THE CORNERS OF THE MALAYA TRIBUNE :HISTORICIZING SOCIAL INTERCOURSE AMONG ANGLOPHONE ASIANS IN COLONIAL SINGAPORE, 1930-1935

Abstract

The "Corners" were correspondence columns introduced in the Malaya Tribune between November 1930 and May 1931. The "Corners" demonstrated the expansion of the public sphere through the delineation of space in the Malaya Tribune. This thesis positions the "Corners" as dynamic social mediums that were important in the social and intellectual developments for the various communities of readership. The "Woman's Corner", "Boys' Corner" and "Girls' Corner" provided the Anglophone Asian women, boys and girls outlets of self-expression on various subject matters and the means for social interactions through print media. For the female readership of both the "Woman's Corner" and "Girls' Corner", the "Corners" were outlets that indicated a progressive development for the women and girls in Singapore. A complex web of interactions emerged from the "Corners" as they facilitated the construction of social relations between correspondents. And through the formation of social clubs like the Chums' Club and Girls' Circle that were affiliated to the "Boys' Corner" and "Girls' Corner" respectively, members had the opportunity to establish deeper interpersonal relations with one another beyond the pages of the "Corners". In providing a reconstruction of the history of the "Corners" of the Malaya Tribune out of the copious amount of correspondences, this thesis stands as a piece of research work that represents the voices of these Anglophone communities within the social history of Singapore.