I voted for Girls' Generation's "I Got a Boy" to win Video of the Year a...

together as one.wmv

together as one.wmv

Boanerges Worship - "Jesus" (Grace & Truth Album)

Indescribable - Chris Tomlin (with lyrics)

Bila Kau yang Membuka Pintu - Fransisca Alverina HGSC

Fransisca hgsc - Kelimpahan Setiap hari.flv

Lirik:

Tiada terukur berkat yang telah Kau curahkan
bagiku yang tetap percaya
Tiada terhitung berkat yang masih Kau sediakan
bagiku yang tetap setia

Semakin kubersyukur ku dapat menikmati
kebaikan yang tlah Kau beri
Semakin ku menabur ku kan menuai janji
 kelimpahan setiap hari

Lagu ini sangat memberkati saya :) Hallelluya Terpujilah Nama Mu, Tuhan Yesus

Gender, Literature, Society in me and my friends' perspectives (Maria and Yurica - Christian University of Indonesia)

Maria Kristina Pingkan – 1021150015

Yurica – 1021150004

Gender in Literature and Society

            Gender is characteristics and social differences that distinguish between masculinity and femininity, male and female, men and women. Thus, gender tends to roles and social systems while sex is more on biological things. Gender has social expectations such as woman usually demanded to nurturing while men supposed to be a leader.

There is a concept of gender that influences our daily lives. First of all concepts of women, in society, women have three roles which are as daughters, wives and mothers. So, women have boundaries to men in patriarchy system. As daughters they have their father names. As wives their responsibilities to obey their husbands and be passive in taking families decisions because they have their husbands’ last name. That is why wives being oppressed in marital lives. Then, as mothers they have to take care of their family members. Therefore, during their life, they have no own life, because they have to dedicate they lives to men. Those are called femininity.

In society, men also have three roles, such as son, husbands, and fathers. As son, they are educated to be a leader, strong, independent, brave, bold, and not soft and they are forbid to cry, because usually cry is for girls, and being a son is also a pride of their family. As husbands, they must be taking control of their family, to protect them and make decisions to their families. As fathers they tend to be a role models for their sons and to be a shelter to their families. They also have to work, to provide their family. Those called masculinity.

These concepts has rooted in our daily lives, especially for some cultures having strict rules about this. In some of Indonesian cultures’ perspectives, marriage life tends to patriarchy systems indicating women should be the second class while men are the first class in their positions. It is a part of social-construct still occurs in small villages. For example, in a marriage, a woman should be “perfect” or “ideal” for man. She is demanded to be patient and soft, can cook and put make up. She has to be “flawless” for society means that she should be still virgin before marriage and come from a good family if she will married a man from higher class than him. On the other hand, for man, the society never asked for his “virginity” because it can be directly seen and known. Well, this society is really unfair because it is not too important for a man to be “flawless” too as long as he has a good job and earns much money (in some cultures, man can “buy” his chosen woman with a large amount)

 However, in big cities such as Jakarta, it is not really matter anymore because both men and women  should be active and independent to earn money. Working is a must and there is no gender distinction to have a job, excluding some jobs needing more energy and should be done by men. Even though there is difference in salary for men and women, a chance to get job still same according to personal’s test result, competencies , and abilities of the worker.

Nowadays, these images are not really suitable with the fact, because men should be masculine and women should be feminine. However, these situations often are turned over. From example, some men are feminine and some women are masculine. In this case, some men do woman’s works and they are not ashamed to do it. They also have women’s characters, such as, they care to their body, their face, and they can nurture, and do the house chores. On the other hand, some women can be independent, have career, be a leader, can do men’s works, such as engineering, wrestling, repair electronic stuff, and be a chauffeur.

 Literature leads us to understand the issues of gender, then we can related the issues in real life because literature talks about human kinds and values. Literature helps to spread gender issues to the world and also influence either women or men about the equality for woman right. Through literature, women can voice what they feel and have, such as oppression, discrimination and other unfair treatment as the effects of society demand in patriarchal systems. As seen in the God of Small Things where Roy brings some facts about Indian women that strive and stay in those “illogical” rules by religion and culture. This novel can help world understand Indian women’s suffering and drive (or perhaps continue?) women’s movement in India. This struggle will never stop until they have their rights as a human. Thus, literature is a window for a person and world to see the reality and then involved to do something for a better future.

In my opinion (Yurica) the issues related to gender has changed because between male and female everything they both have or do must be balance, for the example in the house, the male should help do the house chores because they lives together and even if they both work, but in the house they must be work together to keep the balance in the house. Then, the identity of male and female is also changed, now some male are more ‘feminin’ than female, even they are more keep their looks.

I am personally (Maria) do not really agree with what society forms about gender although I have to follow this system whether I like it or not. As a woman, I prefer to do the best in my life not for being a “good” future wife or mom but more on being a good woman for myself. If I can cook it is all for myself and people I love not because it is my duty. If I can dress up or put make up on my face it is not because I have to be beautiful for a man, but it is more because I want it for myself. I want myself to be independent and responsible. I do not want society to limit my love for my future family because taking care of my family and obey my (future) husband, for me, should be done as an expression of love not a burden. I can do those things with all my heart but no one can force me to be what they want (my future husband, mother in law, etc) If I love my family, I will do anything for them but it does not mean I am their assistant, slave, or chef.

