Group 6

Noli Me Tangere, How it contributed to the formation of Filipino National Consciousness

Members
Raven
Francie
Sheena
Jayson
Russel

Nakumpleto
Icebreaker
The Novel: Noli Me Tangere (the background) -Francie

"Noli Me Tangere" is a novel written by Filipino national hero Jose Rizal, published in 1887.
The title is Latin for "Touch Me Not,"

The novel is a fictional work that depicts Philippine society during the Spanish colonial period, with
themes of socio economic injustice, corruption, and power abuse. It tells the narrative of Crisostomo
Ibarra, a young man who returns to the Philippines after studying abroad and finds the injustices that
his fellow Filipinos experienced under Spanish colonial control.

Rizal was inspired to write Noli Me Tangere after reading Harriet Beacher Stowe's book Uncle Tom's
Cabin. Uncle Tom's Cabin depicts the lives of negro slaves at the hands of strong white Americans.
The book focused on the sufferings, abuse, and hardships endured by Negro slaves and contrasted
their condition to the unequal treatment received by his fellow citizens under Spanish authority.

When Jose Rizal was still studying medicine in Madrid in 1884, he wrote the first sections of his
novel Noli Me Tangere and then Rizal started working on this novel in Paris, France after finishing
his medical studies. Lastly, Jose Rizal finished the novel's last sections in Berlin, Germany.

Blumentritt helped Rizal in finding a publisher for the novel, and through his connections, he was
able to secure a printing press in Berlin, Germany. The novel was published in 1887, with Rizal using
the pen name "Laong Laan" to avoid any potential backlash from the Spanish authorities.

The publication of "Noli Me Tangere" caused a stir in the Philippines, with the Spanish authorities
banning the novel and arresting those who were found in possession of it. Despite the ban, the novel
was widely circulated, and it became a rallying point for Filipinos who were fighting for their rights
and freedoms. Since then, Noli Me Tangere has appeared in French, Chinese, German and Philippine
languages.

Nakumpleto
Summary of Noli Me Tangere -Raven
SUMMARY OF NOLI ME TANGERE

Set in the time of Spanish colonization, the story welcomes us with a dinner party full of various,
wealthy guests starring Juan Crisostomo Ibarra y Magsalin.

Noli Me Tangere takes place in the Philippines during the time of Spanish colonization. In the opening
scene, a wealthy and influential Filipino man named Captain Tiago hosts a dinner party to welcome Juan
Crisóstomo Ibarra y Magsalin back to the Philippines. Ibarra has spent the last seven years studying in
Europe.

In talking to the various guests at Captain Tiago’s dinner party, he discovers that his father, Don Rafael,
recently died, though he doesn’t know why or how. During the dinner, Father Dámaso, a loud-mouthed
friar Ibarra has known since childhood, stands up and insults Ibarra, disparaging him for having traveled
to Europe to pursue an education he could have obtained in the Philippines. (sign of discrimination and
close-mindedness)

In response, Ibarra swallows his pride and refrains from directing insults at the half-drunk friar. Instead,
he leaves the dinner early, ignoring Captain Tiago’s plea that he stay a little longer in order to see his
fiancée (and Captain Tiago’s daughter), María Clara.

After having a chat with Señor Guevara, Ibarra had learned that his father died in prison after
being wrongfully accused by Father Damaso.

On his way home, Ibarra walks with Señor Guevara, a lieutenant of the Civil Guard, Spain’s colonial
armed forces that police the Philippines. The lieutenant explains that a few months after Ibarra left, Father
Dámaso accused Don Rafael of not going to confession. Don Rafael was a very powerful man, which
meant he had many enemies in both the Spanish government and in the church. The lieutenant tells Ibarra
that one day Don Rafael came upon a government tax collector beating a boy in the street. When Rafael
interfered, he accidentally pushed the man too hard, causing the tax collector to hit his head on a rock.
This injury eventually led to the man’s death, and Ibarra’s father was thrown in jail and accused of
subversion and heresy. At this point, Father Dámaso heaped new accusations on him and everybody
abandoned him. By the time he was finally proven innocent, Guevara explains, Don Rafael had already
died in prison.

Subversion – overthrowing something (e.g., government); corrupting someone’s morals

Heresy – opinion profoundly at odds with what is generally accepted.
Ibarra saw how unjust and empowered the Catholic Friars had been, ever since he left for Europe.

