Historian urged to know true Manila history
An associate professor of the History Department at the De La Salle University (DLSU) Manila emphasized the importance in truly knowing the history of Manila.
Dr. Jose Victor Torres urged the youth to read beyond the textbook information about the history of Manila, not just as its citizens, but as Filipinos, in the 7th Dr. Grace Estela C Mate Commemorative Lecture held last September 27 in UP Manila.
“Alamin niyo ‘yung kwento ng inyong kasaysayan. Dahil ‘pag nalaman niyo ang inyong kwento, alam ninyo ang inyong identity, not only as a Manileño or part of being a Manileño but also, of being Filipino,” he said.
He highlighted that the history of Manila was unfinished as the people living up to its memories were continuing the story of the city.
“Ang kwento, at ganito natin dapat bigyan pananaw ang ating kasaysayan, [bilang isang] kwento... kaya yung ganitong usapan sa ating kasaysayan ay hindi natatapos. Bagama’t nandun yung kwento sa dating texto, sa ating documents, sa ating sources, ay patuloy pa rin ito sa ating ala-ala,” he said.
He added, “Isang malaking cycle ito dahil kapag nilagay niyo na sa dokumentasyon ang ala-ala, bumabalik ngayon yung ethical narrative-- documento, kwento, documento, kwento.”
The associate professor stressed that there were still untold stories that have been buried by the local history imposed by textbook-information.
“Manila is rich in history, but few of us have focused on its local history. In short, wag natin munang tapusin ang kasaysayan ng Manila dahil madami pang kwento ang Maynila,” he said.
He pointed out that the youth should be curious and observe the small details of history for them to truly understanding the course of history.
“You have to be, one, curious and second, you have to be observant. You must not accept facts as they are and you must know that every fact has a background. UST palang, gusto mong tanungin, bakit bumabaha ang UST? You have to be observant of your past to answer those kinds of small questions,“ he told the Dapitan Post.
History footnotes of Manila
Torres identified several footnotes in Manila which he emphasized to be significant for the hard facts to connect and make sense and to understand the course of history.
“Kaya parts of [the] story (footnotes) of Manila that have been forgotten or seldom talked about. Eto yung nangyari sa narrative, yung patalon talon, kailangan kalimutan natin yung ibang kwento,” he said.
The historian added, “[F]ootnotes dahil, nawawala ang ilang mga kwento na hindi natin nakikita dahil sa general history.”
One of the “footnotes” he mentioned was a recorded “elaborate” ritual that was found in a Spanish archives before Manila was established.
“It (the ritual) is elaborate, it also shows the force of arms of the Spaniards at that time,” he stated.
Torres also debunked the idea of Manila as an ancient city by citing some technological inventions from Dr. Jose Rizal's time.
“The Manila of the Spanish period [was] a modernizing metropolis with the colony open to world trade in the early 1800s,” he said.
“Ano ginamit ni Rizal noon ng pansulat ng nobela? Uso na kasi dati yung fountain pen. He was already using it at that time[.] Tanungin ninyo kung paano nakuha ni Rizal ang kanyang allowance mula sa Pilipinas?...What was already invented at that time (to send Rizal’s allowance)? The money order,” he said.
Torres also explained the expansion of Manila under a Commonwealth Act during the time of former President Manuel Quezon.
Moreover, he mentioned that the University of Santo Tomas (UST) was the first university to introduce the modern arts to its students.
The 7th Dr. Grace Estela C Mate Commemorative Lecture, titled “Take Me Back in Your Arms, Manila: Mga Usaping Pangkaunlaran at Panlipunan sa Kamaynilaan,” was organized by the Department of Social Sciences-Area Studies Program, College of Arts and Sciences-Manila Studies Program and UP Manila Organization of Area Studies Majors. MILDRED MIRA
