Jose Rizal

- June 19, 1861

- Fr. Rufino Collantes
- 7/11 children
- St. Joseph
- Tenant-farmer of Domican
Francisco Mercado Rizal
 Latin and Philosophy at the College of San Jose in Manila.
 Born May 11, 1818. He died in Manila January 5, 1898, 80 yrs old
 Model of Fathers

Teodora Alonso Realonda

- Born November 8, 1826. Died on August 16, 1911. 85 yrs old

- College of Santa Rosa, a well-known college for girls in the city.

Siblings of Rizal (SAPANA OLUMA JOCEJOTRISO)

1. Saturnina – oldest. Neneng

2. Paciano – older brother. 10 yrs older to Rizal. Pilosopo Tasio in Noli Me Tangere
3. Narcisa – Sisa. School teacher
4. Olimpia – Ypia.
5. Lucia –
6. Maria – Biang
7. Jose – Pepe.
8. Concepcion – Concha
9. Josefa – Panggo
10. Trinidad – Trining
11. Soledad – Cholong

RIZAL’S ANCESTRY (NIMCJAS)

 Negrito
 Indonesian
 Malay
 Chinese
 Japanese
 And Spanish.

THE SURNAME RIZAL

 Merchado was the real surname. Rizal’s family acquired a second surname – Rizal –
which was given by a Spanish alcalde mayor (provincial governor) of Laguna, who was
a family friend.

A GOOD AND MIDDLE-CLASS FAMILY

 Principalia - a town aristocracy in Spanish Philippines. It was one of the distinguished
families in Calamba.
 Don Francisco and Doña Teodora loved their children, but they never spoiled them.
Whenever the children, including Jose Rizal, got into mischief, they were given a sound
spanking. Evidently, they believed in the maxim: “Spare the rod and spoil the child.”
 They played merrily in the azotea or in the garden by themselves. The older ones were
allowed to play with the children of other families.

CHAPTER 2 – CHILDHOOD DAYS IN CALAMBA

• Jose Rizal, just like Filipino boys, had many beautiful memories of
childhood. He has a happy home, filled with parental affection, impregnated with family
joys, and sanctified by prayers.
• In 1876 when he was 15 years old and was a student in the Ateneo de Manila he
remembered his beloved town. He wrote a poem Un Recuerdo A Mi Pueblo (In Memory
of My Town).

EARLIEST CHILDHOOD MEMORIES

 Recounting this childhood experience, Rizal wrote: “Thus my heart fed on somber and
melancholy thoughts so that even still a child, I already wandered on wings of fantasy in
the high regions of the unknown.

DEVOTED SON OF CHURCH

 He loved to go to church to pray, to take part in novenas, and to join the religious
processions. It is said that he was so seriously devout that he was laughingly called
Manong Jose by the Hermanos and Hermanas Terceras.
 One of the men he esteemed and respected in Calamba during his boyhood was the
scholarly Father Leoncio Lopez, the town priest.

PILGRIMAGE TO ANTIPOLO - It was the first trip of Jose across Laguna de Bay and his
pilgrimage to Antipolo
FIRST EDUCATION FROM MOTHER
 The story of the Moth - Of the story told by Dona Teodora to Jose, it was that of the
young moth made the profoundest impression on him. The tragic fate of the young moth,
which died a martyr to its illusions, left a deep impress on Rizal’s mind.
RIZAL’S THREE UNCLES
There were 3 uncles, brothers of his mother, who played a great part in the early education of
Rizal.
 Uncle Gregorio was a lover of books.
- He instilled into the mind of his nephew a great love for books.
- He taught him to work hard, to think for himself, and to observe life keenly.
 Uncle Jose, who had been educated at Calcutta, India, was the youngest brother
of Dona Teodora.
- He encouraged his nephew to paint, sketch, and sculpture.
 Uncle Manuel was a big, strong, and husky man.
- He looked after the physical training of his sickly and weak nephew.
- He encourage Rizal to learn swimming, fencing, wrestling, and other sports, so that in
later years Rizal’s frail body acquired agility, endurance, and strength.

