RZAL 1013: Life and Works of Rizal (University of Saint Louis) PDF

**UNIVERSITY OF SAINT LOUIS** **Tuguegarao City** **SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, ARTS and SCIENCES** **First Semester** **A.Y. 2021-2022** **CORRESPONDENCE LEARNING MODULE** **RZAL 1013 (Life and Works of Rizal)** **Prepared by:** **ANTHONY P. ANGELES** **HAYDEN GONZALES** **STELLA MARIE R. LUMABA...

**UNIVERSITY OF SAINT LOUIS** **Tuguegarao City** **SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, ARTS and SCIENCES** **First Semester** **A.Y. 2021-2022** **CORRESPONDENCE LEARNING MODULE** **RZAL 1013 (Life and Works of Rizal)** **Prepared by:** **ANTHONY P. ANGELES** **HAYDEN GONZALES** **STELLA MARIE R. LUMABAN** **RAY T. OBISPO, Ph. D** **JEIZELLE MARIE T. QUINTO** **RACHEL ANN SURLA** **DARIN JAN C. TINDOWEN, Ph. D** **[ALVIC B. TORRES]** *Course Instructors* **Reviewed by:** **[RENZ MARION C. GAVINO, MP]** *General Education Area* **Recommended by:** **[VENUS I. GUYOS, Ph.D.]** *Academic Dean* **Approved by:** **[EMMANUEL JAMES P. PATTAGUAN, Ph.D.]** *Vice President for Academics* **UNIVERSITY PRAYER** *O God, wellspring of goodness and blessings, we give you thanks and praise as one Louisian community. The graces You incessantly grant upon us and Your divine providence have sustained our beloved University throughout the years of mission and excellence.* *Having been founded by the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, we pray that You keep us committed and dedicated to our mission and identity to serve the Church and the society as we become living witnesses to the Gospel values proclaimed by Jesus. For if we are steadfast in our good and beautiful mission, our works will bring success not only to ourselves but also to those whom we are bound to love and serve.* *Inspired by St. Louis our Patron Saint, who was filled with a noble spirit that stirred him to love You above all things, may we also live believing that we are born for a greater purpose and mission as we dwell in Your presence all the days of our life.* *Grant all these supplications through the intercession of\ Mother Mary and through Christ our Lord. Amen.* **CORRESPONDENCE LEARNING MODULE** **RZAL 1013: Life and Works of** Rizal AY 2021-2022 **Week XIII** **Lesson XII** ------------ ----------------------------------------------------------------- **Topic:** **Rizal's Changing View on Spanish Rule and El Filibusterismo** ------------ ----------------------------------------------------------------- +-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+ | **Learning Outcomes:** | At the end of this module, you | | | are expected to: | | | | | | 1. Elaborate pressing issues | | | that happened during the | | | Spanish regime; | | | | | | 2. Compare Colonial rule to this | | | current time; and | | | | | | 3. Discuss the content and | | | context of El Filibusterismo. | +-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+ +-----------------------+-----------------------+-----------------------+ | **Date** | **Topics** | **Activities** | +=======================+=======================+=======================+ | November 10-19 | - Some Pressing | *Read Lesson* | | | Issues during | | | | Spanish regime | | | | | | | | - El Filibusterismo | | +-----------------------+-----------------------+-----------------------+ | | | *Answering Learning | | | | Task* | +-----------------------+-----------------------+-----------------------+ **LEARNING CONTENT** - What were Rizal's sources of inspiration in writing El Filibusterismo? - Do you think Rizal has personal encounters of Spanish oppression? - Who were the characters of El Filibusterismo and who/what do they symbolize? *"You must shatter the vase to spread its perfume and smite the rock to get the spark!"* *-Jose Rizal (El Filibusterismo)* The Spanish colonialism in Philippines has created uncertainties for many Filipinos. In their lives, many Filipinos suffered, some were mistreated, discrimination was rampant, and inequality prevailed. Born during the Spanish period, Jose Rizal died at the hands of Spanish colonial oppression. He was able to create writings that represented the colonial rule of the Spaniards from his encounters within and outside the Philippines. One of his popular novels, El Filibusterismo (The Reign of Greed), a sequel to Noli me Tangere, was one of these. Published in 1891, it continues the Noli\'s criticisms of the abuses and corruption perpetrated by the Spanish government. This module addresses the pressing problems facing the Spanish regime and how Rizal used them in writing El Filibusterismo as inspiration. **Some Pressing Issues during Spanish regime:** (Halili, 2004) 1. **Racial Discrimination-** The Filipino natives were commonly regarded by the Spaniards as belonging to the lower race and haughtily called them Indios. The preconceived notion of the Spanish colonizers that the natives could not rise beyond their limited intelligence prompted the enlightened Filipinos to fight for equality. Jose Rizal\'s annotation of Antonio de Morga\'s *Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas* denounced the Spanish allegation that the Filipinos were savages and had no culture prior to the arrival of Western colonizers. 