Noli Me Tangere

Noli Me Tangere is considered the masterpiece of Rizal and his most significant contribution to the Philippines and
the world. In this work, he was firm in his conviction about the distinction between the Spanish government and
Spanish religious order in the Philippines, which led to the suffering of the Filipinos to become an oppressed people.

This novel was finished on February 21, 1887, and published in Germany by the publishing house, Berliner
Buchdruckerei-Action-Gessellschaft. The book has 63 chapters, which Rizal wrote in different countries.

As Rizal was dealing with financial constraints, his friend Maximo Viola lent him Php. 300 to print the book (2,000
copies). Rizal feared that the novel might not be printed and that it would remain unread. He nearly threw the
manuscript in the fire. The original manuscript was then given to Viola as a token of appreciation.

Rizal entitled Noli Me Tangere from John 20:13–17, “Touch me not for I am not yet ascended to my Father.” An Eagle
Flight and The Social Cancer were used as titles in English translations (Summary of Noli Me Tangere, 2017).
However, these titles disregarded the symbolism of the title. Currently, modern translations use the original Latin title
(Symbols Used in Noli Me Tangere Essay - 481 Words, n.d.).
Noli Me Tangere and Les Miserables

Noli Me Tangere was the answer of Rizal to Victor Hugo’s famous novel, Les Miserables. Both books discussed the
issues of oppression, corruption, failed uprising, doomed heroines, persecution, and betrayals. As Les Miserables is
written in French, historians believe that Noli Me Tangere may have been a greater success if Rizal wrote the novel in
French. Sadly, Rizal’s command of the French language was not enough to write the novel in French.
Essential Characters in The Noli Me Tangere
1. Juan Crisostomo Ibarra y Magsalin – Crisostomo Ibarra was depicted as one of the Filipinos who managed to
finish his studies abroad. He was living abroad for seven years. Unlike his countrymen, he had a liberal mind and was
outspoken and idealistic.
Crisostomo Ibarra exemplified the vision that Jose Rizal had aimed for the youth of the Philippines during his time.
Others attribute Ibarra to Rizal’s reflection of himself (Rizal-Midterm-3.0.pptx-life works writings of Rizal, n.d.).

2. Maria Clara de los Santos – Maria Clara had eyes similar to her mother, with large black orbs and long lashes.
Her eyes also showed emotions openly. Her hair was light-colored, thick, curly, and was often ornated with flowers.
Her ears were small and were assumed to be inherited from her father, Capitan Tiago, and she had a straight nose.
She had dimples at the side of her mouth, and she had fair skin (Maria Clara, n.d.). Her character relates to Leonor
Rivera, who was Jose Rizal’s childhood sweetheart. Maria Clara played the piano and harp and had a sweet voice
which were the characteristics of Leonor. Maria was also portrayed as a good friend, faithful sweetheart, and an
obedient daughter which are characteristics of the ideal woman at that time. She never imposed what she wants
except when she refused to marry Linares (Maria Clara, n.d.).

3. Elias – Elias was a former boatman who became one of the most wanted criminals in San Diego. He distrusted
human judgment and preferred God’s justice instead. He was acquainted with the tulisanes and other crooks, which
he used to his advantage in discerning the troubles of the town.
Elias represented ordinary Filipinos that were aware of the injustices that their countrymen faced and wanted to
liberate them from the oppression. In addition, Elias is said to be the personification of Andres Bonifacio (Who are the
main characters in Noli Me Tangere?, 2020)

4. Sisa – Sisa (Narcisa) was a typical native wife. She endured her husband’s beatings and irresponsibility. Sisa was
described as a mother who considered her sons her only treasure. She would often anticipate when they would return
home as she would prepare their favorite dishes.
Sisa is thought to represent the motherland who was suffering because her character lost her children. The tragic
events that ruined her life represented the abuse that the motherland received from her colonizers.

5. Crispin – Crispin one of Sisa’s son. He was a sacristan who was accused of stealing two gold pieces by a senior
sacristan. Although he implored his older brother to pay the said amount, the latter refused as their mother would
have nothing to eat.
Crispin represented the innocents who had been wrongly accused of crimes they did not commit. The injustice they
suffered under the hands of the authorities during their time was silenced by their deaths and the cover-ups that
followed.
6. Basilio – He was Sisa’s 10-year-old son who was tasked to ring the Church bells to signal the Angelus. He faced
tragedy as he lost his younger brother and his mother descended into insanity. In the end of Noli Me Tangere, Basilio
was urged by Elias to bury and burn him in exchange for a chest of gold. Basilio plays a major role in El
Filibusterismo (Intellectual legacies in Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, n.d.).

7. Pilosopo Tasyo – Seeking reforms from the government, he expressed his ideas in a paper written in a
cryptographic alphabet similar to hieroglyphs and Coptic figures in hopes the future generation may be able to
decode it and know the oppression they faced at the hands of the conquerors (43842486-Character-Analysis -
CHARACTER ANALYSIS Character .... , n.d.).
Tasyo came from a wealthy family. He was often a pessimist and untrusting of human altruism. He also did not
believe in the religious fanaticism that was in vogue during his time.
Tasyo was one of the characters in the novel that Rizal could relate to as he was patterned after Rizal’s older brother,
Paciano Rizal.
Tasyo symbolized the educated Filipinos who had once embraced the culture of the Spanish regime. They eventually
became disenchanted when they returned to the Philippines and observed the stark contrast their countrymen
received from their colonizers. The more they turned to learn, the more they became eccentric to the masses they
seek to enlighten.

