University of the Philippines

Diliman, Quezon City

College of Arts and Letters

Midyear Term 2014

José Rizal:The Life of the National Hero

A Factual and Critical Analysis

A Paper Presented to

the class of Prof. Wilfreda Legaspi

In Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Subject

PI 100 – The Life and Works of Rizal

Presented by

Ramon Paolo T. Quintero

BS Chemical Engineering

2011-11368

June 11, 2014

Most people acknowledge him as a hero, while others call him insurrectionary. Some are

convinced that he is indeed the rightful holder of the title “National Hero of the Philippines,

while others reason out that revolutionary leaders such as the likes of Bonifacio and Aguinaldo

are more deserving of the title due to their “hands-on” approach in fighting for the nation’s

independence and sovereignty. Even certain people believe that Adolf Hitler, the infamous Nazi

Dictator, was the illegitimate son of Rizal. (Zaide, et al., 1999) Countless myths have shrouded

the Philippine National Hero due to his unfathomable popularity in the country and in other parts

of the world. This paper seeks to accomplish the following objectives:

a. To critically analyze the life of Jose Rizal divided into three parts: his family

life (familial aspect), life while pursuing his studies (educational aspect) and

his life as a reformist (political life).

b. To support the aforementioned analysis with facts and to clarify any

misleading and incorrect information about him.

c. To realize the significance of Rizal’s action in molding the nation as it is

today, by studying his views on nationalism and realizing the grounds on

which he was declared the National Hero of the Philippines.

I. The World and the Philippines of Rizal’s Time

During the 19th

century, when Rizal was born, has been described as “a century of

ferment caused by the blowing winds of history.” (Zaide, et al., 1999) It was during this time that

Western imperialism started to bloom, as England developed as the world’s leading imperialist

force, due to accounts of its indestructible ships and army. Other imperialists, such as the French

and the Dutch, followed England’s footsteps and initiated the colonization of weaker countries,

such as those found in Southeast Asia. Meanwhile, Spain suffered a lot after losing its rich

colonies in Latin America, such as Paraguay (1811) and Chile (1817) due to successful uprisings.

(Zaide, et al., 1999). With the imminent threat posed by other imperialists, Spain continued

trying to maintain its presence and establish order in its remaining colonies under pressure.

The Philippines during the 19th

century suffered misrule from its Spanish colonizers. The

Colonial Administration was fluctuating due to struggles between autocracy and liberalism.

(Zaide, et al., 1999) This “instability” was felt in the Philippines due to periodic shifts in policies

and frequent replacements of officials. As an example, between 1835 and 1897, 50 governor-

generals ruled the country, each having a term of about a year (LeRoy). Also, with a small

number of exclusions, the officials sent to the country were very far from those who ruled earlier

in the 16th

and 17th

century, because the 19th

century officials are either corrupt, evil or

incompetent. Furthermore, racial discrimination, denying Filipinos of human rights and

maladministration of justice, often to favor people of their own race, were evident by the time of

Rizal’s birth. Justice was slow, partial and very expensive at that time (Zaide, et al., 1999). Also,

the Spanish started to segregate themselves from the natives, calling them degrading names, the

most popular of which is “Indio” (Indians). Mistreatment of people was severe that other

foreigners visiting the country actually witnessed and realized the injustice experienced by the

natives, such as Sinibaldo de Mas, a Spanish diplomat and economist, who stated: “Why do we

deny to others the benefit which we desire for our fatherland?” (Zaide, et al, 1999) Even at an

early age, Rizal was exposed to such a harsh environment, beholding the unreasonable cruelty he

would soon try to abolish.

II. The Family Life of Jose Rizal

Among the many people who became a part of Rizal’s life, the people most important to

him were arguably his family. This can be proven by the letters he would occasionally send

them, assuring that he had not forgotten them.

