Critical Analysis of Jose Rizal, Andres Bonifacio and Marcelo Del Pilar

Critical Analysis
1. Introduction/Background
MARCELO H. DEL PILAR (full name: Marcelo Hilario del Pilar y Gatmaitan)

Marcelo H. del Pilar was born on August 30, 1850 in the barrio of Kupang, Bulakan. His parents are Julian Hilario del Pilar and Blasa Gatmaitan. Marcelo is a lover of arts that he took and finished his Bachelor of Arts degree in Colegio de San Jose. In 1881, he obtained his law degree in the University of Santo Tomas. Previously, he had disputes over some of the friars because of his nationalistic and liberal ideas that were against the abusive nature of the friars. Del Pilar often stages movements for the overthrow of the friars in the Philippines. In 1882, he founded the nationalistic newspaper Diariong Tagalog. Moreover, Del Pilar sailed to Spain due to the tensions arising between him and the corporation of the friars. While in Spain, he succeeded Lopez-Jaena as the editor-in-chief of the La Solidaridad. Shortly, Del Pilar died in Barcelona on July 4, 1896 - just around one month before the Cry of Pugad Lawin, signaling the start of an armed revolution.

ANDRES BONIFACIO (full name: Gat Andres Bonifacio y de Castro)

Andres Bonifacio was born in Ilaya, Tondo, Manila and was the oldest child of Santiago Bonifacio and Catalina de Castro. His early education started in Tondo but was forced to drop out because of his parents’ death and that he had to work for his siblings. Despite not finishing formal education, Bonifacio was self-educated. Andres Bonifacio became a passionate Filipino nationalist and when Jose Rizal had established the La Liga Filipina, Andres Bonifacio was a member. When Jose Rizal was deported to Dapitan, he immediately organized the KKK or the “Kataastaasang Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga anak ng bayan”. In Pugad Lawin, Caloocan, Andres Bonifacio together with the thousands of Katipuneros assembled and tore their cedulas. Andres Bonifacio had formed an assembly in Tejeros, Cavite to establish the Republic of the Philippines. Emilio Aguinaldo was elected as the first president of the Philippines while Andres Bonifacio was elected as Secretary of the Interior. Since he did not have a good educational background, his qualifications were questioned by Daniel Tirona. He was offended by this and declared the election to be void. He then moved to Naic, Cavite to create his own government and formed his own army. While Andres Bonifacio was in Naic, Emilio Aguinaldo and his forces gained more success and control over some towns. When Andres Bonifacio left Naic, Emilio Aguinaldo ordered for his arrest but Bonifacio resisted the arrest and he was tried in court and was sentenced to death by the military tribunal. Andres Bonifacio was executed in Maragondon, Cavite by Emilio Aguinaldo’s men on May 10, 1897. DR. JOSE RIZAL (full name: José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda)

Jose Rizal, born on June 19, 1861, is the seventh of eleven children born to a middle class family in the town of Calamba, Laguna. Rizal attended the Ateneo Municipal de Manila, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree sobresaliente. Not only that, he enrolled in the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Medicine and Surgery and the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Philosophy and Letters and then traveled alone to Madrid, Spain, where he studied medicine at the Universidad Central de Madrid, earning the degree of Licentiate in Medicine. He was a polyglot, prolific poet, essayist, diarist, correspondent, and novelist whose most famous works were his two novels, Noli me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. He was a proponent of institutional reforms by peaceful means rather than by violent revolution. He died on December 30, 1896.

2. Discussions of their work/Contributions to the Philippine society Marcelo H. del Pilar, Andres Bonifacio and Jose Rizal are just some of the national heroes we have here in the Philippines. Jose Rizal, known to be our national hero contributed a lot into the leading of our national independence. He was a proponent of institutional reforms by peaceful means rather than by violent revolution. As a political figure, Rizal was the founder of La Liga Filipina, a civic organization that subsequently gave birth to the Katipunan led by Andres Bonifacio and Emilio Aguinaldo. Jose also wrote the 2 famous novels namely the El Filibusterismo and the Noli Me Tangere that inspired Bonifacio. Andres Bonifacio on the other hand was the founder of Katipunan. Another contribution he made was the essay What The Fillipinos Should Know? (Ano Ang Dapat Malaman ng mga Pilipino?) Andres and his party scaled the mountains of San Mateo and Montalban on April 12,1895 where they discovered the Makarok and Pamitihan caves. Let’s now go to the works of Marcelo H. del Pilar. Marcelo H. del Pilar was the Editor of La Solidaridad from 1889 to 1895 and the founder of Diariong Tagalog. He was also the one who wrote the pamphlet La Frailocracia Filipina. It was an answer to a pamphlet entitled Los Frailes en Filipinas which was written by a Spaniard.

3. Relevance/Importance/Significance of their contributions to the present Philippine situation

We all know that today we embrace independence, an independence caused by the bravery and sacrifices of our national heroes. Imagine if they never existed, maybe until now we are still under Spanish regime. The contributions of these following heroes influenced a lot of Filipinos today. Because of them, we believe that anyone can be a hero in his/her own small deeds. This belief helps a lot in pushing morality in the minds and actions of everyone. We also Filipinos learned from these national heroes the virtue of being competent. We Filipinos were also taught to give independence respect and importance since the day we were awakened. We can show this through simply singing the National anthem with a good posture, by heart and with great respect. Another relevance we encounter these days of our life is our feeling of union with others and that we are not alone. They also have literary works wherein nowadays is being studied by the youth. These literatures teach moral values that the youngsters may adopt in their own. Having also these heroes makes the Philippines be recognized by other nations.