AWEJ June 2013 ELTL Indonesia Conference Proceedings 2012.
pp.66-71
The Female’s Masculinities against Siamese Patriarchal Systems in Elizabeth Hand’s Anna And The King
Anna Sriastuti
Satya Wacana School of Foreign Language
Abstract
By not giving voice and value to women’s opinions, responses and writings, men have therefore suppressed the female, define what it means to be feminine, and therefore devoiced, devalued, and trivialized what it means to be a woman. As femininity is mostly related to women for women are labeled as extensions of men, mirrors of men, devices for showing men off, and also devices for helping men get what they want, women’s position is inferior to men. This study discusses the female’s masculinities through the portrayal and life experiences of the main female characteristics, Anna Leonowens, as her protests against the Siamese patriarchal systems that abundant her life as a career woman and also the oppressed lives of Siamese women in Elizabeth Hand’s novel Anna and the King. Feminism and Deconstructions approaches will be applied to analyze Leonowens’ actions and reactions regarding to what Siamese patriarchal systems claim to be parts of masculine traits. Leonowens’ nationality, cultural and educational backgrounds as well as positions play significant roles in the novel. By opposing Leonowens’ ways of thinking to the King who represents the patriarchal system of Siam, Hand gives a new identity to women in struggling for gender equality in Siam.
Keywords: masculinity, femininity, patriarchy, feminism, deconstructions