ARTISTIC TALENTS
PRODIGY OF THE PEN
• The first known poem that he wrote was a Tagalog poem entitled “Sa Aking Mga
Kababata” (To My Fellow Children).
• Before he was eight years old, he wrote a Tagalog drama. This drama was staged in
Calamba in connection with the town fiesta.

HEREDITARY INFLUENCE
• From Malayan ancestors, Rizal evidently, inherited his love for freedom, his innate desire
to travel and his indomitable courage.
• From Chinese ancestors he derived his serious nature, frugality, patience and love for
children.
• From Spanish ancestors he got his elegance of bearing, sensitivity to insult and gallantry
to ladies.
• From his father he inherited a profound sense of self-respect, the love for work and the
habit of independent thinking.
• And from his mother his religious nature, the spirit of self-sacrifice and the passion for
arts and literature
ENVIRONMENTAL INFLUENCE
• The beautiful scenic of Calamba and the beautiful garden of the Rizal family stimulated
the inborn artistic and literary talents of Jose Rizal.
• The religious atmosphere at his home fortified his religious nature.
• His brother Paciano instilled in his mind the love for freedom and justice. From sisters
he learned to be courteous and kind to women.
• The fairy tales told by his aya awakened his interest in folklore and legends.
• Father Leoncio Lopez a parish priest in Calamba fostered Rizal’s love for scholarship and
intellectual honesty.
• The sorrows in his family such as death of Concha in 1865 and the imprisonment of his
mother in 187-74 contributed to strengthen his character, enabling him to resist blows
adversity in later years.
• The Spanish abuses and cruelties which he witnessed in his boyhood such as brutal acts if
the lieutenant of the Guardia Civil and the alcalde, the unjust tortures inflicted on
innocent Filipinos and the execution of Fathers Gomez, Burgos and Zamora in 1872
awakened his spirit of patriotism and inspired him to consecrate his life and talents to
redeem his oppressed people.

EARLY EDUCATION IN CALAMBA AND BIÑAN

THE HERO’s FIRST TEACHER
• Doña Teodora was Jose’s first non-formal teacher
• On her lap, Jose learned prayers and the alphabet at the age of three

PRIVATE TUTORS OF RIZAL

• Maestro Celestino was Jose’s first private tutor
• Maestro Lucas Padua was the second private tutor
• Maestro Leon Monroy became the hero’s tutor in Spanish and Latin. He was a classmate
of Don Francisco

THE UNCLES OF RIZAL

• Uncle Jose Alberto – gave wise direction in the studies of Jose
• Uncle Gregorio – instilled into the mind of Jose the love for education
“Work hard and perform every task very carefully; learn to be swift as well as
thorough; be independent in thinking; and make visual pictures of everything.”– Uncle
Gregorio
• Uncle Manuel Alberto – seeing Jose was frail in nature, concerned himself with the
physical development of his nephew
• He also taught Jose the love for open air and admiration for the beauty of nature.

JOSE GOES TO BINAN

• Don Leon died five months later and Jose was sent to a private school in Biñan.
• June 1869 – Jose goes to Biñan with Paciano
• Carromata – the mode of transportation
• Aunt’s house – where Jose lodged

FIRST DAY IN SCHOOL

• Maestro Justiniano Aquino Cruz - formal teacher
• Rizal described Maestro Justiniano as tall, thin, long- necked, sharp-nosed, with a body
slightly bent forward
• The school was in Maestro Justiniano’s house

PAINTING LESSONS IN BINAN

• Old Juancho – freely gave Jose painting lessons
• Jose Rizal and his classmate Jose Guevarra became apprentices of Old Juancho

END OF BINAN SCHOOLING

• December 17, 1870 – Jose left Biñan
• Talim – the steamer that Jose rode
• Arturo Camps – a Frenchman and a friend of Don Francisco, he took care of Jose
during the trip.

