A Master Writer
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Thoughts of Tales from Djarkarta
(Thoughts of Tales from Djakarta by M. C. Reitz)
In the U. S. a new genre of popular TV show has emerged, "survivor shows." Typically the producers round-up "average citizens" and arrange for a controlled experience of survival and competition. Of course no one dies, no one loses their mind or their identity, safety precautions are taken, medical teams are ready, no one must remain in this contrived condition against their will. The motivation is large amounts of money and instant fame. The characters become the subject of talk at work, in the car, on the phone, at the dinner table and other instants of casual conversation. Everyone has their favorite character and every one hypothesizes about the "human being" beneath the "caricatures."
At first thought, Tales From Djakarta by Pramoedya Ananta Toer puts to shame any suggestion that these survivor shows have any merit except to an overfed population whose energies are devoted to wealth and power rather than the basic need for food and shelter. The people of Ananta Toer's book are human beings who have endured a lifetime of degrading and hostile events. They are born into these events and die within these events. Ananta Toer's people adapt to small niches and yet their universal identity as human beings is never in question. Whether they experience fleeting moments of joy amidst poverty of spirit, kindness amidst destructive forces, love amidst hate, intimacy amidst lust or necessity amidst condemnation, their dignity and their worth as "human" is never in question.
On second thought, Ananta Toer's book reveals a universal truth for all of human kind throughout history. Beneath the caricatures caused by events lies a fully human being worthy of our respect and love. We can only look at ourselves and say, "What events produced this caricature called me and where is my humanity?"
A gripping storyWe only get to know her as "The Girl", a stunningly beautiful teenager from a fishing village, who is picked to marry the local aristocrat "Bendoro". She objects to leaving the safety of her home, but is given no choice by her poor parents. They consider the marriage proposal from the powerful man in the nearby city to be a guarantee for a future of prosperity and good reputation.
So she is transformed from a village girl to Mistress, confined to the large manor with all its power plays. No longer is she able to move around freely. She is not to take part in the daily work. Her only obligation is to serve her husband obediently whenever he decides to order her attention.
"The Girl from the Coast" is a fascinating study about the system of social classes, not only in Indonesia, but in general. Trying to understand, the girl repeatedly turns to the servant who has been assigned to her. Why is her husband away all the time? What does he think of her? Why are there so many secrets in the manor?
Slowly she realizes what is happening in her new life. Materially she has no complaints, but she has lost her freedom. In Bendoro's world women are just another piece of property, to be enjoyed for entertainment or as a piece of furniture. In time she will be discarded, as all Bendoro's previous wives have been.
Two years after her marriage, the husband grants the girl permission to visit her parents in the village. It is a shocking experience. Far from enjoying the freedom of her village, she is now treated diffently. In the eyes of the villagers she is no longer the same as them; rather she is nobility.
Thus Toer describes when she first meets her former family and neighbors:
"All eyes were upon her, but each time she looked into a person's eyes, that person bowed his or her head quickly, as if nervous because of her presence. The girl winced. She couldn't remember her fellow villagers ever having acted that way toward her. No, of that she was sure, and now she felt even more strange than before, separated from her kinspeople, like a monkey in a cage."
Pramoedya Ananta Toer is Indonesia's master novelist, well known for books like "The Buru Quartet" and "The Fugitive". He was also a much respected dissident during the Suharto era, spending years in Indonesian prisons. Mr. Toer has been mentioned a number of times as a possible candidate for the Nobel literature prize.
In his epilogue Mr. Toer explains that "The Girl from the Coast" originally was intended as the first volume in a trilogy of novels on the growth of the nationalist movement in Indonesia. However, the two other novels in the trilogy were destroyed by the Indonesian military. That being said, "The Girl from the Coast" stands perfectly well on its own feet.
A celebration of the human spirit...Known to the reader only as "the girl", the principal character in The Girl from the Coast is profoundly affecting. This amazing young woman shines throughout the pages with an irrepressible spirit. Taken from her simple fishing village for an arranged marriage to a city nobleman, the girl leaves the safety of her parents to begin a life for which she is totally unprepared. She is isolated and frightened in an untenable situation where she has no skills. She has one servant, who counsels the girl in the ways of the household. But when the servant is dismissed, her husband becomes the central figure in her world, and her days are spent awaiting his visits. The girl understands that her entire world depends upon his good will alone. To her dismay, she is informed that hers is only a "practice" marriage, not binding at all should the "Bendoro", or master, choose to divorce her.
