'Durga\/Umayi':
\nNothing lost in translation of a modern classic<\/p>\n
Jennifer Lindsay, Contributor, Singapore<\/p>\n
------------------------------------
\nDurga\/Umayi
\nY.B. Mangunwijaya, translated by Ward Keeler.
\nUniversity of Washington Press, in association with Singapore
\nUniversity Press, 2004
\n212 pp
\nRp 220,000
\n----------------------------<\/p>\n
Mangunwijaya's novel Durga Umayi, published in 1991, is a
\nremarkable work for many reasons, not least of which its fiendish
\nlanguage play and experimentation with form. It took a brave
\nperson to translate this work into English, and Ward Keeler was
\nundoubtedly the right person to do it.<\/p>\n
Rama Mangun, an activist, architect, engineer, writer and
\nCatholic priest who died in 1999, would have loved this
\ntranslation of his work.<\/p>\n
The novel tells the life story of a multinamed, multifaceted,
\nmultilingual and multipurpose woman whose most intimate name is
\nIin; a larger-than-life character whose life journey parallels
\nand symbolizes the story of the Indonesian nation.<\/p>\n
Iin and her twin brother are the Javanese children of a mother
\nwho is for a time the mistress of a Japanese officer, and a
\nfather who was a soldier in the Dutch KNIL army, then a heiho
\n(paramilitary units set up by the Japanese army), and who luckily
\nfalls in with the fighters for the Great Indonesian Revolution.
\nTheir lives, like those of all the characters in the book, are
\nshaped by accident.<\/p>\n
As the great events that turn into history swirl about them,
\nthey do the best they can, and if they are lucky they are on the
\nright side at the right time. Mangunwijaya's own voice, while
\ndeeply scathing of Indonesia's history, is totally nonjudgemental
\nof ordinary people just trying to get on with their lives.<\/p>\n
The story of Iin herself is a story of youthful ideals
\nwhittled away into pure opportunism, told as comic allegory.
\nMajor events in her life coincide with dates in Indonesia's
\nhistory, as her life moves from that of a young idealist working
\nas a servant for the soon-to-be president Sukarno, to that of a
\nmorally-challenged \"career woman\" wheeling and dealing in arms
\nand drugs and living a life of totally absurd opulence.<\/p>\n
As a young girl she joins Bung (brother) Karno's household in
\nJakarta where she is in charge of making sure the bathrooms are
\nspotless on the day her boss proclaims Indonesia's independence.
\nShe then serves the revolutionary cause as a cook, leaves the
\ncamp disenchanted, and is captured and raped by the soldiers
\nfighting on the Dutch side.<\/p>\n
She later becomes involved with the Indonesian Communist
\nParty's organizations Lekra and Gerwani, but is fortunately out
\nof the country as the cadres are rounded up after Sept. 30, 1965.
\nHer first plastic surgery to change her identity takes place on
\n11 March, 1966, which is the day of \"Supersemar\" when Sukarno
\nwas made to hand over power to Soeharto.<\/p>\n
Her second restorative plastic surgery, before she returns to
\nIndonesia hoping to be reunited with her brother, happens on
\nHarkitnas (National Awakening Day).<\/p>\n
Throughout the novel, Mangunwijaya plays wickedly with the
\nsacred icons of Indonesian nationalism. Taking a woman as the
\nmain character is part of this \"anti-epic\" strategy (but no
\nheroic Sarinah type woman, either). Inserted like riddles into
\nthe text is the \"sacred\" date 17-8-45, with different
\ncombinations of these magic figures appearing in hilarious ways.<\/p>\n
The story is at times gleefully absurd, particularly in the
\ndescriptions of over-the-top extravagance in the second part of
\nthe book. The portrayal of time is fluid, ranging back and forth
\nand even into the future (the last event is set in 1999, eight
\nyears after the book was originally published).<\/p>\n
There is no point in trying to make any chronological sense of
\nIin's life through matching her age to the years, and there are
\nmany instances where times just don't match up.<\/p>\n
But this book is, above all, storytelling, and in
\nstorytelling, focus often moves fluidly in this way. Mangunwijaya
\nalso experiments with fluid linguistic techniques of
\nstorytelling.<\/p>\n
One of the most remarkable aspects of the book is the language
\nand style. The language is very oral, Javanese-Indonesian in
\nfeel, with a liberal sprinkling of all kinds of foreign words,
\nrich in alliteration and vivid word play. The prose is written as
\nlong, rarely-punctuated sentences that can roam over more than a
\npage. The phrases move the reader's attention along in all kinds
\nof unexpected directions; gliding from the narrator's story to
\nthe thoughts of the character to some kind of reported speech,
\nback to comments and thoughts of the narrator in a free-flow. It
\nworks well when read aloud.<\/p>\n
But this fluid storytelling makes the language fiendishly
\ndifficult to translate. It is not surprising that Keeler, who is
\nalso expert in Javanese (as well as Balinese and Burmese), and
\nhas spent years researching Javanese wayang kulit (shadow
\npuppetry), should have found the right balance of seriousness and
\nfun, as well as distance and intimacy to translate this work into
\nEnglish.<\/p>\n
He experiments too with sound, alliteration and rhythm in
\nEnglish, coining his own compound words and phrases Mangunwijaya
\nstyle, but still remaining true to the spirit of the original
\nIndonesian in his creative use of English.<\/p>\n
Apart from the body of the novel itself, with the brilliant
\ntranslation of Mangunwijaya's exuberant Indonesian-Javanese poem
\nat the beginning, Keeler has also written both an introduction
\nand an afterword in the English translation. These are excellent
\nessays about the work and its comparative place in Indonesian
\nliterature, and provide basic historical and cultural information
\nto guide those who are not Indonesian specialists.<\/p>\n
There are also translator's notes at the back of the book,
\nexplaining terms in the text that might be obscure to the reader,
\nand a list of further reading.<\/p>\n
This is only the second of Mangunwijaya's works to be
\ntranslated into English, the other being The Weaverbirds,
\ntranslated by Tom Hunter (Lontar Foundation, 1991), a book of
\nvery different tone and style.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian text of Durga Umayi has long been out of print.
\nIt is hoped that this English translation will inspire a reprint
\nof the original. Meanwhile, even Indonesian speakers\/readers will
\nenjoy the different language play of Keeler's English excellent
\ntranslation.<\/p>\n
-- The reviewer is a research fellow at the Asia Research
\nInstitute, National University of Singapore.<\/p>",
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