MARTYRDOM OF GOMBURZA
• January 20, 1872 – Cavite mutiny
• February 17, 1872 – Fathers Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora
were implicated and executed
• The GOMBURZA were leaders of the secularization movement.
• The martyrdom of the three priests inspired Rizal to fight the evils of Spanish
tyranny
• In 1891, Rizal dedicated his second novel El Filibusterismo to GOMBURZA

INJUSTICE TO THE HERO’S MOTHER

• Antonio Vivencio del Rosario – gobernadorcillo of Calamba, helped the lieutenant
arrest Doña Teodora
• 50 kilometers – Doña Teodora was made to walk from Calamba to the provincial
prison in Santa Cruz
• Don Francisco de Marcaida & Don Manuel Mazano – most famous lawyers of
Manila, defended Doña Teodora in court
• After 2 ½ years – the Royal Audiencia acquitted Doña Teodora

CHAPTER 4: SCHOLASTIC TRIUMPHS IN THE ATENEO 1872 – 1877

ATENEO MUNICIPAL
- A college under the supervision of the Spanish Jesuits.
- Formerly known as EscuelaPia, a charity school for poor boys in Manila which was
established by the city gov’t in 1817 and later became Ateneo de Manila.

SAN JUAN DE LETRAN COLLEGE - Dominican – owned college and a rival of Ateneo de
Manila.

RIZAL ENTERS ATENEO

 JUNE 10, 1872 - Jose, accompanied by Paciano, went to Manila.
 Jose took and passed the examination in College of San Juan De Letran when he
came back to Manila.
 FATHER MAGIN FERRANDO (college registrar) - refused to admit Jose Rizal
because:
- He was late for registration
- He was sickly and undersized for his age
- Rizal was then eleven years old.

 MANUEL XEREZ BURGOS - nephew of Father Burgos,

 However, upon the intercession of him, Jose was admitted at Ateneo
 At the time Jose studied in Ateneo this college was located in Intramuros, within the
walls of Manila.
 He first boarded in the house outside Intramuros, on Caraballo Street, a 25 minute walk
from college.
 Titay – owner of the boarding house where Rizal boarded to settle the bill owned by
Titay by about Php 300.

TWO GROUPS OF STUDENT

1. Roman Empire(internos/boarders) -RED FLAG
2. Carthaginian Empire (externos/non-boarders) -BLUE FLAG
 Surveying- Vocational course took by Rizal in Ateneo.
5 RANKS IN EACH GROUP
• best – emperor;
• 2nd best – tribune;
rd
• 3 best – Decurion;
• 4th best – centurion;
• 5th best – standard bearer;

RAYADILLO
• – Official uniform of Ateneo students in Rizal’s Time.
• -Hemp-fabric trousers” and “striped cotton coat”

RIZAL’S FIRST YEAR IN ATENEO (JUNE 1872-1873)

• FATHER JOSE BECH – first teacher of Rizal in Ateneo.
• Being a new comer and knowing a little Spanish, Rizal was placed at the bottom of the
class
• He was an Externo, hence he was to the Carthaginians, occupying the end of the line.
• After the first week, Calamba boy progressed rapidly.
• At the end of the month, he was the brightest pupil in the whole class, and he was
awarded a prize.
• To improve his Spanish, Rizal took private lessons during the noon recess at Santa
Isabel College and paid it for PHP 300.
• In the second half of his first year in Ateneo, Rizal did not try hard enough to retain his
academic supremacy.
• He placed second at the end of the year, although all his grades were still marked
Excellent.

SUMMER VACATION (1873)

• When the summer vacation ended, Rizal turned to Manila for his second year term in
Ateneo.
• He is now living at Doña Pepay, an old landlady with widowed daughter and four sons.
• At this time, Rizal boarded inside Intramuros at No.6 Magallanes St.

PROPHECY OF MOTHER’S RELEASE

• Rizal interpreted her dream that she would be release from prison.
• Doña Teodora was released in the jail after 3 months like what Jose Rizal said.
• St. Joseph – Rizal was comparable because of his interpretation about his mother’s
release.

