The objective is to conduct research on the cultural prototype of Indonesia through a textual analysis of the works of Pramoedya Ananta Toer. Cultural prototypes can be expressed in multiple ways, but an analysis of the author's message revealed in th...
The objective is to conduct research on the cultural prototype of Indonesia through a textual analysis of the works of Pramoedya Ananta Toer. Cultural prototypes can be expressed in multiple ways, but an analysis of the author's message revealed in the literary text can standardize such prototypes. This is so because literary phenomena can be defined as social phenomena, and because the value systems of each nation's peoples are embedded in the literary text. Literature is very much a man-made product, one formed in the life of man, even though the forms and methods of literature vary somewhat from individual to individual, culture to culture. And even when taking this variance into account, literature nevertheless reveals a certain commonality inherent in the social lives of peoples, constant across time and cultures. The literary text, by absorbing the relevant social values, can be said to be imbued with the culture of its time and place.
The task of finding the cultural prototype of Indonesia through a textual analysis is tantamount to re-discovering the common thread going through the now-fragmented present tense of Indonesian traits, distinguishable from other peoples and cultures. The common thread is the basis on which diverse cultural fragments are made possible, and at the same time can also serve as the means by which commonality can be found in diversity. With this in mind, my research, through an analysis of the characters in Pramoedya's literary texts, attempts to define and distinguish the following: i) the original prototype in existence prior to the changes wrought by history, ii) the typicality of the commonality underlying the diverse shapes and forms, iii) the archetypical Indonesian traits, and iv) traits that distinguish Indonesian culture from other ones.
This research demonstrates that the main feature of Indonesian culture is rukun (harmony). In other words, Indonesians aspire to maintain a state of harmony. We can derive this Indonesian cultural prototype from the characters in Pramoedya's works such as『The Fugitive』,『Guerilla Family』, 『The Earth of Mankind』Tetralogy, 『Arus Balik』("Flowing Backward"), 『Arok Dedes』, 『Gadis Pandai』("The Girl from the Coast"). A literary analysis of Praemodya's texts reveals two key moral laws by which individuals must abide. First, individuals should not be selfish, and second, they should perform their responsibilities to the fullest. The former is significant in the sense that a disruption of harmony can lead to social ruptures. Moreover, selfishness has the potential to weaken the individual self. Social conflict, in many instances, occur because individuals put their own self-interest before that of others or the greater good.
A literal interpretation of the second axiom literally would bring about a command to "act with a public-mindedness," but what this actually implies is the need to do own's duty in the context of a community. Be it the farmer, servant, bureaucrat, or ruler, each individual should accept his predestined fate, his karma, and should strive to do one's best in the position one finds himself in, rather than imagining alternative lives or capacities. This particular sense of communal responsibility encourages Indonesians to strive for harmony in the social environment as it is, rather than trying to expect and work for changes to that environment. Pramoedya's demonstration of the negative aspects of Indonesian culture can be accurately explained only as an expression of a hope to bridge ideals and reality. It cannot be denied, indeed, that the cultural value systems expressed as a cultural prototype still occupy a central place in the lives of Indonesians.