Exercise006🍀 1.What are the main themes of El Filibusterismo? 2.

What is the symbolism of Bapor Tabo

and iits environment? 3. What is the purpose of Rizal when he put a secular priest (Padre Florentino) in
the novel? 4. Why did the revolution fail in the novel? 5. How was El Filibusterismo connected with Noli
Me Tangere? 6. What is the symbolism of Simoun? 7. Who was Basilio? 8. Why did Isagani throw the
lamp in the river? 9. Why did Simoun want to make the Filipinos suffer? 10. Why did Rizal decide to
make the revolution fail in Fili?

Notes🍀COMPARISON OF NOLI ME TANGERE AND EL FILBUSTERISMO: Noli Me Tangere and El

Filibusterismo vary in many aspects, although they are written by the same author and are supposed to
be dealing with the same story and have the same characters. The Noli Me Tangere is a romantic novel.
It is a "work of the heart" and "a book of feeling". It has freshness, color, humor, lightness and wit.
Whereas, El Filibusterismo is a political novel. It is a "work of heal" and a "book of the thought". It
contains bitterness, hatred, pain, violence and sorrow. Jose Rozal's original intention was make the El
Filibusterismo longer than the Noli Me Tangere. However, El Filibusterismo is shorter than Noli. It
contains 38 chapters whereas 64 chapters of Noli.There were many opinions as to which is the superior
novel- the Noli or the Fili. Rizal himself considered the Noli as the superior to the Fili as novel. Marcelo
H. Del Pilar and Retana, Rizal's first Spanish biographer, also believed that Noli is superior. However,
other including Blumentritt, Graciano Lopez Jaena and Dr. Rafael Palma against the opinion of Rizal.
They believed the Fili is the superior to the Noli. In Lopez Jaena's letter he said that the Fili was superior
because of its exquisite delicate literary style, its easy and correct dialogue, its phraseology, vigorous
and elegant and its profound ideas and sublime thoughts. However, Jaena advised Rizal to write another
novel because he was not satisfied with Fili as political novel. The issue of which is the superior novel is
purely academic. Noli and Fili are good novels from the point of view of history. Both depict with
realistic colors the actual conditions of the Philippines and Filipinos the decadent days of Spanish rule.
Both are instrumental in awakening the spirit of Filipino nationalism and are responsible in paving tje
ground for Philippine Revolution thay brought about the downfall of Spain. Neither the Noli nor the Fili
is superior to one another, Mariano Ponce told Rizal that Fili was indeed excellent novel but it was
marvelous like all the brilliant productions of his pen. He also said that it was a true twin of the Noli.

Notes🍀RIZAL AFTER EL FILIBUSTERISMO: After the publication of El Filibusterismo, Rizal no longer shared
the view that reforms in the country will be granted by the Spanish government. He gave up the idea of
gradual and peaceful emancipation of the country, whuch he clearly communicated to Blumentritt in
1887. As stressed by Rizal in the aforementioned correspondence "peaceful struggle will just remain a
dream, considering that Spain had not learned the lesson of her fomer colonies in South America.
Believing that reforms would no longer be granted by Spain, Rizal became a separatist. As a separatist,
he was quite unique considering that he left to God the attainment of independence. After the
publication of the Fili, Rizal was bitterly attacked and mocked by his fellow reformers in Madrid. This can
be accounted for by the very radical and subversive tone of the novel, which renounced the propaganda
campaign for peaceful reforms and assimilation. This made Rizal decide to severe his connection with
the Propagandists in Madrid to avert possible split in their unity. Totally free and detached from the
propagandists in Europe, Rizal opted to return to the Philippines to share the misfortunes of his family.

