Chapter 03: The Dinner

Capitan Tiago ordered tinola served. It was a dish which Ibarra had not eaten in a long time because of his extended stay in Europe. Tinola contains chicken, white squash and broth. Table conversation covered where Ibarra went (Northern Europe, Germany and Russian Poland), as well as newsworthy items learned by Ibarra: "...the prosperity or the misery of a people is in direct proportion to its liberties or concerns, and consequently to the sacrifices or selfishness of its ancestors."

Padre Damaso belittled Ibarra's trips abroad saying that these were useless because what Ibarra learned could be also known without having to travel extensively.

Instead of arguing with the friar, Ibarra left after graciously excusing himself from the crowd. Capitan Tiago tried to stop him, saying that Maria Clara was coming soon, but Ibarra still left. Teniente Guevara followed him.

One of the guests (a red-haired writer named Laruja) present will later write an article about how tinola can ruin a feast and why indios should not be allowed to read or travel outside the Philippines.

Some Notes

• Padre Damaso is no longer the parish priest of San Diego (town of Capitan Tiago in their province). However, he was still invited to the dinner because he was the confessor of the late wife of Capitan Tiago.
• Maria Clara is the sweetheart of Crisostomo Ibarra.

Questions and Answers

1. Why did Ibarra say that his country has forgotten him?
   For one year, he did not receive any news from the Philippines while he was in Europe. None of his acquaintances let him know that his father had died.
2. How did Rizal show appreciation for the heritage of every country that he visited?
   Like Ibarra, Rizal made it a point to study the history of a country before visiting it.
3. What was Rizal's point in introducing the red-haired writer in this chapter?
   He wanted to point out that at that time, our history was being written by foreigners who had spent so little time in the country. An example of this would be the historical account stating that Magellan discovered the Philippines in 1521. How could he have discovered it when there were already Filipinos on the islands when Magellan arrived?
4. Why were there many Filipinos who were not educated by their parents during the Spanish occupation?
   The "indiyo" mothers were convinced by the friars that education was bad for the children.
5. What were the different types of people in society?
   Peninsular - born in Spain; living in the Philippines
   Filipino - Spaniards born in the Philippines
   Indiyo - "Natives" born in the Philippines

Update:
» Spaniards born in the Philippines were also called Insulares.

A distinction was made between españoles–peninsulares or simply peninsulares (full–blooded Spaniards born in the Iberian peninsula) and the criollos or creoles (full–blooded Spaniards born in the colonies). In the same way that the Spaniards originally used the term españoles–americanos or simply americanos to refer to criollos in America, the term españoles–filipinos or filipinos was applied to criollos in the Philippines. Being island–born, the filipinos were also called insulares, as distinguished from the peninsulares.

Copyright © 2001-2024 by http://www.webmanila.com/nolimetangere
For the Privacy Statement, please see Webmanila.com