Rizal’s Other Writings

OVERVIEW

The Philippines a Century Hence” is an essay written by Philippine

national hero Jose Rizal to forecast the future of the country within a hundred
years. Rizal felt that it was time to remind Spain that the circumstances that
ushered in the French Revolution could have a telling effect for her in the
Philippines.

Another essay written by Jose Rizal was La Indolencia de los Filipinos,

more popularly known in its English version as "The Indolence of the Filipinos”.
This is an exploratory essay to explain the alleged idleness of his people during
the Spanish colonization.

Since these essays are the only focus of this module, it is therefore
expected from the students to identify Rizal’s views in relation to the country’s
future and ensure at least one of those views’ inclusions in the demonstration of
the value that the students afforded to education and/or patriotism.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

After studying this module, you should be able to:

1. Analyze the message of the two essays;
2. Evaluate the main ideas of the essays;
MODULE IN PI 311 Prof. Leonora M. Adlawan

3. Identify Rizal’s views in relation to the country’s future and ensure at

least one of those views’ inclusions in the demonstration of the value
that the students afforded to education and/or patriotism
4. Appreciate the foresight of Dr. Jose Rizal regarding the plight of the
Philippines.

ACTIVITY

Write 1-3 sentences explaining what this quote below means.

"We have already truly said that when a house becomes disturbed and
disordered, we should not accuse the youngest, child or the servants, but
the head of it, especially if his authority is unlimited, he who does not act
freely is not responsible for his actions; and the Filipino people, not being
master of its liberty, is not responsible for either its misfortunes or its woes.
We say this, it is true, but, as will be seen later on, we also have a large part,
in the continuation of such a disorder."

ABSTRACTION

1. The Philippines a Century Hence

Rizal’s compelling arguments

about the country’s future are penned on
the pages of his essay, “The Philippines
a Century Hence.” Speaking of or writing
about the future, however, entails
revisiting the past, that is in Rizal’s

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words, “In order to read the destiny of a people, it is necessary to open the book
of its past.”

This essay, published in La Solidaridad starts by analyzing the various

causes of the miseries suffered by the Filipino people:

1. Spain’s implementation of her military policies – because of such

laws, the Philippine population decreased dramatically. Poverty
became more rampant than ever,
and farmlands were left to wither.
The family as a unit of society was
neglected, and overall, every aspect
of the life of the Filipino was
retarded.
2. Deterioration
and disappearance of Filipino
indigenous culture – when Spain
came with the sword and the cross,
it began the gradual destruction of
the native Philippine culture.
Because of this, the Filipinos started
losing confidence in their past and their heritage, became doubtful of
their present lifestyle, and eventually lost hope in the future and the
preservation of their race.

3. Passivity and submissiveness to the Spanish colonizers – one of the

most powerful forces that influenced a culture of silence among the
natives were the Spanish friars. Because of the use of force, the
Filipinos learned to submit themselves to the will of the foreigners.

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Rizal recognized that economic conditions improved by the 19th century,

yet Filipinos continued to be subjected to Spanish oppression hence his
question: will the Philippines remain a colony of Spain? Rizal had clear-cut
answers: 1) If Spain executes reforms particularly on the freedom of speech and
Spanish Cortes [Spanish Legislative Branch] representation, then the Philippines
will remain its colony; and 2) If Spain would not approve of such reforms, The
Philippines, “after a violent and bloody revolution” will have its independence.

The question then arises as to what had awakened the hearts and opened
the minds of the Filipino people with regards to their plight. Eventually, the
natives realized that such oppression in their society by foreign colonizers must
no longer be tolerated.

One question Rizal raises in this essay is whether or not Spain can indeed
prevent the progress of the Philippines:

a. Keeping the people uneducated and ignorant had failed. National

consciousness had still awakened, and great Filipino minds still
emerged from the rubble.

b. Keeping the people impoverished also came to no avail. On the

contrary, living a life of eternal destitution had allowed the Filipinos to
act on the desire for a change in their way of life. They began to
explore other horizons through which they could move towards
progress.

c. Exterminating the people as an alternative to hindering progress did

not work either. The Filipino race was able to survive amidst wars
and famine, and became even more numerous after such

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catastrophes. To wipe out the nation altogether would require the

sacrifice of thousands of Spanish soldiers, and this is something
Spain would not allow.

Spain, therefore, had no means to stop the progress of the country. What
she needs to do is to change her colonial policies so that they are in keeping with
the needs of the Philippine society and to the rising nationalism of the people.

Through this essay’s latter part, Rizal argued that if the country does
achieve liberty, it will be transitory as the country may potentially be acquired by
the United States as another territory. It is therefore imperative, Rizal said, for
Spain to grant the Filipinos the reforms they aspire for.

What Rizal had envisioned in his essay came true. In 1898, the
Americans wrestled with Spain to win the Philippines, and eventually took over
the country. Theirs was a reign of democracy and liberty. Five decades after
Rizal’s death, the Philippines gained her long-awaited independence. This was
in fulfillment of what he had written in his essay: “History does not record in its
annals any lasting domination by one people over another, of different races, of
diverse usages and customs, of opposite and divergent ideas. One of the two
had to yield and succumb.”

Read the full essay using this link:

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/35899/35899-h/35899-h.htm

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MODULE IN PI 311 Prof. Leonora M. Adlawan

2. The Indolence of the Filipinos

Like his “The Philippines a Century Hence,” Rizal’s “On the Indolence of
the Filipino” is an essay serialized in La Solidaridad. This was published in six
installments from July to September 1890.

