This novel and its sequel, El filibusterismo (nicknamed El fili), were banned in Spanish Philippines because of their portrayal of corruption and abuse by the colonial government and the Catholic Church. Copies of the book were nevertheless smuggled in and hidden, and when Rizal returned to the Philippines after completing medical studies, he quickly ran afoul of the local government. A few days after his arrival, Rizal was summoned to Malacañan Palace by Governor-General Emilio Terrero, who told him of the charge thatNoli me tangere contained subversive elements. After a discussion, Terrero was appeased but still unable to offer resistance to pressure from the Church against the book. The persecution can be discerned from Rizal's letter toLeitmeritz:
"My book made a lot of noise; everywhere, I am asked about it. They wanted to anathematizeme ['to excommunicateme'] because of it... I am considered a German spy, an agent of Bismarck, they say I am aProtestant, a freemason, a sorcerer, a damned soul and evil. It is whispered that I want to draw plans, that I have a foreign passport and that I wander through the streets by night..."
Rizal was exiled to Dapitan in Mindanao, then later arrested for "inciting rebellion" based largely on his writings. Rizal was executed by firing squad at the Lunetaoutside Manila's walls on December 30, 1896 at the age of thirty-five, at the park that now bears his name.
Influence on Filipino nationalism
Rizal depicted nationality by emphasising the positive qualities of Filipinos: the devotion of a Filipina and her influence on a man's life, the deep sense of gratitude, and the solid common sense of the Filipinos under the Spanish regime.
The work was instrumental in creating a unified Filipino national identity and consciousness, as many natives previously identified with their respective regions. It lampooned, caricatured and exposed various elements in colonial society. Two characters in particular have become classics in Filipino culture: María Clara, who has become a personification of the ideal Filipina woman, loving and unwavering in her loyalty to her spouse; and the priest Father Dámaso, who reflects the covert fathering of illegitimate children by members of the Spanish clergy.
The book indirectly influenced thePhilippine Revolution of independence from Spain, even though Rizal actually advocated direct representation to the Spanish government and an overall larger role for the Philippines within Spain's political affairs. In 1956,Congress passed Republic Act 1425, more popularly known as the Rizal Law, which requires all levels in Philippine schools to teach the novel as part of their curriculum. Noli me tangere is being taught to third year secondary school students, while its sequel El filibusterismo is being taught for fourth year secondary school students. The novels are incorporated to their study and survey of Philippine literature.[5]Both of Rizal's novels were initially banned from strict Catholic educational institutions given its negative portrayal of the Church, but this taboo has been largely superseded as religious schools conformed to the Rizal Law.