Notes🍀MESSAGE OF EL FILIBUSTERISMO: Rizal's message in El Filibusterismo is very clear: that the

present system of government in the Philippines through corrupt officials, dominated by the friars can
lead to the downfall of Spain. This point was stressed by Simoun in the novel, when he said, "what is a
man to do when he is denied justice? take the law into his own hands or wait for Spain to give him
rights..." From the foregoing, Rizal was very certain that because of the nature and operation of the
government, those who are intelligent, generous, hard-working, courageous and loyal citizens were
driven into opposition, crime and subversion. The Spanish colonial. government for Rizal was arbitrary,
cruel, lacking in a sense of justice and responsibility, without interest in the people under its tutelage.
While Rizal described the government in a very negative way, his picture of the friars in the Fili was
harsher. In this novel, Rizal painted them as abusing their power for the following reasons: to satisfy
their evil desires, to preserve their control of education; to rob men of their land; and to seek their own
interests. While Rizal.lambasted the friars in the Fili and the Spanish corruption, greed, exploitation, and
injustice, he did not secure his fellow Filipinos from his harsh criticism of the regime. He condemned
them for their greed, corruption, hypocrisy, and cowardice, which contributed so much to the abuses of
the civil officials and the friars. Another message communicated by Rizal was on the course of action
Filipinos to take should Spain not listen to his warning. As Filipinos had desired assimilation for a.long
time, Spain should grant it. Should Spain not accede to the clamor for assimilation, the people may
eventually prefer to die rather than endure the miseries any longer. Violent means to effect change
would thus become inevitable to achieve their goal.

Notes🍀Meanwhile Simoun continued preparing for the ultimate plan. He created abuses when they are
not in existence. He encouraged the governor-general to order the demolition of all nipa houses for
substantial bribe from.a businessman engaged in the selling of iron roofing. He tried to win the support
of the army officers by paying their debts. This in effect made him win the loyalty of these officers such
that they were ready to start a mutiny at his command.To ensure that the army officers would support,
he made it appear that the revolution was backed up by the friars to strengthen their position and that it
was a plan by the governor-general to prolong his tenure of office in the country. When everybody was
ready for the uprising, he again approached Basilio and convinced him to support the revolution that
was to break out within an hour. According to Simoun this revolution will sacrifice not only the lives of
the tyrants but also those who shall refuse cooperation. Simoun informed Basilio of the role he was to
play in the uprising. Basilio was to take a group of men to destroy the gates of the convent of Sta.Clara
at the height of the revolution to rescue Maria Clara. When Basilio informed Rizal of the demise of Maria
Clara, Simoun became dumbfounded and was not able to give the signal of the commencement of the
hostilities to his followers, who were eagerly waiting to begin the revolution. Out of his dejection and
depression, the revolution did not take place. For the time being, the project of the young students to
establish an academy for the teaching of the Spanish language was rejected by the administrators of the
university, despite the all-out support of Fr. Fernandez. The students, therefore, sought the assistance of
Don Custodio, a pseudo liberal official counselor. To satisfy the friars and the wishes of Pepay, his
favorite dancer, whose support was enlisted by the students, Don Custodio recommended that the
project be approved under the direction of the university friars. The next day, anti-friar posters were
posted at the doors of the university. What followed was the arrest of the members of the student
association, including Basilio. Eventually, all were released from prison except Basilio, who was jailed for
a number of months to uphold the prestige of the authority. After his release from prison, Basilio
presented himself to Simoun, ready to follow the latter's orders. A wedding feast was to take place that
night, to be attended by the governor-general, the friars, and other high officials of the government.
Simoun prepared magnificent lamp, filled with nitroglycerin, as the governor's wedding gift to Paulita
Gomez and Juanito Pelaez. At a given moment, the said lamp will explode killing all guests and high
officials of the State and the Church. The explosion shall serve as a signal for Simoun's followers to attack
the city. Basilio was to lead the people to the warehouse where Simoun stored weapons.Being the head
of people who were convinced of the necessity of defending themselves, Basilio was tasked with
executing those who shall refuse to follow. Convinced by Simoun and driven by his desire for revenge,
Basilio agreed with the plan. Waiting for the appointed moment, Basilio wandered to the scene of the
nuptial feast. Seeing the lamp already in place, he suddenly left and met Isagani, the frustrated lover of
Paulita Gomez. Aware of what was to take place, Basilio tried to convince Isagani to leave the place.
Upon learning the horrible secret device in the lamp, Isagani, who was still in love with Paulita, realized
that Paulita's life was in danger. He rushed into the house, grabbed the lighted lamp, and hurled it into
the nearby river. The gunpowder planted in the entire house, where the nuptial feast was held, was
soon discovered. The perpetrators of the bandit raid in the area were arrested, who in turn, implicated
Simoun. Simoun was able to escape despite the cordon of soldiers surrounding the place.

