Noli me

Tangere
Paola Mikaela S. Alpay
Rizza Mae V. Salvania

BACKGROUND

Berlin, Germany
February 21, 1887
In Latin: touch me not
Title was taken from John 20:17
o Jesus said to her: Touch me not; for I am not yet
ascended to my Father: but go to my brothers, and
say to them, I ascend to my Father, and your Father;
and to my God, and your God.
Originally written in Spanish

INSPIRATIONS
Harriet Beacher Stowes Uncle Toms Cabin which is
about the injustices experienced by Negros; the cruelty
and violence imposed by the whites on them.
Rizal used this to compare the present situation of the
Filipinos under the rule of the Spaniards

INSPIRATIONS
In the house of Pedro Paterno in Madrid on 2 January
1884
Rizal proposed the writing of a novel about the
Philippines written by a group of Filipinos.
Approved by the Filipinos present at the party (Pedro
Paterno, Maximino Viola and Antonio Paterno, Graciano
Lpez Jaena,Evaristo Aguirre, Eduardo de Lete, Julio
Llorente and Valentin Ventura)

INSPIRATIONS
The people who agreed to help Rizal with the novel did not write
anything
3 Reasons for this failure
1. Ningas-Kugon
2. They preferred other topics- women
3. Gambling and Women
. So Rizal pulled out of the plan of co-writing with others and decided
to draft the novel alone

THE PUBLISHING
1884- First half of the novel written in Madrid, Spain while Dr. Jose
Rizal was studying medicine.
1885- Half of the second half in Paris
1886- Finished last quarter in Germany

THE PUBLISHING
Rizal feared the novel might not be printed due to financial
constraints- attempted to throw it into flames
Financial aid from Mximo Viola
Berliner Buchdruckerei-Aktiengesellschaft in Berlin.
300 for 2,000 copies.
Viola arrived in Berlin in December 1886, and by March 21, 1887,
Rizal had sent a copy of the novel to his friend, Blumentritt.

OVERVIEW
Rizal's book persistently unmasks contemporary Spaniards in the
Philippines of every kind.
He exposes corruption and brutality of the civil guards which drive
good men to crime and banditry.
He focuses on an administration crawling with self-seekers, out to
make their fortune at the expense of the Filipinos
The few officials who are honest and sincere are unable to
overcome the treacherous workings of the system, and their efforts
to help the country often end up in frustration or in self-ruin.

OVERVIEW
The Noli exposed the corrupt friars who have made the Catholic
religion an instrument for enriching and perpetuating themselves in
power by seeking to mire ignorant Filipinos in fanaticism and
superstition.
According to Rizal, instead of teaching Filipinos true Catholicism,
they control the government by opposing all progress and
persecuting members of the ilustrado unless they make
themselves their servile flatterers.

OVERVIEW
Rizal does not, however, spare his fellow countrymen.
o The superstitious and hypocritical fanaticism of many who consider
themselves religious people;
o The ignorance, corruption, and brutality of the Filipino civil guards;
o The passion for gambling unchecked by the thought of duty and
responsibility;
o The servility of the wealthy Filipino towards friars and government officials;
o The ridiculous efforts of Filipinos to dissociate themselves from their
fellowmen or to lord it over them--all these are ridiculed and disclosed.

OVERVIEW
Rizal nevertheless highlighted the virtues and good qualities of his
unspoiled countryman:
o
o
o
o

The modesty and devotion of the Filipina

The unstinting hospitality of the Filipino family,
The devotion of parents to their children and children to their parents,
The deep sense of gratitude, and

It calls on the Filipino to recover his self-confidence, to appreciate his

own worth, to return to the heritage of his ancestors, and to assert
himself as the equal of the Spaniard.
It insists on the need of education, of dedication to the country, and of
absorbing aspects of foreign cultures that would enhance the native
traditions."