Therefore, this course has strengthened my beliefs of being a “tough” woman related to gender, race, and identity. Honestly, it is hard to against this system but it must. In my opinion, women should be treated equally by society because women give birth and educate their children. Furthermore, woman in marriage has a role as a “pillar” that supports her husband in every aspect of life, such as in religious and work life. It all comes from women, as a quote says that behind a success man, there is a success woman either she is a mother, wife or perhaps a sister. It is not always about marriage, but for a women it is about being good, better, and the best for ourselves from the first.

Reader Response for Some Papers based on Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things

(This is an assignment for Special Topic in Literature Class. It is just responses and means no harm. I apologize if there are any words that not pleased -sorry if my English is bad)

Special Topic in Literature and Literary Criticism Assignment

Maria Kristina Pingkan – 1021150015

1.        Women as the Oppressed In The God of Small Things by Silima Nanda.

In this paper, Silima Nanda explains the situation of women in India as the oppressed in Roy’s The God of Small Things. Roy depicts theme of gender oppression through the examination of the marital and gender relationship of Ammu, Mammachi, Baby Kochamma, and Rahel. So, she describes one-by-one the situation and the attitude of each characters. Started from Ammu as a subject to humiliation, insults and mental blows by her own family members. For example, Chacko who always marginalizes her and considers Ammu and her children as burdens. At the last, Ammu died alone in grieve as a result of society constructed in patriarchal system. The second woman is Mammachi who is formed by society to obey in Men’s power, Pappachi and Chacko while let Ammu marginalized. Then, Baby Kochamma , as a victim of unbearable love for Father Mulligan, represses her to treat everybody surrounding her badly. Rahel, also treated badly by Baby Kochamma because she, Ammu, and Estha are not expected to be in Ayemenem House. She has stigma from her childhood for she has mixed parents both religious and ethnic that impacts her childhood although she is actually active and imaginative. In short, these women (Ammu, Mammachi, Baby Kochamma, and Rahel) have to face the oppression from their family and society and some of them such as Ammu and rahel, transgress the social norms of the traditional society. Besides, this novel Roy also interprets women’s continuously struggling to the conclusion that they suffer oppression in the patriarchal world order, but they don’t cry or suffer in isolation.

Besides, in this paper Silima Nanda also compares the novel with other novels having same theme, that is women in oppressive marital situation. She compares Roy’s the God of Small Things with Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, Shashi Deshapande’s That Long Silence, The Binding Vine and In the Dark Holds No Terrors. Furthermore, Nanda compares Roy’s novel with more novels, for example, Shobba De’s Socialite Evenings and Aasha Rani’s Starry Nights. Those novels compared with Roy’s novel have same themes with the God of Small Things that is women’s oppression through related themes, for instance, loveless relationship, patriarchal socialization, middle class society, and women’s alienation (women being outsiders), exploitation, discrimination, and marginalization.

Reading this paper, the writer can indirectly feel the oppression that women have either in the past or nowadays because of society’s demand and patriarchal system. The writer feels so sorry for Indian women though she also sees the reality in her own country, Indonesia, has similarity with India. Although Indonesian women no need to pay dowry or stay at a dorm if they are widows, the society’s concept about patriarchal system is just same. Women should be multitasking and like a servant for her family. They have no own life because they have to be good at cooking and grooming, staying at home and obey. Moreover, even though there is emancipation for women but somehow this word just a cliché in these cultures or society. Women, still have to strive to be respected as human and voice their will. Woman also deserve for making decision and working for her family, but especially for herself. However, the most important thing is how she is loved and treated as human, not as property, worker, slave, or the worst, like an animal. Last but not least, as a woman, the writer feels and realizes that no other way woman can do except respect herself first before being respected by others (especially man) and do not even let herself being oppressed.

2.        The God of Small Things: A Play-Field of Linguistic Innovations by Avishek Chaudury.

This paper highlights Roy’s novel from linguistic perspectives about forms, styles, and innovations of words Roy created in this novel. She makes a breakthrough and creates her own style to communicate and emphasize meanings from this her novel. Moreover, this paper says that Roy adopts the English language, and then appropriates it into Indian context to communicate to the world the culture she represents (Malayalam language). What is interesting in this paper is more on Roy’s transgressions in words formation. She twists the language, moulds the speech sound and syntax to fit her requirements. Moreover, she also adapts the style of child’s language to represent the character speaking in this novel, such as Rahel and Esta’s style. Other styles of Roy are italicizing words, phrases, and sentences, making an extensive use of brackets, using subjectless sentences in the novel, repeating the words, and creating peculiar ways in arranging words. Even though there are many styles she had used, these are not enough for her because she had more ideas while writing this novel, such as making fun of the Indian pronunciation and using slang, similes and metaphors and also exploiting the language.

Writing response for this novel, the writer finds something different in the use of language and the writing of words.  She notices this but do not know the name of these words formation new styles until she reads this paper. First, she does not really interested in Malayalam language Roy uses but now she knows that Roy put that words in her novel to represent her culture to the world. For example, the word Veshyas which she thought at the first, has meaning as one of caste system in India. Unfortunately, she is wrong because this Malayalam word has bad meaning (something like b****?) Well, she does not really like this fact because it shows how women are not appreciated in India because a police who should be a shelter for society, on the contrary, treated women badly with verbal language. Thus, this is one of Roy’s brilliant ideas to show this world that Indian society do not appreciate women.

