Historical Background

Rizal started El Filibusterismo in October 1887 in Calamba during his first homecoming. The novel was thus written against the background of the threats and oppressions he and his family suffered because of the Holi and the so-called Calamba Ograrian trouble. After starting in London in 1888, Rizal moved on to write the novel in Paris and then in Brussels where there were fewer distractions and the expense of living was lower, allowing him to concentrate on finishing the book. He finally finished it on March 29, 1891, in Biarritz.

Jose Alejandro, Rizal’s roommate in Belgium related that he was the one who looked for a printing press for El Fili. He delivered proofs and revisions to F. Meyer Yam Lao in Ghent. For his assistance, Rizal gave him the El fili’s corrected proofs and the pen used I corrections. Unluckily the historical souvenirs were either lost or destroyed during the revolution. (Ocampo, 2012, p. III). Alejandro, who subsequently became well-known as a general in the Philippine Revolution, may have been the first person besides the author to read the book. However, Valentin Ventura Rizal's buddy earned the title "the savior of the poem" because he helped to partially finance the book's publishing (Ventura’s steal of the title, one may argue, is another classic elucidation of the expression, “That’s what money can do”)

Initially, Rizal financed El Fili’s printing by pawning his properties. In a letter to Jose Base dated July 9, 1891, he related: “For the past three months I have not received a single centavo, so I have pawned all that I have in order to publish this book. I will continue publishing it as long as I can; and when there is nothing to pawn, I will stop (‘El Filibusterismo,” n.d.)

The printing had to be suspended due to a lack of cash, and this is when Valentin Ventura entered the picture, according to Rizal's subsequent letter to Basa. In retrospect, we might suppose that Ventura was troubled by his conscience, which is why he generously offered Rizal financial support after learning of his condition. Keep in mind that Ventura was one of the Filipinos who had pledged to co-author Rizal's first suggested book but failed to do so.

However, even with Ventura's assistance, Rizal felt the need to drastically cut the book's length, erasing 47 entire pages from the 279-page manuscript to reduce costs (Ocampo, 2012, p. 111). As a result, in spite of his original intention to write a longer sequel, the printed El Fili ended up having only 38 chapters as opposed to the 64 of the Noli.

For Ventura’s salvific act, Rizal gave him the novel’s original manuscript, a pen, and an autographed printed copy in 1925, the Philippine government bought the El Fili manuscript from Ventura for a large sum of 10,000 pesos G. Zaide. (G. Zaide & S. Zaide, 194) It is now being kept in the National Library.