Lesson 10: In the Eye of Noli Me Tangere

“There can be no tyrants

where there are no slaves.” – Jose Rizal

Learning outcomes:

At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to:

1. Describe the context of the publication of the Noli Me Tangere;
2. Appraise important characters in the novel; and,
3. Relate the issues raised in the novel to the changing landscape of the
contemporary world.

Introduction

Jose Rizal, a Filipino nationalist, conceived the idea of writing a novel that
would expose the ills of Philippine society. His first novel, Noli Me Tangere, is regarded
as one of the most significant literary works produced by him. In order to represent the
facts of nineteenth-century colonial life in the Philippines, Rizal summoned his
intellectual prowess in this book. He used his knowledge of numerous areas and
created the said masterpiece. Many people respect the Noli for its story, which led
readers on a journey of love and deception, hardships, and victories through the eyes of
its protagonists. In the process, the story raises important issues like power and societal
injustices. And unsurprisingly, the book led to be instrumental in creating a unified
Filipino national identity and consciousness.
 The Publication of the Noli

It is a known fact that Rizal is an ilustrado, and is part of Propaganda

Movement in which aims for a reform of the Philippine government system, laws, and
individual rights through informing and forwarding the atrocious acts and abuse of the
Spaniards governing our country , to the King of Spain, hoping for a change in which
Filipinos could have equal rights and opportunities, standing on equal footing along
with Spaniards in a Spanish government.

In a reunion of Filipinos at the house of his friend Pedro A. Paterno in Madrid on

2 January 1884, Rizal proposed the writing of a novel about the Philippines written by a
group of Filipinos. His proposal was unanimously approved by the Filipinos present at
the party, among whom were Pedro, Maximino and Antonio Paterno, Graciano López
Jaena, Evaristo Aguirre, Eduardo de Lete, Julio Llorente and Valentin Ventura.
However, this project did not come to a success as the people who agreed to help Rizal
with the novel did not write anything. Initially, the novel was planned to cover and
describe all phases of Filipino life, but almost everybody wanted to write about women.
Rizal even saw his companions spend more time gambling and flirting with Spanish
women. Because of this, he pulled out of the plan of co-writing with others and decided
to draft the novel alone.

It was in the year 1884 in Madrid Spain, Rizal finished about one half of the
novel. After completing his studies in Central University of Madrid he went to Paris,
France in 1885, and finished half of the second half. Within April to June 1886 in
Wilhelmsfeld, Germany, he wrote the last few chapters, and in February 1887, he
made the final revision in Berlin, and the Noli Me Tangere is ready for printing.
However, the publishing of the book was postponed due to a lack of funding until
Maximo Viola, a fellow ilustrados, insisted on financing him 300 pesos for the
production of the first 2,000 copies. In March 21,1887, Noli Me Tangere came off.
Noli Me Tangere was printed in Berliner Buchdruckrei-Action- Gesselschaft, a
printing shop in Berlin. Rizal started sending the Noli to his acquaintances including
Blumentritt, Dr. Antonio Ma. Regidor, Graciano Lopez Jaena, Mariano Ponce, Felix
Hidalgo, and etc. He also gave galley proofs of the Noli Me Tangere rolled around
the pen he used in writing, to Maximo Viola, in March 29, 1887.

About the Novel

The title, Noli Me Tangere, inspired by the Gospel of John, which reflects
Jesus’ message to Mary Magdalene, urging her not to touch him.

“Touch me not; I am not yet ascended to my Father, but go to my brethren,

and say unto them, them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to
my God and your God”
 —John 20:17
Rizal chose the title to explore taboo topics in the Philippines, exposing
subjects people avoided. The objective of authoring the Noli was aimed at
highlighting the flaws and atrocities of Philippine colonial society under Spain
particularly the injustices and abuses committed by the Spanish government and
the friars.
Rizal was 26 years old when Noli was released. The book has 63 chapters
and an epilogue. At the time, he was a student of medicine at the Universidad
Central de Madrid. The Noli was dedicated to the nation whose suffering and woes
were exposed in an effort to educate its people about the problems with that era’s
social structure.

There are many literature that Rizal used, influencing and urging him
towards the creation of Noli. However, it was said that Noli Me Tangere was
majorly inspired by Harriet Beecher Stowe’s book, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” which
addressed slavery in America.

