Reporters: Marc Jhastin Banez Subject: Life and Works of Rizal

Chin-Chin S. Mercado Course & Section: BSTM 2-Annex

CHAPTER VII: EL FILIBUSTERISMO

Topics to be discussed in Chapter VIII: El Filibusterismo

 The Writing and Printing of Fili
 Filibustero and GOMBURZA
 Themes of Fili
 Noli vs. Fili
 Noli and Fili Stolen
 The Novels’ Legacy

EL FILIBUSTERISMO
 El Filibusterismo is Jose Rizal's second novel written as the sequel to his Noli Me
Tangere. Commonly nicknamed El Fili or simply Fili, the novel was written also in
Spanish. Its commonly known English alternative title is The Reign of Greed.
 It took three years to finish this novel and It consists of 28 chapters.
 In October 1887, he began writing it in Calamba.
 1888 in London, he made some changes in the plot and revised the chapter
already written.
 He continues writing it in Paris, Madrid, and
 Biarritz.
 March 29, 1981, Rizal finished the manuscript in Biarritz.
 Rizal left Paris for Brussels

PRIVATIONS IN GHENT
 Rizal left Brussels for Ghent on the date of July 5, 1981.
Reasons (Ghent):
1. The cost of living is lower
2. The price of printing is much cheaper than in Brussels.
3. To escape the enticing attraction of Petite Suzzane.
 Owing to his funds, Rizal lived in a cheap boarding house with Jose Alejandrino as
his roommate
 PRINTING OF EL FILIBUSTERISMO
 Rizal searched for a printing shop that could give him the lowest quotation for
publishing his novel
 He did find a publication- F. Meyer Van Loo Press, No. 66 Viandeeren Street who
was willing to print his book in an installment basis.
 He pawned his jewels in order to pay the down payment
 Rizal became desperate running because his funds are running low.
 He received money from Basa and P200 from Rodriguez Arias for the copies of
Morga's Sucesos sold in manila but these funds were also used up.
Valentin Ventura (The Savior of Fili)
Rizal's friend learned of Rizal's predicament and immediately offered him the
necessary funds - with his financial aid, the printing of El Fili was resumed.

FILIBUSTERO AND GOMBURZA

FILIBUSTERO
The novel's title came from the word "filibustero". It can be rendered in modern
terms as "sedition," which is speech or conduct that incites people to rebel against the
authority of a state. Or contextually means revolutionary.
Rizal explained:
"The word filibustero is little known in the Philippines. I heard it for the first time in
1872 when the tragic executions [of the Gomburza] took place. I still remember the panic
that this word created. Our father forbade us to utter it, as well as the words Cavite,
Burgos (one of the executed priests), etc. The Manila newspapers and the Spaniards
apply this word to one whom they want to make a revolutionary suspect. The Filipinos
belonging to the educated class fear the reach of the word. It means a dangerous patriot
who will soon be hanged or well, a presumptuous man."

STORY OF THE GOMBURZA

Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora are the ones who headed the
secularization movement which alleviated the plight of Filipino priests by insisting on the
prior right of the native secular clergy to assignment in parishes over that of the friars
newly arrived from Spain
The three priests earned the ire of the Spanish and were called filibusteros.
 EXECUTION OF GOMBURZA
On February 17, 1872, at Bagumbayan (Luzon) three Native Catholic priests, was
publicly executed, by garrote. The Spaniards charged the priests with treason and
sedition in connection with the uprising of the 1872 Cavite Mutiny.

DEDICATION OF EL FILIBUSTERISMO
Rizal dedicated El Filibusterismo to the three martyred priests in Cavite’s mutiny.
The execution of the three priests was significant in the title of the novel.

