Implications of Noli Me Tangere both to the Filipino People and to thePhilippine Society

Throughout the Philippine literature, one of the famous novels that had beenthe center of interest both
in the past and in the present is the Noli Me Tangere. Formore than a millennium since it made its first
appearance, it has become widely knownas a great novel because of how it accurately depicted the
situation of the state of thePhilippines during the Spanish colonialism. A novel written by the proclaimed
national hero of the Philippines and the first Asian nationalist, Dr. Jose Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso
Realonda or simply justDr. Jose Rizal aimed to inspire the Filipinos to wake up and realize what the
realsituation of our beloved country was when we were under the authority of theSpaniards. His strong
love for the Philippines and for its people made him write thenovel with the intent of exposing

The Spanish colonial abuse that’s

Happening throughout the country. Gathering all his past experiences even when he was still a student
such associal discrimination, brutal actions and unfair social treatments, Rizal emphasized adevastating
critical analysis in the Noli Me Tangere. Truly, it had a great significance

In obtaining Rizal’s vision of em

Powering the country, in which later turned into wanting total independence (Francia, 2009).During his
lifetime, Dr. Jose Rizal has acquired wide range of knowledge indifferent disciplines. He is also
considered as one of the most well-known advocatefor reforms in the country during the Spanish
colonization. Even at a very early age,Rizal had already begun to understood what was happening all
over the country. At

The age of eight, he began to write his first poem entitled “Sa Aking Kabata” because

He wanted to express his very own ideals of nationalistic sentiments. Eventually, whenRizal was studying
in the Central University of Madrid, he started to write sociallyrelated literary works, and one of it is his
Noli Me Tangere (Reyno, 2012).The novel Noli Me Tangere is a Spanish novel written in Madrid, Spain
startingin 1884 while Rizal was studying for medicine. It was later published in 1897 in Berlin,

Germany. One of ideas that served as Rizal’s inspiration in writing the famous novel

Came from another novel entitled

“Uncle Tom’s Cabin”

By Harriet Beecher Stowe. Justlike in the novel how

“Uncle Tom’s Cabin”

Which promotes anti-slavery and anti-discrimination, Rizal wanted to expose the abusive actions of the
Spanish governmentand put a stop to the miserable condition of the country (Mañebog, 2013).Indeed,

Noli Me Tangere portrays Rizal’s deepest feelings and insights which

He had been carrying together with personal anguish, griefs, and political afflictions.He wrote it in order
for the Spanish government to realize its own actions and providebetter treatment towards the indios.
According to the article from The Manila Times that was written by Michael

“Xiao” Chua,

The fact that he wrote the novel in Spanish and not in Tagalog or anyFilipino language means that the
novel was not meant for us Filipinos to be its targetaudience, but rather he wanted to the Spanish
government to read it, hoping that theymay reflect on their actions and bestow the indios equal rights
and equal standing in the society.His primary intentions of writing the first book can be found in one of
his letter

To a friend Resurreccion Hidalgo saying “

I have endeavored to answer the calumnies

BANGAY, PRINCE KENNETH G. PI 100 | C-2 | T THGRADUATING STUDENT 10:00 AM

11:30 AM

Which for centuries had been heaped on us and our country; I have described thesocial condition, the
life, our beliefs, our hopes, our desires, our grievances, our griefs;I have unmasked hypocrisy which,
under the guise of religion, came to impoverish andto brutalize us.

However, as we know, the S

Panish government failed to meet Rizal’s

Expectations. Rizal then realized that his dream for the country may not be achievablewith the kind of
government they have. Knowing this, he changed his plans andresorted to revolution and total
independence against the authority of the Spaniards(mindanaofilmsmil, 2017).For us to fully grasp the
main idea of why Rizal wrote Noli Me Tangere, we mustexamine the different implications of the novel
to the Filipino people and to thePhilippine society both in the past and present.In the early times of the
Spanish era before the start of the Philippine revolution,Noli Me Tangere played a crucial role in
convincing the Filipino people to stand upagainst the abusive Spanish government. He found a way,
through his literary works,to lit the fire within the hearts of the people in the country. His book became
a catalystof social awakening for the people to desire for freedom and independence(mindanaofilmsmil,
2017). One of the things that made the book to be able have agreat impact on its audience, especially to
the indios, is that Rizal wrote it in a way thatmost of the people can relate to the story based on their
experiences from their dailyliving in the society. According to an article from Driftwood Journeys,