Notes🍀 THE SYNOPSIS OF THE EL FILIBUSTERISMO: The novel begins on board the steamer Tabo, plying
the Pasig River to Laguna de Bay. With Simoun were Dona Victorina, Don Tiburcio de Espadana, Paulita
Gomez, Isagani, Fr. Florentino, Basilio and other passengers. Simoun arrived in the Philippines as an
ominous figure whose origin was unknown to many but he wielded unlimited influence to the governot-
general. He was known by many as a jeweler, who.always sported large dark spectacles that concealed
much of the upper part of his face.Inasmuch as Simoun enjoyed the patronage of the governor-general,
many considered him influential in securing privileges from the country's high government officials.
Simoun was able to use all the influence and power at his disposal to accumulate more fortune for
himself. Meanwhile, Basilio, a young medical student returned to San Diego, his native town. He was the
brother of Crispin, who was beaten to death by the head sacristan of Father Salvi in the Noli. Upon
arriving at San Diego, he went to the spot in the forest where many years ago, he had met an exhausted
man who assisted him in burying his mother and had built a funetal pyre for Elias, who was shot to
death at the chase in the lake. Upon arriving at the gravebof his mother, Basilio found Simoun, without
his dark glasses, digging there. Basilio soon recalled the incident that happened in the spot where
Simoun was 13 years ago. He recognized Ibarra, believed by many to have died during the chase in the
lake. Simoun thought of exterminating Basilio, for fear that his identity might be revealed by the latter.
Soon, Simoun realized that he should spare Basilio considering that he also had a grievance to resolve-
that of avenging the brutal death of his mother, Sisa, as well as his brother Crispin. In the converstion
that ensued between the two, Simoun informed Basilio of his true intention of returning to the country-
that of destroying the brutal system that had destroyed him. Meanwhile, Simoun continued using his
wealth and political influence to encourage corruption and other illegal activities in the government. He
promoted tyranny and complet disregard for the dignity and welfare of the poor for them to be
accustomed to the idea of death, detest the government, become desperate and rise up in arms against
the government. At the time that Simoun had worked out his plan fomenting revolution, Filipino
students like Basilio and his friends, earnestly pressed for assimilation, the spread of the Spanish
language and the appeals for loyalty to and confidence in the colonial government. Simoun reacted
vehemently to this program of Hispanization that young students were advocating. For Simoun, this
would mean death of the people, destruction of national idenity, and institutionalization of tyranny in
the country. He even contradicted the students in their plan of establishing an Academy of Spanish
Language.According to him , Spanish will never be a lingua franca in the country since the people will
never speak it because the ideas of its brain and the sentiments of its heart find no phrases to express in
that language.. Simoun, therefore, prodded Basilio help him in mobilizing the youth in working for
equality of rights, for brotherhood and representation in the Spanish Cortes, rather than waste his time
advocating assimilation. Basilio was not convinced by Rizal to join him in his struggle, as he was apolitical
or not interested in politics. For Basilio, his only hope was to utilize his studies to alleviate the sufferings
of his fellow Filipinos. Moreover, Basilio was on the belief that redemption of the country rests not on
political revolution but through devotion in science. At this point Simoun reminded Basilio of the wrong
done to his mother and brother, thinking that Basilio would change his mind. Simoun failed to get
Basilio's commitment but left the door open for Basilio should he change his frame of mind.

