El Filibusterismo · Chapter
A Cochero's Christmas Eve explained
Basilio returns to San Diego during the Christmas Eve procession, observing the cochero's superstitious reflections and the town's decline.
What happens
Basilio returns to San Diego during the Christmas Eve procession, observing the cochero's superstitious reflections and the town's decline. He witnesses Simoun at Capitan Basilio's house and learns of Cabesang Tales' kidnapping.
Themes in this chapter
Colonial Oppression
The Civil Guard's brutality, the cochero's beating, and the legend of King Bernardo symbolize colonial subjugation.
Class and Racial Inequality
The cochero's envy of the Magian Kings (two Spanish, one black) and the curate's forced gifts highlight racial and class hierarchies.
Hope and Despair
The cochero's hope in King Bernardo contrasts with the town's decay and Basilio's despair over the same old complaints.
Characters to notice
- Basilio
Returns to San Diego, observes the procession and town's decay, learns of Cabesang Tales' kidnapping.
- Simoun
Present at Capitan Basilio's house, selling jewels to the curate and alferez.
- Sinong
The abused cochero who reflects on the procession and the legend of King Bernardo.
- Cabesang Tales
Mentioned as having been kidnapped, affecting Basilio's mood.
- Sinang
Seen in Capitan Basilio's entresol, now married and plumper.
- Capitan Tiago
Basilio's house is Capitan Tiago's, now occupied by a trustworthy man.
Key passages
“In the time of the saints, surely there were no civil-guards, because one can't live long on blows from rifle-butts.”
The cochero imagines a past without the Civil Guard, as their violence makes survival impossible.
Reflects the cochero's resentment of colonial authority.
“When he gets his right foot loose, I'll give him my horses, and offer him my services even to death, for he'll free us from the Civil Guard.”
The cochero vows to serve King Bernardo when he breaks free, hoping for liberation from the Guard.
Illustrates folk hope for deliverance from oppression.
“That fellow is fierce! He does business everywhere. And if I can believe a certain person, he buys from some gentlemen for a half of their value the same jewels that he himself has sold for presents.”
Basilio muses that Simoun profits by reselling jewels he originally sold as gifts at half price.
Highlights Simoun's cunning and the corruption in colonial society.