2. **Secularization Controversy-** There were two kinds of priests in the Philippines serving the Catholic Church. These were the [regulars] and the [seculars]. There were regular priests belonging to religious orders. Spreading Christianity was their primary task. Secular priests were of no religious order whatsoever. They were trained to run the parishes specifically and were under the bishops\' supervision. 3. **Cavite Mutiny-** Cavite Mutiny (January 20, 1872), a brief rebellion of 200 Filipino soldiers and Cavite arsenal workers, which became a pretext for the Spanish suppression of the Filipino nationalist revolution. Ironically, the harsh response of the Spanish authorities helped to support the nationalist cause. These three issues gave inspiration to Rizal in writing El Filibusterismo. In fact, Rizal dedicated his second novel to Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora (GomBurZa). Rizal was just 10 years old when GomBurZa were executed. Their deaths awakened the fire that has been burning inside the native Filipino people (Indios) for over 300 years of abuse and slavery. El Filibusterismo was written in dedication to the three martyred priests Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora, whose deaths left an indelible mark in his mind. Like Noli Me Tangere, El Fili aims at enlightening the society and bringing the Filipinos closer to the truth. **The Making of El Filibusterismo** Rizal started writing the manuscript of his second book, El Filibusterismo, during his stay in Calamba in October 1887 while practicing medicine. In 1888, he continued to compose it in London wherein he made some changes in the plot and corrected some chapters already written. He wrote further chapters in Paris, Madrid and Biarritz, where he finished the whole manuscript on March 29, 1891. It took him three years to complete the book. When in Belgium, he moved to Ghent, where the cost of living was lower. He moved to a low-cost boarding house where he cooked his own meal. He and his boardmate, Jose Alejandrino, operated on biscuits that had been rationed for thirty days, but ultimately lasted just fifteen days. (Zaide, 1999) Rizal discovered a suitable printing press at No. 66 Viaandern Street named [F. Meyer-Van Loo Press]. It was able to print his small-payment book on installment basis. To print his book, Rizal pawned all his jewels. The proceeds of the annotated Sucesos amounting to ₱200 and some money from Basa were also available. On August 6, publishing had to be postponed because funds were not forthcoming. Rizal was basically broken, and Rizal was When it appeared to be hopeless, El Filibusterismo, as in Noli Me Tangere, had a savior. Valentin Ventura, his neighbor, learned of his difficulties and sent the requisite sum to complete the book printing. El Filibusterismo was officially published on [September 18, 1891]. Two copies were sent to Hong Kong by Rizal, one to Basa and the other to Sixto Lopez. He gratefully handed the original manuscript and a written copy with his autograph to Valentin Ventura. This manuscript was later bought from Valentin Ventura for ten thousand pesos by the Philippine government and is now housed in the vault of the Filipiniana Division of the National Library in Manila. Rizal also sent free copies to Blumentritt, Ponce, Lopez Jaena, T.H. Pardo de Tavera, Antonio and Juan Luna, Marcelo H. del Pilar and other friends. The reformist community in Barcelona praised the novel saying that it is comparable to the works of Alexander Dumas such as The Count of Monte Cristo from which the novel received inspiration. The Spanish newspaper *El Nuevo Regimen* serialized the novel during October 1891. (de Viana, 2014) We should note that to reach Manila, Noli was smuggled. The remaining copies of El Filibusterismo were collected and sent to Manila to be smuggled to Hong Kong. Almost all the crates were seized by the authorities, relative to the Noli Me Tangere, and were destroyed. It was much rarer than that of Noli, and there were a few copies sold for as much as 400 pesetas. The novel was devoted to the memory of GomBurZa, the three martyred secular priests. Rizal said in the dedication that the involvement of the priests in the Cavite mutiny was in question and hoped that their identities would be explained sometime by Spain. Rizal perpetrated factual inaccuracies, much as in Noli Me Tangere. On February 17, 1872, not February 28, the execution of the three priests took place. And Father Gomez\'s age was 73 years, not 85; Fr. Burgos was 35, not 30 years old, and Father Zamora was 37, not 35 years old. A foreword and a warning were absent in the printed novel to save on the printing cost. The preface spoke of Filibusterism and that it was used by the Spanish government to intimidate people into silence. **Rizal\'s Dedication of the El Fili to GomBurZa** *To the memory of the priests, Don Mariano Gomez (85 years old), Don Jose Burgos (30 years old), and Don Jacinto Zamora (35 years old). Executed in Bagumbayan Field on the 28th of February 1872.