TEENAGE INTEREST IN READING

 As a normal teenager, Rizal became interested in love stories and romantic novels.
 The count of Monte Cristo- the first novel read by Rizal
 Universal History- this valuable work was a great aid in Rixal’s studies and enabled him
to win more prizes in Ateneo

FAVORITE NOVELS OF RIZAL

1. THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO -by Alexander Dumas
2. UNIVERSAL HISTORY - by Cesar Cantus
3. TRAVEL IN THE PHILIPPINES -by Feodor Jagor

FOURTH YEAR IN ATENEO (1875-1876)

• JUNE 14,1875 – Rizal became an internee in Ateneo.
• FATHER FRANCISCO SANCHEZ
- a great educator and scholar.
- Rizal’s favorite teacher
- He inspired young Rizal to study harder and to write topped in all subjects and on March,
1876 he returned to Calamba.
- Rizal won 5 medals in poetry

LAST YEAR IN ATENEO (1876-1877)

• Rizal excelled in all subjects.
• He finished his last year at Ateneo in a blaze of glory
• He obtained the highest grades in all subjects – Philosophy, Physics, Biology, Chemistry,
Languages etc

GRADUATION WITH HIGHEST HONOR

• Rizal became the pride of the Jesuits and he obtained highest grades in all subjects. He
received the degree of Bachelor of Arts with highest honors during commencement
exercise in March 23, 1877.
• He was 16 years old.

RIZAL’S EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES IN ATENEO

 He was an emperor and a campus leader outside.
 Secretary of the Marian Congregation (religious society)
 President of Academy of Spanish Literature
 Secretary of Academy of Natural Sciences

 FATHER JOSE VILACLARA

– advised Rizal to stop communing with the muses but to pay more attention to practical
studies (Philosophy and Natural Sciences)

In Fine Arts
 Rizal studied painting under AGUSTIN SAEZ ,famous Spanish painter
 Sculpture under ROMUALDO DE JESUS, a Filipino sculptor.
 He engaged in gymnastics and fencing.

SCULPTURAL WORKS IN ATENEO

 THE VIRGIN MARY - he carved an image with Batikuling (Phil. Hardwood) with his
pocket knife.
 FATHER LLEONART – requested Rizal to carved an image of SACRED HEART OF
JESUS.
ANECDOTE ON RIZAL THE ATENEAN
• Felix M. Roxas
- One of Rizal’s contemporaries in the Ateneo.
- He revealed an incident of Rizal’s Schooldays in the Ateneo which reveals the hero’s
resignation to pain and forgiveness.
• Manuel Xeres Burgos
- In whose Rizal boarded shortly before he became an internee in the Ateneo.
- He illustrated Rizal’s predilection to help the helpless at the risk of his own life.

POEMS MADE BY RIZAL IN ATENEO

 DoñaTeodora was the first one to discover Rizal’s poetical talent while Fr. Sanchez
helped Rizal to develop his talent.
 Mi Primera Inspiration (My First Inspiration) - dedicated to Rizal’s mother on her
birthday.
 In 1875, inspired by Father Sanchez, he wrote more poems:
 FELICITACION
 EL EMBARQUE: HIMNO A LA FLOTA DE MAGALLANES
 Y’ ES ESPAÑOL: ELCANO, EL PRIMERO EN DAR LA VUELTA EL MUNDO
 EL COMBATE: UZBIZTONDO, TERROR DE JOLO
 In 1876,
 LA TRAGEDIA DE SAN EUSTAQUIO
 UN RECUERDO A MI PUEBLO
 ALIANZA INTIMA ENTRE LA RELIGION Y’ LA BUENA EDUCACION
 POR LA EDUCACION RECIBE LUSTRE LA PATRIA
 EL CAUTIVERIO Y’ EL TRIUNFO: BATALLA DE LUCENA Y’ PRISION DE
BOABDIL
 LA ENTRADA TRIUNFAL DE LOS REYES CATOLICOS EN GRANADA
 In 1877,
 EL HEROISMO DE COLON
 COLON Y’ JUAN II
 GRAN CONSUELO EN LA MAYOR DESDICHA
 UN DIALOGO ALUSIVO A LA DESPEDID DE LOS COLEGIALES
 RIZAL’S POEM IN EDUCATION
 Through Education Our Motherland Receives Light
 The Intimate Alliance between Religion and Good Education
 RIZAL’S POEM IN RELIGION
 AL NIÑO JESUS - Rizal wrote this in 1875 when he was 14 years old.
 A LA VIRGEN MARIA

FIRST ROMANCE OF RIZAL

1. SEGUNDA KATIGBAK – A 14 year old Batangueña from Lipa whom Rizal first fell
inloved with but Segunda was already engaged to Manuel Luz.
- MARIANO KATIGBAK – brother of Segunda
- LA CONCORDIA COLLEGE – where Segunda and Olimpia (Rizal’s sister) studied
- Jose Rizal remained in Calamba, a frustrated lover, cherishing nostalgic memories of a
lost love.