Ibarra goes to his hometown, San Diego, where the unfortunate events of his father’s death took place.
Since Captain Tiago owns multiple properties there, María Clara also relocates to San Diego. November
is approaching, a time the town celebrates with a large festival. This festival is surrounded by various
religious holidays, such as All Souls’ Day, which commemorates dead people in purgatory waiting for
their souls to be cleansed before ascending to heaven. Taking advantage of this, San Diego’s priests
implore the villagers to purchase indulgences, which they claim shorten the length of time a soul must
languish in purgatory. Ibarra quickly sees that the power of the Catholic friars in the Philippines has
greatly increased since he left for Europe, a fact made clear by their control over even governmental
officials. For instance, Father Salví, San Diego’s new priest, is constantly at odds with the military ensign
in charge of the village’s faction of the Civil Guard. Salví uses his important religious position to spite the
ensign, fining the man for missing church services and delivering purposefully boring sermons when he
does attend.

The friars interfere with other elements of everyday life in San Diego too, which Ibarra learns after
speaking with the schoolmaster. The schoolmaster tells him that Father Dámaso actively meddles with his
educational techniques by demanding that he teach only in the country’s native language, Tagalog, instead
of instructing the children to speak Spanish. Dámaso also insists that the schoolmaster beat the children,
creating a hostile environment that doesn’t lend itself to productive learning. Hearing this, Ibarra decides
to build a secular school in San Diego, a project his father dreamed about before his death. On the advice
of the town’s old philosopher, Tasio, Ibarra presents his ideas to the town’s religious and civic leaders,
making it seem as if he wants them to be involved with the school, even though he plans to ignore their
influence after it is built.

In another setting, life can be seen as brutal for Crispin and Basilio. In spite of her fear for her own
life, Sisa, their mother, wore herself out into permanent insanity as she wanders the town for her
missing sons.

Meanwhile, two poor boys named Crispín and Basilio study to be sextons, or people who take care of the
church. They do so in order to financially help their mother, Sisa, but Crispín is unfairly accused of theft
and thus must work constantly with his brother to pay off the absurd amounts the chief sexton claims that
Crispín owes the church. When he protests this injustice one night, Crispín is hauled away and severely
beaten. Scared for his brother’s life, Basilio searches him out before running home during a storm and
waiting in vain with his mother for Crispín to appear. This never materializes, and the next day Basilio
goes back into town. Frightened, Sisa looks for both her boys and is told that the Civil Guard has been
ordered to arrest them for theft, though nobody can find them. She herself is arrested and then released, at
which point she searches throughout the night for her boys, working herself into permanent insanity and
destitution as she wanders the town and the surrounding woods.

Sextons – a person who looks after a church and a churchyard, sometimes acting as bell-ringer and
formerly as a gravedigger.

Ibarra learns that his life’s in danger, filled with unexplained injustice and death threats.
Visiting the Catholic cemetery, Ibarra speaks to a gravedigger and learns that, upon Father Dámaso’s
orders, he dug up Don Rafael’s body. Although the friar had instructed the gravedigger to take Rafael’s
body to the Chinese cemetery—a less respected cemetery—the gravedigger threw Don Rafael into the
lake, thinking it a more honorable resting place.

Ibarra and the town’s influential religious and government leaders decide to celebrate the new school on
the same day as the town’s fiesta. The church makes plans to bless the new educational building (though it
is not yet completed) directly after a long sermon by Father Dámaso. During this sermon, a mysterious
figure approaches Ibarra. His name is Elías, a man whose life Ibarra recently saved on an eventful fishing
trip. Elías tells Ibarra that there is a plan to kill him during the school’s benediction ceremony, warning
him not to walk beneath a certain large stone suspended by a pulley system. Ibarra ignores this advice,
and sure enough, the stone hurdles toward him. Luckily Elías takes action and covertly puts the
criminal—the man plotting against Ibarra—in the way of the stone, killing him instead of Ibarra. The
festivities go on, but Ibarra now knows he has enemies.

Scandalous as it is, Ibarra’s hosted dinner ended with himself standing up against Damaso’s
remarks against native Filipinos and publicly accusing him for his wrongful actions towards his
father, Don Rafael.