* *The Church, by refusing to degrade you, has placed in doubt the crime that has been imputed to you; the Government, by surrounding your trials with mystery and shadows, causes the belief that there was some error, committed in fatal moments; and all the Philippines, by worshiping your memory and calling you martyrs, in no sense recognizes your culpability. In so far, therefore, as your complicity in the Cavite mutiny is not clearly proved, as you may or may not have been patriots, and as you may or may not have cherished sentiments for justice and for liberty, I have the right to dedicate my work to you as victims of the evil which I undertake to combat. And while we wait expectantly upon Spain someday 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 everyone who without clear proofs attacks your memory stains his hands in your blood!* **Summary of El Filibusterismo** This book is Noli\'s sequel. It is less humorous, less idealistic, and less romantic than Noli Me Tangere. More revolutionary than the first book, it is more tragic. (Zaide & Zaide, 1999) A jeweler named Simoun is the protagonist of El Filibusterismo.It is the new identity of Crisostomo Ibarra, who fled from the pursuit of soldiers in the prequel Noli. Crisostomo, it is revealed, dug up his hidden treasure and fled to Cuba, becoming wealthier and welcoming to Spanish authorities. The freshly fashioned Simoun returns to the Philippines after several years, where he can travel about easily. Not only because of his money, he is an influential figure, but also because he is a close friend and counselor of the governor general. Simoun is outwardly a supporter of Spain, but secretly plans a horrific vengeance against the Spanish authorities. His two obsessions are to save Maria Clara, his paramour, from the convent of Santa Clara and to promote a revolution in the Philippines against Spain. The El Filibusterismo tale begins on board a steamer ship sailing from Manila to Laguna de Bay on the Pasig River. Among the passengers are **Simoun**; **Doña Victorina**, a pro-Spanish native woman who is going to Laguna in search of her henpecked husband, **Tiburcio de Espadaña**, who has deserted her; **Paulita Gomez**, her beautiful niece; **Ben-Zayb** (anagram of Ibañez), a Spanish journalist who writes silly articles about the Filipinos; **Padre Sibyla**, vice-rector of the University of Santo Tomas; **Padre Camorra**, the parish priest of the town of Tiani; **Don Custodio**, a pro-Spanish Filipino holding a position in the government; **Padre Salvi**, thin Franciscan friar and former cura of San Diego; **Padre Irene**, a kind friar who was a friend of the Filipino students; **Padre Florentino**, a retired scholarly and patriotic Filipino priest; **Isagani**, a poet-nephew of Padre Florentino and a lover of Paulita; and **Basilio**, son of Sisa and promising medical student, whose medical education is financed by his patron, **Capitan Tiago**. Simoun, a man of riches and intrigue, is a very close associate of the Spanish Governor General and a confidante. He was dubbed the \"Brown Cardinal\" or the \"Black Eminence\" due to his great influence in Malacañang. He encourages government corruption by using his riches and political power, promotes the injustice of the masses, and accelerates the spiritual decay of the world so that the people can become desperate and fight. With the aid of a rich Chinese merchant, Quiroga, who aspires to be the Chinese Consul of Manila, he smuggles weapons into the country. His first effort to launch the armed revolution did not materialize because he heard the tragic news at the last hour that Maria Clara died in the nunnery. He did not send the signal for an eruption of hostilities in his agonizing moment of bereavement. Simoun is perfecting his plot to topple the government after a long period of sickness brought on by the bitter loss of Maria Clara. He gave them a lovely lamp on the day of the wedding of Paulita Gomez and Juanito Pelaez. Just he and his confidential allies, Basilio (the son of Sisa who supported his revolutionary cause), realize that when the wick of his lamp burns down the nitroglycerine concealed in his underground compartment, it will explode, burning the house where the wedding feast is going to take place, killing all the visitors, including the governor general, the friars, and the officials of the administration. Around the same time, all the government buildings in Manila are going to be blown up by Simoun\'s supporters. The poet Isagani, who was rejected by Paulita because of his liberal ideas, is standing outside the house as the wedding feast begins, sorrowfully watching the merriment inside. He is warned by Basilio, his friend, to go away because the lightened lamp will soon explode. Isagani realizes, upon hearing the horrible secret of the lamp, that his beloved Paulita is in grave danger. He rushes into the house to save her life, seizes the lightened lamp, and hurls it into the river, where it explodes. It is thus discovered the revolutionary plot. The soldiers cornered Simoun, but he escapes. Mortally injured, holding his treasure chest, he finds shelter by the sea in Padre Florentino\'s house. However, the Spanish