Rizal First Trip to Europe

Rizal being disgusted with the

antiquated (obsolete) method of
Dominican professors in UST, decided
to continue his studies in Spain
At that time, the government of
Spain was a constitutional monarchy
There was a written constitution
which granted human rights to the
people
Aside from his medical studies, Rizal
went to Europe for a secret mission

 Rizals Secret Mission

- With the approval of his brother
Paciano, he went to Europe to
observe keenly the life, culture,
languages and customs of European
nations
- To understand their industries,
commerce, governments and laws
- Which will prepare himself in the
task of liberating his oppressed
people from Spanish tyranny

 The Voyage
- Rizals departure for Spain was kept
secret to avoid detection by the
Spanish authorities and the friars
- He used the name Jose Mercado
- He was bound to Singapore (May
1882) by the Steamer Salvadora
where he met the captain Donato
Lecha, where they played chess
- While approaching Singapore, Rizal
was fascinated with the island and
named it Talim Island with the
Susong Dalaga

- In Singapore, Rizal transferred to

another ship Djemnah, a French vessel
bounded to Colombo
- He was surprised that when he tried to
talk to some French, his knowledge of
French while in Ateneo could not be
understood
- But he was gradually able to improve
his knowledge of the French by daily
conversation with them
- From Colombo, they travelled to Cape
Guardafui, Africo to Naples and
Merseilles of Italy, and finally to
Barcelona, Spain of June 1882

 Rizal in Barcelona
- Rizals first impression of Barcelona
was unfavorable
- He taught it was ugly with dirty inns
and inhospitable residents
- But he changed his bad impression
and came to like the city with an
atmosphere of freedom and
liberalism
- People were open-hearted,
hospitable and courageous

- Rizal enjoyed walking along Las

Ramblas, the famous street in
Barcelona
- The Filipinos in Barcelona, some of
whom were his schoolmates in
Ateneo, welcomed Rizal and gave
him a party in their favorite cafe in
Plaza de Cataluna
- Rizal wrote his first poem in Spain
Amor Patrio (Love of Country), a
nationalistic essay

- The essay later published in Diariong

Tagalog on August 1882 in the
Philippines
- It appeared under the pen-name
Laong Laan and was published in 2
texts, Spanish and Tagalog
- Publisher Basilio Moran
congratulated Rizal and asked for
more articles
- In response to this, Rizal wrote
articles Los Viajes (Travels) and
Revista de Madrid (Review of
Madrid)

 Rizal Moves to Madrid

- Rizal moved to Madrid because
Paciano advised him to finish his
medical course there due to the sad
news about cholera that was
ravaging Manila and other
neighboring provinces made
- Another sad news was the
unhappiness of Leonor Rivera due to
the absence of Rizal
- Rizal enrolled in the Universidad
Central de Madrid in 2 courses
Medicine and Philosophy and Letters

- While enrolled in Central University, he

studied painting and sculpture in the
Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando
- Took lessons in French, German, and
English under private tutors
- And assiduously practised fencing and
shooting in the Hall of Arms of Sanz y
Carbonell
- He rigidly budgeted his money and
time, lived frugally, spending his
money on food, clothing, lodging and
books but never to gambling, wine
and women

 Romance with Consuelo Ortiga y Perez

- Rizal was not a handsome man but possessed a
an aura of charisma due to his many-splendored
talents and noble character
- No wonder that Consuelo, daughter of Don
Pablo Ortiga, fell in love with him while Rizal
visited them in their house
- Rizal, being lonely in a foreign country, was
attracted by her beauty
- He wrote a poem for her A La Seorita C. O. Y
P)
- But before his romance with Consuelo could
become serious affair, he suddenly backed out
for 2 reasons: 1. he was still engaged to Leonor
Rivera, and 2. his friend and co-worker in the
Propaganda Movement, Eduardo de Lete, was
madly in love with Consuelo

