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INITAO COLLEGE Course Code: GE 2

Jampason, Initao, Misamis Oriental Course Title: READINGS IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY
2nd Semester, S.Y. 2021 - 2022 Unit: 3
Instructor: Bryan Lester M. Dela Cruz Facebook Group Page: GE2- Readings in the Philippine History
Mobile Number: 09555244931 (BSCrim1- G11 and 12)
e-mail address: Class Schedule: Wednesday and Friday (10:30 AM – 12:00 NN)
[email protected]
MODULE 3
Topic: The Historian Desired Learning Outcomes:
and the Historical A) Apply historical knowledge in analyzing historical narratives.
sources B) Evaluate primary sources for their credibility, authenticity, and provenance.
C) Assess the credibility of the authors in writing primary and secondary sources
Duration: 3 hrs
GENERAL INSTRUCTION
In your outputs, do not forget to write your NAME/COURSE/YEAR/GROUP/ PLACE OF LEARNING HUB/CONTACT
NUMBER/NAME OF INSTRUCTOR. Staple your output and do not mix it with the outputs of the other subjects.
JOIN our FACEBOOK PAGE even if you belong to the modular class
Do not forget to take photo of your output before submitting in your respective learning hub just in case your
instructor will not receive it.
PHOTOCOPY ANSWERS are considered INVALID.
ERASURE is not allowed (make your outputs always clean).
See requirement and assessment below.
You will be given extra points if the instructions mentioned above are being followed accordingly and deduction of
points will be given to those who fail to follow.
Historian
Interpret facts, give meaning to the facts and organize them into a timeline, establish causes and write history.
The historian’s aim is verisimilitude, he tries to get as close an approximation to the truth about the past .
He was influenced by his own context, environment, ideology, education, and influences, among others.
It is not alone his own memories interpreted in the light of his own experience that he must try to apply to the
understanding of historical survivals; it is the memories of many other people as well.
Historian’s role is to reconstruct the perished pasts but the reconstruction of the total past is unattainable
The real accomplishment of a historian is to present the historical facts in a coherent way, by adding original
explanation for why the facts occurred.
Like a scientist, a historian needs to be skeptical. Sometimes a source contains statements that are not plausible and
need more investigation. Many times, one encounters conflicting “facts” in different sources, so a historian needs to
make a choice about which fact is more credible
Most human affairs happen without leaving vestiges or records….
In so far as the historian has an external object to study, it is not the perished history that actually happened or the
whole history of the past (history-as-actuality) but the surviving records of what happened (history-as-record). And
most of history-as-record is only the surviving part of the recorded part of the remembered part of the observed part of
the whole.
History- through the surviving record only
The “object” that the historian studies is not only incomplete; it is markedly variable as records are lost or rediscovered.
Man’s past- frequently changing or can be recreated based on the pieces studied by the historian, based on available
records.
The historian has to use many materials that are not in book, whether archeological, epigraphically, official records,
archives, governmental libraries, private papers and etc. These materials are the sources of the historian.
Sources
According to dictionary is the place where something begins, where it springs into being. A document (or
organization) from which information is obtained
Artifacts as sources of history
Relics of human happenings (coin, stamp, piece of wreckage, a ruin, a manuscript, a book, strand of hair or other
archeological and anthropological remains make the historian to study)
Artifacts- results of events
Written documents- the records of events
Both are raw materials for history to be written, historical truth can be derived like a building was made of mortared
brick, but such facts are not the only essence of history.