On both his father’s and mother’s sides, his forbears had been people of influence and

substance above the average of their times. (Guerrero, 1998) Her mother, Teodora Alonso, came

from a prominent family, her father being a Philippine deputy in the Cortes, and her brother

being a knight of a Holy Order. Meanwhile, his father came from a family of merchants, as

signified by their surnames. They gradually changed their means of livelihood from mercantilism

to agriculture. Both the Alonso’s and the Mercado’s were ilustrados (literates who could read

and write) and are a part of the principalia. Jose Rizal was born seventh of eleven children, the

youngest of two boys, on June 19, 1861 in their home in Calamba, Laguna. Although bearing the

same blood, Jose Rizal had different relationships with the members of his family.

a. Rizal and his mother

Teodora Alonso, like most of the native women in the Philippines during that

time, was highly pious and devoted. During her seventh pregnancy, she made an oath of

pilgrimage to the Holy Virgin of Antipolo for a safe delivery. Due to the infant’s

supposedly large head, the entire procedure was complicated, endangering her life during

delivery. Nevertheless, her second son was born. It is said that she established Rizal’s

pious attitude during his youth as he recounted: “My mother had thought me to read and

stay haltingly the humble prayers that I raised fervently to God.” (Guerrero, 1998)

She was most famous as Jose Rizal’s first teacher, teaching him to read and write

at a very tender age. Even though Rizal had an aya (nanny) had told a lot of stories to tell

to Pepe, as he was fondly called before, Teodora had her share of stories, arguably the

most well-known of which is the story of the moth. Being aware of her son’s highly

inquisitive nature, she told him the story of the moth that flew too close to the flames that

attracted it, only to burn its wings, in order to impart to him the lesson of the fable on

obedience.

Jose Rizal was able to get a glimpse of the misrule of the Spanish colonizers when

Teodora, along with her brother, was wrongfully accused of trying to poison her sister-in-

law. She was forced to walk from Binan to Sta. Cruz and then imprisoned for 2 and a half

years.

Jose’s mother was against his studies in Manila. As Rizal noted in his journal:

“My mother said that I knew enough already and that I should not go to Manila.”

(Guerrero, 1998) His father, however, had no intention of stopping his education, much

to hir mother’s dismay. His choice to study medicine and specialize in ophthalmology

was also due to her mother, who was having problems with her eyesight. She and Rizal

occasionally exchanged letters while Rizal was on Europe. She, along with her sister

Trinidad, also visited Rizal in Dapitan when he was exiled.

The love that Teodora Alonso had for her youngest son was very resilient;

however, she appeared to be very worried of Jose to the extent that she wouldn’t allow

him to pursue his studies in Manila and in Europe. From Guerrero, Rizal was

unproductive for a short period of time and one of the reasons was the opposition of her

mother.

b. Rizal and his father

Francisco Mercado, Rizal’s father has been described by Rizal himself as

“a model of fathers” (Zaide et al., 1999) After moving to Calamba, he became a

tenant-farmer of the Dominican-owned hacienda. According to Zaide et al, he was a

hardy and independently-minded man, who talked less and worked more, a quality

which he imparted to the national hero. When Rizal was young, his father built a little

nipa cottage in the garden for Rizal to play in during daytime. (Zaide et al., 1999)

Rizal and his father would go on trips where Rizal would show appreciation to the

beauty of the surroundings. Rizal usually observed his father and older brother

Paciano at work in the fields, with peasants whose “disability of race” and lack of

rights would soon arouse Rizal’s notion on nationalism, rational, anti-racist and anti-

clerical-political. (Guerrero, 1998) He was supportive of his son’s education in

Manila but was unaware of Rizal’s departure to study in Europe. There were only a

few letters Rizal had given to his father while on Europe, and most of them were

addressed to the entire family. He supports Rizal’s expenses by sending money

through Paciano. He was not able to visit Rizal in Dapitan, unlike his wife and

daughter. An hour before his exection, Rizal left a note to his father which

stated:”Forgive me the sorrow with which I repay the anxieties and toil you

underwent to give me an education. I did not want this nor expected it.” (Guerrero,

1998)

c. Rizal and his siblings

Although Rizal was born of a big family, due to his father’s work being

the land tenant for the Dominicans supported them. According to Zaide, sibling

relationship among the Rizal children was affectionately cordial. As a little boy, Rizal

used to play games with his sisters. Although he had boyish quarrels with them, he

respected them. Years later, he would have called them Doña or Señorita. Guerrero

mentioned that even though Rizal had his on aya (nanny), he had been watched by his

five elder sisters. His younger sister named Concepcion, nicknamed “Concha”, died

of a sickness at the age of 3 in 1865, just four years after Rizal’s birth. Being born

next to him, Rizal had seemed to have formed a special connection between the two

of them. Rizal stated: “For the first time I wept tears of love and grief, for until then I

had only shed them out of stubbornness which my loving mother knew so well how to

correct.” (Guerrero, 1999) Based from his statement, Rizal treated Concha’s death

his first heartbreak, which might have opened the juvenile eyes of the national hero

for he, along with his family, experienced a tragedy at a very tender age. This helped

him strengthen his character, along with other tragedies in his family.

