Noli Me Tangere Character Symbols

The Main Characters

Sisa's 10-year-old son. An acolyte tasked to ring the church bells for the Angelus, he faced the dread of
losing his younger brother and the descent of his mother into insanity. At the end of the novel, Elías
wished Basilio to bury him by burning in exchange for a chest of gold located on his death ground. He
will later play a major role in El Filibusterismo

Crisostomo Ibarra is depicted as one of the Filipinos who managed to finish their studies abroad. He had
been living abroad for seven years. Unlike his countrymen, he has a liberal mind, outspoken and
idealistic.

Crisostomo Ibarra was the son of Don Rafael, one the wealthiest businessmen in San Diego. As such, he
was also a childhood friend of Maria Clara. He is a very patient and serious man but when he provoked,
he becomes very violent and impulsive.

Juliana, Kabesang Tales's daughter and Basilio's sweetheart is known by the nickname Juli. Devoted to
Basilio, when her family falls into debt she decides to become a servant rather than sell the locket he had
given her, once a possession of Maria Clara's that had fallen into his hands. Pure and innocent, she is
nevertheless aware of the curate's reputation as a womanizer. But she is made to feel by a devout,
busybody neighbor woman that she has no other recourse but to ask his help in freeing Basilio. After
much hesitation she approaches the friar, only to end up getting fatally injured running from him.

Dámaso Verdolagas, or Padre Dámaso is a Franciscan friar and the former parish curate of San Diego. He
is best known as a notorious character who speaks with harsh words and has been a cruel priest during
his stay in the town. He is the real father of María Clara and an enemy of Crisóstomo's father, Rafael
Ibarra. Later, he and María Clara had bitter arguments whether she would marry Alfonso Linares or go to
a convent. At the end of the novel, he is again re-assigned to a distant town and is found dead one day.

Doña Victorina

Juli, like Maria Clara, symbolizes the purity and innocence of the lower class women during Rizal's time.
She would rather sacrifice rather than give up her ideals.
The best friend of Basilio, he is a poor law student and poet. He has little fear of authority and speaks
openly of his patriotic ideals, becoming the leader of a group of students who plan to set up a school for
the teaching of Spanish to natives. With his idealism, he clashes with the cynical Simoun. He is in love
with the spoiled, flirtatious Paulita Gomez, against the advice of his uncle and guardian Padre Florentino.

Padre Damaso

Paulita Gomez is a caricature of a woman who chooses the best option for a more stable future. She
knows what is best for her and would take advantage of her admirers to get what she wants.

A beautiful girl who is admired by all the students, she at first shows preference for Isagani. But she is
thrown into the company of Juanito Pelaez because her aunt, the ridiculous Doña Victorina Noli Me
Tangere, has taken an interest in the young heir, even contemplating marrying him if her runaway
husband were found to be dead. Eventually the self-centered Paulita chooses to marry the amusing
Juanito rather than the serious Isagani. Her romantic dilemma is similar to that faced by Rizal's real-life
sweetheart Leonor Rivera.

Filosofo Tacio, known by his Filipinized name Pilosopo Tasyo, is another major character in the story.
Seeking for reforms from the government, he expresses his ideals in paper written in a cryptographic
alphabet similar from hieroglyphs and Coptic figures hoping "that the future generations may be able to
decipher it" and realized the abuse and oppression done by the conquerors.

His full name is only known as Don Anastasio. The educated inhabitants of San Diego labeled him as
Filosofo Tacio (Tacio the Sage) while others called him as Tacio el Loco (Tacio the Insane) due to his
exceptional talent for reasoning.

Simoun (Crisostomo Ibarra in disguise, left for dead at the end of Noli Me Tangere)

Isagani's godfather, and a secular priest; was engaged to be married, but chose to be a priest after being
pressured by his mother, the story hinting at the ambivalence of his decision as he chooses an
assignment to a remote place, living in solitude near the sea.
Commonly known as Doña Victorina, is an ambitious Filipina who classifies herself as a Spanish and
mimics Spanish ladies by putting on heavy make-up.The novel narrates Doña Victorina's younger days:
she had lots of admirers, but she did not choose any of them because nobody was a Spaniard. Later on,
she met and married Don Tiburcio de Espadaña, an official of the customs bureau who is about ten years
her junior However, their marriage is childless.

Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo

Elias represents the common Filipino who is not only aware of the injustices done to their countrymen
but would also like to deliver them from their oppressors. He is said to be the personification of Andres
Bonifacio.

Maria Clara's character is related to Rizal's childhood sweetheart, Leonor Rivera. Like the real life Leonor,
she plays the piano and the harp and has a sweet voice. She was portrayed as a faithful sweetheart, a
good friend, and an obedient daughter. She portrayed as the ideal woman during her time. She does not
impose her will except when she refused being married off to Linares.

Maria Clara had childish simplicity despite being showered with love and attention by everyone. She gets
easily nervous especially when her loved ones are in trouble. She had shown her love to Ibarra with such
modesty that remained unsullied of impure ideas.

Simoun is described in the novel as a tall, dark man with white hair and a thin black beard. He wears
European clothing and huge blue sunglasses which covered his eyes and part of his cheeks. He spoke
with a peculiar accent – a strange mix of English and South American.

Simoun poses himself as a supporter of the Spaniards when, in fact, his mission in returning the country
is to get revenge from the injustice he received from the Spanish government. He is still in love with
Maria Clara and initially wanted to start a revolution to get her out of the convent but, later on, learns
about her death.

Makaraig

Capitán Tiago

Due to their tragic but endearing story, these characters are often parodied in modern Filipino popular
culture.
The Supporting Characters

Paulita Gomez

As one of the lesser evils in the novel, Doña Victorina symbolizes those who have a distorted view of
their identity. Everything that is indigenous is inferior and everything foreign as superior. It is the
comedic form of ‘’colonial mentality’’

María Clara de los Santos

Don San- Liege de los Santo

The Tertiary Sisters

Rufa

Sipa

Juana

El Filibusterismo

Crispin represents the innocents who have been wrongly accused of the crime they did not commit. The
injustice they suffered under the hands of the authorities during their time were silenced by their deaths
and the cover-ups that follow it.

A secular Filipino priest. Pressured by his mother, he became a priest even though he was in love. After
his former sweetheart married a worthless man, he devoted himself to his priestly duties and the study
of natural sciences. He prefers to live alone on his family's remote seaside property than to maintain the
position of curate, which suggests his strong character in avoiding the temptations of a prestigious
position and high income. Through his words to the dying Simoun, he reaffirms Rizal's stance that
liberation must be achieved not through bloody revolution but through peaceful reforms.

Aspiring to start his own farm, he suffered great losses. First, his wife and eldest daughter died while
clearing their land. Then most of his land was seized and he was charged an exorbitant tax on the little
left to him. Known to be dependable, he was elected the kabesa or head of the barangay, which meant
often having to appease the higher officials by shouldering the expenses of those who were unable to
pay their taxes. His son was conscripted by the Civil Guard and his daughter, Juliana, became a servant to
help pay off their debts. Finally, when Simoun comes to pass the night at his house, he takes Simoun's
revolver and goes to join the tulisanes. He murders the friar-adminstrator and the new tenants of his
land. Later Juliana is killed in an encounter with a friar and his father, struck dumb, dies in an encounter
with the Guardia Civil, shot by his own grandson.

Tano – son of Cabesang Tales. Conscripted into military service in the Carolinas where he is so alienated
and confused by physical and moral distress that he comes home in a state of shock.

Doña Victorina de los Reyes de Espadaña

Crisostomo Ibarra

Tasio comes from a rich family. He is often the pessimist and is untrusting of human altruism. He also
does not believe in the religious fanaticism that was in vogue during his time.

Tasio is one of the characters in the novel that Rizal can relate to, as the former is patterned after the
latter's oldest brother, Paciano Rizal.

Sisa, Crispín, and Basilio represent a Filipino family persecuted by the Spanish authorities.

Sisa is thought to have represented the motherland who was suffering as her character have suffered
with the loss of her children. The tragic events that ruined her life represented the abuse that the
motherland received from her colonizers.

