GED0049

LIFE AND WORKS OF RIZAL

 MODULE 5: Subtopic 4

Letter to the Women of Malolos, On

the Indolence of the Filipinos, and
The Philippines: A Century Hence
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Assess Rizal’s writings

2. Appraise the value of understanding the past
3. Describe the emotional factors on why Rizal wrote these
pieces

Life and Works of Rizal

• Ika-17 ng Pebrero 1889 nang isulat ni Jose Rizal – gamit ang wikang
Tagalog – ang liham na ito.

• Ika-12 ng Disyembre 1888 nang may 20 kadalagahan ng Malolos ang

naghain ng petisyon kay Gobernador-Heneral Weyler upang magtayo
ng isang "panggabing paaralan." Layunin nila na mag-aral ng wikang
Español sa ilalim ni Teodoro Sandiko, isang propesor sa Latin.
• Hindi sinang-ayunan ni Padre Felipe Garcia, ang kura paroko, ang
petisyon. Naging dahilan ito upang hindi rin pumayag ang
gobernador-heneral na maitatag ang paaralan.

• Patuloy silang nanawagan at nang lumaon, pumayag na rin ang

pamahalaan na maitatag ang paaralan, bagama't tumagal lamang ito
ng tatlong buwan. Si Señora Guadalupe Reyes ang nagsilbing guro ng
mga kadalagahan.
• Sa paghatol ni Rizal, lubhang napakabigat ng katungkulan
ng ina. Di maikakala na kapwa magulang ay” binigyan ng
Dios.. ng sariling loob upang ding magpakilala ang liko at
tapat”

• Sang-ayon si Rizal sa pananagutan ng ina sa mga bagay

sa tahanan, sa pag-aalaga sa bata at pangangasiwa ng
mga domestikong Suliranin.

(San Juan, 2015)

• In Indolence, Rizal showed keen economic sense,
particularly in examining economics and geography, and
economics and institutions.
https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2021/12/26/419978/the-relevance-of-rizals-indolence-of-the-filipino/
• In this essay, Rizal studied the Filipinos’ predisposition to
indolence “thoroughly, without superciliousness or
sensitiveness.” Instead of dismissing Filipino indolence
outright, Rizal wrote, “we believe that indolence does
exist there. The Filipinos, who can measure up with the
most active peoples in the world, will doubtless not
repudiate this admission, for it is true that there one
works and struggles against the climate, against nature
and against men.”
https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2021/12/26/419978/the-relevance-of-rizals-indolence-of-the-filipino/
• Rizal criticized those who exaggerated the role of
indolence. “The evil is not that indolence exists
more or less latently but that it is fostered and
magnified.” Moreover, he emphasized that
indolence was a manifestation, not a cause, of
Philippine backwardness.
• https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2021/12/26/419978/the-relevance-of-rizals-indolence-of-the-
filipino/
Rizal discussed the causes of such indolence:

• The wars, piracy and internal disorders, resulting in

the “frightful diminution of inhabitants” and the
abandonment of agriculture, industry and commerce.
• The tributaries or abusive taxes and forced labor.
• The maldistribution of the gains from the galleon
trade and the iniquity of the encomienda system.
• https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2021/12/26/419978/the-relevance-of-rizals-indolence-of-the-
filipino/
Rizal discussed the causes of such indolence:

• The failure to provide essential public goods like

justice and peace and order.
• The bureaucratic corruption and inefficiency.
• The toleration, even encouragement, of vice (e.g.,
gambling), profligacy, and obscurantism.
• The discrimination of the indios and the denial of
individual liberty.
https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2021/12/26/419978/the-relevance-of-rizals-indolence-of-the-filipino/
Rizal said that these causes can be reduced to two classes,
namely “defects of training and lack of national sentiment.”

Rizal asked: “How is it that the Filipino people, so fond of its

customs as to border on routine, has given up its ancient
habits of work, of trade, of navigation, etc., even to the extent
of completely forgetting its past?”
https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2021/12/26/419978/the-relevance-of-rizals-indolence-of-the-filipino/
Spain’s implementation of her military
This essay, published in
policies – because of such laws, the
La Solidaridad starts by
Philippine population decreased
analyzing the various
dramatically. Poverty became more
causes of the miseries
rampant than ever, and farmlands were
suffered by the Filipino
left to wither. The family as a unit of
people
society was neglected, and overall,
every aspect of the life of the Filipino
was retarded
Deterioration and disappearance of
Filipino indigenous culture – when
Spain came with the sword and the This essay, published in
cross, it began the gradual destruction La Solidaridad starts by
of the native Philippine analyzing the various
culture. Because of this, the Filipinos causes of the miseries
started losing confidence in their past suffered by the Filipino
and their heritage, became doubtful of people
their present lifestyle, and eventually
lost hope in the future and the
preservation of their race.
Passivity and submissiveness to the
Spanish colonizers – one of the most This essay, published in
powerful forces that influenced a culture La Solidaridad starts by
of silence among the natives were the analyzing the various
Spanish friars. Because of the use of causes of the miseries
force, the Filipinos learned to submit suffered by the Filipino
themselves to the will of the foreigners. people
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.
1. Keeping the people uneducated and ignorant had failed. National consciousness had still
awakened, and great Filipino minds still emerged from the rubble.

2. Keeping he 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.

3. 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 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.
Rizal's Liham ni Rizal: Sa Kababaihan ng Malolos
http://thelifeandworksofrizalcom/2011/08/women-of-
malolos-summary-and.html/

Sta. Ana, F. (2021). The relevance of Rizal’s Indolence of

the Filipino.
https://www.bworldonline.com/opinion/2021/12/26/419978/t
he-relevance-of-rizals-indolence-of-the-filipino/