Besides, Roy twists the language, moulds the speech sound and syntax reflected through  Rahel and Estha language to describes children language that immature and unconventional and represent their thoughts and imagination. This style, in the writer’s opinions, enriches the beauty of this novel and creates a new style in writing that transgresses conventional linguistics words order. Thus, she is really interested in Roy’s use of language and it can be seen in her The God of Small Things response. Moreover, other styles of Roy are italicizing words, phrases, and sentences such as in Tap Tap (page 8) that is the most-remembered words for the writer.  Through this repetition and italic form, Roy wants to emphasize this word and create a deep impression to readers, and it is successful because the writer always remember this part. Making an extensive use of brackets also a style Roy uses in this novel, for instance (though she hadn’t been here) in page 2-3. The purpose of this style is to offer authorial comments and to provide necessary information to readers. Therefore, readers like the writer of this response can understand what Roy means and the description if the situation becomes clear.

Using subjectless sentences in the novel is another way from Roy that can find easily in this novel. Take a look at the meaning of P.O.L.I.C.E which is made creatively by Roy to portray the contrary facts with what has become the meaning of police itself. This words written rather separated from its paragraph to catch readers’ attention. Of course it has a deep meaning so readers can interpret and imagine by themselves what is happened at that time such as in Gate. Road. Stones. Sky. Rain. (page 285) depicts things surrounding a place and it stimulates readers imagination as what the writer has.

The writer also notices the discussion of repetitive words from this paper. Chaudhury says that these repetitions have functions as determiners and appears in several places of the novel. For example, Past repeated more than eight times in page 193. The writer assumes that it also functions as emphasize for something that should be forgotten or cannot be back. It is also connected in creating peculiar ways for arranging words because it has same effects from repetition words. Both of them gives deep and more impression to readers. We can see how Roy combines some words (without space) in Deadlypurposed and Cocacola Fantaicecreamrosemilk though these words sound peculiar and strange but it shows  how creative Roy is. The writer, at the first, also feels strange but now she can understand and conclude that these two ways gives more impression for her, personally, than other Roy’s linguistic style.

 There are still some ways from Roy, for instance, making fun of the Indian pronunciation and using slang, similes and metaphors. However, the writer does not really notice these kinds of words because these are common and can be seen in other novels. Therefore, she chooses this paper for reaction because she gets a lesson from this paper that is to be an author, people should have their own techniques to express their minds or perspectives, and the most important thing is Be Creative and Original :D

3.       Eco criticism in Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things by Priyanka Maral

This short paper by Priyanka Maral is not too clear for describing the eco criticism in Roy’s novel because the writer (Maria) could not really understand what Maral discusses. Actually in the beginning, it is OK because the description is enough to make readers understand what eco criticism is. However, it is too short to analyze Roy’s depiction about nature in The God of Small Things. Maral cites that eco criticism is the study of the relationship between literature and environment that Roy uses for the novel. She puts some examples for eco criticism through some characters or things such as, Kari Saipu’s house, Rahel, Baby Kochamma and Velutha. Started with Kari Saipu whose house is changed into a hotel called heritage as a portrayal of modernization happened that place. Then, Rahel’s comparison about nature twenty three years before and nowadays also shows that many changes happened because of exploitation and industrialization by greedy people. What seems clear about eco criticism is represented through Baby Kochamma’s habit that is gardening. However, she has changed and spent her days with watching TV, so her garden is abandoned. The last depiction is from Velutho, who himself is a man of ecology making small things from wood and other materials gained from nature. His companion is nature and this theme then compared by Maral with Wordsworth’s poems Tintern Abbey. Moreover, Maral also discuss about Estha’s puppy, Chacko’s perspective about elephant and Pappachi’s moth. These are all about nature and how it changes (or changed by human?) The last quotes from Maral is Roy has tried to depict nature through trees, rivers, mountains, animals and insects. Then, human beings should exploit natural resources but to such an extent that it can regenerate itself for future needs of our coming generations.

In the writer’s opinion, this paper is good enough but it is not too clear and complete for explaining the eco criticism in Roy’s novel. It is also not too systematic because after giving some examples from some characters, Maral interrupts the discussion with a comparison from one of Wordsworth’s poem. For the writer of this response, it is OK as long as Maral does not continue explaining eco criticism with other examples from other characters, such as Estha, Chacko, and Pappachi. Honestly, she is confused while reading this paper because it feels like she is not satisfied with the first explanation but it is cut in the middle. In her opinion, Maral should completely discuss all characters or situations represent eco criticism (or perhaps just a few characters but deeper explanation) then compare that with other literary works about nature (e.g Wordsworth’s poems) in the end of the paper.

Besides the systematic order of this paper, the writer also do not satisfy with Maral’s discussion about nature theme from each character. It seems that she just gives examples but do not really notice the author’s (Roy’s) purpose. However, the writer understands that Maral’s three-pages paper is not long enough to explain all, so it is acceptable. Hopefully, she will revise her paper because, truthfully, the theme of this paper is interesting. While other paper discusses more on marriage, women’s oppression, linguistic form and social themes, this paper concentrates in the circumstances (nature) and how it reflect the change of each characters. Therefore, this paper is unique and different making the writer chooses it. Not to mention Maral’s works cited (source) that only a few for a great theme in a paper. In conclusion, a good, different and interesting theme should be a determinant for a good paper but it is not always true because it all depends on the writer’s (of the paper) ability and will to deeply examine and discuss the theme.

