Cross-Cultural Exchange and the Colonial Imaginary. Global Encounters via Southeast Asia ed. by H. Hazel Hahn (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Cross-Cultural Exchange and the Colonial Imaginary. Global Encounters via Southeast Asia ed. by H. Hazel Hahn Nicolas Weber Cross-Cultural Exchange and the Colonial Imaginary. Global Encounters via Southeast Asia, Edited by H. Hazel Hahn. Singapore: NUS Press, 2019. 310 pp, ISBN 978-981-3250-06-2 (paper) Bringing together ten case-studies from across Southeast Asia, this engaging and thought-provoking edited volume offers new perspectives and insights into the social and cultural history of colonial and post-colonial Southeast Asia. The contributors address a wide range of questions and addresses the issues of cross-cultural exchange, cultural integration, adaptation, appropriation and resistance. They go beyond the usual research questions revolving around ideas of transmission and influence in a colonial context and question the binary of colonizer and colonized. The contributions are distributed into three broad categories: knowledge exchange, material and architectural exchange, and leisure exchange. Chapter 1, 'Nineteenth-century Portugal Through Other Eyes: The Diaries of Philiphê Bỉnh' by George Dutton (pp. 25–48) examines the diaries of a Vietnamese Jesuit priest, Philiphê Bỉnh, who resided in Portugal—mainly Lisbon—from 1796 to 1833. In his diaries, Bỉnh provides unique and dispassionate accounts of Portugal, [End Page 210] its institutions and foodways in particular, as seen from the perspective of a young enlightened Northern Vietnamese. Unlike his Western counterparts, Bỉnh wrote to educate his readers with a very practical purpose and to serve as a travelogue for future Vietnamese visitors. Chapter 2, 'Collecting Malay Heritage: Scholarly Societies and Imperial Policy in British Malaya in the Early Twentieth Century' by Matthew J Shauer (pp. 49–74) examines the role played by a network of local and global intellectual societies in Malaya. These societies, such as the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society and the Royal Batavian Society of Arts and Sciences, were dedicated to the preservation of Malay culture through the collection and sharing of ethnological information. The work of intellectual societies played a role in not only the preservation of the culture of the colonized but also in raising awareness among the circles of colonial power and promoting more 'culturally sensitive' governance. Chapter 3, 'Rituals and Power: Cross-Cultural Exchange and the Contestation of Colonial Hegemony in Indonesia', by Arnout H. C. van der Meer (pp. 75–104), examines how cross-cultural exchange both supported and undermined Dutch legitimacy in late colonial Java. The article illustrates how the Dutch adopted and employed elements of Javanese culture (such deference traditions, dress, symbols of power and architecture) to legitimize colonial authority in early 20th century Java. The subsequent rejection of this hybrid cultural system by young nationalists and their adoption of Western ways, speech and dress represented efforts to modernize and to challenge colonial authority. Chapter 4, 'Chinese' Screens in the Dutch East Indies' by Dawn Odell (pp. 107–130) examines an example of cultural appropriation in Indonesia: the Chinese screens known as yingpi and heaping. Transposed in European Batavian homes and challenging traditional East Asian conventions, these screens acquired a whole new meaning. They helped in defining a uniquely Batavian style. Chapter 5, 'Absent Narratives and Missing Jewels: Cultural Heritage of a Tamil Temple in Ho Chi Minh City' by H. Hazel Hahn (pp. 131–161) reconstructs the history of the Hindu Tamil Sri Thendayuthapani temple. This temple was established around 1880 by the Chettiar money lenders hailing from Tamil Nadu, India. With its startling syncretic characteristics and unusual vimana (tower over the sanctum), this temple encapsulates the rich and complex history of cross-cultural exchange in colonial Saigon. The article explores the impact of Tagore's visit to Saigon (1929) and changes in the perception of heritage and identity alongside Vietnamese and Indian perceptions of the temple, concluding with its contemporary use and status. Chapter 6, 'French Nhà Rường and a Vietnamese Palace for the Governor? Architectural Exchange in Colonial Vietnam' by Caroline Herbelin (pp. 162–186), examines the complex cultural exchanges between the colonizers and the colonized, and the mechanisms of cultural appropriation and cross-cultural exchanges through two case-studies: the Governor General's palace in Hanoi, and Vietnamese adaptation of 'French style' architecture by wealthy families...