Famous Writings of Rizal
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Rizal wrote mostly in Spanish, the then lingua franca of scholars, though some of his letters (for example Sa Mga Kababaihang Taga Malolos) were written in Tagalog. His works have since been translated into a number of languages including Tagalog and English.
Novels and essays
El filibusterismo (UP Diliman).
The Triumph of Science over Death, by Rizal.
Poetry
The woman is shown trampling the skull, a symbol of death, to signify the victory the humankind achieved by conquering the bane of death through their scientific advancements. The original sculpture is now displayed at the Rizal Shrine Museum at Fort Santiago in Intramuros, Manila. A large replica, made of concrete, stands in front of Fernando Calderón Hall, the building which houses the College of Medicine of the University of the Philippines Manila along Pedro Gil Street in Ermita, Manila.
Novels and essays
- Noli Me Tángere, novel, 1887 (literally Latin for 'touch me not', from John 20:17)
- El Filibusterismo, (novel, 1891), sequel to Noli Me Tángere
- Mi Último Adiós, poem, 1896 (literally "My Last Farewell" )
- Alin Mang Lahi” (“Whate’er the Race”), a Kundiman attributed to Dr. José Rizal
- The Friars and the Filipinos (Unfinished)
- Toast to Juan Luna and Felix Hidalgo (Speech, 1884), given at Restaurante Ingles, Madrid
- The Diaries of José Rizal
- Rizal's Letters is a compendium of Dr. Jose Rizal's letters to his family members, Blumentritt, Fr. Pablo Pastells and other reformers
- "Come se gobiernan las Filipinas" (Governing the Philippine islands)
- Filipinas dentro de cien años essay, 1889-90 (The Philippines a Century Hence)
- La Indolencia de los Filipinos, essay, 1890 (The indolence of Filipinos)
- Makamisa unfinished novel
- Sa Mga Kababaihang Taga Malolos, essay, 1889, To the Young Women of Malolos
- Annotations to Antonio de Moragas, Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas (essay, 1889, Events in the Philippine Islands)
El filibusterismo (UP Diliman).
The Triumph of Science over Death, by Rizal.
Poetry
- A La Juventud Filipina
- El Canto Del Viajero
- Briayle Crismarl
- Canto Del Viajero
- Canto de María Clara
- Dalit sa Paggawa
- Felictación
- Kundiman (Tagalog)
- Me Piden Versos
- Mi primera inspiracion
- Mi Retiro
- Mi Ultimo Adiós
- Por La Educación (Recibe Lustre La Patria)
- Sa Sanggol na si Jesus
- To My Muse (A Mi Musa)
- Un Recuerdo A Mi Pueblo
- A Man in Dapitan
- El Consejo de los Dioses (The council of Gods)
- Junto Al Pasig (Along the Pasig)
- San Euistaquio, Mártyr (Saint Eustache, the martyr)
The woman is shown trampling the skull, a symbol of death, to signify the victory the humankind achieved by conquering the bane of death through their scientific advancements. The original sculpture is now displayed at the Rizal Shrine Museum at Fort Santiago in Intramuros, Manila. A large replica, made of concrete, stands in front of Fernando Calderón Hall, the building which houses the College of Medicine of the University of the Philippines Manila along Pedro Gil Street in Ermita, Manila.
In Brussels and Spain
In 1890, Rizal, 29, left Paris for Brussels as he was preparing for the publication of his annotations of Antonio de Morga's "Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas." There, he lived in the boarding house of the two Jacoby sisters, Catherina and Suzanna who had a niece also named Suzanna ("Thil") HistorianGregorio F. Zaide states that Rizal had "his romance with Suzanne Jacoby, 45, the petite niece of his landladies." Belgian Pros Slachmuylders, however, believed that Rizal had a romance with the niece, Suzanna Thil, in 1890. Belgian Jean Paul Verstraeten proved this. Jean Paul traced in the archives of Brussels that in the same house as Suzanne Jacoby, a little niece was living, Suzanne Till. Letters from Suzanne to Rizal were signed by "Petite Suzanne".