Notes🍀 Turned cynical and revolutionary as a result of past failures and disappointments, SIMOUN could
be made to represent the portion of Filipino society, which, tired of the oppressor's rule wanted that the
rule to be overthrown at all cost, but had no systematic plan for the new society, if the old is
overthrown. MARIA CLARA- who after suffering from untold physical and spiritual abuse for at least 13
years, at last dies, can still be made to symbolize in the Fili, the friar-dominated culture, which is now
ripe for revolution. That there is no eventual union between Simoun and Maria Clara, not even meeting
between the two since they parted 13 years ago is significant. Although Simoun wanted very much to
see and possess her, he was not permitted to do so. This is indicative, symbolically speaking, of Rizal's
refusal to recognize that friar-dominated culture could still be reinvigorated through the infusion of new
elements into its anemic bloodstream. SENOR PASTA- the idealist turned mercenary, could be made to
represent that portion of Filipino society who have abandoned their noble social ideals and have
become thoroughly self-seeking opportunist, serving only the interest of those who have hired them.
ISAGANI- a young student, who is inspired by high ideals for his country but at critical moment
apparently and unwittingly forgets those ideals for selfish reasons, could be made ro symboloze the
untested and unreliable idealism of a segment of the educated Filipino youths of the time. PAULITA
GOMEZ- the hapless object of Isagani's affection, a girl who is more free from the fetters of convention
than Maria Clara, can be made to represent that portion of Filipino womanhood- still half breed like
Maria Clara- which is relatively enlightened but which is itself almost thoroughly bereft of love of
country and of a desire for the social good.BASILIO- the medical student who, despite the extreme
sufferings undergone by his family as a result of clerical perfidy and cruelty, refuses to entertain any
revolution though even in the face of rampant social injustices, could be made to symbolize that
segment of the educated Filipino society which has been so brutalized that it has become insensible to
the social welfare. PLACIDO PENITENTE- is another young man who has been so disillusioned by the
state of affairs he finds himself in as a student, entertains the desire to go abroad. When shown by
Simoun some signs of a possible uprising, he becomes so frightened that he could not make up his mind
whether to join or not join. He persuasively could be made to symbolize those elements of Philippine
society, which had not yet been infused with a national sentiment or social conacience. DON CUSTODIO-
a typical Spanish official in the country, who occupies several positions despite the absence of
qualification, believes that any idea that does not come from him deserves no consideration. As a
character in the Fili, Rizal portrayed him as one who finds pleasure in developing a feeling of inferiority
among the people. CABESANG TALES- a victim of land grabbing by the friars, became desperate and
joined the outlaws for personal revenge. He died of fever and found no justice in the courts. JULI-
innocent-looking and unaffected daughter of Cabesang Tales and sweetheart of Basilio, took her own
life because of her love for honor and chastity rather than surrender her womanhood to the mundane
desire of Fr. Camorra. THE SCHOOL MASTER- rusticated as a rebel for having experimented teaching the
Spanish language to young children against the wishes of the Spanish friars, was pardoned due to the
influence wielded by Simoun. Later on, he became Simoun's gunpowder expert.

Notes🍀EL FILIBUSTERISMO: Rizal completed the revision of El Filibusterismo while he was in Brussels. He
started writing this novel while he was in Calamba and continued working on it in London in 1888. Some
parts of the novel were written in Paris and Madrid. Nonetheless, the manuscript was completed on
March 29, 1891 while he was in Biarritz. Rizal left Brussels for Ghent on July 5, 1891. His decision to
move to this university city of Belgium was prompted by two reasons namely: cheaper cost of printing in
Ghent; and evade the enticing attraction of Petitte Suzanne. It was in this city where Rizal met Jose
Alejandro of Pampanga and Edilberto Evangelista of Manila, who were studying engineering at the
University of Ghent. With meager financial resources on hand, Rizal was forced to live in a very cheap
boarding house where Edilberto Evangelista lived. With no allowance arriving from his family in
Calamba, Rizal practically had to economize on whatever little amount of money he had. He, thus, led a
life of near starvation in the city of Ghent. After settling in Ghent, Rizal searched for a printing house,
which could offer him the lowest quotation for the printing of the Fili. Fortunately, he found the
F.Meyer-Van Loo Press willing to publish his novel on installment basis. In order to defray the initial
payment for the printing of the Fili, Rizal had to pawn his jewels. For the printing to continue, he needed
cash. Thus, he became very desperate thinking that the novel will not come off the press, as funds he
expected from friends did not arrive. He, therefore, decided to suspend its printing, until his friend
Valentin Ventura in Paris came to the rescue. With the financial assistance extended by Ventura, the
publication of the book was completed on September 1891. Rizal shipped to Hong Kong all copies of the
Ghent edition, which were smuggled into the Philippines, except those copies sent to his friends in
peninsular Spain.