RIZAL IN UST
UST – oldest university in Asia. Founded on April 28, 1611 (400-year-old)

- 1877-1878 Rizal finished the first-year course in Philosophy and Letters then he
transferred to the medical course.
- Rizal remained loyal to Ateneo.
- Dona Teodora opposed the idea of sending Rizal to university
- he was “still uncertain as to what career to pursue”

• FATHER PABLO RAMON - Rector of the Ateneo – who have been good to him during his
student days in that college, asking advice on the choice of a career.

First year term (1877-1878)

– Rizal studied Cosmology, Metaphysics,
• Theodicy, and History of Philosophy.

Second Year 1878-1879

- Rizal took up medical course upon the advised of Ateneo’s Rector to study medicine.
- Reason: To be able to cure his mother’s growing blindness.

 While Rizal was studying at UST, he also studied in Ateneo. He took the vocational
course leading to the title of perito agrimensor (expert surveyor).

 At the age of 17, he passed the final exam in the surveying course, but he could not be
granted the title as surveyor because he was below age.

 November 25, 1881 – the title was issued to Rizal.

❖ “Miss L” – fair with seductive and attractive eyes.

Two reasons for Rizal change of heart:
1. The sweet memory of Segunda was still fresh in his heart
2. His father did not like the family of “Miss L”.
Several months later, during his sophomore year at the UST, he boarded in the house of Doña
Concha Leyva in Intramuros. The nextdoor neighbors of Doña Concha were Capitan Juan and
Capitana Sanday Valenzuela from Pagsanjan, Laguna, who had a charming daughter
named Leonor.
❖Leonor Valenzuela – a tall girl with a regal bearing. Rizal send her love notes written in
invisible ink. The ink consisted of common table salt and water).
Orang – pet name of Leonor Valenzuela.

In 1879, at the start of Rizal’s junior year at the University, he lived in “Casa Tomasina”, at No.
6 Calle Santo Tomas, Intramuros. His landlord-uncle, Antonio Rivera had a pretty daughter
Leonor.
❖ Leonor Rivera
- Rizal’s cousin from Camiling.
- a student at La Concordia College, where Soledad (Rizal’s youngest sister) was then
studying.
- born in Camiling, Tarlar on April 11, 1867.
- a frail, pretty girl “tender as a budding flower with kindly, wistful eyes”.
“Taimis” – Leonor’s pseudonym in order to camouflage their intimate relationship from their
parents and friends.

Liceo Artistico-Literario (Artistic-Literary Lyceum) of Manila 1879

- A society of literary men and artists.
- Held a literary contest and offered prize (Silver Pen, feather shaped
decorated with gold ribbon) for best poem.
❖ A la Juventud Filipina (To the Filipino Youth) - Rizal’s prize-winning and inspiring poem
of flawless form.
❖ Reasons why Rizal’s Poem was a classic in Philippine literature:
1. It was the first great poem in Spanish written by a Filipino, whose merit was recognized by
Spanish literary authorities.
2. It expressed for the first time the nationalistic concept that the Filipinos, and not the
foreigners, were the “fair hope of the Fatherland”

“THE COUNCIL OF THE GODS” (1880)

Artistic-Literary Lyceum - opened another literary contest (to both Filipinos and Spaniards) to
commemorate the 4th centennial of the death of Cervantes.
Cervantes - was a Spain’s glorified man-of-letters and famous author of Don Quixote.
Rizal submitted an allegorical drama entitled “El Consejo de los Dioses” (The Council of the
Gods)

The Council of Gods

- was based on the Greek classics.
- aided by Fr. Rector of the Ateneo.
Winners:
1st Place: Jose Rizal (19 years old)
Prize: Gold Ring engraved the bust of Cervantes
2nd Place: D.N. del Puzo (Spanish)

OTHER LITERARY WORKS

❑ Zarzuela – Junto al Pasig (Beside the Pasig)

> Staged by the Ateneans on December 8, 1880 of the annual celebration of the Feast Day of the
Immaculate Conception, Patroness of the Ateneo.