Woman’s Imprisonment, Loneliness and Oppression: Marriage and Its Effect based on Glaspell’s Trifles.

(Actually, this is my second paper after a paper about Catcher in the Rye , however, this is the first paper I wrote with complete references. I'm sorry if there are any mistakes in grammar, I will revise it. Then I also thank some writers whose paper being my references, hopefully, I am right in interpreting your ideas to support my paper. If there are any mistakes in my paper you can contact me in emkpsw@gmail.com)

Maria Kristina Pingkan

3^rd Grade Student, Faculty of Letters, Christian University of Indonesia

Written in 1916, Trifles is Susan Glaspell’s, a young journalist and writer, one act-play that was inspired by a real murder case that happened in 1900 (wikipedia.com/Trifles n.d.) The case is about a woman named Margaret Hossack who killed her husband, John Hossack, and of course, it shocked the society because it rarely happened at that age. Although Margaret Hossack had 9 children, her husband, Mr. Hossack, was treated her really bad. Ben Zvi, in her paper, explains that Mr. Hossack was an abusive husband and father for his family yet rich and successful farmer. (Ben-Zvi 1992, 152) That is why Margaret Hossack seems should be happy but she was not and her neighbors who heard about her problem encouraged her to reconcile with her husband and privately keep her marital troubles. Unexpectedly, Margaret Hossack suspected for the murder of her husband and was eventually found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labor. Even though she always said that she had been sleeping while the murder happened, the juries still stated that she was guilty. (Chung 1999) Therefore, this case attracted Glaspell’s attention and moves her to creatively make a new version of the Hossacks’ case and keep the essences (marriage life) in the famous play “Trifles.” and later, the short-story version entitled “A Jury of Her Peers” in1917.

The play talks about the plight of a wife named Minnie Wright imprisoned in her marriage to John Wright who is found dead by a neighbor named Mr. Hale. It is all about marriage and the imprisonment inside causing pressures to women either their families are rich or poor. The writer starts reading this play which begins with a scene where some people coming to John Wright’s farmhouse to collect some evidences about this murder. She finds about it  from Mrs. Peters’ dialogues “Mr. Henderson said coming out that what was needed for the case was a motive; something to show anger, or--sudden feeling.” (Glaspell 1916) . The reason of this action in Kathy Chung’s perspective in her paper, is to base the court cases  on circumstantial evidence and offer glimpses of how women's circumstances were viewed by society since witnesses could not be found (Chung 1999). Then, those characters in this play are divided into men and women having different perspectives, such as the women are too concerned with trifles while men are busy in searching the evidences to prove that Minnie Wright is guilty. The men are Mr. Peters (a sheriff), Mr. Lewis Hale (a witness) and Mr. George Henderson (county attorney) and the women are Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters. The men go upstairs and continue their works to prove their suspicions to Mrs. Wright based on Lewis Hale’s testimony when he was looking for Mr. Wright. He found that Mrs. Wright’s attitudes were so suspicious when she told that her husband had died. On the other hand, the women collect some stuff from the house for Mrs. Wright. Coincidentally, they find some clues that Mrs. Wright is the murderer of her own husband. The clues are empty birdcage and dead bird in the box which its condition is as same as John Wright’s condition when he died with a wrung-neck, … "He died of a rope round his neck." (Glaspell 1916) In the last part of the play, the women hide the clues they find because they sympathize to Minnie Wright and her suffering in marriage caused by loneliness. Moreover, these women (Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters), even though they do not really know and close to Minnie Wright, help her due to their position as fellow woman and what they know about Minnie’s life before and after her marriage with John Wright.

Therefore, in this play, Glaspell brings several issues, namely:  loneliness, oppression, female identity, law, marriage, patriarchal dominance, revenge, women’s empathy, etc. (gradesaver.com/trifles n.d.) This paper, however, will only focus and investigate on the hard-life marriage experienced by women and its effects, especially about imprisonment, loneliness, and oppression depicted through Minnie Wright in Glaspell’s Trifles. The reason why the writer chooses these themes (imprisonment, loneliness, and oppression) is because they are connected each other, then form a cause-effect relationship. This imprisonment gives a feeling of loneliness to Minnie Wright for 30 years of her marriage with John Wright, reflected in Mrs. Hale’s dialogues,

Wright was close. I think maybe that's why she kept so much to herself. She didn't even belong to the Ladies Aid. I suppose she felt she couldn't do her part, and then you don't enjoy things when you feel shabby. She used to wear pretty clothes and be lively, when she was Minnie Foster, one of the town girls singing in the choir. But that--oh, that was thirty years ago. This all you was to take in (Glaspell 1916)

It is clear that Minnie Wright’s life before her marriage with John seems cheerful, lively and sociable. On the other hand, it has drastically change because of the marriage and she becomes lonely for her life with John is not as a life as she used to. As an effect, this loneliness results an oppression to Minnie Wright, so it represses a “burst” in herself. This burst is manifested in the murder of John by her and triggered by an incident where John Wright kill his wife’s lovely bird, the only friend of Minnie. In conclusion, the writer decides to discuss about imprisonment, loneliness and oppression as the effect of marriage represented through Minnie Wright’s life in Glaspell’s Trifles for these themes are clearly connected for her.

