Rizal - Chapter 4 Lesson 1 - Scholastic Triumphs at Ateneo de Manila - PDF

# The Life and Works of Rizal ## Chapter 4 Lesson 1 ### Scholastic Triumphs at Ateneo de Manila (1872-1877) - Jose was sent to Manila 4 months after the martyrdom of Gom-Bur-Za and with Dona Teodora still in prison. - He studied in the Ateneo Municipal, a college under the supervision of the Span...

# The Life and Works of Rizal ## Chapter 4 Lesson 1 ### Scholastic Triumphs at Ateneo de Manila (1872-1877) - Jose was sent to Manila 4 months after the martyrdom of Gom-Bur-Za and with Dona Teodora still in prison. - He studied in the Ateneo Municipal, a college under the supervision of the Spanish Jesuits. - Bitter rival of the Dominican-owned College of San Juan de Letran. - Formerly the Escuela Pia (Charity School) for poor boys in Manila established in 1817. - In 1859 - name was changed to Ateneo Municipal by the Jesuits and later became the Ateneo de Manila. ### Rizal Enters at Ateneo - June 10, 1872 - Jose, accompanied by Paciano, went to Manila to take the entrance examinations on Christian Doctrine, arithmetic, and reading at the College of San Juan de Letran, and passed them. - His father was the first one who wished him to study at Letran, but he changed his mind and decided to send Jose to Ateneo instead. - Father Margin Ferrando, college registrar of Ateneo Municipal, refused to admit Jose because: - He was late for registration. - He was sickly and undersized for his age (11 years old). - Upon the intercession of Manuel Xeres Burgos, nephew of Father Burgos, he was admitted at Ateneo. - Jose adopted the surname Rizal's at the Ateneo because their family name Mercado's had come under suspicion of the Spanish authorities. - Ateneo was located in Intramuros, within the walls of Manila. - He boarded in a house on Caraballo Street, 25 minutes walk from the college. - The boarding house was owned by Titay, who owed Rizal Family P300. - Jose boarded there to collect part of the debt. ### Jesuits System of Education - Jesuits trained the character of the student by rigid discipline, humanities, and religious instruction. - They heard Mass early in the morning before the beginning of daily class. Classes were opened and closed with prayer. - Students were divided into two groups: - Roman Empire - Carthaginian Empire - Each empire had its rank. Students fought for positions, with 3 mistakes, opponents could lose their position. - 1st Best: Emperor - 2nd Best: Tribune - 3rd Best: Decurion - 4th Best: Centurion - 5th Best: Standard - Bearer ### Rizal's First Year in Ateneo (1872-1873) - Rizal's first professor in Ateneo was Fr. Jose Bech. - Rizal was placed at the bottom of the class since he was a newcomer and knows little Spanish. - He was an externo (Carthaginians) occupying the end of the line. - But at the end of the month, he became emperor of his Empire. - He was the brightest pupil in the whole class, and he was awarded a prize, a religious prize. - Rizal took the private lesson in Santa Isabel College during noon recess to improve his Spanish language, paying three pesos for those extra lessons. ### Summer vacation (1873) - Rizal didn't enjoy his summer because his mother was in prison, so Neneng (Saturnina) brought him to Tanawan. - But without telling his father, he went to Santa Cruz to visit her mother in prison. He told her of his brilliant grades. - After summer, he returned to Manila and now boarded inside Intramuros at No. 6 Magallanes Street. - Dona Pepay, who had a widowed daughter and 4 sons, was his landlady. ### Second year in Ateneo (1873 - 1874) - At the end of the school year, Rizal received excellent grades in all subjects and a gold medal. - The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas, the first favorite novel of Rizal, which made a deep impression on him. - Universal History by Cesar Cantu - Rizal persuaded his father to buy him this set of historical work, which was a great aid in his studies. - Dr. Feodor Jagor - a German scientist-traveler who visited the Philippines in 1859-1860, who wrote Travels in the Philippines. ### Third year in Ateneo (1874 – 1875) - Rizal's grades remained excellent in all subjects, but he won only one medal in Latin. - At the end of the school year (March 1875), Rizal returned to Calamba for the summer vacation. - He himself was not impressed by his scholastic work. ## Chapter 4 Lesson 2 ### Fourth year on Ateneo - June 16, 1875 - Rizal became an interno (intern) in the Ateneo. - Padre Francisco de Paula Sanchez, a great educator and scholar, one of Rizal's professor who inspired him to study harder and write poetry. - Rizal described this Jesuit professor as “model of uprightness, earnestness, and love for the advancement of his pupils." - Rizal topped all his classmates in all subjects and won five medals at the end of the school term. ### Last year in Ateneo (1876 – 1877) - Rizal, the most brilliant Atenean of his time, and was truly the pride of the Jesuits. - Graduate with Highest Honor. - March 23, 1877 - Rizal, 16 years old, received from his Alma Mater, Ateneo Municipal, the degree of Bachelor of Arts, with highest honor. - The night before graduation, he could not sleep. - Early morning on the day of his graduation, he prayed to the Virgin to commend his life and protect him as he step into the world. ### Extra-curricular activities in Ateneo - He was an active member, later secretary, of Marian Congregation – a religious society. - He was accepted because of his academic brilliance and devotion to Our Lady of Immaculate Conception, the college patroness. - Member of the Academy of