Indonesian Youth Culture in
Creating Identities through
Facebook
Esther Kuntjara
Petra Christian University
Surabaya, Indonesia.
What does this presentation have
anything to do with Language or
Linguistics?
SPOKEN
WRITTEN
NON-VERBAL
ONLINE LANGUAGE
(CMC)
SPOKEN + WRITTEN + NONVERBAL
SPEECH
WRITING
• Spontaneous
• Related to immediate
situational context
• Face-to-face, immediate
• Unrecorded, transitory
• Unfolding
• Dialogic
• Negotiable
• Informal
• Edited & prepared
• Distance from
situational context
• Mediated , delayed
• Recorded, permanent
• Structured
• Monologic
• Non-negotiable
• Formal
WHAT ABOUT THE USE OF
NONVERBAL LANGUAGE?
and
OF BEING A MULTILINGUAL SOCIETY?
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•hë :D. Luego towh.
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aKu Wkt 1 mGg fULL u/
MenGiStiRaHatKan oTak
dAn fIsiK kUwh.... HAdeH....
ĦĚě ĥĕĤĕ ħĕћĕ ĦĚě ђĕђĕ
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Ojok diGarai truÜûzZz ta....skno looo
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♣*JP*♣ĤЄĤЄĤЄ♣*JP*♣..
HAНAɑº°˚ ˚°º≈=DНAНAɑº°˚ ˚°º≈.
WHAT IS INTERESTING ABOUT
LEARNING
ONLINE LANGUAGE (CMC)?
The WEB is more a social
creation than a technical one
(Tim Berners-Lee)
The impact IT has to the world today has
put more serious emphasis toward the
change of human social life than the
change of technology. (David Crystal, 2009)
Why Facebook ?
Identity Construction in
Postmodern Theory
• Identity becomes more and more unstable, more
and more fragile.
• Identity tends to be subject to change.
• Identity can always be reconstructed, that one is
free to change and produce oneself as one
chooses.
• Identity is therefore unstable, fluid, fragmentary,
disconnected, multiple, open, and subject to
transformation.
(Baron, 2008; Benwell & Stokoe, 2006; Bauman, 2004; Crystal, 2009; Wilson,
et.al, 2002; Piliang, 2005)
Questions:
1. To what extent are identities created,
constructed and reconstructed by
Indonesian youth in Facebook?
2. How are gender, Indonesian politeness,
and choices of topic and codes
negotiated to affect their identities?
The Indonesian (Javanese) Context:
Gender:
 Women are expected to be low profile,
feminine and good at 3 Ms (Macak, Manak,
Masak [doing make up, reproduction,
cooking])
 Men are expected to be brave, assertive and
ready to protect women.
Politeness
 Be humble / low profile when others
compliment you.
 Do not show off.
 Do not confront others directly for things you
do not agree. (Be considerate to someone’s
face)
 Do not make other people feel embarrassed
or hurt because of what you say or do.
Multilingualism
Bahasa Indonesia is basically a second
language for many Indonesians.
 Language used in daily communication is
more of a hybrid language. Code switching
and code mixing , twisting and lengthening of
certain sounds to reveal one’s mood are
common in informal communication.
Being male & female on-line
M= male ; F = female
M: Selamat jalan guru besar bangsa, Gus Dur.
Kami akan melanjutkan semua cita-cita
luhurmu.
F: Ngewes2 ya nges… gayamu lo sok berkabung
loe …
----------------(M: Farewell our great guru, Gus Dur. We will continue all your
noble dream.
F: Huuuuhh … that style of yours, so pompous to feel like you’re
upset because of his death...)
F is commenting on her niece’s picture:
F: ponakanku rek, wis gedhe koyok ngene, manis
pisan … ;-)
M: iyo nggak kayak tante ne welek tenan,
heheheh
-------------( F : look at my niece, already so big, and sweet too … ;-)
M : yes she isn’t like her aunt who is indeed very ugly, he he he)
F is posting on her status about her voice.
