Noli Me Tángere (Touch Me Not)

Once again, Elías and Ibarra’s destinies overlap. Ibarra pleads with Elías to let him partake in the next revolt, but he turns him down. Elías is quick to point out that although Ibarra’s reputation has been tarnished, he still cannot understand the misery of the lower class. When the men are eventually pursued by the civil guard patrol, Elías jumps into the water to distract them. Despite his criticism of Ibarra, Elías’s willingness to sacrifice himself shows his faith in what the idealist represents. Keeping Ibarra alive means keeping hope alive—the hope that human rights will be established in the Philippines.

However, María-Clara reveals that Ibarra is dead. This is a curious narrative decision, but it is in line with much of the novel’s other events. Rather than act as an authoritative voice, the narrator often reveals matters of importance through the voices and actions of the characters. Yet, he provides a full account of Father Dámaso and María-Clara’s conversation. The dramatic irony of the reader knowing Dámaso is María-Clara’s biological father (and knowing she knows) heightens the intensity of the exchange. When María-Clara confronts him with this information, she fully exposes him as the corrupt man he is. The exchange is made even more dramatic because Dámaso likens himself as the primary judge of morality throughout the novel.

The final scene of the novel is a heartbreaking tale of Basilio’s reunion with his mother, Sisa. Having suffered the emotional toll of losing her sons, Sisa is unable to believe that Basilio has returned to her. The choice to end the novel here underscores how oppression destroys people’s lives to the point of creating generational cycles in which the poor remain poor.