C.

The Noli Me Tangere

In 1887, Jose Rizal’s priceless novel, “Noli Me Tangere” was published. His literary fame
was even more illuminated by this and his life started to be threatened since most of the contents of
this novel reflected the realities of the Spanish colonial government in the Philippines unseen from
the rest of the world.

Rizal was definitely a great novelist due to the publication and wide readership of his two
great novels: the Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. The novel, Noli Me Tangere, which was
originally written in Spanish, has other translations:
Noli Me Tangere is a novel written in Spanish by Filipino writer and national hero José
Rizal, first published in 1887 in Berlin, Germany. Early English translations used titles like An Eagle
Flight and The Social Cancer, but more recent translations have been published using the original
Latin title. Though written originally in Spanish, it is more commonly published and read in the
Philippines in either English and Filipino. Together with its sequel (El Filibusterismo), the reading
of Noli is obligatory for High School Students all throughout the archipelago. In 2006, Penguin
Classics published a new translation of the Noli Me Tangere, translated by Harold Augenbraum.
This makes Noli the first Philippine Classic to be circulated by the company (from wikipedia).

1. Introduction

Rizal's Noli Me Tangere, according to many historians and academicians, may have been
greatly influenced by his reading of the book, “Uncle Tom's Cabin” by Harriet Beecher Stowe, which
relates to the White and Black Americans' struggles. It is also a common belief that this novel was
contemplated to be a collaborative work by the propagandists in Europe but the others had failed in
their tasks and so Rizal had undertaken this great work alone.

Noli Me Tangere is a Latin statement which may be roughly translated in modern English as,
“Do not touch me”. This could be found in the Bible, John 20:17. This passage from the Bible could
be reflected in the idea that Rizal was very critical in the choice of the title of this masterpiece. The
novel contains various realities: political, economic, social and cultural, in the Philippines which were
evident in the 19th century. The author depicted sensitive events and radical views which nobody at
that time dared to delve into.

The condition of the country was very chaotic and liberal ideas of equality, liberty and
brotherhood were not yet accepted as ideologies but were seen as statements of rebellion and
insubordination. This novel was translated by Charles Derbyshire (1912) with the title, “The Social
Cancer” and as is contained in the introduction of the Noli in many books, this novel was dedicated
to the Filipino people.
2. Summary1

Crisostomo Ibarra is the heir of a wealthy clan. He returns to the Philippines after studying
for seven years abroad. He hears news/gossip about the death of his father, Don Rafael Ibarra. Don
Rafael was sent to prison in connection with the death of a tax collector. Since Don Rafael stopped
receiving Holy Communion for a long time, he was refused a Catholic/Christian burial by Padre
Damaso, the parish priest of their town.
Crisostomo, the main character, (let's just call him Ibarra from hereon) sees the lack of
progress in his town and decides to build a school to teach and prepare his townspeople. Pilosopong
Tacio (the old philosopher) notes that there have been many attempts to build a school in the past,
but all these had failed. Padre Salvi opposes the plan because he is secretly worried that the school
project will threaten the power he wields over their town. Ibarra almost gets killed while he is laying
the cornerstone of the school, but Elias saved him. Elias is the mysterious fellow who also saved
Ibarra previously.
With so many powerful enemies, the main character eventually gets implicated in a staged
revolution, and is hunted down by the guardia civil. Maria Clara, unwittingly adds to Ibarra's woes
when she switches his fiancé’s letter with another one that reveals her true nature. The guardia civil
catch up with Ibarra, and drizzle him and Elias with bullets near the lake. Ibarra survives and buries
Elias in the forest owned by his clan. The guardia civil think Ibarra drowned and died in the lake and
promptly leaves the scene. Maria Clara thinks her fiancé really died, gets depressed, and enters the
nunnery. She does not follow the advice of Padre Damaso to marry Linares.

3. Summary of Some Celebrated Scenes

Chapter 1: A Gathering2

In late October, Don Santiago de los Santos (otherwise known as Capitan Tiago),
hosted a dinner at his house on Anloague Street. The descriptions of the house could be
likened to the status of Philippine society under Spanish rule. Among the characters we meet
are Teniente Guevara, Padre Sibyla (Dominican) and Padre Damaso (Franciscan). Padre
Damaso spent 20 years as parish priest in San Diego. The angry conversation between
Padre Damaso and the soldier reveals that a good man, whose son was in Europe, died.
His body was exhumed by the San Diego parish priest and ordered buried elsewhere.

