By: Hasnul Insani
ABSTRACT
This research aims to find information about gender fairness exploited by the author in The Jakarta Post short story ascribed by a woman author, Dewi Rubiyanti, entitled ‘Homecoming’. The objectives of the research are: 1) To investigate how women are described and positioned in the short story. 2) To assess the implied attitudes of the author toward gender in the short story. 3) To identify the attitudes of the editors toward gender in the short story. The research found that; first, women were described and positioned in the short story as suffered and powerless human beings. Second, the author implies that both women and men have ambivalent attitudes toward gender. Third, the editors let gender fairness goes to the public without qualification.
Key Words: gender short story literature research
“You should thank God you can sell your body at a very high price. Many girls have surrendered their bodies to their boyfriend and got nothing in return. Many of them have been disappointed when the boy friends suddenly threw them to the side. You’re pretty. You’re a virgin. You can get a lot of money fast. You can sell your virginity. Just a drop of blood and you can get millions of rupiah in return!”
This excerpt is exposed by Dewi Rubiyanti in The Jakarta Post short story, which is entitled ‘Homecoming’. This story reminds us that men are powerful in making women as their sexual victims. Most men very often leave their girlfriends alone any time they want, particularly if they have got bored or after they have got their virginity. In this case women always receive the consequences. In other words, women are positioned as weak humans, they cannot seize their rights that cannot force their boyfriends to return their virginity.
According to Barry, (1995:21) men may need sex, they may pursue it, have it, or frequently misuse it, and sometimes they may even be used for it. But men are not the objects of sexualization; neither as a collectivity not in their individuality are they sex, sexed body. In fact, men are not reduced to their bodies or their biology or their drives. While male sexuality has been treated as driven by an imperative, however their sexual drives are cultivated to be, men’s identities are formed by what they do in the world, not by functions attributed to their bodies. While sexual identities are socially ascribes to women, men achieve their identities as acting beings. Sexualization of society genders inequality. Sexual essentialism goes beyond promoting inequality to producing oppression. Patriarchal domination makes women undifferentiated among and from each other and makes them known, in the first instance, as different from men, and therefore lesser.
This research aims to find information about gender fairness exploited by the author in The Jakarta Post short story. The short story is ascribed by a woman author, Dewi Rubiyanti, which is entitled ‘Homecoming’. The objectives of the research are: 1) To investigate how women are described and positioned in the short story. 2) To assess the implied attitudes of author toward gender fairness in the short story. 3) To identify the attitudes of the editors toward gender fairness in the short story.
Methods
This research employed a descriptive method. This method is considered to be relevant to the present study since it involves the collection of data for the purpose of describing existing phenomena. In line with this Best (1979:166) defines a descriptive method as the following:
The descriptive method describes and interprets what conditions or relationship that exists, opinions that are held, processes that are going on, effects that are evident or trends that are developing (Best, 1979:166).
To analyze these short stories, I then used a document analysis. A document analysis describes a given state of affairs as fully and carefully as possible. Fraenkel and Wallen (1993) assert:
Document analysis is just what its name implies – the analysis of the written or visual contents of a document textbooks, essays, newspapers, novels, magazine articles, cookbooks, political speeches, advertisements, pictures – in fact, the contents of virtuality any type of written or visual communication can be analyzed in various ways. A person’s or groups conscious and unconscious beliefs, attitudes, values and ideas are often revealed in the documents they produce.
I used the content analyses because I tried to look into specific characteristics in the document i.e. a short story in The Jakarta Post, which is related to gender issues, specifically ‘gender fairness’. The short story is written by Dewi Rubiyanti, which is entitled ‘Homecoming’. In doing this I made use of some conceptual categories relevant to gender issues, in addition to the theory given by Heine and Inksters (1994) about how to examine the gender roles in literature. All the given concepts provide theoretical supports of techniques in conducting this present research.
More specifically, in evaluating how women were described and positioned in the short story, I used the following six categories as suggested by Heine and Inksters (1994:429):
- Examine the personal traits of the character.
Complex character
Does the character display a variety of emotions, abilities, and concerns?
Dynamic character
Is the character perseverant, courageous, feisty, intelligent, spirited, resourceful, capable, independent?
Admirable traits
Does the character wrestle with significant problems and issues?
- Examine the issues important to the character.
