1. Who is the character you strongly identify with or want to analyze?

The character that I want to analyze is Maria Clara as I was interested on how her
character is shielded by mysteries and controversies.

2. What is his/her description?

Maria Clara is the primary female character in Noli Me Tangere. She is a well-respected woman
who is believed to be the daughter of Captain Tiago and the goddaughter of Father Damaso. In
reality, she is Father Damaso’s biological daughter. She was the offspring of the scandalous
affair between the old priest and the captain's wife.

This beautiful young lady is the girlfriend of Crisostomo Ibarra. Leonor Rivera, who was Jose
Rizal’s childhood sweetheart, served as an inspiration for her character. Maria Clara is
portrayed as a trustworthy young woman, one who is both a loyal friend and a respectful
daughter.
During that era in the Philippines, Maria Clara exemplified the qualities that should have been
present in an ideal lady. Rizal wanted to make the point that the society of that time period
valued obedience, therefore he chose to focus on her exemplary display of that quality.

3. What do you think of his/her character?

I think Maria Clara’s character exemplifies the purity and innocence of a sheltered native woman
during the time of Spanish occupation. Based on the novel, she is also very kind and
considerate, and notices people whom others don't, just like when she was the only person who
noticed Elias during the fishing excursion. She is the most dominant yet weakest representation
of women in the setting. Nonetheless, Maria Clara's portrayal embodies the ideal Filipina who is
loving and steadfast in their devotion to their respective spouses.

Maria Clara, Ibarra’s fiancée, stands for the powerless Filipina then. She also represents the
innocent Filipinos who were produced by Catholic priests’ illicit affairs.

In the novels, María Clara is described as a devout Roman Catholic who became the
epitome of virtue, "demure and self-effacing,” humorless and prone to fainting. Her traits
were further described by Rizal as an "Oriental decoration" with "downcast" eyes and a
"pure soul".
4. If you will see him/her in the present times, what would he/she look like? What would be
his/her behavior?
If I’ll see Maria Clara in the present times I think she will be one of the girls who are estimable
and gorgeous. I think that her eyes are large and black which showed emotions openly. A curly,
almost blond hair, a telltale sign of her true parentage. Her small mouth had dimples at the sides
and was a literary prototype of the fair-skinned mestiza beauty. Her behavior would be ladylike,
charming, responsible, respectful, kind, and sweet.

shy, demure, modest, self-effacing, and loyal to the end.

, and
was a strong Filipina character because of how she endured despite being portrayed as prim
and delicate

Maria Clara had eyes like her mother. Its large black orbs were large, Her thick light-colored hair
had curls and often strewn with fragrant flowers. Her small shapely ears were assumed to be
from her father, Capitan Tiago, and her straight nose was just right. her fair skin was as fine as
onion skins.

Maria Clara often wore dainty dresses and religious artifacts (such as rosaries and a locket that
contained a sliver from St Peter's boat). She also carries a silk pouch which holds Ibarra's
farewell letter. She sometimes carries a fan which she uses to hide her face when embarrassed.
Maria Clara is the primary female character in Noli Me Tangere. She is a well-respected woman
who is believed to be the daughter of Captain Tiago and the goddaughter of Father Damaso. In
reality, she is Father Damaso’s biological daughter. She was born as a result of a scandalous
affair that took place between the elderly priest and the captain’s wife.
This beautiful young lady is the girlfriend of Crisostomo Ibarra. Leonor Rivera, who was Jose
Rizal’s childhood sweetheart, served as an inspiration for her character. Maria Clara is
portrayed as a trustworthy young woman, one who is both a loyal friend and a respectful
daughter.
During that era in the Philippines, Maria Clara exemplified the qualities that should have been
present in an ideal lady. Rizal wanted to make the point that the society of that time period
valued obedience, therefore he chose to focus on her exemplary display of that quality.
Even though she was loved and cared for by everyone her whole life, Maria Clara never lost her
childlike innocence. She also shows her love for Ibarra in the most unassuming way possible,
preventing her thoughts from becoming tainted with anything unworthy. She exemplifies the
virtue and innocence of a Filipina who has lived a sheltered life.

María Clara in the novel. She is the daughter of Capitán Tiago and Doña Pía Alba. Doña Pía
died while delivering Maria Clara. The poor child grew under the guidance and supervision of
Tíya Isabél, Capitán Tiago's cousin.

María Clara is known to be Ibarra's lover since childhood. When Ibarra was away in Europe,
Capitán Tiago sent Maria Clara to the Beaterio de Santa Clara where she developed into a
lovely woman under the strict guidance of the religious nuns.

Later in the novel, María Clara discovers that her biological father is not Capitán Tiago, but San
Diego's former curate and her godfather Padre Dámaso. After hearing about Ibarra's death, she
persuaded Padre Damaso to let her be endorsed into a nunnery. Padre Damaso wouldn't let her
at first but finally relented for fear that Maria Clara might take her own life. She remained in the
nunnery and died before Ibarra (Simoun in El Fili) could rescue her.

Although raised as the daughter of Captain Santiago "Kapitán Tiyago" de Los Santos and his
wife Doña Pía Alba, who are both native Filipinos, María Clara is revealed to have been the
illegitimate daughter of Padre Dámaso, a Spanish friar, who coerced Doña Pía into illicit sexual
relations.