The Plot

After spending seven years studying in Europe, Juan Crisostomo Ibarra, a

young Filipino, returns home to discover that his father has passed away due to a
dispute with Padre Damaso. Ibarra is engaged to Maria Clara, a stunning and
accomplished young lady who is purportedly the only child of wealthy Don Santiago
de los Santos.

Ibarra swears never to argue again and to put his people’s welfare first. To
demonstrate his noble intentions, he wants to build a public school in his hometown
at his own money. Everyone appears to support him on the surface, especially Padre
Salvi, whom Maria Clara admits she has an innate fear of.

A suspicious accident at the corner-stone laying for a new schoolhouse targets

Ibarra’s life. The festivities continue until dinner, where Ibarra is insulted by Fray
Damaso over his father’s memory. The young man loses control and is about to kill
the friar, but is saved by Maria Clara’s intervention.

Ibarra is excommunicated, and Capitan Tiago breaks the engagement and agrees
to the marriage of his daughter and a young Spaniard provided by Padre Damaso.
Maria Clara, obedient to her father's command and dreading Padre Salvi, consents but
becomes seriously ill. She is saved by medicines secretly sent by Ibarra and
clandestinely administered by a girlfriend.
Crisostomo Ibarra successfully lifts the excommunication but is secretly spied on by
Padre Salvi's spies, who organize a revolt against the Civil Guard. He receives a
warning from an outlaw named Elias. He refuses to flee, wanting to meet Maria Clara
first. As a result, he was identified as the cause and imprisoned in Manila.
In the evening, when Capitan Tiago hosts a ball in his Manila house to celebrate his
daughter’s engagement, Ibarra escapes from prison and finds Maria Clara alone. He
reproaches her for a letter written to her before he went to Europe, which forms the
basis of the charge against him. Maria Clara, who had been manipulated by Padre Salvi
to obtain the letter and incriminate Ibarra, reveals that she will marry the young
Spaniard to save her mother’s name and Captain Tiago’s honor. She promises to
remain true to him, sacrificing herself to save her mother’s name and prevent a public
scandal. Elias helped Ibarra escape by taking him in a banka up the Pasig River to the
lake. There, they are so closely pursued by the Civil Guard that Elias dives into the
water to distract the onlookers from the boat where Ibarra had hidden.

On Christmas Eve, at the tomb of the Ibarras in a gloomy wood, Elias

appears, wounded and dying, to find there a boy named Basilio beside the corpse
of his mother, a poor woman who had been driven to insanity by her husband’s
neglect and abuses on the part of the Civil Guard, her younger son having
disappeared some time before in the convent, where he was a sacristan. Basilio,
who is ignorant of Elias’s identity, helps him to build a funeral pyre, on which his
corpse and the madwoman’s are to be burned. Before Elias died, he instructed
Basilio to find the treasure of Ibarra buried in the cemetery and use it to get an
education. He reminded Basilio to never lose hope and if one day, freedom and
progress would come to his country, not to forget those who labored in the night.

On Christmas Eve, Elias finds Basilio at the Ibarras tomb, wounded and dying. He
helps build a funeral pyre for Elias's corpse and madwoman's. Elias instructs Basilio to
find the treasure of Ibarra and use it for education. He reminds Basilio to never lose
hope and hope for freedom and progress in his country.
Maria Clara seeks a nunnery after hearing about the reported Ibarra's death, but
Fray Damaso, unaware of their relationship, confesses to preventing her from marrying
a native. She enters St. Clara nunnery, where Padre Salvi serves as a minister.

THE CHARACTERS OF NOLI

 Juan Crisostomo Ibarra y Magsalin (Ibarra)

Ibarra, a wealthy mestizo returning to the Philippines after studying in Europe, is

a sophisticated and idealistic young man. San Diego priests view him cautiously due
to his liberal education. He learns of his father’s death, labeled subversive and
heretical by the corrupt priesthood. Ibarra aims to establish a school in San Diego
that is not influenced by friars.
 Maria Clara

Maria Clara, the adoptive daughter of Capitan Tiago and goddaughter to the
vile Fr. Damaso, is actually the biological daughter of Fr. Damaso. She was raised
alongside younger Ibarra and planned to marry him, but Fr. Damaso disapproved.
Maria Clara’s guardians set her up to marry Linares, a wealthy Spanish-born man.
When Ibarra is put on trial for sedition, she is coerced into surrendering letters sent
by Ibarra as evidence of his guilt.

