Jose Rizal

He had a civil marriage with an Irish woman from Hong Kong named Josephine Bracken. The couple had one son, born prematurely, who died soon after birth.

He was a polymath with the exceptional ability to master several subjects and skills. He was a doctor, writer, poet, artist, farmer, educator, and historian. He also had considerable knowledge in the fields of economics, anthropology, dramatics and sociology. He could speak 22 languages.

He was born as Jose Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda, one of the 11 children of Francisco Engracio Rizal Mercado y Alejandro and Teodora Morales Alonso y Quintos. He later adopted a shorter version of his name, Jose Rizal. His family was very prosperous.

He enrolled at Ateneo de Municipal de Manila and graduated with a degree in Land Surveying and Assessment in 1877. He had a deep interest in arts and thus he went to the Faculty of Arts and Letters for a degree in Philosophy at the University of Santo Tomas.

His mother was becoming blind during this time and the young man decided to specialize in ophthalmology in order to help her. He enrolled at the Faculty of Medical Sciences at University of Santo Tomas in 1878 for this purpose.

He went to Spain to continue his studies and enrolled at the Universidad Central de Madrid from where he earned his degree in medicine in 1884. He completed another degree in Philosophy and Letters from the same institute the next year.

He had an insatiable thirst for knowledge and went to France to further his knowledge of ophthalmology at the University of Heidelberg. He completed his eye specialization in 1887 under the tutelage of the famous professor Otto Becker.

In 1887, while studying medicine in the Universidad Central de Madrid, he wrote the novel ‘Noli Me Tangere’. He harshly criticized the Spanish colonial rule in Philippines and wrote of the injustices and brutalities suffered by the native people. His novel was banned by the government due to its scathing contents.

He had been exposed to the problematic life under the Spanish government and was aware of the difficulties experienced by the Filipinos. He became the leader of the reform movement of Filipino students in Spain and wrote several articles and essays in the Spanish newspaper ‘La Solidaridad’.

He believed that Philippines was struggling with the twin problems of corrupt friars and bad government. Ideas of progressive ideals, peaceful reforms, individual rights and rights for the Filipino people formed the foundation of his writings.

The main focus of the reforms he advocated were freedom of assembly and speech, representation in the legislature, equal rights before the law for both Filipinos and Spanish, and that the Philippines be a province of Spain. However, the colonial authorities did not favor these reforms.

In 1891, his second novel ‘El Filibusterismo’ was published as a sequel to his first novel. The novel dealt with dark and violent themes that were considerably different from the theme of its predecessor. The novel profoundly impacted the Philippine society’s views about national identity and was banned in some parts of the country for its portrayal of the Spanish government’s corruption.

Jose Rizal was a national hero of the Philippines who exposed the corruptions and wrongdoings of the Spanish colonial government through his writings. He was an advocate of peaceful reforms and founded the progressive organization ‘La Liga Filipina’ which was considered a threat by the Spanish authorities and ultimately led to his arrest.