Surrealism in Budi Darma's Laki - Laki Pemanggul Goni The Man - UNNES JOURNAL
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LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal lof Language and Literature 12(2) April 2018 p-ISSN 1858-0165
Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id e-ISSN 2460-853X
Surrealism in Budi Darma’s Laki – Laki Pemanggul Goni (The Man
Carrying the Sack): A Comparative Study
Melania Shinta Harendika
Universitas Brawijaya Malang, Indonesia
Email: harendika@gmail.com
Received: 20 December 2017. Revised: 31 January 2018. Accepted: 10 April 2018
Abstract
Laki – laki Pemanggul Goni is one of Budi Darma‘s short stories. It was firstly published in Kompas, 26
February 2012, and was then translated by Andy Fuller in 2015. Lontar Foundation published the
translated version along with the other translated Budi Darma‘s short stories in a book entitled
Conversations. Budi Darma is famous of his surrealist work. It is reflected also in Laki – laki Pemanggul
Goni. Therefore, this study was intended to find whether its‘ English version conveyed exactly the same
characteristics of surrealism as it was in the original version. Bassnett‘s translation as comparative
studies, Popovics‘ types of translation equivalence, and Breton‘s surrealism in literature were
implemented as the theoretical framework. This study found that both versions did not convey precisely
the identical characteristics of surrealism. The Indonesian version‘s surrealism is stronger than it is in the
English version. It might occur because of the cultural gap between the author‘s and the translator‘s.
Keywords: surrealism, translation, comparative studies, cultural gap, translation equivalence
How to Cite: Herendika, M. S. (2018). Surrealism in Budi Darma‘s Laki – Laki Pemanggul Goni (The Man
Carrying the Sack): A comparative study. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, 12(2), 165—172.
INTRODUCTION published in Kompas, 26 February 2012. It
Budi Darma is one of Indonesia‘s appreciated was then translated into English by Andy
authors. His short stories are popular with Fuller and published by Lontar Foundation in
surrealism.Thus, Fuller (in Darma, 2015) 2015.
stated that Darma‘s works are so unique that This short story is about Karmain, an
he called their characteristics as Budi Darma- Indonesian who lived overseas to study. He
esque. Because of his popularity as a writer always had a desire to peer down from his
and awards that he received (Satya Lencana apartment to look at a man carrying a sack.
cultural award and Southeast Asia Literary Oddly, the Sack-Carrying-Man always
Council award – in Darma, 2015, p. 152), disappeared when Karmain tried to find him.
Lontar Foundation, then, translated seventeen One day, the Sack-Carrying-Man,all of a
of his short stories into English to catch more sudden, appeared in Karmain‘s room where
readers internationally. Unfortunately, when he then warned Karmain about life. He and
his short stories are translated into English, Karmain then had an argument in which
the sense of surrealism might change. This Karmain told that there were two different
could be found in one ofhis short stories Sack-carrying men: one was the real one,
entitled Laki – laki Pemanggil Goni, which while the other was Satan who camouflaged
was translated into The Man Carrying the as a Sack-Carrying-Man.There was no
Sack. Its Indonesian versionwas firstly
165LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 12(2) April 2018
conclusion at the end of the story whether the equivalences are implemented to compare
man was a real Sack-Carrying-Man. how surrealism is depicted in Budi Darma‘s
Lelaki Pemanggul Karung Goniand in
Methodology Fuller‘s The Man Carrying the Sack.
Translation as Comparative Studies
At present, more than a few Indonesian Surrealism in Literature
literary works were translated into English. It As stated by Fuller (in Darma, 2015),
is for the reason that Indonesians are Darma‘s works are rich with black humor,
passionate to globalize their culture through mythical references, and irony. Those
literature. This fact is identified by Lontar characteristics, also referred as surrealism, are
Foundation as its objectives that are to (1) also found in Lelaki Pemanggul Karung Goni.
encourage further development of Indonesian In finding how its English version carries the
literature; (2) make Indonesian literature same degree of surrealism, it is noteworthy to
easily reached by an international audience; understand the detailed features of surrealism
and (3) preserve Indonesia's literary record for in literature as defined by Breton (as cited in
upcoming generations Singh, 2011), as follows.
(http://www.lontar.org/ 1) Surrealism is dedicated to revising our
en/home/about/welcome). For that reason, definition of reality. Referring to this
translations are needed to be done and to be feature, for the surrealists, the conditions
studied (Lefevere, 1991).What is more, of life can and must be changed.
Bassnett (2002) stated that no two languages Moreover, for the surrealist, art is the
are sufficiently alike to be considered as means of provoking a fundamental
representing the equal social reality. revolution of the consciousness;
Therefore, this study is to compare how 2) Surrealism tries to express what is hidden
similar (or different) the translated work to in mind by showing objects and events as
the original one is. seen in dreams, etc.
In doing so, Popovic‘s theory (in 3) Surrealism has the use of imaginary
Basnett, 2002), which distinguishes four types anecdotes, unusual events, rejection of
of translation equivalence, is implemented. sensibleprocesses, concern with essential
They are (1) linguistic equivalence, where problems of way of life, use of comedy as
there is homogeneity on the linguistic level of a dialectical statement of truth.
both SL and TL texts, i.e. word for word
translation; (2) paradigmatic equivalence, Reseults and Discussion
where there is equivalence of the elements of The followings are the sequence of events and
a paradigmatic expressive axis‘, i.e. elements literary elements in Darma‘s Laki – laki
of grammar; (3) stylistic (translational) Pemanggul Goni (The Man Carrying the
equivalence, where there is ‗functional Sack) presenting the characteristics of
equivalence of elements in both original and surrealism.
