Women's Resistance in Indonesian Drama (A Gender Study)

Abstract

Gender injustice problems experienced by women have led to the emergence of the women's resistance movement. Not only today, women's resistance to gender injustice has existed even before Indonesia gained its independence. Nyai Ontosoroh is one of the characters in Bumi Manusia, a novel written by Pramoedya Ananta Toer which reflects women's resistance to gender injustice during the Dutch colonial period. Nyai Ontosoroh’s struggle in the novel was later adapted in a drama entitled “Nyai Ontosoroh” by R Giryadi. The main focus in the drama is Nyai Ontosoroh's resistance to various gender injustices she has received, including her resistance to the Dutch government. The figure of Nyai Ontosoroh is depicted as a Javanese woman who has gone far beyond her time. She fought for her destiny out of the colonialism of the mind and the occupation of freedom. She also has the courage to express her opinion openly and blatantly. This research aims to explain and describe forms of gender injustice and women’s resistance in “Nyai Ontosoroh” drama. The descriptive qualitative method with a feminist approach was applied in the analysis. The description includes forms of gender injustice and women's resistance found in the drama. The conclusion of this paper shows that there are still many gender injustices experienced by women, even in their homes. The large number of injustices that occur against women certainly creates various forms of resistance to combat these injustices. Women must fight to get gender justice properly.