Primary Sources
Those sources produced at the same time as the event, period, or subject being studied.
are documents, images or artifacts that provide firsthand testimony or direct evidence concerning an historical topic
under research investigation
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the raw material of history, the leftovers or relics of the past

a first person account by someone who experienced or witnesses an event.
the original document has not been previously published or interpreted by anyone else
contain raw information that has not been analyzed, summarized or interpreted
Enable researchers to get as close as possible to what actually happened during an historical event or time period.
Examples: Autobiographies; Speech or lecture; Interview; Court records; Original artwork; Diary; novels, poetry, plays, music;
maps (oral histories, postcards, sculptures, jewelry); Datasets, survey data, such as census or economic statistics.
Published materials can be viewed as primary resources if they come from the time period that is being discussed, and
were written or produced by someone with firsthand experience of the event
Secondary source
Those sources, which were produced by an author who used primary sources to produce the material
Is a work that interprets or analyzes an historical event or period after the event has occurred and, generally speaking,
with the use of primary sources.
The products of the study of history – they are always based on other sources.
One step removed from the original source. The author is reexamining, interpreting and forming conclusions based on
the primary source
Records generated by an event but written by non-participants in the event-are interpreted, evaluated or synthesized.
Describe, discuss, interpret, comment upon, analyze, evaluate, summarize, and process primary sources.
Often lack the freshness and immediacy of the original material.
Examples : Newspaper reporting on a scientific study; Review of a music CD or art show; Biography (dissertations); Journal;
Articles; Encyclopedias; Published books; Review of play; Treatise on a particular genre of poetry; Essay on a treaty

Historical method - the process of critically examining and analyzing the records and survivals of the past
-comprises certain techniques and rules that historians follow in order to properly utilize sources and
historical evidences in writing history
-examine oral and written sources if valid
HISTORY OF HISTORICAL METHOD
Methods of historical analysis:
1. The selection of a subject for investigation
2. The collection of probable sources of information on that subject
3. The examination of those sources for genuineness (either in whole or in part)
4. The extraction of credible particulars from the sources (or parts of sources) proved genuine

Historiography (the writing of history)- the imaginative reconstruction of the past from the data derived by the process
HISTORIANS CONDUCT:
1. External criticism- the practice of verifying the authenticity of evidence by examining its physical characteristics;
consistency with the historical characteristic of the time when it was produced; and the materials used for the
evidence. Ex. The quality of the paper, the type of the ink, the language and words used in the material and among
others.
2. Internal criticism- is the examination of the truthfulness of the evidence. It looks at the content of the source,
examines the circumstance of its production, looks at the truthfulness and factuality of the evidence by looking at the
author of the source, its content, the agenda behind its creation, the knowledge which informed it, and its intended
purpose. For ex. (the Japanese reports and declarations during the period of the war should not be taken as a
historical fact hastily, instead it should be analyzed first ,also the hoax of the Code of Kalantiaw)

Objectivity vs. Subjectivity

Subjective
cannot be seen, felt, tasted, heard or smelled
symbolic or representative of something that once was real but they have no objective reality of their own
existed only in the observer’s or historian’s mind
Objective
the intention of acquiring detached and truthful knowledge is independent of one’s personal reactions
a thing must have an independent existence outside the human mind
Recollections- do not exist outside the human mind, written or spoken testimony
Issues- “Subjectivity” as based on personal considerations or untrue and biased
However the word subjective is not used to imply disparagement of any sort, but it does imply the necessity for the application
of special kinds of safeguards against error.

MODULE 4
Topic: Antonio Desired Learning Outcomes:
Pigafetta. First Voyage A) Analyze the context, content and perspective of different kinds of primary sources.
Around the World, B) Determine the contribution of different kinds of primary sources in understanding Philippine
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Emilio Jancinto, history.

