CHAPTER 19El Filibusterismo Published in Ghent

• 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

Overview

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

The Manuscript

Synopsis of the El Filibusterismo• Simoun – the main protagonist of the story a rich

jeweler.• Dona Victorina – ridiculously a pro-spanish woman• Tiburcio de Espadana – husband of Dona Victorina• Paulita Gomez – beautiful niece of Don Tiburcio• Ben-Zayb – Spanish journalist who writes silly articles

about Filipinos• Padre Sibyla – Vice-Rector of UST• Padre Camorra – spanish priest of Tiani• Don Custodio – pro-spanish Filipino holding a high

position in the government• 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 priest

Synopsis of the El Filibusterismo• Simoun – the main protagonist of the story a rich

jeweler.• Dona Victorina – ridiculously a pro-spanish woman• Tiburcio de Espadana – husband of Dona Victorina• Paulita Gomez – beautiful niece of Don Tiburcio• Ben-Zayb – Spanish journalist who writes silly articles

about Filipinos• Padre Sibyla – Vice-Rector of UST• Padre Camorra – spanish priest of Tiani• Don Custodio – pro-spanish Filipino holding a high

position in the government• 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 priest

Synopsis of the El Filibusterismo• Isagani – nephew of Padre Florentino and lover of

Paulita• Basilio – son of Sisa a promising medical student• Capitan Tiago – patron of Basilio• Quiroga – rich Chinese merchant• Cabesang Tales – father of Juli dispossessed of his land

in Tiani by friars• 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

Synopsis of the El Filibusterismo• 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

• Characters from El Filibusterismo were draw by Rizal from real life

– Padre Florentino was Father Leoncio Lopez

– Isagani ws 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

• 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