CHAPTER 19

El Filibusterismo Published in Ghent

Overview• October, 1887- He begun writing it in Calamba while

practicing medicine

• 1888- He made changes in the plot and revised the chapter already written. He wrote more chapters in Paris, Madrid, and Biarritz

• March 29, 1891- He finished the manuscript in Biarritz after 3 years.

• From Brussels, Rizal moved to Ghent, where printing was cheaper.

• September 18, 1891- El Filibusterismo came off the press

Privations in Ghent• July 5, 1891 Rizal left Brussels for Ghent

Reasons:

- The cost of living was lower

- The cost of printing in Ghent was cheaper than in Brussels

- To escape from the enticing attraction of Petite Suzanne

• Owing to his limited funds Rizal lived in a cheap boarding house, with Jose Alejandro as roommate

• They lived frugally in Ghent for 3 months form July to September

• To economize further on their living expenses, they prepared their own breakfast.

Ghent

Jose Alejandro and University of Ghent

The Printing

• The publisher F. Meyer-Van Loo Press, no. 66 Viaanderen Street who was willing to print his book on installment basis

• He pawned his jewels in order to pay the down payment and early partial expenses during the printing of the novel

• Rizal became desperate because his funds were running low

• He received some money from Basa and 200 from Rodriguez Arias for the copies of Morga’s Sucesos sold in Manila but these funds were also used up

The Printing

• July 1891 Rizal wrote a letter to Basa saying that if no money comes he will have to stop its publication

• August 6 The printing had to be suspended, as Rizal feared, because he could no longer give the necessary funds to the printer

El Filibusterismo Comes off the Press

• Valentin Ventura heard Rizal’s predicament he immediately sent the amount of money needed to finish the publicationof the novel

• September 18, 1891 El Fili came off to Press

• Rizal immediately sent 2 copies to Hongkong one for Basa and the other to Sixto Lopez

• He gratefully gave the original manuscript of El Fili and a printed copy with his autograph to Valentin Ventura

• Filipino patriots praised the novel. The members of the colony of Barcelona published a tribute in La Publicidad, a Barcelona newspaper eulogizing the novel’s original style which “is comparable only to the sublime Alexander Dumas” “a model and precious jewel in the now decadent literature of Spain

Valentin Ventura Sixto Lopez

• The liberal Madrid newspaper, El Nuevo Regimen, serialized the novel in its issues of October, 1891.

• All copies of the first edition (Ghent Edition) of El Fili were placed in wooden boxes and shipped to Hong Kong, but almost all the boxes were confiscated and all the books were lost.

• The book immediately became rare and few available Ghent copies were sold at very high prices, reaching as high as 400 pesetas per copy.

Dedication of the Novel

• To the memory of the priests, Don Mariano Gomez (85 years old), Don Jose Burgos (30 years old), and Don Jacinto Zamora (35 years old). Executed in Bagumabayan Field on the 28th of February, 1872.

• To straighten historical records, however, we must rectify Rizal’s historical inaccuracies in his dedicatory note. The martyrdom of Gomburza occurred on February 7, 1872. Father Gomez was 73 years old – not 85, Father Burgos was 35 years – not 30, and Father Zamora was 37 years old – not 35.

The Manuscript

• The original manuscript of El Filibusterismo in Rizal’s own handwriting is now preserved in the Filipiniana Division of the Bureau of Public Libraries, Manila. It had been acquired by the Philippine Government from Valentin Ventura for 10,000 pesos. It consists of 279 pages of long sheets of paper.

• The title page of El Fili contains an inscription written by Ferdinand Blumentritt

• Features that didn’t appear in the printed book:

• Foreword

• Warning

Characters of the El Filibusterismo

Don Custodio, a pro-spanish

Filipino holding a position in the

government

Juanito Pelaez , Paulita’s futuring husbandCabesang Tales, who

dispossessed of his land in Tiani by the friars like that of Rizal’s father; he became bandit

chieftain “Matanglawin”

Basilio, son of Sisa and promising

medical student, whose medical

education is financed by his patron, Capitan

TiagoPaulita Gomez,

beautiful niece of Tiburcio

Tiburcio de Espadaña, who has

deserted Doña Victorina

Ben-Zayb (anagram of Ibañez), a

Spanish journalist who writes silly

articles about the Filipinos

Simoun, the rich jeweler

Isagani, a poet-nephew of Padre Florentino and a lover of Paulita

Doña Victorina, the ridiculously pro-Spanish native woman who is

going to Laguna in search of her

henpecked husband Tiburcio

Cont.

