CHAPTER 4

SCHOLASTIC
TRIUMPHS AT ATENEO
1872 - 1877
DE MANILA
 EARLY YEARS

- Rizal was sent to Manila to study at Ateneo

Municipal, a college run by Spanish Jesuits.
- He was initially refused admission due to
being late and being sickly but was
eventually accepted after the intercession of
Manuel Xerez Burgos.
 ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS

- Rizal excelled academically, becoming

"emperor" of his class and winning
numerous prizes and medals.
- He studied hard, taking private lessons in
Spanish and reading extensively, including
romantic novels and historical works.
 PERSONAL LIFE

- Rizal visited his mother, Doña Teodora,

in prison and correctly predicted her
release.
- He became interested in reading
romantic novels and developed a love
for literature.
 PERSONAL LIFE
- Rizal continued to excel academically,
winning five medals in his fourth year and
graduating with highest honors in 1877.
- He was inspired by his professor, Fr.
Francisco de Paula Sanchez, who
encouraged him to study harder and write
poetry.
Rizal graduated with a
Bachelor of Arts degree
with highest honors on
March 23, 1877, at the
age of 16.
 EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES
- Active member and secretary of the Marian
Congregation, a religious society.
- Member of the Academy of Spanish
Literature and the Academy of Natural
Sciences.
- Cultivated his literary talent under Father
Sanchez's guidance.
- Studied painting under Agustin Saez and
 ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENTS

- Carved an image of the Virgin Mary

on a piece of Philippine hardwood,
impressing his Jesuit professors.
- Created an image of the Sacred
Heart of Jesus, which was later placed
on the door of the Ateneo dormitory.
Sacred Heart of
Jesus
Virgin Mary
 LITERARY BEGINNINGS

- Wrote his first poem, "Mi

Primera Inspiración" (My First
Inspiration), dedicated to his
mother on her birthday, likely
in 1874.
 MY FIRST INSPIRATION
Why do the scented bowers In fragrant fray Rival each
other's flowers this festive day?
Why is 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 the 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 beauty endowed. Why
goes she to a feast In a carmine cloud?
Sweet mother, they celebrate Your natal day The rose
with her scent inuate, The bird with his lay.
The murmurous spring this day Without alloy,
Murmuring bids you always To live in joy.
While the crystalline murmurs g'isten, Hear you the
accents strong Struck from my lyre, listen! To my love's
 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
 IN 1876, RIZAL WROTE POEMS ON VARIOUS
TOPICS - RELIGION, EDUCATION, CHILDHOOD
MEMORIES, AND WAR. THEY WERE AS
FOLLOWS
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 Religión y la Buena

Educación (Intimate Alliance Between Religion and
Good Educa- tion).
 IN 1876, RIZAL WROTE POEMS ON VARIOUS
TOPICS - RELIGION, EDUCATION, CHILDHOOD
MEMORIES, AND WAR. THEY WERE AS
FOLLOWS
3. Por la Educación Recibe Lustre la Patria (Through
Education the Country Receives Light).

4. El Cautiverio y el Triunfo: Batalla de Lucena y

Prision de Boabdil (The Captivity and the Triumph: ph:
Battle of Lucena and the Imprisonment of Boabdil).
This martial poem describes the defeat and capture of
Boabdil, last Moorish sultan of Granada.
 IN 1876, RIZAL WROTE POEMS ON VARIOUS
TOPICS - RELIGION, EDUCATION, CHILDHOOD
MEMORIES, AND WAR. THEY WERE AS
FOLLOWS
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.
A YEAR LATER, IN 1877, HE WROTE MORE
POEMS. IT WAS HIS LAST YEAR IN THE
ATENEO. AMONG THE POEMS WRITTEN THAT
YEAR WERE:
1. El Heroismo de Colón (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 fame and
riches by his failure to finance the projected
expedition of Columbus to the New World.
A YEAR LATER, IN 1877, HE WROTE MORE
POEMS. IT WAS HIS LAST YEAR IN THE
ATENEO. AMONG THE POEMS WRITTEN THAT
YEAR WERE:
3. Gran Consuelo en la Mayor Desdicha (Great Solace
in Great Misfortune). This is a legend in verse of the
tragic life of Columbus)
4. Un Diálogo Alusivo a la Despedida de los Colegiales
(A Farewell Dialogue of the Students). This was the
last poem written by Rizal in Ateneo; it is a poignant
poem of farewell to his classmates
Jose Rizal's time at Ateneo de Manila was
marked by significant achievements in
drama and romance. His favorite teacher,
Father Sanchez, requested him to write a
drama based on the prose story of St.
Eustace the Martyr. Rizal wrote the drama,
"San Eustacio, Martir," in poetic verses
during the summer vacation of 1876.
Rizal's first romance was with Segunda
Katigbak, a 14-year-old girl from Lipa,
Batangas. He met her at his maternal
grandmother's house in Trozo, Manila. Rizal
was smitten with Segunda, describing her
as "rather short, with eyes that were
eloquent and ardent at times and languid
at others, rosy-cheeked, with an
enchanting and provocative smile".
Despite their mutual affection, Rizal's
romance with Segunda was doomed from
the start. She was already engaged to
Manuel Luz, a townmate from Lipa. Rizal's
shyness and reserve prevented him from
expressing his feelings, and he eventually
lost her forever. Segunda returned to Lipa
and married Manuel Luz, leaving Rizal with
nostalgic memories of a lost love.
Rizal's experience with Segunda had
a lasting impact on him. Three years
later, he reflected on his first love,
saying, "Ended, at an early hour, my
first love! My virgin heart will always
mourn the reckless step it took on
the flower-decked abyss".
 CHAPTER 4

THANK YOU
SCHOLASTIC TRIUMPHS AT
ATENEO DE MANILA
1872 - 1877