authorities have been informed of his involvement in the house of Padre Florentino. By letter, Lieutenant Perez of the Guardia Civil told the priest that he would come to arrest Simoun at eight o\'clock that night. Simoun, by taking poison, eludes capture. He confesses to Padre Florentino as he is dying, exposing his real identity, his grim intention to use his fortune to avenge himself, and his sinister goal of killing his friends and rivals. The confession of the dying Simoun is excruciating and prolonged. It is already night when, brushing the sweat from his wrinkled forehead, Padre Florentino rises and starts to meditate. He comforts the dying man and says, \"Señor Simoun, God will forgive you.He is conscious that we\'re fallible. He has seen that you have failed, and we can see His divine grace in ordaining that the penalty for your faults should come as death from the same ones you have instigated to violence. One by one the best conceived, first by the death of Maria Clara, then by a lack of planning, then in some strange way, has frustrated your plans. Let us bow to His will and be grateful to Him!" Padre Florentino sinks to his knees and prays for the dead jeweler, watching Simoun die happily with a clean conscience and at peace with God. Then the priest takes the chest of treasures and drops it into the water. **Allusions of El Filibusterismo to Real Life**  Like Noli Me Tangere, El Filibusterismo is a fictional work. Like the Noli, she had references to real life characters. The main character of Simoun was Rizal. The friars who were criminals in his novels were Dominicans this time around. These were exemplified by Father Sibyla, who was Vice-Rector of the University of Santo Tomas. In real life, Father Sibyla alludes to Father Bernardino Nozaleda, who was the Vice-Rector of the University when he was a student there. Later he would become archbishop of Manila and ask for his arrest in 1896. The oppressive professor of physics was not only a friar, but a layman named Jose Franco, who tried to fail Rizal\'s entire class when he was a student. The real professor of physics at Rizal was Father Jenaro Buitrago de la Rosa. He did not attempt to fail the entire class or sexually harass students like he did in the book. (de Viana, 2014) Father Fernandez was Father Evaristo Fernandez Arias, the only friar in the less unfavourable light that Rizal painted. In the book, he had a moderating effect on Filipino students and was viewed as fatherly and kind. The real Father Fernandez was a professor at the University of Santo Tomas and was known to most alumni during Rizal\'s time. During the Philippine Revolution he wrote a letter to General Emilio Aguinaldo on July 7, 1898 urging him \"to abandon the violence of war. He said that rebellion against legitimate authority was illicit.\" He said that Spanish rule was \"not tyrannical but constructive and benevolent.\" He reminded Aguinaldo that he was affiliated to secret societies condemned by the Church under the penalty of excommunication and that the Church condemns those that lay violent hands on the ministers of God. He said that the revolutionists were depriving the priests of their freedom because they were his prisoners. The other friars were Fr. Camorra and Fr. Irene, who seemed to be shrewd, strong, and unethical frailocracy figures. It was understandable for Rizal to have cast the Dominicans as part of the villains because his family had been removed from their lands in the Dominican estate of Calamba when he wrote the book. Rizal\'s commentary on how it was being operated at the time was the state of the colonial government. Because of the assistance of patrons, the governor general was incompetent and secured his roles. Appointments to high offices can be obtained by a bribe network. As in the case of Graciano Lopez Jaena and Marcelo H, the friars were so powerful that they should have imprisoned a man. Del Pilar, who were told to be imprisoned because of their writing after they angered the friars. Fr. Florentino symbolized the secular priests of the Filipinos. Rizal offered him a solution in his book, but only in a distant region facing the Pacific Ocean. A cross-section of colonial society at the time was reflected by students at the University of Santo Tomas. They were influenced by the young women of Malolos, who defied the local curate there when they advocated for a Spanish language academy in the book. They embodied a cross-section of colonial society at the period, belonging to diverse backgrounds. The characters of Rizal were also portrayed by them. Isagani, the student who cast himself as a poet, represents Rizal\'s idealistic personality; Pecson exposes Rizal\'s playful and cynical side of Rizal, while his serious side is Placido Penitente. Rizal painted the University scene as a conglomeration of students of diverse backgrounds. There were Spanish students hobnobbing with indios and mestizos, and there were Spaniards who were sympathetic to the needs of the Filipinos, even studying Spanish. Rich students as well as bad ones were there. The Cabesang Tales family symbolized the poor peasant farmers and the Calamba estate tenants. Both