• Padre Sibyla – Vice-Rector of UST• Padre Camorra – spanish priest of Tiani• Padre Salvi – Franciscan friar a former

cura of San Diego• Padre Irene – a kind friar who was a

friend to Filipino students• Padre Florentino – a retired scholarly

and patriotic Filipino priestx

Cont.•Capitan Tiago – patron of Basilio

•Quiroga – rich Chinese merchant

•Juli – the lover of Basilio

•Makaraig – rich and leader of Filipino students in their movement to learn Spanish in the academy

•Padre Millon – teaches Physics in UST w/o experiments

•Placido Penitente – student of Padre Millon who bacame disoriented bcause of the poor methods of instruction

•Senor Pasta – old Filipino lawyer who refuses to help Filipino students in their advocacy

•Tandang Selo – grandfather of Juli

Cont.• Mr. American – owner of the sideshow at the

fair of Quiapo exhibiting an Egyptian Mummy. • Sandoval – a Spanish student who supports

the cause of the Filipino students to propagate the teaching of Spanish

• Cabesa Andang – mother of Placido Penitente • Pepay – pretty dancer and mistress of Don

Custodio• Padre Fernandez – a good dominican friar

and friend of Isagani• Don Timoteo – father of Juanito Pelaez• Tano – son Cabesang Tales and brother of Juli• Chichay – the silversmith who made the

bridal earring for Paulita Gomez

Synopsis of the El Filibusterismo

The El Filibusterismo is the sequel of the Noli Me Tangere. Both nationalistic novels were written by Dr. Jose Rizal. In Noli Me Tangere, Rizal described the full extent of slavery and abuse suffered by the native Indios at the hands of Spanish authorities.

•In this second book, Rizal pictured a society at the brink of revolution. The Indios have started to adapt liberal ideas and guerrilla factions have started to revolt against the government. The advent of the novel starts 13 years after the events in the Noli Me Tangere, Juan Crisostomo Ibarra orchestrated a plot of evil means but heroic desires.

• During his travels in Europe, Ibarra changed his name to Simoun. He becomes a renowned jeweler thus his wealth grew further. He started to make new connections with the illustrious societal personalities in Spain. With his influence, he helped a military colonel to rise the ladder and be promoted as captain general of the colonial territory, the Philippines.

• For Simoun, it was all planned. Upon his return in the Philippines, he was dubbed as his black eminence. People saw him as an influential figure whom his majesty consults whenever decisions are to be made. After all, his majesty, the captain general owed so much to Simoun.

• Simoun wants to take revenge and bring back the love of Maria Clara who now resides at the convent. The jeweler was famed for his wealth and power. Hence, no one thought that the opportunists and fearsome Simoun was the same idealistic Ibarra of the past.

• Simoun started to look for followers. He found his allies with the oppressed and enslaved. He form an alliance with Kabesang Tales' group, an outlaw whose land was grabbed by the friar's corporation. He then, looks for more men. He searched the villages looking for strong willed men who have a gripe on the government.

• Simoun, using the influence he has on the captain general, ordered stricter and more abusive government policies - a move that will make the people angrier. This was the plot of Simoun, to use the people's hatred against the government to his advantage. Simoun also ordered attacks that will backfire and weaken the government's military forces.

• However, the revolution scheduled at the night of a musical play in Manila didn't come into fruition.

• Months, later another plan was made. At the grand wedding of Juanita Pelaez, the son of a successful businessman and the beautiful Paulita Gomez, Simoun insisted to take charge in the decorating.

