Cosmopolitan Malay Through Visual Imageries In 1930s Malay Newspapers

Razan Rosman,Sarena Abdullah

doi:10.22452/jati.sp2018no1.9

Abstract

By 1930s, Malays specifically the city dwellers have already grown accustomed to the modern lifestyle, espoused by their cosmopolitan appearance and outlook. The period portrays an increase of leisure and recreational activities particularly in the consumption of goods, services, and popular entertainmentâ€”reflected in the abundance of advertisements on this type of products and activities in Malay newspapers. By late 1930s, advertisements mostly published in the form of visual imageries. Analysis on these imageries can provide insights on the presence of a certain form of cosmopolitanism embodied by this group of urban Malays. This exploratory paper inspects the portrayal of cosmopolitan Malays through visual advertisements in Warta Ahad in the second half of 1930s (1935-38). Archived materials mentioned in the paper were gathered from Perpustakaan Tun Sri Lanang, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). The conception of Malay cosmopolites, as this paper will argue, is a construct by advertisers and Malay intelligentsias alike, albeit with different intentions. Imageries under discussion suggest an alternative representation of Malays, the urbanites, who have attained a degree of cosmopolitan outlook through continuous exposures to what was deemed as a modern lifestyle.  Keywords: Malay newspapers, urban Malays, advertisements, cosmopolitanism, modern lifestyle

Highlights

The 1930s, often perceived as the interwar period between established and rising empires, held much wider narrative within it
This paper explores the representation of the cosmopolitan Malays in urban setting as portrayed by visual imageries in Warta Ahad’s advertisements with reference to critique on this group of Malays by Utusan Zaman’s Wak Ketok in late 1930s
As advertisement is suggestive in nature, it is observed as a portrayal derived from a specific context—location and period— where such suggestions were sourced, or partly reflected, from an actual and existing condition of urban Malays in port city

Summary

Introduction

The 1930s, often perceived as the interwar period between established and rising empires, held much wider narrative within it. Cosmopolitan Malay through Visual Imageries in 1930s Malay Newspapers of Malay as a counter projection to advertisements published in Warta Ahad that portrays a type of localised leisure culture derived through consumption of goods associated with particular Malay pastime activities.

Results

Conclusion