‘Kartilla ng Katipunan”
Duration: 3 hrs
Analysis of Pigafetta’s Chronicle

The Chronicle of Pigafetta was one of the most cited documents by historians who wished to study the precolonial
Philippines. As one of the earliest written accounts, Pigafetta was seen as a credible source for a period, which was prior to
unchronicled and undocumented. Moreover, being the earliest detailed documentation, it was believed that Pigafetta’s writings
account for the “purest” precolonial society. Indeed, Pigafetta’s work is of great importance in the study and writing of
Philippine History. Nevertheless, there needs to have a more nuanced reading of the source within a contextual backdrop. A
student of history should recognize certain biases accompanying the author and his identity, loyalties, and the circumstances
that he was in; and how it affected the text that he produced. In the case of Pigafetta, the reader needs to understand that he
was a chronicler commissioned by the King of Spain to accompany and document a voyage intended to expand the Spanish
empire. He was also of noble descent who came from s rich family in Italy. These attributes influenced his narrative, his
selection of details to be included in the text, his characterization of the people and of the species that he encountered, and his
interpretation and retelling of the events. Being a scholar of cartography and geography, Pigafetta was able to give details on
geography and climate of the places that their voyage had reached.
In reading Pigafetta’s description of the people, one has to keep in mind that he was coming from a sixteenth century
European perspective. Hence, the reader might notice how Pigafetta, whether implicitly or explicitly regarded the indigenous
belief systems and way of life as inferior to that of Christianity and of the Europeans. He would always remark on the
nakedness of the natives or how he was fascinated by their exotic culture. Pigafetta also noticeably emphasized the natives’
amazement and illiteracy to the European artillery; merchandise and other goods, in the same way that Pigafetta repeatedly
mentioned the abundance of spices like ginger, and of precious metals like gold. His observations and assessments of the
indigenous cultures employed the European standards. Hence, when they saw the indigenous attires of the natives, Pigafetta
saw them as being naked because from the European standpoint, they were wearing fewer clothes indeed. Pigafetta’s
perspective was too narrow to realize that such attire was only appropriate to the tropical climate of the islands. The same was
true for materials that the natives used for their houses like palm and bamboo. These materials would let more air come
through the house and compensate for the hot climate in the islands.
It should be understood that such observations were rooted from the context of Pigafetta and his era. Europe, for
example, was dominated by the Holy Roman Empire, whose loyalty and purpose was the domination of the Catholic Church all
over the world. Hence, other belief systems different from that of Christianity were perceived to be blasphemous and barbaric,
even demonic. Aside from this, the sixteenth century European economy was mercantilist. Such system measures the wealth
of kingdoms based on their accumulations of bullions or precious metals like gold and silver. It was not surprising therefore that
Pigafetta would always mention the abundance of the gold in the islands as shown in his description of leaders wearing gold
rings and golden daggers, and of the rich gold mines. An empire like that of the Spain would indeed search for new lands
where they could acquire more gold and wealth to be on top of all the European nations. The obsession with spices might be
odd for Filipinos because of its ordinariness in the Philippines, but understanding the context would reveal that spices were
scarce in Europe and hence were seen as prestige goods. In that era, Spain and Portugal coveted the control of Spice Islands
because it would have led to a certain increase in wealth, influence, and power. These contexts should be used and
understood in order to have a more qualified reading of Pigafetta’s account.

