NOLI ME TANGERE PUBLISHED IN BERLIN (1887)

IDEA OF WRITING THE NOVEL

Inspired by Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin

Proposed on Jan. 2, 1884 during the reunion of Filipinos in the Paterno Residence
It was unanimously approved by those present (The Paternos, Lopez-Jaena, de Lete, Llorente, Figueroa, Ventura)
Written by Rizal ALONE
WRITING OF THE NOLI

End of 1884 - Rizal began writing the Noli & finished 1/2 of it in Madrid
1885 - Rizal finished 1/2 of the second half of the novel in Berlin and the remaining fourth in Germany
April-June 1886 - Rizal wrote the last few chapters in Wilhelmsfeld
Sick and penniless, Rizal saw no hope of the novel getting published and almost hurled it into flames.

VIOLA, SAVIOR OF THE NOLI

Dr. Maximo Viola was shocked to see Rizal living in poverty.

Upon seeing his talented friend's predicament, Viola decided to load him ample fundsTo save printing expenses, Rizal
deleted some passages including one chapter
Feb. 21, 1887 - the novel was finally finished
Berliner Buchdruckrei-Action-Gesselschaft - printing shop which charged the lowest rate (300 pesos per 2000 copies)

RIZAL SUSPECTED AS A FRENCH SPY

During the printing of the Noli, the chief police of Berlin asked Rizal for a passport but was unable to provide one
Rizal was given 4 days to comply or else he will be deported
Rizal accompanied by Viola went to the Spanish embassy but the Spanish ambassador was not able to issue a passport
The police chief informed Rizal that he had received reports of him visiting villages in rural areas, and that he came from
Paris therefore arousing suspicion that he was a French spy.
During this time, there were strained relations between France and Germany
Rizal explained that he was a Filipino physician and scientist particularly an ethnologist which was the reason why he
visited rural areas to observe the lifestyles of simple inhabitants
Favorably fascinated by his explanation and mastery of the German language, the police chief allowed Rizal to stay freely
in Germany
PRINTING OF THE NOLI FINISHED

March 21, 1887 - the novel came out of the press

Rizal immediately sent the first copies to: Blumentritt, Dr. Regidor, Lopez-Jaena, M. Ponce, and F. R. Hidalgo
March 29, 1887 - Rizal in token and appreciation, gave Viola the galley of proofs of the novel

TITLE OF NOVEL AND AUTHOR'S DEDICATION

Noli Me Tangere came from the Latin phrase which means "Touch Me Not"
Taken from the Gospel of John (Chapter 20 Verses 13 to 17)
Dedicated to the Philippines ("To My Fatherland")
 SYNOPSIS OF THE NOLI

Contains 63 chapters and an epilogue

It all started at the reception of Capitan Tiago which was given in honor of Crisostomo Ibarra who had just returned after
7 years of studies in Europe.
The conversation centered on Ibarra's travels abroad which gave a favorable impression on the guests except Padre
Damaso, a fat Franciscan friar.

After dinner, one of the guests, Lieutenant Guevara told Ibarra about the sad story of his father, Don Rafael's death who
accidentally killed a Spanish tax collector after defending a helpless boy and was accused of heresy.
The following morning, Ibarra visited his childhood sweetheart Maria Clara and after which he went to his father's grave
on All Saint's Day.
The grave-digger told Ibarra that his father's corpse had been removed by order of the parish priest but because it was a
dark night, the grave-digger threw the corpse into the lake.
This angered Ibarra who took his frustrations out on Padre Salvi only to discover that the parish priest who ordered the
removal of the corpse was Padre Damaso.
In his town San Diego, he met Tasio the Philosopher who was nicknamed "The Lunatic" for no one could understand him
because his ideas were too advanced.
Tasio was a school teacher who complained to Ibarra that the children were losing interest in their studies because of
the lack of school house and the attitudes of the parish friars.
The most tragic story in the novel was about Sisa who became poor after marrying a gambler. She had two sons: Basilio
and Crispin who were both sextons working to support their mother.
Crispin the younger brother was accused by the chief sexton of stealing money and was tortured to death while Basilio
was able to escape.
When both boys did not return home, Sisa searched for them but to her great sorrow, she became insane.