Rizal's Brussels stay was short-lived, as he moved to Madrid, leaving the young Suzanna a box of chocolates. Suzanna replied in French: "After your departure, I did not take the chocolate. The box is still intact as on the day of your parting. Don’t delay too long writing us because I wear out the soles of my for running to the mailbox to see if there is a letter from you. There will never be any home in which you are so loved as in that in Brussels, so, you little bad boy, hurry up and come back…" (Oct. 1, 1890 letter). The house where Rizal was staying, in Rue Philippe de Champagne 38 doesn't exist anymore following some writers. (the house numbers jump from 36 to 42). Jean Paul Verstraeten proved during his research that this house still exists, on August 10, 1900, the number of the house was changed into 42. Jean Paul traced the owner of this house and convinced her to put a historical marker. Slachmuylders’ group in 2007 unveiled this historical marker commemorating Rizal's stay in Brussels in 1890.
The content of Rizal's writings changed considerably in his two most famous novels, Noli Me Tángere, published in Berlin in 1887, and El Filibusterismo, published in Ghent in 1891 with funds borrowed largely from Rizal's friends. These writings angered both the Spanish colonial elite and many educated Filipinos due to their insulting symbolism. They are critical of Spanish friars and the power of the Church. Rizal's friend Ferdinand Blumentritt, an Austria-Hungary born professor and historian wrote that the novel's characters were drawn from real life and that every episode can be repeated on any day in the Philippines.
Blumentritt was the grandson of the Imperial Treasurer at Vienna in the former Austro-Hungarian Empire and a staunch defender of the Catholic faith. This did not dissuade him however from writing the preface of El filibusterismo after he had translated Noli Me Tángere into German. As Blumentritt had warned, these led to Rizal's prosecution as the inciter of revolution and eventually, to a military trial and execution. The intended consequence of teaching the natives where they stood brought about an adverse reaction, as the Philippine Revolution of 1896 took off virulently thereafter.
Leaders of the reform movement in Spain: Left to Right: Rizal, del Pilar, and Ponce (c. 1890).
As leader of the reform movement of Filipino students in Spain, he contributed essays, allegories, poems, and editorials to the Spanish newspaper La Solidaridad in Barcelona (in this case Rizal used a pen name, Dimasalang). The core of his writings centers on liberal and progressive ideas of individual rights and freedom; specifically, rights for the Filipino people. He shared the same sentiments with members of the movement: that the Philippines is battling, in Rizal's own words, "a double-faced Goliath"—corrupt friars and bad government. His commentaries reiterate the following agenda:[note 8]
Wenceslao Retana, a political commentator in Spain, had slighted Rizal by writing an insulting article in "La Epoca", a newspaper in Madrid, in which he insinuated that the family and friends of Rizal were ejected from their lands in Calamba for not having paid their due rents. The incident (when Rizal was ten) stemmed from an accusation that Rizal's mother, Teodora, tried to poison the wife of a cousin when she claimed she only intervened to help. With the approval of the Church prelates, and without a hearing, she was ordered to prison in Santa Cruz in 1871. She was made to walk the ten miles (16 km) from Calamba. She was released after two-and-a-half years of appeals to the highest court. In 1887, Rizal wrote a petition on behalf of the tenants of Calamba, and later that year led them to speak out against the friars' attempts to raise rent. They initiated a litigation which resulted in the Dominicans evicting them from their homes, including the Rizal family. General Valeriano Weyler had the buildings on the farm torn down.
Upon reading the article, Rizal sent immediately a representative to challenge Retana to a duel. The painful memories of his mother's treatment at the hands of the civil authorities explain his reaction. Retana published a public apology and later became one of Rizal's biggest admirers, writing Rizal's most important biography - Vida y Escritos del José Rizal.