Analysis of the Kartilya ng Katipunan

Similar to what we have done to the accounts of Pigafetta, this primary source also needs to be analyzed in terms of
context and content. As a document written for a fraternity whose main purpose is to overthrow a colonial regime, we can
explain the content and provisions of the Kartilya as a reaction and response to certain value systems that they found
despicable in the present state of things that they struggled against with. For example, the fourth and the thirteenth rules in the
Kartilya are an invocation of the inherent equality between and among men regardless of race, occupation, or status. In the
context of the Spanish colonial era where the indios were treated as the inferior of the white Europeans, the Katipunan saw to
it that the alternative order that they wished to promulgate through their revolution necessarily destroyed this kind of unjust
hierarchy.
Moreover, one can analyze the values upheld in the document as consistent with the burgeoning rational and liberal
ideals in the eighteenth and nineteenth century. Equality, tolerance, freedom, and liberty were values that first emerged in the
eighteenth century French Revolution, which spread throughout Europe and reached the educated class of the colonies.
Jacinto, an illustrado himself, certainly got an understanding of these values. Aside from the liberal values that can be
dissected in the document, we can also decipher certain Victorian and chivalrous values in the text. For example, various
provisions in the Kartilya repeatedly emphasized the importance of honor in words and in action. The teaching of the
Katipunan on how women should be treated with honor and respect, while positive in many respects and certainly a significant
stride from the practice of raping and physically abusing women, can still be telling of the Katipunan’s secondary regard for
women in relation to men. For example, in the tenth rule, the document specifically stated that men should set a good
example, otherwise the women and the children would be guided in the path of evil. Nevertheless, the same document stated
that women should be treated as companions by men and not as playthings that can be exploited for their pleasure.
In the contemporary eyes, the Katipunan can be criticized because of these provisions. However, one must not forget the
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context where the organization was born. Not even in Europe or in the whole of the West at that juncture recognized the
problem of gender inequality. Indeed, it can be argued that Katipunan’s recognition of women as important partners in the
struggle, as reflected not just in Kartilya but also in the organizational structure of the fraternity where a women’s unit was
established, is an endeavor advanced for its time. Aside from Rizal’s known Letter to the Women of Malolos, no same effort by
the supposed cosmopolitan Propaganda Movement was achieved until the movement’s eventual disintegration in the latter
part of the 1890’s.
Aside from this, the Kartilya was instructive not just of the Katipunan’s conduct toward other people, but also for the
members’ development as individuals in their own rights. Generally speaking, the rules in the Kartilya can be classified as
either directed to how one should treat his neighbor or to how one should develop and conduct one’s self. Both are essential to
the success and fulfillment of the Katipunan’s ideals. For example, the Kartilya’s teachings on honoring one’s word and not
wasting time are teachings directed toward self-development, while the rules on treating the neighbor’s wife, children, and
brothers the way that you want yours to be treated is an instruction on how Katipuneros should treat and regard their
neighbors.
All in all, proper reading of the Kartilya will reveal a more thorough understanding of the Katipunan and the significant
role that it played in the revolution and in the unfolding of the Philippine history, as we know it.
REFERENCES
1. Gottchalk, Louis. (1969). Understanding History: A Premier of Historical Method. New York : Alfred A. Knopf.
2. Alporha Veeronica C. and Candelaria John Lee P. (2018). Readings in Philippine History. Manila: Rex Book Store, Inc.

ASSESSMENT FOR MODULE 3

Identification .Answer Directly. Write your answers in 1 whole sheet of paper. Do not forget to read the general
instruction.

1. _________is also like a scientist who follows the historical method in reconstructing history.
2. Without_________ history cannot be written.
3. Historians conduct _________ to examine the physical characteristics of an evidence.
4. These are considered to be the results of events or relics of human happenings.
5. Upon historical interpretation, a historian must avoid ______ to elude biases.
6. These sources were used by the author in reexamining, interpreting and forming conclusions based on the primary
source.
7. There were first person account by someone who experienced or witnesses an event.
8. It comprises certain techniques and rules that historians follow in order to properly utilize sources and historical
evidences in writing history.
9. _________ is written through the surviving records only.
10. It is the writing of history out of the data derived from the historical method.
ASSESSMENT FOR MODULE 4
Part 1-Answer Directly. Write T if the statement is true and give the correct answer if the statement is false. Write your
answers in 1 whole sheet of paper.
1. The author’s background can affect his/her interpretation on his/her writings.
2. Pigaffeta’s account was a credible source in studying precolonial history.
3. Magellan was a chronicler commissioned by the King of Spain to accompany and document a voyage intended to
expand the Spanish empire.
4. When they saw the indigenous attires of the natives, Pigafetta saw them as being naked because from the European
standpoint, they were wearing fewer clothes.
5. An empire like that of the Portugal would indeed search for new lands where they could acquire more gold and wealth
to be on top of all the European nations.
Part 2-Below is one of the translated version of the rules in Kartilya. Read and explain it in your own words in two
sentences only.
IV. Whether our skin be black or white, we are all born equal: superiority in knowledge, wealth and beauty are to be
understood, but not superiority by nature.
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