THEME OF EL FILI
 A continuation of his novel, Noli Me Tangere.
 This novel, El Filibusterismo exposes the real picture of Filipino society at the
hands of the Spanish authorities.
In this sequel, the Socio-political issues are also dealt with and mentioned:
-The abuses of the hypocrisy of the members of the Spanish Catholic clergy.
-Superstitions disguising as religious faith.
- The need for reform in the educational system.
- The exploitation and corruption of government officials.
- And the pretenses of some social-climbing Filipinos and Spaniards
What makes El Fili essentially different from its prequel?
El Fili offers various means of attaining social reform and somewhat hinted what
the author believed was ideal. Some dialogues and incidents seem to suggest the
apparent improbability of any radical socio-political change. The main character's
persistence to push through with the rebellion, on the other hand, seems to suggest that
independence is attainable through revolution. However, the closing chapters rather
insinuate that freedom must be attained without bloodshed as the story ends with the
failure of Simoun's planned uprising.
 NOLI ME TANGERE VS. ELFILIBUSTERISMO
NOLI ME TANGERE
 Describes resurgence in thought long dead
 Published in Berlin, German
 Work of the heart
 Book of feeling
 It has; freshness, colour, humor, lightness, wit, soft, spoken, patient,
compassionate, and idealistic.
 Romantic Novel with 64 chapters.
 Dedicated to Fatherland
 Maximo viola; savior of Noli Me Tangere
 A story about the love and romance of Crisostomo Ibarra & Maria Clara.
 It discusses the different diseases that the Philippines experienced during the
Spanish era like colonial mentality and the unjust treatment of the friars to the
Indios.
 Society is encouraged to ask and aspire for change and liberation.
 In Noli, Rizal reveals the cruelty and exploitation suffered by the natives at the
hands of colonizers.
ELFILIBUSTERISMO
 Describes the pain of society today.
 Published in Gent, Belgium
 Work of the mind
 Book of though
 Contains; bitterness, hatred, agony, violence, sorrow, anger, and vengeful
 Political Novel with 38 chapters
 Dedicated to GOMBURZ
 Valentin Ventura; savior of El Filibusterismo
 Is a darker and more evolved novel compared to Noli It's taken a deeper tum and
it shows Rizal's growth as a writer. This turned out to be a double-edged sword.
 El Fili, Rizal depicts society at the brink of rebellion as the natives' minds have
been awakened and revolutionary forces have been formed.

NOLI ME TANGERE & EL FILIBUSTERISMO STOLEN

The original manuscript to Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo and his poem Mi
Ultimo Adios aka my last farewell which he wrote on the eve of his execution were
reported missing on the morning of Dec. 8, 1961 from the National Library. Left at the
scene of the crime was a right rubber glove.
 On December 15, 1961, a ransom note is received at Manila times that consist of
letters cut out of newspapers and magazines pasted on bond paper.
The robbers demanded 1.4 million pesos for the return of the original texts, or else
Rizal’s handiworks would be burned.
February 1, 1962, the national library received a package containing the broken
and empty frame that once held results on Mi Ultimo Adios as proof that they were not
bluffing.
Recovered by the Education Secretary Alejandro "Anding" R. Roces. The thief was
later on identified as Nilo Cabrido y Deza.
The return of the Rizal manuscripts resulted in restrictions on access that did not
prevent a bigger theft at the National Library in the 1990s.

THE NOVELS LEGACY

Many consider the two novels as Rizals most notable socio-political works and as
catalysts for inculcating social realism in the peoples’ consciousness and mindset
These novels influence the revolution led by the Katipunan as they inspired Andres
Bonifacio and the other revolutionaries in their cause.
The Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo had been translated into various
languages like Filipino, English, German, French, Chinese, and some other Philippine
languages. The two novels are historically significant, for fearlessly depicting the
corruptions and abuses by the Spanish clergy and the colonial government during the
Spanish regime in the Philippines.
These are also essential sources of sociological and anthropological studies, the
books provide rich insights into the culture of the 19th to 20th century Philippines
They also show favorable positive traits of the natives then. Their explicit portrayal
of what the locals really wished for their country
Instrumental in forming the Filipinos’ sense of national identity.