COVER

CROSS- sufferings
POMELO BLOSSOMS AND LAUREL
LEAVES- honor and fidelity
SILHOUETTE OF A FILIPINA- Maria Clara
BURNING TORCH- rage and passion
SUNFLOWERS- enlightenment
BAMBOO STALKS THAT WERE CUT DOWN
BUT GREW BACK- resilience
A MAN IN A CASSOCK WITH HAIRY FEETpriests using religion in a dirty way
CHAINS- slavery
WHIPS- cruelties
HELMET OF THE GUARDIA CIVIL- arrogance
of those in authority

COVER
At the top: all that is best in Philippine
life:
o
o
o
o

woman (constancy)
tombstone (religious faith)
laurel (courage)
flower of the pomelo(purity)

The words partly covered by the title

are the secret, inner dedication by
Rizal to his parents
o 'In writing...thinking...always...it was
you who implanted in me...the first
ideas...this manuscript...proof of love.'

COVER
To the left of the title: the flower
mirasol (youth seeking the sun)
The author's name, meaning the
green of renewal, mounting up into
the green of the most enduring of all
Philippine trees, the bamboo.
At the bottom, all that is worst in
Philippine life: the helmet of the Civil
Guard, the whip and instruments of
torture, and the foot of a friar.

PREFACE
to reproduce the condition (of the country) faithfully, without
discrimination
I will strive to reproduce thy condition faithfully, without
discriminations; I will raise a part of the veil that covers the evil
He clearly stated his intention of giving an accurate picture of the
conditions in the Philippines at the time

PLOT
IBARRA'S HOMECOMING
The story revolves around Crisostomo Ibarra returning home after seven years in
Europe and filled with ideas on how to better the lot of his countrymen.
An old family friend, Capitan Tiago (Don Santiago de los Santos), an affluent
resident of Binondo, hosts a dinner to welcome him home.
Doa Victorina, Padre Sibyla and Padre Damaso,
Padre Damaso first snubs then insults the young man, refusing to acknowledge his
friendship with his father, Don Rafael Ibarra because he thinks that Don Rafael is a
heretic for not going into confession.
Finally, Ibarra can no longer take his insults, and graciously excuses himself,
pretending he has to attend to an important matter.
Lieutenant Guevarra illuminates Ibarra regarding the events preceding his death.
Ibarra goes to see Mara Clara (Suyuan sa Asotea)

PLOT
INCIDENTS IN SAN DIEGO

Ibarra then goes to San Diego to see his father's grave at the Catholic cemetery and
finds it has been disturbed because Padred Dmaso ordered to transfer the corpse in a
Chinese cemetery but ended up throwing it in the lake.
Meanwhile, Crispn and Basilio, are accused of stealing from the church. Sisa, then,
goes mad and wanders the town.
The town schoolmaster tells Ibarra he was discouraged by the curate from using the new
teaching methods that he found effective.
They went fishing then have a picnic on his property. They found a large crocodile which
Elias tried to capture but is attacked by the creature. Ibarra goes to his aid, saving his
life.
During the picnic, Ibarra learns two things: the authorities have approved his plan to put
up a school and the mysterious boatman he saved is a man named Elas, who is wanted
by the Civil Guard for assaulting a priest.

PLOT
RUN-INS WITH AUTHORITIES

Ibarra discusses his plans with PilosopoTasio. He has decided to put up the school as a
tribute to his father's belief that the education of the people would lead to the country's
liberation. Tasio supports his noble objectives but warns him he must win over the
authorities to have a chance of success.
During the school's inauguration, there is an attempt to kill Ibarra but Elas saves him.
Ibarra hosts a dinner afterwards, Padre Dmaso among the invited. Dmaso again
insults him and his father. In a rage, Ibarra grabs him, holding a knife at his throat. But
Mara Clara stops him from doing any further violence. Greatly upset, Mara Clara
becomes ill with a fever. Ibarra gives her a medicine which cures her, but she remains
weak for some time afterward.
Ibarra is excommunicated for assaulting Dmaso. Because of this disgrace, Dmaso is
able to persuade Capitn Tiago to forbid his daughter from marrying Ibarra and consider
Linares instead.

PLOT
RUN-INS WITH AUTHORITIES
Elas tries to convince Ibarra at this point to lead a revolt, but Ibarra
insists that reform, never revolt, is the answer to the country's ills.
The Captain General lifted the excommunication but soon afterward,
Ibarra is accused by Padre Salv of being a subversive. Hearing of this,
Elas goes to warn him and together they go over the Ibarra family
papers so they can discard anything that appears incriminating. This
scene became the key in finding out the relationship between Ibarras
and Elias ancestors.
Ibarra is arrested and imprisoned.