the law and the lawless became prisoners of them. Estate managers come to collect ever-increasing rentals while bandits enter to extort currency. The presence of bandits showed that during that time there was lawlessness, and Laong, who terrorized the Filipino and Chinese shop owners\' farms in the province of Manila, was the most infamous of them. Later, Laong fought in 1896 with the Katipunan. Laong was depicted in the role of Matang Lawin. The killing of Tandang Selo by a group of civil guards, including Tano, was evidently inspired by a story in the Marianas in the 1870s in which a group of escaping prisoners were pursued by civil guards. He was shot as he waved a spear. The soldier who shot him was Carolino, who was Tano, the grandson of Tandang Selo. He must have been given his current name when he was assigned to the Carolina Islands in the Pacific. The involvement of Americans such as Mr. Leeds showed the impression of Rizal regarding these foreigners who came to the Philippines to dazzle the people with pointless distraction, such as the talking head display, then left with the hard-earned money of the inhabitants. In his book, Rizal borrowed ideas from history as well. The blow-up of the house of Juanito Pelaez was influenced in the 17th century by the Guy Fawkes Gunpowder Plot in England. Fawkes wanted Catholic rule in England to be reinstated. By mining it with gunpowder, he attempted to blow up Westminster Palace in 1605. He was deceived by hanging and sentenced to death. Before his executioners could hang him, he killed himself by falling off the execution table. Likewise, Simoun drank poison before the authorities could apprehend him. Some incidents in Rizal\'s student life at the University of Santo Tomas were expressed in El Filibusterismo. It was stated in the novel that there was a fund-raising effort for Fr. Baltasar to erect a statue. Archbishop Miguel de Benavides, the founder of the university, was Fr. Baltasar in real life. In the fund-raising effort, Rizal should have donated some cash. However, the monument was not erected while Rizal was a university student. After collecting just P4,000 of the P-30,000 needed, the fund-raising campaign was called off. The monument was erected in Paris and erected in 1891 on the campus of Intramuros. Before being moved to its present location on the Sampaloc campus, the monument endured the Philippine Revolution, the transfer of the Islands to American rule and the Second World War. The Fr. Baltasar in the novel is also not entirely fictional. It was derived from Fr. Baltasar Fort, the executor of the last will of Archbishop Benavides\' led to the founding of the University on April 28, 1611. As a novelist, Rizal demonstrated not just the Philippines, but other countries\' knowledge and depth of culture. In his fictional work, his historical experience added an aspect of both fact and colour and showed his comprehension of cultural and historical changes. (de Viana, 2014). **Summary of the Allusion** **Character/Event** **Allusion/Symbolism** ------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------ Simoun Jose Rizal Friars Dominicans Fr. Sybila Fr. Bernardino Nozaleda Oppressive professor in Physics Jose Franco Fr. Fernandez Fr. Evaristo Fernandez Arias Fr. Camorra and Irene Immoral members of frailocracy Fr. Florentino Filipino secular priests Students in UST Cross-section of the society at the time Isagani Idealistic side of Rizal Pecson Playful and Sarcastic side of Rizal Placido Peniente Serious side of Rizal Cabesang Tales Poor peasant farmers Matang Lawin Laong Blowing up of Juanito Pelaez house Guy Fawke's Gunpowder Plot in England Fr. Baltazar Archbishop Miguel de Benavidez References ========== de Viana, A. V. (2014). *Jose Rizal in Our Times: A Guide for the Better Understanding of the Philippines Foremost National Hero.* Mandaluyong City: Books ATBP. Publishing Corp.Halili, M. (2004). *Philippine History.* Quezon City: Rex Bookstore.Zaide, G. F., & Zaide, S. M. (1999). *Rizal: Life, Works, and Writings of a Genius, Writer, Scientist, and National Hero.* Quezon City: All-Nations Publishing. **CORRESPONDENCE LEARNING MODULE** **RZAL 1013: Life and Works of Rizal** **AY 2021-2022** **Week XIV** **Lesson XIV** ------------ ----------------------------------------- **Topic:** **Indolence and Spanish Colonial rule** ------------ ----------------------------------------- +-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+ | **Learning Outcomes:** | At the end of this module, you | | | are expected to: | | | | | | 1. Discuss Rizal's stand about | | | the cause of solution to | | | indolence; and | | | | | | 2. Analyze the causes which | | | Rizal enumerated in the | | | essay. | +-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+ **Date** **Topics** **Activities** ---------------- ------------------------------------- --------------------------- November 10-19 Indolence and Spanish Colonial rule *Read Lesson* *Answering Learning Task* **LEARNING CONTENT** - What were Rizal's views about Indolence? - In your own observation, what are common reasons of indolence? *\"In the Philippines one\'s own and another\'s faults, the shortcomings of one, the misdeeds of another, are attributed to indolence.