Chapter 4

Scholastic triumphs at
Ateneo de Manila (1872-1877)
Rizal enters the Ateneo
 June 10,1872

Jose Rizal went to Manila and he took

the entrance exam on Christian
Doctrine, Arithmetic and Reading at the
College of San Juan de Letran And
pass them.
Two Reasons why Father
Magin Ferando refused to
admit him:

1. He was late for Registration

2. He was sickly and undersized for

his age
Rizal first year in Ateneo
(1872-1873)

• Father Jose Bech -The first professor of

Rizal in Ateneo
• After the first week, Rizal became
”Emperor”.
• He was the brightest pupil in the class,
and he was awarded a price
 Second Year in Ateneo
(1873-1874)

• He became an "Emperor“ again.

• At the end of school year, Rizal received

excellent grades in all subjects and a gold
medal.
 Teenage Interest
in Reading
Rizal began to take interest in reading
romantic novels during the summer
vacation in calamba. (1874)

The first favorite novel of Rizal was the

"Count of Monte Cristo" by
Alexander Dumas.
 Third Year in Ateneo
(1874-1875)

His grades remained excellent in all

subjects, but he won only one medal in
Latin. He failed to win the medal in Spanish
because his spoken Spanish was not
fluently sonorous. He was beaten by a
Spaniard who naturally could speak
Spanish with fluency and with right
accentuation.
 Fourth Year in Ateneo
(1875- 1876)

On June 16, 1875, he became an iterno in the

Ateneo. One of his professors this time was
Fr. Francisco de Paula Sanchez a great educator
and scholar. He inspired young Rizal to study
harder and to write poetry. Rizal had the highest
affection and respect for Father Sanchez, whom he
considered his best professor in the Ateneo.
He described the Jesuit professor as "model of
uprightness, earnestness, and love for the
advancement of his pupils.
 Last Year in Ateneo
(1876-1877)
His studies continued to fare well. He excelled in all
subjects.

He is the most brilliant Atenean of his time, he was

truly " the pride of Jesuits".

Rizal finished his last year at the Ateneo in a

blaze of Glory.

He obtained the highest grades in all subjects.

(Philosophy, physics, biology, chemistry, languages,
mineralogy, etc.
 Commencement Day
(March 23,1877)

Rizal who was 16 years old, received from his

Alma Mater, Ateneo Municipal, the degree of
Bachelor in Arts with highest
honors.
 Extra-Curricular
Activities In Ateneo
He was active in extra- curricular activities. An “Emperor”
inside the classroom, he was a campus leader outside. He was
an active member, later secretary, of a religious society, the
Marian Congregation.

Rizal cultivated his literary talent under the guidance of Father

Sanchez. Another professor , Father Jose Vilaclara, advise to stop
Communing with the Muses and pay more attention to more
particular studies such as philosophy and natural sciences.

He studied painting under the famous Spanish painter,

Agustin Saez , and sculpture under Romualdo de Jesus.
The first poem of Rizal wrote during his days in
Ateneo was Mi Primera Inspiración
(My First Inspiration) which was dedicated to his
mother on her birthday.

In 1875, inspired by Father Sanchez, he wrote

more poems, as such:

1. Felicitación (Felicitation).
2. El Embarque: Himno a la Flota de Magallanes.
(The Departure: Hymn to Magellan’s Fleet).
3. Y Es Español: Elcano, el Primero en dar la
Vuelta al Mundo (And He is Spanish: Elcano,
the First to Circum-navigate the World).
4. El Combate: Urbiztondo, Terror de Jolo
(The Battle: Urbiztondo, Terror of Jolo).
In 1876, Rizal wrote poems on various topics –
religion, education, childhood memories, and war.
1. Un Recuerdo a Mi Pueblo (In Memory of My Town) – A
tender poem in honor of Calamba, the hero’s natal town.
2. Alianza Intima Entre la Religion y la Buena Education
(Intimate Alliance Between Religion and Good Education)
3. Por la Education Recibe Lustre la Patria (Through
Education the Country Retrieves Light)
4. El Cautiverio y el Triunfo: Batalla de Lucena y Prision
de Boabdil (The Captivity and the Triumph: Battle of Lucena
and the Imprisonment of Boabdil) – This martial poem
describes the defeat and capture of Boabdil, last Moorish
sultan of Granada
5. La Entrada Triunfal de los Reyes Catolices en Granada
(The Triumphal Entry of the Catholic Monarchs into Granada)
– This poem relates the victorious entry of King Ferdinand
and Queen Isabel into Granada, last Moorish stronghold in
Spain.
In 1877, he wrote more poems.
It was his last year in Ateneo.
1. El Heroism de Colon (The Heroism of Columbus) – this poem
praises Columbus , the discoverer of America.
2. Cólon y Juan II(Columbus and John II)-this poem relates how
King John II of Portugal missed his fame and riches his failure
to finance the projected expedition of Columbus to the New
World.
3. Gran Consuelo en la Mayor(Great Solace in Great
Misfortune)
4. Un Diǎlogo Alusivo a la Despedida de los Colegiales(A
farewell dialogue of the students)
 “My First Inspiration”
Why do the scented flowers in
fragrant fray
Rival each other's flower this
festive day?
Why is the sweet melody
bruited in the sylvan dale,
Harmony sweet and fluted
like the nightingale?
Why do the birds sing so in
the tender grass,
Flitting from bough to bough
with winds that pass?
And why does the crystal
spring run among the flowers
While lullaby zephyrs sing
like its crystal showers?
I see the dawn in the East
with the beauty endowed
Why goes she to a feast in a
carmine cloud?
Sweet mother, they celebrate
your natal day
The rose with her scent
innate, the bird with his lay
The murmurous spring this
day without alloy,
Murmuring bids you always
to live in joy
While the crystalline
murmurs glisten, hear you
the accents strong
Struck from my lyre, listen!
To my live's favorite song
Sculpture Works in Ateneo

• Rizal carved an image an image image of Te Virgin

Mary on a piece of batikuling(Philippne haardwood)
with his pocket knife
• He was also carved a Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Dramatic Works In Ateneo
He wrote the requested religious drama in poetic
verses at his home in Calamba and finished it on
June 2, 1876.

First Romance of Rizal

Rizal who was sixteen years old, experienced his
first romance – “the painful experience which
comes to nearly all adolescents”.