 Father Damaso
A Spanish priest living among native Filipinos for nearly two decades has no
endearment or sympathy. He is petty and vindictive, masterminding the death of Don
Rafael Ibarra and taunting the younger Crisostomo Ibarra. Crisostomo Ibarra attacks
the old friar, leading to his excommunication and the dissolution of their wedding.

 Elias
A mysterious insurgent is on the run from the law and resentful of the Spanish colonial
government and Catholic Church. He saves Ibarra from a crocodile and pledges to
protect him from his enemies. He takes on the identity of a laborer to gather intelligence
and uncover a plot against Sr. Ibarra’s life. Elias and Ibarra discuss politics and
governance ethics, taking a revolutionary stand.

 Don Rafael Ibarra

Crisostomo Ibarra’s father was a supporter of liberal education and a critic of

Spanish friars. He is accused of sedition and heresy by Fray Damaso. His remains
are buried in San Diego’s Catholic cemetery, but Fr. Damaso hires a gravedigger to
disinter his body for a Chinese burial. The gravedigger throws his body into a lake,
believing it would be a more honorable final resting place.

 Crispín

A little kid named Crispin works as a church caretaker to support their mother, Sisa,
along with his brother Basilio. They’re being imprisoned in a virtual jail on suspicion
of stealing money from the church. They are prohibited from seeing their mother by
the chief sexton, and Crispin lashes out at him. It is assumed that the ruthless head
sexton killed him because he was never seen again.

 Basilio
Eldest of Sisa’ brood, he, like his younger brother are sextons in training. Basilio
makes a desperate run for their home the night Crispín is dragged away. He
attempts to locate his younger brother the day after but his search efforts come up
fruitless. The following day the Civil Guard comes looking for him and his
brother. Fearing for his life he makes a mad dash for the forest where he goes into
hiding, living with kind family until Christmas Eve where he planned to return to his
mother. When he finally locates Sisa, but learns that the poor woman has gone
mad from grief and is thusly unable to identify her son. He follows her to the forest
where she regains her wits temporarily recognizing her son, and then dies from the
shock.

 Father Salví
A younger, more cunning Spanish priest who assumes control over Fr. Damaso’s
post as friar curate of San Diego; he is in many regards more dangerous that
his precursor as he is a more canny strategist who knows how to leverage the
multiple dirty little secrets each of the members of San Diego’s high society circle
has.

 Captain Tiago (Don Santiago de los Santos)

Capitan Tiago is a rarity in that he is a wealthy native-born Filipino socialite; he
keeps close ties with high-ranking members of the Catholic Church, despite
actually having no love for them. His primary concern is to marry off his daughter,
the lovely Maria Clara, to an affluent man from an influential family. This is one
of the main reasons that he is quick to toss aside his loyalties to Crisostomo Ibarra
when he is labeled a subversive. His predilection for advantageous social pairings
makes him quick to assent to Linares as a potential new match for his daughter.

 The Ensign
The nameless head of the Civil Guard of the township of San Diego; a man of
Spanish descent he is in a constant bitter feud with Fr. Salví as he has come to hate
the sly priest’s manipulations. In retaliation, the ensign imposes curfews that make
it all but impossible for the citizens of San Diego to attend mass at the proper
schedule. A drunkard and a braggart, he is actually a cuckolded man married to a
fiery, feisty, and foul-mouthed Filipina, Doña Consolación.

 Doña Consolación
The pugnacious wife of The Ensign, Doña Consolación is an older,
cantankerous Filipina woman who constantly lectures her husband. Their fights are
the stuff of legend and it is an open secret that it is she, not her husband
who makes he decisions for the organization. She is described as an
exceptionally vulgar woman and exceedingly ugly almost bordering on caricature
prompting the less charitable members of the Civil Guard to facetiously call her “The
Muse of Civil Guard.” Doña Consolación sees herself to be a person of great
standing in society, even if she is the only one who holds this opinion, and even if
she is wholly Filipino she feigns inability to speak Tagalog, her native dialect
insisting instead on speaking very poor, nearly pidgin Spanish.

 Doctor Tiburcio de Espadaña

A fraud and a hustler, the Spaniard who calls himself Doctor Tiburcio de Espadaña
was actually a customs officer who was dismissed from his post shortly after arriving
in the Philippines. Despite having no medical experience or money he travels to the
countryside to posing as a doctor, charging extortionate fees for his so-called
services. His patients eventually catch wind of his schemes and he is forced
to relocate to another area where he is all but unknown. He finds his was to San
Diego and as luck would have it the unfortunate Maria Clara falls ill and he is once
again called to resume his duplicitous medical practice.