Rizal’s novel provides

Anaccurate depiction of the classical Filipino culture through the use of its characters.
BANGAY, PRINCE KENNETH G. PI 100 | C-2 | T THGRADUATING STUDENT 10:00 AM

11:30 AMOne of which is the protagonist Juan Crisostomo Ibarra. He represents most of theFilipinos
who has a liberal mind, outspoken and idealistic principles. Another is MariaClara, the symbol of every
Filipina women and can be seen as caring, loving, andloyal. On the other hand, his father Padre Damaso
was portrayed as a priest who did not have any self-control and were unable to resist the temptation of
worldly desires.In other words, Padre Damaso is one of those traitorous people who chose to beblinded
by their desire of wealth and power.Though the story and the characters are fictional and made up,
however, thedire situation they experienced, injustice, abuse of power, sufferings anddiscrimination
among the lower class people in the novel represented exactly theformer state of the Philippines under
the power of the Spaniards (mindanaofilmsmil,2017). After of which Rizal had finished writing the novel,
he was very eager to publishit. Though one of the biggest problem is the money, he found a way
reproduce thebook through the help of his friend Maximo Viola who lent him a total amount of Php300
to print 2,000 copies (Dumlao & Reyes, 1960). According to an article from Driftwood Journeys, Noli Me
Tangere is one of

Rizal’s biggest milestone in his life. He knew that his work will be ground

-breaking,and will serve as a key to open new paths, ideas, and solutions to the problems of the

Country. According to his letter to Ferdinand Blumentritt. “

The novel is the first impartialand bold account of the life of the Tagalogs. The Filipinos will find in it the
history of the last ten years.

” He knew that his novel will continue t

O influence the Philippinesociety for several years.

BANGAY, PRINCE KENNETH G. PI 100 | C-2 | T THGRADUATING STUDENT 10:00 AM

11:30 AMHowever, knowing its content and how the story was depicted, Rizal probablywould have
expected that his book will not be welcomed in the Philippines. After thefriars, priest, and other leaders
had evaluated the novel, it was banned in most partsof the country. His novel indirectly attacks the
church and the government. The leaders

Were anxious that Rizal’s work may encourage the Filipinos to revolt against the

Spanish government. Though it was blocked by the Spanish authorities, some copieshad circulated
around the country and made its way to the Filipino people.Despite of the results, Rizal somewhat
achieved his mission, though his originalintention were only reforms for the betterment of the Philippine
society. The circulationof the book made a spark in the heart of the people who had been suffering from
thecruel hands of their abusive leaders (mindanaofilmsmil, 2017).Rizal made the Noli Me Tangere not
only to serve as a catalyst for socialawakening, but also for us to realize our own flaws and weaknesses.
According to Ma.Cielito Reyno, Rizal probably observed that in spite of suffering maltreatment
andinjustice, most of the people were afraid of voicing out their opinions since, given thekind of system
they have, it might be considered as an act of protesting against thefriars or the government. The lack of
education of the people, which is only a privilegeduring that era, kept the people in the dark about their
rights. It made them like amachine, being too submissive and ignorant to the point of being ashamed of
theirown proud heritage that existed even before the arrival of the Spaniards.The novel brought us
enlightenment and showed us the naked truth of oursociety. It unmasked the hypocrisy, corruption, and
tyranny that hides under the cloakof religion that made us slaves in our own beloved fatherland.

Now that we’ve been

Scribd

Trusted by over 1 million members

Try Scribd FREE for 30 days to access over 125 million titles without ads or interruptions!

Start Free Trial

Cancel Anytime.

BANGAY, PRINCE KENNETH G. PI 100 | C-2 | T THGRADUATING STUDENT 10:00 AM

11:30 AMfreed from the shackles of abuse, injustice, and discrimination, that is through the effortof our
ancestors who fought in order to achieve all we experience right now, is Noli Me

Tangere still relevant to today’s society now that we’ve managed to accom

Plishfreedom?