PLOT
THE ESCAPE
Ibarra, having escaped from prison with the help of Elas, goes to see
Mara Clara one last time before leaving the country.
Ibarra and Elias continue their flight by boat.
Mara Clara hears that Ibarra was killed and is so overcome with grief that
she begs Padre Dmaso to confine her in a nunnery, saying: The nunnery
or death!
It is Christmas Eve when Elas arrives at the Ibarra forest and meets
Basilio, who had just come back to the town to find his mother. Sadly, Sisa
died soon after she recognized her son.
Elas asks Basilio to burn his body, along with Sisa's, upon his death. He
then dies lamenting not having seen the liberation of his country.

CHARACTERS
1. Crisstomo Ibarra

Mestizo son of Filipino businessman Don Rafael Ibarra

studied in Europe for seven years.
Mara Clara's fianc
Rizal's reflection

CHARACTERS
2. Mara Clara
Ibarra's love interest and the most beautiful and widely celebrated
girl in San Diego.
Leonor Rivera
A devout Catholic, she became the epitome of virtue, "demure and
self-effacing" and endowed with beauty, grace and charm
Although praised and idolised, Mara Clara's chaste, "masochistic"
and "easily fainting" character had also been denounced as the
"greatest misfortune that has befallen the Filipina in the last one
hundred years"

CHARACTERS
Maria Clara did not really resolve the conflicts within her; she
chose to escape, by entering the convent as a nun.
Many had used the convent as an escape from a world that could
not give them happiness or the fulfilment they crave.

CHARACTERS
3. Capitan Tiago

Father of Maria Clara

Good Catholic
Married Pia Alba of Sta. Cruz
Capitan Tiago was a typical character during the time of Jose Rizal.
He is a rich native-born Filipino who rubbed elbows with the powers
that be during that time.
He symbolizes the rich Filipinos who oppress their fellow
countrymen in exchange for the influence and the riches that they
might gain from their powerful associations.

CHARACTERS
4. Padre Damaso

Franciscan friar and the former parish curate of San Diego.

A cruel priest who uses harsh words
He is the real father of Mara Clara
At the end of the novel, he is again re-assigned to a distant town
and is found dead one day.
He symbolizes the Spanish friars of Rizal's time and is a comment
on the Spanish control of the Philippines
The fat, corrupt friar is not Rizal's Fray Damaso, but Graciano
Lopez Jaena's Fray Botod.

CHARACTERS
5. Elias
Ibarra's mysterious friend and ally. Elas made his first appearance
as a pilot during a picnic of Ibarra and Mara Clara and her friends.
He wants to revolutionize the country and to be freed from Spanish
oppression.
He distrusts human judgment and prefers God's justice instead.
He is acquainted with the tulisanes and other crooks, which he
uses to his advantage in discerning the troubles of the town.
He prefers a revolution over the reforms that Ibarra has been
inclined to believe in.

CHARACTERS
Although his education is minimal, the injustices that has befallen
his family have enlarged and sharpened his intellect and made him
hate the social conditions around him.
Elias represents the common Filipino who is not only aware of the
injustices done to their countrymen but would also like to deliver
them from their oppressors.

CHARACTERS
6. Pilosopo Tasyo
Seeking for reforms from the government, he expresses his ideals
in paper written in a cryptographic alphabet similar from
hieroglyphs and Coptic figures hoping "that the future generations
may be able to decipher it" and realized the abuse and oppression
done by the conquerors.
He embodies the intelligent people, who never left the country but
instead educated themselves in a religious institution.

CHARACTERS
7. Doa Victorina
ambitious Filipina who classifies herself as Spanish and mimics
Spanish ladies by putting on heavy make-up.
During her younger days, she had a lot of admirers but turned them
all down because none of them were Spaniards
Married Don Tiburcio and they never had children
Don Tiburcio illegally practices medicine
It may be said that she symbolizes the Filipinos in our society who
are ashamed of their own race and nationality.

CHARACTERS
Sisa, Crispn, and Basilio
They represent a Filipino family persecuted by the Spanish authorities.

8. Sisa
the deranged mother of Basilio and Crispn.
Described as beautiful and young, although she loves her children very
much, she can not protect them from the beatings of her husband,
Pedro.
Sisa is being maltreated by the Spaniards; similarly, our country is
being abused by the Spaniards.
The tragic events that ruined her life represented the abuse that our
country received from the colonizers.