The first theme the writer will discuss is about imprisonment. She tries to find some perspectives about imprisonment in Trifles through symbolism and society background. Imprisonment happened in Minnie Wright’s condition in marriage where she has to be imprisoned in a “cage” of marriage reflected through the bird and its cage. This analysis is supported by an essay from Marina Angel (Temple University School of Law) as a perspective from a jurist in her writing entitled “Teaching the short story A Jury of Her Peers and the play Trifles”. She tells that the door of the bird cage was violently torn off, indicating tremendous anger and violence of an explosive nature. The theme of the explosive violence Minnie Wright lived with is also symbolized by the bursting of her preserve jars due to extreme cold. One jar remained intact as a small indicator of hope. Then, she also says that the cage imprisoned the bird. Minnie Wright was imprisoned in her abusive marriage and in her isolated home. During the story she is imprisoned in jail, a cage. (Angel n.d.)

Besides the imprisonment Minnie Wright feelings represented through the symbolism of bird, cage, and jar, there is a statement from Asianti whose quotes emphasize the imprisonment comes from the patriarchy society that forms women as second citizen, so it locks women self-actualization. Minnie, as a wife, should be obey to every rules her husband made and has no own decision for her own life.

 Mrs. Minnie lived under pressures because of rules made by her husband. When men set any rules, they put women to the lower position at the same time. In other words, men are the first and automatically women are the second citizen in patriarchy society. It means that women have to obey all rules which exclusively design to restrict women’s life and impede them to grow psychologically. It surely abuses women psychological life and also locks women’s self-actualization. (Asianti 2012)

Thus, it is hard for Minnie to be in this marriage, however, she passes this tens of year. It does not stop in imprisonment but this imprisonment will continue to other effects, such as loneliness and oppression. In summary, the imprisonment in Minnie Wright’s marriage can be analyzed from symbolism in literature and patriarchy in society’s perspective about the treatment for women and continue the misery of Minnie Wright.

The imprisonment Minnie Wright has behind her obedience and quietness as a “good” wife at that time, causes loneliness in her life. Then, being in a loneliness without a child, relatives or friends is one effect of Minnie Wright’s unhappy marriage life uniquely and specially crafted by Glaspell. It is because  all of Minnie’s and John Wright’s characters and marriage life situation portrayed by other characters’ speeches although they do not directly appear in this play. Actually, Minnie and John Wright does not have same characters but the thirty-years marriage changes Minnie’s life she used to. The character of John Wright is hard and not cheerful stated in Mrs. Hale’s words, “..but I don't think a place'd be any cheerfuller for John Wright's being in it… he didn't drink, and kept his word as well as most…paid his debts. but he was a hard man…like a raw wind that gets to the bone.” (Glaspell 1916). Whereas, the characters of Minnie as explained before are cheerful, lively, and sociable. She also likes singing while her husband like a quiet  circumstances. Here are some dialogues from the play proving the loneliness Minnie has and her life before marriage:

MRS. PETERS: But I'm awful glad you came with me, Mrs. Hale. It would be lonesome for me sitting here alone.

MRS. HALE [Not as if answering that.] I wish you'd seen Minnie Foster when she wore a white dress with blue ribbons and stood up there in the choir and sang.

MRS. HALE: I could've come. I stayed away because it weren't cheerful--and that's why I ought to have come. I--I've never liked this place. Maybe because it's down in a hollow and you don't see the road. I dunno what it is, but it's a lonesome place and always was, I wish I had come over to see Minnie Foster sometimes. I can see now—

MRS. HALE [With a slow look around her.] I wonder how it would seem never to have had any children around. [Pause.] No, Wright wouldn't like the bird--a thing that sang. She used to sing. He killed that, too. (Glaspell 1916)

In her loneliness, she still stays in the marriage because of the society demand. However, she does not receive the same treatment from John Wright because her bird that always accompanies her, has wringed by her husband. Indeed, it is just an animal, but it was the only Minnie’s friend for she is always lonely, without a child and without a husband that understands her condition. Furthermore, John Wright  always works all day, so he cannot realize what his wife’s loneliness and it shows how egoist Mr. Wright is. Besides, he also does not install telephone at home as in Mr. Hale’s statement about Mr. Wright:

"I'm going to see if I can't get John Wright to go in with me on a party telephone " I spoke to Wright about it once before and he put me off, saying folks talked too much anyway, and all he asked was peace and quiet--).

So, Minnie Wright, in her loneliness without any children, never communicates with her relatives or neighbors about her marriage life because of her husband. This assumption supported by another Linda Ben-Zvi’s statement of her paper, that Minnie Foster is a lonely, childless woman, married to a taciturn husband, isolated from neighbors because of the rigors of farm life (Ben-Zvi 1992).