That night, during a celebratory dinner hosted by Ibarra, Father Dámaso arrives uninvited. All of San
Diego’s most respected individuals are in attendance, including the governor and the town’s other friars.
Dámaso loudly insults the school and its architecture while also making callous remarks about “indios,” a
racial slur for native Filipinos. He flippantly speaks about how “indios” abandon their country because
they think they’re superior, traveling to Europe instead. “In this life the fathers of such vipers are
punished,” he says. “They die in jail, eh, eh, or rather, they have no place…” When Ibarra hears Dámaso
make this crude reference to his father’s unfair death, he jumps up and pins the priest down, holding a
knife in his free hand and publicly accusing Dámaso of exhuming his father’s body. Ibarra says he won’t
kill Dámaso, but his actions say otherwise, and as he lifts the knife to bury it in the friar’s body, María
Clara snatches it from his hand. In the aftermath of this scandalous event, Ibarra is excommunicated from
the church.

After the event, more characters were revealed in the story, showing each individual’s personality,
highlighting their significance to the story.

Captain Tiago proves himself a spineless socialite by calling off the wedding between Ibarra and María
Clara, instead betrothing his daughter to Linares, a young man from Spain. Linares is the nephew of
Don Tiburcio de Espadaña, a fraudulent doctor who treats María Clara for a sudden illness that
incapacitates her for several days after the incident between Ibarra and Father Dámaso.
Meanwhile, the Captain General—the topmost government official representing Spain—visits San
Diego. The friars implore him to punish Ibarra, but because his priorities are more civic than religious and
because he supports Ibarra’s mission to build a school, he pulls strings to have the young man’s
excommunication lifted.
While Ibarra continues his project, Father Salví makes arrangements with a man named Lucas, the brother
of the man hired to kill Ibarra with the large stone. Because his brother died, Lucas wants revenge on
Ibarra. Father Salví—who secretly loves María Clara and who believes Ibarra is a heretic—hatches a plot
with Lucas to frame Ibarra. With Lucas’s help, he organizes a band of rebels to attack the Civil Guard’s
military barracks, telling them that Ibarra is the ringleader. Hours before the attack takes place, Father
Salví rushes to the ensign and warns him of the plan, making sure to request that the ensign let it be
known that he—Salví—was the one to save the town by discovering the plot and issuing a warning.

Salvi’s notorious plan worked accordingly, resulting to Ibarra’s arrest. Elias helped him escape and
find his way back to Maria Clara before running away to escape.

The attack goes according to Salví and Lucas’s plan, and Ibarra is arrested. He is imprisoned and found
guilty, a verdict based on an ambiguous line in a letter he sent to María Clara. Once again Elías comes to
the rescue, breaking him out of prison and taking him away in a boat. Before they leave town, Ibarra stops
at María Clara’s house, climbs onto her patio, and says goodbye to her. She explains that she only parted
with his letter—which led to his guilty sentencing—because she was blackmailed. Apparently, a man
came to her and told her that her real father is Fray Dámaso, not Captain Tiago. The man threatened to
spread this information if she didn’t give him Ibarra’s letter. Feeling that she must protect Captain Tiago’s
honor and the memory of her deceased mother, she handed over Ibarra’s letter. Nonetheless, she tells
Ibarra that she will always love him and that she is deeply sorry for having betrayed him.

The two gets in a heated discussion regarding the nature of revolution and reform. While in the
midst of the discussion, the two gets chased off and was forced to part ways due to the circumstance.

After saying goodbye to María Clara, Ibarra gets into Elías’s boat. As the two men row into the night,
they continue a heated discussion they’ve already begun about the nature of revolution and reform,
debating the merits of working within a corrupt system to change it rather than overthrowing the system
completely. As they talk, they realize they’re being chased by another boat. Elías tries to out-row their
pursuers, but quickly realizes they’ll eventually catch up. As bullets whip by, he tells Ibarra to row,
deciding to jump off the boat to confuse the people behind them. Before diving, he tells Ibarra to meet
him on Christmas Eve in the woods near San Diego, where Ibarra’s grandfather is buried with the family’s
riches. When Elías plunges into the water, the boat follows him instead of Ibarra. Elías throws them off by
diving deep into the water, only surfacing periodically. Soon, though, the people chasing him don’t see
him come back up. They even think they see a bit of blood in the water.

The story ends open-ended with Ibarra’s fate not resolved.

