Romanticism and Colonial Ideology in Thomas Stamford Raffles’s Production of the Hikayat Damar Bulan Manuscript
Abstract
This study aims to uncover the romantic-colonial ideology of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, who acted as a patron in the production of the Hikayat Damar Bulan manuscript (RAS 11). Employing narrative analysis, the study examines the portrayal of Damarwulan in the text, followed by a discursive analysis within a codicological framework (including the manuscript’s date, origin, scribe, and patron) and considers the historical context of British colonialism in Java. The findings reveal that the Hikayat Damar Bulan was completed in 1815 under the direction of Raffles. The manuscript was copied from the Serat Damarwulan and the wayang krucil performances, which were popular along the northern coast of Central Java. In the tale, Damarwulan is depicted as a hero who maintains and protects the integrity of Majapahit from the threat of Menak Jingga, a narrative positioning symbolising the ideal order. This position suggests that the manuscript contains a romanticised portrayal of an ideal order rooted in the Hindu-Buddhist era of Majapahit, rather than the Islamic forces of 19th-century Java, which Raffles perceived as sources of disorder and threats to colonial rule. The manuscript serves as material evidence of Raffles’ romanticism—his desire for a harmonious order in which colonial power could be institutionalised and exercised without resistance. Thus, this study concludes that Hikayat Damar Bulan is a romantic manuscript, produced with and for the purpose of articulating Raffles’ romantic ideology, an ideology that was discursively shaped within the context of colonialism and among 19th-century colonial scholars.
References
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Soenarto Timur. (1984). Damarwulan: Sebuah Lakon Wayang Krucil (Second edition). Balai Pustaka.
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Susanto, D. (2007). Matriarki dan Hidden Women dalam Syair Damarwulan. Atavisme, 10(2), 1—9.
van der Kroef, J.M. (1955). Folklore and tradition in Javanese society. The Journal of American Folklore, 68(267), 25—33.
Wahid, A. (2017). Dualisme pajak di Jawa: Administrasi pajak tanah di wilayah Vorstenlanden pada masa kolonial, 1915–1942. Lembaran Sejarah, 12(1), 28—47.
Wellek, R. (1949). The concept of “romanticism” in literary history II. The unity of European romanticism. Comparative Literature, 1(2), 147—172.
Alatas, S.H. (2000). Intellectual omperialism: Definition, traits, and problems. Southeast Asian Journal of Social Science, 28(1), 23—45.
Aljunied, Syed Muhd Khairudin. (2005). Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles’ discourse on the Malay world: A revisionist perspective. Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia, 20(1), 1—22.
Andrieu, S.A. (2017). Raga kayu, jiwa manusia: Wayang Golek Sunda (Trans.) Feybe Mokoginta & Taufik Atik. Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia in collaboration with École française d’Extrême-Orient and Forum Jakarta-Paris.
Anonymous. (1815). Hikayat Damar Bulan RAS Raffles Malay 11. Collection of Royal Asiatic Society.
Bachtum, R. (1981). Sa’ir Damar Wulan: Suntingan naskah disertai analisis isi dan makna [Bachelor thesis, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Indonesia].
Barker, C. (2008). Cultural studies: Teori & praktik (Fourth edition) (Trans.). Nurhadi. Kreasi Wacana.
Bloembergen, M., & Eickhoff, M. (2013). A wind of change on Java’s ruined temples: Archaeological activities, imperial circuits and heritage awareness in Java and the Netherlands (1800-1850). BMGN - Low Countries Historical Review, 128(1), 81—104.
Boomgaard, P. (2006). The making and unmaking of tropical science: Dutch research on Indonesia, 1600-2000. Bijdragen Tot de Taal-, Land- En Volkenkunde, 162(2/3), 191—217.
Carey, P., & Reinhart, C. (2021). British naval power and its influence on Indonesia, 1795–1942: An historical analysis. Journal of Maritime Studies and National Integration, 5(1), 14—29.
Carey, P. (2017). Inggris di Jawa 1811-1816 (Trans.). Nin Bakdisoemanto. Penerbit Buku Kompas.
Carroll, D.J. (2011). William Marsden and patterns of British scholarship in the Malay Peninsula. Indonesia dan the Malay World, 39(114), 269—294.
Creese, H. (2015). Women of the Kakawin world: Marriage and sexuality in the Indic Courts of Java and Bali. Routledge.
Faruk. (2016). Novel Indonesia, kolonialisme, dan ideologi emansipatoris.
Penerbit Ombak.
Faruk. (2020). Metode penelitian sastra: Sebuah penjelajahan awal (Fifth edition). Pustaka Pelajar.
Fathurahman, O. (2016). Filologi Indonesia: Teori dan metode (Second edition). Prenadamedia Group.
Gallop, A.T. (1995). Early views of Indonesia: Drawings from the British library [Pemandangan Indonesia di masa lampau: Seni gambar dari British Library]. The British Library and Yayasan Lontar.
Gallop, A.T. (2013). Semarang: Javanese City of Malay Scribes. Asian and African Studies Blog. https://blogs.bl.uk/asian-and-african/2013/11/semarang-javanese-city-of-malay-scribes.html.
Gallop, A.T. (2015). Malay Manuscripts on Javanese history. Asian and African Studies Blog. https://blogs.bl.uk/asian-and-african/2015/05/malay-manuscripts-on-javanese-history.html.
Hannigan, T. (2015). Raffles dan Invasi Inggris ke Jawa (Trans.). Bima Sudiarto. Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia.
Hidas, G. (2020). Buddhism, kingship and the protection of the state: The Suvarṇaprabhāsottamasūtra and Dhāraṇī literature. In D. Goodall, S. Hatley, H. Isaacson, & S. Raman (Eds.), Śaivism and the tantric traditions: Essays in honour of Alexis G.J.S. Sanderson (pp. 234—248). Brill.
