What is the significance of the novel, Noli me Tangere, to the Filipino people?

Noli Me Tángere, known in English as Touch Me Not (a literal translation of the Latin title) or The Social Cancer, is often considered the greatest novel of the Philippines, along with its sequel, El filibusterismo. It was originally written in Spanish but is more often read in either Tagalog or English in classrooms today. After reading Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin, which influenced many white Americans to oppose slavery, Rizal wanted to write a similar novel about Philippine society.