“Without education and liberty, which are the soil and sun of man, no reform is possible; no measure can

give
the result desired.”-Jose Rizal

Jose Rizal viewed education as an effective weapon he can used to fight for our nation’s freedom and to end
the tyranny of the Spanish government. That is why; he aimed for expertise in various fields and entered in
different universities and colleges.

DoniaTeodora has second thoughts about sending her son to school due to the execution of GomBurZa. But, it
was Don Francisco who decided to send his son to University of Santo Tomas for tertiary education which is a
prestigious institution run by the Dominican order.

Setting: Rizal’s house.

Rizal had a hard time in deciding what course is he going to take but in the end, he have decided to follow his
father’s choice which is to take Philosophy and Letters.

Setting: University of Santo Tomas, Year 1877

During Rizal’s freshmen year, he studied Cosmology, Metaphysics, Theodicy and History of Philosophy. Rizal
performed well in this subject that’s why he got excellent ratings and remarks from his teachers.

[Pictures of Jose’s report card will be shown.]

#FYI_1

“While Rizal was studying in UST, he was also enrolled in Ateneo while taking a vocational course in surveying
to earn the title Perito Agrimensor which means “expert surveyor”. The said title was issued to him on
November 25, 1881.”

Scene 3: Rizal leaving the Philosophy and Letters Department.

Setting: University, Year 1878

After his first year, Rizal shifted to Medicine. This change of heart was due to two factors; (1) Father Ramon
Pablo had advised him to pursue the course, (2) Rizal’s mother had failing eyesight and he wanted to become
a doctor to cure his mother’s condition.

#FYI_2

“Rizal won first prize on a literary contest by the Liceo-Artistico Literary in two consecutive years (1879-1880)
with his poems A La Juventud Filipino (To the Filipino Youth) and his allegorical drama El Consejo de Los
Dioces (The Council of Gods). The second time he won the title was objected by the Spanish community
because he was an Indio but despite of the objections, the prize was still awarded to Rizal.”

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After finishing his study in UST, Rizal decided to study in Spain without seeking the permission of his parents.
Aside from advancing his knowledge in the field of medicine, Rizal wanted to study abroad because of his
secret mission.

#FYI_3

The secret mission of Jose Rizal was to observe the life, culture, language, customs, industries and
commerce, and government and laws of the European nation to prepare himself in the mighty task of liberating
his oppressed people from the Spanish tyranny.”

Before leaving the country in 1882, Rizal wrote a farewell letter for his parents and his true love whom is
Leonor Rivera.

Setting: Universidad Central de Madrid, Year 1882

This time, instead of choosing between Medicine and Philosophy and Letters, Rizal chose to enroll in both
courses while studying in Madrid. His Licentiate in Medicine was given to him on June 1884.

#FYI_4

Jose Rizal was not awarded the Doctor’s diploma in Medicine. Did you know why? Because he did not present
his thesis for graduation nor paidthe corresponding fees.

[FRANCE]

Jose Rizal wanted to acquire more knowledge regarding ophthalmology, so he went to Parison June 15, 1883
where he also studied painting, sculpting, fencing and shooting. He also took lessons in French, German and
English under private instructors. In addition, he worked as an assistant of a leading French ophthalmologist,
Dr. Louis de Weckert.

[BARCELONA]

It was on June 16, 1882 when Rizal reached Barcelona. Using his pen name, LaongLaan, Rizal wrote Amor
Patrio (Love of Country), Los Viajes (Travels) and Revisa de Madrid (Review of Madrid) which was all
published in Diariong Tagalog because its publisher, BasilioTeodoro Moran communicated with Rizal.

[MADRID]

Rizal budgeted his money and time when he was in Madrid because there were times that his allowance never
arrived bringing so much suffering to him.

It was on March 1883 when Rizal joined Masonic lodge called Acacia to secure Freemasonry’s aid in his fight
against the friars in the Philippines. Then, on November 15, 1890, he transferred to Lodge Solidaridad where
he became Master Arson.

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[GERMANY]

Year 1886, Rizal left for Heidelberg, Germany. He worked at the University Eye Hospital under the direction of
Dr. Otto Becker. After writing the poem “A los Flores de Heidelberg”, Rizal went to Wilhelmsfeld for his
vacation.

Rizal’s first letter to Blumentritt was sent on July 31, 1886 with the book, Aritmetica written in Spanish and
Tagalog.

Moreover, Rizal’s novel, Noli Me Tangere, was published when he was living in Berlin while still aiming for the
advancement of his knowledge about ophthalmology.

#FYI_5

1886 winter was the darkest winter of Rizal. Ask me why! Because no money arrived and he was broke. He
eat only one meal a day making him starved and not being able to receive proper nourishment needed by the
body.

“A French spy!”. This was the suspicions of German police on Jose Rizal. But at the end, even after a long
process. The German chief of police allowed him to say freely in Germany because he was impressed by
Rizal that explained his side using the German language fluently.