Gender issues
Is the character concerned with gender images, with determining what actions, attitudes, and roles are appropriate for females and males?
Body-image issues
Is the character concerned with body image?
Is physical beauty an issue?
Is the character facing experiences that help in growing up and reaching maturity?
Social, political, ethical, or moral issues
Is the character concerned with issues that make a difference in the world?
- Examine how the character solves problems.
Strength of character
Does the character use personal qualities such as humor, strength, intelligence, or cleverness to solve problem as appropriate to situation?
Initiative
Does the character initiate solving problems rather than waiting for someone else?
Inner strength
Does the character find strength and answers from within?
Variety of problem-solving strategies
Does the character use a wide range of strategies, including seeking help from others, discussing problems with family or friends, exploring solutions through writing and reading?
- Examine the character’s relationships with others.
Does the character put forth effort in establishing healthy relationship with others?
Characteristics
Are the character’s relationships with others based on or working toward admirable traits such as mutual respect, equality, loyalty, honestly, friendship, commitment, and collegiality?
- Examine how the character departs from traditional stereotypes.
Typical female stereotypes
Is the character moving away from the following traits: passive, frightened, weak, gentle, giving up easily, unoriginal, silly, confused, inept, dependent, follower, conformer, emotional, concerned about appearance, innate need for marriage and motherhood, passive language and behavior?
Typical male stereotypes
Is the character moving away from the following traits: active, strong, brave, rough, competitive, logical, unemotional, messy, decisive, leader, innate need for adventure, aggressive language and behavior?
- Examine whether the character provides a voice for those who are often unheard in literary works.
Roles
Is the character in a role not usually found in literature such as male nurses, female inventors, female during the Gold Rush.
Parallel cultures
Does the character represent a cultural, religious, ethnic, ability, or socioeconomic group found infrequently in literature?
Finding
A woman, who lost her job, wanted to leave Jakarta to return to her village in Central Java. She had a friend, Rini, who earned a living as a prostitute. When she would return to her village, Rini teased her to sell her virginity to get a lot of money for the construction of her house. She refused that job, but Rini never stopped to persuade her and said that she could find a man who was willing to pay her ten million rupiah.
Finally Rini had succeeded in coaxing her. Then, she got the ten million rupiah from the men and lost her virginity. She cried and the next day she went home and would never return to Jakarta. She would live in the village for the rest of her life.
Arriving in the village, she held a thanksgiving party at her parent’s house. The villagers were so happy because she said that she would build a kindergarten and would teach there. Unfortunately, Rini turned up at her face and asked her to return to Jakarta because many people in the village knew that she had sold her virginity.
Discussion
The first conflict, as a starting point to develop this story is the main character ‘I’ that all at once become a narrator, lost her job. The bank where she used to work was liquidated, so, she decided to go home to her village. Before going home, her friend, Rini, who supported her life by doing prostitution, persuaded her to sell her virginity,
“You’re pretty. You’re a virgin. You can get a lot of money fast. You can sell your virginity. Just a drop of blood and you can get millions of rupiah in return!”
The ‘I’ is a woman, who respects her personal esteem and does not want to make money by doing prostitution, rejected Rini’s offer. “Don’t tease me, Rini. You know I am unemployed now.” Rini did not give up, she went on persuading the ‘I’ to sell her virginity for only once, and she did not need to be a whore forever as Rini did. In Rini’s opinion, selling body is a grand opportunity to pass without taking it.
“I just don’t want to miss this golden opportunity, you know. Many men have asked me to sleep with them.” This excerpt displays that Rini does not concern with moral issues, as she is proud of being a whore.
More clearly it indicates that there are some Indonesia women who unconsciously become object of men’s sexual desire. “Many men were sleeping with prostitutes just to relieve their stress.” And by doing prostitution, it may cause disadvantages in the side of women compared to men. The men are powerful of inducing various diseases through sexual activity, which women are not aware of. This unawareness is also pictured out in the character of Rini.
“Look at me, I am still in good health although I have had sex with hundreds of men.”
This excerpt shows that Rini is described as a silly girl who thinks that she will be fine, although she has had sex with hundreds of men.
Furthermore, Rini is characterized as a person who continuously persuades the ‘I’ to sell her virginity. Rini declares that the ‘I’ should be happy with that since she can make use of her body for the following profits.
