Jose Rizal’s Views on the Impact of Colonialism to Filipinos The Philippines was a prosperous country even before the Spanish came because of its trade with other nations, such as China and Thailand, which benefited the country’s political and economic development. But as Rizal has noted, the native people of the Philippines gradually became stupid, timid, and indolent as a result of the Spanish colonization. In light of this, Jose Rizal went on to observe what the Philippines had become after being colonized by the Spanish for hundreds of years in a paper title “The Indolence of the Filipinos.” Rizal discussed what he learned about how colonialism affected Filipino values like creativity, diligence, perseverance, and the like. The Spanish impacted the Philippines’ economic and social structure of the Filipino society. Due to their immense control over the country, they were strict towards the Filipinos and went on to create and alter policies that had the aforementioned effects. Preventing them from being industrious and taking advantage of the Philippines’ own resources were among the things they have done which caused the Filipinos to lose their enthusiasm to work hard. This is their own land – their home – and they were prevented to do an action that would make their country prosper. The Spanish were also stealing their own resources, which they would then sell and utilize the profits for their own benefit. The Filipino people were also forced to labor nonstop in hot, humid conditions and on roads and shipyards. Rizal went so far as to say that overwork is not advisable in tropical regions since it is not the same in cold places. It would only result in annihilation, devastation, and death. As a result, how would the Filipinos take care of they own lands? When they are so tired that they lack the energy to work for themselves, how will they be able to consistently contribute to the success of their country? It is obvious they no longer have the desire to do so. Thus, their perseverance declined and turned into a remnant of their former selves.