Southeast Asia in the Age of Commerce, Vol. 1 - The Lands Below the Winds / Anthony Reid

Southeast Asia, in the wider world's view, always seems to be defined in terms of the places it lies between, in particular, the 'great civilizations' of India and China. That intermediacy is found in the names given to the region: 'Indochina', the 'East Indies', and even 'Southeast Asia' itself. Scholars of the past have been quick to point out the Indian and Chinese influences inherent in the cultures and languages of Southeast Asia, most well-known among them being the Frenchman George Coedès, who was responsible for popularizing the notion of the Indianized state. These borrowings and adaptations are undeniable, but they can obscure the fact that Southeast Asian peoples had cultures in their own right, and were not simply of a malleable disposition susceptible to the pressures of supposedly 'higher' cultures of more ancient heritage.

Reid's book consciously sets out to establish the historical autonomy and uniqueness of the region, following the historiographical program of another Frenchman, Fernand Braudel. Braudel was the chief promoter of the Annales school, which sought to sketch out the big picture of history, using the tools of sociology and anthropology, instead of focusing on individual 'important' events or people. Therefore, this volume has an encyclopedic feel, and in some places lacks cohesion (the human mind is always seeking narrative to bind facts together). Where it succeeds, however, is precisely in ferreting out interesting and telling details, that inspire the reader to look beyond the boundaries of scholarly disciplines to try and take in a greater whole. Many of these pieces of information are from traveler's accounts written by the early European traders and mariners who sailed to this 'land below the winds' (this name for the region refers to its shelter from the seasonal monsoon winds). Reid also cites with some admiration the early histories written by European scholars (such as Raffles and Crawfurd) who sought to be as comprehensive as they could be. Given such sources and exemplars, what animates the writing, and hopefully the reader too, is a lively sense of curiosity, more than any specific theoretical agenda.

The sense of culture shock that greeted these early European travelers is well-illustrated with choice quotations and observations. For example, he notes that they were surprised at how often Asians would wash themselves, because "whereas the conventional wisdom in Europe was that bathing was voluptuous or dangerous, Asians associated it with purification and 'cooling', without which the body could not be healthy." (p. 51) One can imagine what the Asians thought when they first encountered the smelly, bedraggled European mariners fresh off the boat at port.

Unfortunately, these anecdotal nuggets are so amusing while many quantitative questions remain unanswerable. One of the interpretative parts of this book which I have doubts about is the passage on population growth between the 17th and 18th centuries (see esp. table 1). Here, tentative conclusions about the impact of colonization on the population are obtained by contrasting colonial figures with the population growth rate from the period before. These estimates, however, are largely based upon data which are hard to interpret, such as counts of taxable households (which have to be multiplied by some factor to give the 'true' total population size). Furthermore, the data are obtained from multiple sources spread out through a long span of time - I question if it is actually suitable to put them together in a single analysis, or whether it is possible to extract any meaningful statistics from them. Here, the work of the social and economic historian is most limited, because the data that he or she needs are simply absent.

Most interesting to me was the substantial chapter on sexual relations, and here there is ample material to engage even the general reader. The study of history is most satisfying when it contradicts our commonplace notions about what the past was like, especially when those notions inform what we think the present should be like, whereupon history becomes politically significant. Reid marshals the ample evidence for the place of women in Southeast Asian history, demonstrating how their position was not traditionally subjugate to men, but instead complementary. Commerce and the marketplace, for example, were seen as women's spheres; this traditional attitude can still be seen today in the comparatively high percentage of women entrepreneurs and business owners in Southeast Asia, compared with elsewhere in the world. European traders found themselves dealing often with women merchants, who sometimes held plenty of power and influence in their own right. Given that marriage was often treated as a contractual relationship at the time, it is not surprising that many foreign traders would enter into temporary marriages with local women, which not only offered the benefit of companionship but also distinct commercial advantages, because they could now tap into local markets through their wives. Reid does not mention it here, but such a pattern was also followed by Chinese traders, who came and went on a seasonal basis following the monsoon winds. It was not that trade and commerce were looked down upon as less prestigious than male endeavours like statecraft and war. Women were in some instances put in place as rulers when aristocracies wanted to foster conditions amenable to business:

"In choosing to put women on the throne the orangkaya [aristocrats] were opting not only for mild rule but for businesslike rule. As in other fields, men were expected to defend a high sense of status and honour on the battlefield but to be profligate with their wealth. It was women's business to understand market forces, to drive hard bargains, and to conserve their capital."

There are some rich pickings here for evolutionary psychologists, if they haven't already mined them. When Western powers moved into Southeast Asia with colonial intentions, they negotiated with its rulers using a model of rulership based upon their own historical experience and from their experiences in India. Hence by privileging these specifically male realms, they may have inadvertently contributed to the erosion of the status of women in public life.

Vietnam is usually taken as an exception to many of these generalizations, because of its strong identification with Chinese culture and language. Reid often speaks of 'patriarchal Confucian culture' as an explanation for the role of women in Vietnam compared with elsewhere in Southeast Asia. Having spent a whole semester being told repeatedly how the 'patriarchal Confucian culture' is an inadequate explanation for the position of women in imperial China, I have my reservations about this claim. A more complete story will have to await the attentions of an expert.

What, then, is the use of all this knowledge? How this history, so broadly written, help us engage with the Southeast Asian world today? A few instances come to mind:

1. The 'Asian Values' worldview may be dead in the eyes of most academics, but it is still believed by many in the general public, not all of whom are benighted fanatics. A good, facts-based understanding of the plurality of what constitutes 'Asian values' and cultures is the basis for answering their claims.
2. The colonial experience is often treated as the starting point of modern Southeast Asian history. Histories prior to that are often treated as national myths, or relegated to the status of literature. The less one knows about a period or a historical figure, the easier it is to mythologize it. Learning about social history will make us think twice about accepting a history that is peopled solely by kings, conquerers, and culture-heroes.
3. Modern politics in the region is often drawn up in racial terms, which are at least in part the product of colonial administration. Lines were drawn the better to divide and rule. The social history of the region accomplishes two things: it shows what peoples of this region as far apart as the Philippines and Burma have in common, and it also shows how much is owed to earlier instances of immigration and cultural assimilation.
4. Religion, especially Islam, is yet another hot topic. Islam's presence in Southeast Asia spans more than half a millennium, and through that period many of the debates that we see today have come up: How can Islam be adapted to the local society and culture? How strictly should one adhere to Islamic law? Should Muslims be allowed to marry non-Muslims? The past might offer some useful lessons.

Volume 2 awaits review....