Be ‘woke’ — reread and rediscover ‘Noli’ and ‘Fili’

This is a reaction to the article “Rediscovering the ‘Noli’” (6/29/19) in which columnist Nenita Sta. Roman Cruz stated that the recent “Noli Me Tangere” opera at the CCP “succeeded in introducing ‘Noli’ the novel in an entertaining and friendly way” and that “…at the very least, it piqued enough curiosity to finally read the book.” Good to know.

I admit that I was lackadaisical toward Jose Rizal’s classic novel in third year high school in the late ’90s. Though aware of its historical significance, I still did not will myself to read its Filipino translation with as much commitment, interest and discipline as I did our English class readings. Perhaps because of my naïvete and apathy toward the outside world then (and bias for my English class), I found the “Noli” in Filipino to be too profound, too difficult, too long and too long ago, with hardly any conceivable relevance to the present.  The same can be said about my attitude toward “El Filibusterismo” in my senior year.

The fact that I did not open myself up completely to the “Noli” and “Fili” since I finished high school in 1999 gnawed at me with each passing year. I felt I had missed out on something that’s essential to my identity as a Filipino.

In July last year, I finally decided to pick up the English versions of both novels, translated by Ma. Soledad Lacson-Locsin. I suppose that other than this yearning to finally grasp the greatness of Rizal through focused reading of his two masterpieces, I needed to also seek his wisdom to help me (try to) make sense of many present-day realities besetting our nation (especially since the 2016 elections).

Rereading them at this stage in my life where I am more “woke” about our sociopolitical issues made me appreciate profoundly our national hero’s nationalistic ideals, as well as his superior intellect and literary caliber.

I encourage others to rediscover Rizal by giving the “Noli” and “Fili” another go. The travails of many of Rizal’s characters mirror a lot of what’s happening around us now. It would be wonderful if, at the end of reading them, one gets uplifted and inspired to do something within his or her capabilities to make our country a better place for us all.

CLAUDE LUCAS C. DESPABILADERAS

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