The story goes on telling that the ‘I’ begin thinking of Rini’s persuasion, even though she is still doubtful. So forth, she remains tough in defending her virginity. She thinks she shouldn’t give up.
I become more confused. Five years earlier, I had come to Jakarta in order to work at a private bank and I vowed I would save myself for my future husband. I had once dated a man seriously and refused the temptation to sleep with him, although he left me as a result. Do I have to sell my body after five years in Jakarta?
The excerpt above represents that the woman is described as a confused, giving up easily, and a follower woman. This means that she is symbolized as departs from traditional female stereotypes. She is a follower of her bad attitude friend, Rini, to follow her to be a whore.
On the other hand, Rini persuades her again and again until she accepts that offer. Rini then arranges when to meet with the man who wants to buy her virginity for ten million rupiah. The man had never enjoyed his wife’s virginity even at the first night in their wedding bed.
“His wife disappoints him in bed. He never enjoyed her virginity because she was not a virgin on their first night.” He is such a man who puts virginity as the most valuable thing in marriage. This indicates that our society still believes in the importance of virginity of a wife. The consequences of this, a wife who is no longer virgin seems to be less valuable in the mind of a husband. Meanwhile for men it is not a necessity to have such restrictions.
Finally, the ‘I’ got 10 million and lost her virginity. She cried regretting herself becoming a whore. Rini entertained her, “Don’t be sad, you’re not alone. Remember how many whores are wealthy today. They just sell their bodies.”
These statements indicate that some women in Indonesia earn their living as a whore. They have to do it, just because of economic reason. Like Rini’s case, she does it to make her family live happily.
“Her parents and siblings back home still lived a poor life. She was very eager to raise their standard of living. She sent a lot of money to her family for the construction of a two-story house.”
This excerpt presents that just for the construction of a house, Rini is becoming a whore. Badly, she has still her parents and siblings to live with, but why should she choose prostitution to earn her living. This means that she is described as a weak, illogical and uneducated girl that would rather be a whore than to find other jobs.
Continuously, although Rini asked the ‘I’ to stay with her in Jakarta to be a whore, she went to her village anyway. Arriving in the village the ‘I’ held a thanksgiving party and invited all the villagers. At the time she said to them that she would live in the village and would build a school where she would also teach.
“I would like to buy a plot of land and that I would have a kindergarten built on it.” ‘I’ also told them that ‘I’ would teach in the kindergarten. From these statements we can see that the ‘I’ is positioned as a woman who cares about her village development, the development of the villagers children. She wants to spend her time and her money to build a kindergarten in the village. It displays that she has a feminist characteristic as a woman who plays a public role as the developer of her village and does not stay at home and does the domestic things only.
Unfortunately before her dream came true, Rini followed her to the village and told her that it was better for her to come back to Jakarta with her soon, because she had told the villagers about the secret. “You had better return to Jakarta with me tomorrow. Many people in this village know that you sold your virginity.” This extract displays that Rini in relationship with her friend, the woman, is not based on loyalty and commitment. She told to the villagers about her friend’s secret, that make the woman has to loose her ideal dream.
Finally, describing the narrator’s confusion of what she should do ends this short story. She did not have any power to change her destiny. She was the victim of her friend’s words, Rini, who asked her to sell her virginity and become a whore. And now she had to assume responsibility for what she had done. She had to loss her dream; to live in the village peacefully and to be a teacher in her dream kindergarten. She had to accept the social sanctions and social dishonor from her villagers just because she had sold her virginity. It means that in Indonesian society a whore is considered as a dishonor and unworthy creature and does not have a place in the community.
According to Peterson (1996:45) there are some activities that are generally subsumed under whore dishonor by straight society, i.e. society identified as legitimate, lawful, and necessarily unassociated with prostitution: as a woman, (1) engaging in sex with strangers; (2) engaging in sex with many partners; (3) taking sexual initiative, controlling sexual encounters, and being an expert of sex; (4) asking for money in exchange for sex satisfying impersonal male sexual fantasies; (5) being out of night alone, on dark, dressed to attract male desire; (6) being in situations with supposedly brash, drunk or abusive men whom one either can handle (“uppity or vulgar woman”) or cannot handle (“victimized women”).