Some Notes

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 • It is not yet clear why Capitan Tiago is hosting a dinner. It will be learned only in later
chapters that the dinner is in honor of Juan Crisostomo Ibarra, the novel's lead character,
who is returning to the Philippines from Europe.
• It is almost All Souls' Day.
• Introduced in this chapter is Doña Victorina, a memorable and insufferable character of
the Noli.
• In this chapter, some undesirable traits of Filipinos were mentioned, these are:
1) attending parties even if not invited;
2) extravagant parties, and
3) the host does not get to eat dinner.
• The Philippines was likened to Capitan Tiago's house. The country, like the
house, is open to all (Philippine hospitality). But Filipinos are not interested in
business or entrepreneurship, and have a hard time embracing new ideas
(because of conservatism). Any new endeavor is met with doubts from many
sectors, but once success is achieved, everyone wants to share in the glory.

Chapter 7: Idyll in an Azotea3

Ibarra and Maria Clara get to speak privately in the Azotea of Capitan Tiago's house. This is
their first meeting after seven years. They exchanged proof that each remembered the other one
after all this time. When Maria Clara read the only letter Ibarra wrote to her, he suddenly remembered
his dead father. It was nearing All Souls Day so Ibarra excused himself and told Maria Clara that he
will go to San Diego to take care of his father's grave.

Some Notes

• A major portion of this chapter concerns the old letter of Ibarra to Maria Clara.
• The reader will note a different (almost playful) side of Maria Clara, which
belies the common perception that she is refined, prim and proper.
• Ibarra proved that he never, not even for an instant, ever forgot about Maria
Clara by making a vow before his mother's corpse. He said that he will love Maria Clara
and make her happy no matter what happens.

• Maria Clara, on the other hand, proved her own love for Ibarra by recounting their
childhood experiences. She also said that even if she was punished severely

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 after confessing her love for the young man, she refused to ever forget him.

• Ibarra related here the reasons for leaving the Philippines. It was known that
Ibarra’s father admonished him that, as a man, he had to think of the future, his
moral debt to his country, and to learn things that he cannot possibly learn while
in the Philippines (Don Rafael had little faith in the Philippine educational
system).

Some celebrated conversations are also presented below to highlight Rizal’s critical analysis
on how the Philippines maybe emancipated from Spain. He presented himself through the character
of Ibarra but it can also be perceived that he might have related also himself to the character of
Elias. Hence, it could be perceived that the conversations of Ibarra and Elias reflect Rizal debating
with himself.

Some Notes: The Conversations of Elias and Ibarra – A4

“Sir,” replied Elias gravely, “I am the bearer of the wishes of many unfortunates.”
“Unfortunates? What do you mean?” In a few words Elias recounted his conversation with the
leader of the tulisanes, omitting the latter’s doubts and threats. Ibarra listened attentively and was
the first to break the long silence that reigned after he had finished his story. “So they want–”
“Radical reforms in the armed forces, in the priesthood, and in the administration of justice; that is
to say, they ask for paternal treatment from the government.” “Reforms? In what sense?”

“For example, more respect for a man’s dignity, more security for the individual, less
force in the armed forces, fewer privileges for that corps which so easily abuses what it has.”
“Elias,” answered the youth, “I don’t know who you are, but I suspect that you are not a man of
the people; you think and act so differently from others. You will understand me if I tell you that,
however imperfect the condition of affairs may be now, it would be more so if it were changed.

I might be able to get the friends that I have in Madrid to talk, by paying them; I might even
be able to see the Captain-General; but neither would the former accomplish anything nor has the
latter sufficient power to introduce so many novelties. Nor would I ever take a single step in that
direction, for the reason that, while I fully understand that it is true that these corporations have
their faults, they are necessary at this time. They are what is known as a necessary evil.”

Greatly surprised, Elias raised his head and looked at him in astonishment. “Do you, then,
also believe in a necessary evil, sir?” he asked in a voice that trembled slightly. “Do you believe
that in order to do good it is necessary to do evil?”

“No, I believe in it as in a violent remedy that we make use of when we wish to cure a
disease. Now then, the country is an organism suffering from a chronic malady, and in order to

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 cure it, the government sees the necessity of employing such means, harsh and violent if you wish,
but useful and necessary.”

“He is a bad doctor, sir, who seeks only to destroy or stifle the symptoms without an effort
to examine into the origin of the malady, or, when knowing it, fears to attack it.

The Civil Guard has only this purpose: the repression of crime by means of terror and force,
a purpose that it does not fulfill or accomplishes only incidentally. You must take into account the
truth that society can be severe with individuals only when it has provided them with the means
necessary for their moral perfection. In our country, where there is no society, since there is no
unity between the people and the government, the latter should be indulgent, not only because
indulgence is necessary but also because the individual, abandoned and uncared for by it, has less
responsibility, for the very reason that he has received less guidance. Besides, following out your
comparison, the treatment that is applied to the ills of the country is so destructive that it is felt only
in the sound parts of the organism, whose vitality is thus weakened and made receptive of evil.
Would it not be more rational to strengthen the diseased parts of the organism and lessen the
violence of the remedy a little?”

