Feminism's Relevance in the Philippines

The regard for women and those with womanly qualities as sources of creation and creativity in pre-colonial Philippines and the absence of misogynist concepts in Philippine languages before the intrusion of foreign tongues indicates a culture that originally valued and honoured the feminine. The colonial experience however squashed woman’s role with a patriarchal agenda that not only relegated women to the bottom rung of its hierarchy but also began to redefine and modify her character, her usefulness, her worth. Even as the colonial masters have long sailed away, women remain oppressed and marginalised – an indication of a culture that is still moored in polluted waters. Feminism, as an eye and tool to catch and contest the machinations of patriarchy that intentionally or unintentionally subjugates the feminine is not merely relevant but imperative to ensure that women’s voices and stories will be heard and that women can re-define themselves on their own terms.

Dr. Marjorie M. Evasco shows how women are raising their voices through poetry to more authentically convey their experiences while Dr. Edna Zapanta-Manlapaz describes how the Philippines’ women’s movement through the “politization of women’s writings” has moved beyond upper-class concerns to sing for a greater population of previously silenced women – a chorus against oppressive patriarchal structures and more truly “songs” of themselves. Meantime, Dr. Lilia Q. Santiago examines the ways in which the so-called proper and ideal Filipina was constructed; how the mystical and intuitive babaylan was supplanted by the docile Maria Clara, particularly through male dominated readings and approaches in Philippine literature.

With Philippine literature an expression of Philippine culture and also a tool of social transformation, feminist writings and feminist readings must thus be vigilant defenders against male-biased appropriations of their meanings and messages, while simultaneously leading efforts to introduce alternative modes of perceiving the world beyond patriarchal preoccupations with power and supremacy and western binary models.

However, while feminism speaks from the margins, its objective is not so concerned with usurping the male at the centre. To replace one form of imperialism with yet another, even if helmed by women is not truly a liberating project. Instead, it is just the re-enactment of a tired story with new players. While patriarchy is founded on dominance, feminism is centred in balance and will be indispensable in correcting the unnatural one-sidedness in the country’s social, political, economic and cultural milieu.