Chapter 7:
Formal Search for
Knowledge at
Ateneo Municipal
Enrollment at Ateneo
Rizal entered Ateneo Municipal when he was barely 11 years old,
four months after the execution of Gomburza. His father decided not to
send him at the Colegio de San Jose because of the unhappy experience his
brother Paciano had in the said school. Moreover, the mere mentioned of
the institution made Don Francisco remember the unjust execution of
Father Burgos, Paciano’s mentor. His father wanted to send Rizal to Letran
but later on decided to have him enrolled at Ateneo Municipal, formerly
known as Escuela Pia,. Besides, Ateneo at that time was the most
prestigious college for boys owing to its great teachers.
June 10, 1872 – Rizal took the entrance examination at Collegio de San Juan
de Letran.
The exam covered: reading, arithmetic. Catholic Doctrines
Although Rizal passed the examination, he refused entry to the school
because of the reason: he was very frail and undersized for his age.
Father Magin Fernando: college registrar; who first refused to admit Rizal,
but later on due to unrelated event he admitted Jose on the institution.
Jose did not use the username Mercado when he enrolled at Ateneo.
He registered as Jose Rizal because his original surname had rung a bell to
the ears of the authorities then due to Paciano’sassociation with one of the
leaders of the secularization movement, Father Burgos.
The Old Ateneo Municipal
The Atenean System of Education
Bachiler en Artes- six-year program that Ateneo offered. This entitled a student to
academic title.
Five learning areas:
Christian Doctrine
Languages: Spanish, Latin, Greek, French
History and Geography: World History and Geography, History of Spain and
Philippines
Mathematics and Sciences: Arithmetic, Geometry, Trigonometry, Mineralogy,
Chemistry, Physics, Botany, Zoology
Classic Disciplines: Poetry, Rhetoric, Philosophy
The college also offered Vocational Courses:
Agriculture
Commerce
Mechanics
Surveying
Ateneo prided their self as the BEST School, and part of their training to the students
they divided two Groups namely:
The Roman Empire- students belonged here were the boarding students
Carthaginian Empire – students here are non-boarding
Academic Performance at Ateneo
1872 – 1873 (First Year)
Latin Excellent
Spanish Excellent
Greek Excellent
1873 – 1874 (Second Year)
Spanish Excellent
Greek Excellent
World Geography Excellent
1874 – 1875 (Third Year)
Latin Excellent
Spanish Excellent
World History Excellent
History of Spain and Excellent
the Philippines
Arithmetic and Algebra Excellent
Greek Excellent
1875 – 1876 (Fourth Year)
Rhetoric and Poetry Excellent
French Excellent
Geometry and Trigonometry Excellent
1876 – 1877 (Fifth Year)
Philosophy 1 Excellent
Philosophy 2 Excellent
Mineralogy and Chemistry Excellent
Physics Excellent
Botany and Zoology Excellent
Extra-Curricular Activities at Ateneo
Religious Confraternities of Rizal
Academic Societies
Spanish and Natural Sciences
Academic Societies
Apostleship of Prayer Sodality of our Lady Medal
Fr. Francisco Paula de Sanchez Old Picture of Convent School
(Rizal’s mentor in poetry) of Santa Isabel
Agustin Saez
Mentor of Rizal in painting
Romualdo de Jesus
Mentor of Rizal in Fine Arts
Rizal in his fencing costume
Literary Works at Ateneo
POEMS
“My First Inspiration”
Dedicated to her mother on her birthday
“Through Education, Our Motherland receives Light”
Significant role which education plays in the progress and welfare of a nation
Education knows how to tame barbarous nations – from savages create heroic
fame
“To the Child Jesus”
A Celestial King would rather choose to be a shepherd for his sheep than to be
sovereign
“To the Virgin Mary”
Mary was her spiritual fortitude/sustenance
His anguish from death is set free because of his faith with her
Influences of Schooling at Ateneo on Rizal
Rizal was conferred the degree of Bachiller en Artes on March 23, 1877. From
being a boy, Rizal was transformed into a mature individual- an individual basically
Jesuit in form and orientation. For five years, Rizal was able imbibe the Jesuit values of
fairness, justice and reason (Capino, 1977). As a consequence his internalization of the
aforementioned values of the Jesuit school, the quest of Justice, equality and dignity
became his lifetime work.
Chapter 8:
Rizal at the
Dominican
University of the
Philippines
Dona Teodora was opposed to Rizal’s pursuit of higher education for fear of
what might happen to him due to the martyrdom of GOMBURZA, but still his father
continued to send him to the University of Santo Tomas (the Dominican university of
the Philippines)
Enrollment at the University of Santo Tomas
Former Jesuit mentors of Rizal suggested that he take either priesthood or
farming.
He considered literature, law or medicine.
Paciano discouraged Rizal to take up law due to the political condition of the
country.
Finally, he chose to enroll in the course Philosophy and Letters.
- Because his father wanted him to pursue it.
- Because of his failure to solicit the advice of Fr. Ramon Pablo, the
rector of Ateneo.
