Christia Marie Amor L.

Degoma Bs In Economics

Compare and Contrast

"The pen is mightier than the sword," according to Dr. José Rizal, the
Philippines' well-known national hero, is one of the well-known quotes I
still remember today. He expressed strong opposition to the abuse of
Spaniards and transmitted ideas that he believed would encourage his
fellow countrymen through his literary masterpieces. Noli Me Tangere
and El Filibusterismo are two well-known books by our national hero,
and they have been popular with us since we were in high school. In
various ways, the two novels are similar and different. They are
comparable chiefly due to the fact that both writings were authored by
the same author, Jose Rizal. Another thing they have in common is
that they both talk about Spaniards abusing Filipinos. Noli and El Fili
both have an anti-clerical, even anti-Catholic tone to them. In many
circumstances, though, they are not the same.
One of the most sought-after books in Philippine literature until today,
is Rizal’s famous novel titled Noli Me Tángere. Noli Me Tangere or also
called touch me not or huwag mo akong salingin in Tagalog contains
64 chapters, it was originally written in Spanish but later then translated
to English and Tagalog. The first edition of Noli was published in Berlin,
Germany on March 21, 1887. There are different contextual meanings
of the title of this novel. The title of this novel is originally taken from the
biblical context of John ch.20 verse 17, when Jesus says to Mary
Magdalene, touch me not, for I have not yet ascended to my Father. In
the novel’s dedication, Rizal also explains that there was once a type of
cancer that was so painful that the afflicted couldn't bear being
touched, and the condition was dubbed Noli me Tángere or in Latin
"don't touch me”. His homeland, he believed, was also afflicted. From
the title itself, the book contain sensitive statements or things that
people do not want to talk about or people avoid talking about the
content of his book which consist of the actions and abuses of friars
and the Spanish government to Filipinos. In addition, in 1912, the Noli
Me Tangere was also translated in English as Social Cancer by
Charles Derbyshire.
In the other hand, El Filibusterismo is the sequel or the continuation of
the Noli Me Tangere. It has 39 chapters and this book was dedicated to
the three priests these are Gomez, Burgos and Zamora or
GOMBURZA who were executed because of their supposed
participation in the first revolutionary campaign of modern Philippine
nationalism, the mutiny of Cavite. The El Filibusterismo is also called
the reign of greed in English and was publish in Ghent, Belgium on
September 18, 1891.
In terms of their differences, the Noli Me Tangere is a love story or a
romantic novel and is also called the book of feelings that is dedicated
to our motherland or the Philippines while the El Filibusterismo is a
political novel that associated with revenge and anger. It is also called
the book of thought. The theme of Noli Me Tangere is to exposed the
exploitation and abuses of friars and government officials.
In the book, the friars are seen to be greedy and arrogant to the Filipino
people, how Filipinos are belittled and discriminated by these
colonizers and brutality of some other officials who have more power
and authority are shown in the book. It focuses also to the power and
influence of the church holds and how they use this to control the lives
of Filipino people back then.
When it comes to characters and plot of the story in the Noli Me
Tangere, one of the main character of the story was Crisostomo Ibarra,
his character in this novel showed a compassionate and idealistic side
of Ibarra. In the novel, the father of Crisostomo Ibarra which is Don
Rafael Ibarra accidentally killed a tax collector to protect a bullied
person and because of that he was imprison and was accused with
other crimes then later on died in prison but even the fact that the
father of Crisostomo Ibarra was brutally plotted against still, he choose
to forgave rather than seek justice to people responsible for the death
of his father while in the El Filibusterismo the main character of the
novel, which Ibarra who assumes to be dead in the first novel,
portrayed the angry and vengeful side of him that disguised himself as
Simoun the wealthy jeweller. Fuelled by his mistreatment and
sufferings at the hands of the Spaniards and his fury at María Clara's
fate, Simoun secretly plans a revolution to seek revenge against those
who wronged him.
There are many characters in the novels such as Maria Clara the
fiancée of Crisostomo Ibarra, who symbolizes the Filipino womanhood
in their fidelity and coyness or conservative and religiosity of woman in
real Filipino society. Second, Elias a mysterious friend of Ibarra who is
also a fugitive, he represented the Filipino masses or the common
people who suffered the abused of Spanish People. Padre Damaso, a
friar and the biological father of Maria Clara, the antagonist of the
novel, he represent the abusive friars of the Spanish colonizer back
then. Sisa, the mother of Basilio and Crispin who losses her sanity or
became crazy in the novel, she represent the unfortunate Filipino
mothers who experience the loss of their child in the hands of the
Spanish people. Capitan Tiago, the known father of Maria Clara. He is
a businessman who used his money to work for him even in religious
life and obligations. He symbolizes the bossy type of people in the
society, he never prayed to god. He let his money pray for him. As one
of the lesser evils in the novel, Doña Victorina a social climber that
symbolizes those who have a distorted view of their identity. Everything
that is indigenous is inferior and everything foreign are superior. It is
the comedic form of ''colonial mentality”. She is the friend of Capitan
Tiago. Lastly, Don Rafael Ibarra, the father of Crisostomo Ibarra, he
symbolizes a person who have a social concern to the abuse, problem
and injustices of the Filipino and who have the empathy and concern to
help the society. There are still many characters left in the novel, each
of which contributed and give importance to the plot of the novel.
The conclusion of the sequel, as well as the overarching narratives that
swirl around the stories that center on many and complex individuals,
can be viewed that the answers to injustices are not additional
injustices, and that hatred will only create monsters.
Although the book is work of fiction ,the characters and events of the
story and their personality exist in real life scenario. The happenings in
the novel could also be compared to the real life incidents of today
generation such as the corruption and abuse of the higher officials to
their power or those who possess a great power and influence to the
Filipino people today. There are still people like Padre Damaso who
tries to hurt and abuse people in the society. People like Don Ibarra
who fight for the injustices and problems in our society, people who are
concern to our situation. Friars that can be compared to other
government officials who are greedy and selfish, who only think for
themselves and not for the service they could give to the Filipino
masses. That’s why its important not just to read the books of Rizal but
also reflect to the events in it. Because just like the happenings of the
novel, it is still prevalent and present in our current situation today, the
inequalities and unjust actions that’s still exist and experience by many.