 La Doctora Victorina de los Reyes de Espadaña

A brazen and determined Filipina social climber Doña Victorina is the spouse of the
counterfeit doctor, Tiburcio de Espadaña. She well past her prime and relies on
garish make-up to carry on a façade of youth. Her tastes in fashion are mercurial as
are her patterns of speech, mimicking the speech and manner of dress of members
of high society. An accomplished hustler herself it is she that devises that Dr.
Tiburcio treat Maria Clara as well as matching her up with his nephew Linares.

 Lt. Guevara
A morally upright man of Spanish descent who holds both Crisostomo Ibarra and the
late Don Rafael in high esteem, he is also the lieutenant of the Civil Guard. He is one
of the few who openly supported the Ibarra’s and was vocal about his dislike of Fray
Damaso’s control. He was the one who informed Crisostomo Ibarra of the fate of his
father and how Fr. Damaso was involved in his death.

 Linares
Dr. de Espadaña’s nephew, a respectable young Spanish man, quite gifted
and possesses a law degree; a near polar opposite of his uncle, a matter
that endears him to his uncle’s social-climbing wife.

 The Schoolmaster
A teacher that Don Rafael housed thus allowing him to suitably attend to the task of
instructing students; he informs Crisostomo Ibarra of the sorry state of education of
San Diego since the passing of his father. The friars closely watch the material being
taught in the school, forbidding him from teaching Spanish, even if there was an
edict stating that Spanish must be taught. The Schoolmaster is grateful to the Ibarra
family but he expresses no optimism that he’d make headway in getting any lasting
educational reforms happen.

 Don Filipo (Filipo Lino)

Don Filipo Lino is a representative of the younger, less religiously shackled
generation of movers and shakers in San Diego, he also serves as the vice mayor of
the town. He despises the idea of spending lavish amounts of money on the
numerous feast days that mark the religious calendar seeing it as both wasteful and
burdensome to the citizens as it often puts them under great financial stress, may
even going under debt just to be able to celebrate. His words however fall
on deaf ears as he is only deputy mayor---the Mayor, his commanding
officer---is a dedicated follower of the Catholic church and the de facto mouthpiece
of the friars.
 Sisa
The long-suffering mother of sextons in training Crispin and Basilio, she goes
mad upon the loss of her sons. Impoverished and married to a violent drunkard her
sons were the only ray of sunshine in her life. She wanders the town, clothes tattered
and hair disheveled, calling out for her sons. When she actually does meet Basilio
she cannot recognize him but when her wits do return she dies from surprise and
sudden joy.

 Fr. Sibyla
A priest serving in the Binondo district in the city of Manila, Fr. Sibyla serves as a foil
to the otherwise largely corrupt Fray Dámaso and the perverse Fray Salví as he is
rational and calm. Fr. Sibyla is an adept and shrewd orator who takes obvious
delight in antagonizing the pompous Fr. Dámaso at Ibarra’s return party.

 The Gravedigger
A cemetery worker who exhumes Don Rafael’s remains upon the insistence of Fr.
Damaso; moved by pity and laziness he dumps Don Rafael’s body in the
lake seeing it as a more fitting resting place for such a respected man. Ibarra grills
him, anxious for information about his father.

SYMBOLISMS IN THE NOLI

Noli Me Tangere intends to depict the real conditions of the Filipino life under
the Spanish rule. Mainly because of the rampant corrupt acts of the
Spanish officials and friars, the way of living of the Filipinos during that time
had been backward, anti-intellectual and anti-progressive, up to the point that
the country was not in any way catching up on the developments of the so-called
Age of Enlightenment. As Rizal introduced the novel to his friend, Ferdinand
Blumentritt, he wrote, “The novel is the first impartial and bold account of the life of
the Tagalogs. The Filipinos will find in it the history of the last ten years” (Noli Me
Tangere, n.d.).

 The Schoolhouse
More than just an edifice for learning the schoolhouse has become a
symbol of empowerment and freedom. Having received an education abroad,
Ibarra does not bow down to the priests and is immune to the threat of
excommunication.

