Journal of Literary Prose and Society

PAPUAN VOICES IN PROSE: CONFLICT, RACISM, AND THE STRUGGLE FOR RECOGNITION

Irma Nuraeni Salsabila — 2025-12-31

This article examines how contemporary Papuan prose articulates experiences of conflict, racism, and the struggle for recognition within the Indonesian context. Using a qualitative literary and cultural studies approach, the research analyzes a purposively selected corpus of twelve Papuan short stories and novels published between 2005–2023. Close reading and thematic–discourse analysis are employed to identify representations of physical and structural violence, forms of racialization, and narrative expressions of claims to recognition. The findings show that conflict is predominantly represented as a continuum of structural and economic violence that permeates everyday life, rather than as isolated military events. Racism appears in overt insults, stereotyping, institutional discrimination, symbolic erasure, and, in some cases, internalized feelings of inferiority. Across the texts, Papuan characters articulate multi-layered demands for recognition as human beings, citizens, and indigenous peoples, frequently using first-person narration, shifting focalization, symbolism, and code- switching to re-center Papuan subjectivity. The study extends previous scholarship on Papuan literature by foregrounding racism and recognition as central analytical categories and by highlighting the aesthetic and political sophistication of Papuan writers as knowledge producers. Practically, the research suggests that Papuan prose should be more systematically integrated into educational curricula and cultural policy to foster more just and inclusive understandings of Papua. The study’s limitations—particularly its small corpus and focus on Indonesian-language, published works—point to the need for broader, multilingual, and interdisciplinary investigations of Papuan cultural production.

Remembering 1965: Trauma, Silence, And Counter-Memory In Indonesian Historical Prose

Deni Prastiono — 2025-12-31

This study examines Indonesian historical prose addressing the 1965 events, focusing on the representation of trauma, narrative silence, and counter-memory. Utilizing a qualitative research design, the study analyzes selected literary texts through thematic, narrative, and interpretive approaches. Findings reveal that trauma is depicted both individually and collectively, conveyed through fragmented narratives, flashbacks, episodic storytelling, and symbolic imagery. Narrative silence emerges as a deliberate literary strategy, employing omissions, ellipses, and ambiguous endings to convey the unspeakable nature of violence while inviting readers’ interpretive engagement. Counter-memory functions as a critical mechanism to resist hegemonic historical narratives, highlighting marginalized voices, intergenerational memory, and alternative perspectives. The interaction of trauma, silence, and counter-memory demonstrates that literature does not merely reflect historical events but actively mediates memory, ethical reflection, and social consciousness. The study also shows that literary strategies provide insight into the sociopolitical context, ethical dilemmas, and cultural constraints surrounding the representation of sensitive historical events. Practical implications include the integration of historical prose into education, literary practice, and public discourse to promote critical engagement, social reconciliation, and recognition of suppressed histories. Despite limitations related to sampling, scope, and interpretive subjectivity, this research contributes to interdisciplinary understanding of how literature functions as both an ethical witness and a medium for historical reconstruction. The findings underscore the role of narrative form, symbolism, and thematic strategies in preserving collective memory and challenging dominant historical narratives.

Work, Hustle, And Burnout: Narratives Of The Millennial And Gen-Z Workforce In Indonesian Fiction

Nurmayanti Nurmayanti — 2025-12-31

This study examines representations of work culture, hustle ideology, and burnout in contemporary Indonesian fiction featuring millennial and Gen-Z protagonists. Employing qualitative literary analysis, the research analyzes 26 texts published between 2015-2024 through close reading and thematic coding frameworks. Findings reveal that 85% of texts explicitly engage with hustle culture, with 60% adopting critical narrative positions that expose contradictions between entrepreneurial promises and lived precarity. Burnout appears consistently across 92% of the corpus, depicted through sophisticated narrative techniques including fragmented syntax, non-linear chronology, and body metaphors that formally enact psychological suffering. The analysis demonstrates burnout as structural condition produced by toxic organizational systems, with 83% of fictional workplaces violating work-life boundaries and 67% exhibiting low psychological safety. Gendered patterns emerge significantly, with 80% of female protagonists experiencing burnout compounded by emotional labor expectations while 73% of male protagonists face provider pressures. Generational analysis reveals millennials express disillusionment from broken meritocratic promises while Gen-Z demonstrates baseline cynicism, though comparable burnout rates indicate structural conditions overwhelm individual attitudes. Individual resistance strategies appear in 54% of texts while collective organizing remains rare at 12%, suggesting literary reinforcement of neoliberal individualization. The research affirms literature's epistemic value for accessing subjective dimensions of work-related suffering while documenting cultural contestation around labor ideologies, contributing theoretical frameworks for analyzing Southeast Asian workplace fiction and practical evidence supporting policy interventions for labor protection, organizational transformation, and mental health support infrastructure.

Digital Wattpad Culture In Indonesia: Youth, Romance, And The Changing Practices Of Reading And Writing

Fiki Indah Yulianti — 2025-12-29

This article explores digital Wattpad culture among Indonesian youth, focusing on how romance narratives shape changing practices of reading and writing. Using a qualitative descriptive design grounded in cultural and literacy studies, the research involves 15–24-year-old Wattpad users who actively read and/or write romance stories. Data were collected through online semi-structured interviews, digital ethnographic observation of Wattpad activities, and document analysis of selected romance texts. Thematic analysis reveals that Wattpad functions as an everyday literacy space where youth move from casual readers to more selective readers and, in many cases, to active writers. Romance emerges as the dominant genre, particularly subgenres such as school/campus romance, enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, and religious romance, which offer both familiarity and emotional intensity. Participants use Wattpad to explore identity, gender roles, love, and religiosity, while simultaneously negotiating global romance tropes with local Indonesian cultural norms. The findings also indicate perceived improvements in reading fluency, vocabulary, and narrative writing skills, alongside the development of audience awareness and critical judgment. However, the study also notes ambivalent effects, including the risk of unrealistic romantic expectations and normalization of problematic relationship models. The article argues that Wattpad should be recognized as part of Indonesia’s contemporary reading landscape and suggests that educators and policymakers can strategically leverage this platform to support youth literacy, provided that critical digital literacy is also fostered.