EL FILIBUSTERISMO ANALYSIS

Chapter 1
In this chapter, the novel begins with the sailing of the steamship Tabu in Pasig River bounding
to Laguna. With the slow pace of the ship travel, readers are introduced to some characters such as
Simoun, Dona Victorina, Ben Zayb, Don Custodio, Padre Irene, Sibyla, Camorra and Salvi.

Chapter 2
This chapter on the lower deck of the steamship, two men converse with Don Basilio which are
Basilio and Isagani. The two students discussed with the Don their plans on establishing a Spanish
Academy. Although the students are hopeful that the academy would be approved by the governor-
general, Don Basilio expressed his pessimism.

Chapter 3
The passengers of the steamship are telling stories and legends in different spots along the river.
Padre Florentino recounts the legend of Dona Jeronima while Padre Salvi narrates the story of a Chinese
infidel man who was saved from the cayman by asking St. Nicholas for help. Then Ben Zayb asks the
captain the exact spot where Ibarra was killed. While pointing the exact spot, Ben Zayb observes that
Simoun is silent and thoughtful.

Chapter 4
This chapter is all about Cabesang Tales and his family who are farmers. Because of the
hardships and sickness they experienced, Tales’s wife and eldest daughter died. Just about the time he
will harvest his crops, somebody lays claim to the land and demand for annual rent. Tales agrees to the
arrangement but the rent goes higher every year. He went to the court but eventually lost the case. He
was abducted by the bandits and requested for ransom. In order to complete the ransom, his daughter
Juli borrows moneyf from Hermana Penchang and to pay the debt, Juli agrees to work as servant for
Hermana.

Chapter 5
A cochero was abused and maltreated by the guardia civil on the Christmas Eve. He was hit with
a rifle when he told them that he forgot to bring his cedula. He is detained and beaten up again when
the light of his curromata goes out. In this chapter, we have seen once again the anger of the ruthless
Spaniards.

Chapter 6
At Christmas Eve, Basilio enters the forest owned by Capitan Tiago where he visits the grave of
his mother (Sisa) and a stranger (Elias). He then remembers that thirteen years ago, a second stranger
had helped him to cremate and bury his mother and the stranger.
Chapter 7
Simoun told Basilio that he is Crisostomo Ibarra. Simoun tried to convince Basilio to avenge for
his mother and his younger brother but Basilio refused saying that revenge would never bring back his
brother and mother.

Chapter 8
On Christmas Day, Juli packed her things to go to Hermana Penchang. After Juli leaves, Tata Selo
her grandfather, is preoccupied with thoughts of his pretty granddaughter, of his son Cabesang Tales
still held by the bandits, and being alone on Christmas Day.

Chapter 9
The gossip about the misfortunes of Tata Selo and his family spreads around the town and
people are claiming that they are not to blame for these misfortunes. Another example of how people
back those days were blind enough to see the inequalities between poor Filipinos and rich Spaniards.

Chapter 10
Simoun visits Cabesang Tales’s house to sell his jewelry to the rich inhabitants of San Diego. On
the following day, Simoun discovers that his revolver was stolen by Tales. Three persons have been
murdered and a piece of paper with the word “Tales” written in blood was found near the dead tenant’s
wife.

Chapter 11
The governor-general and his advisers, together with some friars went to Los Banos to take
some rest. The governor-general asks his advisers’ opinion about the students’ proposal to put up a self-
sufficient Spanish Academy. Afterwards, he orders the release of Tata Selo who has been arrested by
the guardia civil in place of his son Cabesang Tales.

Chapter 12
In this chapter, Placido Penitente was introduced as a student in University of Santo Tomas. He
doesn’t want to study and urges his mother to let him abandon his studies and just go back to work
instead.

Chapter 13
Placido entered the physics class conducted by Padre Millon. At a class recitation, Placido argues
with the professor when he gets a bad mark even though he was marked absent. From disgust and
frustration, Placido Penitente walks out of the class.

