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LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL Reflection: The First Filipino

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 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
______________________________________________________________________

GEED 10013
LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL

Reflection: The First Filipino

Submitted by:

Clarence C. Mariano
BS – Mechanical Engineering 2 – 2

Submitted to:

Mr. JACINTO VALILA JR.

Course Instructor

S.Y. 21 – 22
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
______________________________________________________________________

Introduction

As of today’s generation, we all know that Jose Rizal is our national hero. However, the
knowledge that we have on him is very little and mostly basic. If we were to ask some people
why Jose Rizal is our national hero, most of them will answer that because he had a large
contribution for our freedom and he died for our country. Nevertheless, if that will be the only
basis, anyone that fights the colonizers could be a national hero. Which is why it is important for
us to know who Rizal is, his works, his life, everything. So that we can appreciate him more and
see his relevance in our today's life.

Jose Rizal is very important to us Filipinos that we commemorate his death every
December 30, making it a regular holiday to our country. Many would say that we recall his
death more than his birth because his death created a huge impact for us Filipinos that
eventually lead to the freedom that we all now savor, but as I read the work of León María
Ignacio Agapito Guerrero y Francisco, “The First Filipino”, it somehow change my view on Rizal.
It made me realize that his life or biography is also interesting and impactful, because you will
get to know him more and understand why his death made a huge impact on our ancestors
which leads to our freedom.

Leon Ma. Guerrero III or “Leoni” was born on March 24, 1915 in Ermita Manila. He was a
Filipino diplomat and novelist who was considered as one of the most prominent Filipino
nationalists of his time. He was a Knight Grand Cross of the Knights of Rizal. Among his many
works are translations of José Rizal's Noli Me Tángere and El filibusterismo, both of which have
received international acclaim. However, the work that we will be focusing on is his work “The
First Filipino”, where he wrote the biography of our national hero, Jose Rizal, from his family up
to the things that he envisioned and done for our country. Which represents a significant
contribution toward the present understanding of a Rizal human enough to be the national
hero. Guerrero's extensive and sensitive use of Rizal's interaction and writings helped to shape
a new and more human portrayal of Rizal. The way Guerrero portrays Rizal is not biased on
either positive or negative viewpoint; instead he lets Rizal portray himself to us, readers, through
his experiences and life.
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
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Young Rizal

The novel started by introducing José Rizal, who was born in the Laguna province town of
Calamba in 1861 to Francisco Rizal Mercado y Alejandro and Teodora Alonso Realonda y
Quintos. He was the youngest of ten siblings, with nine sisters and one brother. His parents
were Dominican leaseholders of a hacienda and an accompanying rice farm. He adopted the
surname, Rizal, which was given to them by the Governor General Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa.
Based on his introduction, I can consider Jose Rizal as lucky or privileged because his family
still has some wealth and influence even though the country was under the colonizers. Rizal
received the best education available in the colony at the time, which was provided solely by
religious orders, most notably the Dominicans and Jesuits. It was a scathing education, but it
provided him with a command of Latin (and some Hebrew), a solid understanding of classical
antiquity, and an introduction to Western philosophy and even medical science. As he grew
older, he became more interested and wary about the things that were happening in his
surroundings. He wanted to try the fields that he sees interesting. At a very young age, Doña
Teodora was already teaching him how to read and create poems, one of the remarkable story
that his mother told to him was the story of the young moth. This story was very familiar to me
because I already heard this story when I was a child, it was told to me when there are so many
fireflies revolving around our light bulb. It felt nostalgic when I read this part of the book, it also
made me realize that the story of the young moth was actually the favorite story of Jose Rizal
from his mother. I am not really certain but I think this story was actually a warning for Rizal not
to go deeper in anything. There is also a part where his mother asked her husband, Francisco,
to stop Rizal from studying. Her instincts as a mother were telling her that as his beloved son
Rizal, continues to grow and seeks for more knowledge, the more he will be in danger, just like
the young moth in the story that died because of his curiosity about the light that he saw.

