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THE THE TITLE
The title, in Latin
meaning Touch me not,
refer to John 20:17 in
the Bible (KJV) as Mary
Magdalene tried to
touch the newly risen
Jesus, He said “Touch
me not; I am not yet
ascended to my Father
 BACKGROUND

• Jose Rizal preferred that the prospective

novel expresses the backward, anti-progress
and anti intellectual way Filipino culture was.
• In a reunion of Filipinos at the house of his
friend Pedro A. Paterno in Madrid on 2
January 1884, Rizal proposed the writing of a
novel about the Philippines written by a group
of Filipinos.
• His proposal was unanimously approved by
the Filipinos present at the time, among
whom were Pedro, Maximino Viola and
Antonio Paterno, Graciano López Jaena,
Evaristo Aguirre, Eduardo de Lete, Julio
Llorente and Valentin Ventura.
 PUBLICATION
• Rizal finished the novel in December
1886
• Rizal feared the novel might not be
printed, and that it would remain
unread.
• A financial aid came from a friend
named Maximo Viola which helped him
print his book at a fine print media in
Berlin named Berliner Buchdruckerei-
Aktiengesellschaft.
• Noli Me Tangere was written in Spanish
and was published in 1887 in Berlin.
The first publication was in Spanish
and there was an initial 2,000 copies.
• The first Philippine edition (and the
second published edition) was finally
printed in 1899 in Manila by Chofre y
Compania in Escolta.
 NOLI ME TANGERE CHARACTERS
• Noli Me Tangere is set during the 19th
century in the Philippines. Sectors of
the society were represented as the
novel progresses. The abusive clergy
was represented by Padre Damaso and
Padre Salvi, the wealthy meztizo by
the protagonist Crisostomo Ibarra;
meanwhile the wealthy Indio was
represented by Capitan Tiago. As
such, the novel offers a
straightforward analysis of Philippine
society under Spanish rule.
MAJOR CHARACTERS

o Crisostomo Ibarra
o Maria Clara
o Kapitan Tiago
o Padre Damaso
o Elias
o Pilosopo Tasio
o Donya Victorina
o Sisa, Crispin , and Basilio
 SUMMARY
The young and idealistic Juan Crisostomo
Ibarra returns home after seven years in
Europe. The wealthy meztizo, like his
father Don Rafael endeavors for reform
primarily in the area of education in order
to eliminate poverty and improve the lives
of his countrymen. Upon learning about his
father’s demise and the denial of a Catholic
burial for his father Ibarra was provoked to
hit Padre Damaso which eventually lead to
his excommunication. The
excommunication was later rescinded upon
the intervention of the Governor General.
Padre Salvi, Ibarra’s mortal enemy
accused Ibarra of insurrection. Ibarra’s
letter to his beloved Maria Clara was
used against him. Later in the story,
Maria Clara will tell Ibarra that she did
not conspire to indict him. She was
compelled to give Ibarra’s letter in
exchange for the letters of her mother
before she was born. Maria Clara found
out that the letters of her mother were
addressed to Padre Damaso about their
unborn child which means that she is
the biological daughter of the priest and
not of her father, Capitan Tiago.
Meanwhile, Ibarra was able to escape
the prison with Elias, who also
experienced injustice with the
authorities. Ibarra was able to speak
with Maria Clara about the letters and
thereafter forgave her. Ibarra and Elias
flee to the lake and were chased by the
Guardia Civil. One was shot and the
other survives. Upon hearing the news,
Maria Clara believed that Ibarra was
dead; she entered the nunnery instead
of marrying Alfonso Linares.
The fatally wounded Elias found the child
Basilio and his dead mother Sisa. The latter
was driven to insanity when she learned that
her children were implicated for theft by the
sacristan mayor. Elias instructed Basilio to
dig for his and Sisa’s graves and there is a
buried treasure which he can use for his
education.
Noli Me Tangere brilliantly described
Philippine society with its memorable
characters. The melancholic fate of Maria
Clara and the insanity of Sisa characterized
the country’s pitiful state, which was once
beautiful, turned miserable. Reading Noli Me
Tangere will open one’s mind about
oppression and tyranny.
 INFLUENCE ON FILIPINO NATIONALISM
• Rizal depicted nationality by
emphasizing the positive qualities of
Filipinos.
• The work was instrumental in creating
a unified Filipino national identity and
consciousness
• Two characters in particular have
become classics in Filipino culture:
Maria Clara and priest Father Damaso.
• The book indirectly influenced the
Philippine Revolution of independence
from the Spanish Empire, even though
Rizal actually advocated direct
representation to the Spanish government
and an overall larger role for the
Philippines within Spain's political affairs.
• In 1956, Congress passed Republic Act
1425, more popularly known as the Rizal
Law
THANK YOU!!