CHARACTERS
9. Crispn
Sisa's 7-year-old son. An altar boy, he was unjustly accused of stealing
money from the church.
Father Salv and the head sacristan
represents the innocents who have been wrongly accused of the crime
they did not commit. The injustice they suffered under the hands of the
authorities during their time were silenced by their deaths and the coverups that follow it.

Basilio
Sisa's 10-year-old son. he faced the dread of losing his younger brother
and falling of his mother into insanity.

CHARACTERS
10. Padre Hernando de la Sibyla
a Dominican friar
He is instructed by an old priest in his order to watch Crisstomo
Ibarra.
Padre Sibyla symbolizes the liberal friar but would rather stay in the
background rather than incur the wrath of other priests in power.
He is aware of the injustices done to the natives but would not do
anything to change it, as all he cares about is getting his
congregation in power.

CHARACTERS
11. Padre Bernardo Salv
the Franciscan curate of San Diego, secretly harboring lust for
Mara Clara.
He is described to be very thin and sickly.
The one behind the plot to kill Ibarra in the construction site of the
school.
It is also hinted that his last name, "Salvi" is the shorter form of
"Salvi" meaning Salvation, or "Salvi" is short for "Salvaje" meaning
bad hinting to the fact that he is willing to kill an innocent child,
Crispin, just to get his money back, though there was not enough
evidence that it was Crispin who has stolen his 2 onzas.

NOTES
Chapter 1: Isang Pagtitipon
Ang bahay ni Kapitan Tiyago ay itinulad ni Rizal sa Pilipinas na bukas
sa mga interesadong dayuhan, ngunit hindi sa sariling komersiyo, na
siyang dahilan kung bakit ang ekonomiya ng bansa magmula pa sa
panahong ng Espanya ay kontrolado ng mga dayuhan (Ongoco).
Isa pang katangian ng Pilipinas ay ang hindi nito bukas sa mga
makabago at mapangahas na kaisipan. Ginamit ni Rizal na
pambungad ang nasabing mga salita dahilan sa ang kaniyang nobela
ay isang mapangahas na akda na susuri sa kabuuan ng lipunang
Pilipino, sa kahinaan ng kolonyal na pamahalaan at isang
pagbubunyag sa kahinaan ng kolonyal na simbahan.

NOTES
Chapter 2: Crisostomo Ibarra
The prosperity or misery of a people is in direct proportion to its
liberties or concerns and consequently to the sacrifices or
selfishness of its ancestors.

NOTES
Chapter 7: Suyuan sa Asotea
Maaari ba kitang malimot? Maaari bang akoy magtaksil sa isang
sumpa? ...Malilimutan ba kita, ang alaala mo ang kasama ko sa lahat ng
sandali.

to Leonor Rivera

Sa akin ay para kang isang diwata, ang diwa, ang matulaing sagisag ng aking bayang
tinubuan, magnda, matapat,masuyo, mahinhin, anak ng Pilipinas, niyang magandang
lupaing pinagsama ang mga dakilang asal ng Inang Espanya at ng maalindog na ugali
ng isang batang bayang, gaya ng pagkakaisa sa buo mong pagkatao ng lahat ng
kagandahan at kariktang nahihiyas sa dalawang lahing iyon; at dahil dito, ang pag-ibig
sa iyo at ang pag-ibig ko sa aking tinubuan ay nagiging isang-isa lamang.

Rizals love for a woman and his country

NOTES

NOTES
Chapter 8: Mga Gunita
pati mga karitong batak ng hindi natitigatig at walang pakialam na
mga kalabaw na para bang nagpapalipas-oras lamang sa paghila
ng mga mabibigat na dalahin samantalang nag-iisip
Philippine commerce= cart; indifferent people= carabao
ang karaniwang tanawing iyon ay nakapagkakalyo na sa kanilang
mga puso
11 y.o. - GomBurZa

NOTES
Chapter 19: Ang Pakikipagsapalaran ng Isang Guro
Ibarra does not want revenge. Instead, he plans to build a school to
glorify his fathers name..
Naniniwala ako na hindi maaring makapag-isip kung kaharap ang
palmeta o ang mga disciplina; ang pagkatakot at pagkasindak ay
nakalilito sa lalong malamig na loob, dahilan sa ang pag-iisip ng bata
dahil sa lubhang mabilis ay siyang lalong maramdamin.
Rizals philosophy on education which is contrary to how education is
at that time.

