Social Awakening 1

Social Awakening:
An Analysis Rafael Zulueta da Costa’s Like the Molave

Angeline A. Pamil
Bachelor in Secondary Education Major in English, 2-1D
Professor Rosales
March 09, 2015
 Social Awakening 2

Like the Molave

Not yet, Rizal, not yet. Sleep not in peace:

There are a thousand waters to be spanned;
there are a thousand mountains to be crossed;
there are a thousand crosses to be borne.
Our shoulders are not strong; our sinews are
grown flaccid with dependence, smug with ease
under another's wing. Rest not in peace;
Not yet, Rizal, not yet. The land has need
of young blood-and, what younger than your own,
Forever spilled in the great name of freedom,
Forever oblate on the altar of
the free? Not you alone, Rizal. O souls
And spirits of the martyred brave, arise!
Arise and scour the land! Shed once again
your willing blood! Infuse the vibrant red
into our thin anemic veins; until
we pick up your Promethean tools and, strong,
Out of the depthless matrix of your faith
in us, and on the silent cliffs of freedom,
we carve for all time your marmoreal dream!
Until our people, seeing, are become
like the Molave, firm, resilient, staunch,
rising on the hillside, unafraid,
Strong in its own fiber, yes, like the Molave!
 Social Awakening 3

II.
Not yet, Rizal, not yet. The glory hour will come
Out of the silent dreaming
from the seven thousand fold silence
We shall emerge, saying WE ARE FILIPINOS!
and no longer be ashamed
sleep not in peace
the dream is not yet fully carved
hard the wood but harder the woods
yet the molave will stand
yet the molave monument will rise
and god's walk on brown legs
 Social Awakening 4

Social Awakening:
An Analysis of Rafael Zulueta da Costa’s Like the Molave

Using Jose Rizal as his main inspiration, Rafael Zulueta da Costa created an
award-winning poem that has evoked a variety of responses, most conflicting and
contradictory (Reyes, 1980). Like the Molave (1940) expounded the unwavering
perseverance for national freedom that we Filipino must possess. It topped the
Commonwealth Literary Award in 1940, beating Jose Garcia Villa’s entry and received a
shower of extravagant praise by both writers and critics alike. Carlos P. Romulo, the
chairman of the Board of Judges for the contest praised R. da Costa’s work and said,
“Filipino poetry in English is beginning to be infused with a social and cultural
significance. The lyric voice of the Filipino poet has acquired a deeper and more
resounding timber suggestive of an emotion that has been touched by the
intelligence into significant passion” (The Social Consciousness of R. Zulueta da
Costa, p. 199)
Armando Manalo (as cited on Reyes, 1980), another writer, said that "the most
significant comment on and possibly the most ambitious criticism of Filipino society set
in an imaginative vehicle . . . R. da Costa's vision of unalienated justice triumphing at
last has the unmistakable ring of prophecy."
The poem didn’t only get praises. Critics like Leonard Casper and Ricaredo
Demetillo attacked R. da Costa.
Casper in New Writing from the Philippines takes S.P. Lopez to task for his
proletarian theory of literature and consequently for his choice of a Filipino master-
piece:
“Unfortunately, Like the Molave shows less restraint than evasiveness. Its
sentiments are abstract, its allegories, trite, its repetitions, monotonous, its
sarcasm, obvious, its rhetoric, theatrical, its lack of self-knowledge, appalling”
According to Reyes (1980), the poem was identified at one time as the fore- most
poetic expression of Filipinism and it has also been considered an example of the failure
of Filipino writing in English.
Like the Molave foresees the future of Filipinos in our countrywide failings such
as our dependence upon others and upon the government, lack of self-restraint and
loss of social dignity from a mistaken notion of modernity (Alaman, 2014). R. da Costa
laid reasons how the people of the Philippines must work to make the nation stronger.
Analyzing the poem using sociological perspective suits Like the Molave
undoubtedly. R. da Costa’s life revolved during American colonization, making him
recognized that Filipino people is lacking self-restraint and loss of social dignity from a
mistaken notion of modernity.
Social Awakening 5

