volume 1, 2002
In this volume:
- Foreword
"The title folio--the name of a single sheet of paper or parchment, from folium, Latin for leaf--is meant as a reminder of values that should be extended rather than erased by the new possibilities of digital culture." Editorial musings about writing and palm trees.
- Tai Tai or the Woman of Taste
"Not quite the world's oldest profession but the profession, if it may be called such, of being a Tai Tai is not brand new either." Karunanethy Kalaivani on buying, being bought, and the hard work of doing nothing (co-winner of folio prize).
- Japanese Chivalry in Rurouni Kenshin: Tension within the Feminine Male
"Cuteness here is thus not a mere rationalization of Otherness, but also a mask for the undesirable." Huang Kailin on reverse-blade swords, freaks, and cross-cultural cuteness.
- Rethinking the National Library Debate
"The National Library and its environs have a far greater potential for balance than any other landscape in Singapore. It is neither too rooted in history/permanence, like Chinatown, nor too commercially bastardized/changed, like the Singapore River, for a compromise to be reached." Don Shiau on memory, mobility, and ten easy ways to lose what you have (co-winner of folio prize).
- The Attractive Souvenir
"We consciously understand that the tourist looks for difference, and we answer to that desire with pre-packaged symbols of cultural distinctiveness." Khoo Lilin on dolphins, soft adventures, and touristic perceptions.
- Maus: Whose Tale Is It?
"'Identity crisis' is to some degree inherent in authorship as such, but this plurality is made more obvious through the use of the comic genre, as the change from one self to another is very visual." Ong Jun Jie on mice, masks, and authenticity in a comic book novel.
- Mother Tongue Policy in Singapore Education: A Hindrance to Sino-Malay Cohesion
"A member of the minority, if he or she wishes to progress and fit into the world of the majority, has little choice but to learn their language and thus become bilingual." Ivan Yeo on the difficulties of speaking in two tongues.
- Simulacral Reality in White Noise
"Jack exhibits a disturbing tendency to think in terms of images: not only does he liken trivial real-life scenes to media images, but he also associates momentous life-altering events with them as well." Wong Keng Onn on whether there is such a thing as too much television.
- The Japanese Music Industry: Reaffirming and Confusing Gender Perceptions
"Ironically, this clear distinction between fantasy and reality undermines the eX-Girls' attempts to reconfigure gender notions, as audiences are aware that their on-stage macho behavior may be just a façade." Han Li Chou on aviator glasses, the anti-cute movement, and whether what you see is what you get.
- The Theuth Is Out There
"It is probable that Plato made up the myth along with the fictitious description of Theuth to give weight to his argument that writing was a useless and degenerative tool." Jeannie Chan on baboons, lies, and the invention of writing.
- Contributors/Process Notes
"Obviously, I could not linger around souvenir stores for hours, viewing each and every one with a critical eye, formulating my plausible thesis, before I decided which one to buy." Tricks, troubles, dirty secrets. Authors reveal all.
Editor: Katalin Orbán
Editorial board (2002): Johan Geertsema, Lo Mun Hou, Harvey Molloy, Ashley Stockstill
Last updated: 2 November 2009