8. Padre Damaso Verdolagas – He was a Franciscan friar and the former parish curate of San Diego. He was best
known as a notorious character who spoke with harsh words and had been a cruel priest during his stay in the town.
He was the birth father of María Clara and an enemy of Crisóstomo’s father, Rafael Ibarra. He symbolized the
Spanish friars of Rizal's time and is a comment on the Spanish control of the Philippines.

9. Padre Salvi – He was a secret admirer of Maria Clara. In the later part of the story, he and Padre Damaso devised
a plan to break Ibarra and Maria Clara apart. He was also the head of the Church of San Diego and one of the most
influential people in the town.
He symbolized the lustful actions of some of the Spanish Friars in the Philippines.

10. Don Santiago de los Santos – Don Santiago de los Santos, also known by his nickname Tiago and political title
Capitán Tiago, was a Filipino businessman and the head of barangay of the town of San Diego. He was also the
known father of María Clara.
Capitan Tiago was a typical character during the time of Jose Rizal. He was a rich native-born Filipino who rubbed
elbows with the powers during that time.
He symbolized the rich Filipinos who oppressed their fellow countrymen in exchange for the influence and wealth that
they might gain from their associations with powerful individuals. (Capitan Tiago, n.d.)
Modern but Same Old Problems

In trying to find meaning and relevance between Rizal and the Filipinos 150 years after his birth, the problems are not
yet over. These problems were never gone; they have only been molecularly restructured into something barely
recognizable and generally acceptable. (Uckung, 2012)

History is a powerful tool for peace and progress because we can only justify social change by assessing history.
However, in discarding the lessons that come with history, one must be unapologetically critical. One must be similar
to Rizal.
The following are signs of a revived colonialism (Uckung, 2012):

1. Silencing of the critics – Critics are silenced when they are killed, similar to Rizal’s fate. This is also similar
to the disappearance of activists or broadcasters who were shot and buried in Cotabato.

2. Social strata – Rizal certainly never experienced facing a problem that is defined by what happens to the
stock market or banks. When the two financial entities face issues and begin to collapse, then this
phenomenon is called a crisis. When large financial institutions collapse, more often than not, they are bailed
out by the government through the taxpayer’s money. “The rich, then, get richer, and the poor get poorer”
(Uckung, 2012, para. 11).
 3. Exploitation of the labor force – Advancements in technology has supplied the Filipinos multiple kinds of
work and opportunities that require technical knowledge, which is knowledge that enables the use of
information and communication at an instant. This phenomenon created organizations the need many Filipino
call center agents that are knowledgeable with computers which give the impression that the country is
providing computer wizards, and the country is revolutionary in terms of labor employment. However, this is a
myth as in reality they are low skill, low wage, and nonunionized jobs.

4. Education – At present, there is a lack in the quality of public education as it mostly transmits knowledge that
is useful to existing society rarely lets students acquire critical thinking and transformative reaction.

5. Global Identity – Rizal was declared as the “national hero and protector of the Filipinos, but will he be
surprised with the program of globalization, which has the underlying assumption that nationalism and
protectionism are incompatible with social and economic development?” (Uckung, 2012, para. 15).

6. Inferiority Complex – People assume that Filipinos themselves are to be blamed for their sorry lot because
they are culturally inferior. Occasionally, this assumption is subtly accepted as encouraged by schools.

7. Language as a tool for oppression – Rizal knew that the colonizers needed to instill in the Filipinos a
negative attitude towards their own culture. Through promoting the idea that their culture was inferior, the
colonizers managed to encourage Filipinos to reject their culture.
Contemplate

Rizal’s reformatory approach to social change was to exercise influence and bring change within established
institutions rather than fighting institution head on, but it did not work. A different strategy was used during the
American regime as legislation and court litigation was used to secure constitutional rights. Later on, direct action
techniques, such as utilizing the potential power of the masses along political and economic lines, are used. An
example of these techniques was mass civil disobedience, which “would create the kind of social dislocation that
would bring attention and remedial actions from the government.” (Uckung, 2012, para. 18).

A hero is a social anomaly. If there is a need for heroes, it means that the government is ineffective in solving the
problems of society. For example, during Rizal’s time, the government was both supporting the problems that the
people faced and at the same time profiting from them.
In examining the Rizal’s accounts, especially his novels, “the reader will be pulled deeper into a different hidden plane
of philosophy that is unlike Rizal and more of the dark, brooding filibustero we have come to know as Simoun, whose
final purpose in life was to infiltrate the colonial authorities and spread the fire of revolution among his people”
(Uckung, 2012, para. 20).

People like Rizal are not favored by individuals and institutions who take advantage of people who are alienated or
impoverished and those who use and promote tactics that keep people submissive so that they may be easily
controlled.

These individuals would do anything in their power to stop Jose Rizal even long after his death. Due to his immense
popularity as a national hero, they cannot stop him, but they can control the impact of his legacy. If these institutions
successfully make Rizal insignificant, he would only be a subject taught in school that would eventually be forgotten
in the modern age.