Wikipedia:Francisco Balagtas
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| Francisco Baltazar | |
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| Born | April 2, 1788 Bigaa, Bulacan |
| Died | February 20, 1862 Udyong, Bataan |
| Other names | Balagtas |
| Occupation | Poet, author |
| Known for | Florante at Laura |
Francisco Baltazar (April 2, 1788 – February 20, 1862), known much more widely through his nom-de-plume Francisco Balagtas, was a prominent Filipino poet, and is widely considered as the Tagalog equivalent of William Shakespeare for his impact on Filipino literature. The famous epic, Florante at Laura, is regarded as his defining work.
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Early life
Francisco Baltazar was born on April 2, 1788 to Juana de la Cruz and Juan Baltazar in Barrio Panginay, Bigaa, Bulacan. He studied in a parochial school in Bigaa. Francisco later worked as houseboy for the Trinidad family in Tondo, Manila. The master of the house let him to study Technology, Philosophy, Humanities, and Canon law at the Colegio de San José where two of his former teachers were Dr. Mariano Pilapil and José de la Cruz.
Awards and Titles
Francisco entitled as the "Ama ng Balagtasan" A Balagtasan is a debate in a form of a poem, the notable characters on it is the Tagapagsalaysay (narrator), The Lakandiwa and the Lakambini, (Gentlemen and Lady)
Life as a poet
Balagtas learned to write poetry from José de la Cruz (Huseng Sisiw), one of the most famous poets of Tondo. It was de la Cruz himself who personally challenged Balagtas to improve his writing. (source: Talambuhay ng mga Bayani, for Grade 5 textbook)
In 1835, Balagtas moved to Pandacan, where he met María Asunción Rivera, who would effectively serve as the muse for his future works. She is referenced in Florante at Laura as 'Celia' and 'MAR'.
Balagtas' affections for Celia were challenged by the influential Mariano Capule. Capule won the battle for Celia when he used his wealth to get Balagtas imprisoned under the accusation that he ordered a servant girl's head be shaved. It was here that he wrote Florante at Laura—In fact, the events of this poem were meant to parallel his own situation.
He wrote his poems in Tagalog, during an age when Filipino writing was predominantly written in Spanish.
Balagtas published Florante at Laura upon his release in 1838. He moved to Balanga, Bataan in 1840 where he served as the assistant to the Justice of peace and later, in 1856, as the Major Lieutenant. He was also appointed as the translator of the court. He married Juana Tiambeng on July 22, 1842 and had eleven children.
He died on February 20, 1862 at the age of 74. Upon his deathbed, he asked a favor that none of his children become poets like him, who had suffered under his gift as well as under others. He even went as far as to tell them it would be better to cut their hands off than let them be writers.
Balagtas is so greatly revered in the Philippines that the term for Filipino debate in extemporaneous verse is named for him: balagtasan.
Legacy
An elementary school was erected in honor of Balagtas, the Francisco Balagtas Elementary School (FBES), located along Alvarez Street in Santa Cruz, Manila. There is also a plaza and park (Plaza Balagtas) erected in Pandacan, Manila while most of the streets were named after various Florante at Laura characters in honor of Francisco Balagtas.
Works
- Orosmán at Zafira - a comedy in four parts
- Don Nuño at Selinda - a comedy in three parts
- Auredato at Astrome - a comedy in three parts
- Clara Belmore - a comedy in three parts
- Abdol at Misereanan - a comedy, staged by Abucay in 1857
- Bayaceto at Dorslica - a comedy in three parts, staged at Udyong on September 27, 1857
- Alamansor at Rosalinda - a comedy staged at Udyong during the town's feast
- La India elegante y el negrito amante - a short play in one part
- Nudo gordeano
- Rodolfo at Rosemonda
- Mahomet at Constanza
- Claus (translated into Tagalog from Latin)
- Florante at Laura, Balagtas' masterpiece
