World of Javanese novels in the '50s

World of Javanese novels in the '50s

Priyayi Abangan -- Dunia Novel Jawa Tahun 1950-an (The World of

Javanese Novels in the 1950s)

By Sapardi Djoko Damono

Yayasan Bentang Budaya, Yogyakarta, 2000

xi + 434 pp

JAKARTA (JP): Originally a dissertation for a postgraduate
degree in literature under the title of Javanese Novels in the
1950s - a Study of Function, Content and Structure which noted
poet and literary translator Sapardi Djoko Damono successfully
defended at the Jakarta-based University of Indonesia in 1989,
the book is a must-read for those interested in popular
literature.

In this book, Sapardi explores in great depth, popular
literature in Javanese published during the first decade of the
second half of the 20th century, encompassing six novels
published by state-owned book publisher Balai Pustaka and 14
serials published in Penyebar Semangat (Disseminator of the
Spirit) magazine in Javanese.

The period of study is confined to the 1950s because the
decade was important in Indonesia's history in at least two
respects. Following the proclamation of Indonesia's independence
on Aug. 17, 1945, Indonesians could freely be exposed to
classical and modern world literature after 350 years of Dutch
colonial rule during which they were practically denied any
literary development; and the 1950s witnessed a lot of important
social changes marked, among other things, by the promotion of
democracy and literacy. As a result, there was a noticeable
increase in quantity of the publication of literary works in
Javanese.

In this study, Sapardi treats Javanese novels as popular
literature as these works gained popularity among Javanese
readers in general. Previously, Javanese literary works were
mostly circulated behind the walls of Javanese palaces: they were
usually penned by court writers and intended only for the
Javanese nobility.

Parts of these works, usually in verse form, are familiar to
the general Javanese community but this is more the result of an
oral tradition than a reading habit. To most Javanese these
quotations are usually taken as pieces of advice for a better
life, which explains why most readers of Javanese novels wish to
gain an insight into life and get useful pieces of advice. In
general, they do not care much about the quality of the works.
What is of paramount importance to them is that reading the
novels can give them advice, a condition clearly indicating that
the younger Javanese readers have simply continued the reading
tradition that their predecessors had, in connection with the
Javanese literature of yore.

Another interesting point Sapardi raises in the book is that
most of the works are written with the point of view of an
omniscient narrator, a condition closely resembling the shadow
puppet play in which the puppet master knows everything and tells
everything. This close resemblance with the shadow puppet world
is easily understandable as the Javanese people are generally
raised in this tradition. They are very familiar with popular
characters in the shadow puppet plays and in many cases model
their own lives upon these.

Sapardi has the following to say about this issue: In the
Javanese community, the shadow puppet play is an art form which
can break through social partitions; it is performed in the
palace and in remote rural areas. It is no exaggeration to say
that in the 1950s, the shadow puppet play was still part of the
culture inherent in writers and readers of the new Javanese
literature. It is also quite reasonable to say that the relation
ship existing between the puppet master, the shadow puppet play
and the audience was made a model for the writing of new Javanese
literature, or novels.

As new Javanese literature is put in the category of popular
literature, something must be said about its readers. In the
1950s, these new Javanese novels were popular among the newly
literate group of people, who included the new priyayi (the
upper-class). These new priyayi originally belonged to the
category of commoners. They could get to a higher social class
thanks to their education and position in society. These readers
might find themselves reflected in the novels and periodicals
published in 1950s, which explains the popularity of Javanese
novels among these people. Sapardi writes that "The world created
in the Javanese novels is that of the priyayi abangan (Javanese
of the upper social class not adhering strictly to their Islamic
precepts) and the world view expressed by the writers is also
that of the priyayi abangan".

He also writes that the world created in the novels under
study is dominated by the priyayi and the shadow puppet play and
that even the kiai, venerated scholars or teachers of Islam,
convey their knowledge about the shadow puppet play rather than
about the Koran. Hence the use of the term priyayi abangan, a
combination of two different concepts in the Javanese community,
a member of the Javanese upper class with scant attention to
religious matters and greater interest in the values inherent in
the Javanese shadow puppet play with which the priyayi are
usually associated.

As literature reflects the condition of a particular society
in which it is created, the Javanese novels of the 1950s also
present the social conditions then prevailing. These works depict
the attempt made by the abangan, the Javanese commoners, to climb
the social ladder in order to reach the status of a priyayi or
preserve the values of the priyayi. Logically, therefore, the
common thread of Javanese novels in the 1950s is the spirit of
the priyayi. As Javanese commoners are depicted in the novels as
attempting to reach the status of a priyayi, it can be easily
seen that what prompts them to do so must be their high deference
to the moral values of the priyayi. It is clear, therefore, why,
as referred to earlier, the shadow puppet play assumes an
important role in Javanese novels of the 1950s.

In their attempt to live the life of a priyayi as much as
possible, the characters are usually portrayed as heroes in the
world of the shadow puppet play with control over their desires
and a refined attitude. In relation to this, Sapardi writes that
"In Javanese novels it is clearly portrayed that a shadow puppet
play is an inseparable part of the life of the priyayi; an ideal
priyayi is one with a good mastery of the art and the shadow
puppet play is part of his main knowledge."

-- Lie Hua