbus;

2. Colon y Juan II (Columbus and John II) – this poem relates

how King John II missed fame and riches by his failure;

3. Gran Consuelo en la Mayor Desdicha (Great Comfort and Great

Misfortune) – legend in verse of tragic voyage of Columbus;

4. Un Dialogo Alusivo a la Despedida de los Colegiales (A Farewell

Dialogue to his Fellow Students)– last poem written by Rizal.

55
 • Education for Rizal – Through Education
Our Motherland Receives Light.

• He believed in the significant role which education

plays in the progress and welfare of the nation.

• Education and Religion for Rizal – The Intimate

Alliance Between Religion and Good
Education.

• To him without God it’s not true education.

St. Eustace

• Drama based on the prose story of St. Eustace the

Martyr – San Eustaquio, Martir
56
In the University of Santo Tomas, 1877-1882
• Doña Teodora opposed t h e i dea of
allowing Jose’s further study in
Manila b e c a u s e of w h a t
h a p p e n e d to GOMBURZA.
• A family council was held and
Don Francisco and Paciano were Old UST inside Intramuros
able to prevail Doña Teodora’s
objections. He enrolled for this
• On April 1877, J ose enrolled in course for two
t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f S a n t o To m a s reason;
( U S T ) t a k i n g t h e course on 1. His father like it.
Philosophy and Letters.
2. Still uncertain as
to what career to
57 pursue.
 • He pursued his course Major in Philosophy for the
first term, 1877-1878 in UST.
• Within the same term, he returned to Ateneo while
studying in UST.
• He took up a course on land surveying which was
offered then as a vocational course.
• He completed the surveyor ’s course and was
awarded the title perita agrimensor.

• He passed the final examination for he course.

• He could not practice the surveyor’s profession since he was

still underage when he passed the course.

• He was issued certificate on November 25, 1881, at the age of

20.

58
 • In the following term, 1878-1879, he decided to
shift to medicine with the advised from Jesuit
priest Fr. Pablo Ramon, SJ (Rizal’s adviser).

• The reason h e also chose medicine for a career is

to be a ble t o cu re h is m ot h e r ’s failin g ey esig h t .

• H e p u r s u e d me d i c i n e a t t h e U S T. S o me o f h i s
grades were still excellent but he also had
lower grades.

• Rizal’s first experienced S p a n i s h brutality,

during 1 8 7 8 it w a s summe r vacation. He w a s
walking in the Street. Not knowing th e person
due to darkness he did not s a l u t e nor s a y a
courteous “good evening” th e vague figure turn
out to be a L i e u t e n a n t of th e Guardia Civil.
59
• With a snarl, He turned upon Rizal,
whipped out his word and brutally
sl ashed the latter on the back.
• Rizal reported t h e incident to Gov.
Primo de Rivera (the S p a n i s h Governor
of t h e Phil.) but nothing came out of
hi s complaint, because he w a s an
Indio and t he abusive L i e u t en an t w a s G o v. P r i m o de Ri ve r a
a Spaniard.
• Hi s wound l a s t e d 2 w e e k s .

• In 1879,at the start of his junior year at the

University he lived in” Casa Tomasina” at
no.6 Calle Sto.Tomas Intramuros.
Rizal as a young
painter at Casa
Tomasina, dated
60
1879.
  He submitted an entry in the Liceo Artistico de
Manila in 1879, entitled “A La Juventud Filipina”
(“To the Filipino Youth”).
➢ He won first prize in the contest.
➢ He was awarded a silver quill.
➢ For the first time, he used the phrase “the youth, the fair hope
of my country” (“kabataan, pag-asa ng aking bayan”).

 This wi nni ng poem of Rizal is a classic in

Philippine literature for two reasons:
1. First greet poem in S p a n i s h written by a
Filipino whose merit w a s recognized by
S p a n i s h literary authorities;
2. It expressed for t h e first t i me t h e nationalistic
concept t h a t t he Filipinos and not t he
foreigners
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 • The year before (1879), he composed a poem
entitled "Abd-el-Azis y Mahuma."
• Declaimed by an Atenean, Manuel Fernandez on
the night of Dec.8,1879 in honor of the Ateneo's
Patrones St. Ignatius of Loyola.
• Later in 1881,he composed a poem entitled
“Al M.R.P Pablo Ramon.“
• He wrote this poem as an expression of
affection to Fr.Pablo Ramon, the Ateneo
Rector, who had been so kind & helpful to
him.

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  In 1880, a literary contest was held by
Liceo Artistico de Manila.
 Jose Rizal submitted an entry entitled
“El consejo de los Dioses” (“Council of
the Gods”).
 This was held in commemoration of the
400th death anniversary of Miguel de
Cervantes, Spain’s national poet.
 This poem was in praise of Cervantes
and made him coequal with Homer and
Virgil.
 He was awarded the grand prize.
 The award was a gold ring with an
engraved burst of Cervantes.

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 Rizal’s Other Literary Works:

 “Junto Al Pasig” (beside the Pasig) A Zarzuela that

was staged by the Ateneans on Dec.8, 1880.
 This one-act play was requested by the Jesuits on the feast
day of the Immaculate Conception. This was a satire
showing the good elements. In the end, it was a victory for
the good elements;

 “A Filipinas” – a sonnet for the album of the society of

Sculptors.
 In this sonnet he urged all Filipino artist to
glorify the Philippines.
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 Champion of the Filipino Students

• Rizal was the champion of the Filipino

students in their frequent fights against
the arrogant Spanish student.
• They called Spanish “Kastila Bangus” and
spanish called theif brown classmates
“Indio Chongo”.
• In 1880,he founded a secret society of
Filipino students in UST called
Companiarismo (Comradeship) whose
members were called “Companions of
Jehu”.
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• Rizal w a s t he chief of t h e s e s e c r e t
s t u d e n t society wi t h hi s cousin
Galicano Apacible a s secretary.

• As chief, he led t he Filipino students

into combat a g a i n s t t he s p a n i s h
s t u d e n t s in various st r eet fights.

• In one of t he fierce encounters bet ween Ga l i c a no Apacible

t h e F ilipino s t u d e n t s and their
detractors near in Escolta, Manila.

• Rizal w a s wounded on t he head, hi s

friends brought him bleeding and
covered wi t h dus t to hi s boarding
house.
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• On May 1881,Rizal w e n t on a
pilgrimage to t he town of
Pakil.
• Rizal and hi s companions where
fascinated by t he famous O u r
L a d y o f T urumba (Nuestra
Señura Delos Dolores de
Turumba).
• Turumba w a s mentioned in chapter
VI of Noli Me Tangere and Tu r u m b a

Pagsanjan falls in hi s travel diary.

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 Unhappy Days in UST

• Rizal found the atmosphere in UST suffocating

to his s e ns i tive spirit that he is unhappy at
this Dominican Institution.
Reasons:
1. Dominican professors were hostile to
him;
2. The Filipino st udent s were racially
discriminated against by the Spaniards;
3. The method of instruction was obsolete and
repressive.
• After finishing t he 4 t h year of hi s medical course
he decided to study in Spain.
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 References:

De Viana, Augusto. 2014. Jose Rizal in our Times, pp. 34-87

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jose_Rizal

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