- Rizal joined the Circulo Hispano-Filipino

(1882), a society of Spaniards and
Filipinos, and wrote a poem Mi Piden
Verses (They Ask Me For Verses)
- He also joined the Masonry with members
of Spanish liberals and republicans like
Miguel Morayta, Francisco Pi y Margal and
Manuel Becerra
- Rizal was impressed by the way the
Spanish Masons openly and freely
criticized the government policies and
lambasted the friars, which could not be
done in the Philippines
- He first joined the Acacia Masonic Lodge
but later transferred to Lodge Solidaridad

 Studies Completed in Spain

- Rizal completed his medical and
philosophy courses in 1885
- He obtained the degree Licentiate in
Medicine and Licentiate in
Philosophy and Letters and qualified
as full-pledged physician and a
professor of Humanities

 Rizals Life in Berlin

- Rizal led a methodical and frugal life in Berlin
- By day, he worked as an assistant in the clinic
of Dr. Schweigger, a German ophthalmologist
- At night, he attended lectures in the
University of Berlin
- In his letters to Trinidad, he portrayed a
German woman as serious, diligent, educated,
and friendly
- She is not gossipy, frivolous and quarrelsome
like the Spanish woman
- Accordingly, Rizal advised his sister Trinidad:
Now that you are still young, you should
strive to read, read and learn. You must not
allow yourself to be conquered by indolence.

- Rizal also admired the German

customs like Christmas
- But the winter of 1886 in Berlin was
his darkest because he lived in
poverty and no money arrived from
Calamba
- He could not pay his landlord, he had
to scrimp (save), eating only one
meal a day
- Paciano tried desperately to raise
money but the crops had failed due
to ravages of the locusts

 Noli Published in Berlin

- The winter of 1886 was memorable
in the life of Rizal for 2 reasons:
- 1. It was painful episode for he was
hungry, sick, and despondent
(hopeless) and,
- 2. It brought him great joy after
enduring so much sufferings,
because his first novel Noli Me
Tangere was published in March
1887

 Idea of Writing a Novel

- His reading of Harriet Beecher Stowes
Uncle Toms Cabin inspired Rizal to
write a novel that would depict the
miseries of his people under the
Spanish tyrants
- Rizal proposed the writing of the novel
about the Philippines by a group of
Filipinos in Europe
- Unfortunately, Rizals project did not
materialize because those who were
expected to collaborate did not write
anything, so he determined to write
the novel alone

 The Writing of the Noli

- In 1884, Rizal began writing the
novel in Madrid and finish about of
it
- When he went to Paris in 1885, he
continued writing the novel
- He finished the last chapters in
Berlin (1886)
- During the winter days, Rizal, sick
and penniless, saw no hope of having
it published
- And in his desperation, he almost
hurled it into flames

 Viola, Savior of the Noli

- In the midst of Rizals misery, he
received a telegram from Dr. Maximo
Viola who was coming to Berlin
- Viola was shocked to find Rizal living
in poverty and sickly
- Viola financed the printing of Noli
and loaned Rizal some cash money
for living expenses
- On February 21, 1887, the Noli was
finally finished and ready for printing
- He published it in 2, 000 copies for
300 pesos (March 21, 1887)

 The Title of the Novel

- The title Noli Me Tangere is a Latin
phrase meaning Touch Me Not
- It is not originally conceived by Rizal
- And he admitted taking it from the bible
- The novel consists of 63 chapters and
an epilogue
- It was based on a true story about the
conditions of the Philippines during the
last decades of Spanish rule
- The characters were drawn by Rizal
from persons who actually existed
during his times

- On March 21, 1887, the Noli came off

the press
- Rizal immediately sent the first
copies to his friends including
Blumenttrit, Jaena, Ponce and
Hidalgo
- On March 29, 1887, Rizal in token of
appreciation and gratitude, gave
Viola the galley proofs of the Noli
and the pen he used to write the
novel

 Missing Chapter of the Noli

- There was a chapter entitled Elias
and Salome which follows Chapter
24 In the Woods
- This particular chapter was deleted
by Rizal
- His reason for doing so was
definitely to reduce the cost of
printing