Pasar Malam Paris a celebration of RI literary
Kunang Helmi-Picard, , Contributor, , Paris | Sun, 01/04/2009 10:01 AM |
Arts & Design
On a crisp December weekend in Paris, the French-Indonesian association, Pasar
Malam, held its third bi-annual Indonesian-French literary exchange event.
Featured writers from both countries and held at the Maison des Cultures du
Monde and emceed by Arwad Esber, the theme of the weekend was complex: From the
private sphere to the public place: autofiction or self-image? Autobiography in
literary oeuvre.
Pak Maruli Tua Sagala, from the Indonesian Embassy, officially opened the
proceedings and Johanna Lederer, in her written introduction to the program,
said that: "...writing about others often leads to unwelcome autobiographical
elements, but writing about others without involving a self-centered approach
has nourished works by Dickens, Proust, Salman Rushdie and Alexander
Soljenitsyne, for example."
French writer and teacher at the prestigious Lycee Louis-le-Grand, Bernard
Chambaz, was the first to talk about his work. Chambaz reminded the audience
that the great richness of the modern French language is due in part to words
or expressions taken from other cultures and languages. Chambaz talked about
his own geographical and literary journeys and an extract of his poem, Le livre
blanc de toutes les couleurs, which touches on the them of French's enrichment
by outside influences, was then read by French born Indonesian social scientist
Anda Djoehana Wiradikarta.
Makassar-born writer Lily Yulianti Farida, 37, and Luna Widya (trained as an
anthropologist) were next, and explained their Makkunrai project, which
involved feminist themes. Both had flown from Sulawesi just to attend the
literary gathering.
Luna convinced onlookers of her skills as an actress and activist when she
later performed at the Restaurant Indonesia's 26th anniversary ten days later.
Luna born in Jakarta in 1966 of Makassar parents read two poems and acted out
the latter with great bravado. The latter was a long poem about the daughter of
someone very unimportant who got caught up in the anti-communist wave in
Indonesia and who as a consequence never had the proper papers and left to work
as a servant-girl in Saudia Arabia.
She then murdered her employer there. What was unusual was that representatives
of the Indonesian Embassy were there as well because additionally a photo
exhibition by Patrick Blanche of his Indonesia series was also on display at
the restaurant.
Luna, an actress-cum-poet who transforms ideas from short stories and excerpts
of novels into recorded theater monologues, explored photo-essays.
Welcome entertainment came in the form of vivacious Mexican dancer Ilse
Peralta. Having studied dance with I Made Djimat and Agung Oka Partiniin Bali,
Peralta presented a contemporary version of Keban Tanjung with such
authenticity that she confounded some in the audience, who thought the brunette
dancer was Indonesian.
At the following round-table discussion, expertly led by anthropologist
Jean-Marc de Grave, philosopher Etienne Naveau began by giving his
interpretation of the day's literary theme with references to Sundanese writer
Ajip Rosidi. Naveau explained when and why Rosidi chooses to express himself
either in Sundanese or in modern Indonesian. He then discussed how, under the
guise of writing about others, many writers actually express more about their
own point of view and history.
Interpretations and translations of oral traditions is usually required in
research on Indonesia and this, Naveau said, can be a major pitfall for young
academics, who do not always fathom the peculiarities of local languages,
including Bahasa Indonesia.
Naveau cited the difficulties involved in translating a large selection of
Sitor Situmorang's poems, edited by Henri Chambert-Loir, in 2002. The
compilation, Paris la Nuit, was the fruit of cooperation between French and
Indonesian students, poets and academics alike, and was overseen by Indonesia's
Farida Soemargono-Labrousse, the now retired former lecturer of the National
Institute of Languages and Oriental Civilizations (INALCO).
French writer, critic and editor, Christine Jordis, then expounded on her
travels in Asia and the "afterwards" -- or the insights gained during the trip
that enabled her to talk about the Other, thereby revealing her own intimate
self.
Jordis reminded the audience of deceased Palestinian philosopher Edward Said's
idea of the Other or the West's exoticization of the East and its need to
create differnces between the two. Jordis told the audience that she had
enjoyed reading Nicolas Bouvier's account of his travels in Indonesia just as
much as Chambaz.
Despite general disappointment at Djenar Maesa Ayu's -- who famously explores
female sexuality in her writing -- last minute cancellation, another well-known
Indonesian writer, poet and translator, Laksmi Pamuntjak, stepped up to the
plate and presented a brilliant paper.
Remarkable for its clarity and precision and adhering to the day's theme in
elegant Indonesian prose, Pamuntjak's speech was translated into French by
Helene Blanchard, who could barely keep up with the break-neck speed with which
it was delivered.
Pamuntjak opened her discourse with a quote from Columbia University's (U.S)
John Ashberry, translated into Indonesian:"Ada saatnya kita sadar bahwa tak ada
satupun laku manusia yang lebih dramatis dan meyakinkan ketimbang laku kita
sendiri" (Which approximately re-translated means: There comes a point when we
become conscious of the fact that there is no other human behavior that is more
dramatic and more convincing than our own).
Her following speech centered around the work of Pramoedya Ananta Toer and
Nurhayati Sri Hardini (also known as Nh Dini). Pamuntjak told The Jakarta Post
afterwards that what was more important to her than her own personal approach
to writing was the analysis Ananta Toer and Nh Hardini offer, which reminds the
younger generation about a largely ignored period in Indonesian history.
Laksmi focused more on the autobiographical elements in Pramoedya's early
stories of Blora, his hometown. She argued that there was "a warmth and
intimacy and vulnerability in those Blora stories that distinguish them from
most of Pramoedya's prose in which man's thoughts, emotions and actions
invariably dominate the store, relegate nature to the sidelines and do away
with the abstract."
According to Laksmi, it is clear that Nh Dini includes auto-biographical
elements in her writing. Married to a French diplomat, Dini traveled to Japan,
the Philippines, Cambodia, America, the Netherlands and France. Recognition
finally came with her novels La Barka (1973) and Pada Sebuah Kapal (1985).
After the discussion, doyen poet Sitor Situmorang read his poem Lagu Jembatan
Kota Paris, about the bridges spanning the river Seine. He dedicated it to the
memory of his close friend, painter and long time resident of Paris, Salim
(1908-2008).
An interview of Situmorang by Vincent Bardet, editor at Le Seuil publishing
house, was rather awkward for Bardet. Despite the excellent translation by
Blanchard, cultural differences came in to play, as Situmorang understands
French only passively and is more fluent in Indonesian and Dutch.
Eighty four-year-old Situmorang was reluctant to explain his spirituality and
his relationship with women, questions Bardet formulated form reading his
poetry.
Later, the audience were invited to view the Parisian premi*re of Mereka Bilang
Saya Monyet! (They call me monkey), a film based on the novel by Djenar Maesa
Ayu. The film touches on themes that have never been directly tackled by a
female Indonesian director: life in the Indonesian capital (which could have be
any modern Asian metropolis), with its share of trendy young women trying to
come to grips with their sexuality and professional life, while resolving
problems with their mothers and lovers, including sexual abuse as a child.
As the event drew to a close, the audience was left with much to discuss and
cogitate about on the metro ride home in wintery Paris. ***
Sumber:[The Jakarta Post, January 10, 2009]
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