Modern Indonesia as seen by Watson

Modern Indonesia as seen by Watson

Of Self and Nation -- Autobiography and the Representation of
Modern Indonesia; By C.W. Watson; University of Hawai'i Press,
Honolulu, 2000; 257 pp

JAKARTA (JP): Autobiographies are a reflection not only of the
lives of their authors, but also of the unique circumstances
which mold and shape their society.

Anthropologist C.W. Watson argues that in a country like
Indonesia, the reminiscences of different figures can provide
valuable insight into the construction of the nation, from its
colonial past to independence.

He takes a diverse cross section of figures, some of them
famous among students of Indonesian history and others less well-
known, to illustrate the point. They range from the luminous
Kartini, long championed as the catalyst for women's emancipation
in the country, to nationalist figure Tan Malaka, through to a
younger generation of Indonesians with a distinctly modernist
Islamic perspective.

Watson's view is that the individuals, separated in many cases
not only by history but by class and education, nevertheless
share a common bond in showing how Indonesia was formed from a
diverse multiethnic society. Of particular interest to him is how
they place themselves within the context of their immediate
society as well as the world.

The figures are put in chronological order to form a chain
from the feudalistic sphere of 19th century Javanese life
(Kartini), the growing nationalist sentiment of the 1900s and its
realization in an independent Indonesia (Achmad Djajadiningrat
and Tan Malaka), the developments in Islam and the role of
religion in Indonesian society (Hamka and Saifuddin Zuhri) and
gender in Javanese society (author Nh Dini, the only woman apart
from Kartini represented).

Watson notes that similar experiences and forms of expression
may be found in many developing countries in their emergence from
the shackles of colonialism to the tumult of independence. He
recognizes the question of whether postcolonial voices were
inevitably "contaminated by the hegemony of Western discourse,
Western ways of thinking, categorizing and evaluation?" However,
he believes there is a unique quality in the form that
autobiographies take in each country and how they are constructed
by the overriding events.

Although Watson acknowledges there is no history of an
autobiographical tradition in Indonesian (Malay-Javanese)
culture, he contends the sense of self -- recognition of one's
identity within and separate from the surrounding community -- is
evident. Defining it, he writes, is a "relatively straightforward
matter, beginning with the centrality of concepts such as malu
(embarrassment) and nama (reputation) within Indonesian societies
and tracing the evolution of key words up to the present usage of
concepts such as harga diri (self-respect) and jati diri (sense
of self)."

The most compelling individuals for this reviewer were
Kartini, with her imposing figure towering over modern Indonesian
womanhood, the Javanese aristocrat Djajadiningrat and Nh Dini.

Much has been written about Kartini, whose letters to Dutch
pen pals were posthumously compiled into best-selling Dutch and
English-language editions (the latter was erroneously titled
Letters of a Javanese Princess, a romantic elevation in status
for this daughter of a regent).

Of course, letters are not a conventional form of
autobiography in which one is writing for a general reader; in a
letter, views are expressed with a specific individual in mind.
Watson also notes that Kartini wrote in Dutch, not her native
Javanese, which was of a remarkable proficiency but marked in
many of the letters by a melodramatic, "sentimental" style. As
for the view of Kartini blazing the trail for women's
emancipation, Watson says that while Kartini expressed
dissatisfaction with the inequality between the sexes,
particularly in her lower status than her younger brother, she
was content in her arranged marriage.

Djajadiningrat, who lived at the end of the 19th century
through to World War II, represents the metamorphosis of the
Javanese aristocracy from being a pliant party to colonialism to
gradually comprehending the inequity of the system. It was not an
easy transition to make; Djajadiningrat was himself placed in a
Dutch family and educated at Dutch schools. However, in
adolescence, he quickly learned the great divide between "us" of
the native community and "them" of the ruling Dutch.

In a particularly telling passage, he recounted attending a
masked ball during his teens. With his identity hidden, Dutch
girls were willing to dance with him, but everything changed once
his mask was removed. In his later years, he rose high within the
native ranks of the Dutch colonial system, eventually bridling at
the rigidly defined codes of conduct, which extended to how the
head of a native civil servant should be positioned when
addressing a Dutchman.

Watson considers Nh Diah's five volumes of memoirs to be an
indictment of patriarchal Javanese culture. She conveys her
indignation at the restrictions imposed on her because of her
sex. While men undergo public rites of passage, such as
circumcision, Nh Diah reveals how women must mark their entry
into adulthood through menstruation in a silence of shame.

Watson, a professor at the University of Kent, England, has
produced a fascinating, well-researched and thought-provoking
work. Written with a scholar's eye for detail, it is a must read
for Indonesianists and those with a strong interest in the
development of the modern Indonesia and her people.

-- Bruce Emond