\"* *-Jose Rizal (The Indolence of the Filipinos)* Asocio-political and exploratory essay published in La Solidaridad in Madrid in 1890 was titled The Indolence of the Filipino (*Sobre La Indolencia de los Filipinos* in Spanish). Indolence is the state of showing no real interest or effort (Cambridge Dictionary, 2020). The purpose of writing is to explain the alleged idleness of his people during the Spanish colonization. Simply put, this essay enumerates several reasons or causes of Filipinos' Indolence. It was written as a response to the accusation of Indian or Malay indolence by José Rizal. He acknowledges the existence of indolence among Filipinos, but for several rea sons it could be attributed. The Indolence of the Filipinos is an analysis of the reasons why, as was said, people did not work hard during the Spanish regime. Rizal pointed out that long before the arrival of the Spanish, the Filipinos were hard-working. The Spanish government has led to a decline in economic activity due to several causes. This essay shows the keen observation of Rizal to Philippines as a colonial society. The Indolence of the Filipinos is an examination of the reasons why, as was said, people did not work hard during the Spanish regime. Rizal insisted that the Filipinos were not inherently indolent. Furthermore, to the extent that there was indolence, this was not to be a cause of backwardness. Rather it was the exploitative conditions of colonial society that resulted in indolence. In pre-colonial times, the Filipinos were hardworking and diligent, controlling trade routes, tilling the land, mining ore and manufacturing. Their indolence developed when their destiny was taken away from them. Things were different in the pre-colonial period: \"\[The Filipinos\] worked more and they had more industries when there were no *encomenderos*, that is, when they were heathens, as de Morga himself asserts\" the Indios, seeing that they were vexed and exploited by their *encomenderos* on account of the products of their industry, and not considering themselves beasts of burden or the like, began to break their looms, abandon the mines, the fields, etc., believing that their rulers would leave them alone on seeing them poor, wretched and unexploitable. Thus, they degenerated and the industries and agriculture so flourishing before the coming of the Spaniards were lost.\" (Alatas, 2011) In Chapter 1 of the essay, Rizal acknowledges the prior work of Gregorio Del Pilar and admits that indolence does exist among the Filipinos, but it cannot be attributed to the troubles and backwardness of the country; rather it is the effect of the backwardness and troubles experienced by the country. Past writings on indolence revolve only on either denying or affirming, and never studying its causes in depth. One must study the causes of indolence, Rizal says, before curing it. He therefore enumerates the causes of indolence and elaborates on the circumstances that have led to it. The hot climate, he points out, is a reasonable predisposition for indolence. Filipinos cannot be compared to Europeans, who live in cold countries and who must exert much more effort at work. An hour\'s work under the Philippine sun, he says, is equivalent to a day\'s work in temperate regions. The approach of Rizal to the issue is what is important to remember here. In tropics, the speed of life was slower because of the climatic and even the European people wanted to slow down. He made a distinction between being \"indolent\" as a response to environment for example and lack of love to work or avoiding it. Rizal\'s other concept of indolence, \"little love for work\", should not reflect the physiological response to heat. The change to working patterns in the tropical environment cannot be understood because of exhaustion or little love for work. All prior relations of the Philippines with other countries in Asia and the Middle East were cut off by creating the Galleon Trade. Galleon trade or the Manila-Acapulco trade was a government monopoly focusing on the trade of products between two countries. Consequently, business with Spain was only done via Mexico. The small businesses and craft industries that flourished during the pre-Spanish period eventually vanished because of this. Because of the introduction of slave labor, Spain also extinguished the enjoyment of work of the native people. During Spanish times, all male Filipinos from 16 to 60 years old were forced to work for the government for a few weeks a year. This forced labor was called polo. The Filipinos were forced to work in shipyards, bridges, and other public works, abandoning agriculture, manufacturing, and trade due to the wars between Spain and other countries in Europe, as well as the Muslims in Mindanao. Against foreign invaders and pirates, Spain did not secure the population. With no weapons to protect themselves, they slaughtered the indigenous people, burnt their villages, and ravaged their territories. As a result, the Filipinos were forced to become nomads i.e., a member of a group of people who move from one place to