Back in San Diego, Father Dámaso visits María Clara, who tells him she can’t marry Linares because she
doesn’t love him. She references a newspaper, which falsely reported that Ibarra was found dead on the
banks of the lake. She tells the friar that this news has given her no reason to live and, as such, she can’t
go through with the wedding, instead deciding to enter a convent.
On Christmas Eve, the young Basilio wanders forth from a cabin in the woods, where he’s been living
with a kind family ever since the Civil Guard started looking for him. He goes into San Diego in search of
Sisa, his mother. When he finds her, she doesn’t recognize him and runs away, leading him back to the
woods, where she goes to the old tomb that contains Ibarra’s grandfather. Once he finally catches up to his
mother, though, Basilio faints. Seeing finally that he is her son, Sisa covers him with kisses. When Basilio
wakes up, he finds that she has died by his side. At that moment, Elías appears. He is wounded, and
seeing that Ibarra has not arrived, he tells Basilio he is about to die, instructing the boy to burn his and
Sisa’s bodies on a pyre. Looking up at the sky, he utters his final words: “I die without seeing dawn’s light
shining on my country…You, who will see it, welcome it for me…don’t forget those who fell during the
nighttime.” The book ends without mention of Ibarra’s fate.

Isinasagawa
Characters of Noli Me Tangere -Sheena

Rizal included around 30 characters in the novel. Below are some of the major characters of the story that
represent conditions of the Philippines.

1. Crisostomo Ibarra – also known in his full name as Juan Crisostomo Ibarra y Magsalin, a Filipino who
studied in Europe for 7 years, the love interest of Maria Clara. Son of the deceased Don Rafael Ibarra,
Crisostomo changed his surname from Eibarramendia to Ibarra, from his ancestor's surname. T
Si crisostomo ibarra ang pangunahing bida ng Noli Me tangere. Sa pag aaral sa Europa nagkaroon siya
ng angkop na kaalaman upang magamit sa bansang sinilangan.

In the novel, Ibarra’s personality will result in the disagreements of liberal idealism in education and
conservatism represented by the Catholic Church

2. Elias – Ibarra's mysterious friend, a master boater, also a fugitive. He was referred to at one point as
"the pilot." He wants to revolutionize his country. In the past, Ibarra's grandfather condemned his
grandfather of burning a warehouse, making Elias the fugitive he is. Si Elias ang nagpapakita kung
paanong ang mga Pilipino ay naghirap dahil sa pang-aabuso ng mga Espanyol at walang nagawa para
maprotektahan ang sarili dahil walang kakayahan at normal na mamamayan lamang which also happened
to other Filipinos due the social situation that time.

The character that Rizal placed to represent the Filipino masses who suffered from Spanish brutalities and
abuse due to their powerlessness in the novel and in real Philippines social situation of that time.

3. Maria Clara – María Clara de los Santos, Ibarra's sweetheart; the illegitimate daughter of Father
Damaso and Pia Alba. She mirrored the Filipina woman of religious upbringing and orientation, and
through her love to Ibarra, and she represents true fidelity and religiosity of the woman in real Filipino
society.

4. Father Damaso – also known in his full name as Damaso Verdolagas, Franciscan friar and María
Clara's biological father. An antagonist in character and represents the un-Christian works of the Catholic
friars who are in the church.
5. Sisa – the mother of Basilio and Crispin, who became insane after losing her sons. She represented in
the novel a sad plight of the Filipina mothers losing her two sons, Basilio and Crispin. In the novel, Sisa
loses her sanity.

6. Kaptain Tiago – also known in his full name as Don Santiago de los Santos the known father of María
Clara but not the real one; he lives in Binondo. An illegal opium trader who subsequently was a landlord.
He represented a different view in religion and thus, more of a businessman who used his money to work
for him even in religious life and obligations.

7. Pilosopong Tasyo – also known as Don Anastasio, portrayed in the novel as pessimistic, cynic, and
mad by his neighbors. He portrays the role of a Philosopher who was completely misunderstood in many
aspects, he argues with the belief of the Catholic Church and social changes and concerns in the novel.

8. Doña Victorina – Victorina de los Reyes de Espadaña, a woman who passes herself off as a
Peninsulares. Wife of Don Tiburcio de Espadaña, known in the novel as a trying hard rich woman who
abhors anything that is Filipino and clings to Spanish way of life. This kind of character was manifested
on some Filipinos of that time.

9. Pedro – abusive husband of Sisa who loved cockfighting.

10. Don Rafael Ibarra – known in the plot as a concerned citizen and property owner who was the father
of Crisostomo Ibarra. Padre Damaso who played an antagonist role called him a heretic and rebel due to
his view on relating to liberalism in society.

11.The School Master – A teacher at San Diego who’s view in the novel represented the weak and useless
education in the Philippines. He attributes the problem from facilities and methods of learning that the
friars implemented in the country.

