This thesis explores the dynamic interplay of consumer culture, colonialism, and modernity in Southeast Asia during the pivotal decades of the 1920s and 1930s, focusing specifically on Singapore, Penang, and Surabaya. It argues that consumer culture within these colonial urban centres was not merely an economic phenomenon but a critical arena for negotiating identities, modernities, and power relations between the colonial powers and the colonised. Through an in-depth analysis of advertising, urban consumer spaces, and the politicisation of consumer choices, this study demonstrates how consumerism became both a symbol of colonial modernity and a medium for expressing nationalist sentiments and anti-colonial resistance.
Employing a diverse array of archival materials, contemporary newspapers and periodicals, official reports, and secondary sources, the thesis uncovers the complexities of the emergence and evolution of consumer culture in a colonial context. It reveals how advertising emerged as a key tool for both colonial businesses and local enterprises in shaping consumer desires, illustrating the global and local negotiations that defined Southeast Asia's consumer landscape. The study also highlights the transformative role of urban spaces in mediating these interactions, showcasing how colonial fairs, commercial districts, and the proliferation of consumer goods facilitated the spread and localisation of global consumer trends.
Furthermore, the thesis addresses significant scholarly gaps by offering a nuanced understanding of the political dimensions of consumer choices in colonial Southeast Asia. Through case studies of “Buy Local” campaigns and boycott movements, it articulates how consumer practices were mobilised for political ends, serving as expressions of emerging nationalist movements and strategies of anti-colonial resistance. By situating consumer culture at the heart of colonial and post-colonial transformations, this thesis makes essential contributions to Southeast Asian history, consumer culture studies, and modernity. It challenges Eurocentric narratives of modernisation and provides a unique lens to view the complexities of identity formation, social change, and negotiating power in the colonial era. Ultimately, the study underscores the significance of consumer culture in shaping the contours of Southeast Asian modernity, revealing the active role of Southeast Asian societies in crafting their narratives of modernisation amidst the pressures of colonialism and globalisation.