A high official in the government, he has held many posts, many of which he had no qualifications for. He
used his rich wife's money to secure such positions. He has a mistress, a dancer named Pepay, on whom
people rely for assistance in swaying Don Custodio when they need a favor from him.

Basilio

Tasio symbolizes the learned Filipinos who had once embraced the culture of the Spanish regime. They
eventually became disenchanted when they return to the Philippines and observe the stark contrast
their countrymen receive from their colonizers. The more they turn to learning, the more they become
eccentric to the masses they seek to enlighten.
Maria Clara has an eyes like her mother. Its large black orbs were large, had long lashes, and showed
emotions openly. Her thick light-colored hair had curls and often strewn with fragrant flowers. Her small
shapely ears were assumed to be from her father, Capitan Tiago, and her straight nose was just right. Her
small mouth had dimples at the sides and her fair skin was as fine as onion skins.

Maria Clara often wore dainty dresses and religious artifacts (such as rosaries and a locket that contained
a sliver from St Peter's boat). She also carries a silk pouch which holds Ibarra's farewell letter. She
sometimes carries a fan which she uses to hide her face when embarrassed.

of Noli me Tangere

Don Tiburcio is the husband of Doña Victorina. He was introduced as one of the invited guests of Capitan
Tiago in the latter's welcome party for Juan Crisostomo Ibarra. He was known for charging exorbitant
fees for his medical treatment.

Don Tiburcio was intially a low rank official in the Customs.

Don Tiburcio is a caricature of ignorant Spaniards who wreak havoc in the provinces during the colonial
era. His countrymen condone his actions for they do not want him to become a burden to them.

Padre Damaso Verdolagas

Don Santiago de los Santos, known by his nickname Tiago and political title Capitán Tiago is a Filipino
businessman and the cabeza de barangay or head of barangay of the town of San Diego. He is also the
known father of María Clara.

In the novel, it is said that Capitán Tiago is the richest man in the region of Binondo and he possessed
real properties in Pampanga and Laguna de Bay. He is also said to be a good Catholic, friend of the
Spanish government and was considered as a Spanish by colonialists. Capitán Tiago never attended
school, so he became a domestic helper of a Dominican friar who taught him informal education.

Don Tiburcio de Espadana

Prefigures the “split-level Christianity of contemporary Filipinos-”a.ka. Christians

Crispin and his brother, Basilio were introduced in Chapter 15. He is a sacristan who had been accused of
stealing two gold pieces by the senior sacristan. Although he had implored his older brother to pay for
the said amount, the latter refuses as their mother would have nothing to eat. He had not been eating
and he misses his mother for he had not gone home since the money disappeared. He was last seen
being dragged away from his brother after pealing the bells. When his mother visited him, he is said to
have run away.

Sisa(Narcisa) is the typical native wife. She endures her husband's beatings and irresponsibility. She had
been stripped of her few jewels by her husband, Pedro, an inveterate gambler. Despite the abuse, she
considers him her god.

Sisa is described as a mother who considers her sons her only treasure. She would often anticipate when
they return home as she would prepare their favorite dishes. She remembers each son's features and
when alone, remember moments when her sons were with her.

Other Supporting Characters

Maria Clara

Isagani

Basilio

Elias is a former boatman who became one of the most wanted criminals in San Diego. He distrusts
human judgment and prefers God's justice instead. He is acquainted with the tulisanes and other crooks,
which he uses to his advantage in discerning the troubles of the town.

Elias used to have an affluent life with his twin sister. He was educated in a Jesuit College with servants
that wait upon him. He prefers a revolution over the reforms that Ibarra has been inclined to believe in.

SURIO. TOBIAS. PONGAN

Cabesang Tales – diven to outlary by circumstances that reveal the roots of agrarian malaise in the
country

Elias
Isagani is the symbol of the youth whose love for the country is great to the point of being branded as
idealistic.

Makaraig shared the same nationalistic ideals with that of Isagani. The both of them led their fellow
students in the movement for the establishment of the Spanish academy for Filipinos. The only
difference between the two is their social status. Being wealt, His wealth also helped him obtain
freedom after being imprisoned together with the other students. It also helped him secure a passport
to hurriedly flee the country and migrate to Europe.

