By Mustika Nur Amalia
(Comparative Literature Studies)
In this paper, I would like to analyze two novels entitled Memoirs of Geisha by Arthur Golden and Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk by Ahmad Tohari. I am interested in choosing these novels since this novel as representation the image of Geisha and Ronggeng in different value. Another reason, I found that these two novels have the same idea in creating the concept of Geisha and Ronggeng which is basically an artist who learn traditional culture in each area where the two novels are written. These two novels also reach a lot of achievements since they were published. As it mentioned in bibliography of Arthur Golden, this novel sold more than four million copies in English alone in a little over three years and has been translated into thirty-three languages. Ahmad Tohari’s work also becomes a master piece of Indonesian literature which explores the traditional value in Dukuh Paruk. Memoirs of Geisha is published in 1997 and adapted into a movie in 2005. Whereas Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk is published in 1987 and adapted into a movie in 2011. Before we going further, in these two novels found similarity between cultural concept of Geisha and Ronggeng. Both of them, Geisha and Ronggeng are identical to prostitution connotation. However there are also found the different values stereotype between Geisha and Ronggeng. Geisha is assume as negative in the perspective of the Golden’s Memoirs of Geisha, while Ronggeng is more acceptable and have positive values in Java society. The values of Geisha and Ronggeng are determined by the point of view of the writer in creating the image of Geisha and Ronggeng. Detail explanation about the similarity between Geisha and Ronggeng which has connotation as prostitute will discuss in the next paragraphs.
Geisha literally means “arts person,” although many stereotypes exist in the West about what geisha do and do not do (Japan Bibliography). In ‘Japan Bibliography’ also describe that geisha are traditional female entertainers who provide singing, dancing, conversation, games, and companionship to customers in certain restaurants. Some criticism found that there different perspective about the concept of Geisha as traditional culture in Japan and Geisha which is pictured in the Golden’s novel. These differences are happen when Memoirs of Geisha is told using western perspective. As in the article “Japan trough Hollywood’s distorting lens” reported that what made the novel is so successful was its apparent realism, people believes that they were reading an actual memoirs because the writer is using first point of view which is make the novel more believable. Yet, although the novel is believable read, it was still criticize by real geisha what for they saw as grave error (Lee, 2005). In the Bibliography Arthur Golden states that he writes ‘Memoirs of Geisha’ when he lived in Kyoto and met with geisha in Gion house named Mineko Iwasaki, and he did his research by interviewing Iwasaki. The story of ‘Memoirs of Geisha’ is basically the story of Iwasaki’s life as Geisha. However, the image of Geisha in Golden’s work does not authentic with the real life of Geisha in Japan. Lee (2005) reported that Mineko Iwasaki, a geisha Golden interviewed while writing the book, tried to sue the author for what she saw as a betrayal of her trust – she eventually settled out of court. In order to clarify misunderstanding stereotype about the image of Geisha, Iwasaki published her book, Geisha, a Life (2003) which told her girlhood growing up in the Gion geisha district in Kyoto and her career as a geisha. The stereotype that creates the image of Geisha as prostitute in Golden’s work is totally wrong perception about geisha as Japanese traditional culture. Iwasaki told that when she became a geisha, Japan had already passed the Anti-Prostitution Law and nobody could legally force a geisha to sell her body to a customer. On the other hand, Okada states that Golden seems have been dissatisfied with actual depiction of Geisha after the abolition of the prostitution practice and he tried to depict the image of Geisha in common western perspective, this is one reason why the setting of the story in the era 1930. She continues, Golden especially focused on the ritual called ‘mizuage’, a ritual in which an apprentice geisha sells her virginity at an unbelievably high price to her patron. In addition, Golden also emphasized other sexual aspect of Geisha means that he tried to reinforce the sexual image of geisha in his writing. This kind of representation was not acceptable to Iwasaki and others in the Geisha community (Okada, 224).
