SOBRE LA

INDOLENCIA
DELOS FILIPINOS
1890
 CIA
The Indolence of the Filipino People
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was the longest essay of Jose P. Rizal
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published in La Solidaridad on July 15,
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O

1890, to defend the Filipinos against

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the accusation of Mr. Sanciano that the

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Filipinos are indolent. This is due to the

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observation of Sanciano to a Filipino

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farmer who was having a siesta at nine

DELO
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o'clock in the morning because he was

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already done on his work.

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 According to Rizal
According to Rizal, whenever something goes wrong in
the Philippines, there is a tendency to blame the Filipinos.

Rizal's thesis in this essay was simple: that Filipinos were

not born lazy but had a tendency to become lazy.
Acknowledging the tendency for the Filipinos to become
indolent due in part to the tropical climate, Rizal noted
that it was the European, surrounded by servants, who
was the paragon of laziness in the tropics.
THE DETERIORATION OF THE INDUSTRY OF THE
FILIPINOS CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO TWO SETS OF
FACTORS: THOSE ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE SPANISH
COLONIZERS; AND THOSE ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE
FILIPINOS' OWN FAULTS.
ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE
SPANISH COLONIZERS
1. Wars and Internal disorders that followed
Spanish Conquest. Thousands of Filipinos were
drafted as archers and rowers to repel Dutch and
Portuguese, but many couldn't return, reducing
potential farmers, fishermen, and laborers.
2. Piratical Attacks on Coastal Towns and Villages by
Muslim Pirates. The government's attacks on coastal
towns and villages led to a decrease in inhabitants and a
loss of interest, as Muslims deprived them of their labor.
3. Forced Labor in Shipbuilding. Filipinos were forced to
work in timber cutting for galleon construction and ship
transport, hindering their cultivation of fertile land and leaving
few to fill fields.

4. Government’s neglect and apathy to Agriculture,

Industry and Commerce. The colony's isolation from
Southeast Asia was due to a lack of encouragement for
manufacturers and farmers, limited aid for poor harvests,
and a focus on Galleon Trade.
5. Absence of Material and Moral Incentives to Work
Harder. Filipinos lose interest in work due to the realization
that their efforts can cause trouble and only benefit others,
leading to a loss of motivation.
6. The Teaching of the Spanish Missionaries That
Heaven is for the Poor. Filipinos preferred to avoid hard
work and remain poor to easily enter heaven upon death.
7. Too much Government Restriction and Red Tape In
The Approval of Permit To Transact Business. Native
enterprises nearly disappeared due to excessive restrictions
on business permit approvals.
8.Encouragement and propagation of
gambling. Government's encouragement and
propagation of gambling bred dislike for steady
and difficult work due to its promise of easy
money.
9. Ownership of the big estates by the friars.
Since the religious corporations controlled the
best tracts of lands in some provinces, many towns
did not prosper despite the efforts of their
inhabitants.
10. Example set by the Spaniards in disdaining manual labor.
Dislike for manual labor reinforced by the practice of surrounding
themselves by servants created among the Filipinos the desire to equal
the Spaniards in their manners. In effect, this led to creation of an
aversion and hatred of manual work.
11. Diprivation of human dignity. The education of the Filipino from
birth to death was brutalizing, depressing, and anti-human. Por five or
ten years the youth comes in contact with books chosen by the same
priest who boldly declare that it is an evil for Filipinos to know Castilian,
that the Filipino should not be separated from his carabao and that he
should not have any further ambition. Spanish educational system,
therefore, failed in promoting economic enterprise and activity.
ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE
FILIPINOS' OWN FAULTS
1. Feeling of Inferiority. The prevalence of a feeling of inferiority
among the Filipinos paralyzed all tendencies towards
advancement and developed in them the idea of giving up
without fighting or exerting effort.

2. Placing Hopes on Miracles. Nurtured with the stories of

anchorites who lead a contemplative and lazy life, the Filipinos
spent their giving money to the Church in the hope of miracles
and wonderful things.
3. Lack of Spirit To Pursue Lofty Purposes. As their minds
had been conditioned that they belong to an inferior race and
that they should not aspire to be greater than the curate,
Filipinos sealed and shaped their actions to be in conformity
with the most pernicious routines not based on reason but
imposed and forced.
4. Lack of National Sentiment. The lack of national sentiment
breeds another evil, which is the scarcity of any opposition to
the measures that are prejudicial to the people and the absence
of any initiative that will redound to their welfare. To Rizal, a
man in the Philippines is only an individual; he is not a member of
a nation.
CONCLUSION
"The Indolence of the Filipino" by José Rizal discusses various factors
contributing to the perceived laziness of Filipinos during the Spanish
colonial period. Rizal's conclusion emphasizes the importance of
education, self-awareness, and social reform to overcome this
stereotype and uplift the Filipino people towards progress and
enlightenment. He advocates for addressing systemic issues such as
oppressive colonial rule, lack of opportunities, and cultural
misconceptions to empower Filipinos to realize their full potential and
contribute meaningfully to society.
THANK
YOU !!!