Notes🍀DEFENDERS OF NOLI ME TANGERE: The Noli Me Tangere had its great defenders who bravely
came out to prove the merits of the novel and to enlighten the unkind attackers. They were the
reformers in foreigh lands like Marcelo H. del Pilar, Graciano Lopez Jaena, Mariano Ponce, Dr. Antonio,
Ma. Regidor, Professor Ferdinand Blumentritt, Dr. Miguel Morayta, and Don Segismundo Moret, a
former Minister of the Court. Father Sanches of Ateneo upheld and praised the Noli in public. Rev.
Father Vicente Garcia, a Filipino Catholic priest-scholar, a theologian of the Manila Cathedral, and a
Tagalog Translator of the famous 'Imitation of Christ' by Kempis wrote a defense of the NoliMe Tangere
under the penname Justo Desiderio Magalang. This was published in Singapore as an appendix to a
pamphlet dated July 18, 1888. He blasted the attacks and arguments of Fr. Rodriguez with the following
conter-argument: 1. Rizal cannot be an "ignorant man" as Fr. Rodriguez alleged, because he was a
graduate of Spanish universities and was a recipient of scholastic honors. 2. Rizal did not attack the
Church and Spain because what Rizal attacked in the Noli Me Tangere were the bad Spanish officials and
not Spain, and the bad corrupt friars and not the Church. 3. Father Rodriguez said that those who read
the Noli Me Tangere committed a mortal sin. Since he(Fr.Rodriguez) had read the novel therefore he
also committed mortal sin. Rizal cried with overwhelming gratitude to Father Garcia's briliiant defense of
his Noli Me Tangere. Rizal wrote a letter to Barrantes to defend himself and to expose Barrantes'
ignorance of the Philipoine affairs and mental dishonesty which is unworthy of an academician. While
the controversy over the Noli was raging in fury, Rizal was untouched in Calamba because he was with a
bodyguard. Because both of resm are young, educated and cultured with same interest so they became
friends.

Notes🍀THE FILIPINO SOCIETY AS PICTURED IN THE NOLI: The novel uncompromisingly exposes Spaniards
in the Philippines. The government was administered by self-seekers, motivated by the desire to enrich
themselves at the expense of the people. Honest and sincere officials were quite few. Corruption
became so rampant, as a consequence. Banditry became a way of life for many due to the corruption
and brutality of the Guardia Civil. The friars, on the other hand, used the Catholic Church to amass
wealth and to perpetuate themselves into power. Instead of teaching the Filipinos true Catholicism, they
controlled the government and opposed all progress. While Rizal condemned the Spaniards for their
abuses and insidious practices, Filipinos were not spared in his crticism of Filipino society. He criticized
his gellow countrymen for their blind, religiois fanaticism, corruption, passion for gambling,
subservience of the wealthy Filipinos toward the friars and government officials, and their ridiculous
efforts to distance themselves from the common people. To balance Rizal's portrait of Filipino society,
the virtues and good qualities of the Filipino people were highlighted in the novel. Notable among the
virtues and values emphasized by Rizal in the Noli were the following: the modesty and devotion of the
Filipino woman; the open-handed hospitality of the Filipino family; the devotion of the parents to their
children and children to their parents; and the deep sense of gratitude of the Filipino peasants.

Notes🍀SUMMARY OF NOLI ME TANGERE: Meanwhile in Captain Tiago's residence, a party was being
held to announce the upcoming wedding of Maria Clara and Linares. Ibarra, with the help of Elias, took
this opportunity and escaped from prison. But before leaving, Ibarra talked to Maria Clara and accused
her of betraying him, thinking that she gave the letter he wrote her to the jury. Maria Clara explained fo
Ibarra that she will never conspire against him but that she was forced to surrender Ibarra's letter to her
in exchange for the letters written by her mother even before she, Maria Clara was born.The letters
were from her mother, Pia Alba to Father Damaso alluding to their unborn child; and that she, Maria
Clara, was therefore not the daughter of Captain Tiago, but of Father Damaso. Afterwards, Ibarra and
Elias boarded a boat and left the place. Elias instructed Ibarra to lie down and the former covered the
latter with grass to conceal the latter's presence.As luck would have it, they were spotted by their
enemies. Elias thought he could outsmart them and jumped into the water.

