ABSTRACT
The engagement with the modern in colonized Southeast Asia took many forms, and was reflected in literature in numerous genres. Among the more poignant of these literary reflections is a series of letters written by a young Javanese woman of high status, Raden Adjeng Kartini. These letters were collected and subsequently published by a Dutchman, J. H. Abendanon, Kartinis friend and champion. The letter describes her life to her correspondent, noting the period of seclusion she was forced for a time to endure before once again being freed to engage with the wider world. The letter is noteworthy for reflecting not merely on her own circumstances, but also on the larger consequences of modernity and Westernization, which she recognizes are double-edged swords. Thus, she shows her awareness of the apparent harm of alcoholism in the West, and speculates that the Javanese emulation of Western customs will eventually bring this evil along with the rest of modernity.
