Maria Clara is not the Standard: Empowerment over Objectification

During pre-colonial times when men were primarily warriors and political leaders, women were tasked
with religious ceremonies such as communicating with supernatural forces. These women were called
the babaylans. Women also had healer roles in society and were revered by the community. During the
Spanish rule, religious activities were no longer carried out by the native Philippine women. In the 2nd
half of the 19th century, a feminine identity was starting to be formed and this would be further
exemplified by Jose Rizal’s Maria Clara. Maria Clara is the female protagonist of Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere.
Maria Clara is a romantic figure often associated with Rizal’s real-life love interest. Maria is patient, mild,
dedicated and loyal. The American occupation also brought about more opportunities for women to
have access to education. The construction of Maria Clara as an epitome of the Filipina was a process
several centuries in the making and was not formed over a brief amount of time (Sanchez, 2015).

This led to the creation of a stereotype and a form of expectation towards Philippine women to be
modest and conservative in both clothing and action. Several native tribes in the Philippines have
women wearing no top garments and yet Maria Clara dresses conservatively. This issue on clothing is
still very much present in status quo. Revealing outfits from personalities and celebrity figures can
conjure up a multitude of articles and feedback, both good and bad, empowerment and degradation,
respectively. Oftentimes, we hear the term “dalagang Pilipina” and we inherently associate it with being
prim, proper, and soft-spoken. However, Maria Clara is a mestiza, it is problematic to paint her image as
the mold that every Filipina must follow.

There is a lack of understanding and analysis on the part of the Filipinos in the post-colonial times. Over
three hundred years of Spanish rule shaped how we perceive women and has rendered us blind to the
reality that Spanish colonizers had an intention to idealize women as religious and submissive to forward
their own agendas with ease. When in fact, during these times, we had women like Gabriela Silang who
is considered to be an instigator of an uprising (Fernando, 2002). Additionally, there are numerous
unnamed women who fought in revolutions and revolts during the Spanish occupation and female
guerilla fighters during the Japanese occupation. Time and time again, it has been proven that the way
we perceive women have evolved and that we must not force women into boxes and make standards
for them to follow. In examining Rizal’s writings, the mestiza image of Maria Clara that epitomizes
beauty and faithfulness differs from the precolonial healer and prestigious spiritual roles women had.
Maria Clara is a woman, she is beautiful, demure, modest, patient, devoutly religious, cultured,
submissive, pure, and fair-skinned, but these shall not define what a woman must be and we must not
infringe of women’s rights nor treat them as second-class citizens, inferior to men, on the sole basis that
they fail to uphold these arbitrary standards (Arias, 2019).

As much as this notion and image of what a Filipina should be still perpetuates, there is also growing
contradicting points. First, Maria Clara was implied to be a victim of abuse herself. She was modest, soft-
spoken and religious, and yet she was sexually abused. This already allows for an avenue to spin the
narrative into saying that these traits that we force women to have, won’t save them from sexual
harassment. Filipinos have let the notion of “boys will be boys” be instilled to the point that the sole
burden security falls on the woman alone and she must always be cautious of her actions, her
whereabouts and even her clothes, when in reality, those do not matter and should not matter. The
myth of a “good” woman as it turns out is harmful that this “good” woman will not be promised only
good things. This “good” woman is also portrayed as someone who is supposed to find her fulfilment of
womanhood in mothering. Filipinos have a tendency to tie down womanhood with their traditional roles
as mothers and caregivers. Although this is a noble role, the tendency to make it into an assumption or
an expectation should not be happening. Famous actresses and personalities have spoken up about
their choice to not have children despite getting married due to the rampant questioning of netizens. It
is wrong to base womanhood on motherhood alone, but motherhood can definitely be a tool for
empowerment. Narratives of overseas Filipino workers bravely and resolutely leaving their loved ones
and country behind to work elsewhere as domestic helpers, nurses, caregivers and performers abound
in media.

Perception towards a group of people is not static, which is why we are able to pass laws such as the
success of the Magna Carta Law of Women that has proven that it is a piece of legislation to answer to
Filipino women’s realities, issues and concerns. Contemporary Filipino women have observed growing
independence, a heightened sense of rights to self-determination; and their resistance to impossible
representations what an ideal woman is, can all help to introduce a bigger space for rights language to
thrive in the Philippines. A bigger space means Filipino women are no longer invisible and Filipino
women may no longer be discriminated upon for being women (Peracullo, 2017).

It is understandable that the very nature of this notion is grounded upon its entrenchment for several
hundred years. As a matter of fact, because it is entrenched that doesn’t mean that society must make
continuous effort in perpetuating it when society can actually draw from that shared experience of
women to reveal the multiple forms of oppression that arises from it. These expectations that we have
also reflect differences in class, race or ethnicity and how it impacts on the lives of women. Women’s
shared history should continue to be a basis for more policies that protect women or give them rights
that they ought to receive.

Filipinos could even employ Maria Clara as a role model for Filipinas who are surviving
after the abuse and violence they experienced from men without the archaic impositions
on embodying purity and femininity, every Filipina are more than that. People have the
ability to change narratives. Instead of forcing young women to be modest, people can
focus on teaching women to empower themselves, embrace their sexuality and feel no
pressure towards conforming to the traditional assumptions of what a Filipina should be.
It is undeniable that forcing women to act a certain way makes it easier for others to
objectify them because it puts the burden of for instance, avoiding harassment on the
woman. Empowerment is needed more than ever in Philippine status quo where
objectification is normalized in the guise of a funny plot in a movie or a catchy beat in a
song. As individuals and human beings with intrinsic worth, women need to learn that
they have the power to express themselves and not be disrespected nor have rights
encroached on. Highlighting Maria Clara as a strong Filipina character because of how
she endured hardships instead being portrayed as delicate is something many women
could live by today, and not the notion of femininity imposed on them today (Arias,
2019).

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537.
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best-definition-of-filipinas.

“In Focus: This Study Shows That The Modern Filipina Is More Empowered Than Ever.” ABS, May 16,
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