Women's Work and Women's Roles. Economics and Everyday Life in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

Ea:lT observers of Southeast Asian societies frequently commeittd upon the varied and disparate nature of women's work, anc xpon the authority and power which resulted from women's actiTe participation in the economy. Undoubtedly women in sone situations enjoyed far fewer restriction than did their comerpart in the homelands of their colonial rulers. The authors of this monograph have examined the roles of wonei, past and present, in a variety of societies, in Indon esia Malaysia and Singapore. The chapters deal with specific sociities and situations, and no attempt has been made at a conp-ehensive overview of areas, ethnic origins, religious or sociil classes. However, certain themes recur. One is that, since dev elopment and modernization began, women's contribution to soc iety has been increasingly ignored and undervalued. Second, althmgh industrialized development has provided opportunit ies for training and for earning money outside the village emi-onment, the opportunities have largely been for men. A third theme seems to be that, although many elite women ha^e been able to take advantage of the opportunities generated by dxvelopment, peasant women have almost always been disadvaitiged. The chapters generally show that the official, Westen-aifluenced, view of the woman's role as primarily that of wife and mother has constituted a loss for all women, and has en:r».nched attitudes which do not necessarily conform to the reilities of women past or present.