Written Close Analysis of Padre Faura Witnesses the Execution of Rizal

I. View

The text, Padre Faura Witnesses the Execution of Rizal, is a poem written by Danton Remoto. A poem is a complete and self-contained piece of writing in verse that is set out in lines of a set length and uses rhythm, imagery, and often rhyme to achieve its effect.

José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda, widely known as José Rizal, was a Filipino nationalist and polymath during the tail end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. An ophthalmologist by profession, Rizal became a writer and a key member of the Filipino Propaganda Movement which advocated political reforms for the colony under Spain. The Philippines was under the colonization of Spain from 1521 to 1898. He was executed by the Spanish colonial government for the crime of rebellion after the Philippine Revolution, inspired in part by his writings, broke out. Though he was not actively involved in its planning or conduct, he ultimately approved of its goals which eventually led to Philippine independence. Moments before his execution on December 30, 1896, by a squad of Filipino soldiers of the Spanish Army, a backup force of regular Spanish Army troops stood ready to shoot the executioners should they fail to obey orders.

The Manila Observatory (MO) is a private non-stock, non-profit research institution serving the science apostolate of the Society of Jesus in the Philippines. MO was established in 1865 in Manila, Philippines. It ventured initially into the systematic observation of the weather, then into typhoon warnings in 1879, and the earthquake investigations in 1880. In 1884, the Spanish government issued a decree formally recognizing MO as the official Institution for weather forecasting. The succeeding years saw MO branching off into other areas of research and service. In 1885, the Institute began its time service that greatly benefited merchant shipping. In 1887, a seismology section was set up which was later recognized by Spain. And in 1899, the Institute started its astronomical studies.

II. Condense

The text is about what Padre Faura would have thought about Rizal’s Execution. The text also includes some of the things Padre Faura and Jose Rizal had talked about. The writer put himself on Padre Faura’s eyes and conveyed something about the execution. Padre Faura noticed Rizal’s state or mood before the execution that was why he concluded that Rizal was not afraid to die because he did what is right.

III. Culture Reflected

One culture that can be reflected is colonization which is a common practice before the 21st Century. Countries like Spain, Great Britain, Portugal, and U.S.A. had the most number of colonies. It reflects that the Philippines was not yet an independent country those years. Filipinos were under the authority of foreigners which is the reason why they wanted to fight for their independence.

Another culture that can be observed is the idea of Purgatory. Purgatory is a place or state of suffering inhabited by the souls of sinners who are expiating their sins before going to heaven; this is believed by most Filipinos until now. People around the world have different beliefs about what happens after death.

One more thing that can be seen in his community or our country until now are observatories. Observatories are institutions that research about our nature, especially about weather phenomenon. Most schools and countries have their own departments to discover different things especially the science of how things happen or occur.

IV. Literary Technique

Danton Remoto, the author, used first person point of view, but he used the persona of Padre Faura. He talks as if he witnessed the execution of Rizal, and he based the things he said on how he know Padre Faura.

The author used figurative language. He used it when he said that Rizal is a star in the poem. Figurative language is used to better communicate with the readers because some ideas are too complicated.Figurative language also cause enjoyment on the reader and author.

Another technique that the author used is using flash back. The phrase, “months ago,” proves that he applied this technique. Flash back goes back to a scene at an earlier point in a narrative, out of chronological order, to fill in information or explain something in the present.Flash back is an effective technique because it enables the author to state different situations or events in his text.

V. Deep

The poem started by stating Padre Faura’s thoughts and feelings during the morning when Rizal was to be executed. Padre Faura was shivering. The probable reason why he was shivering because he was worried about Rizal who would soon be executed. He then recalled something that happened between him and Jose Rizal in the Manila Obeservatory when Jose Rizal asked him about Purgatory. The reason why Rizal asked this is because he already feels that he could be killed. After that, he stated Rizal’s mood and state before the execution. He said that Rizal’s cheeks are still ruddy even after everything that he was experiencing. This only proves that Rizal was not afraid to die because he knew himself that he was on the right side. He was ready to die for his country. Lastly, he conveyed that even if Rizal was executed, he was still shimmering because he left a great mark for the country. He became a national hero because of his way in fighting the colonizers. Even if he fought silently in writing his novels, he successfully delivered his messages to the Filipinos that they should fight for what is right.

I can only say that the text was unique because I’ve never read that type of text before. I was amazed with how the author acted as another person. I think what he did was hard because he should provide what Padre Faura exactly thinks. I recommend the text to be read by every Filipino for them to know more about our history and the commendable texts of Filipino authors.

VI. Reference

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Rizal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Philippines_(1521%E2%80%931898)
www.ateneo.edu/manila-observatory
Encarta dictionaries: definition of poem