Chapter 14
In this chapter, Macaraig announced the decision to issue the permit for building the academy
has been passed to a commission headed by Don Custodio. Isagani has volunteered to persuade Senor
Pasta to support and endorse their project.
Chapter 15
Isagani approaches Senor Pasta to persuade him to support the students’ project. But Senor
Pasta decides to oppose the project not wishing to provoke the friars who are against it and tried to
convince Isagani to just focus on his studies. This act shows bias to the friars.

Chapter 16
A Chinese business man named Quiroga arranged a dinner in his house. Friars, government
officials, soldiers and merchants attend the dinner. Simoun then asked for some rifles as exchange for
the portion of the debt that the Chinese merchant owes him.

Chapter 17
This chapter continues the night after the dinner at Quiroga’s house wher twelve people left to
watch Mr. Leed’s show. Padre Camorra ogles the young women at the fair, and gets more excited when
he sees Paulita Gomez, Isagani’s rich and beautiful sweetheart.

Chapter 18
Ben Zayb, Padre Camorra, Padre Salvi and others watched the show of Mr. Laeeds. And then the
magician did some tricks and a Sphinx named Imuthis narrates a sad story. A priest, he says, was in love
with his sweetheart and in order to eliminate him, he was implicated in a rebellion. Imuthis was then
arrested but was killed in a lake while trying to escape. Seeing the parallelism between Imuthis’s story
and that of Crisostomo Ibarra, Padre Salvi faints when the Sphinx starts calling him murderer, slanderer,
and hypocrite.

Chapter 19
This chapter is about Placido Penitente joining the trip of Simoun around the city. Placido learns
that Simoun is organizing a revolution in order to rescue Maria Clara from the convent.

Chapter 20
This chapter tells that Don Custodio is torn between pleasing the friars and giving the students
the chance to learn Spanish language. He then consulted Senor Pasta and Pepay but did not get a
concrete answer. After much comtemplation, he arrives at a decision.

Chapter 21
The people of Manila gather in the Teatro de Variadades to watch Les Cloches de Cornville. A
man named Camarrocido, who is from a prominent family in Spain, is poorly dressed and is employed in
putting up posters of the upcoming shows of the Teatro. While walking near the Tetro he then noticed
some suspicious men loitering around. He then finds out that Simoun is ordering the men to stop a civil
unrest.

Chapter 22
Humorous incidents happened at the show. In this chapter also, the students led by Makaraig
learn about Don Custodio’s decision.
Chapter 23
In this chapter, Simoun convinced Basilio once again to assist him in the revolution. Simoun then
adds that a revolution is necessary to rescue Maria Clara at the Sta. Clara nunnery. Basilio informs
Simoun that Maria Clara is already dead. Simoun leaves the house weeping, tormented and bereaved.

Chapter 24
This chapter, Isagani meets with his lover Paulita at Malecon. Isagani is revealed to be an idealist who
envisions progress and economic development for his country. He talks about railway expansion, cooperation
between Spaniard and Filipinos, and the imminent commercial trade. Paulita dismisses these thoughts saying they
are unattainable dreams.

Chapter 25
The students organized a banquet at a panciteria to honor Don Custodio and his decision about
the Spanish academy. In his decision, the academy must come under the supervision of the Dominican
order and the students would simply collect contributions for the proposed school.

Chapter 26
In this chapter, Basilio goes to the hospital but sees students acting as if classes are suspended.
A student informs him that seditious and revolutionary posters are found at the university. The
government has issued arrest for all the members of the student organization as well as the students
participated in the banquet at the panciteria. Makaraig and Basilio got arrested by the soldiers at
Makaraig’s house.

Chapter 27
Padre Fernandez calls Isagani to discuss his involvement at the banquet in the panciteria. The
said discussion was centered on the policy of the friars in educating students. Isagani argues that the
friars are deliberately teaching antiquated education in order to inhibit the aspiration of the people to
be free. He argues that people who aspire to be educate are branded as filibusters. Padre Fernandez
told Isagani that he has done everything he could. He says that education can only be bestowed to a
deserving and ready people.