Talking about oppression as one of the processes of Minnie’s marriage life, it is signified in Mrs. Wright and her quietness. As explained above, she, at the last, unexpectedly kills her husband with the way that her husband had done to her only friend, the bird, as a “burst-action” of all her pains in marriage. The bird itself is a symbolism of Minnie’s characters and life when she was a girl, such as her hobby in singing, her cheerful character. The writer discover this by noticing Mrs. Hale’s dialogue, “She--come to think of it, she was kind of like a bird herself--real sweet and pretty, but kind of timid and--fluttery. How--she--did—change. (Glaspell 1916) Then, an assumption comes in the writer’s mind that Minnie Wright has some kinds of mental or psychological motives as an effect from the feelings of oppression as same as Margaret Hossack’s case. As a comparison because Trifles was inspired by the murder of John Hossack case, the writer finds that the case shocked the society, because the murder is a woman in her role as a wife, as on an emphasizing citation from a paper by Linda Ben-Zvi:

Women who kill evoke fear because they challenge societal constructs of femininity, passivity, restraint, and nurture; thus the rush to isolate and label the female offender, to cauterize the act. Her behavior must be aberrant, or crazed, if it is to be explicable. And explicable it must be; her crime cannot be seen as societally-driven if the cultural stereotypes are to remain unchallenged. (Ben-Zvi 1992, 141)

Ben-Zvi’s statement clarifies that the oppression also comes from the society because it has constructed the “label” or “stereotype” of how women should behave. Then, it depicts how cruel the society for it cannot be blame as the cause of women’s oppression and tells that women involved in crime are crazy or insane as explanation of their behaviors. In another words, it was a sin for a woman to rebel or express their feelings. In short, woman who did criminal things for defend herself from something oppressing her was unacceptable or extraordinary. On the other hand, it was commonly received that women, in their roles as daughters, housewives, or mothers, should be obey, patient, soft, and passive. Moreover, Glaspell draws an effect of woman’s rebellion toward norms at that period. Indeed, it is all because the society had formed in women’s mind that it is natural to have an ordinary life in marriage, such as being a “servant’ for their husbands and has no own life, except marriage life.

 Here, the writer finds a prove that Minnie Wright’s imprisonment, loneliness, and oppression comes from her marriage during thirty years. The play shows how cheerful she is before the marriage. Reading and analyzing the play carefully, the writer draws a conclusion that Minnie’s oppression is a result of her loneliness after the marriage imprisons her for such a long time (thirty years). As imprisonment, loneliness, and oppression connected each other, Glaspell creates these themes in an one-act play named Trifles modified from a true case of John Hossack who is murdered by his own wife. The imprisonment in marriage life causes loneliness, then loneliness causes oppression, which at that last, bursts and triggers Minnie Wright to kill her husband which is unexpected, unacceptable and extraordinary at that time. It is all because women were constructed and stereotyped by society to be in passive side. Therefore, woman’s imprisonment, loneliness and oppression as the effects of marriage in Glaspell’s Trifles that also happened in real life and become a trigger of a murder of a husband by his wife.

Bibliography

Angel, Marina. www.aals.org. http://www.aals.org/profdev/women/angel.html (accessed June 27, 2013).

Asianti, Dwi Anggara. "Women Power to End the Oppressions of Patriarchy in Susan Glaspell Play "Trifles"." LANGUAGE CIRCLE, Journal of Language and Literature (Semarang State University) VI (April 2012).

Ben-Zvi, Linda. ""Murder, She Wrote": The Genesis of Susan Glaspell's "Trifles" ." Theatre Journal (The Johns Hopkins University Press Stable ) 44, no. 2 (May 1992): 141-162.

Chung, Kathy. K. Y. ""A Different Kind of the Same Thing": Narrative, Experiential Knowledge, and Subjectivity in Susan Glaspell's Trifles and Sharon Pollock's Blood Relations." Theatre Research in Canada 20 (Fall 1999).

Glaspell, Susan. www.itech.fgcu.edu. 1916. http://itech.fgcu.edu/faculty/wohlpart/alra/glaspell.htm (accessed April 29, 2013).

gradesaver.com/trifles. http://www.gradesaver.com/trifles/study-guide/major-themes/ (accessed June 26, 2013).

gradesaver.com/trifles. http://www.gradesaver.com/trifles/study-guide/major-themes/ (accessed June 6, 2013).

wikipedia.com/Trifles. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trifles (accessed June 23, 2013).

My Poems

These poems were made in December 2011 - January 2012 ( I forget the exact date) , however, I revised them in June 2013 for Creative Writing Class Assignment. There's no any purpose except to share my thoughts and let it interpreted by reader :)

Poems

·         Fireworks

Fireworks

Oh Fireworks...