Notes🍀SUMMARY OF NOLI ME TANGERE: Revenge was not in Ibarra's plans; instead he carried through
his father's plan of putting up a school, since he believed that education would pave the way to his
country's progresa(all over the novel the author refers to both Spain and the Philippines as two different
countries which form part of a same nation or family, being Spain the mother and the Philippines the
daughter). During the inauguration of the school, Ibarra would have been killed in a sabotage had Elias-a
mysterious man who had warned Ibarra earlier of a plot to assasinate him-not saved him. Instead the
hired killer met an unfortunate incident and died. The sequence of the events proved to be too
traumatic for Maria Clara who got seriously ill but was luckily cured by the medicine Ibarra sent
her.After the inauguration, Ibarra hosted a luncheon during which Father Damaso , uninvited and gate-
crashing the luncheon, again insulted him. Ibarra ignored the priest's insolence, but when the latter
slandered the memory of his dead father, he was no longer able to restrain himself and lunged at Father
Damaso, prepared to stab the latter for his imprudence. As a consequence, Father Damaso
excommunicated Ibarra.Father Damaso took this opportunity to persuade the already-hesitant father of
Maria Clara to forbid his daughter from marrying Ibarra. The friar wished Maria Clara to marry a
Peninsular named Linates who just arrived from Spain. With the help of the Captain-General, Ibarra's
excommunication was nullified and the Archbishop decided to accept him as a member of the Church
once again.But as fate would have it, some incident of which Ibarra had known nothing about was
blamed on him, and he was wrongly arrested and imprisoned. But the accusation against him was
overruled because during the litigation that followed, nobody could testify that he was indeed involved.
Unfortunately, his letter to Maria Clara somehow got into the hands of the jury and was manipulated
such that it then became evidence against him.

Notes🍀SUMMARY OF NOLI ME TANGERE; Having completed his studies in Europe, young Juan
Crisostomo Ibarra came back to the Philippines after a 7-year absence. In his honor, Captain Tiago threw
a get-together party, which was attended by friars and other prominent figures. In an unfortunate
incident, former curate, Father Damaso belittled and slandered Ibarra. But Ibarra brushed off the insult
and took no offense; he instead politely excused himself and left the party because of an allegedly
important task. The day after the humble party, Ibarra went to see Maria Clara, his love interest, a
beautiful daughter of Capitan Tiago and an affluent resident of Binondo, Manila. Their.long-standing
love was clearly manifested in this meeting, and Maria Clara cannot help but reread the letters her
sweetheart had written her before he went to Europe. Before Ibarra left for San Diego, Lieutenant
Guevara, a Guardia Civil, revealed to him incidents preceding the death of his father, Don Rafael Ibarra,
a rich haciendero of the town. According to the Lieutenant, Don Rafael was unjustly accused of being a
heretic, in addition to being a fibuster- an allegation brought forth by Father Damaso because of Don
Rafael's non-participation in the Sacraments such as Confession and Mass. Father Damaso's animosity
against Ibarra's father was aggravated by another incident when Don Rafael helped out on a fight
between a tax collector and a student fighting, and the former's death was blamed on him, although it
was not deliberate. Suddenly, all of those who thought ill of him surfaced with additional complaints. He
was imprisoned, and just when the matter was almost settled, he got sick and died in jail. Still not
content with what he had done, Father Damaso arranged for Don Rafael's corpse to be dug up and
transferred from the Catholic cemetery to the Chinese cemetery, because he thought it inappropriate to
allow a heretic such as Don Rafael a Catholic burial ground. Unfortunately, it was raining and because of
the bothersome weight of the cadaver, the men in charge of the burial decide to throw the corpse into
the lake.

Notes🍀11. PEDRO- abusive husband of Sisa. 12. TANDANG PABLO- The leader of the rebels, whose
family was destroyed because of the Spaniards. 13. BASILIO- the elder son of Sisa. 14.CRISPIN- the
younger son of Sisa who died from the punishment of the soldiers from the false accusation of stealing
an amount of money. 15. PADRE SIBYLA- Hernando Sibyla, a Filipino friar. He is described as short and
has fair skin. 16. PADRE SALVI- also known in his full name as Bernardo Salvi, a secret admirer of Maria
Clara. 15.THE ALFEREZ- chief of the Guardia Civil; mortal enemy of the priests for power in San Diego.
16. DON TIBURCIO- Spanish husband of Donya Victorina who was limp and submissive to his wife; he
also pretended to be a doctor. 19. DONA CONSOLACION- wife of the Alferez, another woman who
passed herself as a Penisular; best remembered for her abusive treatment of Sisa. 20. CAPTAIN-
GENERAL- (no specific name)- the most powerful official in the Philippines, a hater of secular priests and
corrupt officials, and a friend of Ibarra.