12. Tandang Pablo – The Leader of the rebels, whose family was destroyed because of the Spaniards.

13. Basilio – the elder son of Sisa.

14. Crispin – the younger son of Sisa who died from the punishment of the soldiers from the false
accusation of stealing an amount of money.

15.Padre Sibyla – Hernando de la Sibyla, a Filipino friar. He is described as short and has fair skin.

16. Padre Salvi – also known in his full name as Bernardo Salvi, a secret admirer of María Clara.

17. The Alferez – chief of the Guardia Civil; mortal enemy of the priests for power in San Diego.

18. Don Tiburcio – Spanish husband of Donya Victorina who was limp and submissive to his wife; he
also pretended to be a doctor
19. Doña Consolacion – wife of the alferez, another woman who passed herself as a Peninsular; best
remembered for her abusive treatment of Sisa.

20. Captain-General (no specific name) – The most powerful official in the Philippines, a hater of secular
priests and corrupt officials, and a friend of Ibarra.

Nakumpleto
THE FIRST HOMECOMING (Sel pacheck if relevant siya sa topic natin, if u think hindi wag mo na
isama, or if isasama mo lagay na lang sa list of topic na id-discuss ty)

When Rizal came home to Calamba on August 8, he planned to operate his mother’s eyes, help
his family and other Filipinos, to know why Leonora didn’t communicate with him while he was in
Rome, and lastly, to find out how his novel entitled “Noli Me Tangere” affected the Filipinos and the
Spaniards in the Philippines. When he came back, his family already knew that Rizal’s life was in danger
because of his novel. So they did what they could to protect him, where his father forbade him to go out
alone, and his brother, Paciano, who couldn’t leave his side to protect him from any assault at any time.

TROUBLE IN NOLI ME TANGERE - Russel

After a few weeks of his stay in Calamba, the Governor General sent him a letter regarding the
allegations and complaints about his novel, Noli Me Tangere. That was when the trouble in his novel
began. He was called to Malacañang Palace to explain himself and the ideas contained in his novel. Rizal
accepted the invitation and denied all of the charges and explain to Governor General Terrero that he
didn’t expose the whole truth and most especially he did not plan to encourage the readers to believe all of
his words in his novel or trick them. Because of the Governor General’s curiosity, he asked Rizal to give
him a copy of his novel which Rizal agreed on and made a promise. With the idea of Rizal’s situation, the
Governor himself appointed the cultured Spanish Lieutenant Don Jose Taviel de Andrade as his
bodyguard. Fast forward, when the Governor finished reading the novel and find nothing wrong, he still
banned Rizal’s novel as he was ordered by the Commission of Censorship because of several reports
about the novel. When the novel was banned, it gives more curiosity to people and the urge to read it
secretly.

Nakumpleto
THE ATTACKS OF NOLI ME TANGERE
DEFENDERS OF NOLI ME TANGERE (hanggang page 11 lang)- Jayson

THE ATTACKS OF NOLI ME TANGERE

The attacks on Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere were not only confined in the Philippines but
were also staged in Madrid. The Noli Me Tangere was fiercely attacked in the session hall of the
senate of the Spanish Cortes.
 Particularly:
- General José de Salamanca (April 1, 1888)
- General Luis M. de Pando (April 12, 1888)
- Senator Fernando Luis Vida (June 11, 1888)

Senator Fernando Luis Vida

- He became very critical of the Noli, he described Rizal as a native with a doctor of
Medicine degree.
The aforementioned Spanish legislators condemned the novel as anti-Cathloic,
Protestant, and Socialist in orientation and learning.

It was also vociferously attacked by the Spanish academician, Vicente Barrantes, who
was once a ranking official of the Philippines.
Vicente Barrantes
- Spanish Academician of Madrid
- Former high government official in the Philippines
- Wrote an article in La Espana Moderna (a newspaper of Madrid) in January,
1890

He attacked Rizal in 1889 by describing Rizal as a man of contradiction, whose criticism

of the friars and the Spanish Regime were actually an insult to the Filipinos themselves.