I cannot really blame Rizal for gaining more knowledge in different fields, at a very young age,
his family already noticed that Jose Rizal was gifted, that is why his family hired private tutors to
develop and advance his studies. He showed his intelligence and competence by being an ace
in Biñan, where he surpassed the students in different subjects. He was also awarded in Ateneo
as an emperor, and received a religious prize because of the talent that he showed in the field
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
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of Arts. He gained so many awards and recognitions because of his competence, skills, and
determination from influential people in that time. He did not lose hope or spirit for pursuing his
passion for knowledge even though some people that time refuse to recognize and think lowly
of his talent. Jose Rizal also went to Spain with the help of his brother Paciano but without
informing his parents, especially Doña Teodora. As what I have said earlier, Doña Teodora was
against of Rizal continuing his education. However, the young Rizal still travelled alone for the
reason that he was not happy with how the Dominican Institute ran the university. Because for
him to grow, he must break through the box that was limiting his knowledge and talent. In
addition, in addition to studying in Spain, he was on a secret mission. This mission was to
closely observe the life and culture, languages and customs, industries and commerce,
government and laws of the European nations in order to prepare himself for the monumental
task of liberating his oppressed people from Spanish tyranny.

I admire and at the same time, I am jealous of Rizal, because he did not lose his grip and
determination despite of the discrimination that he experienced that time. He stood strong and
kept his chin up then showed that he is competent and should never be underestimated. He
proved them wrong by showing what he is capable of, with his achievements and status he
gradually gained respect and recognition from those people. I wish I could also be as confident
and competent as Rizal, although I am not seeking recognition but at least I could show the
things that I am capable of. I found his character very inspiring especially to youth who are
experiencing the same thing as what Rizal had experienced. Reading this part of his life is very
helpful and relevant to most of us. He made me realize that we should never be chained from
the things that the society is telling us, we must be strong and confident enough to show that we
are competent.

The other characteristic of Jose Rizal that I truly admire is his futuristic and optimistic point of
view. There is a part in the book where he arrived in Manila with an American named John
Foreman to study. If I am not mistaken, young Rizal described Manila as a place that is full of
opportunities. He saw the beautiful places and somehow imagined what it would look like if our
country were free. John Foreman on the other hand said that it is impossible because most of
the people in Manila were considered slaves. They were inhabitants of the country but they
were not free, they were chained by the rules and policies of the Spanish colonizers such as
friars. Based on my understanding, Rizal said that because he knows that as long as the place
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
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stands and there are Filipinos to nurture it, a time would come where his dreams for the country
would come true. Just like his famous quote, which states that the youth is the future of the
country.

Women of Rizal

Life of Rizal did not only revolve on his education and patriotism. Just like any young man at his
age, he also experienced love. In fact, Rizal was associated with at least nine women, including
Segunda Katigbak, Leonor Valenzuela, Leonor Rivera, Consuelo Ortiga, O-Sei San, Gertrude
Beckette, Nelly Boustead, Suzanne Jacoby, and Josephine Bracken. These women were
captured by his intellectual capacity, charisma, and humor.

Love is a double edged sword, it can inflict you happiness and at the same time it can also inflict
you pain, and Rizal was no exception. Segunda Katigbak was his puppy love, he stated that
she might not be the most beautiful woman that he saw, but she adores her very much.
However, they did not end up with each other. Next is Valenzuela and Rivera, I was actually
surprised when I found out that he was already a womanizer at a young age , because he was
engaged with these two at the same time. He just cut ties with one of them when de Leon
confronted him. Jose Rizal made something to know who was more faithful, and Rivera was the
one he chose. Their love began to tarnish when Rizal went to Madrid and when he became a
“Filibustero”. Which left Rizal heartbroken when he heard that Leonor Rivera already married
someone.

Aside from O-sei san or Seiko who could have been his wife because out of the women that he
encountered, O-sei san loved him the most. In addition, Josephine Bracken who he married
even without the blessings of the church. In my opinion, I consider Rizal’s relationship to the
remaining women as a flirt or not something serious. They were the women that found Rizal
attractive and humorous, but were not able to capture Rizal’s heart. An evidence of this is when
he stopped replying to their mails. I was actually amazed when I learned about this part of Rizal.
It was like for every place that he would step on, he would capture at least the heart of a fine
woman. He was proof that intelligence and humor are more attractive than just being plain good
looking. Youth these days are all talking about their love life; some are complaining why they
cannot find a perfect man or woman. However, in reality they are only looking for a man that has
good physique and face, and for the worse part, they are based on the standards of foreign
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
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countries, which are white, tall, and buffed. I am not really saying this because I am bitter about
their preferences, but I just found it unfair to find someone that could pass the foreign standards
in your own country. I wonder what would be their reaction if they knew that Jose Rizal
managed to capture a total of 9 women from different parts of the world.

