THE STRUCTURE AND MEANING OF KAWIH IN RONGGENG GUNUNG PERFORMANCE

Abstract

<p align="justify"><em>Ronggeng Gunung</em> is a combined performing art which thrives especially in southern Ciamis (including Pamarican and Banjarsari) and Pangandaran (including Padaherang and Kalipucang). Generally, this is almost the same as the conventional <em>ronggeng</em>, in which a dancer performs while being accompanied by <em>gamelan</em> (Javanese/Sundanese music instrument) and <em>kawih</em> (Sundanese songs). The main <em>ronggeng</em> dancer is a woman who wears a shawl as a part of the dance to invite males to dance with her. Allegedly, in its mythological narratives, <em>Ronggeng Gunung</em> was created from the grief of a princess who lost her beloved husband and her attempt of revenge toward the killer. This paper is actually intended to find out how are the structures and meanings of <em>Kawih</em> as an inseparable part of <em>Ronggeng Gunung</em> performance. This study applies structuralism as both theoretical approach and method, since it provides the theoretical framework to find out both the structural construction and the meaning of the <em>Kawih</em>. The result of this study shows that <em>kawih</em> accompanying <em>Ronggeng Gunung</em> performance represents a passionate romance of solace, unrequited love, as well as the cultural values of modesty, politeness, and the importance of solidarity in facing every problem encountered by human. </p>