CONSTRUCTING THE CULTURAL IDENTITY AGAINST TRADITION IN ‘A BACKWARD PLACE’ BY RUTH PRAWER JHABVALA

Abstract

This essay analyzes how the cultural identity is constructed to the new identity for the characters in ‘A Backward Place’. The culture has a massive role in constructing the identity toward people, society, and the other social institutions. As it has the big influence, the culture can deconstruct and construct the identity from the old to the new, the local to the global, and the minority to the majority. To analyze this novel I used the orientalism perspective. I think there is a deconstruction of identity to the characters in the novel through the culture, tradition, and language.        

Introduction

The novel ‘A Backward Place’ by Jabvala presents many cultural studies that I can see in the story, especially the contrasting characters created by the author. This essay will responds about the creating identity influenced by two cultures which appose each other, mainly in constructing new identity to the characters. Its process is presented in Etta, Judy, Bal, Shudir, Bhuaji, Clarisa, Mr. Hochstadt, and Mrs. Hochstadt. The main problem that I want to analyze focuses on the constructing identity in Judy, Etta, and Bal.

For the characters, I find the contrast culture between Etta and Judy. It affects the personality, language, how they dress up, and how they purely live in United States which has the gorgeous culture around their household and friends. Unconsciously they have to live and face the cultural challenge as the new tradition. The way they live is very funny for me. Etta as a Hungarian woman, she speaks English with French accent but her style is very modern. And also Judy as an Indian woman, she is faithful in her nationality, tradition, and culture even she lives in a modern country, United States. They are the cultural problems that will be talked in this essay.

The identifications of this essay are, how is the process of the ‘constructing’ identity toward the characters in the novel, and how is the relation of globalization with ‘constructing’ in the character’s identity. They will explain the problems in the novel that I want to talk about. The globalization appearance, the colonial influence, and the modernism make the massive changes and cultural shifting in the characterization. The novel presents the post-colonial problems in each country of ‘third world’. people are contaminated by modernism thought.

According to  Loomba, “The ‘othering’ of vast numbers of people by European colonialist thought, and their construction as backward and inferior, depended upon what Abdul JanMohamed calls the ‘Manichean allegory’, in which a binary and implacable discursive opposition between races is produced.” (1985: 60). In this essay, I will identify the characters with ‘constructing racial and cultural difference. As refers to the theory, it will indicate the post-colonialism which is in the novel. 

   

Constructing Cultural Identity to Etta, Judy, and Bal

            Eta and Judy clearly have the different character in themselves. Etta was Hungarian girl with French accent in English, and her style purely modern girl in the way she dress and act. On the contrary Etta is too far different with Judy, she is totally Indian girl from her culture, tradition, style in the way she dress. I assume this is the factor of the modernism and globalization happening to them. Unconsciously they have to do challenge this cultural problem. Etta seems really enjoy and take the modern tradition though from style, language, and culture. The modernism constructs the cultural identity to her. It grows up in her faith, manner, and personality. ‘Western’ dominantly contributes the cultures in creating the new identity. Personally, it changes her nationality to the modern enthusiasm. It reflects while she is speaking arrogantly to Judy. She totally dislike Judy from her traditional thought as not like the others around her people having a modern thought, style, life, and household. Judy really realizes that she is different with her friends especially in her office. But she never worries about her problems. She enjoys with her thoughts, culture, and tradition even she lives in a modern country.

            
          The problem happens to them as post-colonialism effects that make the cultural change.  It is like European thoughts create non-European cultural identity becoming the opposition. The binary opposition between European people and non-European people in the cultural race creates the colonialism and non-colonialism. As many critiques done by people against the cultural race itself, the humanity had not questioned for human being, whereas all human beings are same no difference in their nature. But, the colonialism makes a fascinating contrast that counters each others. The counter makes people divided to various sect/ideology. As the characters in the novel, Judy as an Indian girl who works in cultural Dais, she really realizes the counter culture in her country where she is living and working. Her resistance is seen from the way she is presented in the novel when Etta asked Judy to make up and bring the dress for her. She really dislikes Judy’s type from the way she dresses and makes up. Etta’s emotion has been totally created the colonial movement. She thinks Judy is not modern girl and very ancient.

            
        Meanwhile, Judy can control herself with her cultural power. She really noticed, being a modern girl is not must change her style and thought to approve a popular culture. Judy’s resistance to American nationalism is clearly seen in facing the globalization. She was very faithful to her culture and tradition, until she is asked by Mrs. Hochstadt to show Indian tradition fur American public. Actually she is very proud if she is able to show and practice Indian art and tradition as her national identity. Her image in the character shows that she actually notices the colonial history that has happened in her native country. That happened in many nations which had been colonized by European people. That European colonizing produce the imperialism, globalization, and modernism as explained in post-colonialism.

