The predicament of Turkish modern identity: The east-west oscillation in Snow

This research uses Orhan Pamuk’s Snow in order to reveal the tension and oscillation between the East and the West which is represented by Ataturk’s forced modernization on the restriction of veils in schools and public places. Pamuk uses Kars, a small city in Turkey’s border which always coved by snow, to describe this tension. The women are presented as the oppressed who silently end their life as their way to protect their beliefs and tradition as well as the weapon to fight against the oppressor. To dismantle Pamuk’s work that highlights the endless oscillation, I employ the method of library research by presenting the internal struggle experienced by the main characters that are forced to embrace Western tradition. This research deals with two issues namely oscillation and complex desire to imitate the Others experienced by the main characters the as well as the solutions to the predicament that are offered by Pamuk in Snow. This research is also accompanied by Said’s Orientalism and Bhabha’s Postcolonialism that are employed to illuminate the solutions. Additionally, the information on Turkey’s history and socio-politic condition are presented. This research is a way to show how the oscillation can be solved by embracing one culture without leaving the other. Additionally, it is also a tool to raise the readers’ awareness towards the problem on the predicament of the East and West and develop their critical thinking towards the forced modernity by the oppressor

The Portryal of Christianity in Achebe’s Arrow of God: A Postcolonial Perspective

The emergence of postcolonial criticism makes the voice of Africans’ colonial experience heard and seriously considered. In some ways, this voice is a little bit different from what the European poets or novelists have expressed in their literary texts. For most Europeans, colonialism is perceived as a civilizing force that benefits and progresses to the colonized African societies, primarily through one of its arms: Christianity. Although this religion, as most missionaries propose, has nothing to do with the worldly affair, such as a lust for natural resources and colony, it becomes an important cultural element to help the Europeans conquer the colonized African natives. During the era of colonialism, Christianity in Western discourse is perceived as a means of setting the African natives free from the barbaric traditional belief and savage way of life. Through Christianity, the colonized African natives are educated and taught to live a more modern and civilized life. However, some African writers at times give a different perspective on Christianity. This article explores how Christianity is portrayed through the characters and conflicts in Arrow of God (1964), a novel written by a Nigerian named Chinua Achebe. This portrayal can lead to a postcolonial discourse the novel intends to propose. Keywords: Christianity, colonialism, postcolonial criticism, postcolonial discourse Munculnya kritik sastra poskolonial menjadikan suara yang mengekspresikan pengalaman kolonialisme dapat didengar dan sungguh-sungguh dapat diberi perhatian. Suara ini dalam beberapa hal agak eberbeda dengan apa yang disampaikan oleh novelis dan penyair Eropa dalam karya-karya mereka. Bagi kebanyakan orang Eropa, kolonialisme dipandang sebagai kekuatan pemberadaban yang dapat memberikan keuntungan dan kemajuan bagi masyarakat Afrika yang terjajah, terutama melalui salah satu tangan kanannya, yaitu agama Kristen. Meskipun agama ini tidak terkait dengan urusan nafsu dunia, seperti keinginan untuk menguasai sumber daya alam maupun tanah koloni seperti yang sering dikatakan oleh para misionaris, agama ini menjadi elemen penting untuk membantu kaum kolonial Eropa manaklukkan orang-orang pribumi Afrika. Selama masa kolonial, agama Kristen dalam wacana Barat dipandang sebagai media untuk membebaskan orangorang Afria dari kepercayaan tradisional yang barbar dan cara hidup yang tidak beradab. Melalui agama ini, orang-orang pribumi Afrika dididik dan diajar untuk menghidupi kehidupan yang lebih modern dan beradab. Namun demikian, beberapa sastrawan Afrika memberikan perspektif yang berbeda terhadap agama Kristen. Artikel ini akan mengeksplorasi bagaimana agama Kristen digambarkan melalui tokoh dan konflik dalam novel Arrow of God (1964) karya sastrawan Nigeria, Chinua Achebe. Gambaran ini akan menuntun pembaca pada wacana poskolonial yang dibangun oleh novel ini. Kata kunci: Agama Kristen, kolonialisme, kritik sastra poskolonial, wacana poskolonia

KOMPLEKSITAS POSKOLONIAL DALAM PUISI “NYANYIAN LAWINO” KARYA OKOT P’BITEK

This article discusses how an African woman faces the postcolonial complexity as presented in the poem “Song of Lawino” (1966), written by Okot p’Bitek, an Uganda writer. The postcolonial complexity here means the difficult situation of decolonizing process as a result of a cultural clash between local African and Western culture, which has been internalized by some African people. The internalization of the Western culture creates  self-hatred racism of African people, political group dispute, woman oppression, and mimicry. Using postcolonial perspective, which is proposed by Franz Fanon, Aime Caesar, and Homi K. Bhaba, the writer analyzes how this poem portrays three phenomena of postcolonial complexity. This postcolonial complexity is investigated through the conflict and the characters in the poem

Alternative Models of Electronic Literary Criticism: Intermedial and Ergodic

Electronic literature, known as cyber or digital literature, has elicited negative and favourable responses. Negative reactions centre on disagreements regarding its definition and the author's quality and authenticity. Positive reflexes include its rapid and massive distribution, publication, and subversion against the dominant establishment of printed literature. Its open space for creativity due to the addition of multimedia and its intensive interaction between writers and readers also become beneficial values. Despite the negative and favourable backlash, electronic literary criticism development has not yet been widely discussed. Electronic academic critique models are rarely debated due to a lack of consensus on their definitions, interdisciplinarity, and technological obstacles. This article attempts to propose alternate models for electronic literary criticism, viewing it as a new genre. This literary analysis offers alternatives based on its significant elements: technology (platform), immersive experience and interactivity (the reader’s involvement), literary work (various electronic types), and accessibility (wide range of readers). Considering that electronic literature combines literature, technology, and digital media to interpret works and investigate the relationships between technology, authorship, and readership, its criticism needs to broaden its area which includes technology. Intermedial and ergodic criticism can be the alternatives to approach this new genre