The Changing Status of Women in the Philippines

Author

Soledad Oriel Soriano, University of the Pacific

Date of Award

1955

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Department

American Academy of Asian Studies

First Advisor

Not Mentioned

Abstract

Among many peoples in the Far East, masuline domination has been flagrantly exhibited. Women have been, until lately, relegated to the background in social, economic, and political affairs. By their customs, traditions, and laws, most women have been held in utter subjection to the men.

That women in the Philippines are on an equal footing with the men socially, economically, and politically would seem incredible to people in the Wast who grow up with the conception that Oriental women lead secluded and downtrodden lives and are generally slaves to the man. In their opinion, the Philippines, being in the Far East and exposed to the Oriental ideal which renders woman inferior to man, would naturally produce women who are repressed, degraded, and forever dependent upon the male. This is far from the truth. Quite the contrary, even before the Spaniards set foot on Philippine soil, the Filipino woman enjoyed a relatively high position in so- ciety as well as in the economic and political life of the people; and, although her position suffered somewhat a setback during the Spanish rule, it grow in importance as the years rolled by. Today the Filipino woman is fully emancipated; she has achieved equality with men.

Pages

139

Recommended Citation

Soriano, Soledad Oriel. (1955). The Changing Status of Women in the Philippines. University of the Pacific, Thesis. https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/uop_etds/3967