Noli Me Tangere is Latin for “touch me not.” In this modern classic of Filipino literature, José Rizal exposes “matters . . . so delicate that they cannot be touched by anybody,” unfolding an epic history of the Philippines that has made it that country’s most influential political novel in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. José Rizal, national hero of the Philippines, completed Noli Me Tangere in Spanish in 1887 while he was studying in Europe. Rizal continued to write, completing a second novel and many other poems and essays, until he was executed by firing squad in 1896. Since then, Noli Me Tangere has appeared in French, Chinese, German and Philippine languages.

The second and last novel completed by José Rizal (though he left behind the unfinished manuscript of a third one), El Filibusterismo is a sequel to Noli Me Tangere. A dark, brooding, at times satirical novel of revenge, unfulfilled love, and tragedy, the Fili (as it is popularly referred to) still has as its protagonist Juan Crisóstomo Ibarra. Thirteen years older, his idealism and youthful dreams shattered, and taking advantage of the belief that he died at the end of Noli Me Tangere, he is disguised as Simoun, an enormously wealthy and mysterious jeweler who has gained the confidence of the colony’s governor-general.

"The Indolence of the Filipino" by José Rizal is a critical essay written in the late 19th century, specifically during the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines. As an impactful work of political and social commentary, it addresses the stereotype of Filipino indolence, arguing that this perceived laziness is a reflection of the oppressive conditions under colonial rule, rather than a natural trait of the Filipino people.

It analyzes the novel in four parts: 1) It examines the suffering of Filipinos under Spanish colonial rule and their loss of culture and identity. 2) It discusses the failure of Spain's colonial policies to develop the Philippines and the oppression of Filipinos. 3) It outlines Rizal's proposals for political reforms if the Philippines remained a Spanish colony. 4) It provides Rizal's predictions for the future and his message to Spain about accumulated injustices potentially leading to the extermination of Filipinos or independence with support from other powers.

Mi Ultimo Adios is a farewell poem written by Jose Rizal on the eve of his execution. It contains the following: 1) The poet bids farewell to his beloved homeland, the Philippines, and offers his life for its freedom and redemption. 2) He recalls dreaming as a youth of seeing his homeland free from oppression and sorrow. 3) As he faces death, he finds solace that he can now rest in peace and that his blood will help dye the dawn and inspire others to continue fighting for independence. 4) He asks that after his death, his grave remain unmarked but that his ashes help enrich the soil of his homeland.