       Now, I will talk about the last character ‘Bal’ in the novel. From the colonial problems that I talked before, Bal is represented as the man who is talented in theatre. He is an actor. He is too interested in art and playing theatre. Beside his talents in theatre, he also likes a local and traditional art. His desire in loving art makes him the strong character toward the cultural studies. It’s like the way he loves his wife, Judy, who love too much her household with Bal. That fact happens because she serves nicely her husband and family, such as, preparing the dinner for her family herself. Even Bal never always with his family, Judy still love him so much. She knows that he sometime must work to outside the city, and he plays Theater or becomes an actor for his family. Such Bal’s character in the novel, it explained that Bal has a big cultural power in his faith. His work in entertaining doesn’t construct the European identity in his self. Naturally, he also can resist the modern culture and globalization in his country. But, sometime he must approve the modernism and the western culture in his work, because he must to do the popular art in the entertain industry. The industry is part of the imperialism. And he must face the cultural race as the big challenge in modern country.

The Relation of ‘Constructing’ with Globalization for the Characters in the novel

 Concept of globalization appears as a weapon to construct the European identity, seen from the massive fact happened in ‘third word’, which includes many countries in Europe continent and Asian continent. Parts of countries which are colonized in eighteenth century, the fact give big influences to cultures in each country. The globalization changes the human mind in any pattern of living. The goal is to transform the cultural representation. The concepts is applied in the novel through the characters; Etta, Shudir, Shanti, and Clarissa.

They are represented as the urban people in the novel. It seems clearly from their manner like when Etta and Shanti have dinner and coffee break in the coffee shop and bar. Their lifestyle distinguishes them from Etta and Bal. Etta and Shanti have been already accustomed by elegancy of the city, sitting on a nice sofa and living in elegant house. Etta loves too much the wealth. Her character applied to the concept of globalization. The globalization has the big power and authority in constructing human identity.

The globalization relates the human identity from dominant culture that appears in this modern era. The globalization totally affect the cultures and traditions for every people in the word. It creates the new identity for non-European people. Certainly, it makes people addicted in new cultural studies for non- Europeans, and set their mindset. It’s applied in Etta, Shudir, and Shanti. The culture makes them having the original identity, whereas it’s their imitation to the rises of globalization and cultural race against human. The cultural races force them to be the majority in the country, city, office, and household.

In globalization, social institution also has the big role and power to each country ‘third world’, because it’s massive effects for cultural deconstruction to Etta, Shuhdir, Shanti, and Clarissa in the novel. Their character has been created and constructed by the European tradition through globalization. The globalization is a mediator to triggers the modernism, imperialism, and nationalism changed in human mindset. The humanity is not the cultural discourse known by people. Now, the people are created as the individual machine which never cares among people problems. The people just think how the way to make their self rich and elegant for living is. People never want to worry what happened to their neighbors. The importance is they can enjoy their life and work, and people now are spoiled by the modern invention, property, nice facility, and new popular tradition.

Etta is clearly presented to such this social condition in this cultural discourse and cultural race. She does approve it and does not resist the modernism as she really enjoys it. Her heart and mindset is poor of the natural sense as human. She never cares, worries, and wants to know what is going on to the social condition. Such Eta who is explained in the novel, unconsciously there is a resistant power in her sense of feeling. She thinks how a poor she is in her character. She realizes that she is contaminated by a modern thought, because she ever has a bad background in her past household. Her husband never has been beside her when she need. She also never has been contented of her husband’s gaining. Her husband is Bal, he ever marries her before meets Judy. Bal and Etta are her old friend when she was in college, but they are very different.

The character in Etta showed what a big globalization is, and has massive power and relation to create the new identity in human. The relation influenced the characters in the novel as a fact in the reality. It also contributes the imperialism power in constructing an ideology. It mainly changes the social condition in people daily life. The way to resist these problems is that people have to take in faith of their own humanity and traditions. The power that can purely resist is just our own selves in how people face and challenge the cultural races in this modern era.

Conclusion

          The characters in the novel are represented as the reflection of the reality in human problems with their culture, tradition, thought, ideology, and social condition which constructs the identity. The binary opposition between ‘western’ and ‘north’ influenced the characters in the novel. It’s like how Etta, Judy, and Bal are presented in the concept of colonialism applied in themselves. Some of problems are such their household, family, lifestyle, and work. They refer to the cultural race and cultural discourse in people life. The cultural deconstruction also can change the nationality, mindset, humanity, and tradition. People will notice own themselves, if they aware in the cultural shifting that happens to each country. And then, the stereotype and the image of characters in the novel clearly created by postcolonial appearances.

References       

Anderson, B. (1991) Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism, London and New York: Verso.

Bhabha, H.K. (1983) (1994). ‘Remembering Fanon: Self, Psyche and the Colonial Condition’, in P. Williams and L. Chrisman (eds), Colonial Discourse and Postcolonial Theory, New York: Columbia University.

Chatterjee, P. 1993a, Nationalist Thought and the Colonial World: A Derivative Discourse, 2nd edn, Zed Books, London.

Fanon, F.1990, The Wretched of the Earth, 3rd edn, trans. Constance Farrington, Penguin, Harmondsworth.

Hall, Stuart. “Cultural Identity and Diaspora” dalam Postcolonial Discourse and Postcolonial Theory, New York: Harvester/Wheatsheaf, 1993,392-403.