Chapter 4- SCHOLASTIC TRIUMPHS AT ATENEO DE MANILA (1872-1877)-Summary

By: Ianne Merh F. Tuazon, BSN II-1, Group 4

Jose was sent to Manila four months after the martyrdom of Gom-Bur-Za and with Dona
Teodora still in prison. He studiedin the Ateneo Municipal,, a college under the
supervision of the Spanish Jesuits.
Ateneo Municipal
y
Bitter rival of the Dominican-owned College of San Juan de Letran

y
Formerly the
Es
cuela Pia
(Charity School)- for poor boys in Manila established in 1817
y
In 1859- name was changed to
Ateneo Municipal
by the Jesuits and later became the
Ateneo de Manila.

Rizal Enters the Ateneo:

June 10, 1872- Jose, accompanied by Paciano, went to Manila to take the entrance
examinations on Christian Doctrine,arithmetic, and reading at the College of San
Juan de Letran, and passed them. His father was the first one who wishedhim to
study at Letran but he changed his mind and decided to send Jose at Ateneo
instead.Father Magin Ferrando, college registrar of Ateneo Municipal, refused to
admit Jose because:
y
He was late for registration and;
y
He was sickly and undersized for his age (11 years old).Upon the intercession of
Manuel Xeres Burgos, nephew of Father Burgos, he was admitted at Ateneo. Jose
adopted thesurname �Rizal� at the Ateneo because their family name �Mercado� had
come under suspicion of the Spanish authorities. Ateneo was located in Intramuros,
within the walls of Manila. He boarded in a house on Caraballo Street, 25 min walk
fromthe college. The boarding house was owned by Titay, who owd Rizal family P300.
Jose boarded there to collect part of thedebt.
J
esuits System of Education:
Jesuits trained the character of the student by rigid discipline, humanities and
religious instruction. They heard Mass earlyin the morning before the beginning of
daily class. Classes were opened and closed with prayers.Students were divided into
two groups:1.
Roman Empire-
consisting of the internos (boarders) with red banners2.
Carthaginian Empire-
composed of the externos (non-boarders) with blue bannersEach of these empires had
its rank. Students fought for positions. With 3 mistakes, opponent�s position could
lose hisposition.
y
1
st
best:
�
emperor�

y
2
nd
best:
�
tribune�
y
3
rd
best:
�D
ecurion�

y
4
th
best:
�
centurion�

y
5
th
best:
�S
tandard-bearer
Ateneo students uniform is consisted of �hemp-fabric trousers� and �striped
cotton coat�. The coat was called
rayadillo
, andwas adopted as the uniform for Filipino troops during the days of the First
Philippine Republic.
Rizal�s First Year in Ateneo (1872-1873).
y
Rizal�s first professor in Ateneo was Fr. Jose Bech.
y
Rizal was placed at the bottom of the class since he was a newcomer and knows
little Spanish.He was an externo(Carthaginians), occupying the end of the line. But
at the end of the month, he become �emperor� of his Empire. Hewas the brightest
pupil in the whole class, and he was awarded a prize, a religious prize.
y
Rizal took private lessons in Santa Isabel College during noon recesses to improve
his Spanish language payingthree pesos for those extra lessons.
y
He placed second at the end of the year, athough all his grades were still marked
�Excellent�

Summer Vacation (1873)