My Christmas part before

are you and him

Fireworks

Oh fireworks…

Please don't come in my dream

on the next moment

So I can forget your absent

As I will forget him

Don't remind me

To stay for

Your beauty

Your sound

Your light

As my misery

As my wound

As my faith

Let the fireworks

disappear and forgotten

And he goes

And I become a woman

  

·      Little Lamb

I'm little lamb

I run and lost in a wood

filled with bush and thorn

Then, I swam

stained with mud

I'm hurt, bleed, and worn

making my fleece dirty

Now, I want to back

To The Majesty

I'm sorry for the lack

Lead me in a right path

Through these obstacles

Pure me from all wrath

And I’ll be flawless

·         Rose

Beautiful…

I am your mistress

seduced from the beginning

Unrealized, still lacking

with your wholeness

 Thorny…

Lovely fake gives me an ache

And a lesson to be frozen

To an attractive cover

Containing a danger

Maria Kristina 1021150015

The Bus (A Short Story by Maria)

I made this story as a final assignment for Creative Writing Class. Sorry for some mistakes in grammar and spelling. I do not make a certain purpose for this story because I just wanna share my perspectives about life and religion (June 2013)

The Bus

Waiting for a bus, it takes so long for me. I do not know where to go, I do not know what to do. What I know is just to run, to run from all things happened in my life. Suicide? Perhaps it is not a good idea. I am just too afraid, maybe, too afraid of going to hell. Am I religious? Yes, I am! I am a good Christian, I go to church every Sunday and I pray even though it is not often at least when I wake up in the morning or if I want to eat. Yes, I do that. Do you believe me? But… uhmm… I do not think so. I just try to be good,  Is it wrong to be religious? Or feeling yourself as a religious person makes  you like those Pharisee filling with hypocrisy as told in the Bible? Beside, if I am a religious person, I will not think about doing suicide because it is not right no matter whether I have any a reason or not. Ahaa! I am going to be crazy with my questions about religion,  life and existentialism.

Crowded and noisy place cannot set me free from this madness. I don’t know where to start my new life, it seems neither too easy nor too hard. The bus is coming, the bus that will bring me back home. Whose home did I go? I do not have a house to go.  I do not have anything except my life and this breath. A ticket in my hand shows my destination, Nothing Hill, what a strange name same as what I have now, nothing. A place near the foot of the Barak Mountain, I’ve heard that this place is quiet, peaceful and beautiful, so I think it is suitable for me to be there. Then I get into the bus and take a seat in the corner, what a blessing day if I can feel this time forever. Being alone and seeing beautiful scenery during the trip. I have to use this quality time as well as possible. I don’t want to make a wrong decision anymore. I will stop it by myself and not let anyone to influence me and this self-pitied attitude should be removed from my life.

So, what will I tell you about myself? Nothing special from me that I can share to you. Well, it is so complicated that I do not know where to start. I am a foster child from a small village and my biological parents are so poor. They have five children, four girls and one boy, and I am the fifth. I had malnutrition during I was a baby because my parents cannot give me food and milk to supply my need of nutrition. When I was 18 month and tried to walk, I fell to a sewer because I was too thin. Suddenly, a beautiful and rich lady saw that and she was sorry for me. So, she decided to lift me as her daughter. As a baby I do not know anything and just live with a thought that she and her husband is my real parents. However, they told me the truth when my biological father was died. I do not know what I felt for I cannot receive the truth and my love as a daughter is for them not for my real parents.

Indeed, the situation is OK until I have to be separated from my parents for their broken marriage and try to stand on my own foot, not believe anyone, regret for my birth and keep bitterness in my heart. I learn how to take care of myself since on junior high school and I study alone without my Mom’s ( I mean my foster Mom) guidance as what I felt before. But I am so thankful that they teach me to be strong though I always cry when I remember them. They also teach me to not leave my faith, that faith which I question now. It’s not about religion but more in searching for identity. Too many changes I have since two years ago since I broke my promise to make them happy. Yeah, I did everything that I want without any consideration and of course, it makes them disappointed.

In my loneliness, I look so fragile and there’s no chance except I make a breakthrough in my life. After I graduated from college with bachelor degree, I work at Indonesian embassy in England and I have a lot of money, but it still can’t fill the emptiness inside me. I am depressed for being too independent. Huffst… perhaps you have confused with my story, but wait, it almost end… end… end… Uhmm… I am so sleepy now, I can’t continue my story…

Brakkk!!! A big sound shocks me and I wake up with a dizzy in my head. There is a strange atmosphere surrounding me and give me taste of freaking smell. I slouch to comfort myself and close my eyes and have no attention to what happened now. The bus goes slowly but.. what’s that? Is it just my dream? I open my eyes again. Uhmm.. who is beside me? I thought there’s no passenger beside me or perhaps I am too insensitive until I don’t realize a person that will become my “friend” during this trip.

“Hi, what’s your name?” I ask her while giving my best smile so she can understand my goodwill.

“Hi too, I’m Magda, and you?” she said

“I’m Nada, nice to meet you.” I answer and we shake hands but her hands… so cold, it’s freaking me.

This woman and the atmosphere scares me, I want to go out from this bus but I cannot do anything. I stick at my seat and my body is stiff. I close my eyes, gosh! I see her eyes and I can read her mind, her life and her future. The woman is forty-three years old and she is alone, just like me. She is separated from her family because of a poverty. She lives like a beggar, but with her beauty she can seduce men to give her what she wants. She has everything except her life itself. She is tired with her sins and emptiness in her heart. Actually, this situation is not what she wishes because she just misses someone or family that can understand him. However, it is hard for her to stop walking in the wrong paths until one day an accident happened in her life. She becomes paralyzed and just stays at home. In this situation, her money means nothing for her because it, slowly but sure, runs out. At the hospital, someone tells her about the goodness of the God she has left since she was young. Now, she finds her life and hope in faith that along her life she never had it. Nothing. There’s nothing she wants except to share the goodness she received and it makes her life means for others until her death. She joins in social activities about woman and marries a good man that can accept her past life and love her as she is. They have no children, but they are happy. She stands secure in the rest of her life.

