Notes 4: Content and Contextual Analysis of Philippine History PDF

Notes 4 Content and Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History The KKK and the “Kartilya ng Katipunan” The KKK and the “Kartilya ng Katipunan” The Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK) or Katipunan is...

Notes 4 Content and Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History The KKK and the “Kartilya ng Katipunan” The KKK and the “Kartilya ng Katipunan” The Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK) or Katipunan is arguably the most important formed in Philippine history. While anti-colonial movement’s efforts, organizations have already been done centuries prior to the foundation Katipunan, it was only this organization that envisioned (1) a united nation that will revolt against the Spaniards for (2) the total independence the country from Spain. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 2 History, pp. 22-30  Previous armed revolts had already occurred the foundation of the Katipunan, but none of them envisioned a Filipino nation revolting against the colonizers. For example, Diego Silang was known as an Ilocano who took up his arms and led one of the longest running revolts in the country. Silang, however, was mainly concerned about his locality and referred to himself as El Rey de Ilocos (The King of Ilocos). The imagination of the nation was largely absent in the aspirations of the local revolts before Katipunan. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 3 History, pp. 22-30  On the other hand, the movements led by the ilustrados like Marcelo H. del Pilar, Graciano Lopez Jaena, and Jose Rizal did not envision a total separation of the Philippines from Spain, but only demanded equal rights, representation, and protection from the abuses of the friars. Marcelo H. del Pilar Graciano Lopez Jaena Jose Rizal Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 4 History, pp. 22-30  In the conduct of their struggle, Katipunan created a complex and a defined value system that will guide the organization as a aspiring for a single goal. One of the most important Katipunan was the Kartilya ng Katipunan. The original title of the document was “Manga [sic] Aral Nang [sic] Katipunan ng mga A.N.B.” or “Lessons Organization of the Sons of Country.” The document was written by Emilio Jacinto in the year 1896. He was only 18 years old when he joined the movement. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 5 History, pp. 22-30  He was a law student in the University of Santo Tomas. Despite his youth, Andres Bonifacio recognized the value and intellect of Jacinto seeing Jacinto's Kartilya was much better than the Decalogue he willingly favored that the Andres Bonifacio Kartilya be distributed to their fellow Katipunan. Jacinto became the secretary of the organization and took charge short-lived printing press of the Katipunan. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 6 History, pp. 22-30  On 15 April 1897, Bonifacio appointed Jacinto as a commander of the Katipunan in Northern Luzon. Jacinto was 22 years old. He died of Malaria at young age of town of Magdalena, Laguna. Death of Emilio Jacinto Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 7 History, pp. 22-30  The Kartilya can be treated as the Katipunan's code of conduct. It contained fourteen rules that instruct the way a Katipunero should behave, and which specific values should he uphold. Generally, the rules that are contained in the Kartilya can be classified into two. The first group contains the rules that will make the member an upright individual and the second group contains the rules that will guide the way he treats his fellow men. Below is the translated version of the rules in Kartilya: Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 8 History, pp. 22-30 i. The life that is not consecrated to a lofty and reasonable purpose is a tree without a shade, if not a poisonous weed. ii. To do good for personal gain and not for its own sake is not virtue. iii. It is rational to be charitable and love one's fellow creature, and to adjust one's conduct, acts and words to what is in itself reasonable. iv. Whether our skin be black or white, we are all born equal: superiority in knowledge, wealth and beauty are to be understood, but not superiority by nature. v. The honorable man prefers honor to personal gain; the scoundrel, gain to honor. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 9 History, pp. 22-30 vi. To the honorable man, his word is sacred. vii. Do not waste thy time: wealth can be recovered but not time. viii. Defend the oppressed and fight the oppressor before the law or in the field. ix. The prudent man is sparing in words and faithful in keeping secrets. x. On the thorny path of life, man is the guide of woman and the children, and if the guide leads to the precipice, those whom he guides will also go there. xi. Thou must not look upon woman as a mere plaything, but as a faithful companion who will share with thee the penalties of life; her (physical) weakness will increase thy interest in her and she will remind thee of the mother who bore thee and reared thee. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 10 History, pp. 22-30 xii. What thou dost not desire done unto thy wife, children, brothers and sisters, that do not unto the wife, children, brothers and sisters of thy neighbor. xiii. Man is not worth more because he is a king, because his nose is aquiline, and his color white, not because he is a priest, a servant of God, nor because of the high prerogative that he enjoys upon earth, but he is worth most who is a man of proven and real value, who does good, keeps his words, is worthy and honest; he who does not oppress nor consent to being oppressed, he who loves and cherishes his fatherland, though he be born in the wilderness and know no tongue but his own. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 11 History, pp. 22-30 xiv. When these rules of conduct shall be known to all, the longed-for sun of Liberty shall rise brilliant over this most unhappy portion of the globe and its rays shall diffuse-everlasting joy among the confederated brethren of the same rays, the live of those who have gone before, the fatigues and the well-paid sufferings will remain. If he who desires to enter has informed himself of all this and believes he will be able to perform what will be his duties, he may fill out the application for admission. As the primary governing document, which determines the rules of conduct in the Katipunan, properly understanding the Kartilya will thus help in understanding the values, ideals, aspirations, and even the ideology of the organization. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 12 History, pp. 22-30 Analysis of the “Kartilya Katipunan” Similar to what we have done to the accounts of Pigafetta, this primary source also needs to be analyzed in terms of content and context. As document written for a fraternity whose main purpose is to overthrow colonial regime, we can explain the content and provisions of the Kartilya as a reaction and response to certain value systems that they found despicable in the present state of things that they struggled against with. For example, the fourth and the thirteenth rule in the Kartilya are an invocation of the inherent equality between and among men regardless of race, occupation, or status. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 13 History, pp. 22-30  In the context of the Spanish colonial era where the indios were treated as the inferior of the white Europeans, the Katipunan saw to it that the alternative order that they wish to promulgate through their revolution necessarily destroys this kind of unjust hierarchy. Moreover, one can analyze the values upheld in the document as consistent with the burgeoning rational and liberal ideals in the 18th and 19th century. Equality, tolerance, freedom, and liberty were values that first emerged in the 18th century French Revolution, which spread throughout Europe and reached the educated class of the colonies. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 14 History, pp. 22-30  Jacinto, an ilustrado himself, certainly got an understanding of these values. Aside from the liberal values that can be dissected in the document, we can also decipher certain Victorian and chivalrous values in the text. For example, various provisions in the Kartilya repeatedly emphasized the importance of honor in words and in action. The teaching of the Katipunan on how women should be treated with honor and respect, while positive in many respects and certainly a significant stride from the practice of raping and physically abusing women, can still be a telling of the Katipunan's secondary regard for women in relation to men. For example, in the tenth rule, the document specifically stated that men should be the guide of women and children, and that he should set a good example, otherwise the woman and the children would be guided in the path of evil. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 15 History, pp. 22-30  Nevertheless, the same document stated that women should be treated as companions by men and not as playthings that can be exploited for his pleasure. In the contemporary eyes, the Katipunan can be criticized because of these provisions. However, one must not forget the context where the organization was born. Not even in Europe or in the whole of the West at that juncture recognized the problem of gender inequality. Indeed, it can be argued that Katipunan's recognition of women as important partners in the struggle, as reflected not just in Kartilya but also in the organizational structure of the fraternity where a women's unit was established, is an endeavor advanced for its time. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 16 History, pp. 22-30  Aside from Rizal’s known Letter to the Women of Malolos, no same effort by the supposed cosmopolitan Propaganda Movement was achieved until the movement's eventual disintegration in the latter part of the 1890s. Aside from this, the Kartilya was instructive not just of the Katipunan's conduct toward other people, but also for the members' development as individuals in their own rights. Generally speaking, the rules in the Kartilya can be classified as either directed to how one should treat his neighbor or to how one should develop and conduct one's self. Both are essential to the success and fulfilment of the Katipunan's ideals. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 17 History, pp. 22-30  For example, the Kartilya teachings on honoring one's word and on not wasting time are teachings directed toward self- development, while the rules on treating the neighbor's wife, children, and brothers the way that you want yours to be treated is an instruction on how Katipuneros should treat and regard their neighbors. All in all, proper reading of the Kartilya will reveal a more thorough understanding of the Katipunan and the significant role that it played in the revolution and in the unfolding of the Philippine history, as we know it. Candelaria et al. Readings in Philippine 18 History, pp. 22-30