❑ A Filipinas (1880)
> A sonnet for the album of the Society of Sculptors. In this sonnest, Rizal urged all Filipino
artists to glorify the Philippines.

❑ Abd-el-Azis y Mahoma (1879)

> A poem and was declaimed by an Atenean, Manuel Fernandez, on the night of December 8,
1879 in honor of the Ateneo’s Patroness.

❑ Al M.R.P. Pablo Ramon (1881)

> Rizal wrote this poem as an expression of affection to Father Pablo Ramon, the Ateneo rector,
who had been so kind and helpful to him.

RIZAL’S VISIT TO PAKIL AND PAGSANJAN

Summer of May 1881
>Rizal went to a pilgrimage to the town of Pakil, famous shrine of the Birhen Maria de los
Dolores.
> He was accompanied by his sisters: Saturnina, Maria, and Trinidad and their female friends.
> They took a casco (flat-bottom sailing vessels) from Calamba to Pakil, Laguna, and stayed at
the home of Mr. and Mrs. Manuel Regalado, whose son Nicolas was Rizal’s friend in Manila.
 Rizal and his companions were fascinated by the famous Turumba (people dancing in
the streets during the procession in honor of the miraculous Birhen Maria de los Dolores).
 Rizal was infatuated by a pretty girl colegiala, Vicenta Ybardolaza, who skillfully
played the harp at the Regalado home.
Reasons why Rizal and his party made a side trip to the neighboring town of Pagsanjan:
1.It was the native town of Leonor Valenzuela, one of Rizal’s girlfriends in Manila.
2. To see the world famed Pagsanjan Falls.

CHAMPION OF FILIPINO STUDENTS

• Rizal was the champion of the Filipino students in their fights against the arrogant Spanish
students.
• In 1880, Rizal founded the secret society of Filipino students in the UST called
“Compañerismo” (Comradeship), whose members were call “Companions of Jehu”, after the
valiant Hebrew general who fought the Amaeans.
• Galicano Apacible (Rizal’s cousin from Batangas) was the secretary.
• Fierce encounter near the Escolta in Manila were Rizal was wounded on the head, and tenderly
washed and dressed by Leonor Rivera in his boarding house “Casa Tomasina”.

UNHAPPY DAYS AT THE UST

He was unhappy at this Dominican institution of higher learning because:
1. The Dominican professors were hostile to him.
2.The Filipino students were racially discriminated against by the Spaniards.
3. The methods of instruction was obsolete and repressive.
Result: Rizal, the most brilliant graduate of the Ateneo, failed to win high scholastic honors.

DECISION TO STUDY ABROAD

❑ After finishing the fourth year of his medical course, Rizal decided to study in Spain. He
could no longer endure the rampant bigotry, discrimination, and hostility in the UST.

❑ He did not seek his parents’ permission and blessings to go abroad, because he knew that
they, especially his mother, would disapprove it.
The people who approved this are the following
❑His older brother Paciano

❑Uncle Antonio Rivera

❑The Valenzuela family

❑Some friends

Jose Rizal finished his medical course in the University of Santo Tomas. Then he decided to
complete his studies in Spain due to the radical prejudice of Dominican Professors against
Filipino Students. Aside from this ostensible reason, he had a “Secret Mission”, which was more
important than finishing his studies.

Rizal’s Secret Mission

 
The secret mission of Rizal is to observe keenly the life and culture, languages and customs,
industries and commerce, and government laws of European nation in order to prepare himself in
the mighty task of liberating his fellow-men.
His mission was approved by his older brother Paciano, Rizal leave without permission and
blessing from his parents.