After five years, Rizal went back to the Philippines for four main reasons; first is to operate on his mother’s eye;
next is to serve his people who had long been oppressed by Spanish tyrants; third is to find out for himself how
Noli Me Tangere and his other writings were affecting Filipinos and Spaniards; and lastly, to inquire why
Leonor Rivera remained silent.

It was on August 8, 1887 when Rizal went back to Calamba, his hometown. His family welcomed him warmly,
and because they worried about Jose’s safety, they didn’t let him to go out alone.

Dr. Uliman”, this is how the people addressed Jose Rizal upon operating his own medical clinic in Calamba.
His first patient was none other than his mother, Teodora Alonzo. After few months of operation, he earned a
total amount of five thousand pesos as medical fee.

#FYI_6

Rizal failed to see Leonor after coming back to Philippines because his parents didn’t allow him since Leonor’s
mother is against their relationship.

One day, Gov. Gen. Emilio Terrero invited Rizal to Malacañan to inform him about his charges and of course,
Jose denied it. The governor general believed Jose’s explanation that he was just exposing the truth and

3
asked for a copy of Noli. He also assigned Don Jose Taviel de Andrade as Rizal’s bodyguard for security and
protection.

However, Permanent Commission of Censorship finds a way to prove that Noli Me Tangere contained
subversive ideas against Church and Spain and recommended the prohibition of the importation, reproduction
and circulation of the novel. While this issue was ongoing, Rizal helped his Calamba folks on gathering facts
and listing grievances against the hacienda management. This pushed the friars to deport Rizal in the
Philippines, so Rizal left Philippines again as advised by Gov. Gen. Terrero.

[HONG KONG & MACAO]

Rizal flew to Hong Kong and stayed in Victoria Hotel. His movements in Hong Kong were shadowed by a
Spaniard named Jose Sainz de Varanda which he happens to see s urprisingy among the passengers when
he left Hong Kong for Macao.

[TOKYO]

It was on February 29, 1988 when Rizal went to Tokyo. At first, he was embarrassed because he could not
speak Japanese but he looked like Japanese. But later on, he was able to speak the Japanese language.

Upon his stay in Tokyo, Rizal got attracted to a Japanese lady named O-Sei-San (DeikoUsui). They went to
interesting spots in the city together. Rizal thought about settling down with O-Sei-San but his nation’s freedom
matters more than his personal feelings.

[LONDON]

He lived in London after visiting United States. During that time, injustices of Spanish authoritiescontinued in
the Philippines, deteriorating the rights of the Filipinos, particularly his family and Rev. Vicente Garcia who
defended Noli Me Tangere against the friars.

#FYI_7

Rizal’s greatest achievement in London was annotating the Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas of Morga. In
addition, Rizal search for historical materials in the BibliothequeNationale in Paris and was entertained by Juan
Luna.

[MADRID & BARCELONA IN SPAIN]

This is the time when Rizal met the two titans of Propaganda Movement, Marcelo H. Del Pilar and Mariano
Ponce for the first time.

[LONDON]

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Rizal went back to London and learned that the Filipinos in Barcelona were planning to establish a patriotic
society named Association La Solidaridad which would cooperate in the crusade of reforms.

December 31, 1888, Association La Solidaridad was inaugurated with the following officers:

Galicano Apacible- President

Graciano Lopez Jaena- Vice-President

Manuel Santa Maria- Secretary

Mariano Ponce- Treasurer

Jose Ma. Panganiban-Accountant

Rizal was elected as honorary president by unanimous vote which he thanks for among the members of the
association.

[PARIS]

On March 1889, Rizal left London for Paris and organized Kidlat Club to bring together the young Filipinos to
enjoy sojourning the city in the duration of Universal exposition. During his stay in the city, Rizal moved to
different hotels and boarding houses until he settled in a little room with Capitan Justo Trinidad and Jose
Albert.

Rizal once said, “Filipinos should be proud of the name Indio and make the Spanish revised their conception of
the term that is why he formed a new society of Filipino as a replacement to Kidlat Club, the Indios Bravos. Its
member pledged to excel in intellectual and physical powers through practicing judo and the use of sword and
pistol.

The next society founded by Rizal is R.D.L.M. which stands for Redencio De Los Malayos or Redemption of
the Malays. This society is enigmatic and has various degrees of membership, with members not knowing
each other.

(SYMBOL OF R.D.L.M.)

#FYI_8

Rizal’s outstanding in Paris was the publication of the annotated edition of Morga’s book , Sucesos de las Islas
Filipinas which he wrote in British Museum. The prologue was written by Blumentritt and it was printed by
Garnier Freres.

[BELGIUM]

5
After living in Paris, Rizal went to Brussels, Belgium on January 28, 1890 with Jose Albert because of the high
costs of living in Paris and the city hampered his literary works. When Albert left the city, Jose Alejandro
replaced him.

Rizal continued writing El Filibusterismo while he was in Brussels. He also wrote articles for La Solidaridad
including Sobre la Nueva Ortografia de la Lengua Tagala or The New Orthography of the Tagalog Language
that shows how Rizal loved his native language.

