THE LIFE AND WORKS OF

DR. JOSE P. RIZAL

 Childhood of Dr. Jose Rizal
▣ José Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda was
born on June 19, 1861, in the town of Calamba,
Laguna.
❑ He was baptized JOSE RIZAL MERCADO at the
Catholic of Calamba by the parish priest Rev.
Rufino Collantes with Rev. Pedro Casañas as the
sponsor.
❑ He was the seventh child in a family of 11 children
(2 boys and 9 girls). Both his parents were educated
and belonged to distinguished families.
 Siblings of Francisco Mercado and
Teodora Alonso
❑ SATURNINA RIZAL (1850-1913) - Eldest child of the
Rizal-Alonzo marriage. Married Manuel Timoteo
Hidalgo of Tanauan, Batangas.
❑ PACIANO RIZAL (1851-1930) - Only brother of Jose
Rizal and the second child. Studied at San Jose College
in Manila; became a farmer and later a general of the
Philippine Revolution.
❑ NARCISA RIZAL (1852-1939) - The third child.
married Antonio Lopez at Morong, Rizal; a teacher and
musician.
❑ OLYMPIA RIZAL (1855-1887) - The fourth child.
Married Silvestre Ubaldo; died in 1887 from childbirth.
 Siblings of Francisco Mercado and
Teodora Alonso
❑ LUCIA RIZAL (1857-1919) - The fifth child. Married
Matriano Herbosa.
MARIA RIZAL (1859-1945) - The sixth child. Married
Daniel Faustino Cruz of Biñan, Laguna.
❑ JOSE RIZAL (1861-1896) - The second son and the
seventh child. He was executed by the Spaniards on
December 30,1896.
❑ CONCEPCION RIZAL (1862-1865) - The eight child.
Died at the age of three.
❑ JOSEFA RIZAL (1865-1945) - The ninth child. An
epileptic, died a spinster.
 Siblings of Francisco Mercado and
Teodora Alonso
❑ TRINIDAD RIZAL (1868-1951) - The tenth child. Died
a spinster and the last of the family to die.
❑ SOLEDAD RIZAL (1870-1929) - The youngest child
married Pantaleon Quintero.
 Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ Jose Rizal’s first teacher was his mother, who
had taught him how to read and pray and who
had encouraged him to write poetry. Later, private
tutors taught the young Rizal Spanish and Latin,
before he was sent to a private school in Biñan.
❑ Rizal first studied under Justiniano Aquino Cruz in
Biñan, Laguna before he was sent to Manila. As to
his father's request, he took the entrance
examination in Colegio de San Juan de Letran and
studied there for almost three months. The
Dominican friars asked him to transfer to another
school due to his radical and bold questions.
 Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ When he was 11 years old, Rizal entered the
Ateneo Municipal de Manila. He earned excellent
marks in subjects like philosophy, physics,
chemistry, and natural history. At this school,
he read novels; wrote prize-winning poetry
(and even a melodrama—“Junto al Pasig”); and
practiced drawing, painting, and clay
modeling, all of which remained lifelong
interests for him.
 Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ Rizal eventually earned a land surveyor’s and
assessor’s degree from the Ateneo Municipal while
taking up Philosophy and Letters at the
University of Santo Tomas. Upon learning that
his mother was going blind, Rizal opted to
study ophthalmology at the UST Faculty of
Medicine and Surgery. He, however, was not
able to complete the course because “he
became politically isolated by adversaries
among the faculty and clergy who demanded
that he assimilate to their system.”
 Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ Without his parents' knowledge and consent,
but secretly supported by his brother Paciano,
he traveled alone to Madrid, Spain in May 1882
and studied medicine at the Universidad Central
de Madrid where he earned the degree, Licentiate
in Medicine. Also, he also attended medical
lectures at the University of Paris and
theUniversity of Heidelberg. In Berlin he was
inducted as a member of the Berlin
Ethnological Society and the Berlin
Anthropological Society under the patronage
of the famous pathologist Rudolf Virchow.
Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ Rizal, 11 years old, a
student at the Ateneo
Municipal de Manila
Jose Rizal’s Education
▣ José Rizal as a student at
the University of Santo
Tomas.
❑ José was designed by nature
to be an artist. This he
revealed before he was five
years of age, for without any
assistance from others he
began to draw with his
pencil and to mould in wax
or clay any object he saw
about him. Fortunately, his
mother, father, and uncles
recognized this unusual
talent and gave him
everyencouragement.
Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ A group of sketches
by Rizal
 Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ There was a also a time when Rizal was able to
draw a bird flying nearby without lifting the pencil
he was using from the paper till the picture he
drew was finished. He can also draw a running
horse and a chasing dog.
❑ Jose Rizal also owned a pony and used it to have long rides
into the surrounding country which was rich in scenery. He
also took long walks together with his big black dog named
Usman. He also loved to play with the doves in his
neighborhood. He learned about the myths and legends in
Laguna after sleeping through the nut in a little straw hut
used by Laguna farmers during the harvest season. Rizal was
also good in hand tricks which he perfected to amaze the
simple folk and performed magic lantern exhibitions.
 Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ The little boy spent also much of his time in the
church, which was conveniently near, but when the
mother suggested that this might be an indication of
religious inclination, his prompt response was that
he liked to watch the people.
❑ Even in his childhood, Rizal already knew how to
respect the rights of others and requested his elders
to reason with him rather than get mad at him for
small offenses. He became a welcome companion for
adults even at his young age since he respected their
moods and was never a hindrance to their activities.
 Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ Three uncles who were brothers of his mother also
had much influence on the early childhood of Jose
Rizal. The youngest uncle named Jose, took care of
teaching regular lessons to Rizal. His huge uncle
Manuel developed his physique until he had a body
of silk and steel and no longer a skinny and sickly
boy. The last uncle, Gregorio instilled in the mind of
Rizal that it was not easy to obtain something until
you put effort into it.
 Jose Rizal’s Education
❑ The childhood of Jose Rizal can be characterized by
his desire to learn, even frequenting the church
nearby his home to watch and observe people but
not to be religiously inclined. Jose Rizal was not a
physically blessed or strong child however, he had a
strong will guided and taught by his mother, his
first teacher. He learned almost without the use of
books. His mother was the one who laid the
foundation of his great knowledge achieved in such
a short time. His brilliance was also the character of
the young Jose Rizal.