Yes, absolutely it is. Today’s era is ver

Y different from what had been describedin books during the Spanish period. We have the freedom to
voice out our opinions,free to anything, etc. Though its notable that our current society have changed a
lot ina positive way, there are still problems that slows down our progress as a country suchas political
conflicts, lack of education, corruption, etc

. This Is where the Rizal’s novel

Comes in. We might not notice but based on facts mentioned before, history repeatsitself. We are still
facing the same problems. History itself should be a lesson to us notto repeat the mistakes we did
before. Our own faults may lead to our own downfall,which is why through his literary works, Rizal
wanted to teach us to be courageous atall times. The courage to follow the deeds of Dr. Jose Rizal is one
of the most important

Legacies of Noli Me Tangere in today’s generation. It makes us overcome our fears

And suppress the cowardice the reigns within us. Courage wa

S not just seen in Rizal’s

Works but in his life as well (Raga, 2008).Though Rizal wanted to have total independence for the
country, he wanted to

Do it in a peaceful way. Rizal would’ve been proud of the P

Hilippines if he witnessedthe EDSA I, EDSA II revolution. During these times, the Philippines stood as one
andthousands of people gathered in the EDSA to put a stop to the tyranny of formerpresident Ferdinand
E. Marcos. This is what he wanted to happen in the futuregenerations, to muster up the courage and if
possible, fight a peaceful battle. Just as

What an old priest said to Juan Crisostomo Ibarra in Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere,

BANGAY, PRINCE KENNETH G. PI 100 | C-2 | T THGRADUATING STUDENT 10:00 AM

11:30 AM

Knowledge is the heritage of mankind, but only the courageous inherit it.

” It is

Important for us to understand, especially to the youth of the country, that courage canbring change
ourselves and to the society, and only those who are brave can do it(Raga, 2008).Noli Me Tangere was
really an effective strategy of Dr. Jose Rizal to instill thelove for our own country, to have a deep sense of
gratitude to the society, to have asense nationalism, and to have the courage to fight for all of those
things. It is an eye-opener, a tool to spread social awareness, and to fight for our own rights as people
ofthe country. It is a book that does not aim for temporary solutions but strives for longerones.Both in
the past and present, the novel unified the Filipino people in order toforge our own national identity.
According to an article from the Driftwood Journeys,

Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere had brought us to “an overall systematic, and a totally

Irretraceable caricature of a colonial Philippine

Society”.

We, as citizens of the country,should not forget the heroic deeds that Rizal died for, to continue the fight
the hestarted and to continue to nurture the courage he planted in our hearts. With this, wecan
continuously move towards a better future.
BANGAY, PRINCE KENNETH G. PI 100 | C-2 | T THGRADUATING STUDENT 10:00 AM

11:30 AM

Works Cited:

Dumlao, R. R., & Reyes, A. D. (1960). RIZAL, MARTYR AND HERO.Francia, L. H. (n.d.). Noli Me Tangere
(Touch Me Not) by Jose Rizal – Reading Guide -PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books. Retrieved May 17,
2019, fromhttps://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/291131/noli-me-tangere-touch-me-not-by-
jose-rizal/9780143039693/readers-guide/Mañebog, J. D. (2013, July 27). The Noli Me Tangere. Retrieved
May 17, 2019, fromhttps://ourhappyschool.com/literature/noli-me-tangereMindanaofilmsmil. (2017,
February 24). A Content Analysis of Noli Me Tangere,focusing on Filipino Nationalism/ Corruption : “The
Philippines Journey toMetamorphosis”. Retrieved May 17, 2019,
fromhttps://mindanaofilmsmil.wordpress.com/2017/02/24/the-philippines-journey-to-
metamorphosis/Noli Me Tangere: The Catalyst of Social Awakening among Filipinos. (2017, March
14).Retrieved May 17, 2019, from http://driftwoodjourneys.com/noli-me-tangere-the-catalyst-of-social-
awakening-among-filipinos/Reyno, H. (2012, September 19). For Love of Country. Retrieved May 17,
2019, fromhttp://nhcp.gov.ph/for-love-of-country/

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Share on Facebook, opens a new windowShare on Twitter, opens a new windowShare on LinkedIn,
opens a new windowShare with Email, opens mail clientCopy Text

Footer menu

Back to top

About

About Scribd

Press

Our blog

Join our team!

Contact us

Invite friends
Gifts

Scribd for enterprise

Legal

Terms

Privacy

Copyright

Cookie Preferences

Support

Help / FAQ

Accessibility

Purchase help

AdChoices

Publishers

Social

Instagram

Instagram

Twitter

Twitter

Facebook

Facebook

Pinterest

Pinterest

Get our free apps

Books

Audiobooks

Magazines

Podcasts

Sheet Music
Documents

Snapshots

Language:

English

Copyright © 2022 Scribd Inc.

Quick navigation

Home

Books

Audiobooks