Out of ideological captivity : scholars and student activists in Philippine Universities are coping with the identity crisis

Abstract

The problem of national-cultural identity confronts the Filipinos acutely than it does the other peoples of Southeast Asia. Even a casual acquaintance with contemporary Philippine culture cannot fail to bring out the pervasiveness of Western influence. We have borrowed almost indiscriminately from the West that o.. national language itself Tagalog as spoken in Manila -- contains no less than 20% loan words, mostly from Spanish and English. In the past Filipino intellectuals hailed this enormous capacity for cultural adaptation as a national asset, arguing that it enables our people to keep pace with the modern world without having to undergo a culture shock. Others even claimed that it places the Philippines in a unique situation of bridging the gap between East and West.