Spanish Literature and the Academy of Natural Sciences. - He studied painting under Agustin Saez, a famous painter, and sculpture under Romualdo de Jesus. - He continued his physical training under his sports-minded Tito Manual. ### Sculpture works in Ateneo - He carved an image of The Virgin Mary on a piece of Batikuling (Philippine hardwood) with his pocket knife. The Jesuits fathers were amazed. - Father Lleonart requested him to carve for him an image of The Virgin Mary. - The Ateneo boarders placed it on the door of their dormitory. It plays a significant part in Rizal's last hours at Fort Santiago. ### Rizal at the University of Santo Tomas - Under the guidance of Prof. Father Francisco Paula de Sanchez, Rizal honed his poetic language in his fourth year in Ateneo, leading him to write numerous poems on the themes of history, childhood memories, religion, education, and the war. - They were all pro.Spanish. - Felicitacion (felicitation) - El Embarque: Himno a la Flota de Magallanes (The Departure: Hymn to Magallan's Fleet) - Y Es Espanyol: Elcano, El Primero en dar la Vuelta del Mundo (and He is Spanish: Elcano, the first to circumnavigate the world) - El Combate: Urbiztondo, Terror deJolo; Por la Educacion Recibe Lustre de Patria (through Education, the motherland receives enlightenment) ### First Romance of Rizal - He experienced his first romance with Segunda Katigbak, a pretty 14 year old Batanguena from Lipa. - One Sunday, Rizal visited his maternal grandmother in Trozo, Manila with his friend Mariano Katigbak. One of whom was an attractive girl, who mysteriously caused his heart to palpitate with strange ecstasy was Segunda. - His grandmothers' guest urged him to draw Segunda's portrait. - From time to time, he reminisced, she looked at me and I blushed. - Rizal came to know Segunda more intimately during weekly visits to La Concordia College, where his sister was boarding student, Olympia and Segunda was a close friend. - Theirs was indeed a love at first sight. - But Segunda was already engaged to be married to Manuel Luz. ### Literary Works (1879) - _The Council of the Gods_ (1880) - an allegorical drama written by Rizal which he entered in the literary contest of Artistic Literary Lyceum in 1880 to commemorate the fourth centennial of the death of Cervantes. - _Junto al Pasig_ (beside the Pasig) – a zarzuela, written by Rizal. It was staged by the Ateneans on December 8, 1880, on the occasion of the annual celebration of the Feats Day of the Immaculate Conception, Patroness of the Ateneo. - _Liceo.Artistico-Literario_ (Artistic-Literary Lyceum) of Manila, a society literary men and artists, held a literary contest. - _A La Juventud Filipino_ (to the Filipino youth) - a poem written by Rizal, it was the first prize winner. Two reasons why Rizal's poem is a classic in the Philippine literature: - It was the first great poem in Spanish written by the Filipino, whose merit was recognized by Spanish literary authorities. - It expressed for the first time the nationalistic concept that the Filipino, and not the foreigners, was the fair hope of Fatherland. ### Relationship With Other Women - _Miss L_ - simply referred, describing her as "fair with seductive and attractive eyes". After several visits to her home, he abruptly ceased his wooing, and the romance died of natural causes. - _Leonor Valenzuela_ – daughter of Capitan Juan and Capitana Sanday Valenzuela, there any note written in invisible ink by heating it over candle or lamp until the lettering appeared. - _Leonor Rivera_ - daughter of Antonio Rivera and cousin from calling, Rizal resided in his uncle Antonio, no.6 Calle Santo Tomas, Intramuros. In “Casa Tomasina", she was born on April 11. 1876. ### Finishes Surveying Course in Ateneo - In 1877-1878, Rizal took the vocational course leading to the title of "perito agrimensor" (expert surveyor). - He passed the final examination in the surveying course on November 25, 1881. He remained loyal. ### Rizal at the University of Santo Tomas - Two reasons: - He received the advice of Father Pablo Ramon, Ateneo’s Rector to study medicine and to be able to cure his mother’s growing blindness. - He excelled in all subjects in the surveying course in Ateneo. - He obtained gold medals in agriculture and topography. - Despite his enormous literary successes, he was dissatisfied with his stay at the Dominican-owned school these reason. - The Dominican professor were hostile to him. - The Spaniards discriminated the Filipino students based on their race. - The teaching method was antiquated and oppressive. - He did not receive high scholastic honors as a result of his professor attitudes. - He enrolled in this course for two reasons: - His father liked it. - He was still "uncertain as to what career to follow." - Pablo Ramon - rector of Ateneo, who had been good to him during his student days in that college, asking for advice on the choice of career. - Fortunately, Rizal’s tragic first romance, with its bitter disillusionment, didn’t adversely affect his studies in UST. - His love for higher education proved to be greater than his love for a pretty girl. - In April, 1877, Rizal, who was then nearly 16 years old, matriculated in the University of Santo Tomas, taking Philosophy and Letters. ### Champion of the Filipino Students - Rizal was the champion of the Filipino students in 1880: Rizal founded _Companerismo_ (commandership), a secret society of Filipino students at UST. - The members were known as the “companion of Jehu”. He became the chief of the secrets of students society and Galaciano Apacible was the secretary. _@denrelacion_