'Jurnal Perempuan' exposes gender issues

Jakarta (JP): A woman's work is never done, so says the cliche.

Yet, as the new triannual journal Jurnal Perempuan (Women's Journal) illustrates, the saying is no cliche. The groundbreaking journal, first published in September 1996 by some of the nation's most high-achieving women and in cooperation with the University of Indonesia's department of philosophy, sets out to document that not only is a woman's work never done, but it is consistently underpaid, underappreciated and misunderstood.

And it's not only work that is addressed by the journal, most of which is written in Indonesian. Perhaps the journal's most ambitious passages are those which attempt to illuminate women's eroticism. Three articles, Women's Sexual Drive at Middle Age by Toety Heraty Noerhadi, Pariyem: Javanese Women at the Crossroads by Hani'ah, and Male Cologne as Women's Aphrodisiac: Reality or Utopia? by Mayang Sari, delve into the murky waters of female sexuality, which is little discussed or understood in the West, much less in Indonesia.

It's refreshing, then, to find such typically taboo subjects approached without apprehension. Heraty in particular goes straight for the jugular, and relates a woman's sexual drive not only to her zest for life, but also to stereotypical notions of gender.

Even language plays a role. In Indonesian, there are two words for woman: wanita and perempuan. The former has connotations of femininity, fragility, and beauty, and, due to its proximity to the attributes expected of women, is more socially acceptable. The latter, however, sounds more crass, and implies a lower social standing and all the discriminatory behavior associated with it.

In this context of ingrained stereotypes, Heraty writes that a middle-aged woman may waste much of her energy on improving her looks and on over-compensating her now-grown-up family -- all of which can sap her self-esteem and ultimately her sexual energy.

Heraty's essay is both insightful and readable, as is Mayang Sari's tangent into the symbolism of cologne advertising. Using photographs and charts, she chats away, at times with an overly academic tone, about how the ads not-so-subtly suggest that men's perfume will automatically drive a woman to lustful delirium. What's interesting is not only that Mayang Sari writes that this is more men's fancy rather than truth, but that if women actually behaved as sex-crazed as the ads suggest, it would have an adverse affect on their reputation.

What isn't as interesting, however, is Hani'ah's 11-page tract on the 1980 novel, Pariyem's Confession. The verse-by-verse dissection seems too obscure for a market-specific academic journal and especially for those who have never read the book.

And herein lies the project's biggest problem. No doubt that there are many feminists who welcome the journal and will read it from cover to cover. In addition, the journal does attempt to widen its scope, including a column called "Tips" (in the September issue it discusses how to spot potentially dangerous dates), "Dictionary" (which explores the surprisingly close etymology between the words "woman" and "man"), and "Poems" (this time from Toety Heraty and Sheila Gujral).

Alienating

But ultimately, the journal could alienate the same people it is trying to reach and assist. Perhaps I am mistaken, and maybe the journal targets readers well-schooled in feminist history and vernacular, but it would be unfortunate if an exclusivist attitude stood in the way of a greater understanding of feminism.

For example, the review of French Feminist Thought, a Reader discusses the radical theoretical bent of, yes, French feminist thought. Perhaps to my own disadvantage, the four-page analysis seemed to be an exercise in name-dropping. Brush up on your philosophy before reading this.

More taxing still is the examination of Mary Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Women, but more specifically, Hannah More's critique of La Bruyere's book, Characters. To which I humbly ask: Who is Hannah More? This is beyond basic philosophy and saps a reader's enthusiasm for the journal. Simone de Beauvoir and Mary Wollstonecraft in one issue? Is this journal concerned about exploring Indonesian feminism?

It is, but perhaps it's a reflection of the so-called superiority of Western perspectives that European philosophers take center stage. Western ethnocentrism is most difficult when practiced outside of the West.

That said, there is a 14-page essay (or dissertation, as the size suggests) by Melody Kemp titled The Handmaid's Tale: Feminisation of Automated Work from Indonesian Workplaces. This is the journal's only English-language article, and thankfully so, as it is an exhausting if informative read. Again, Kemp is strongly theoretical in approach. Yet her investigation is remarkably detailed, and is a great contribution to the study of so-called Third World industrialism.

As relevant to the average reader is the essay Marriage: Power, Negotiations, and Conflict, written by husband-and-wife Letha Scanzoni and John Scanzoni. Using anecdotes and everyday scenarios, the two authors kept me engrossed with their exploration of the subtleties of power between men and women. More academic than a self-help book but less absorbed than a PhD dissertation, it's an article that can only foster better relations between spouses.

With the addition of a short story by Vietnamese Va-Thi Dieu- Vien titled Dress and Dress, and a commentary on the abuse of women by Gadis Arivia (also the journal's chief editor), the journal ends its foray into high-brow feminism. In the context of Women's Day, it shows the progress Indonesian women have made since Raden Adjeng Kartini first wrote her famous letters demanding education and the emancipation of women. But progress need not be pretentious nor alienating. Jurnal Perempuan is a commendable effort in extolling feminist ideology, but praise and critiques are not enough to make feminism relevant. The next step is to make woman-centered perspectives more accessible to more women.

-- Dini S. Djalal