 Crispin and Basilio

These characters represent the opposite end of the spectrum of not
having received education. The suffering they are subjected is due largely to
their ignorant over dependence on the church. They are open to abuses
because they have been conditioned to unquestioningly follow the church
leaders.
 Tinola and betel nut parcels served at a fancy, formal gathering
Tinola is a thin, rustic soup-like dish made with boiled chicken,
ginger, and unripe papayas served in the Philippines--common, everyday fare.
Betel Nut parcels are made of pepper leaves, sliced betel nuts, and an acrid
paste of lime, typically chewed by rural workers in the Philippines and
other countries in South-East Asia. These items are typically associated with
rural austerity and bucolic sensibilities that aren't befitting of such a high society
gathering. These food items are symbolic of the wide variety of party-goers that
have made their way into Crisostomo Ibarra's welcoming party: social
climbers and sycophants, hustlers, and the intellectuals of the day all
under one roof.

 Capitan Tiago
Capitan Tiago is the in-novel embodiment of the Philippine government
during the Spanish colonial era. There were native Filipino participating
in civil government in those days, however, many of them tended to be mere
figureheads, serving more as a mouthpiece for the Spanish Cortés.
Capitan Tiago, like the Philippine government, also shares this unflattering
characteristics: powerless and silently enduring of the indignities he suffers at
the hands of the Catholic priests that eat at his table and rape his wife.
Capitan Tiago also represents the rich Filipinos who opted to be allies
(as in ‘tuta’) of Spanish officials and friars just to preserve their wealth
and political position.

 Elias and Ibarra

The two characters Elias and Ibarra symbolize the two contrasting
means by which political reforms are to be achieved. Elias, the mysterious
insurgent, who represents political reforms achieved through bloody revolution
and his polar opposite, Ibarra, who represents political reforms achieved
through civil discussions. Through these two characters the ethics of
governance are discussed at length and as the novel progresses the
circumstances that happen to them continue to shape their political outlook--so
much so in fact that by the end of the novel the two have all but traded their
political stance on revolution and social reform.

 Maria Clara

Maria Clara represents the Philippines under Spanish rule and serves as
a cultural caricature and critique of the typical Filipino woman of the time. Born
from the exploitation of a Spanish priest and the inability of the Filipino people
to defend their sovereignty, Maria Clara embodies the typical Filipino woman of
the time: timid, devoted to domestic and church concerns, and powerless. She
represents ideal Filipina love and loyalty, reminiscent of Leonor Rivera and
 Rizal’s true love.

 Crisostomo Ibarra
He represents the small group of Filipinos who had a chance to study
abroad and dreamt of improving the country. Like Jose Rizal, Ibarra wanted
education for Filipino children, hence his plan to construct a public school in
San Diego.
 Father Damaso
This Spanish friar corresponds to wicked but ironically respected priests.
His character is a reflection of the then rampant covert fathering of illegitimate
children by friars. In the novel, he is revealed the biological father of Maria
Clara.

 Pilosopo Tasio
This character symbolizes those whose ideas were advanced and wise
but are perceived by the uneducated as weird or lunatic. that It is said that
Tasio’s character was patterned after Paciano, Jose’s intelligent brother who
also sought reforms.

 Sisa and her sons Crispin and Basilio

They epitomize a Filipino family oppressed by the Spanish authorities.
Through Sisa, Rizal illustrated a lack of concern in facing and resolving
the problems that confront the Filipino family - this was evident when Sisa lost
her mental balance upon learning what happened to her sons. She also
symbolizes a typical Filipino mother, fully aware of her child’s attributes and
willing to defend him/her no matter what.

 Doña Victorina
She represents some ambitious Filipinas who wanted to be classified as
Spanish, hence the putting on of heavy make-up. She despised everything
Filipino and imitated what was Spanish — an embodiment of a social climber
and colonial mentality.

 Don Tiburcio
Doña Victorina’s husband stands for incompetent and unqualified
Spaniards who illegally practiced their supposed profession in the Philippines.

 Padre Salvi
The curate, who secretly harbors lust for Maria Clara, represents the
seemingly kind but in fact wicked Spanish friars. Don Rafael Ibarra, Ibarra’s
father, epitomizes the rich and at the same time virtuous and generous Filipinos
during the Spanish era.

 The School Master of San Diego

He symbolized intellectual disappointment during Rizal’s time. He
wanted to change the teaching methods so that more people will learn.
  Don Rafael Ibarra
As Ibarra’s father, he symbolized a rich proprietor with a social
conscience. He was sent to jail after helping a boy from an abusive Spanish tax
collector. Indeed, the novel’s characters represent the various kinds
of people inhabiting the country during the period of Rizal’s life.

