A New Book About Balinese Woman

This book about Balinese women entitled “Wanita Bali Tempoe Doeloe, Perspektif Masa Kini,” was launched last week, on Kartini Day, at Pendet Museum, Nyuh Kuning, Ubud. Kartini was remembered as the pioneer for the emancipation of Indonesian women..

The book of “Wanita Bali Tempoe Doeloe, Perspektif Masa Kini” by I Nyoman Darma Putra is about Balinese educated women’s efforts to obtain an education equals to men in society.
According to Darma Putra, in the colonial age (1920’s and 1930’s) and at the beginning of independence era (1950’s), there were less educated woman than there are today. “For seeing this reality, many well educated women are encouraging women to go to school. They making a course for the elimination of illiteracy or providing the scholarship for capable woman,” said Darma Putra, the lecture of Faculty of Letter Udayana University.
The magnificent aspect of Balinese women in the past, which means from the colonial age and the beginning of the independence era, is that many of them have become writers. Their pieces of work are carried in Djataju, Damai, and Bhakti magazines. “Their writing is about the aspirations of Balinese Women. It contains many feminist themes, and also discusses anti polygamy,” said Darma Putra who wrote this book after doing more than 2 years of magazine file research from 1920’s and 1950’s.
Balinese women in the past were very strong and brave. They protested about the portraits of half naked women that are featured in postcards. The book, published by the Bali Jani Foundation, who put the research and activities of woman as a top priority, creates new perceptions about Balinese women who for years were considered submissive and passive and secondary members in society.
The good thing in this book is it includes the works of Balinese women writers from the 1930’s and 1950’s. The readers can enjoy their ability and style of writing in that age. (*)