Identità nazionale indonesiana nei manifesti letterari (1925-1963)

This paper deals with national identity problems of modern Indonesia, as highlighted by literary manifestos issued by intellectuals in the period 1925-1963, during which Indonesian national identity took form. It will be shown that national identity was a primary concern for Indonesian writers. National struggle, national culture, historical progress and revolution were concepts debated as long as literary generations followed. A deep influx of Western ideas such as nation-state itself, individualism, revolution, and other Romantic ideals, was adopted by a group of authors, while others chose a more Marxist approach. Both claimed that ‘revolution’ hadn’t been achieved with mere political independence, and it had to be carried on according their own ideals in the cultural field.