I borrowed Dr. Benny Sulit's copy of Noli Me Tangere, written by Rizal and translated by the late Ma. Soledad Lacson-Locsin. It's a beautiful translation that seeks to preserve in English the cadence of Rizal's Spanish.
I first read Noli in high school Filipino class- I was anxious then to memorize the events and names of characters. In college, when one of my favorite teachers Caroline Hau encouraged us in Humanities 1 class to reread the novel, which she described as great, I felt confused: I had expected her to tell us to deconstruct it. Now that I can read the book at leisure, I think I see what Carol meant. Each of the chapters evokes a pastiche of experiences and perceptions, some old, some new, and awakens latent realizations about society. It's as if I'm rereading- or is it rewriting?- a book that is very different from the one I read in adolescence.
Here is how Locsin translated the first few paragraphs of Chapter 10, The Town:
The town of San Diego lies on the shores of the lake, amidst tracts of flat
arable lands and rice fields. It exports sugar, rice, coffee and fruits which
are sold cheap to the Chinese who exploit the naiveté or the vices of the
laborers.
When, on a serene day, the youth climb to the top of the church tower,
covered with moss and trailing vines, they break out in joyful exclamations,
inspired by the beauty of the panorama before them.
In that cluster of nipa, zinc and cabonegro roofs separated by gardens and
orchards, each one knows how to locate his small house, his little nest.
Everything serves as a sign post: a tree, the tamarind of sparse foliage; the
coconut palm loaded with nuts... a pliant bamboo; a betelnut palm; a cross. Over there is the river, a monstrous crystal snake, asleep on a green carpet...
A synopsis of the book and chapter summaries are here.
