1. JOSE RIZAL’s PLUMA
Rizal was noticeably gifted. He showed exceptional talents in painting, molding,
sculpting and writing. But it was writing which served him well. At an early age, he wrote
the Memorias de unestudyante Manila, which is about the memoirs of his childhood. At
8 years old, he wrote the famous Sa AkingmgaKabata. It was said that his father,
Francisco Mercado, owned almost 1000 books during that time, and that he made Rizal
read books like El Amigo de los Niños. This influenced Rizal’s passion for writing.
He also wrote A La Juventud Filipina which was deemed as his first recognition to the
Filipino youth. His other work was El Consejo de los Dioses, won an award in Manila. In
1882, Rizal left for Madrid, after the then-Governor General Jose Maria dela Torre
granted him a scholarship. In Madrid, Rizal wrote Pag-ibigsaTinubuangLupa, his first
propaganda sent and published in a Tagalog newspaper in Manila.
When Rizal was in Europe wherein he started writing Noli Me Tangere and El
Filibusterismo. It also stated the challenges met by Rizal before publishing Noli Me
Tangere. Through the help of his friends, he successfully published 2000 copies of the
said novel before going back to the Philippines.
Rizal seemed to have never stopped writing. Four years after publishing Noli Me
Tangere, he continued writing his second novel, El Filibusterismo. In Dapitan, he showed
his fellowmen what he could do had he been given a chance to be a public servant.
He contributed in the town’s need for health assistance and education. It goes on until
he was he was sentenced to death in 1896. Mi Ultimo Adios, the poem he wrote on the
eve of his execution, became an inspiration to many Filipinos.