SASTERA NASIONAL: ANTARA SASTERA INGGERIS DAN SASTERA MELAYU
[NATIONAL LITERATURE: BETWEEN THE ENGLISH LITERATURE AND MALAY LITERATURE]
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol2iss2pp178-187Abstract
Malay literature is hoped to unite the multi-racial Malaysian through the use of Malay Language which is the national language of the country. However, the recognition of Malay literature as national literature is not free from criticsm. This national identity began to be contested with the arrival of postmodernism. This qualitative research employed descriptive and comparative methods to provide insights into the importance of having national literature that is written in Malay language. This paper also discusses whether literature written in English should be recognized as the national literature since the language emerges as the global language used by people from different backgrounds. The main data sources are the views of two national poets -Muhmamad Haji Salleh and Wong Phui Nam - which were critically compared and synthesized. This paper concludes that Malay literature should remain as national literature whilst literature written in other languages should be allowed to flourish in their own unique ways.
Keywords: National literature, Malaysian literature, sectional literature, Malay literature, contemporary Malay literature
Cite as: Ismail, H. (2017). Sastera nasional: Antara sastera Inggeris dan sastera Melayu [National literature: Between the English literature and Malay literature]. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 2(2), 178-187. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol2iss2pp178-187
Abstrak
Sastera Melayu sebagai sastera yang menyatukan semua kaum sama ada kaum bumiputera atau bukan bumiputera adalah sudah jelas, namun pandangan untuk mencabar kedudukan sastera Melayu sebagai sastera kebangsaan sentiasa muncul dalam bentuk polemik. Setelah globalisasi menjadi satu bentuk perubahan pemikiran pascamoden, persoalan berteraskan satu kaum dipertikaikan atau mula disemak kembali. Kajian kualitatif ini menggunakan kaedah deskripsi dan perbandingan untuk membincangkan kepentingan penggunaan Bahasa Melayu dalam sastera kebangsaan. Kajian ini juga membincangkan sama ada kita wajar menerima sastera berbahasa Inggeris yang dipandang oleh setengah pihak sebagai bahasa penyatuan baharu dunia sastera. Sumber data utama adalah hujah-hujah yang dilontarkan oleh dua orang ahli sastera negara iaitu Muhmamad Haji Salleh dan Wong Phui Nam. Kajian ini menegaskan bahawa Sastera Melayu perlu kekal sebagai sastera kebangsaan manakalan sastera bukan berbahasa Melayu boleh berkembang dengan sendirinya mengikut acuan masing-masing.
Kata Kunci: Sastera kebangsaan, sastera Malaysia, sastera etnik, sastera Melayu, sastera Melayu mutakhir
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