Divine Pauline B.

Din
PCBET 17 302-A
GE09 Life and Works of Rizal

To The Filipino Youth

This poem was intelligently written by our national hero for the Filipino youth which he said are the
hope of our motherland. In the first stanza of the poem, Rizal encourages the Filipino youth to hold
their heads high for they possess such great talent, skills and abilities which would give hope and honor
to our motherland. In the next stanza, Rizal is talking to what he call “Genius” which he referred to
intelligences to soar high and reach each and every young minds and fill them with noble thoughts.
And he hopes that those young minds will soar or fly up high swiftly more rapid than the wind the
moment their virgin minds are filled with greatness and noble thoughts. The third stanza is somehow
contradicting in the previous one. Rizal pertained to the Genius as a poetic one. Which he seems to
describe Genius as full of mystery, deep and heavy with meaning which fills this earth with such ideas
of art and science which enchains every mind and every explanations in this world. Then in the next
stanza, Rizal challenges the youth to use their knowledge and wisdom to humble the hands of Spain
whom labelled us as “Indios” and treated us with cruelty. Rizal dreamt that through intellectual
greatness, Filipino youth will be able to humble each and every nation that looks down onto us. In the
next stanzas, Rizal encourages the youth to seek the beauty of music and poetry. Wherein, he said
that poetry is sweeter than divine honey and that the music can dissipate man’s sorrow blight. And for
me, he’s right. These two things are essentials for every individual in different situations. The next
stanza creates a big impact on my mind. “You at th' impulse of your mind; The hard rock animate; And
your mind with great pow'r consigned Transformed into immortal state; The pure mem'ry of genius
great;”, “And you, who with magic brush; On canvas plain capture; The varied charm of Phoebus,
Loved by the divine Apelles, And the mantle of Nature;” Rizal clearly states that we, youths, have the
capability to create change for our country. That we are capable of bringing such lifeless things into
life. That we can immortalize our thoughts and words through great knowledge and wisdom; through
the help of great genius. He even compared the ability of the youth to a magic brush that can create
such majestic things in a plain canvas. He gives emphasis on the thought that we, as powerful youth
has the capability to turn our dreams into reality. The last stanza inspires the youth to run for the
glorious crown or honor that awaits them. He believed that Filipino youths are like the other foreign
youths out there. We are capable of doing things by making the most of what we already have.