16 | Filipino Girlhood in American Colonial Manila, 1908-1939 with Tala Wong

HERstory: Southeast Asia

We’re back from the long much-needed break and ready to continue our exploration into the hidden worlds of Southeast Asian women, with diverse topics and interviews centered on the colonial period before World War 2. This episode is about “Filipino Girlhood in American Colonial Manila, 1908-1939.”

Girls’ studies or girlhood studies is a developing field of historical research in the Philippines, says Tala Wong of the Ateneo de Manila University. Her MA thesis on “Filipino Girlhood in American Colonial Manila” explores the emergence of the Filipino girl, and by doing so, aims to give her a voice long denied in Philippine history and historiography. Educational materials and print media from 1908-1939 reveal that girlhood was an ideological battlefield for adults—colonial and local, male and female. In this episode we find out what it is about girlhood that makes for such a vibrant discourse.

Joining us too in this episode is Dark Theory, a Filipino-made podcast about mystery, intrigue, conspiracy, the sinister, the bizarre, the unsolved and twisted tales that push the boundaries of what we know to be real.

Producing a podcast like this takes a lot of time and research. If you like what we do, consider joining our Patreon like Christina, Raul, Raymond, Chito, Matt, Shereen, Chanda, Yati, Kara, and Mando who have been supporting this podcast. Give as little as $1 to get a copy of the show notes with all the references, a shout out at the end of the next episode, and the occasional bonus episode. There’s one coming out in the next few weeks. And if you can’t join us on Patreon, just tell your friends about this podcast! That works too.

Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @herstoryseapod. That’s herstory S-E-A pod.

PS: Stay until the very end for a blooper!