Noli Me Tangere:

Continuing Relevance
 Vocabulary
Censorship Critique Sociology
the suppression of the an evaluation, analysis, or the social science dealing
release or publication of assessment of a literary, with the study of the
material deemed philosophical, or development, structures,
inpapropriate, obscene, scientific work and functioning of
politically human society
unnacceptable, or a
threat to security
Noli After Its First
Publication
- presently considered by many as a landmark
piece of literature
- Resil Mojares named Rizal as the father of the
Filipino novel
- the novel revolved around societal issues as
experienced in the Philippines under Spanish
colonial rule
 Critics of the Novel

Fray Salvador Font Vicente Barrantes

chair of the censorship ridiculed Rizal as a "man
commission of contradictions"
 Defenders of the Novel

Marcelo H. del Pilar Vicente Barrantes

wrote essays in reponse an academic who
to critics of the Noli expressed support for the
novel
Translations of the Novel
- one of the earliest translations of the novel was
done in French
- early attempts to translate the novel into German
(by Blumentritt) and Tagalog (by Paciano)
- during American colonial period, several traditions
and editions came out
- English translations of Charles Derbyshire (most
circulated versions)
- by 1930s, Noli had several Spanish editions,
translations into English, French, Japanese, and
several languages in the Philippines
- the Rizal Law indicated the relevance of the
text in the 1950s and even beyond, prompting
scholars to delve into the politics of translation
and the intricacies of adapting the text into
various forms
- Testa De Ocampo points out how seldom
Filipinos read it in the original Spanish
- versions and translations of the Noli did not go
without scrutiny from academics like Benedict
Anderson
- the value of Rizal's novel is definitely felt in
the Philippines
Noli and the Study of a Colonial Society

Sociologist Syed Fareed Alatas

described Rizal as "probably the first
systematic social thinker in Southeast Asia"
- Noli makes an important contribution to the
understanding of a colonial society and of the workings
of the Spanish empire in the Philippines.

- Noli is Rizal's diagnosis of the ills of colonial society as

he assessed the role played by the church, the state,
and the people.
- He emphasized the importance of education as a
powerful tool to achieve progress.
- He exposed the complexities and constraints wrought
by the colonial condition.
- He also emphasized the good qualities of the
Filipinos.