''Salah Asuhan'' (Indonesian: Wrong Upbringing) is an Indonesian

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

Abdul Muis Abdul Muis (also spelt Abdoel Moeis; 1886 – 17 July 1959), was an Indonesian writer, journalist and nationalist. He advocated for Indonesia's independence from the Netherlands. He was the first person to be named a national hero by President S ...

originally published in

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

Balai Pustaka Balai Pustaka (; also spelled Balai Poestaka, both meaning "Bureau of Literature") is the state-owned publisher of Indonesia and publisher of major pieces of Indonesian literature such as ''Salah Asuhan'', ''Sitti Nurbaya'' and '' Layar Terkem ...

. It is widely considered one of the best examples of early modern

Indonesian literature Indonesian literature is a term grouping various genres of South-East Asian literature. Indonesian literature can refer to literature produced in the Indonesian archipelago. It is also used to refer more broadly to literature produced in areas ...

Background

''Salah Asuhan'' was written during the colonial period and published by

, which published books "suitable for native Indonesian reading." In order to be published, books had to avoid themes of rebellion and use formal

Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

. As such, ''Salah Asuhan'' had to be rewritten with the European characters shown in a positive light after Balai Pustaka refused to publish it.

Plot

The story revolves around the

Minangkabau Minangkabau may refer to: * Minangkabau culture, culture of the Minangkabau people * Minangkabau Culture Documentation and Information Center * Minangkabau Express, an airport rail link service serving Minangkabau International Airport (''see belo ...

Hanafi and his friend, the half-French half-Minangkabau Corrie du Bussée. Although Hanafi is Minangkabau and a Muslim, he considers European culture to be superior and has many European friends. After graduating from high school in

Solok (BERAS)(Clean, Elegant, Neat, Safe and Prosperous) , image_shield = Logo Kota Solok.png , image_map = Lokasi Sumatra Barat Kota Solok.svg , map_caption = Location within West Sumatra , pushpin_map =Indon ...

, Hanafi admits his love to Corrie and kisses her. However, Corrie feels ashamed afterwards and eventually flees to

Batavia Batavia may refer to: Historical places * Batavia (region), a land inhabited by the Batavian people during the Roman Empire, today part of the Netherlands * Batavia, Dutch East Indies, present-day Jakarta, the former capital of the Dutch East In ...

(Jakarta), leaving a letter for Hanafi saying that they can never be together because he is

pribumi Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, India ...

. Hanafi is then

married Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

to his cousin Rapiah, much to his discontent. He begins taking out his anger on his family, especially Rapiah. After a few years, Hanafi's European friends have left him because of his treatment of his family, including his and Rapiah's baby son. His temperament becomes worse as a result. One day, he is bitten by a

rabid Rabies is a viral disease that causes encephalitis in humans and other mammals. Early symptoms can include fever and tingling at the site of exposure. These symptoms are followed by one or more of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, ...

dog. He is sent for treatment in Batavia. Upon arrival in Batavia, Hanafi meets Corrie again and they fall in love. They eventually marry and move in together. Hanafi finds employment with the Dutch colonial government, receives the same legal status as a European, and adopts the

Christian name A Christian name, sometimes referred to as a baptismal name, is a religious personal name given on the occasion of a Christian baptism, though now most often assigned by parents at birth. In English-speaking cultures, a person's Christian name ...

Chrisye. He does not think of his family in Solok, even though they are worried about him. Although their married life starts well, eventually Hanafi becomes abusive towards Corrie. Upon hearing that Corrie has befriended a disreputable woman and occasionally meets other men without him knowing, Hanafi loses his temper, accuses Corrie of infidelity and hits her. Corrie runs away from home and eventually starts working at an orphanage in

Semarang Semarang ( jv, ꦏꦸꦛꦯꦼꦩꦫꦁ , Pegon: سماراڠ) is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Dutch colonial era, and is still an important regional center and port today. ...

. Hanafi's coworkers in Batavia ostracise him after hearing of his treatment of Corrie. After one tells him that he is seen to be acting poorly, Hanafi realizes that he was wrong and goes to Semarang to apologize to Corrie. However, upon arrival he finds her dying of

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

. Corrie forgives him, and dies. Hanafi then collapses from the stress. After being treated, Hanafi returns to his village to be with his family. Not long after his arrival, he commits suicide by drinking poison and apologizes to his family on his deathbed, embracing his Minangkabau and Muslim heritage. Rapiah states that she will not raise their son to be like the Europeans.

Themes

''Salah Asuhan'' is generally seen as a warning against excessive Westernization. The failure of the marriage between Hanafi and Corrie is presented as being caused by Hanafi's refusal to follow Minangkabau traditions and aspiring to be more than a pribumi. Hanafi's admiration for European culture and lack of understanding of his own causes him to berate and demean his family, while his inability to live up to those ideals ultimately causes his relationship with Corrie to dissolve.

Reception

''Salah Asuhan'' is generally considered one of the most important works in modern Indonesian Literature and is commonly used as reading material in Indonesian literature classes.

Bakri Siregar Bakri Siregar (14 December 1922 – 19 June 1994) was an Indonesian socialist literary critic and writer. Biography Siregar was born in Langsa, Aceh, Dutch East Indies, on 14 December 1922. He was active writing by the Japanese occupation i ...

wrote positively of ''Salah Asuhan'', considering the

diction Diction ( la, dictionem (nom. ), "a saying, expression, word"), in its original meaning, is a writer's or speaker's distinctive vocabulary choices and style of expression in a poem or story.Crannell (1997) ''Glossary'', p. 406 In its common meanin ...

unparalleled in its contemporaries and the characters well fleshed-out.

A. Teeuw Andries Teeuw (12 August 1921 – 18 May 2012), better known as A. Teeuw in scholarly circles and Hans Teeuw to his friends, was a Dutch critic of Indonesian literature. Biography Teeuw was born in Gorinchem, Netherlands, on 12 August 192 ...

considered ''Salah Asuhan'' one of the three most important pre-war novels. He wrote that the unprecedented frank depiction of racism and social ostracism was tempered by the simple writing style to the point that it could be enjoyed not only as a piece of literature, but also as a love story.A. Teeuw. ''Sastra Baru Indonesia''. 1978. Nusa Indah: Ende. In Indonesian. pp. 93–95.

In popular culture

''Salah Asuhan'' was made into a film of the same name in 1972 by

Asrul Sani Asrul Sani (10 June 1926 – 11 January 2004) was an Indonesian writer, poet and screenwriter. Biography Sani was born in Rao, West Sumatra on 10 June 1926. His father was Sultan Marah Sani Syair Alamsyah. Together with Chairil Anwar and Riv ...

References

Sources * * {{cite book , last = Siregar , first = Bakri , year = 1964 , language = Indonesian , title = Sedjarah Sastera Indonesia , trans-title=History of Indonesian Literature , volume = 1 , series = , publisher = Akademi Sastera dan Bahasa "Multatuli" , location = Jakarta , oclc = 63841626 , url = https://books.google.com/books?id=xXjiAAAAMAAJ Indonesian romance novels 1928 novels Novels set in Indonesia Balai Pustaka books