The Reign of Greed

The Reign of Greed

 Published in Ghent, Belgium
 On September 18, 1891
 The Subversive or the Subversion, as in the Locsín
English translation, are also possible translations), also
known by its alternative English title The Reign of
Greed.
 The second novel written by Philippine national hero
José Rizal.
 A novel full of revenge and anger.
 The Reign of Greed
 The novel was written in memory of GomBurZa, the
three priest who experienced injustice and executed in
1872.

 If Noli Me Tangere describes the Spanish colonization

in the Philippines, El Filibusterismo encouraged the
people to rise and uite to assert reform even with
violent means.
Characters of the Novel
Simoun Ibarra
The continuation of the character of Crisostomo from
being idealistic, the cruel society made him pessimistic.
Using his wealth, he encouraged the people who
experienced abuse to join him in his rebellion against
the church and the society.
Simoun was a bitter, ruthless man set on vengeance.
Working tirelessly for over a decade for his plans,
Simoun aimed to reform the Philippines through
violent methods, possessing a means-to-an-end
mentality. As such, he was not above manipulation,
deception, and encouraging the government and
clergy's cruelty towards the indios. Simoun justified this
to himself by believing it was in order to improve the
country. He was also motivated to rescue his lost love
Maria Clara from the convent, using his planned
revolution to achieve this, but after Maria Clara's death
he lost all hope and simply wanted to destroy
everything. During his final days, however, Simoun had
a change of heart and expressed regret over his actions
to Padre Florentino on his deathbed.
Characters of the Novel
Basilio
He was the son of Sisa and was
adopted by Kapitan Tiago.
Basilio was an optimistic and
hopeful individual in spite of the
hardships he faced. At a young
age, Basilio demonstrated a
certain maturity, aware of his
father's abuse towards his
mother and recognizing the
need to find his family after he
was taken in by Selo.
Characters of the Novel
Isagani
Isagani was an idealistic young man.
Influenced by Padre Florentino's liberality
as a Jesuit, he sought for genuine progress
of the Philippines and was quick to vocalize
said ideals. He was one of the active
members of the student organization and
described to be an optimist in contrast with
the student Pecson. He is described as a
poet, taller and more robust than Basilio
although younger. He is the nephew of
Padre Florentino, but is also rumored to be
Florentino's son with his old sweetheart
before he was ordained as a priest. He was
the friend of Basilio and the boyfriend of
Maria Paulita Gomez.
Characters of the Novel
Señor Pasta
A former idealistic Filipino, selfish man,
with no regard for his countrymen. He
believes that only when everyone else
fights for the country will he join in the
spirit of nationalism.
Characters of the Novel
Juli
Juliana de Dios, was a resident of San
Diego and the daughter of Cabesang
Tales. After her father was abducted by
bandits, she did whatever she could to
raise enough ransom money. Like Maria
Clara, symbolizes the purity and
innocence of the lower class women
during Rizal's time. She would rather
sacrifice rather than give up her ideals.
Characters of the Novel
Cabesang Tales
Telesforo de Dios, was a former cabeza de
barangay of San Diego. Struggling to gain
ownership of the land he tilled, he
eventually abandoned his family to join a
group of bandits, becoming feared
throughout the province as Matanglawin.
As originally an industrious and patient
man. After gaining enough savings as a
sharecropper, he thought of tilling land
in the forest, enlisting the help of his
entire family.
Characters of the Novel
Placido Plenitente
A student who excels im education and is
very smart, yet isn't recognized by
anyone. His names Placido means quiet
and Plenitente means suffering.
Characters of the Novel
Maria Paulita Gomez
Paulita Gomez was the niece of Doña Victorina and
the sweetheart of Isagani. Following Isagani's
imprisonment, Paulita broke their relationship off
and married Juanito instead. Paulita had the
tendency to act immature and entitled due to her
youth and sheltered upbringing. Having been raised
in a privileged environment, Paulita’s statement of
only traveling anywhere by coach or train being
emblematic of this. Also hearing only bad things
about the country as she grew up, Paulita emulated
her elders and similarly spoke badly of the
Philippines. Because of this, she felt resentful towards
patriotic individuals such as Isagani. She was also
somewhat emotionally manipulative, making Isagani
feel guilty for attending the theater show when she
had gone with Juanito.
Characters of the Novel
Padre Florentino
Padre Florentino was the parish priest of the town of Tiani
and the adoptive uncle of Isagani. He eventually came to
shelter both Don Tiburcio and Simoun from their respective
threats. Born to a wealthy socialite family from Manila,
Florentino was eventually forced to become a priest by his
religious mother. Unwilling, he resisted her by entering
multiple love affairs and arguing with her. However, he
eventually relented and became a Jesuit priest at twenty-five.
As part of this, he was assigned parish priest of Tiani. At
some point, his mother died and left him a great fortune.
Later on, he discovered that his former sweetheart married a
random man, despairing over the fact. He thus dedicated
himself to his parishioners; after the 1872 Cavite mutiny and
the subsequent Gomburza execution, Padre Florentino
resigned as parish priest, fearing his parish's substantive
income would draw attention to him and itself. He then
retired to his ancestral home in Tiani. While there, he
adopted a nephew, Isagani, who was rumored to be his son
by a cousin or the son of his widowed former sweetheart.
Characters of the Novel
Don Costudio
Don Custodio or Don Custodio de
Salazar y Sanchez de
Monteredondo is one of the
fictional Spanish characters in Jose
Rizal’s sequel to Noli Me Tangere,
El Filibusterismo . He has held high
positions in the government and
the students, Isagani and Makaraig,
sought help for his support for their
planned Spanish academy for
Filipino students.