Now, let us go through the concept of Ronggeng. As a Geisha, Ronggeng is pictured a woman who is mastered in ‘art’. Ronggeng is traditional culture which is popular among Malay include in Javanese. Budiman (2010) states that Ronggeng has two definitions, first Ronggeng is used to named the woman who could dance and sing sinden (traditional music in Java) to entertain the society, second Ronggeng as performance art which has various kinds of names such as Ronggeng Gunung, Ronggeng Amen, etc. At first, Ronggeng is considered sacred to agriculture rituals. However, as the time goes by the value of Ronggeng has changed. As Endang states (in Budiman, 2010) at first Ronggeng more emphasize to the concept of ‘performance art’, but in the beginning colonizer started to build plantation, Ronggeng only gives entertainment to the laborers and bosses which more emphasize ‘swaying hips’ rather than ‘art’ as a sacred in the rituals. In Tohari’s Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk depicted Ronggeng as folk art which are considered blessing as heritage from ancestors. Someone who becomes a Ronggeng, she is chosen by ancestor and not all people can become a Ronggeng. Dukuh Paruk society believes, Ronggeng could bring happiness and bless for Dukuh Paruk, therefore they always praise the existence of Ronggeng. If geisha has ‘mizuage’ ritual, Ronggeng also has ‘Bukak Klambu’ ritual which has the same concept as ‘mizuage’, a ritual in which an apprentice geisha sells her virginity at an unbelievably high price. In short, the concept of Geisha and Ronggeng is actually same; they define as traditional female entertainer which could sing, dance and mastered in art.
Besides the similarity of the concept Geisha and Ronggeng, there are also find some differences. First, the difference between Geisha and Ronggeng is about the market terms. In Golden’s novel, Geisha is used to serve elite community. Therefore, before become a geisha, women should go to geisha’s school. They will be trained to be mastered in ‘art’. The school provides classes in Japanese classical dance, varieties of Japanese classical music, calligraphy, Japanese painting, flower arrangement, and tea ceremony (Okada, 223). Okada defines geisha’s identity consists in performing ‘so-called’ Japanese Traditional arts which shows her performances in banquets and gives public performances, so that geisha is unlike hostess or prostitute. In contrast to Ronggeng, Ronggeng which pictured in Tohari’s Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk is citizen from Dukuh Paruk who is inherited Ronggeng ability from Sacamenggala, ancestors of Dukuh Paruk. Ronggeng shows her performance to the Dukuh Paruk society. Ronggeng never be considered as a real Ronggeng before she has done ‘Bukak Kelambu’ ritual. Therefore Ronggeng is more like inherited capability as an ‘artist’ rather than trained her capability. In Java, stereotype about Ronggeng symbolizes fertility so that mostly Ronggeng is performed as a symbol ‘thanksgiving’ toward ancestors (Imron, 200).
Another difference is the way how the writer represented Geisha in ‘Memoirs of Geisha’ and Ronggeng in ‘Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk’. According to Benshoff and Griffin, representation can be defined as a “process of presenting an image of something in order to communicate ideas or tell a story” (2004: 350). A representation may be said to have a twofold purpose: it plays the role of the message in a communication process and it is also a construction that tries to express reality with the help of determined codes of meaning (Viruega, 2). Hall pointed out that the code is fundamental so that the receiver can decode the message in the same way that the sender had created it (1997: 21). The image of geisha which represented in the novel is not really accurate with the real geisha image in Japan. This is the result of a conscious process of representation of the figure of the geisha that has been modified according to the cultural patterns (Viruega, 3). Through the novel, we can found that geisha pictured as she has blue eyes, however the characteristics of Asian has brown eyes. This is just one example, the representation of Geisha in Golden’s novel are not authentic, it has been modified through cultural context since the novel is written in western perspective. The stereotype of Geisha through novel is pictured has negative connotation and identical with prostitution, while the reality is that geisha symbolize traditional culture in Japan.
