Britain controlled parts of the Malay peninsula between the 18th and mid-20th centuries; it was exerting a softer kind of power by the time Mr Wang's mother, an anthropologist, joined the Voluntary Service Overseas.

英国在18世纪到20世纪中期控制了马来半岛的部分地区；在菲尔·王的母亲——一名人类学家——参加海外志愿服务的时期，英国正施展着较弱的影响。