In a Noli Me Tangere scene, Padre

Damaso, while speaking to a young man
about the native Filipinos, unequivocally
described them as indolent. Such was a
common Filipino description during the
Spanish colonization specifically from
the 17th to the 19th century.

The Indolence of the Filipinos is

a study of the causes why the people
did not, as was said, work hard during
the Spanish regime. Rizal pointed out
that long before the coming of the

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Spaniards; the Filipinos were industrious and hardworking. The Spanish reign
brought about a decline in economic activities because of certain causes:

a. First, the establishment of the Galleon Trade cut off all previous
associations of the Philippines with other countries in Asia and the
Middle East. As a result, business was only conducted with Spain
through Mexico. Because of this, the small businesses and handicraft
industries that flourished
during the pre-Spanish
period gradually
disappeared.

b. Second, Spain also

extinguished the natives’
love of work because of
the implementation of
forced labor. Because of
the wars between Spain
and other countries in Europe as well as the Muslims in Mindanao,
the Filipinos were compelled to work in shipyards, roads, and other
public works, abandoning agriculture, industry, and commerce.

c. Third, Spain did not protect the people against foreign invaders and
pirates. With no arms to defend themselves, the natives were killed,
their houses burned, and their lands destroyed. As a result of this,
the Filipinos were forced to become nomads, lost interest in
cultivating their lands or in rebuilding the industries that were shut
down, and simply became submissive to the mercy of God.

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d. Fourth, there was a crooked system of education, if it was to be

considered an education. What were being taught in the schools
were repetitive prayers and other things that could not be used by the
students to lead the country to progress. There were no courses in
Agriculture, Industry, etc., which were badly needed by the
Philippines during those times.

e. Fifth, the
Spanish rulers were a bad
example to despise manual
labor. The officials reported to
work at noon and left early, all
the while doing nothing in line
with their duties. The women
were seen constantly followed
by servants who dressed them
and fanned them – personal
things which they ought to have

done for themselves.

f. Sixth, gambling was

established and widely
propagated during those
times. Almost every day
there were cockfights,
and during feast days,
the government officials
and friars were the first to

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engage in all sorts of bets and gambles.

g. Seventh, there was

a crooked system of religion. The friars
taught the naïve Filipinos that it was
easier for a poor man to enter heaven,
and so they preferred not to work and
remain poor so that they could easily
enter heaven after they died.

h. Lastly, the taxes

were extremely high, so much so that a huge portion of what they
earned went to the government or to the friars. When the object of
their labor was removed and they were exploited, they were reduced
to inaction.

Rizal on “The Indolence of the Filipino”

To address the foreign observers’ claims, Rizal established that the

Filipinos’ indolence was the outcome of the circumstances forced upon the
natives rather than an inherent characteristic. Such an argument resonates a
prior notion by Gregorio Sancianco’s 1881 El Progreso de las Filipinas which
attributed this indolence to the poor economic conditions that rendered the
Filipinos unmotivated.

Directly addressing the issue, Rizal did not refute the Filipinos’ indolence.
The predisposition exists,” he said, “because the warm climate demands of the
individual quietness and rest, just as cold climate stirs up men to work and to be

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active.” It’s not the existence of the trait that is evil but the means that the
observation was perpetuated, Rizal underscored, since indolence is an inflated
remark about natives who, during the pre-colonial period were engaged in
industry, agriculture, and commerce. This according to Rizal can be found in
Pigafetta’s account which depicted a burgeoning trade of merchandise and the
early Filipinos’ practice of mining – such is an early Spanish account of the
Filipinos’ industry – a stark contrast to the indolent depictions by the 17th to the
19th century foreign observers.

Although Rizal argued that the prior circumstances instigated the Filipinos’
predisposition towards indolence, other issues seemed to have maintained the
existence of the negative trait. Whereas the Spanish government failed to
encourage industry by granting economic and moral incentives, the Filipinos
themselves were likewise flawed. The lack or defect in education as well as the
dearth of national sentiment observed among the natives are contributing factors
to the sustained existence of tendency towards indolence.

Finally, Rizal argued, that it is only through education and freedom that
efforts to reform the Filipinos would be successful further suggesting that while
the Filipinos’ indolence is not an inherent characteristic but a malady caused by
numerous circumstances – it can certainly be cured.

Read the full essay using this link:

http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/6885/pg6885.txt

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MODULE IN PI 311 Prof. Leonora M. Adlawan

ASSESSMENT

Demonstrate the value you’ve afforded to education and/or patriotism in

an output that ensures the inclusion of any of Rizal’s views and principles evident
in his two serialized essays: The Philippines a Century Hence and The Indolence
of the Filipino. You may opt for one view or one principle from each title but
what’s imperative is that, both are represented in the output.

FEEDBACK

Any reaction on this module, comment them below.

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REFERENCES

 Alatas, Syed Hussein, 1977. The myth of the lazy native: A study of the
image of the Malays, Filipinos, and Japanese from the 16th to the 20th
century and its function in the ideology of colonial capitalism. London:
Frank Cass.
 Rizal, Jose. (1912). The Philippines a Century Hence, (Austin Craig,
Trans) Manila: Philippine Education Company. Accessed on August 20,
2020 at https://archive.org/details/philippinescentu00riza
 Rizal, Jose. (1913). On the indolence of the Filipinos. (Austin Craig,
Trans). Accessed on August 21, 2020 at
http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/6885/pg6885.txt
 Wani-Obias, Rhodalyn, et al. (2018). The life and works of Jose Rizal.
Quezon City: C & E Publishing Inc.

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