Summary of Chapter 61. The Chase on the Lake5

Two boatloads of guardia civil pursue Elias and Ibarra on the lake. Elias jumps into the river
to mislead the pursuers, thus saving Ibarra. This time, the character of Ibarra changed from being
passive to active revolutionary. He is now asking Elias to go with him outside the country to redeem
themselves.

Some Notes: The Conversations of Elias and Ibarra – B

“Elias,” said Ibarra, “you owe your misfortunes to my family, you have saved my life twice,
and I owe you not only gratitude but also the restitution of your fortune. You advise me to go
abroad – then come with me and we will live like brothers. Here you also are wretched.”

Elias shook his head sadly and answered: “Impossible! It’s true that I cannot live or be
happy in my country, but I can suffer and die in it, and perhaps for it–that is always something.
May the misfortunes of my native land be my own misfortunes and, although no noble sentiment
unites us, although our hearts do not beat to a single name, at least may the common calamity
bind me to my countrymen, at least may I weep over our sorrows with them, may the same hard
fate oppress all our hearts alike!”

“Then why do you advise me to go away?” “Because in some other country you could
be happy while I could not, because you are not made to suffer, and because you would hate
your country if some day you should see yourself ruined in its cause, and to hate one’s native

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 land is the greatest of calamities.” “You are unfair to me!” exclaimed Ibarra with bitter reproach.
“You forget that scarcely had I arrived here when I set myself to seek its welfare.”...“Your words
pain me,” said Ibarra resentfully.

Elias bowed his head and meditated before replying. “I wish to disillusion you, sir, and
save you from a sad future. Recall that night when I talked to you in this same banka under the
light of this same moon, not a month ago. Then you were happy, the plea of the unfortunates did
not touch you; you disdained their complaints because they were the complaints of criminals;
you paid more attention to their enemies, and in spite of my arguments and petitions, you placed
yourself on the side of their oppressors. On you then depended whether I should turn criminal or
allow myself to be killed in order to carry out a sacred pledge, but God has not permitted this
because the old chief of the outlaws is dead. A month has hardly passed and you think
otherwise.”

“You’re right, Elias, but man is a creature of circumstances! Then I was blind, annoyed–
what did I know? Now misfortune has torn the bandage from my eyes; the solitude and misery
of my prison have taught me; now I see the horrible cancer which feeds upon this society, which
clutches its flesh, and which demands a violent rooting out. They have opened my eyes, they
have made me see the sore, and they force me to be a criminal! Since they wish it, I will be a
filibuster, a real filibuster, I mean. I will call together all the unfortunates, all who feel a heart beat
in their breasts, all those who were sending you to me.

No, I will not be a criminal, never is he such who fights for his native land, but quite the
reverse! We, during three centuries, have extended them our hands, we have asked love of
them, we have yearned to call them brothers, and how do they answer us?

To understand deeper the relationship of Elias and Ibarra and how Rizal utilized their
characters to present his imagined community, it is imperative to know their family tree (refer to
Figure 17) and the role of the creoles in the Philippines.
Figure 17 Crisostomo Ibarra and Elias Family Tree
Description of key Characters from the Ibarra and Elias Family Tree:

Ibarra’s Family (Synthesized from Joaquin, 2005: 72 – 73)

1. Don Pedro Eibarramendia - A Manila businessman who, when his warehouse burned down,
accused his bookkeeper (grandfather of Elias) and ruined not only him but also all his
descendants up to Elias. He appeared in San Diego and vanished as suddenly as he had
come. His body was found later in the woods hanging on a Balite tree.
2. Don Saturnino - A frontiersman known to be gloomy as his father: taciturn, violent, at times
cruel, but very active and industrious. He was described as the one who made San Diego a
thriving town from “a miserable heap of huts”.
3. Don Rafael Ibarra - was the father of Juan Crisostomo Ibarra was known to be already
graduating from Creole to Filipino. He was also known to project the clash between Creole and
Peninsular. He was loved by his workers and when he knocked down a tax collector, who
punished a child who mocked him, he was thrown into jail where he” rotted”.
4. Juan Crisostomo Ibarra - was considered a fourth generation Ibarra, educated in Switzerland
and had been influenced by Liberalism in Europe. He was known to be a civilized man, who
inherited a quarrel with the Peninsulars but did not care to pursue. He wanted to elevate the
condition of the masses through his modernist project – building of a school to educate them.