Hijjas, M. (2023). Marsden’s Malay manuscripts: Reassessing a colonial collection. Philological Encounters, 8(1), 38—72.
Iskandar, T. (1996). Kesusastraan Klasik Melayu sepanjang abad. Penerbit LIBRA.
Kieven, L. (2013). Following the cap-figure in Majapahit temple reliefs: A new look at the religious function of East Javanese temples, fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Brill.
Kieven, L. (2017). Menelusuri panji di candi-candi: Relief figur bertopi di candi-candi zaman Majapahit (Trans.). Arif Bagus Prasetyo. Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia and École française d’Extrême-Orient.
Lyotard, J.F. (1984). The postmodern condition: A report on knowledge (Trans.). Geoff Bennington & Brian Massumi. Manchester University Press.
Margana, S. (2021). Sandhyakala ning Majapahit menurut Babad Jawa dan historiografi kolonial. In T. Koesbardiati, D.B. Murti, & D. Bestiana (Eds.), Sandhyakala Ning Majapahit: Pembelajaran dari pasang surut kerajaan Majapahit (pp. 175—203). CV Putra Media Nusantara.
Miles, R. (2001). What is a romantic novel? NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction, 34(2), 180—201.
Moriyama, M. (1996). Discovering the “language” and the “literature” of West Java: An introduction to the formation of Sundanese writing in 19th century West Java. Southeast Asian Studies, 34(1), 151—183.
Munandar, A.A. (2020). Majapahit and the contemporary Kingdoms: Interactions and views. Berkala Arkeologi, 40(1), 1—22.
Munandar, A.A. (2021). Beberapa proposisi keruntuhan kerajaan Majapahit. In T. Koesbardiati, D.B. Murti, & D. Bestiana (Eds.), Sandhyakala Ning Majapahit: Pembelajaran dari pasang surut kerajaan Majapahit (pp. 109—137). CV Putra Media Nusantara.
Nugraha, D.S. (2021). Hikayat Damarwulan: Suntingan teks dan analisis estetika Melayu. [Bachelor thesis. Bahasa dan Sastra Indonesia, Fakultas Ilmu Budaya, Universitas Gadjah Mada].
Pérez, T.M. (2015). Romanticism in Gustavo A. Bécquer and Edgar A. Poe. A comparative analysis. [Dissertation. Departamento de Filología Inglesa y Alemana, Grado en Estudios Ingleses].
Perkasa, A. (2021). Majapahit di antara dua penguasa kolonial: Inggris dan Belanda. In T. Koesbardiati, D.B. Murti, & D. Bestiana (Eds.), Sandhyakala Ning Majapahit: Pembelajaran dari Pasang Surut Kerajaan Majapahit (pp. 30—71). CV Putra Media Nusantara.
Pigeaud, T.G. Th. (1967). Literature of Java: Catalogue Raisonné of Javanese manuscripts in the library of the University of Leiden and other public collections in the Netherlands Volume 1. Bibliotheca Universitatis.
Proudfoot, I. (2003). An expedition into the politics of Malay philology. Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 76(1), 1—53.
Ras, J.J. (2014). Masyarakat dan kesusastraan di Jawa (Trans.). Achadiati Ikram. Yayasan Pustaka Obor Indonesia.
Ricklefs, M.C. (2001). A history of modern Indonesia since c.1200
(Third edition). Palgrave.
Ricklefs, M.C., Voorhoeve, P., & Gallop, A.T. (2014). Indonesian manuscripts in Great Britain: A catalogue of manuscript in Indonesian languages in British public collections. École française d’Extrême-Orient, Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia, and Yayasan Pustaka Obor Indonesia.
Sears, L.J. (1996). Shadows of empire: Colonial discourse and Javanese tales. Duke University Press.
Soekmono. (1977). Candi fungsi dan pengertiannya. [Dissertation. Universitas Indonesia].
Soenarto Timur. (1984). Damarwulan: Sebuah Lakon Wayang Krucil (Second edition). Balai Pustaka.
Solomon, E. (1994). “Raffles Reviewed -Sir Stamford Raffles 175 Years Later,”An exhibition organized by the National Museum of Singapore commemorating Raffles’ landing at Singapore on the evening of the 28th January 1819. Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 67(1) (266), 81—93.
Stutterheim, W. (1931). The meaning of the Hindu-Javanese Caṇḍi. Journal of the American Oriental Society, 51(1), 1—15.
Susanto, D. (2007). Matriarki dan Hidden Women dalam Syair Damarwulan. Atavisme, 10(2), 1—9.
van der Kroef, J.M. (1955). Folklore and tradition in Javanese society. The Journal of American Folklore, 68(267), 25—33.
Wahid, A. (2017). Dualisme pajak di Jawa: Administrasi pajak tanah di wilayah Vorstenlanden pada masa kolonial, 1915–1942. Lembaran Sejarah, 12(1), 28—47.
Wellek, R. (1949). The concept of “romanticism” in literary history II. The unity of European romanticism. Comparative Literature, 1(2), 147—172.
Published
2025-06-26
How to Cite
WINDAYANTO, Riqko Nur Ardi.
Romanticism and Colonial Ideology in Thomas Stamford Raffles’s Production of the Hikayat Damar Bulan Manuscript.
Malay Literature, [S.l.], v. 38, n. 1, p. 19-42, june 2025.
ISSN 2682-8030.
Available at: <http://jurnal.dbp.my/index.php/MalayLiterature/article/view/9077>. Date accessed: 27 june 2025.
Section
Articles