another rather than living in one place all the time (Cambridge Dictionary, 2020), lost faith in farming their lands or restoring the closed-down factories and were merely submissive to God\'s mercy. Whether it was to be called an education, there was a crooked system of education. Repetitive prayers and other things that the students did not use to bring the country to success is what was being learned in the classrooms. There were no courses in agriculture, industry, etc., which during those periods were desperately needed by the Philippines. A poor case of despising manual labor was the Spanish kings. At noon, the officials returned to work and left early, all the time doing little in accordance with their obligations. Servants who clothed them and fanned them, personal items they should have done for themselves, were always trailing the women. During those days, gambling was set up and widely propagated. There were cockfights (*sabong*) nearly every day and on feast days, government officials and friars were the first to participate in all forms of betting and gambling. It was considered as one of the favorite pastimes of the Philippines during the Spanish Colonial period. A crooked structure of faith was in existence. Naive Filipinos were told by the friars that it was better for a poor man to reach heaven, so they chose not to work and stay poor, so that after they die, they could quickly enter heaven. The taxes were extremely high, so much so that a huge portion of what they earned went to the government or to the friars. When the object of their labor was removed and they were exploited, they were reduced to inaction. Rizal admitted that the Filipinos did not work so hard because they were wise enough to adjust themselves to the warm, tropical climate. "An hour's work under that burning sun, in the midst of pernicious influences springing from nature in activity, is equal to a day's labor in a temperate climate." According to Alatas (2011), the theme of indolence, or the lazy native, in colonial scholarship formed a vital component of the ideology of colonial capitalism. Rizal was probably the first to deal with it systematically and sociologically. **Analysis** It is important to note that indolence in the Philippines is a chronic malady, but not a hereditary one. Truth is, before the Spaniards arrived on these lands, the natives were industriously conducting business with China, Japan, Arabia, Malaysia, and other countries in the Middle East. The reasons for this said indolence were clearly stated in the essay, and were not based only on presumptions, but were grounded on fact taken from history. The absence of solidarity among the Filipino people is another factor we might add that triggered this indolence. The people did not have the strength to combat the violent assaults of the government and the other powers of society in the absence of peace and oneness. There would also be no voice, no chief, to seed and nurture development, so that it could be harvested in due time. The Philippines remained a nation in such a state that was lifeless, dying, merely being, and not alive. As Rizal stated in conclusion, "a man in the Philippines is an individual; he is not merely a citizen of a country." It can be clearly deduced from the writing that Spain is the cause of the indolence attributed to our race: when the Filipinos decided to study and learn, there were no classes, and if there were any, they lacked adequate funding and did not present more valuable knowledge; when the Filipinos wanted to set up their businesses, there was inadequate government capital or protection; when the Filipinos tried to cultivate their lands and establish various industries, they were made to pay enormous taxes and were exploited by the foreign rulers. Depending on the criterion on which such a label is based, it is not only the Philippines, but also other nations, that can be considered indolent. Man cannot work without resting, and if he is called idle, then we might conclude that all men are indolent. One cannot fault a nation that has been stripped of its independence for losing its will to continue building its base on the backs of its citizens, particularly when the fruits of its labor do not meet their lips. When we spend all our lives worshiping such a barbaric and unjust civilization, imposed upon us by invaders who do not even know our motherland, we are destined to tire after a while. We are not idiots, we are not puppets who merely do as we are told to do -- we are human beings who are guided by our will to achieve our goals and who are committed to the protection of our race. When this basic part of our life is denied to us who can fault us if we transform idly? **SUMMARY** **Causes of Indolence of the Filipinos:** - Hot Climate - Galleon Trade - Forced Labor - Lack of protection against invaders - Crooked Education - Gambling - Crooked Religion - High Tax References ========== Cambridge Dictionary. (2020, December 2). INDOLENCE \| definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Retrieved December 5, 2020, from Cambridge.org website: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/indolence de Viana, A. V. (2014). *Jose Rizal in Our Times: A Guide for the Better Understanding of the Philippines Foremost National Hero.