NOTES
Chapter 25: Sa Bahay ng Pilosopo
Pilosopo Tasyo: Dahilan sa hindi ko inilalaan sa ating mga kapanahon ang
aking sinusulat kundi sa ibang panahong darating. Kung mababasa ng ating mga
kapanahon ang aking mga sinusulat ay marahil susunugin ang aking mga aklat, ang
aking hinarap na gawain sa buong buhay; samantalang sa isang dako, ang
henerasyon na makakaalam sa kahulugan ng mga titik na ito ay pawang matatalino,
mauunawaan nila ang ibig kong ipaalam at masasabi nilang: Hindi ang lahat ay
nakatulog sa kapanahunan ng ating mga ninuno. Ang lihim o ang mga dikaraniwang titik na ito ay siyang nakapagliligtas sa aking gawa sa kamangmangan
ng tao, gaya rin naman ng pangyayaring ang lihim at mga kung anu-anong mga
paraan ay siyang nakapagligtas sa maraming katotohanan sa mapanirang kamay
ng mga kaparian.

NOTES
Pilosopo Tasyo: Tularan ninyo ang rosas na hitik ng bulaklak at
buko na sa pagdaraan ng hangin ay yumuyuko sa halip na
magmatigas upang di mabali. Ang yumuko sa pagdaan ng punglo
ay di karuwagan. Ang masama ay harapin ito upang mabuwal at di
na muling makabangon.

NOTES
Chapter 33: Malayang Kaisipan
Elias: " Batas ng buhay ang di pagkakasundo. Lahat tayoy may
kalaban, mula sa pinakamaliit na kulisap hanggang sa tao; mula sa
pinakadukha hanggang sa lalong mayaman at makapangyarihan,"

NOTES
Chapter 49: Ang Tinig ng mga Pinag-uusig
Ang pamahalaan ay katulad ng isang masamang manggagamot,
ginoo, walang hinahanap kundi ang lunasan at gamutin ang mga
sintomas, ngunit hindi naman sinisiyasat ang pinagmumulan ng
sakit, o kung alam man niya ang dahilan ay natatakot na ito ay
labanan.
Ang guwardiya sibil ay itinatag lamang sa layunin na sugpuin ang
kasamaan sa pamamagitan ng pananakot at lakas, ngunit ang
layunin ng pagtatayo nito ay hindi naman nangyayari at kung may
nagagawa ay nagkakataon lamang.

NOTES
Chapter 63: Ang Noche Buena
"Mamamatay akong hindi nakikita ang ningning ng bukangliwayway sa aking Bayan! Kayong makakakita, salubungin ninyo
siya, at huwag kalilimutan ang mga nabulid sa dilim ng gabi."
Kahanga-hanga ang pag-ibig ni Elias sa bayan, sa mga huling
sandaling kaniyang buhay ay kaniya pa ring inaala-ala ang bayan,
at ang pag-asam sa pangarap na pagdating ng panahon ay sisikat
ang isang bagong araw (kalayaan).
Rizal: Mamamatay akong nakikita na mula sa ulap ang
pagbubukang liwayway.

INFLUENCE AND LEGACY

was considered to be one of the instruments that initiated Filipino
nationalism that led to 1896 Philippine Revolution
not only awakened sleeping Filipino awareness, but also established
the grounds for aspiring an independence
Noli was originally written in Spanish, so the likelihood that Spanish
authorities will read it first is very highwhich, Rizal actually wanted to
happen.

INFLUENCE AND LEGACY

Copies of books were redirected to churches, many have been
destroyed, many anti-Noli writers came into the picture, Catholic
leaders in the Philippines that time regarded the book as heretical,
while Spanish colonial authorities declared it as subversive and
against the government.
Underground copies were distributed, so Rizal decided to increase
the price, the demand is so high.

INFLUENCE AND LEGACY

caused the expulsion of Rizal's clan in Calamba, Laguna.
Extradition cases were filed against him.
This led to his decision to write the sequel of Noli Me Tangere, the El
filibusterismo.