F : My voice gets harsh, it’s sexy, like the voice
of Maria Carey.
M : Disgusting!
F : The same disgusting person doesn’t say that
to each other!
M : Oi, Jess. Thx a lot :) Merry Christmas.
Impress me again w/ your piano performance
next year.
F : hahaha....do u want to join me to play???!
M : neah, am far more talented than you ;P
F is complimenting on a photo of her former
teacher.
F : Is that Mrs. Monica? She still looks so young.
M: That’s right. Just like me 
F1 was upset with someone offline and many of her
friends knew about it.
F1 : Don’t ever disregard my seriousness!
F2 : I see you are serious! Twice as much even hahaha
F3 : Agree. I believe you, there’s no doubt about it hihi
F1 : hik hik friends, I’m indeed serious. Not twice, not
3 times, just serious! No bargaining!
M1: Just add some sugar then. Isn’t that simple?
F1 : who said I need sugar? I’m already sweet. This is
more serious than M2’s case, you know.
F4 : Are you serious you want to have another
baby?
M2: I didn’t want to raise this issue actually.
F5 : Serious to have another baby? I still doubt… but
I’ll try to believe … hehehe
F1 : concerning that one I’m not serious.
don’t believe it … that’s gossip.
F6 : get another baby for when you get older, it’s
difficult to deliver the baby… hehehe
F1 : hahaha … sounds like a personal experience.
DISCUSSION
The differences between
what is true and what is not true
are blurred.
It is difficult to differentiate
what is considered serious and
what is just a jovial comment
and therefore not true.
What is often considered impolite
and rude in real life (offline)
communication, may be
accepted with ease when
delivered in Facebook.
Face no longer constitutes a
problem when people are
throwing comments to each
other. The more creative and
provocative the response, the
more creative feedbacks they
get.
Gender differences does not seem
to matter in facebook
communication. Some
stereotypes of women and men
are blurred or crossed.
There is a tendency of upgrading one’s
self identity while downgrading others,
or of claiming one’s worth of praise
while being denied by others.
One can therefore take multiple
identities with ease.
There is fluidity in topic switch,
making the decentering of what
is being discussed.
No focus is required
in making responses.
Every facebooker may introduce a
new topic as long as the person can
create a new interesting topic for
others to comment on. A common
feedback tends to end the
“conversation”.
Summary
Identities are created, constructed and
reconstructed through the blurring and
crossing of Indonesian gender stereotypes,
the use of ‘impolite’ language and the
manipulation of language use which
violates standard Indonesian language, yet
very often they are all accepted as
entertaining and creative ways of
communication.
Some Implication
1.
The possibility of someone to have
multiple identities may disorient him/her
of who he/she is; or to give him/her a
chance to escape from his/her undesired
self and be a different self which is more
desirable.
A Facebook Profile can be more an
expression of who one wants to be
rather than who one really is.
(Baron, 2008, p. 85)
2.
The use of online language in
Facebook may have revealed the
change of the gender and other social
life styles of Indonesian younger
generations. (laissez-faire culture / the
‘Whatever’ generation)
3.
Indonesian language which has often
been the second language of many
Indonesians could be marred by the
use of colloquial language like the
one used in the online
communication.
4.
The hybridization of culture and
language may still going on in the
years to come making it more and
more difficult to define what our
national language and culture are.
References
Baron, N. S. (2008). Always on: Language in an online and mobile world.
Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Bauman, Z. (2004). Identity. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Benwell, B. & Stokoe, E. (2006). Discourse and identity. Edinburgh:
Edinburgh University Press.
Crystal, D. (2009). Language and the internet. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Piliang, Y.A. (2004). Postrealita. Yogyakarta: Jalasutra.
Wilson, S.M. & Peterson, L.C. (2002). The anthropology of online
communities. Annual Review of Anthropology, 31, 449-467.
Thank you!