I’ve seriously thought about what and how it is to be a Filipina, and the stereotype always comes into my mind. The ideal image of the Filipino woman is Maria Clara. She symbolizes beauty, grace, simplicity and obedience. Growing up, I usually hear the term Maria Clara but never dug deep to its history. To those who do not know, Maria Clara is a character symbolizing the perfect Filipina created by Jose Rizal, our national hero, in Noli Me Tangere. Please correct me if I’m wrong. In my school, an all girls Catholic high school, the teachers promoted good behavior and obedience to God, family and school. When I say good behavior, I mean, “follow orders or get lost”. In my small town of Bacolod City, there wasn’t much diversity. Your actions and words are dictated to you by family and society. It wasn’t until I left my home to work abroad that I felt empowered.
Let’s go back to being a Maria Clara, many Filipino men prefer Maria Clara type of girls. These are the type of girls that they can introduce to their mothers without society raising an eyebrow. In a Catholic society of like ours, we are usually conservative in our ways, and being the Maria Clara type often solves problems. Why men prefer a Maria Clara type of woman, I only gave you my theory. And like the rest of you, I can only guess.
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