Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century

Under American colonial rule, the people of the Philippines were characterised as uncivilised savages. The perception of Filipinos as savages was proliferated through textual and visual depictions of Filipino nakedness in popular media and through world fair exhibitions. As a response against the Am...

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Main Author: Avendano, Kyla Jemuel Nacasas
Other Authors: Goh Geok Yian
Format: Final Year Project
Language:English
Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10356/174439
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Institution: Nanyang Technological University
Language: English
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spelling sg-ntu-dr.10356-1744392024-04-06T16:57:42Z Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century Avendano, Kyla Jemuel Nacasas Goh Geok Yian School of Humanities GYGOH@ntu.edu.sg Arts and Humanities Filipina fashion Nationalist movement Under American colonial rule, the people of the Philippines were characterised as uncivilised savages. The perception of Filipinos as savages was proliferated through textual and visual depictions of Filipino nakedness in popular media and through world fair exhibitions. As a response against the American ‘gaze,’ Filipinos used dress to present a counter-narrative of Filipino civilization and modernity. This thesis argues that elite Filipinas used dress to challenge American subjugation through (1) challenging American perceptions of people in the Philippines as uncivilised and inferior and (2) using elite Filipina dress as a symbol of nationalism. Through dress, elite Filipinos conveyed a national identity that stressed Filipino modernity and civilization, emphasising that American ‘guidance’ and colonial rule was unnecessary. While there have been some scholarly work on elite Filipina dress in the early 20th century, this thesis departs from previous literature by illustrating how the terno—the dress commonly worn by elite Filipinas—came to represent a modern national identity for Filipinos through examinations of the terno’s use of textiles and fabrics, and instances where Filipinas used the terno to negotiate their place in racial hierarchies. This thesis highlights the insight of studying dress at times of emerging nationalist sentiments and provides a more nuanced understanding of nationalist movements. Bachelor's degree 2024-04-01T07:07:53Z 2024-04-01T07:07:53Z 2024 Final Year Project (FYP) Avendano, K. J. N. (2024). Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century. Final Year Project (FYP), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. https://hdl.handle.net/10356/174439 https://hdl.handle.net/10356/174439 en application/pdf Nanyang Technological University
institution Nanyang Technological University
building NTU Library
continent Asia
country Singapore
Singapore
content_provider NTU Library
collection DR-NTU
language English
topic Arts and Humanities
Filipina fashion
Nationalist movement
spellingShingle Arts and Humanities
Filipina fashion
Nationalist movement
Avendano, Kyla Jemuel Nacasas
Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century
description Under American colonial rule, the people of the Philippines were characterised as uncivilised savages. The perception of Filipinos as savages was proliferated through textual and visual depictions of Filipino nakedness in popular media and through world fair exhibitions. As a response against the American ‘gaze,’ Filipinos used dress to present a counter-narrative of Filipino civilization and modernity. This thesis argues that elite Filipinas used dress to challenge American subjugation through (1) challenging American perceptions of people in the Philippines as uncivilised and inferior and (2) using elite Filipina dress as a symbol of nationalism. Through dress, elite Filipinos conveyed a national identity that stressed Filipino modernity and civilization, emphasising that American ‘guidance’ and colonial rule was unnecessary. While there have been some scholarly work on elite Filipina dress in the early 20th century, this thesis departs from previous literature by illustrating how the terno—the dress commonly worn by elite Filipinas—came to represent a modern national identity for Filipinos through examinations of the terno’s use of textiles and fabrics, and instances where Filipinas used the terno to negotiate their place in racial hierarchies. This thesis highlights the insight of studying dress at times of emerging nationalist sentiments and provides a more nuanced understanding of nationalist movements.
author2 Goh Geok Yian
author_facet Goh Geok Yian
Avendano, Kyla Jemuel Nacasas
format Final Year Project
author Avendano, Kyla Jemuel Nacasas
author_sort Avendano, Kyla Jemuel Nacasas
title Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century
title_short Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century
title_full Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century
title_fullStr Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century
title_full_unstemmed Fashioning elite Filipino identity: Filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century
title_sort fashioning elite filipino identity: filipina dress as expressions of civilisation and national solidarity in the early 20th century
publisher Nanyang Technological University
publishDate 2024
url https://hdl.handle.net/10356/174439
_version_ 1800916114704695296