Elias Family (Synthesized from Locsin’s translation of the Noli Me Tangere, 1996)

1. Elias’ grandfather - He lived in Manila and served as a bookkeeper in a Spanish merchant’s

establishment (Don Pedro Eibarramendia). He was persecuted and abandoned by all except
for his young wife and eventually hanged himself in his despair upon seeing his wife sick and
deprived of all care and help.
2. Elias Father - He struggled to recreate his image, worked hard and found work in the
household of a rich man. He fell in love and got married to a rich young woman who helped
him to redeem himself.
3. Elias - third in the generation of his lineage, is considered a tragic character but with a great
mind and vision for his countrymen. He was sent to the school of the Jesuits for a while and
then went back to work in the land that he inherited from his father. He wandered around from
one place to another and being known to have great deeds but had chosen to be silent and
went on his own way.

Critical Issues:
 The changes that occur across the different generations in Ibarra and Elias Family show that
the Creoles in the Philippines were considered Filipino due to the fact that their lives were entirely
dedicated to the service of the country (Joaquin, 2005). They were engaged in business and were
interested in politics. Don Pedro Eibarramendia engaged himself in business while his son Don
Saturnino is involved in business and transformed San Diego from a miserable place to a thriving
town. Don Rafael Ibarra showed his interest in the affairs of the government to the extent of him
accidentally killing a guardia civil in aid of a boy. The fourth generation Ibarra, Juan Crisostomo
showed interests in the affairs of the society and even planned to put up a school for the indios’
children.
The relationship between Ibarra and Elias shows the relationship between the Creole and
the Indio which was paradoxical and ironic. The novel presents that Elias’ family was a victim of the
Ibarras’ but he still saved the life of Crisostomo when he almost drowned and had still been saved
two more times after the incident. Elias became a character of optimism instead of pessimism.
Instead of harboring ill feelings toward a CREOLE, the INDIO felt positively toward Ibarra. A once
passive character of Ibarra became the now active persona of a revolutionist; Elias sacrificed his life
for Ibarra. The novel was able to show that Creoles and Indios may be able to co-exist and be in
harmony with one another.
With regards to the idea that the Noli Me Tangere becomes the bible in preaching
nationalism, it should be borne in mind that the novel is both about and not about the realities in the
Philippine archipelago. Hau (2000) argues that Rizal used commentaries as a strategy to inject an
ethical point of view within the novel. Furthermore, in the translation of Rizal’s letter to Barrantes
(Rizal, 1890), he pointed out that the advantage of writing a realist novel over an ethnography or a
factual documentation of social conditions in the Philippines is that one is able to criticise without
being liable to these criticisms.
Hau explains that the central problem of the Noli revolved around modernity and the novel
clearly presented the following anti-modern aspects of colonial society: 1) Ignorance and lack of
education; 2) Belief in superstitions, Rumors and gossip mongers; 3) Dominance of the friars in terms
of their intervention to affairs of the government; 4) Excessive Religious Fanaticism; 5) Absence of
external relationship with other countries.
Modernity can be considered the central problem of the Noli since the aspects of being
secular, technical and international are not clearly presented. The novel has shown a knowable
community but many of the significant features to be considered as such are still being conceived.
Notwithstaning, Hau maintains that, despite the excess in the novel, what makes the Noli “nationalist”
is that it is considered to be the first textual representation of the Philippines that made this
“community knowable” (able to imagine).
Chapter 65: Epilogue6

The Noli ends with the following conditions of its characters: 1) Padre Damaso accepts an
assignment to be a parish priest in a distant province. He is found the following day, dead from a
heart attack or a case of hypertension; 2) Padre Salvi is seen regularly delivering sermons in the Sta.
Clara convent, where Maria Clara is; 3) Capitan Tiago ends up gambling and spending a lot of time
in cockfighting arenas. He stopped regularly going to church after Maria Clara became a nun; 4)
Doña Victorina worsened as she tried harder to live the life of an Española, while De Espadaña was
often seen without any false teeth; 5) Linares died; 6) A lot of people who lived near the lake died
when a ship exploded on January 2, 1883. It's possible that some of the Noli characters were among
those who perished; and 7) Spanish guards saw Maria Clara, the nun standing on top of the convent
roof one stormy evening, hoping to be hit by lightning. She is, according to the abbess or Mother
Superior, a crazy nun.

Synthesis

All the notes and concepts elaborated above regarding the Noli Me Tangere may have
different interpretations and ways of presentation. Notwithstanding, the celebrated characters,
scenes/parts of the novel, symbolisms and lessons on freedom, liberalism, equality and nationalism
were reflected as they could be seen in most references from authorities on Rizal’s life and works,
from books and from the internet.

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