Journey

Jose Rizal’s voyage towards Madrid was quite lonely for him; he traveled to another country to
learn and expand his knowledge on the things that happened in that society, even if it was
against his mother's decision. He was the only Filipino in the boat but still made some
acquaintances because of his talent when it comes to communicating to other people. In that
ship, he observed and listened to the prejudices of other passengers towards his country. Jose
Rizal was not really a fan of racism or in his term “race jealousy”. Little by little, he eventually
learned about life and culture, languages and customs, industries and commerce, government
and laws. On his stay in Madrid, he pursued the course of ophthalmology because of the
worsening state of his mother. His brother mailed him that their mother became weak after he
left, she cannot eat and sleep because he is worried about Rizal. This happened when she
started hearing news that her son was writing for a newspaper, which was the “Diaryong
Tagalog”. She was worried that Jose Rizal might flag the authorities because he was voicing out
his thoughts. She begged his son to stop the activities that may harm him and cause the
authorities to suspect him. However, the young Rizal was patriotic, he wanted to write and
express the injustices that were happening in his country and at the same time, he wanted to
reach the hearts of his fellow Filipinos.

He started writing his first famous novel, “Noli Me Tangere”, to express his thoughts and to
wake up his fellow compatriots about the social injustices that were happening. His novel was
inspired by “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” which is about the immorality and slavery in US towards the
African Americans. “La Loba Negra” by Burgos and “Ninay” that was written by Paterno also
inspired his novel.

After Jose Rizal finished the novel, he let his friends give their thoughts about it. Most of them
find the novel a piece of art because it can move someone’s heart. However, they advised Rizal
not to publish it because it will cause a lot of trouble and misfortune for the young writer. It is
because most of the characters were very trivial and some scenarios were not good to publish
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
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into public because it can incite a war against the church. They point out the usage of Friars as
one of the major antagonists in the story; he stated things that can hurt someone’s pride. They
asked Rizal why he chose the friars when the friars did not ever harm anyone in his family. His
mother was accused of poisoning a neighbor and imprisoned for more than two years before
she was released with the help of a great lawyer, but the friars or any members of the church
were not involved in that incident. Another was when his brother was forced to discontinue his
studies and nearly was arrested for being a student of father Burgos.

Based on my understanding, Jose Rizal was not talking about his family when he wrote the
novel. The main thing that was on his mind was his motherland and how those friars raped and
abused her. He wrote this novel to show his love for his country, he used his experiences and
knowledge to express the things that happened in the society that the people refused to see. He
did not write the novel from his perspective but from the perspective of the whole country. He
was sick and tired of friars that run the country as if we owe them a lot, we indeed owe them but
we also gave a lot for them. Rizal wrote the novel for the leaders of Spain to see what was really
happening in his country, he wanted to feel change and some liberty for his country.

These thoughts of Rizal were actually shown in the characters of his novel “Noli Me Tangere”. It
was present between the arguments of the characters of Elias and Ibarra. Elias represents the
thoughts of Rizal that cries for freedom and wants to help the oppressed in any manner that is
applicable even if it resorts to using force, “I shall call to all the oppressed.. That is not a crime; it
is never a crime to fight for one’s own country… God, as you once said, will not forsake us. He
has given his helping hand to all people who fought for their independence” (Guerrero, 1961,
pg140). While Ibarra represents the side of Rizal, which does not want to resort to any violence,
or force that may eventually harm even a greater number of people. He stated that our
motherland did not really seek independence, what she needed was a small measure of liberty,
justice and love. He also said to Elias in the heat of their argument, the only people that will
resort to the way that Elias was suggesting was the discontented or the criminals, but he himself
and other Filipinos will never resort to extreme measures however, that does not mean that they
will not stand for the country.

The novel “Noli Me Tangere” presented to its readers the terrible situation and social injustices
and problems that the country experienced at that time. Jose Rizal failed to present a solution
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
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because he could not decide on what is the right thing to do. If they should resort to Elias ' way
which is revolution or in Ibarra that would find a way to gain independence without using any
force or violence. I can understand why Rizal became indecisive in that part, he was afraid to
commit mistakes or to be rash in his novel. A young man that was only starting his novel and
aims to present the injustices in his country, the pressure was too big for him because it might
affect his family in the Philippines and himself.