Chapter 28
The seditious posters found in the university caused the city to be filled with rumor and gossip.
Some gossips that students were arrested and shot and rumors that said the student organization
members joined the bandits and the German ships to bring down the government.

Chapter 29
When Capitan Tiago died, Padre Irene becomes the executor of his will. Capitan Tiago has willed
his properties to Sta. Clara, to the pope, to archbishop, and to religious corporations.
Chapter 30
The news of Basilio’s imprisonment reached Juli . Hermana Penchang and Hermana Bali
convinced Juli to ask Padre Camorra to intercede for Basilio. At first Juli was hesitant but when she
found out that Basilio is about to shot, she is compelled to ask the friar’s help.

Chapter 31
A high official convinces the governor-general that Basilio is innocent. The governor-general
then insists that innocent individuals must suffer in order to restore order and to cow the people in
submission. Because of this disagreement, the high official resigns and goes back to Spain.

Chapter 32
Because of the revolutionary and seditious posters, Pecson, Tadeo, and Juanito Pelaez are
suspended from their classes. Tadeo burns his books while Juanito was engaged in his father’s business.
In jail, Basilio learns the sad news of Juli’s deaths. Simoun then befriends Don Timoteo Pelaez, who is
busy preparing for his son’s wedding to Paulita Gomez.

Chapter 33
In this chapter when Basilio was released in prison, he immediately approaches Simoun to join
the revolution. Simoun was pleased that Basilio will be joining his cause and immediately directs Basilio
to meet Cabesang Tales at a designated time to acquire the rifles that are hidden in Quiroga’s
warehouse. Simoun is to place at an important gathering a dynamite-laden lamp that would then
explode to signal the attack.

Chapter 34
The wedding of Juanito Pelaez and Paulita Gomez was assumed by Basilio to be the important
gathering mentioned by Simoun because of the rich decorations and important visitors he has seen.

Chapter 35
Basilio sees Simoun placing the lamp at the center of the house. Basilio is about to leave when
he sees Isagani. He tries to convince Isagani to stay away from the house and explains that the lamp is
about to explode killing everybody in the house. In a rare act of love and loyalty to Paulita, he boldly
rushes to the house, quickly throwing the lamp into the river to prevent it from exploding. In this
chapter, such bravery and deep love was seen from Isagani.

Chapter 36
The governor-general prohibits any mention of the events that have taken place at the wedding
fiesta of Juanito Pelaez and Paulita Gomez. News circulates that a band of tulisanes have attacked a friar
country house. The robbers who are caught describe a Spanish mestizo as the one who ordered them to
attack the city at a designated signal. The description by the robbers perfectly fits Simoun.
Chapter 37
The events of the previous nights are discussed by Isagani, Capitana Loleng, Capitan Toringoy,
Sensia, and Chichoy. Chichoy divulges that Simoun is the mastermind behind storing the sacks of
gunpowder in order to kill all people at the wedding feast.

Chapter 38
A group of prisoners are being escorted by the soldiers when they are ambushed. Carolino, one
of the members of the guardia civil and the son of Cabesang Tales, bravely fight the bandits, killing with
a spear the bandits’ leader and an old man. Upon approaching the dead, he recognizes that the old man
he shot is none other than his grandfather, Tata Selo.

Chapter 39
After Simoun was wounded and exhausted he hid at Padre Florentino’s house and revealed his
identity. He says that he is the fugitive Juan Crisostomo Ibarra and that was his unsuccessful attempt to
corrupt the government in order to start a revolution that would free the country. Padre Florentino
reprimands Simoun, saying that freedom cannot be won through violence and bloodshed but by
education, constant work, and suffering.
EL
FILIBUSTERISMO
ANALYSIS

Submitted by:

Mc Dyrel I. Rentoria BAT-3B

Submitted to:

Mr. Mark Jude Perez