Juli – Tano’s sister, beloved of Basilio. Innocent and hardworking who sacrifices her honor and her life for
her family and beloved.

He symbolizes the Spanish friars of Rizal's time and is a comment on the Spanish control of the
Philippines

Isagani – nephew of Father Florentino and young poet trained at the Ateneo is a symbol of the liberated
Filipino youth whose unselfish devotion urges him to save the faithless Paulita

Makaraig represented the well-to-do Filipino youth during the Spanish era who had good dreams for the
country. His character also provided readers a glimpse of how different the rich and the poor were
treated during that time in society. Both he and Isagani led the student movement, yet, he was still
favored upon by the friars because of his social status.

Padre Florentino

Sisa

Maria Clara symbolizes the purity and innocence of a sheltered native woman during the time of Spanish
occupation. She does not value material things that were abundantly bestowed upon her by admirers
and family alike but holds in high esteem her parents’ honor and the promise she had given to her
sweetheart.
Crisostomo Ibarra exemplified the vision that Jose Rizal had aimed for the youth of the Philippines during
his time. Others attribute Ibarra as Rizal’s reflection of himself.

Taking to heart the advice of the dying boatman Elias to study at the end of Noli Me Tangere, he went to
Manila after burying his mother. There, he was taken in by Capitan Tiago and was able to go to San Juan
de Letran. Though a diligent student, he failed to please his teachers, who were affronted by the efforts
of a poor native to improve his status in life. His situation in the school improved when his skill in a
fencing match impressed one of his teachers. Having high grades, he was encouraged by Capitan Tiago to
move to Ateneo, where the teachers were more enlightened and encouraging. While there he pursued a
medical degree and became involved in a movement of some students, headed by Isagani, to set up a
school for the teaching of Spanish to natives. At the time of Simoun's arrival, he is looking forward to
graduating as valedictorian then marrying his childhood sweetheart, Juliana.

Señor Pasta - a lawyer who also works as a consultant for the friars. He thinks only of himself, and is
willing to be nationalistic only after everyone else becomes patriotic first.

Juan Crisóstomo Ibarra y Magsalin

Crispin

Paulita Gomez – displays a frivolous sense of values. Niece of Doña Victorina ang sweetheart of Isagani
but marries the more affluent Juanito Pelaez.

Victims of poverty and ignorance.

These are characters that portray the pervading social cancer in the novels of Rizal.

Juli

Crisostomo Ibarra's great-grandfather was Don Pedro Eibarramendia, an old, sunken-eyed Basque, who
spoke Tagalog well in his deep, hollow voice. His grandfather was Don Saturnino, a Spanish mestizo who
settled in San Diego and devoted himself in planting and harvesting indigo. Despite his quiet but cruel
disposition, he managed to secure his father's tomb in the old balite tree but rarely visited it. His son,
Don Rafael, pursued agriculture and encouraged their neighbors to do so. This made the town of San
Diego prosperous.

The Espadañas
Kabesang Tales

The Undesirables

Pilosopo Tacio

Father Florentino – distinguished native priest whose serious countenance evinced the “tranquillity of
the soul strengthened by study and meditation".

The Characters of

Capitan Tiago was a typical character during the time of Jose Rizal. He is a rich native-born Filipino who
rubbed elbows with the powers that be during that time. He symbolizes the rich Filipinos who oppress
their fellow countrymen in exchange for the influence and the riches that they might gain from their
powerful associations.

The Characters of

Don Custodio

Simoun represents the revolutionaries during that time who supported the idea of holding bloody revolt
against the Spanish government. His death in El Filibusterismo tells readers that Rizal does not support
the armed revolution. The author has also made this clear through the scene where Padre Florentino,
after Simoun’s death, threw his remaining jewels to the Pacific Ocean so it may no longer be used for
bribery and corruption that can spark a revolt.

Pretentious half-breed Chinese. He is an entertaining character and it is equally challenging to uncover,

beneath the naughty sarcasm, the cancers for which his type is responsible.