The first attack on Noli

The first attack on the Noli in the Philippines came from an anonymous letter signed by a
friar. In this letter, Rizal was labeled an ungrateful man.
Fray Salvador Font
Fray Salvador Font, the cura of Tondo and chairman of the Permanent Commission of
Censorship composed of laymen and ordered that the circulation of this pernicious book" be
absolutely prohibited. Not content, Font caused the circulation of copies of the prohibition, an
act which brought an effect contrary to what he desired. Instead of what he expected, the
negative publicity awakened more the curiosity of the people who managed to get copies of the
book. Assisting Father Font in his aim to discredit the Noli was an Augustinian friar by the name
of Jose Rodriguez. In a pamphlet entitled Caiingat Cayo (Beware). Fr. Rodriguez warned the
people that in reading the book they "commit mortal sin," considering that it was full of heresy.
Fr. Salvador Font
- Issued the official censure of the Noli.
- His report on the Noli consisted of four parts:
● Attacks on the religion of the state
● Attacks on the administration, the government employees, and the courts.
● Attacks on the civil guards.
● Attacks on the territorial integrity of the Spanish Kingdom.
Father Jose Rodriguez.
Father Rodriguez judged the novel and said that it should not be read because it is full of
heresies, blasphemies and grosset errors.
A direct attack on the Noli was Launched by Fr. Jose Rodriguez by issuing pamphlets
under the title Cuestiones de Sumo Interés. (Question of Supreme interest) to blast the Noli
and other anti-Spanish writings.

Copies of their anti-Rizal pamphlets written by Fray Rodriguez were sold daily in the
churches after mass. Many Filipinos were forced to buy them in order not to displease the friars,
but they did not believe what their author said with hysterical favor.

Rizal replied to these attacks by Fr. Rodriguez through the satirical pamphlet entitled La
Vision del Fray Rodriguez. A satirical pamphlet, where St. Augustine was made by Rizal to
appear to Father Rodriguez while the latter was in deep slumber and scolded him for becoming
“a butt of all jokes to all angels in heaven by his foolish articles”.
 In response to Fr. Font critique, Rizal wrote as satirical essay Por Telefono.
DEFENDERS OF NOLI ME TANGERE
The Noli Me Tangere had its great defenders who bravely came out to prove the merits
of the novel and to enlighten the unkind attackers. They were the reformers in foreign lands like
Marcelo H. Del Pilar, Graciano Lopez Jaena, Mariano Ponce, Dr. Antonio, Ma. Regidor,
Professor Ferdinand Blumentritt, Dr. Miguel Morayta, and Don Segismundo Moret, a former
Minister of the Court.
Members of La Solidaridad
- Marcelo H. del Pilar
● Another defender of Rizal’s Noli
● He wrote a pamphlet entitled Caiigat Cayo (Beware or Be Slippery as an
Eel) in response to Fr. Rodriguez’s pamphlet entitled Caiingat (beware).
- Dr. Antonio Maria Regidor
● As a supporter of the Filipino cause, he wrote, “El Pleito de los Filipinos
Contra Los Frailes ( The Plight of the Filipino Against the Friars) for the
propaganda newspaper La Solidaridad under the pen name “Luis Rances'
'. He also wrote “La Masoneria en Filipinas” under the pen name
Engracio Vergara.
● Despite being Spanish, Regidor supported the Secularization Movement
(was a movement in the Philippines under Spanish colonial administration
from the 18th to late 19th century for greater rights for native Filipino
Roman Catholic clergymen), and the nationalist propaganda.
● In 1889, Regidor joined the International Association organized by Rizal and
campaigned for Isabelo de los Reyes Filipinas Ante Europa. In 1896, he
defended Rizal by appealing to the Spanish authorities that the latter’s arrest
aboard the Spanish vessel Colon and detention was illegal and was deprived
of due process of law and liberty
- Graciano Lopez Jaena
● Also known as Príncipe de Oradores Filipinos (Prince of Filipino Orators).
Founder and editor of the newspaper La Solidaridad in 1888 (Barcelona,
Spain).
 ● La Solidaridad urged reforms in both religion and government in the
Philippines, and it served as the voice of what became known as the
Propaganda Movement.
- Mariano Ponce
● was a Filipino physician, writer and active member of the Propaganda
Movement. In Spain, he was among the founders of La Solidaridad and
Asociación Hispano-Filipino

Don Segismundo Moret was a former President of the Council of Ministers. He read and
liked the Noli very much and he is also one of the Defenders who defend the novel of Rizal.
Don Segismundo Moret
- Former Minister of the Crown

Miguel Morayta, a supporter of the propaganda movement and founder of the

Asociacion Hispano-Filipino. Morayta also became Jose Rizal’s professor at the Universidad
Central de Madrid
Doctor Miguel Morayta
- Historian and Statesman

