Defining the new middle class<\/p>\n
By Silvia Werner<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): As many analysts have already stated, the
\ndevelopment toward modernization in Indonesia is accompanied by
\nthe evolvement of the middle class.<\/p>\n
It is hoped this steadily growing middle class will bridge the
\nincreasing gap between the rich and poor and provide checks and
\nbalances for the powerful political and economic elite.<\/p>\n
Several articles have already been written about modernization
\nand the middle class phenomenon, but there is still a lot to
\nwrite about.<\/p>\n
The people who make up the middle class today mainly live in
\nurban areas and are characterized by their income, their type of
\njob and their lifestyle. Where rural people and the urban lower
\nclass mainly work as farmers, laborers or skilled workers, middle
\nclass people are government officials, white-collar workers and
\nsmall-scale businessmen.<\/p>\n
While lower class people mainly entertain themselves with
\nsimple pleasures like taking their family to public places such
\nthe zoo or the cheap cinemas, middle class people want more.<\/p>\n
The increasing amount of money earned is put into bigger
\nhouses, better education for the children, household appliances
\nand a car. The food stall gives way to the restaurant, the cheap
\ncinema to Cinema 21, the pasar (traditional market) to the
\nsupermarket and the mall.<\/p>\n
But if we want to look for other characteristics of the middle
\nclass, it becomes difficult. Does the middle class have a higher
\nestimation of arts, stage performances, paintings and music? Or
\nis the political awareness different between the lower and middle
\nclass?<\/p>\n
Besides a small number of students and intellectuals this
\nseems not to be the case. The main feature catching the eye is
\nthe high orientation toward consumerism. The weekends are spent
\nin the mall, which have increasingly been transformed from places
\nto obtain daily goods to recreation spots.<\/p>\n
People's lifestyles are governed by economic improvement to be
\nable to purchase these goods. Owning prestigious objects is
\nequated with a happy life. No wonder people are judged by what
\nthey own and what they wear. Famous people are beautiful people,
\nand of course, rich.<\/p>\n
But is that all? Is the economic improvement of a nation, the
\nemerging of an educated middle class, about owning a Mercedes or
\na BMW, wearing Gucci shoes or Versace jackets?<\/p>\n
There must have been something lost on the way. Aren't there
\nother things in life than dreaming of a new car, a mobile phone
\nor shopping trips to Singapore? What happened to the values, the
\nculture?<\/p>\n
While reflecting on the emerging Indonesian middle class, it
\nis probably helpful to compare what processes lead to the
\ndevelopment of the middle class in other parts of the world.<\/p>\n
In Europe, the middle class started to grow increasingly after
\nWorld War II. Besides its general features, which might be true
\nin most places, like the income and occupation of its members,
\nthe European middle class shaped its identity foremost through
\nits active role in several social movements.<\/p>\n
For instance, the one launched by the well-known 1968
\ngeneration, initiating the liberation movement, which became the
\nroot of the new social movement. At the end of the 1980s, the
\nEuropean middle class also had a very important role in
\nredefining the quality of life, through the environmental
\nmovement, the peace movement and other alternative movements.<\/p>\n
The processes initiated by the middle class has contributed to
\nsocietal values and orientation, such as the antimodernization
\nmovement which lead to a general back-to-nature orientation.<\/p>\n
The European middle class is therefore mainly a cultural
\nphenomena, an entity with a distinct identity not limited to a
\nhigher income and consumption pattern. But the reason for the
\ngrowth of a middle class in Europe and Indonesia is the same:
\nincreasing prosperity, a growing urban class, and the nation's
\ntransformation to a civil society.<\/p>\n
To understand what social role the Indonesian middle class has
\nor could have, it is important to reflect on its shaping
\nidentity.<\/p>\n
To know where its identity is going, one has to firstly
\nunderstand where it comes from. It is not only necessary to
\nreflect on tradition, values and patterns of life, it is also
\nimportant to reflect on how these patterns find their use today.
\nThis has not yet been done.<\/p>\n
National values like "harmony", "consensus" and "deliberation"
\nare held high. How do these values materialize themselves in the
\ndaily urban life of modern society? Have they been transformed on
\ntheir way from the village to the city? Are there new values
\nemerging?<\/p>\n
What certainly shouldn't happen, is that old values and
\naspects of culture are turned down, judged obsolete or, worse,
\nheld high as mere "symbols".<\/p>\n
But a society does need guidance on its way to modernization.
\nThis kind of guidance should not stem from mere statements, but
\nan evaluation of how far traditional values still find
\napplication in rural environments today and in the urban context.
\nWhat changes are taking place?<\/p>\n
A conscious cultural development can only be possible by
\nanalyzing and realizing what exists and what kind of process is
\ntaking place. This means positive and negative developments,
\ntheir roots, and possible remedies have to be recognized to
\nprevent traditional values and cultural riches being exchanged
\nfor full purses and brand-name products.<\/p>\n
Intellectuals, supported by the state, would have to guide
\nthis process through critical evaluation, research and discourse.
\nThey may interpret customs, values and other aspects of culture
\nand preserve tradition through modern times.<\/p>\n
Intellectuals have a very important role to play and a great
\nresponsibility. They represent the core of the emerging middle
\nclass, which must be supported by the state to function as a
\nplayer to determine values and social orientation.<\/p>\n
The writer is a Ph.D candidate at the Department of
\nEnvironment and Society, Technical University of Berlin.<\/p>",
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