Rizal was already ready for the consequences that he was about to face. It caused a lot of
changes not just to him but also to his family, they were forced to leave Kalamba or Calamba
and move to Mindanao. I found it painful for him because was not allowed to enter his beloved
country, and to see your compatriots asking you to leave your hometown, to the point they
would offer you money for you to leave immediately. Even though you just did all those things
for their own good. It was heartbreaking to see someone’s effort be invalidated or ignored, but
Rizal stood his ground and moved on to accomplish his goal, which I found amazing and
inspiring.

After some time, Rizal finally decided on what he wanted to do for our country to gain his own
independence. He stated that the Philippines would continue to be under the Spanish
government but with some reforms. With these reforms, our country will gradually gain some
liberty and freedom for us Filipinos to progress more, until we can prove to them that we can
stand without their help. His first plan was to establish an organization or a freedom press so
that they can show the real things that were happening in the country, and to make a good
relationship with Spain. The organization was later named as the La Solidaridad, which was
composed mostly of his friends and other propagandists.

He chose the ideology of Ibarra in Noli Me Tangere because he did not want to resort to force to
obtain liberty, and he believed in the capacity and patriotism of his fellow Filipinos. One example
of this was Plaridel. The pamphlet that Plaridel made caught Rizal’s interest, he praised him and
stated that what Plaridel did was amazing, and he hoped all Filipinos were like him. If all
Filipinos would be like Plaridel, achieving his plan would be a lot easier because many Filipinos
would participate. For a man who was risking his life to obtain the freedom of his country, it was
already a beautiful news that someone was ready to stand beside him in achieving his goal.
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
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However, not all Filipinos were the same as what he thought they would be, because his own
compatriots also betrayed him. It started when they were looking for a new editor of La
Solidaridad. He thought that he would won with the support of his colleagues, but it did not
happen. His companions in the lead of Lete, did not vote for Rizal and voted for Marciano
instead. I was disappointed and at the same time angry with his colleagues, because the
reason they stated why they did not vote for Rizal was because he was not competent enough
to be the editor, which was a lie because Rizal had already proven his skills and talent many
times. I think the real reason was they were just jealous of Rizal, that at his age he already
made a significant amount of works and masterpieces. It was painful for Rizal at first because
he never imagined that his allies would turn their back on him. He stated that betrayal was more
painful than to receive a wound from your enemy. However, he moved on and he just focus on
making his second novel which is the “El Filibusterismo”

Beginning of the end

Everything that Rizal had done for the country suddenly fell apart and seemed useless when the
Spaniards held him captive. He was ordered banished to Dapitan to repent on the sins that he
made. He was accused of inciting denationalization and de-Catholicism because of the contents
of the novels that he published. He felt useless because things didn't go as he had planned. He
planned to make a healthy relationship to Spain to prove our competence and eventually gain
liberty but the Filipinos started a revolution against them

Even after everything that has happened, Rizal’s goal and ideology remains the same. There
was a time when he was asked by Bonifacio to lead the revolution but he declined because it
was not what he wanted. His plans were discussed in the material when Carnicero asked Rizal
about it. Rizal answered by making some reforms such as; to have a representative in Cortez,
secularizing the friars, reform the administration, eliminating the meddling of friars, create
schools, and to divide the government's duties. He said that if these reforms would happen, the
Philippines would be the happiest country in the world.

Rizal’s stay in Dapitan was not really tormenting as what everyone would think if you were held
captive by the colonizers. In fact, he was given considerable liberty. Even though his activities
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
College of Engineering
Sta. Mesa, Manila
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were monitored and limited in Dapitan, he was still free to do whatever he wanted to do. In that
place, for the first time in his life he was able to feel peace. In that place he was able to learn
medicine, lived like people in the countryside, he was able to teach some students, help some
merchants, and specially marry the love of his life. Even for a short period of time he was able to
live like a Filipino with some sense of liberty. This state of Rizal, however, was only brief, like
the idiom “the calm before the storm”. His exile in Dapitan was to come to an end in exchange
for a job as a military doctor in Cuba. Because he was on board ship when the Revolution broke
out, he was instead imprisoned in Barcelona, Spain. He was eventually transported to Manila for
trial and execution later that year.