Defended Rizal by stressing his Catholic orientation and the point that the Spanish
nationals have to accept these criticisms. He also described Rizal as the greatest product of the
Philippines. Since Rizal was not only the most outstanding man of the Filipino people but the
greatest man the Malayan race has ever produced.
Blumentritt became one of Rizal's closest confidants although they met only once. He
translated a chapter of the latter's first book, Noli Me Tangere, into German and wrote the
preface to Rizal's second book, El filibusterismo, although he was against its publication as he
believed that it would lead to Rizal's death.
Professor Ferdinand Blumentritt
- Scholar
- Educator
- Liker of Noli Me Tangere and best friend of Rizal

Father Franciso Sanchez

 Father Sanchez of Ateneo upheld and praised the Noli in public. The Spanish Jesuit
was Rizal's favorite teacher in Ateneo where the said priest taught Literature. It was under
Fr. Sanchez that the young Rizal learned the Greek and Latin Classics. He encouraged
Rizal to cultivate his literary skills, by writing essays and poetry.
Father Franciso Sanchez
- Rizal’s beloved JEsuit professor in Ateneo
- Defend and praised the Noli in Public

Reverend Father Vincent Garcia or Rev. Fr. Vicente Garcia

Rev. Father Vicente Garcia, a Filipino Catholic priest-scholar, a theologian of the Manila
Cathedral and a Tagalog Translator of the famous ‘Imitation of Christ ’by Kempis wrote a
defense of the Noli Me Tangere under the pen name Justo Desiderio Magalang. This was
published in Singapore as an appendix to a pamphlet dated July 18, 1888. He blasted the
attacks and arguments of Fr. Rodriguez with the following counter-argument:

1. Rizal cannot be an “ignorant man” as Fr. Rodriguez alleged, because he was a

graduate of Spanish universities and was a recipient of scholastic honors.
2. Rizal does not attack the Church and Spain because what Rizal attacked in the Noli
Me Tangere were the bad Spanish officials and not Spain, and the bad corrupt friars and not the
Church.
3. Father Rodriguez said that those who read the Noli Me Tangere committed a mortal
sin. Since he (Fr. Rodriguez) had read the novel therefore he also committed mortal sin.

Reverend Father Vincent Garcia or Rev. Fr. Vicente Garcia

- Unexpected defender of Noli
- Filipino catholic priest scholar
- Theologian of the Manila cathedral
- Tagalog translator of imitation of Christ by Thomas Kempis
- Under the pen-name Justo Desiderio Magalang
- Publish in Singapore on July, 18, 1888

Rizal cried with overwhelming gratitude to Father Garcia’s brilliant defense of his Noli Me
Tangere. Rizal wrote a letter to Barrantes to defend himself and to expose Barrantes’ ignorance
of the Philippine affairs and mental dishonesty which is unworthy of an academician. While the
controversy over the Noli was raging in fury, Rizal was untouched in Calamba because he was
with a bodyguard. Because both of them are young, educated and cultured with the same
interest so they became friends.

Agrarian Problem in Calamba

While Rizal was in Calamba, his help was sought by the folks for their grievances
against the hacienda management, and they were calling for the central government to impose
certain reforms. After a thorough study of the conditions of the Calamba hacienda which the
Dominican Order owned since 1883, he wrote down his findings which the tenants and the three
officials of the hacienda signed on January 8, 1888 and was submitted to the governor general
for action.

Rizal’s Findings about the Agrarian Problem

1. The Hacienda of the Dominican order comprised not only the lands around Calamba
but the town of Calamba.
2. The profits of the Dominican order continuously increased because of the arbitrary
increase of the rentals being paid by the tenants.
3. The hacienda owner never contributed a single centavo for the celebration of the town
fiesta; for the education of the children and for the improvement of agriculture.
4. Tenants who had spent much labor clearing the lands were ejected from their lands for
flimsy reasons.
5. High rates of interest were charged from the tenants for delayed payment of rentals
and when the rentals could not be paid, their carabaos, tools and homes were confiscated.

This report further heightened the anger of the friars and they pressured the governor
general to deport him. Governor Terrero refused for there is no valid charge against Rizal in
court. Governor General Terrero advised Rizal to leave the Philippines for his own good and to
escape the fury of the friars.