Capitan Tiago, Maria Clara, and Aunt Isabel; after returning to San Diego were given a picnic by Ibarra, and one of the
guests was a boatman named Elias.
Later on, Ibarra received a telegram notifying him of the approval of his donation to the school house. Ibarra believed
that this could pave the way for his country's progress.
Meanwhile, San Diego celebrated its annual fiesta and while Ibarra and Maria Clara were praying, Elias whispered to
Ibarra that during the laying of the cornerstone of the school house, there was a plot to kill him.
Elias then suspected a yellowish man who built the derrick, was a paid stooge of one of Ibarra's enemies. When Ibarra
was tasked to trench the cement of the cornerstone, the derrick collapsed.

Elias, quick as a flash, pushed Ibarra aside, therefore saving his life. The yellowish man was the one crushed to death by
the derrick.
At the dinner later that night, the arrogant Damaso insulted the memory of Ibarra's father. Ibarra then jumped out of his
seat and threatened the fat friar with a sharp knife.
Ibarra would have killed Damaso had Maria Clara intervened which produced 2 results, his engagement to Maria Clara
was broken and he was excommunicated.
Ibarra's enemies then continued to bring him ruin by engineering a revolt by attacking the barracks of the Guardia Civil
where Ibarra was wrongly blamed for the catastrophe.
Elias, learning of Ibarra's arrest, burned all the papers that would incriminate him. He then helped him escape prison
during the wedding of Maria Clara and another man named Linares.
Ibarra would drop by Capitan Tiago's house to bid goodbye to Maria Clara and accuse her of betraying him. Maria Clara
explained that she gave up Ibarra's letters to the authorities in exchange of letters from her mother.
Within those letters, Maria Clara discovered that her real father was Padre Damaso.
After bidding farewell, Ibarra and Elias rode a banca and paddled by the Pasig River where a police boat with the Guardia
Civil pursued them.
Elias told Ibarra to hide under the zacate while he jumped into the water thereby diverting their attention to him while
allowing Ibarra to escape.
The soldiers fired at Elias who was hit and sank and as they witnessed the water turning red, they had mistakenly
assumed that they had killed Ibarra.
Elias who was wounded, reached the forest where he met Basilio who was weeping over his mother's death. Elias,
whose breath was slowly leaving him, told Basilio to burn both him and his mother's corpses.
The novel contained an epilogue which recounts what happened to the other characters. The novel ends when Maria
Clara stood at the convent and cursed the heavens for the fate it had handed her.

THE NOLI BASED ON THE TRUTH

Maria Clara - Leonor Rivera
Ibarra and Elias - Dr. Jose Rizal
Tasio the Philosopher - Paciano
Padre Salvi - Padre Antonio Piernavieja
Capitan Tiago - Capitan Hilario Sunico of San Nicolas
Dona Victorina - Dona Agustina Medel
Basilio and Crispin - Crisostomo Brothers of Hagonoy
Padre Damaso - a domineering friar who was arrogant, immoral, and anti-Filipino

MISSING CHAPTER OF THE NOLI

Entitled "Elias and Salome" which was supposedly Chapter 25 in the original manuscript
It was deleted by Rizal due to financial constraints.
The chapter talks about Salome wanting Elias to go with her to Mindoro only to be rejected because Elias doesn't want
Salome to be entangled with the troubles of his past.
However, Elias tells Salome to marry an honorable man whom she truly deserves to be happy with.

RIZAL'S FRIENDS PRAISE THE NOLI

As expected, it was condemned by Rizal's enemies

Among the friends who praised it was Ferdinand Blumentritt and Dr. Antonio Ma. Regidor: a Filipino patriot who was
exiled due to his complicity in the Cavite Mutiny of 1872