The Revolution According to Reymundo Mata

The Revolution According to Raymundo Mata

(Excerpt)

By Gina Apostol

It was a bolt – a thunder bolt. A rain of bricks, a lightning zap. A pummeling of mountains, a heaving violent storm at sea – a whiplash. A typhoon. An earthquake. The end of the world. And I was in ruins. It struck me dumb. It changed my life and the world was new when I was done. And when I raised myself from bed two days later, I thought: It’s only a novel. If I ever met him, what would my life be? I lay back in bed. But what a novel! And I cursed him, the writer – what was his name – for doing what I hadn’t done, for putting my worlds into words before I even had the sense to know what the world was. That was his triumph – he’d laid out a trail, and all we had to do is follow his wake. Even then, I already felt the bitter envy, the acid retch of a latecomer artist, the one who will always be under the influence, by mere chronology always slightly suspect, a borrower, never lender be. After him, all Filipinos are tardy ingrates. What is the definition of art? Art is reproach to those who receive it. That was his curse upon all of us. I was weak, as if drugged. I realized: I hadn’t eaten in two days. Then I got out of bed and boiled barako for me.

Later it was all the rage in the coffee shops, in the bazaars of Binondo. People did not even hide it – crowds of men, and not just students, not just boys, some women even, with their violent fans – gesticulating in public, throwing up their hands, putting up fists in debate. Put your knuckle where your mouth is. We were loud, obstreperous, heedless. We were literary critics. We were cantankerous: rude raving. And no matter which side you were, with the crown or with the infidels, Spain or Spolarium, all of us, each one, seemed revitalized by spleen, hatched by the woods of long, venomous silence. And yes, suddenly the world opened up to me, after the novel, to which before I had been blind.

***

Still I rushed into other debates, for instance with Benigno and Agapito, who had now moved into my rooms. Remembering Father Gaspar’s cryptic injunction -  “throw it away to someone else,” so that in this manner the book traveled rapidly in those dark days of its printing, now so nostalgically glorious, though then I had no clue that these were historic acts, the act of reading, or that the book would be such a collector’s item, or otherwise I would have wrapped it in parchment and sealed it for the highest bidder, what the hell, I only knew holding the book could very likely constitute a glorious crime – in short, I lent it to Benigno.

Guide Question:

1.Why did the Noli Me Tangere have such a big impression on the narrator? Could you relate to the narrators experience of reading? Why or Why not?

Noli Me Tangere have such a big impression on the narrator because it helped him opened his eyes and realized how Filipinos was abused by the Spaniards and how they remained in the darkness for a long period of time. (Filipinos being helpless and submissive to the Spaniards).

2.Have you ever felt the same about a book that you had read? What book was it? Why did it leave such a huge impression on you?

Yes. The book was entitled "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows". It is interesting for me and left me a huge impression because it is the last battle of Harry Potter against the dark lord Voldemort. It is the most awaited part of the story where goodness overshadow the darkness spreaded by the dark lord through the braveness and great courage of Harry Potter with the help of his colleagues.

3. What does the line “Art is a reproach to those who receive it” mean? Should art be a reproach? Should we relate art to society? Explain your view.

Art is something created  with imagination in order to express feelings or important ideas. In this passage the art, is the novel "Noli Me Tangere". In relation to the story, this art becomes a reproach to those who receive it when the content says otherwise  to what the people believe and do, thus they start  to reflect on things/ their actions.In this case,  we certainly can relate art to society because art will always be a reflection where it is based on the society's principle, culture, and even law.

4. When you read about how so many people were affected by the novel, what was your reaction? Do you think a book can ever elicit such a strong response in the Philippines?

I was amazed on how a book can be so powerful to influece and change the power of one's mind.  It is no doubt that it can elicit a strong response in the Philippines especially that the book tackles issues related to the life of every Filipinos and the abused & corruption they experienced in the hands of Spaniards.

5. When the narrator says that the act of reading was a historic act, what did he mean? Do you think this is true even today?

I firmly agree that an act of reading is a

historic act. Reading is capable of influencing minds and opening the eyes of thousands of people. In relation to the story, by means of reading Noli Me Tangere, Filipinos used it as a motivation to fight for freedom thus creating and changing the history.

6. During those times, do you think you would have been moved to fight against the government after reading the novel?

Yes, as a Filipino it is my responsibility to fight for my own country. And if the author of the book was able to risk and sacrifice himself for the sake of knowledge and freedom,  then I for one will do the same.

7. They say that the act of reading gives people more empathy and makes them more critical and reflective. Do you think this is true?

I think its true that an act of reading gives people more empathy and makes them more critical and reflective. Reading challenges our brain to think beyond words. It does not only affect our beliefs but likewise our emotions and actions. The more we read, the better we can make solutions.

8. Given this excerpt, what do you think is the importance of literature to society? Is this still applicable today?

Literature is important to understand the background of our country and the people behind it a long time ago for us to be aware in the society.  And literature creates a way for people to record their thoughts and experiences in a way that is accessible to others, through fictionalized accounts of the experience. Yes this is applicable even in todays generation because it helps us widen and educate our minds beyond things we should really know about. 

9. Why is the Noli Me Tangere, a book that was banned in the past, now a required reading in Philippine schools? Why did the Catholic Church go against making the noli a requirement?

The book was banned in the past because it shows contradiction in the Spaniards government. It exposed the violence of the Spaniards to the Filipinos. And now it is required to be a subject in Philippine schools to educate the students about the past that contributed to bring back the freedom of the Philippines until now. The church is against to make it as a requirement because they are feared that the students will misinterpret the idea that long time ago church and its priest are traitors during the Spaniards regime.

10. Do you think there should ever be a time when certain books should be banned? Why or why not?

Yes. A certain book should be done if it possesses racial issues like descriminating another race. And the content of book encourages lifestyle choices that are not of the norm or could be considered dangerous or damaging. This could include drug use, co-habitation without marriage, or homosexuality.