On the other hand, the way how Tohari represented Ronggeng is more factual. Tohari’s work could reach popularity in Indonesian literature world due to his capability in telling subculture problems or district culture with its local genius, highlighted to the humanity problems and tries to portray rural citizen’s life (Imron, 2). Imron continues that Tohari’s characteristic in his work portrays daily life about rural citizen which cannot be separated from humanity problems such as honesty, betrayal, ill-treatment, and marginalized issues. Therefore, mostly his work is based on the reality which exists in real life. ‘Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk’ is written based on social reality which is depicted the condition, behavior, and society’s life in certain area (Imron, 12). In the other word, Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk is a manifestation as representation Tohari’s life, culture, and society life in Middle Java in 1965. Imron found that there are some similarities between Tohari and Rasus character in ‘Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk’. Tohari was born in Banyumas, Middle Java, whereas Rasus was born in Dukuh Paruk, Banyumas. Tohari know very well about Banyumas and also Rasus know Dukuh paruk very well. Tohari is against foolishness which dominates Middle Java society in the PKI’s era, and also Rasus. Through ‘Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk’, Tohari is clearly depicted society life in middle Java who still believes mystical value, poor, and immoral (Imron, 17). Tohari also reveal his point of view toward society life which is identical with foolishness through Rasus characters. He also pictured Ronggeng have positive image in Javanese society because he knows very well about Middle Java society condition in PKI era which still believe mystical value, identical with foolishness, uneducated, and uncivilized.
In conclusion, ‘Memoirs of Geisha’ and ‘Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk’ emphasize the cultural symbol between Geisha and Ronggeng. They have the same concept, both of them are traditional female entertainer but they have different value and stereotype. Geisha have negative stereotype because Geisha is written in the western perspective, and the representation of Geisha does not authentic with the real Geisha’s life in Japan. This happen, because the writer wants to reinforce Geisha stereotype in western perspectives as a result of a conscious process of representation of the figure of the geisha that has been modified according to the cultural patterns. About the prostitute connotation of Geisha, Iwasaki have makes clarification that Japan had already passed the Anti-Prostitution Law and nobody could legally force a geisha to sell her body to a customer. Ronggeng are depicted more reliable due to the background of the writer who knew very well about Middle Java culture. Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk is a manifestation as representation Tohari’s life, culture, and society life in Middle Java in 1965. Ronggeng has positive stereotype due to society belief that Ronggeng will bring happiness and bless. For prostitution connotation which attached in Ronggeng is basically due to the Middle Java society perception in that era who still believe mystical value. They assumes that before Ronggeng has done ‘Bukak Klambu’ ritual, she never become the real Ronggeng. In short, both Geisha and Ronggeng are basically as a symbol traditional culture and art.
References:
____. 1956. Bibliography Arthur Golden. Biography Resources Centre.
Budiman, Agus. 2010. Pergeserean Fungsi Penyajian Ronggeng Gunung di Desa Ciulu Kecamatan Banjarsari Kabupaten Ciamis. Unpublished Undergraduate Thesis. Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia.
____. 2005. Geisha. Japan Bibliography. National Clearinghouse for United States-Japan Studies. Indiana University.
Imron, Ali.___. Ahmad Tohari dan Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk: Eksistensinya dalam Jagat Sastra Indonesia. University of Sebelas Maret.
Imron Ali, dkk. 2010. Model Manajemen Pementasan Kesenian Ronggeng untuk Menunjang Pariwisata Di Kabupaten Banyumas Jawa Tengah. Jurnal Penelitian Humaniora: 11(2): 199-208
Jin, Jin. 2011. The Discourse of Geisha: In the Case of Memoirs of Geisha. Unpublished Graduate Thesis. Lund University.
Lee, Andrew. 2005. Japan through Hollywood’s Distorting Lens. Published in Financial Times.
Okada, Mariko.___. Prolegomenon to Geisha as a Cultural Performer: Miyako Odori, A Gion School and Representation of a ‘Traditional Japan’.
Virugea.___. “Re-presenting Asian Stereotypes in Hollywood Cinema: an Analysis of Race and Gender Representations in Memoirs of a Geisha”. Unpublised Undergraduate Thesis. University of A Coruna.
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