EVELYN S.

PACATANG

Analysis
Chapter 10: The town of San Diego

First, this chapter describes the town of San Diego. San Diego
represents many of the Philippines towns back during the Spanish
colonization where it is surrounded with lush greens and vegetation,
mountains and rivers. Rizal describe how beautiful the Philippines is and
how rich is their natural resources and because of this the primary
occupation is farming. After all their hard works in farming they get
advantage by the Chinese traders because of their ignorance. Rizal showed
in this novel how Filipino fooled easily because they are lack of education.
He wanted to show how important the education is in the society. Also he
wanted to show that foreigners such as the Chinese and Spanish are the
ones who had benefited and control over the Filipino farmers whom
supposed to be the native farmers who owns the land.
Second, in this chapter it talks also about the strange legends that
exist which is held in awe by the country folk. Like most towns, San Diego
has a legend around it. There used to be an old Spaniard who came to the
town and bought the whole mountain area, using jewelry and clothes to pay
for the land. Later on, he found dead hanging on a balete tree. Rizal describe
a the “sacred tree” of Malaya, being a species of banyan that begins life as a
vin1e twining on another tree, which it finally strangles, using the dead
trunk as a support until it is able to stand alone. This tree was held in
reverent awe by the primitive Filipinos, who believed it to be the abode of the
“nono”, or ancestral ghosts, and is still the object of superstitious beliefs.
Rizal wanted to show and inform that Filipinos are more likely to believe in
myths, legends than in real history, most especially they have less interest
un local history. In this Rizal’s word he encourage the town people to think
critically and do not just believed in superstitious and hypocritical
fanaticism of many who consider themselves religious people.
Third, it seems that Ibarra’s relationship with the citizens of San
Diego is tangled with events with their family history. From the very
beginning it shows that Ibarra’s family and Spaniards priest is destined to
meet because of events in their life. Since his great-grandfather’s committed
suicide it shows disgrace and disrespect among his family. And suicidal kind
of thing goes against Christian doctrine. The threat of excommunication
hangs heavily over the town, since banishment from the church leads to
social and even economic estrangement. Furthermore, despite the fact that
the friars are supposedly in the Philippines to spread religion, they often
keep the townspeople from fully integrating into Spain’s Catholic tradition. 

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Theme: Religion and Education