Rizal's Brussels stay was short-lived, as he moved to Madrid, leaving the young Suzanna a box of chocolates. Suzanna replied in French: "After your departure, I did not take the chocolate. The box is still intact as on the day of your parting. Don’t delay too long writing us because I wear out the soles of my for running to the mailbox to see if there is a letter from you. There will never be any home in which you are so loved as in that in Brussels, so, you little bad boy, hurry up and come back…" (Oct. 1, 1890 letter). The house where Rizal was staying, in Rue Philippe de Champagne 38 doesn't exist anymore following some writers. (the house numbers jump from 36 to 42). Jean Paul Verstraeten proved during his research that this house still exists, on August 10, 1900, the number of the house was changed into 42. Jean Paul traced the owner of this house and convinced her to put a historical marker. Slachmuylders’ group in 2007 unveiled this historical marker commemorating Rizal's stay in Brussels in 1890.
The content of Rizal's writings changed considerably in his two most famous novels, Noli Me Tángere, published in Berlin in 1887, and El Filibusterismo, published in Ghent in 1891 with funds borrowed largely from Rizal's friends. These writings angered both the Spanish colonial elite and many educated Filipinos due to their insulting symbolism. They are critical of Spanish friars and the power of the Church. Rizal's friend Ferdinand Blumentritt, an Austria-Hungary born professor and historian wrote that the novel's characters were drawn from real life and that every episode can be repeated on any day in the Philippines.
Blumentritt was the grandson of the Imperial Treasurer at Vienna in the former Austro-Hungarian Empire and a staunch defender of the Catholic faith. This did not dissuade him however from writing the preface of El filibusterismo after he had translated Noli Me Tángere into German. As Blumentritt had warned, these led to Rizal's prosecution as the inciter of revolution and eventually, to a military trial and execution. The intended consequence of teaching the natives where they stood brought about an adverse reaction, as the Philippine Revolution of 1896 took off virulently thereafter.
Leaders of the reform movement in Spain: Left to Right: Rizal, del Pilar, and Ponce (c. 1890).
As leader of the reform movement of Filipino students in Spain, he contributed essays, allegories, poems, and editorials to the Spanish newspaper La Solidaridad in Barcelona (in this case Rizal used a pen name, Dimasalang). The core of his writings centers on liberal and progressive ideas of individual rights and freedom; specifically, rights for the Filipino people. He shared the same sentiments with members of the movement: that the Philippines is battling, in Rizal's own words, "a double-faced Goliath"—corrupt friars and bad government. His commentaries reiterate the following agenda:[note 8]
- That the Philippines be a province of Spain (Philippines was a sub-colony of New Spain - now Mexico, administered from Mexico city)
- Representation in the Cortes
- Filipino priests instead of Spanish friars--Augustinians, Dominicans, and Franciscans—in parishes and remote sitios
- Freedom of assembly and speech
- Equal rights before the law (for both Filipino and Spanish plaintiffs)
Wenceslao Retana, a political commentator in Spain, had slighted Rizal by writing an insulting article in "La Epoca", a newspaper in Madrid, in which he insinuated that the family and friends of Rizal were ejected from their lands in Calamba for not having paid their due rents. The incident (when Rizal was ten) stemmed from an accusation that Rizal's mother, Teodora, tried to poison the wife of a cousin when she claimed she only intervened to help. With the approval of the Church prelates, and without a hearing, she was ordered to prison in Santa Cruz in 1871. She was made to walk the ten miles (16 km) from Calamba. She was released after two-and-a-half years of appeals to the highest court. In 1887, Rizal wrote a petition on behalf of the tenants of Calamba, and later that year led them to speak out against the friars' attempts to raise rent. They initiated a litigation which resulted in the Dominicans evicting them from their homes, including the Rizal family. General Valeriano Weyler had the buildings on the farm torn down.
Upon reading the article, Rizal sent immediately a representative to challenge Retana to a duel. The painful memories of his mother's treatment at the hands of the civil authorities explain his reaction. Retana published a public apology and later became one of Rizal's biggest admirers, writing Rizal's most important biography - Vida y Escritos del José Rizal.
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