Rizal’s relationship with his older brother Paciano was more than that of

younger to older brother. Paciano was a second father to him. (Zaide, et al., 1999)

Throughout his life, Rizal respected him and his advice. He was very crucial in the

character formation of Rizal. At a young age, he exposed Rizal to the cruelty of the

Spanish colonizers through the execution of the three secular priests, GomBurZa,

whom he had connection with (especially Burgos). He was the one who suggested

Pepe to drop his real surname off (Mercado) and use Rizal instead to avoid suspicion.

He was the main orchestrator of Rizal’s departure to continue his studies in Europe as

he had seen the great potential in his younger brother; that he would be capable of

doing remarkable things that would not be possible with the quality of education

Rizal was receiving in the country. He also served as Rizal’s window back to his

family during his stay in Europe; they frequently wrote letters to each other, updating

each other of the state of his progress as well as the state of his family during the

worsening conditions in Calamba. Due to his high admiration for his elder brother,

Rizal immortalized him in his first novel, Noli Me Tangere, as the wise Pilosopo

Tasyo; he regarded him as the “most noble of Filipinos” to his letter to Blumentritt, a

friend he had met during his trips (Zaide, et al., 1999)

d. Rizal and Josephine Bracken

Rizal had nine relationships with other women, the last of which was

with Josephine Bracken. During his time in Dapitan, Rizal was sad because he missed

his family and relatives, as well as his acquaintances in Europe. The death of his great

love, Leonor Rivera, on August 28, 1893 must have contributed to his sadness.

Josephine arrived with her father in Dapitan to seek out Rizal, since no

ophthalmologist could heal him. Rizal fell in love with her at first sight, and started

courting her. He courted her right away partly due to his sadness; he needed

somebody to cheer him up while in exile. After one month, they agreed to married,

however, the priest of Dapitan, Fr. Obach, needed to get the permission of the Bishop

of Cebu. Since Rizal was excommunicated, they were not married until near his

death, when he declared his Catholicism and lifted his excommunication status. In

1896, Rizal was extremely happy since Josephine was expecting a baby,

Unfortunately, she gave birth to a premature baby, who only lived for three hours.

Rizal, informing his mother of this tragedy, did not specify the cause. It has been

speculated that they had a quarrel or he played a prank on her and frightening her.

III. The Studies of Rizal

a. Early Childhood and Binan

Three brothers of his mother were a good influence to him. Jose Alberto,

who studied in Calcutta, India for 11 years, inspired him to develop his artistic ability.

Manuel, an athletic man, encouraged him to develop his frail body. Gregorio, a book

lover like Rizal’s mother, helped him develop love for literature. Father Leoncio Lopez,

the parish priest of Calamba, fostered Rizal’s love for intellect. (Zaide, et al., 1999) As

stated before, his first teacher was Doña Teodora, who taught her prayers and reading at

the age of 3. As a tutor, Teodora was mainly responsible for his son being a poet, since

she was the one who encouraged him to write poems.

As Jose grew older, his parents employed private tutors to give him lessons

at home. The first tutor were Maestro Celestino and Maestro Lucas Padua. His father then

hired his former classmate, Leon Monroy, who lodged with the family and gave the

young Pepe lessons in reading, writing and Latin rudiments. (Guerrero, 1998) When

Monroy died 5 months after his employment, his parents decided to send their son to a

private school in Binan.