With this, we can be able to see how much similar the life of Filipinos in
the novel that Rizal had created and lives of Filipinos today in the real
world. Long ago, we are colonized and also the colonizers who make
the lives of Filipino struggle in pain, abuse the poor, uneducated and
kill the innocent but did our society change today for the reason that we
are not colonized anymore? I think the answer is no, because even up
to this day people who less powerful, who are poor, who are innocent
are still belittled, abused in a different way and killed. There are still
many injustices we can observe in our society and equalities that those
who are rich, powerful and possess a big influence could experienced
may it be in the status, opportunities and rights of a person. We left to
the question, have we really recovered from the social cancer that
Rizal was writing about more than a hundred years ago? Are we the
nation that Rizal wants us to be?

One thing is certain, Rizal's works Noli Me Tangere and El

Filibustirismo are masterpieces that not only represent the lives of
Filipinos in the past but also in the present. Rizal's novels aided in the
formation of our nation, and we should all have the bravery to stand up
for it. Rizal wanted to teach us, via the use of his books, how powerful
knowledge can be, and how we should utilize it to make a difference, to
have an impact on other people, to wake them up to reality, to make a
change that would not just benefit us but for the greater good. Rizal's
novels served as a catalyst for the Filipino people's burning yearning
for freedom and love for their homeland. His works encourage
nationalism and the idea that by following the rules, embracing our
culture, and realizing the greater purpose we have as citizens of our
country, we can all help to improve the status of our society and
country. Rizal aspired for Filipino youths to use their strengths, talents,
and skills to make a name for themselves while also contributing to the
acclaim and success of their motherland, the Philippines. The youth
represent the country's hope and play an important role in its
development. As saying goes, “Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan”.

References:

Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2013, December 9).

Complutense University of Madrid. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Complutense-University-of-
Madrid

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.manilatimes.net/2018/03/17/
opinion/analysis/the-noli-me-tangere-cancer/386737/amp

GradeSaver "Noli Me Tangere Chapters 1-4 Summary and Analysis".

GradeSaver, 16 December 2021. Web. 16 December 2021.
https://www.gradesaver.com/noli-me-tangere/study-guide/literary-
elements
Comparison of Noli Metangere and El Filibusterismo. (2016, Oct 12).
Retrieved from https://graduateway.com/comparison-of-noli-
metangere-and-el-filibusterismo/