Imagining Manila: Literature, Empire and Orientalism

The city of Manila has a unique place in Philippine, Southeast Asian, and world history, and this book examines British and American writing on the city, focusing on how these representations have shaped understandings of the Philippines in the West and elsewhere. It uncovers how Western literary tropes and representational models have informed these understandings and the types of counter-narratives that have emerged in the Philippines in response.

Format: Hardback
Length: 216 pages
Publication date: 08 April 2021
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

The city of Manila holds immense historical significance for the Philippines, Southeast Asia, and the world. It played a pivotal role in the emergence of Western colonial mercantilism in Asia, the downfall of the Spanish Empire, and the ascent of the United States to global imperial dominance, among other pivotal events. This book delves into British and American writings on the city, placing these representations within the broader context of scholarship on empire, orientalism, US-Asian and European political history. By examining novels, memoirs, travelogues, and journalism penned by Westerners since the early eighteenth century, Tom Sykes paints a vivid picture of Western attitudes towards Manila and the broader Philippines. Through meticulous analysis, he unravels the mechanisms by which these attitudes dominated the discourse. This study sheds light on the extent to which Western literary tropes and representational models have shaped perceptions of the Philippines in the West and beyond, as well as the emergence of counter-narratives in the Philippines in response to these dominant narratives.

The city of Manila holds immense historical significance for the Philippines, Southeast Asia, and the world. It played a pivotal role in the emergence of Western colonial mercantilism in Asia, the downfall of the Spanish Empire, and the ascent of the United States to global imperial dominance, among other pivotal events. This book delves into British and American writings on the city, placing these representations within the broader context of scholarship on empire, orientalism, US-Asian and European political history. By examining novels, memoirs, travelogues, and journalism penned by Westerners since the early eighteenth century, Tom Sykes paints a vivid picture of Western attitudes towards Manila and the broader Philippines. Through meticulous analysis, he unravels the mechanisms by which these attitudes dominated the discourse. This study sheds light on the extent to which Western literary tropes and representational models have shaped perceptions of the Philippines in the West and beyond, as well as the emergence of counter-narratives in the Philippines in response to these dominant narratives.

Weight: 480g
Dimension: 212 x 284 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781788318310