After analyzing each character of this short story, it can be stated that women in this short story are positioned as women who are marginalized by men. They are described as object of men’s sexual desire and as the victims of violence. Prostitution is considered as a hidden violation, because most of the women are forced to do it. Meanwhile men do it to make fun or to release their stress. “When the human being is reduced to a body, objectified to sexually service another, whether or not there is consent, violation of the human being has taken place.” The human being is the bodied self that human right is meant to protect and human development is intended to support. Therefore, prostitution is considered as a violation. (Barry, 1995:23)
Table of the Characteristics Gender Roles Found in the Short Story
No | The Characteristics | The Descriptions |
1 | Examine the personal traits of the character. | She does not display a variety of emotions, abilities, and concerns. She is not perseverant, courageous, feisty, intelligent, spirited, resourceful, capable, and independent. She earned a living by doing prostitution, and did not wrestle with her problems. |
2 | The issues important to the character. | She is not concerned with gender issues, with determining what actions she did by being a whore. She is concerned with body image. She is facing experiences that help in growing up but she is not reaching maturity. She is not the character concerned with issues that make a difference in the world. She is doing prostitution. On the other hand she is concerned with other moral issues. She is positioned as a woman who cares about her village development, the development of the villagers’ children. She wants to spend her time and her money to build a kindergarten in the village. It displays that she has a feminist characteristic as woman who plays a public role as developer of her village and does not stay at home and does the domestic things only. |
3 | How the character solves problems. | She lost her job, and then sold her virginity. She does not use a wide range of strategies, such as; seeking help from good friends, discussing problems with her family, or even exploring solutions through writing and reading. |
4 | The character’s relationships with others. | She couldn’t find her good friends. She continued her relationship with her bad friend, who is a whore. And who is persistent to hoax her to be a whore too, just like herself. |
5 | How the character departs from traditional stereotypes. | She is passive, frightened, weak, giving up easily, unoriginal, silly, confused, inept, follower, concerned about appearance, innate need for marriage and motherhood. And she did not take care of herself and her healthy by selling her body to the greedy man. She is symbolized as departs from traditional female stereotypes. She is a follower of her bad attitude friend, Rini, to follow her to be a whore. |
6 | Whether the character provides a voice for those who are often unheard in literary works. | She is not the character in a role that found infrequently in literature. She represented Javanese culture. And she is described as a whore that many are exposed in The Jakarta Post shot stories. |
Conclusion
First of all, women are described and positioned in the short story as suffered and powerless human beings dominated by men. Women are objects, especially objects of men’s sexual desire. For instance, in the case of Rini, she lost her job and sold her virginity, she is described as a whore who earns a living by doing prostitution.
Secondly, the author implies that both women and men have ambivalent attitudes toward gender fairness. For example, they agree to feminist criticism, they look down the men who admire sexual desire and cannot survive without fulfilling sexual need. It seems that getting involved into affairs is something that can be proud of as men. But, on the other hand they believe that having affairs is natural for men. More specifically, I would say that for those who support it would likely have to work harder and need a long time to seize gender fairness. For those who are against it seems to be supported by patriarchal culture where men ten to dominate women. Unconsciously, there are collective attitudes in the society that give more power to men to be superior to women.
Thirdly, from the way the women are portrayed in the short story, we get some impressions that the editor let the gender unfairness go to the public without qualification. Ironically, gender fairness comes from Western culture. Then, why does it tend to expose gender differences instead of gender fairness?
Fourthly, the author writing the short story is a woman. But, surprisingly, the female author also wrote about the dark side of women, she did not raise her bright side instead. This might indicate the fact that gender related awareness among Indonesian writers is lacking, The Jakarta Post as an International daily with represents educated people should have a more balance perspective.
Recommendation
From the conclusion above, some recommendations as an effort to increase the awareness of gender fairness among Indonesian society and to increase the criticism of literature students toward other literature genre are specifically put forth to the Literature instructions.
For the literature learning and instructions, I suggest that the teachers should adopt critical stance in addition to aesthetic stance when reading literature. This is important to develop the habit of giving criticism of the students toward literature works, because so far, literature learning and instruction in Indonesia are only focused on efferent stance.
I recommend that Literature researchers search other gender issues in literature genres, regarding the lack of gender awareness within Indonesian society. And more importantly, they should make the findings public, because in our society publishing research and books are so rare. Therefore, it is important to accustom ourselves to publishing our writing, especially our research findings.
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