- In this course, he found himself taking Cosmology, Metaphysics,
Theodicy, and History of Philosophy.
He also enrolled in Surveying Course at this time in Ateneo. He was conferred
the title on November 25, 1881.
After his freshmen year, Rizal shifted his course from Philosophy and Letters to
Medicine because of the advice of Fr. Ramon Pablo and the failing eyesight of his
mother.
Academic Performance at UST
Unlike in Ateneo, Rizal performed poorly in UST. It is because he did not enjoy
his schooling there due to:
- The hostility of Dominican Professors to Rizal
- Racial Discrimination Against Filipino Students
- The Obsolete and Repressive Method of Instruction
Moreover, three more reasons that caused his poor academic performance
include:
- Medicine is not Rizal’s real vocation
- Dissatisfaction with the Dominican System of Education
- The Exciting Distractions of Youth
The obsolete and repressive method of teaching utilized by the Dominican
professors was emphasized in his work, El Filibusterismo, thru Fr. Millon
(professor in Physics) and Placido Penitente (one of the Filipino students in the
aforementioned subject).
Rizal was also fascinated with women during his student days at UST. Among
them is Segunda Katigbak from Batangas whom he visited in the boarding house
frequently.
- It was then followed by Leonor (or Orang) Valenzuela and Leonor
Rivera (his first cousin)
Liberalism and Filipino Students at UST
Liberal ideas came to be felt in Manila than in any place in the Philippines.
- It can be attributed to the ending of the Spanish Civil Wars, the
opening of Suez Canal, and the opening of the Philippines to world
trade.
-
To encourage the production of literary works in Manila, the Liceo Artistico
Literario de Manila, an organization of art lovers in the city, conducted regular
competition in literary writing.
- Rizal also joined the contests in 1879 and 1880 and was adjudged as the
best entry in the said competition. He joined to prove that the Filipinos
can equal and even surpass the Spaniards in literary prowess.
- His works were A La Juventud Filipina (To the Filipino Youth) and El
Consejo de los Dioses (The Council of the Gods)
Important Literary Works as a University Student
A La Juventud Filipina (To the Filipino Youth) – this poem won the grand prize
in the 1879 contest, and was Rizal’s first testimony of his nationalism wherein he
referred to the Philippines as Mi Patria or his motherland.
- It was the first great poem in Spanish written by a Filipino, recognized
by the Spanish authorities; and it was the first expression of
nationalistic concept that the Filipinos were the fair hope of the
motherland.
- Proof that Rizal was the First Filipino to call our country his
motherland.
- It also stressed the role of youth in nation building, calling them the
Fair Hope of the Motherland (La Bella Esperanza de la Patria Mia) and
challenges them to:
Cultivate their relent in the arts
Develop their knowledge of the sciences
Look forward and break their chain of bondage
El Consejo de los Dioses – this play was an allegory in praise of Cervantes as a
co-equal of Homer and Vigil. It should have won first place, but because it was
found to be written by a Filipino, the prize was given to a Spaniard.
- Through it, he was able to disprove the alleged superiority of the
Spaniards over the Filipinos and to prove that the Filipinos can
compete with other races in a fair play.
Junto al Pasig – a one-act play written by Rizal at the request of the Jesuits and
was staged at Ateneo, in connection with the celebration of the Feast day of
Immaculate Conception.
- This play can be interpreted in several ways:
As a prophecy of 50 years of revolution, invasion after
invasion, defeat, subjugation and civil tumult.
Rizal’s appeal for the Filipino youth to chide alien
people for causing them misery
As a purely religious allegory, as the play depicted
Leonido, together with a choir of angels successfully
driving Satan and his devils out of the land.
A Filipinas (To the Philippines) – it was written by Rizal in 1880 to praise the
beauty of the Philippines and encourage Filipino artists to glorify the country
through their art works.
Student Activism at UST
Both the Spanish and mestizo students labeled the Filipinos indio or chongo,
while Rizal and his peers retaliated by calling them kastila or bangus.
There was a time when Rizal was wounded due to a skirmish Filipino students
had with Spanish students at Escolta, Manila.
In order to show their Spanish detractors that Filipino students were united,
Rizal organized a secret society of Filipino students called Compañerismo
wherein members called themselves as Companions of Jehu (the patriot general
of the Jews). There, Rizal was the president and Galiciano Apacible was the
secretary.
First Taste of Spanish Brutality
While he was walking in the street, he failed to see the man passing by owing to
the darkness of the night. Because he was not able to recognize the man, who
happened to be lieutenant of the Guardia Civil, Rizal did not bother to salute nor
greet him Buenas Noches. Since her was expecting that he would be treated with
respect and courtesy by everybody in the town, what he did was to whip out his
sword and slashed it at Rizal’s back.
Rizal sent a written complaint to the Governor-General Primo de Rivera about
the Incident. However, there was nothing positive that came out of it since he
was an indio.
His demand for recognition of equality of Filipinos and Spaniards was to obsess
Rizal’s thoughts in the years to come and its denial would provoke him into
clash with offenders no matter what the cost.
