diced b Jos e S. Arc a, - non

INTRODUCTIONA century is not long in historical reckoning. But neitherwould we qualify it a short time. For in one hundred years events can takeplace which at the moment may seem trivial, but which in time lead toconsequences of great importance.Such is the case, for example, of Rizal's Noli me tangere, whosecentennial we are celebrating. First published by a Berlin press one hundredyears ago, it is justly considered the "gospel of Philippine nationalism."When it first appeared, it was both praised and condemned, perhaps for thewrong reasons. Critics condemned it for its "blasphemous" and politically"subversive" message, while those who applauded it praised it for itsboldness in laying open before the public what everyone knew but which noone had dared to say before. None of them foresaw Noli me tangere wordeventually put an end to Spanish rule in the Philippines.Today, one hundred years after the appearance of. Rizal's novel, thePhilippines is a sovereign nation. Rizal's message, his role in the emergenceof the farthest colony of Spain into an independent republic is familiar in itsgeneral lines to all. But precisely how did the Noli help forge still disparateprovinces into a unified body that finally won political recognition? Whenthe Philippine government passed Republic Act 1456 (1956), also known asthe Rizal Law, obliging all students to read at least the two novels of thenational hero in order to graduate from college, was it because people hadforgotten the roots of their independence? Or, considered from anotherviewpoint, has the purpose of the law been achieved?The studies presented in the following pages are an initial effort tounderstand the Noli me tangere. They analyze the historical context in whichit was planned and put into writing, or what literary sources and motivationsmay have energized its author.The first two essays do not explicitly discuss the novel. But besidesanalyzing the political situation which reoriented the life of Jose Rizal, theyallow us a glimpse into the intimate experiences of a novelist who, for all hisexternal bravery and resoluteness, was as human as the rest of us, hesitant,vii