In Binan, he stayed with his aunt’s house. According to Guerrero, Rizal did

not like the town as he described it as “large and rich but ugly and dismal” He was not

fond of his teacher, Justiniano Aquino Cruz, a master of Spanish and Latin grammar who

used to terrify students with his stick. He had his first fight with Pedro, the teacher’s son,

because Rizal was angry at him for making fun of him. In the succeeding days, he had

other fights; he was not quarrelsome, but he never ran away from a fight (Zaide, et al.,

1999), exhibiting his courage at a tender age.

b. Ateneo de Manila

Four months after the martyrdom of the three priests and with Teodora

still in prison, Jose, was sent to Manila to study in the Ateneo Municipal, under the

supervision of the Jesuits. Rizal had since then admired the Jesuit education system,

which was more advanced than that of ether colleges in that period. It trained him and his

character by rigid discipline and religious instruction. It promoted physical culture,

humanities and science (Guerrero, 1998). Due to his innate ability, as well as hardwork,

he was able to excel in his classes, earning respect from his classmates and professors.

His favourite professor was Fr. Francisco Sanchez. He inspired Rizal to study harder and

to write poetry. Inspired by the professor, Rizal resumed his studies with vigor and zest.

In his student memoirs, he said: “The Jesuit professor was a model of uprightness,

earnestness and the love for the advancement of his pupils.” (Zaide, et al., 1999) He

ended up as the beholder of a degree of Bachelor of Arts, with highest honors.

c. University of Sto. Tomas

After graduating with honors, he, along with his father and older brother,

decided to pursue further studies at the University of Sto. Tomas, much to the dismay of

his mother. He first pursued a course in Philosophy and Letters, since his father liked the

course and he was still unsure of what to take. Following his first year in the university,

the hero took medical studies, as advised by the Rector of Ateneo Municipal. While

studying here, he experienced firsthand the brutality, as well as the discrimination of the

Spanish. When he was a freshman student of medicine, he was whipped out by a

lieutenant of the Guardia Civil for merely being unable to salute or say a courteous

greeting. The street was dark and Rizal was not able to determine the identity of the

figure. He, along with other Filipino students engaged in fights against the Spanish

students, who insultingly called their classmates “Indio, chongo!” to which the Filipino

students replied, “Kastila, bangus!” (Zaide et al., 1999) In 1880, he founded a secret

society of students called Compañerismo, hailing as their chief. This event was

significant since it showed that Rizal at the early stage of his life, was starting to go

against the norm by forming organizations. Unlike his studies in Ateneo, which was

described as consistently excellent, Rizal had lower marks in UST, having only four

grades of Excellent. He was unhappy in UST due to the hostility of his Dominican

professors, which can be rooted from his Atenean (Jesuit) heritage, the discrimination of

the Filipino students, and the obsolete, repressive education. After his fourth year in UST,

he and his brother agreed that Rizal must take further studies in Spain.

d. Studies Abroad

On 1882, Rizal enrolled in the Universidad Central de Madrid in two

courses, Philosophy and Medicine. Aside from the university, he took up painting and

sculpture in the University of Fine Arts in San Fernando. He enrolled in universities

around Europe, in places such as Paris and London to further broaden his knowledge. He

also took courses in European Languages from private tutors. At this stage of his life, his

thirst for knowledge was becoming more and more evident. Unlike his experience in

UST, he enjoyed the liberalism which was dominating Europe. He finished his courses at

the top of his class.

IV. Rizal as a Reformist

Rizal was a prominent figure in the Reformists Movement just before the Revolution of

1898. As stated by Guerrero, his anti-racist jealousy fuelled his nationalism and his political

career. The political aspect of his life started in Europe. While in London, he learned that

Filipinos in Barcelona were planning to form a patriotic society called the Asosacion La

Solidarida. Unanimously, Rizal was voted as the honorary president of the organization,

recognizing his leadership.

a. La Solidaridad

On 1889, Graciano Lopez-Jaena founded the newspaper La Solidaridad in

Barcelona. It served as the main force of the Reformist Movement which had the

following goals:

i. To work peacefully for social and political reforms

ii. To portray the deplorable conditions of the Philippines so that Spain

may remedy them

iii. To oppose medievalism

iv. To advocate liberal ideas and progress, and

v. To champion the legitimate aspirations of the Filipino people to life.