* Mandaluyong City: Books ATBP. Publishing Corp.On Eurocentrism and Laziness: The Thought of Jose Rizal \> Articles \|. (2011). Retrieved December 5, 2020, from Globalasia.org website: https://www.globalasia.org/v6no1/book/on-eurocentrism-and-laziness-the-thought-of-jose-rizal\_syed-farid-alatas The Indolence of the Filipinos: Summary and Analysis. (2011). Retrieved December 5, 2020, from Blogspot.com website: http://thelifeandworksofrizal.blogspot.com/2011/08/indolence-of-filipinos-summary-and.html **SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, ARTS and SCIENCES** **First Semester, A.Y. 2021-2022** **RIZAL 1013: Life and Works of Rizal** **FINALS WEEK 1-2 - CORRESPONDENCE LEARNING WORKSHEET** **Name:** **Scores:** ---------------------- -- ------------------ -- **Course and Year:** **Contact No.:** **Instructor** **Code:** **INDOLENCE BEFORE AND TODAY** Instructions: Rizal enumerated causes of Indolence of Filipinos during the Spanish regime. Among the causes from the essay, which do you think influenced the people most to become indolent during the Spanish regime? Write your answer in the first row of the table below. On the second row of the table, in modern days, what do you think is the main cause why people become indolent (please relate your answer to personal experience)? On the second column, provide 5-6 sentences explanation for each cause. You will be graded based on this rubric: **Criteria** **Points** ----------------------- ------------ Content 10 Organization of ideas 7 Grammar 3 **Total** **20** **CAUSE OF INDOLENCE:** **EXPLANATION** ------------------------- ----------------- DURING SPANISH REGIME IN MODERN DAYS  **SHORT-RESPONSE ESSAY** Instruction: Choose one of the pressing issues during Spanish regime that gave inspiration to Rizal in writing El Filibusterismo then explain its effect to the people and to the novel. Explain briefly but substantially. You will be graded based on this rubric: **Criteria** **Points** ----------------------------------- ------------ Content 7 Organization of ideas and Grammar 3 **Total** **10** -- -- **MULTIPLE CHOICE** Instruction: Read each the following questions then choose the correct answer. 1. In El Filibusterismo, what character alludes to the idealistic side of Jose Rizal? a. Isagani b. Pecson c. Placido Peniente d. Matang Lawin 2. In El Filibusterismo, what character alludes to the Playful and Sarcastic side of Rizal? e. Isagani f. Pecson g. Placido Peniente h. Matang Lawin 3. In El Filibusterismo, what character alludes to the Poor peasant farmers? i. Cabesang Tales j. Matang Lawin k. Pecson l. Simoun 4. On August 6, 1891, why was the publication of El Fili postponed? m. because funds were not forthcoming n. because he was arrested in Ghent, Belgium o. because he was appointed to be the honorary president of La Solidaridad p. because there no available printing press at that time 5. Why was Simoun dubbed as "Brown Cardinal" or "Black Eminence\"? q. because he was a confidant of the Governor general r. because he was a spy inside the office of the friars s. because he was plotting to topple the government t. due to his great influence in Malacañang 6. Who warned Isagani to go away from the house because he lightened lamp was about to explode? u. Basilio v. Maria Clara w. Paulita x. Simoun 7. On what country does El Filibusterismo published? y. Ghent z. Belgium a. Berlin b. Germany 8. This policy during Spanish regime mandated the 16 to 60 years old Filipinos to work forcely for weeks a year. c. Galleon trade d. Labor Force e. Polo Y Servicio f. Tributo 9. The essay *Sobre La Indolencia de los Filipinos* was published in \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ in 1890. g. Diariong Tagalog h. Kartilla i. La Solidaridad j. Tribune 10. It was a brief rebellion of 200 Filipino soldiers which became a pretext for the Spanish suppression of the Filipino nationalist revolution. k. Cavite Mutiny l. GomBuZa execution m. Indio Mutiny n. Secularization Munity **TRUE OR FALSE** Instructions. Read each of the following statements then identify if it is correct or not. If it is correct, type TRUE and if otherwise, type FALSE. 11. El Filibusterismo is the sequel of Noli Me Tangere. 12. El Filibusterismo was officially published on September 18, 1891. 13. [Fr. Sibyla alludes to Jose Franco.] 14. The GomBurZa were executed through garrote. 15. [The purpose of writing El Filibusterismo is to explain the alleged idleness of his people during the Spanish colonization.] **QUIZ FOR CLM** **ESSAY** Instruction: Read the following questions then answer in 3-5 sentences each. **RUBRIC** **Criteria** **Points** ----------------------------------- ------------ Content 7 Organization of ideas and Grammar 3 **Total** **10** 1. What do you think is the main message of the Indolence of the Filipino People by Jose Rizal? 2. Do you think Indolence of the Filipino People's message can still be applied to modern conditions? 3. Why did Rizal used Allusions to his novels? 4. Explain the Secularization issue in your own words.