This is a story about powerlessness, the impoverished vs. the privileged in a society that turns a deaf ear to anyone not of noble birth. But the girl is extraordinarily courageous in the face of terrible choices and heartbreaking circumstances, yet hopeful, for her spirit burns brightly. Alone and isolated, she uncovers her hidden strengths and nurtures her independence.
The Girl from the Coast is sprinkled throughout with intimate descriptions that draw the reader into the somber air of the very rooms the girl inhales in her solitude. This novel ripples with the energy of the plot as the story unfurls in unexpected ways. We witness the girl's plight as she is thrust along a path into the future, one that is almost preordained by a system that denies the humanity of the disenfranchised. In spite of her trials, the girl triumphs as the embodiment of the will to survive and to live a life of contentment, if not fulfillment.
With each stroke of Toer's pen, this country comes alive, his vital prose full of love for the people and the land, the intensely blue skies, waves breaking against a beach, the sound of a young girl's heart breaking. He defines the bond of commonality found in all humanity. His seductive language is as fluid as poetry: "At that moment it was only the dancing wind that ruled the world. Time moved forward, sometimes creeping slowly, sometimes advancing in wild leaps". The Girl from the Coast will haunt this reader long after the last page is turned. Luan Gaines/ 2003.
A master writer
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Please Read this Book!
A Story of Survival in the Indonesian GulagThis volume is a compilation of various materials that Mr. Toer was able to write during his imprisonment (without trial) for 13 years. Most of that time was spent on the remote island of Buru, where he and other prisoners were used as corvee' laborers to reshape the island. They did this at a huge price in human suffering and death.
However, I would emphasize that the artistry and raw beauty in Mr. Toer's writing in The Mute's Soliloquy, shines through the misery and isolation faced by the author and the other prisoners. Mr. Toer gives us an idea of how he and some of other prisoners managed to maintain their basic humanity in the face of deprivation, torture and brutality. Mr. Toer's letters to his children, in particular, are moving, sometimes humorous, and insightful.
His book is a worthy companion of those by Primo Levi, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, and Elie Weisel.
a heroic workThis book is the about the heroism of a life, a writer who does not see himself as heroic, but whose survival as a writer keeps alive the stories of all those who did not necessarily return home from the penal colonies. The book also imports a historic contextualization that shifts the world view East: how did World War II, how did colonialism, how did history impact Indonesia? How does this relate to Indonesia's current internal conflicts? This book is both personal and global.
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Who's Talking Now?
A must-read book!
a masterwork
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A poignant, unforgettable masterpiece, cinematic in scope.
One of the great political novels of this century
Just the beginning of a long journeyI am an Indonesian who had been educated by text books written and mandated by the Indonesian government, the new ruler on the East Indies, the land that Pramoedya's epic story took place. I am amazed, marveled, transcended by the way Pramoedya revealed to me the secret of our culture, the reasons why my ancestors submitted to colonialization for more than three centuries. Pramoedya has opened the eyes of my soul to see the things surrounding my culture and my country, its history and its effort to come to terms with colonialization more closely, more vigilantly.
Pramoedya's writing is truly unique, and his insight toward mankind, cultural differences, and whatever else that has brought us near the end of this century is completely powerful. Now, almost exactly 100 years later than when the story took place, many of the wisdom and sorrow Pramoedya writes about still hold place. Truly.
The first of the Buru Quartet books, I recommend this book to any man and woman, of any nation and culture.
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Not exactly this earth of mankind
Pleasing
Thank's Jody
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Fascinating, but uneven in toneThough the novel is intriguing and its powerful descriptions of nature are absolutely stunning, it is strangely inconsistent in tone and feels stylistically fragmented. Hardo's first encounter, with his future father-in-law, is positively operatic, resembling a duet between wooden characters, their dueling voices swirling around almost like a canon. "Come to the house," the traitorous father-in-law says, echoing the invitation more than fifteen times, offering Hardo, disguised as a beggar, a variety of enticements, each of which he refuses. In the second encounter, with his own father, the operatic style dies, more communication takes place, and a narrative emerges. The third section, a meeting with co-conspirator Dipo, several others involved in the rebellion, Japanese officers, and the father-in-law is a fully developed theatrical scene, tying together the narrative and themes through dialogue.
With the novel's structure echoing a variety of genres and its characters subordinated to theme, I found it difficult to become emotionally involved with the characters themselves, however much I might have been sympathetic to their plight and fascinated by the subject matter. The novel clearly presages the greatness which comes to fruition in Pramoedya's later tetralogy, This Earth of Mankind, however, and I highly recommend it as an introduction to his more mature work.
Pramodya continues his discovery of the human rationale
Bright Remembrance of Political Prisoner
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Development of a Nationalist Critic