Upon his stay in Brussels, Rizal became depressed because the Calamba agrarian trouble was getting worst
as the Dominicans asked for high and unreasonable amount for their land rents. Don Francisco and other
tenants refused to pay the rents so the Dominicans filed a suit in court dispossess the Rizal of their land in
Calamba. [Enumerate the injustices made to the Rizal family.]

[MADRID]

Rizal planned to go home because of the sufferings of their family, ignoring the danger that waits upon his
homecoming. But this ends in going to Madrid to handle the problem as he received a letter from Paciano.

Rizal tried all legal means to seek justice for his family and Calamba tenants. He was then interviewed by
Senior Fabie on the Minister of Colonies; he went with Marcelo H. Del Pilar, his lawyer and Dr. Domingo
Gomez, secretary of Association Hispano-Filipino. Unfortunately, nothing came out of the said interview.

This made Rizal experienced disappointments while he was in Madrid, he also knew about the death of Jose
Ma. Panganiban in Barcelona.

#FYI_9

In the end of August, Rizal attended a social reunion of Filipinos in Madrid when he almost fought with Antonio
Luna because of their romance with Nelie Bousted. After Luna got sober, he immediately apologized which
Rizal immediately accepted.

On another occasion, Rizal challenged Wenceslao E. Retana to duel because of insulting him through
Retana’s article. Retana apologized about it and later on, he admired Rizal for his heroic deeds.

[Act the scene when Rizal received a letter that Leonor is getting married.]

Toward the closing of 1890, a rivalry arose between Rizal and Del Pilar because Del Pilar purchased La
Solidaridad and replaced Graciano Loez Jaena as its editor. This rivalry is because the editorial policy of Del
Pilar was occasionally against to Rizal’s political view. In New Year ’s Day, the propagandists decide that the
leader, Responsable, must be chosen to direct affairs of the Filipino community and to determine the editorial
policy of the periodical. Because of some certain points, they ended up on having an election wherein the
Responsable should be elected by two-thirds of vote.

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The election took place on the first week of February 1891. As a result, Rizal won with the help of Mariano
Ponce but Rizal decline the position because the Pilaristas disliked him and this may cause the disunity and
bitterness among his countrymen.

Rizal left Madrid for Biarritz. He notified the Propaganda authorities in Manila about his retirement. He also
stopped writing articles for La Solidaridad. After leaving the propaganda, Del Pilar realized the importance of
Rizal so he asked for forgiveness and requested Rizal to continue writing but Rizal denied it and explained that
he stopped writing for La Solidaridad because he wants to publish El Filibusterismo and he wants to practice
his medical profession.

[HONG KONG]

Rizal communicated with Jose Ma. Basa about going to Hong Kong in order to practice ophthalmology. He
asked him to advance the amount of first class steamer ticket. It was n October 18, 1891 when Rizal boarded
the steamer Melbourne in Maseilles bound for Hong Kong. During his voyage, he continued writing his novel.

#FYI_10

Rizal wasn’t able to finish Makamisa, his third novel which is intended for Filipino readers. The other unfinished
novels of Rizal were Dapitan, Laguna and two other novels without a title.

Rizal wrote to his parents asking permission to return home and on the same day, Manuel T. Hidalgo wrote
him a letter about the deportation of twenty-five persons in Calamba.

(Act the scene showing the arrival of Don Francisco, Silvestre Ubaldo in Hong Kong; as well as his mother and
sisters, Lucia, Josefa and Trinidad.)

To provide the needs of his family, Rizal practiced medicine and became a well-known medical practitioner
with the help of Dr. Lorenzo P. Marques. Also, he was able to operate on his mother’s eyes.

In the face of the bleak outlook of the Calamba folks under the regime of Gov. Gen. Valeriano Weyler’s
terroristic regime, Rizal conceived the establishment of the “New Calamba” in North Borneo (Sabah) where the
landless Filipino families can live peacefully.

Rizal have hopes that things might change when Gov. Gen. Eulogio Despujol replace Gov. Gen. Weyler. Rizal
wrote him a letter of felicitation and offering his cooperation after the general promised to give a fine program
of government, but the general didn’t acknowledge his letter.

Rizal went to Sandakan and negotiated with the British authorities for the establishment of the new Filipino
colony. It was indeed successful because the British authorities were willing to give the Filipino colonists
100,000 acres of land, a beautiful harbor and a good government of 999 years, free of all charges. However,
Rizal’s efforts were wasted as Gov. Gen. Despujol disapproved Filipinos immigration to Borneo.

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In Hong Kong, Rizal continued his writings including the following;

“Ang Karapatan ng mga Tao”

“A la Nacion Espaniola” (To the Spanish Nation)

“Sa mga Kababayan”

“Una Vista la Victoria Gaol”(A Visit to Victoria Gaol)…

[Refer to the handout.]

#FYI_11

The most important writing made by Rizal was the constitution of the Liga Filipina which was printed in Hong
Kong but to deceive the Spanish authorities, the printed copies carried false information about the printing . In
the printed copies, it was written that it was printed in London Printing Press.