• Simoun knew that the feast would be attended by friars, government officials and prominent figures - the same people who wrecked havoc to his life. Beneath the beautiful decorations and lighting were sacks of gun powder. The whole house was filled with explosives.

• Simoun formed his own army of the oppressed and enslaved and with the help of government soldiers and outlaws whom he commissioned, they will start a bloody revolution.

• The mission, to kill all Spanish authorities and to take control of the country. At the wedding, Simoun puts a beautiful lamp at the center of the table carved with gold linings and other kind of gems and jewelries. Simoun left as soon as delivering his gift, the lamp.

• It was a festive celebration but unknown to the guests, the lamp is a time bomb that will explode once lifted. It will result into a huge explosion that will be a signal to Simoun's troops to simultaneously attack Manila. Just before the lamp explodes, a piece of mysterious paper bearing the message "You will die tonight" was being passed. It was signed by Juan Crisostomo Ibarra.

• Father Salvi confirmed that it was the real signature of Ibarra, a long-forgotten filibuster. The guests at the wedding were all frightened. Slowly, the lamp's light started to diminish and soon one will lift it and will cause a huge explosion.

• However, a Isagani, a student and friend of the newly-weds knew the plot and because of his undying love to Paulita threw the lamp before it explodes.

• After the wedding, the plot was unraveled and a shoot-to-kill order for Simoun was commissioned. Hence, Simoun, the sly fox that he is, makes sure that he won't get caught alive. He drank a poison and as it effects started to take toll on his body, he was able to confess his plans and real name to a Filipino priests.

Characters from El Filibusterismo were draw by

Rizal from real life

• Padre Florentino was Father Leoncio Lopez

• Isagani was Vicente Ilustre

• Paulita Gomez was Leonor Rivera

Noli and Fili Compared

Noli FILI - Romantic Novel

- Work of the heart

- A book of feeling

- It has freshness, color, humor, lightness, and wit

- 64 chapters

- political novel

- work of the head

- a book of thought

- it contains bitterness, hatred, pain, violence, and sorrow

- 38 chapters

• The issue of which is the superior novel. Noli or the Fili is purely academic

• Both are good novels from the point of view of history

• Both depict with realistic colors the actual conditions of the Philippines and the Filipinos during the decadent days of Spanish rule

• Both are instrumental in awakening the spirit of Filipino nationalism

• Bothe are responsible in paving the ground for Philippine Revolution that brought about the downfall of Spain

• El Fili is a true twin of Noli

The Unfinished 3rd Novel

• September 22, 1891 Rizal wrote to Blumetritt saying that he’s thinking of writing a third novel where ethics will play principal role

• October 18, 1891 boarded the steamer Melbourne in Marseilles bound for Hong Kong

• During the voyage he wrote the third novel in Tagalog in which he intended for Tagalog readers

• In Hong kong he continued it, but did not finish it because his Tagalog was inadequate for literary purposes

• The unfinished 3rd novel has no title

• It consists of 44 pages in Rizal’s handwriting

• The manuscript is still preserved in the Bureau of Public Libraries

• The hero of the novel was Kamandagan, a descendant of Lakan-Dula, last king of Tondo. He plotted to regain the lost freedom of his fathers

• It is said that Rizal was fortunate not to finish this novel, because it would have caused greater scandal and more Spanish vengeance on him

Other Unfinished novels• Makamisa

- a tagalog novel

- written in light sarcastic style

- incomplete with only 2 chapters

- consists of only of 20 pages

• Dapitan

- written in Ironic Spanish

- he wrote it while in Dapitan to depict the town life and

customs

- Consists of 8 pages

Cont.• A novel in Spanish about the life in Pili, a town in

Laguna

- consist of 147 pages

- without title

• Another unfinished novel of Rizal, also without title, is about Cristobal, a youthful Filipino student who has returned from Europe

- consists if 34 pages

• The beginning of another novel are contained in two notebooks. The first notebook contains 31 written pages while the second contains 12 pages

- written in Spanish and the style is ironic

END

THANK YOU

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