REACTIONS TO NOLI

 As expected, the Spanish officials and friars, especially the

sensitive ones, were furious by the contents of the Noli. Rizal’s
friends and compatriots, on the other hand, praised and defended the
novel.

 Non-Filipino defenders of the Noli include Rizal’s Austrian friend,

Ferdinand Blumentritt, and Dr. Miguel Morayta, statesman and
history professor in Central University of Madrid. Federico Faura,
Rizal’s Jesuit professor, told the Noli’s author “everything in it was the
truth,” but also foretold, “You may lose your head for it.” Today, there
are streets in Manila, which were named after Morayta, Blumentritt, and
Faura. (The road ‘Morayta’ was already renamed, but is still more
known to many by its old name).

 Even before Rizal went home after the publication of the Noli, his
family had been feeling the backlash produced by the novel. Using
coded words, Paciano wrote Rizal that a “storm” was “threatening
Makiling.” “It is only waiting for time,” he added, “It should not
surprise those who know that this is time for typhoons” (Bantug, p.
71). Later in history, Paciano would proudly translate the Noli into
Tagalog.

 During Rizal’s first homecoming in 1887, Governor General Emilio

Terrero summoned him to the Malacañang Palace a few days after
his (Rizal’s) arrival. Terrero told Rizal that Bernardino Nozaleda, the
Archbishop of Manila, petitioned to ban the Noli. The governor general
asked Rizal for a copy of the Noli and found noting ‘criminal’ in the
book. He nonetheless assigned Lt. Jose Taviel de Andrade of the
Guardia Civil to be Rizal’s bodyguard, fearing that Noli attackers
would harm the author.

 An ad hoc committee at the University of Santo Tomas denounced Noli

as heretical, impious, scandalous, unpatriotic, subversive of public
order, and harmful to the Spanish government. The Permanent
Commission on Censorship recommended prohibiting its importation,
reproduction, and circulation.
  In Madrid, a newspaper article written by a Vicente Barrantes
resentfully attacked the Noli. Similarly, some members of the Spanish
Cortes belabored the novel through formal speeches labeling it as
“anti-Catholic, Protestant, socialistic.”

 Jose Rodriguez, Rizal’s namesake, wrote eight anti-Noli pamphlets,

which were forcibly sold to church-goers. Filipino theologian Vicente
Garcia defended the novel, arguing that Rizal was a graduate of
Spanish universities and a recipient of scholastic honors. Garcia also
answered Rodriguez’ claim that those who read the Noli commit a
mortal sin by concluding that Rodriguez therefore committed a mortal
sin since he had read the novel.

 Describing the effects of Noli, Rizal himself wrote, “My book

made a lot of noise; everywhere, I am asked about it. They
wanted to anathematize me [‘to excommunicate me’] because of it... I
am considered a German spy … a Protestant, a freemason, a sorcerer,
a damned soul and evil.” (Rizal was indeed a freemason but, of course,
not the rest of the allegations.) In a letter to his friend Pastor Ullmer,
Rizal narrated, “… enemies burned my books, friends bought them
for as much as fifty pesos. Bookstores profited, but I got nothing.”
Noli therefore is a classic case of a black market profiting much from
an ‘illegal’ product.

 Rizal once got a letter dated February 15, 1888, that was kind of like a
death threat. Ironically, the sender did not give his real name and
simply cowardly signed the letter “A Friar.” The sender said, in part, “If
you… think you have a grievance, then challenge us and we shall pick
up the gauntlet, for we are not cowards like you, which is not to say
that a hidden hand will not put an end to your life.”

ACTIVITY: In reading the novel Noli Me Tangere, there are many events that
stimulate strong emotions from the readers. As a reader, there are many opinions
and perspectives that is generated from these emotions. If you were given a chance
to change a certain part of the novel, what would it be, and why? Write it on a sheet
of short bondpaper.

ASSIGNMENT: Reflecting on the plot and characters of the Noli Me Tangere,

choose one character from the Noli Me Tangere and make a video of you doing a
monologue, portraying your chosen character. At the end of the video, describe the
importance of the character, its symbolism, and why you chose the said character.
The video should be minimum of 3 minutes, and a maximum of 5 minute duration.
Make your video creative!
Content-50%
Creativity-40%
Punctuality-10%
References:
https://mandirigma.org/?p=673
https://www.slideshare.net/majorieashleycalar/the-publication-of-noli-me-tangere