Activity 5

The Great Novel: Noli Me Tangere

In five to ten sentences answer the following: 

1. Describe how he had written his Noli Me Tangere and explain the
difficulties he went through and the fruits of his hard work. ( 10pts.)
Rizal proposed to the Filipino members of the Circulo Hispano Filipino a book-writing
endeavour, but they were uninterested and most of them wanted to write about the characters and
activities of Filipino women. Because the majority of them were uninterested in Rizal's suggested
endeavour, he chose to write the book alone. Without giving up hope because of his talent and writing
abilities, Rizal began writing "Noli Me Tangere," which focused on the Philippines' social, cultural, and
political aspects of life. He completed the first part in Madrid and continued writing in Paris, where he
was inspired by the passing and implementation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. He
completed it in Germany, which was free of church and governmental authority over scientific inquiry
and philosophy. To finish the work, he joined the Brotherhood of Masons for more mature interactions
and knowledge. Rizal learned Hebrew to be better equipped to comprehend the Bible in its original text
and to defend any problematic theological problems that could arise in the novel. "Noli Me Tangere," a
Latin phrase Rizal borrowed from the Bible, means, "Do not touch me." Because Rizal was short on cash,
Noli Me Tangere was printed in Berlin, which cost P300.00 for 2,000 copies. In March 1887, his friend
Maximo Viola offered to pay the bill, and the book was finally published. It was first published in Berlin
in 1887 and is known by the abbreviation Noli.

After Rizal’s stay in Calamba, he received a letter from Gov. General Emilio Terrero requesting
him to come to Malacañang Palace to explain the subversive ideas contained in the Noli Me Tangere. He
denied the charges and explained that he merely exposed the truth but did not advocate subversion.
Pleased by his explanation and curious about the controversial book the Gov. Gen. asked for a copy and
since Rizal's life was in danger because the friars were powerful, he assigned a cultured Spanish
lieutenant named Don Jose Travel de Andrade as his bodyguard. The banning of the Noli made it more
popular; causing everybody among the masses to read the novel at night secretly. The Noli was also
attacked in the senate of the Spanish Cortes. However, it has great defenders who bravely came out to
prove the merits of the novel and to enlighten the unkind attackers.
 2. What insights did you learn from the Novel? (10pts.)
Noli Me Tangere, Rizal's novel, contains some of his most profound observations about the
political and social order. In his novels, he teaches about citizenship. Rizal's goal in creating the story was
to highlight the horrors and cruelties perpetrated against the Filipinos by the Spanish authority. Rizal
sought to show the world how the Spaniards disguised injustice in the guise of Catholicism through his
work. He wished for the Filipino people to become more aware of what was truly going on. In the novel,
Dona Consolacion and Dona Victorina's acts show that they despise their homeland and are
condescending of the Spanish way of life. They were born Filipinos who chose to hide their genuine
identities to advance in life. This implies that we Filipinos should not be ashamed of our identity rather
we must be proud of it. Another realization is the political system's inequity and the friars' unholiness. In
Noli Me Tangere, Rizal employed approaches to addressing reform in Noli Me Tangere. Noli me Tangere,
on the other hand, did not respond to the social Cancer, since it was not a solution to the issue The
answer is education. Ibarra put up a school since he believed that education would have paved the way
for his country's progress. And through Elias, a rebel character in his novel emphasized the importance
of the youth's learning of his past and not forgetting it, Rizal would not have joined the revolution if he
didn't want us to be educated. He saw freedom as something to be earned rather than something to be
granted.

3.  What lessons did you learn from the Novel? (10 pts.)
Noli me Tangere aims to enlighten the Filipinos on what is happening in the country. They want
the people to fight for their country and have total freedom. Rizal wrote this novel to mock the friars,
awaken the Filipinos to the persecution, and teach them how to fight. A lesson that can be learned from
the novel is to fight in a peaceful manner, not in a way or the use of weapons but rather the use of pen
and wisdom. What I also learned from Noli me Tangere is that it helps us influence our character better.
It implies to gave us awareness, for us to be able to recognize and know wrong things happening in our
society, especially in our government and learn to unify. It strengthens our spirit of nationalism in which
we will be doing everything for our country's freedom. It teaches us to be independent, to be
intellectual by knowing our rights as a Filipino and to not get abused by people who have a higher rank
or power. The Filipinos may not experience the injustices suffered under the Spaniards again, but they
may go through similar experiences in the future. It is essential to remember the past but not to delve
into the mistakes committed; but rather to learn from the lessons of the past.