Synopsis
The novel begins with Minke going into exile for five years as a punishment for criticising the government in his newspaper. He is accompanied by Meneer (Jacques) Pangemanann, whom the Dutch colonial authorities then task to spy upon the dissident movement. Pangemanann is a Menadonese man holding a legal status equal to that of a European. He enjoys the status and power of his colonial position, and orders his thugs and informers to attack the dissidents by spreading divisive rumours, inciting race riots, and committing torture and murder. Yet Pangemanann also recognises the rottenness of the colonial administration, and knows that his attempts to suppress the dissidents will be ultimately futile. He privately sympathises with the independence movement, and is tormented by pangs of conscience. Despite Pangemanann's inner turmoil and his secret admiration for Minke, he nonetheless engineers the journalist's destruction. Visiting Minke's grave, he mourns over his rival.Reception
John Morley stated that the novel provides "an illuminating, moving account of colonial psychosis", through its exploration of how Pangemanann "succumbs to the lures of power and privilege at the cost of betraying his people and, in the end, himself".References
{{Reflist Historical novels Novels by Pramoedya Ananta Toer 1988 novels