Notes🍀6.CAPITAN TIAGO- To the people of San Diego, he was Don Anastacio delos Santos. Just like Don
Rafael Ibarra, he was a rich landlord. His wealth was derived from his involvement in the illegal opium
trade. To the common people, he was a symbol of of the cacique mentality. Professing to be religious,
never did he pray to God even in the face of difficulties. Instead, he let his money pray for him.
Moreover, Rizal employed Capitan Tiago in the novel to represent the subservient Filipino to the
authorities to protect his personal and business interest. 7. DONA VICTORINA- As a social climber, she
married Don Tiburcio de Espadana to support her claim of being a Spaniard. She despised everything
Filipino and imitated what was Spanish. Thus, Rizal used her in thw novel to symbolize colonial mentality
among some Filipinos during his time. 8. DONA PATROCINIO- As the mistress of the Alferez, she was
noted to be imprudent, vulgar, cruel, and quarrelsome. As such, she symbolized the mentality of the
Guardia Civil. Being the only competitor of Capitan Tiago in godliness, she did everything to pretend that
she was really religious by showing off to the public what she could contribute for the Church.
9.PILOSOPO TASYO- He represented Rizal's epitome of a philosopher. He was perceived to be a sage by
the educated and a weird or lunatic by those who did not know him. 10. THE SCHOOL MASTER OF SAN
DIEGO- He symbolized intellectual dissatisfaction in Filipino society during Rizal's time. As an educated
individual, he dreamed of changing the methods of teaching to facilitate greater learning on the part of
the pupils then..

Notes🍀Although the novel is a work of fiction, the novel can be considered a true story of the Philippines
during the last decades of Spanish rule. The characters used by Rizal in the Noli were persons who
actually existed during those times. Maria Clara was Leonor Rivera. Tasyo was his older brother
Paciano.Padre Salvi was Fr. Antonio Piernavieja of the Augustinian Order. Capitan Tiago was Captain
Hilario Sunico of San Nicolas. Dona Victorina was was Dona Agustina Medel. Basilio and Crispin were the
Crisostomo brothers of Hagonoy, Bulacan. Padre Damaso however, was the typical abusive friar during
Rizal's time. Through the characters in the Noli, Rizal depicted the different pictures of Filipino society
during his time.1.JUAN CRISOSTOMO IBARRA- As the main character in the novel, Ibarra represented the
affluent and liberal European-educated Filipino. Civic-minded,liberty-minded and patriotic, he desired
the education of the people. His plan of establishing the schoolhouse at San Diego was opposed by
Father Damaso, representing conservatism in Filipino society society then. This conflict between
liberalism and conservatism is reflected in many episodes in the Noli, which culminated in Ibarra's
leaving the country and Maria Clara's entering the nunnery. 2. ELIAS- Rizal represented the Filipino
masses in the novel through Elias. As the symbol of the common people, Elias did everything to
vindicate them from the injustices suffered from the Spaniards. Although Ibarra's family had brought
misfortunes to his own family, he extended help to Crisostomo in many occasions in the novel. This
might had been due to his belief that the redemption of the country depends on the ilustrados. Just like
Ibarra, he is a mouthpiece of Rizal's contradictory thoughts and purposes.3.MARIA CLARA-As the object
of Ibarra's love and affection, Rizal represented Filipino womanhood trained in a convent and immersed
in education basically religious in orientation. She symbolizes the Filipino womanhood in their fidelity,
coyness, and modesty

4. DON RAFAEL IBARRA- in the novel, Don Rafael was Crisostomo's father. He was jailed for helping a
young boy being harmed by an ignorant Spanish tax collector. Father Damaso considered him a heretic
and a filibustero owing to his liberal and independent viwes. Rizal used Don Rafael in the Noli to
symbolize an affluent landlord with a social conscience. 5. SISA- Sisa was the mother of Basilio and
Crispin in the Noli. She symbolized a lot of things in Filipino society during Rizal's time. In the novel, she
lost her mental balance upon learning what happened to Basilio and Crispin, her two sons. Through her,
Rizal was able to illustrate lack of concern in facing and resolving problems confronting Filipino society.
She was also used by Rizal in the Noli to illustrate the typical characteristics of Filipino mothers-fully
cognizant of the attributes of their sons and daughters; and willing to defend them from all forms of
injustice or accusations.