Two Reasons for Rizal Leaving Calamba

1. His presence in Calamba is endangering the safety and happiness of his family and
friends.
2. He could better fight his enemies and serve his country’s cause efficiently by writing in
foreign countries.
Rizal Left the Country for the Second Time
Before Rizal left Calamba in 1888, his friends from Lipa requested him to write a poem
to commemorate the town’s elevation to a city (villa) by virtue of the Becerra Law of 1888.

He wrote the poem dedicated to the industrious folks of Lipa entitled Hymn to Labor
(Himno Al trabajo). He finished it and sent it to Lipa before his departure from Calamba.

Himno Al Trabajo. “Hymn to Labor” (1888) which was written on request in

commemoration of Lipa’s elevation from a town to a city. This is an admirable poem because it
originated from one who himself worked hard and worked well. He asked the people to assume
their distinctive roles in promoting their country’s progress through the dignity of labor and
industry.

The hymn is all about how every Filipino is willing to work hard for his country. Its
purpose is also to commend the hard work and dedication of the people of Lipa. The poem is
divided into four parts. Wherein each part is supposed to be acclaimed by the following: the
men, wives, maidens, and the children. The lines for each part symbolize the culture of the
Filipino people according to their age and status in the society.

For the Motherland in war,

For the Motherland in peace,
Will the Filipino keep watch,
He will live until life will cease!

These first four lines of verses comprise the chorus. It signifies that every Filipino, in his
patriotism, will keep a watchful yet loving eye on his country with equal passion at wartime and
in times of peace. There will be no desertion especially during the more difficult times in the
country’s history, even if it means he pays for his loyalty with his life.

MEN:

Now the East is glowing with light,

 Go! To the field to till the land,
For the labour of man sustains
Fam'ly, home and Motherland.
Hard the land may turn to be,
Scorching the rays of the sun above...
For the country, wife and children
All will be easy to our love.

The first stanza is sung by the men. This is the first of four societal groups identified in
this hymn, which signifies that all members of society without regard for gender or age, should
uphold and honor their country.

For the men, family and country are inspiration and motivation enough amidst exhausting
labor. Farming has long been the main occupation of men in the country especially during its
early years, and this verse gives a nod of approval to farmers who wake before the sunrise to
tend their land. They do it not for the money, but for what the income can do to benefit the
greater good: family, home, and Motherland.

(Chorus)

WIVES:

Go to work with spirits high,

For the wife keeps home faithfully,
Inculcates love in her children
For virtue, knowledge and country.
When the evening brings repose,
On returning joy awaits you,
And if fate is adverse, the wife,
Shall know the task to continue.
 The role of a wife during the time of Rizal was plain and simple: she was the steward of
the home, the mother of the children. Modern thinking might dispense premature reaction to this
notion, however it only takes a few lines to see that Rizal was, in fact, also a feminist, ahead of
his time.

This verse pays tribute to mothers who dedicate their lives to the rearing and upbringing
of their children, teaching them the right values and morals to become upright citizens.
Education and formation, after all, begin and end in the home. In the last two lines, it is evident
that, given the precarious nature of life in a time when war is imminent, wives may lose their
husbands and so it is in their capable hands to carry out the business of men in the context of
home and family, should the men find themselves no longer able to do their duty.

(Chorus)

MAIDENS :

Hail! Hail! Praise to labour,

Of the country wealth and vigor!
For it brow serene's exalted,
It's her blood, life, and ardor.
If some youth would show his love
Labor his faith will sustain :
Only a man who struggles and works
Will his offspring know to maintain.

The third verse is sung by maidens, who salute to labor and encourage the young men to
give their lives to hard work and industry for the good of the nation. This is supposed to be sung
with joy and pride, signifying that no fair maiden wants a lazy young man who sits and waits for
nothing all the day long but instead cheers for that youth full of valor and expresses her
willingness to be that youth’s wife on account of his spirit, not merely his looks.

(Chorus)
 CHILDREN:

Teach, us ye the laborious work

To pursue your footsteps we wish,
For tomorrow when country calls us
We may be able your task to finish.
And on seeing us the elders will say :
"Look, they're worthy 'f their sires of yore!"
Incense does not honor the dead
As does a son with glory and valor.

It is apparent in Filipino culture then and now, that children have high regard for the
approval of their elders. This verse underlines the importance of keeping the culture and tradition
that is handed down to them from the previous generation, and that they, in future, will hand
down to their own sons and daughters. It also expresses the children’s wish to pursue the
footsteps of those that have gone before them, in preparation for when the time comes for them
to take charge, however premature and unexpected that time may be.