Vicente Sotto Lecture 2023 December
“Manding Karya’s Advice to Young Women from Panid ni Manding Karya: The Advice Column of Maria A. Kabigon in the Bisaya Magazine”
Ms. Joanalyn P. Gabales
ABSTRACT
Maria A. Kabigon, also known as Manding Karya, was considered the most popular Cebuano woman writer of the pre-World War II period. Throughout her writing career, she produced close to 400 literary works and articles, the latter including the articles in her advice column Panid ni Manding Karya. But even with her popularity and her influence, this prolific writer has only been a subject of two studies, which focus on her short stories and a once-act play. This presentation is part of a larger study that deals with both the journalistic and fictive writing of Maria A. Kabigon. It will identify the themes or subjects discussed in Kabigon’s advice column, analyze her responses to the problems, numbering 756, presented in her column. Focus is given on the advice column entries with problems particularly posed by young female letter writers. These entries can be classified under three main categories: (1) those that focus on questions about love and courtship; (2) those on queries about marriage, especially the question “When is the right time to marry?”; and (3) those that discuss queries on a pressing but a much different matter – that is, about getting an education. Kabigon maintained her advice column after World War II or during the Restoration period. Understandably, it was a time for many changes including the promotion of higher education and a more active role for women in society. As a respected writer, her authority lent validity to the ideas that ushered in a new generation of women who were free to determine who they wanted to be. She then wrote and gave advice at the time when it was most needed.
Date: December 30, 2023
Category: Vicente Sotto Lecture Series