Born during American regime, R. da Costa sees how his society depends on the
colonizers and not doing a thing such as revolt.
The stranglehold of the Americans over us, established in 1898, was still the
foremost historical fact. It was essentially a period of transition during which the
Common- wealth government was formed to prepare us for independence. Under the
charismatic leadership of Quezon, Filipinos were called upon to feel their responsibility
for asserting the country's self- reliance as a nation (Reyes, 1980, p. 201).
In Like the Molave, the persona asks the national hero to “sleep not in peace”
because there are still many journeys to embark on, “waters to be spanned,” “mountains
to be crossed,” and “crosses to borne.” (http://rizalpoetry.blogspot.com/). These phrases
inferred that the archipelago of the Philippines is in trouble and still needs to be
furnished for the area to be successful.
R. da Costa outlined how our country is dependent on other nation through the
following lines:
Our shoulders are not strong; our sinews are
Grown flaccid with dependence, smug with ease
Under another’s wing. Rest not in peace;
Not yet, Rizal, not yet.
These lines depict the weakness and dependence of Filipinos even during 1940’s
Philippines’ pre-independence. It illustrate how we barely stand up on our own by
growing complacent and conditioned to post-colonial mentality. The Philippine society
back then seemed to lose its own identity because of the consistent colonization. The
line “Rest not in peace; Not yet, Rizal, not yet” is repeated to show that Rizal should
continually haunt the Filipinos who almost always forgot to pursue the long lost
aspiration or dream for independence.
As I’ve said earlier, R. da Costa used our national hero as an empowerment. “…
The land has need of young blood – and, what younger than your own, forever spilled in
the great name of freedom…” This affirms that the speaker has found Rizal’s
perspective on youth and believes that the said generation will bring salvation to the
country.
---Infuse the vibrant red
 into our thin anemic veins; until
we pick up your Promethean tools and, strong,
Social Awakening 6

Out of the depthless matrix of your faith

in us, and on the silent cliffs of freedom,
we carve for all time your marmoreal dream!
Rafael Zulueta da Costa badly wants to ignite the fighting spirit and arise the
nationalism of his countrymen. He wants to awaken the social consciousness that
sleeps within them. As what Alaman said, “Through infusing or carrying on the
nationalistic spirit to the next generation, history will be made known on how epic were
our heroes and thus will touch the hearts of the oblivious Filipinos who will then
preserve our independence knowing we got freedom out of blood, sweat and tears.” In
Greek mythology, Prometheus is a titan who stole fire from the Gods and give it to
mankind. Prometheus here symbolizes a person who gives light to others. We can say
that Rizal is the Prometheus in this poem, for he had enlighten us during critical
situations even though he knew the consequences. Even though Rizal serves as the
light here for an independent future, the speaker emphasized that change cannot be
accomplished with him alone. He imposes that all people who have sacrificed their lives
will be wasted if no one is reflecting on it. That the country itself will still suffer if its
people will not act and participate in social change. Bernad (1953) once mention,
“Unlike our ancestors who were strong-willed, earnest, adventurous, daring and
courageous, they became pioneers like other giants in our history who gave luster to
our name but now dead where it seems that their virtues were buried with them.”
On the last four lines of the first stanza of the poem, the speaker believed that
the Filipino nation should learn how to be like a molave tree, “firm, resilient, staunch,
rising on the hillside, unafraid, strong in its own fiber,”. The poem’s purpose of raising
social awareness through ‘seeing’ to make Filipinos act on a decisive effort in
supporting each other for the greater benefit of the nation like how Molave, a tough
Philippine tree can stand on its own.
The last stanza of Like the Molave clearly stated that there will come a time
wherein the dream of becoming free will not stay as dream but will truly happen with the
help of the high-spirited citizens throughout the country, strong as the molave, will come
fighting for their freedom until their last breath.
Social Awakening 7

This implies that we must learn first on how to stand by our own and fight for
freedom.
The poem states that whilst many Filipinos are achieving great things for the
country, there is still much more to be done and more residents must contribute to the
efforts. In short, Like the Molave is about inspiring the Filipino nation to improve the
country and make it self-sufficient.
 Social Awakening 8

References:
Alaman, I. J. (2014). Filipinism’ and Social Consciousness Theme: An Analysis of Like
the Molave. 2-9.
Bernad, M. A. (1953). Like the Molave and Collected Poems by R. Zulueta da Costa; '
Effigies: Thirty-Seven Poems by Ramón Echevarria; and Furrows and Arrows:
Poetry and Verse by Jorge Bocobo. Philippine Studies , 79-87.
Reyes, G. A. (1980). The Social Consciousness of R. Zulueta da Costa. Philippine
Studies, 199-211.
Rizal Poetry: Sleep Not in Peace. (n.d.). Retrieved from Rizal Poetry:
http://rizalpoetry.blogspot.com/