el filibusterismo
Synopsis of El Filibusterismo
Crisostomo Ibarra of the Noli Me Tangere, who, with Elias’ help, escaped from the pursuing soldiers at Laguna de Bay, dug up his buried treasure, and fled to Cuba where he became rich and befriended many Spanish officials. Thirteen years after leaving the Philippines, Crisostomo Ibarra returned as Simoun, a rich jeweler with a beard and blue-tinted glasses, and a close friend of the Captain-General. Abandoning his personality, he became a revolutionist, seeking revenge against the Spanish Philippine system responsible for his misfortunes by plotting a revolution. Simoun gradually made his way into the Manila high society and influenced every decision of the Captain-General to mismanage the country’s affairs so that a revolution will break out. By using his wealth and political influence, he encourages corruption in the government, promotes the oppression of the masses, and hastens the moral degradation of the country so that the people may become desperate and fight. He sarcastically sides with the upper classes, encouraging them to commit abuses against the masses to encourage the lower classes to revolt against the oppressive Spanish colonial regime. He did not attempt to fight the authorities through legal means but through violent revolution using the masses. Simoun has reasons for plotting a revolution. First is to rescue María Clara from the convent of Santa Clara and second, to get rid of ills and evils of Philippine society.
The story of El Filibusterismo begins on board the clumsy, roundish shaped steamer Thesteamer was sailing upstream the Pasig from Manila to Laguna de Bay. Among the passengers were Simoun, the rich jeweler; Doña Victorina, the ridiculously pro-Spanish native woman who is going to Laguna in search of her henpecked husband, Doctor Tiburcio de Espadaña, who had deserted her; Paulita Gomez, her beautiful niece; Ben-Zayb (anagram of Ibañez), a Spanish journalist who writes silly articles about the Filipinos;
Crisostomo Ibarra of the Noli Me Tangere, who, with Elias’ help, escaped from the pursuing soldiers at Laguna de Bay, dug up his buried treasure, and fled to Cuba where he became rich and befriended many Spanish officials. Thirteen years after leaving the Philippines, Crisostomo Ibarra returned as Simoun, a rich jeweler with a beard and blue-tinted glasses, and a close friend of the Captain-General. Abandoning his personality, he became a revolutionist, seeking revenge against the Spanish Philippine system responsible for his misfortunes by plotting a revolution. Simoun gradually made his way into the Manila high society and influenced every decision of the Captain-General to mismanage the country’s affairs so that a revolution will break out. By using his wealth and political influence, he encourages corruption in the government, promotes the oppression of the masses, and hastens the moral degradation of the country so that the people may become desperate and fight. He sarcastically sides with the upper classes, encouraging them to commit abuses against the masses to encourage the lower classes to revolt against the oppressive Spanish colonial regime. He did not attempt to fight the authorities through legal means but through violent revolution using the masses. Simoun has reasons for plotting a revolution. First is to rescue María Clara from the convent of Santa Clara and second, to get rid of ills and evils of Philippine society.
The story of El Filibusterismo begins on board the clumsy, roundish shaped steamer Thesteamer was sailing upstream the Pasig from Manila to Laguna de Bay. Among the passengers were Simoun, the rich jeweler; Doña Victorina, the ridiculously pro-Spanish native woman who is going to Laguna in search of her henpecked husband, Doctor Tiburcio de Espadaña, who had deserted her; Paulita Gomez, her beautiful niece; Ben-Zayb (anagram of Ibañez), a Spanish journalist who writes silly articles about the Filipinos;