“Magda, where are you?” I wake up. Confused with all that happened. She is not here, even the bus even left yet.

“Excuse me, Miss, would you mind showing your ticket?” The bus attendant approaches me.

“Uhmm… sorry, I feel asleep.” I search for my ticket and see what is written there, the destination is so different from what I mean.

“Sorry Sir, I think I bought wrong ticket because I wanna go to Nothing Hill in Barak Mountain,. Please tell me where can I get the ticket for that destination?” I’m little panic because this bus almost go.

“Miss, there’s no place named that. Perhaps you may go to Notting Hill in London. Are you sure, Miss?” The bus attendant seems confused and also I. However, I still continue to describe a place where I go, especially about the view and Barak Mountain. The bus attendant still do not know where the place is, so I go out of from the bus and ask some people. They still do not know. How can I be so sure of an advertisement in a newspapers before check it first. Am I crazy? Am I dreaming?

Two days later…

A calling from my boss starting my new day after that strange event. He tells me that I have to go to office because there is a farewell due to his movement to another country. He invites all of his staff to say goodbye plus to introduce my new boss.  I dress perfectly and put some make-up so people won’t know my confusion in a few days. I regret all my decisions and thoughts about doubting God and willing to die. I mean that, there are many people who has harder life than me, but still struggling and finally find the ways to be happy. I also learn from Magda’s life, whoever she is, that there is still hope no matter how dirty you are as long as we go through and forget the past.

I pray and give thank to God for this experience and promise to myself to still believe Him and make my life means for others. I enter my office with smile and greet everybody I meet. Then, my boss calls me to introduce my new boss.

“Nada, let me introduce Mrs. Magdalena Pieters, your new boss. She is from Indonesia, same like you. I assume you two will be match and can be a good teamwork” My boss says.

The woman smiles to me and it’s frightened me because I thought she was paralyzed and died.

“I am Nada. Nice to meet you. Uhhm… by the way, Mrs. Magda, have we ever met before?’’ I ask her and shake her hand.

“ Nice to meet you too. I thought I saw you in my dream, but I am not so sure about that.” She smiles and shakes my hand, it is not cold and I feel the warm of human life. This experience like a paradoxical time that I never felt before. The place, the woman, the telepathy ability. Since that day, I don’t feel a kind of strange situation like that anymore. What I know Mrs. Magda, my boss, has some similarities with Mrs. Magda that I met at the bus. For example, she had been paralyzed and she has no children. However, I don’t ask further about her life because it is not impolite.

Life, I have an answer for all questions you gave to me. There are hopes and mean in you.

Maria Kristina Pingkan-1021150015

A Week Before My Birthday :)

Aha !! !

I've deactivated my Facebook and Twitter accounts.

I've been tired and so sick if I open those social media for they contain so much memories with my 3rd ex-boyfriend.
So, I choose to write my feels and thoughts in my blog.

A week before my birthday...
I'm so busy with my jobs and assignments as a 3rd year college student,
have to prepare proposal for making thesis (pfiuhh...)

I get so many problems, such as:

1. My beliefs

 Since two years ago, I've felt like a sinner and I try to change, to be a New Christian, doing what I believe, what my heart says about a true Christian and especially, do what Jesus teaches me to do. However, there's sounds whisper that  I am a sinner. Feeling guilty, my super ego condemned me. Huffst... I wanna free... I'm tired of being a sinner.

2. My family

I know that having a complicated time with family is such a burdened for me, everyday... crying is just my habit. Hate that! One of my wishes is on my 23rd birthday I will be more tough and still stand. Keep praying, myself :')

3. My social relationships

I'm too egoist. Yes, I know. I just think about myself. I can't watch or care about my friends or my boyfriend,,, forgive me, there are others things I've to struggle and I don't want anyone to give me more burden. I'm sorry, I can't be what you want.

Bless The Broken Road

Tonight, I wanna cry... My past hurts me... I ask myself... Why? why was I so stupid?

I'm so tired of being guilty and blaming myself as sinner.

Lord Jesus, I want to forgive... forgive myself and those who hurt me... as what You taught in Bible...

Lord... I'm thirsty of Your presence... 

hungry of Your words...

I miss the time when my life was filled with a passion and desire to be what You want me to be...

But since I fell in sin...

I'm suffering...

Hurts...

Lost...

Lord Jesus, forgive me...

Amen

Bless The Broken Road

I set out on a narrow way, many years ago
Hoping I would find true love, along the broken road

But I got lost a time or two
Wiped my brow and kept pushing through
I couldn't see how every sign, pointed straight to you

Every long lost dream led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart, they were just northern stars
Pointing me on my way, into your loving arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That lead me straight to you

I think about the years I spent, just passing through
I'd like to take the time I lost, and give it back to you

But you just smile and take my hand
You've been there you understand
It's all part of this grander plan, that is coming true

Every long lost dream, led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart, they were just northern stars
Pointing me on my way, into your loving arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That lead me straight to you

Now I'm just rolling home
Into your loving arms
This much I know, is true
That God blessed the broken road
That lead me straight to you
That God blessed the broken road
That lead me straight
To you...