8/20/2019 Hi165 Noli Paper Cris
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Hi165 Paper: Rancor Towards the Chinese as Seen in Noli Me
TangereCristina Puno 123202Hi165-A November 16, 2015
Along with the colonial presence of the Spaniards in the 19th
centuryPhilippines were other foreigners as well. This mostly
consisted of the Chinese.Because of their ubiquity, this resulted
in the Spaniards being cautious andsuspicious of them, and a way
for them to attempt to deter the Filipino colony fromtoo much
Chinese inuence was by instilling ideas and implementing methods
toestablish their difference and separation as a race. Some
instances of this can beexemplied in the Noli me Tangere by Jose
Rizal. Whether it be in the way theChinese were spoken of by
Spaniards which therefore passed on to Filipinos, orcriticism
against cultural beliefs, practices and way of life, there was
indeed a certainextent of hostility against them. A list of
instances in the novel can be found below:
1. Chapter 1, Page 1: “It was situated in that section…and,
should the Chinesewater-pedlar nd it convenient, even a source of
drinking water.”
- Written to describe the location of Capitan Tiago’s house,
quite a lowly viewof the Chinese can be seen, especially of those
who are not well-off. They aredepicted to be dirty and would drink
out of the contaminated river out of desperation.
2. Chapter 13, Page 49: “‘I didn’t put him in with the Chinamen.
Better to drownthan lie with the heathen, I said to myself, so I
threw the body into the river.’”
- The grave-digger is defending himself with why he did not
follow PadreDamaso’s orders to move Don Ibarra’s body to the
Chinese cemetery. He impliesthat it’s better to let the body drown
rather than leave it with people who do not
practice the same religion as other Spanish (and therefore he
and other Filipinos) do.
3. Chapter 20, Page 39: “It grew sugar, rice…or else sold at
throwaway prices toChinese middlemen who exploited the credulity or
vices of the farmers.”
- In describing some of the goings-on in the town of San Diego,
this sentenceexplicitly states a common view that the Chinese often
take advantage of the peoplethey work with (here, farmers) in a
negative way.
4. Chapter 20, Page 82: “Since many wealthy people are
coming…and whateveryou use to play the Chinese games…”
- Here, Capitan Basilio is making plans for the town for a
special gathering,and since there will be a number of wealthy
Chinese attending, they want to takeadvantage of this opportunity
to sneakily gain the wealth of the Chinese.
5. Chapter 29, Page 135: “They had brought a great number of
candles…Chinesewould do it not for love of Catholicism but of good
Christian women…”
- This refers to the purchase of candles from the Chinese to be
used for theesta, and shows a shallow judgment of the reason why
they would show theirgratitude through conversion — something that
is supposed to be taken sincerely.
Source:
Rizal, Jose, & Leon Guerrero. Noli Me Tangere . 5th ed.
Makati: Guerrero, 2015.Print.
