Politics of Memory and Identity in Contemporary Indonesian Literature: A Study of the Novel Beauty Is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan

Abstract

This article examines the politics of memory and identity in contemporary Indonesian literature through a narrative analysis of Cantik itu Luka by Eka Kurniawan. The novel represents traumatic events erased from the official state memory, such as colonialism, the 1965 massacres, and cultural repression during the New Order era. By blending the aesthetics of magical realism with local mythological elements, Kurniawan constructs an alternative narrative that challenges hegemonic historiography and gives voice to subaltern perspectives. This study employs a qualitative approach through literary discourse analysis, integrating postcolonial theory, memory studies, and historiographic metafiction. Data were collected through close reading of narrative elements that represent collective violence, hybrid identity, and female agency. The findings indicate that Beauty Is a Wound not only conveys social critique but also functions as a cultural archive that articulates marginalized collective memory. This research contributes to Indonesian literary studies by positioning fiction as an ideological space capable of challenging dominant structures of representation and reconstructing history from critical and plural perspectives.