The Philippine Century Hence

Summary

The frst part of this novel is all about Rizal’s looking back of the Philippines.
Here, Rizal showed the changes brought by the Spaniards when they colonize
Philippines. Wherein, the former leader of the Philippines was under the hands of
the conquerors, hoping that they will progress if they’ll be under the conquerors.
The Filipinos gradually neglect and forget the ethnic culture, songs, poems and
beliefs for them to be easy to cope up with the new and foreign doctrines, which
they don’t really understand. They get ashamed and even denied their own
culture. They praise and patronized anything that was from the conquerors until
their hearts and minds have been captured. Years later, the religion which flashed
also used the worship of God to persuade and ultimately enforcing the Filipinos to
be under the Spaniards. When the Filipinos are treated like animals, deprived of
thoughts and feelings and made slaves to serve conquerors in the development of
Spain. Revived the dormant feelings of the Filipinos because of the pain and
humiliation they experienced. There are some feelings awakened to the truth of
the brutality and oppression of conquerors because of the ongoing vilifcation and
exploitation which will gradually wake up the minds of the majority.

The second part is about the failure of the colonial policy of Spain in the
development of the Philippines. It is stated here the Philippines condition within
the past 300 years from 1889. To those who wants freedom of his country, the
country has it. For those who have seen the chaos and misunderstanding, they
decided to accept freedom whatever the future holds. For liberal Spaniards, the
country’s condition doesn’t have any progress but for the friars, there ’s progress.
The handling of the Spaniards to Philippines was uneasy but they still continue
handling it. There is military force, slow communication between Mexico and
Spain and expeditions are arduous for the sea are full of pirates and enemies of
Spain. In the year 1889, the country’s condition is much beter. There ’s a fne
organization within civil and military leadership. The communication is easier,
faster and more reliable. Rizal said that the Philippines remained calm at the
beginning of the Spanish domination. The Filipinos under Philippine military
becomes official. An indio can be encomendero and become a general of an army.
There’s no place for defamation and no people are insulted. All the good things
that pertains to the improvement of the country is gone. The government is
replaced by intimidation, exploitation and slavery.

While in the third part, stated the radical and political reforms if the
Philippines will still be under the Spanish colony. The reforms in the Philippines
will be successful if the implementation will be brutal and will be coming from the
ordinary citizen. There’s a nee/d to change the political policy according to the
needs of the people. Reformation will be in order and successful if it will come
from the work on an authority.

At the last part, Rizal stated the predictions and opinions about the future.
And his message to Spain.

Message/Lesson

1. Freedom of the press Filipino representatives: as military, prove to be unruly

2. Accumulations of acts of injustice. Philippines and other foreign powers.

3. Brutalization of the masses

4. Gradual loss of ethnic culture and beliefs

5. Transformation in a political sense

6. To tell the Filipinos that their human rights must be practiced in order for them
to cry out against all abuses, and to have more law and greater liberty.

7. Blind by the Spaniards fake promises, Filipinos give all their faith and liberty and
freedom hoping that they will get something good in return. But they was wrong.
The spaniards are it’s executioners and exploiters.
The Indolence of the Filipinos

Summary

Before the Spaniards came, we were active and honest in trading, use our abilities
and resources for our country’s benefts, never corrupt, industrious and
passionate, independent, value nature, and protective and defensive of our
territory.

When the Spaniards came, we became gamblers, dependent, powerless, corrupt,

amnesiacs, disloyal to our “identity”, and indolent.

Being discontent, having continual wars and tolerance, due to slavery, getting
deceits from the Spaniards, allowing pirates from the south (Mindanao Muslim
pirates), and lacking unity, the Filipinos became indolent.

The two main reasons why the Filipinos are indolent are the defects of training
and limited training at home, school.

Inactivity results from this are one will move to being a copycat (suited to nature),
do what is told to us (e.g., giving gold to church, etc.), and lack of national
sentiment

“A man in the Philippines is only an individual; he is not a member of a nation. He

is forbidden the right to association, and is; therefore, weak and sluggish.”

He defends the Filipinos by saying that they are not indolent by nature because in
fact, even before the arrival of Spaniards, Filipinos have been engaged in
economic activities such as agriculture and trade. Indolence therefore has more
deeply rooted causes such as abuse and discrimination, inaction of the
government, rampant corruption and red tape, wrong doctrines of the church and
wrong examples from some Spaniards who lead lives of indolence which
ultimately led to the deterioration of Filipino values. In the end, Rizal sums up the
main causes of indolence to the limited training and education Filipino natives
receive and to the lack of national sentiment and unity among them. Education
and liberty, according to Rizal, would be the cure to Filipino indolence.
Message/Lesson

1. To serve the country by telling the truth.

2. To show how we were discriminated.

3. To illustrate how we inherited some of our negative traits from the Spaniards.
4. To let us know how we could rise from oppression.
5. To show us that we have been deceived

6. To remind us what we were, are, and could be.