Rizal had since then became of prolific writer of the said newspaper. His

first article explored the deplorable situation of the farmers in the country. He entitled

this article Los Agricultores. He simultaneously worked on the two novels and the

newspaper. During an election, Rizal and Marcelo H. Del Pilar had a

misunderstanding which led Rizal to realize that they were going nowhere from there,

and that he must return to the country, where the real battle was.

b. La Liga Filipina

On July 1892, Rizal attended a meeting with Don Doroteo Ongjungco,

along with other people, such as Pedro Laktaw, Jose Ramos and Andres Bonifacio,

the founder of the Katipunan. Rizal planned to establish a civic league of Filipinos

called the La liga Filipina, which aims to form its role in the socio-economic life of

the people (Zaide, et al., 1999) He presented the constitution which he had partly

written in Hong Kong. Its objectives were the following:

i. To unite the whole archipelago into one homogeneous body.

ii. Mutual protection in every want and necessity

iii. Defense against all violence and unjustice

iv. Encouragement of education, agriculture and commerce

v. Study and application of Reforms

His action showed his great desire to push reforms for the betterment of

the lives of the Filipinos in a peaceful manner of the formation of such an

organization. However, the league was short-lived as days after its formation, Jose

Rizal was arrested and was exiled in Dapitan, much to the commotion of the newly-

formed league.

V. Rizal: The National Hero

Due to the publication of his novels, as well as accusations of being subversive and

helping the rebellion, he was executed by firing squad on December 30, 1898. His death was

mistakenly thought by the Spanish as a severe blow to the rebellion, since his execution marked

the cultivation of nationalism among Filipinos, a fuel that will spark the great revolution of 1898

which would free the nation from the colonizers. He is unquestionably the greatest hero and

martyr of our nation. That is why in, he was declared as the National Hero of the Philippines. But

some Filipinos today entertain the belief that Rizal is a “made-to-order” national hero, under the

influence of the Americans, and that the national hero must be someone from the 1898

Revolution. So the question lies: Why is Rizal our National Hero. First of all, he was the central

figure of the Propaganda Movement. This movement tried to seek reforms for the betterment of

the lives of the Filipinos. With his prolific writing at the La Solidaridad and his two controversial

novels, he became the greatest threat to the Spanish Regime. The leaders of the colonial

government, especially the friars who were attacked in his works, were more alarmed of his

writings than the local rebellions. It was because they saw the potential of a Revolution once

people have realized what his works were trying to do to them, to free the people from their blind

obedience to the colonizers, by acting as their eyes. According to Zaide, Rizal was the greatest

hero that ever lived because he was a man honoured after death by public worship, because of

exceptional service to mankind. But the most probable reason why he became the national hero

is that he was indeed the First Filipino. Leon Guerrero presents this reasoning in his book, “The

First Filipino”. Before him there were natives who fought against the Spanish. There was Lapu-

Lapu and Humabon, yet neither one declared himself as a Filipino. Even at the time of Rizal,

Marcelo H. Del Pilar ended his columns with patriotic cries “Long Live Spain! Long Live the

Army! Down with the friars!” Tagalogs, Bisayans, etc., were beginning to call themselves

Filipinos but the name was shared with the Spanish and Chinese.

It was Rizal who first saw the potential of the Filipino people united into one Filipino

Nation. He was the first to sought to unite the whole archipelago, as stated in the constitution of

La Liga Filipina. He envisioned a homogeneous society of all the tribal communities which is

based on common interests rather than on the Spanish friar’s theory of double allegiance. And he

decided to accomplish all of these without resorting to armed means. This is the main reason

why he was chosen to be the national hero, because looking into it, he was really the first

Filipino. After the execution, the Spaniards shouted “Long Live Spain and death to the traitors!”

Amongst the cheering crowd was a quiet group of Filipinos, who unbeknownst to the Spanish

people, have woken up from a long slumber of disillusioned and blind obedience. The spark of

Rizal’s death had ignited their inner fire of nationalism, as Leon Guerrero concluded his book,

“If he had seen them, the first Filipino would have known that he was not the last.”

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Agoncillo, Teodoro, “A History of the Filipino People”, 8th

ed., 1975, Garotech

Publishing Inc.

Guerrero, Leon Ma., “The First Filipino”, 2nd

ed., 1998, Guerrero Publishing, with the

permisiion from the National Historical Institute

Zaide, Gregorio F., Zaide, Sonia, M., “Jose Rizal: The Life and Writing of a Genius,

Writer, Scientist and National Hero”, 2nd

ed., 1999, All-Nations Publishing Co. Inc.