Of Self and Nation: Autobiography and the Representation of Modern Indonesia [Paperback]

C. W. Watson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 2000

In looking critically at eight autobiographical works, all concerned in one way or another with the question of what it means to be an Indonesian in the twentieth century, C.W. Watson demonstrates the value of reading autobiographies as accounts of nation-building. Close attention is paid to the declared intention of each autobiography, how the writers set about constructing a self-image of themselves by selecting one episode of their lives over another and how they see their lives as being bound up with that of the nation. In making use of this and other methods drawn from literary criticism, history, and critical ethnography, Of Self and Nation offers an original and illuminating approach to understanding how a modern nation came into existence and how its people have constructed a sense of national identity.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

"A brilliant reinterpretation of Indonesian history, providing a wonderful access for historians and anthropologists to Indonesian culture. Indeed, it gives them the literary tools which they sorely lack and which, I fear, they don't always realize they lack. This is a major milestone in the study of Southeast Asian autobiography." --Amin Sweeney, University of California, Berkeley.

About the Author

C.W. Watson is senior lecturer in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Kent at Canterbury and has written extensively on the literature, culture, and politics of Indonesia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: University of Hawaii Press (April 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0824822811
• ISBN-13: 978-0824822811
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,112,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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