Name: Ian Jay M.

Descutido

Read the lifted part of the essay from Ambeth Ocampo’s work.

Source: Ocampo, A. (1998). Rizal’s Morga and Views of Philippine History. Philippine
studies, 462, 184-214. http://www.philippinestudies.net

Based on your reading answer the table below.

Content – 20 pts; Coherence – 20 pts = 40 pts
Morga’s View Rizal’s View

Indios like to eat fish which is best for them This is another preoccupation of the
when it is starting to decompose and Spaniards who, like any other nation, treat
smell. food to which they are not accustomed or
is unknown to them with disgust. The fish
that Morga is mentions that cannot be
good until it begins to rot is called
“bagoong”. “Bagoong” is a salted fish or
shrimp paste used as a sauce in Filipino
cuisine. To those who have eaten it and
tasted it know that neither is nor should be
rotten.

My opinion of Morga’s View/Why? My opinion of Rizal’s View/Why?

I bet to disagree with the view of Morga.
His view is acceptable if he is an ordinary
person, but in his case he was not. He has
a huge influence to the society, thus, he
should review his opinions before
publishing them. It is given that he was
I really agree with the view of Doctor Jose
Rizal. When he say, “this is another
preoccupation of the Spaniards who, like
any other nation, treat food to which they
are not accustomed or is unknown to them
with disgust”. This statement is accurate
 new to the said food, but it is not an excuse because of course when you are new to a
to mock the food of Filipinos. certain food of course you will not
understand its taste. However, it is not a
valid reason to mock the food you are not
familiar with. We came from different
countries having different customs, but we
should respect each other.

Why do you think both writers have different views of the Philippines? What are the factors
that contributed to these differences? Do you think it matters in understanding one’s culture
or history? From whose point of view shall we base our understanding of Philippine History?

I think both writers have different views of the Philippines because they came from different
countries. One is from the Philippines and the other is not. Since one is from the Philippines he
understand more the customs of the said country, while the other one is not from the country,
thus, he is not that familiar of the customs of the country. I think the factors that contributed to
these differences is their culture, and their nationality. I believe that their views differ because of
their culture because coming from different culture will result to having a different standard for a
certain thing. In addition, their nationality, I think it also contributed to their difference in views.
Mogan is from Spain whom we knew an enemy of the Philippines before, so maybe it is part of
mocking the country. On the other hand, Doctor Jose Rizal is from the Philippines, thus he will
protect the integrity of his country and explain to people things they do not know about the
country. I think understanding one’s culture and history does matter, because through
understanding them we will be able to understand their lifestyle. When we understand each
other’s lifestyle it will result to having respect with each other. I think we shall base our
understanding of Philippine history from the point of view of someone who used to live in the
Philippines, because those people are the ones who understand the country better.