Notes🍀During the course of Rizal's stay in several European cities, he noted that Filipinos were
practically an unknown nation. They were mistaken for Chinese in Spain and Japanese in Paris. Thus,
during the Paris Exposition of 1889, Rizal encouraged his fellow expatriates to call themselves Indios
Bravos for them to have a sense of national identity. Realizing the need for the Filipinos and the country
to be known in Europe, Rizal presented a proposal on writing a novel about the Philippines to the
Circulo-Hispano Filipino on January 2, 1884. The members of the association unanimously approve this
proposal. Unfortunately, however, the project did not materialize because those who were expected to
collaborate with Rizal did not write anything on the subject. In addition to this, many of his fellow
expatriates were indifferent to the priject since they were more interested to write about women. The
project died a natural death owing to the foregoing reasons.One year after, Pedro Paterno published his
novel entiled Ninay, with its subtitle Costumbres Filipinas (Philippine Customs). Rizal was very happy
considering that his purpose was partly fulfilled. Inasmuch as Paterno's novel delved only on one
particular aspect of Filipino culture, Rizal became more determined to write his own novel aboout the
Philippines. Rizal started writing the Noli Me Tangere in 1884, while he was studying in Europe. He
completed one half of the novel in Madrid. One-fourth of the novel was written when he was at Paris,
while the remaining one-fourth was completed in Berlin, Germany on February 21, 1887. The novel
came off the press on March 21, 1887, with the financial assistance of Maximo Viola. At the outset, the
novel was untitled. Later on, he decided to call his first literary masterpiece Noli Me Tangere. The title
can be translated into English as "Touch Me Not". The aforementioned label to this novel has a biblical
basis, as those words were the ones uttered by Jesus Christ to Mary Magdalene when the latter visited
his tomb before sunrise of Easter Sunday. Rizal deemed it appropriate to use the said title as his novel
contained delicate things nobody wanted to talk about or touch during his time. He therefore, trod
where angels fear to tread by exposing the evils of the Church and the State, which were hazardous to
touch.

Notes🍀On the night of January 20, 1872, a mutiny broke out among Filipino soldiers in the arsenal of
Cavite under the leadership of Sgt.La Madrid. This mutiny was brought about by Izquierdo's abolition of
their exemption from tributes and forced labor, previously enjoyed by Filipino soldiers and workers in
the arsenal of Fort San Felipe. The Spanish authorities took advantage of the situation by arresting
liberal-minded Filipinos. Nine Filipino priests were deported to Marianas Islands, together with thirteen
lawyers and businessmen. The incident was exaggerated by the Spaniards, particularly the friars, to
implicate Fathers Jose Burgos, Mariano Gomez, andJacinto Zamora, due to their active involvement in
the campaign for the secularization of parishes. These three Filipino priests were executed by garrote for
alleged complicity in the rebellion. The Filipinos deeply resented the execution of Gomburzas owing to
their innocence of the crime for which they were tried. They hailed the three Filipino priests as true
martyrs of the fatherland. Their death made the Fillipino realize the need for unity to end their miseries.
The martyrdom of Gomburza was a turning point in Philippine history. It ushered in an era of peaceful
campaign for reforms to counter the evils of the Spanish Regime, known in our history as the
Propaganda Movement. Rizal was still very young when the mutiny broke out. Although at his tender
age, Rizal was already cognizant of the deplorable conditions of the country. Originally, his plan was to
take up priesthood and become a Jesuit father. When he heard the martyrdom of Gomburza, he
changed his mind and swore to dedicate his life to vindicate the victims of Spanish oppression. Rizal at
this time was only 11 years old.

NOTES:🍀 Gradually,the independence of the barangays was lost as a consequence of the relocation of
the natives under the influence of the church. With the imposition of Catholicism and Spanish culture,
the Filipinos were transformed into little brown Spaniards. Spain's political system was gradually
introduced into the country. Government was highly centralized and for the first time, the people came
to be politically united under the Spanish Crown. Barangays were merged to form pueblos, pueblos into
alcadias, in addition to the ayuntamientos established by the colonizers. Despite unification, the people
started to nurture resentment and dislike for foreign rule.