Rizal didn�t enjoy his summer because his mother was in prison so Neneng(Saturnina)
brought him to Tanawan. Butwithout telling his father, he went to Santa Cruz to
visit her mother in prison. He told her of his brilliant grades. After summer, he
returned to Manila and now boarded inside Intramuros at No. 6 Magallanes Street.
Dona Pepay, who hada widowed daughter and 4 sons, was his landlady.
Second Year in Ateneo (1873-74)
Rizal lost the class leadership. But he repented and even studied harder, once more
became �emperor�. He receivedexcellent grades in all subjects and a gold medal.
Prophecy of Mother�s Release
Dona Teodora told her son of her dream the previous night. Rizal, interpreting the
dream, told her that she would bereleased from prison in 3 month�s time. It became
true.Dona Teodora likened his son to the youthful Joseph in the Bible in his
ability to interpret dreams.
Teenage Interest in Reading
The first favorite novel of Rizal was The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas.
His boyish imagination was stirred bythe sufferings of Edmond Dantes (the hero) in
prison, his spectacular escape from the dungeon of Chateau d�If, his findinga
buried treasure in the rocky island of Monte Cristo, and his dramatic revenge on
his enemies who had wronged him.Rizal alos read non-fiction. He persuaded his
father to buy a costly set of Cesar Cantu�s historical work entitled
UniversallHistory.He also read Travels in the Philippines by Dr. Feodor Jagor, a
German scientist-traveler who visited Phil in 1859-60.He wasimpressed by:1. Jagor�s
keen observations of the defects of Spanish colonization2. His prophecy that
someday Spain would lose the Phil and that Anerica would come to succeed her as
colonizer.
Third Year in Ateneo (1875-76)
June 16, 1875- He became an
interno
in Ateneo.Fr. Francisco de Paula Sanchez, one of his professor, inspired him to
study harder and write poetry. Rizal�s best professor in Ateneo. Rizal described
him as �model of uprightness, earnestness, and love for the advancement of his
pupils�.He returned to Calamba with 5 medals and excellent ratings.
Last Year in Ateneo (1876-77)
Rizal- The most brilliant Atenean of his time, and was truly �the pride of the
Jesuits�.
Graduation with Highest Honors
March 23, 1877- Rizal, 16 years old, received from his Alma Mater, Ateneo
Municipal, the degree of Bachelor of Arts, withhighest honors.The night before
graduation, he could not sleep. Early morning on the day of his graduation, he
prayed to the Virgin to�commend his life and protect him as he step into the
world�.
Extra-Curricular Activities in Ateneo
y
He was an active member, later secretary, of
Marian Congregation
, a religious society. He was accepted becauseof his academic brilliance and
devotion to Our Lady of Immaculate Conception, the college patroness.
y
He is also a member of the
Academy of
S
pani
sh
Literature
and the
Academy of Natural
S
cience
s
.

y
He studied painting under Agustin Saez, a famous painter, and sculpture under
Romualdo de Jesus.
y
He continued his physical training under hi sports-minded Tio Manuel.
Sculptural Works in Ateneo
He carved an image of The Virgin Mary on a piece of
batikuling
(Philippine hardwood) with his pocket-knife. The Jesuitsfathers were amazed.Father
Lleonart requested him to carve for him an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. He
intended to take the image withhim in Spain but forgot to do so. So the Ateneo
boarders placed it on the door of their dormitory. It plays a significant part
inRizal�s last hours at Fort Santiago.
Anecdotes on Rizal, the Atenean
1. Felix M. Roxas- He related an incident of Rizal�s schooldays in the Ateneo which
reveals the hero�s resignation topain and forgiveness.2. Manuel Xeres Burgos- his
anecdote on Rizal illustrates his predilection to helo the helpless at the risk of
his ownlife.
Poems Written in Ateneo
Mi Primera In
s
piracion (My Fir
s
t In
s
piration)-
first written poem of Rizal, which was dedicated to his mother on her birthday.He
wrote it when he was 14 years old.In 1875, inspired by Fr. Sanchez, he wrote more
poems, as such:1. Felicitacion (Felicitation)2. El Embarque: Himno a la Flota de
Magallanes ( The Departure: Hymn to Magellan�s Fleet)3. Y Es Espanol: Elcano, el
Primero en dar la Vuelta al Mundo (And He is Spanish: Elcano, the Fist to
Circumnavigatethe World)4. El Combate: Urbiztondo, Terror de Jolo (The Battle:
Urbiztondo, Terror of Jolo)In 1876, he wrote poems on religion, education memories
and war. (e.g. In Memory of my Town)
Rizal�s Poem on Education
y
Through Education Our Motherland Recieves Light- education plays in the progree and
welfare of a nation
y
The Intimate Alliance Between Religion and Good Education- showed that �Education
without God is not trueeducation.�
Rizal�s Religious Poem
y
Al Nino Jesus (To the Child Jesus)- written when he was 14 years old, expressing
his Catholic faith devotion.
y
A La Virgen Maria (To the Virgin Mary)
Dramatic Work in Ateneo
y
Father Sanchez requested him to write a drama based on the prose story of St.
Eustace the Martyr. He finishedthat request on June 2, 1876 entitled
S
an
E
u
s
tacio, Martir
(St. Eustace, the Martyr).
First Romance of Rizal
He experienced his first romance with Segunda Katigbak, a pretty 14 year old
Batanguena from Lipa.One Sunday Rizal visited his maternal grandmother in Trozo,
Manila with his friend Mariano Katigbak. One of whom was anattractive girl, who
mysteriously caused his heart to palpitate with strange ecstasy was Segunda. His
grandmothers guestsureged him to draw Segunda�s portrait. �From time to time,� he
reminisced,�she looked at me and I blushed�Rizal came to know Segunda more
intimately during weekly visits to La Concordia College, where his sister was
boardingstudent. Olimpia and Segunda was a close friend. Theirs was indeed �a love
at first sight�. But Segunda was alreadyengaged to be married to Manuel Luz.