A Reflection on "Letter to the Women of Malolos"
By: Adana Reyes
Rizal wrote this letter in London on February 22, 1889 in Tagalog. M.H del Pilar requested to praise the ladies of Malolos for their bravery to establish a school to learn Spanish, despite the contradictions of Fr. Felipe Garcia, a Spanish parish priest of Malolos.
The following are the main points of the letter which was taken from the book of Zaide:
During the colonization of the Spaniards, women were not allowed to have an education. Their duty was to simply to serve the men and to take care of the house. When I found out the bravery of the women in Malolos to establish a school, it made me feel proud to be a Filipina myself. They defied the norm of women during those times. Rizal's letter gave high praises for their deed and showed his beliefs on the duties of women.
Rizal's vision that of women are given rights to education became a reality. We are not anymore held back as merely servants but instead reach our full potential. We must not take granted of this right because our ancestors worked hard to achieve it. We must not complain of the works we receive from school, but instead we must be thankfully of the opportunity that was given to us. We must not waste this opportunity. Let us seize this opportunity to prove our worth to the world.
The following are the main points of the letter which was taken from the book of Zaide:
- A Filipino mother should teach her children love of God, fatherland and mankind.
- The Filipino mother should be glad, like the Spartan mother, to offer her sons in the defense of the fatherland.
- A Filipino woman should know how to preserve her dignity and honor.
- A Filipino woman should educate herself, aside from retaining her good racial virtues.
- Faith is not merely reciting long prayers and wearing religious pictures, but rather it is living the real Christian way, with good morals and good manners.
During the colonization of the Spaniards, women were not allowed to have an education. Their duty was to simply to serve the men and to take care of the house. When I found out the bravery of the women in Malolos to establish a school, it made me feel proud to be a Filipina myself. They defied the norm of women during those times. Rizal's letter gave high praises for their deed and showed his beliefs on the duties of women.
Rizal's vision that of women are given rights to education became a reality. We are not anymore held back as merely servants but instead reach our full potential. We must not take granted of this right because our ancestors worked hard to achieve it. We must not complain of the works we receive from school, but instead we must be thankfully of the opportunity that was given to us. We must not waste this opportunity. Let us seize this opportunity to prove our worth to the world.