When Rizal arrived at the place of his execution, he looked at the people around him and he
was quite happy that he could only see on them the faces of Isagani and Basilio, and none of
them was Elias and Tales. Based on my understanding it states that at the last moment of his
life, he saw his country filled with Filipino youth, which for him are the hope and future of the
country. When he was about to be executed, Rizal refused to be shot on the back and be
blindfolded, and insisted that he never betrayed his country nor Spain but unfortunately it was
denied by the general that was present in the execution site. In his last moments, he showed his
stubbornness when he heard the signal for his execution, he turned to face the firing squad
because he wanted to have dignity and pride to show that he was willing to die for his country
and not to be treated like a traitor. For a man who gave all his life in fighting for the liberty of his
country in his own way, he deserves all the honor of his country.

Relevance

As I went through the reading material, the virtues that Rizal showed to me are very admirable.
He was the type that would never let go of any type of injustices, whether it involves him or not,
he was always ready to fight against it but in a diplomatic way. Even though he has this trait,
this did not make him seek for any type of revenge. He proved this when he was asked by
Carnicero if he would like the friars to stay in his country. He said yes, because for him
everyone has a room for this country. This proved that even after all the injustices that he has
witnessed and all the accusations and judgments that he received, he never holds a grudge
against them. He chose to fight in the most peaceful way possible because he never wanted to
resort on force in order to obtain something.
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
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Sta. Mesa, Manila
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Rizal is important to today's youth because he demonstrated more than a century ago that a
thirst for knowledge and a desire for success, even in the face of adversity, is attainable when
young Filipinos focus only on their goals and work hard to achieve them. I know many poor-
parents' children who could not afford to buy their own homes, but who worked hard and
achieved amazing success in professions, enterprises, and even politics.

Jose Rizal’s way of fighting injustices in our society are still relevant nowadays. He stated that
we, the youth, are the hope of our country, which is why it is our duty to defend our rights and
motherland to whoever wants to abuse it. He taught us that there is always a peaceful or
diplomatic way in showing our rejection of the abuses or injustices in our country. We show our
disapproval of wrongdoings in our society by raising the consciousness of our fellow citizens, so
that they would be aware and vigilant to these things. We also protest to show to the
government for example, that we are against their ideas or activities.

The most famous successful protest was the first People Power Revolution, which was in the
Marcos regime. The government that time ordered a martial law, which eventually violates a lot
of human rights and laws. The Filipinos that time demonstrated outstanding courage for
standing up to the dictatorial regime of Ferdinand Marcos and peacefully overthrow it. This is
what Rizal was looking for in his time, to wake up the consciousness of the Filipinos to the
injustices and abuse in their own country. He was looking to stand beside him in achieving his
plans. Although he failed in doing a peaceful way of overthrowing the colonizers that time, he is
still successful in teaching and giving us hope that everything can be resolved peacefully if we
did it in a diplomatic way.

In conclusion, learning the life of our national hero, Jose Rizal, is very interesting and at the
same time beneficial to us, especially the Filipino youth. Because the knowledge that we have
on him was only based on what was given to us, which is why our mind tends to create some
trivial questions about him. With this reading material, we learnt and comprehended what he
has done for our country, and we have finally received answers to some of our pressing
questions. Such as why he did not join the katipunan, why he wrote “Noli Me Tangere” and “El
Filibusterismo”, what are his plans to gain the liberty of our country, why should we consider him
as a hero for our country, and etc. After reading the material, we also learned his principles and
virtues. Rizal demonstrated that a thirst for knowledge and a desire for success, even in the
 Republic of the Philippines
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
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face of adversity, is attainable when young Filipinos focus only on their goals and work hard to
achieve them. He also showed that everything could be done in a peaceful or diplomatic way,
and to never resort to force and seek revenge. His existence serves as a role model for us
young people, thus it is essential that we not only learn about his death, but also about his life
and services to our country.

Reference:

Guerrero, L. (1961). The First Filipino. Retrieved October 11, 2021, from
http://www.xeniaeditrice.it/firstfilipinoocrpdf.pdf

Stowe, H. (1852). Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Retrieved November 1, 2021, from

https://books.google.com.ph/books/about/Uncle_Tom_s_Cabin.html?id=bxwSDv2OQ0kC&print
sec=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&hl=en&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false

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