translation aiming at an expressive identity‘;
(4)textual (syntagmatic) equivalence, where Karmain’s Desire to Look at the Sack-
there is equivalence of the syntagmatic Carrying-Man
structuring of a text, i.e. equivalence of form “Setiap kali akan sembahyang, sebelum
and shape. Those four types of translation sempat menggelar sajadah untuk
166Herendika, M. S. (2018). Surrealism in Budi Darma‘s Laki – Laki Pemanggul Goni (The Man Carrying the Sack): A
comparative study. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, 12(2), 165—172.
sembahyang, Karmain selalu ditarik islikewisealteredbecausethe event is stranger
oleh kekuatan luar biasa besar untuk in the Indonesian version (Karmain isdragged
mendekati jendela, membuka sedikit by the externalpower).
kordennya, dan mengintip ke bawah, ke Furthermore, one expressionin the
jalan besar, dari apartemennya di Indonesian excerpt is not translated into
lantai sembilan, untuk menyaksikan laki English; it is “setiap kali akan sembahyang”.
– laki pemanggul goni menembakkan In addition, several expressions have
matanya ke arah matanya.” (Darma) unalikesense. The expression ―menembakkan
mata” is not precisely identical as ―staring‖
―Before rolling out his prayer mat, but it is stronger than that.Therefore, it can be
Karmain is always overcome by a desire said that its linguistic and stylistic
to open the curtain a bit and peer down equivalence are not exactly equal.However,
from his ninth floor apartment to look at Karmain‘s desire to look at the Sack-
the man carrying the sack staring up at Carrying-Man is one of surrealistexpressions,
him.‖ (Fuller) which becomes one of the stepping-stones of
the overall story.
This event obviously displays one of the
elements of surrealism as identified by Breton A weird Indication of the Presence of the
(cited in Singh, 2011), that this is odd and Sack-Carrying-Man
irrational. The situation that Karmain had a “..., korden jendela seolah – olah
desire to open a curtain without any certain terkena angin dan menyingkap dengan
trigger was something illogical. Both of the sendirinya. Maka Karmain pun
Indonesian and the English version display bergegas mendekati jendela, dan
this. However, the Indonesian version has menyaksikan di bawah sana, di tengah
“ditarik oleh kekuatan luar biasa – tengah jalan besar, laki – laki
besar”expression which is then translated into pemanggul goni berdiri membungkuk
―overcome by a desire‖. ―Desire‖ (Longman mungkin karena goninya terlalu berat,
Dictionary of Contemporary English, 2001) sambil menembakkan matanya ke arah
means a strong hope or wish. It means that in dirinya. Kendati lampu jalan tidak
the English version, what Karman did was to begitu terang, tampak dengan jelas
some degree more active, it was done for the wajah laki – laki pemanggul goni
reason that he wished it. In Indonesian, menyiratkan rasa amarah, dan
“ditarik oleh kekuatan luar biasa” means that menantang Karmain untuk turun ke
Karmain didsomewhatpassive; he was pulled bawah” (Darma)
by an immensepower. He was the ―object‖ of
the externalpower.As a result, it can be ―..., he saw that the curtain had opened
understood that from this occurrence, the as if by itself and was moving in the
translated version does not have precise breeze. Karmain hurried to the window
linguistic and textual equivalence since it and saw the man carrying the sack in
does not have a word-by- the middle of the road staring up in his
wordtranslation;consequently, the form and direction. He was hunched over,
shape are dissimilar. The stylistic equivalence perhaps because his sack was too heavy,
167LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 12(2) April 2018
and his gaze was full of rage, man carrying the sack had disappeared.
challenging Karmain to come down.‖ When he asked people on the sidewalk
(Fuller) whether they had seen a man carrying a
sack, they all shook their heads.‖
There is alinguistic dissimilarity found (Fuller)
in the previous excerpts because particular
expressions are not translated. ―sudah The aboveexcerpt shows a strangeevent,
melewati tengah malam”; “lalu whichis the disappearance of theSack-
membersihkan tubuh untuk sembahyang”; Carrying-Man, and how other people never
“Kendati lampu jalan tidak begitu see him, except Karmain. This absurdity turns
terang,”;for example, are not translated. out to be the strong point of surreal literary
Furthermore, the translator does not meet a work.However, theIndonesian and the English
stylistic equivalence for the reason thatthe versions do not have linguistic equivalence
expressive identity is not perfectly alike. By because it is not a word-to-word translation. It
not translating those expressions, the sense of can be seen from the word ―semak – semak‖
surrealism is less felt in the translated version. that cannot be found in the English version.
As an example, “ketika sudah melewati Conversely, the stylistic and textual
tengah malam”is simply translated into ―one equivalence are found there because the
night‖. The surreal condition is in fact the purpose of both texts is the same: telling the
appearanceof the Sack-Carrying-Manafter readers of the Sack-Carrying-Man‘s sudden
midnight, whichcan be noted asthe come and go.
characteristic of Budi Darma–esque (Fuller in Another discussion concerning this
Darma, 2015). element can also be found in the following
quotations:
UnexpectedCome and Go of the Sack- “Ketika Karmain tiba kembali di
Carrying-Man apartemennya, ternyata laki – laki
The next unrealsituation is that the pemanggul goni sudah ada di dalam,
Sack-Carying-Man always disappearedevery duduk di atas sajadah, melantunkan
timeKarmain tried to find him. ayat – ayat suci, sementara goninya
“Karmain dengan tergesa- gesa turun, terletak di sampingnya.” (Darma)
lalu mendekati semak – semak dekat
trotoar, tetapi laki – laki pemanggul ―When Karmain got back to his
gonipasti sudah tidak ada lagi. Dan apartment, he saw the man sitting on his
ketika Karmain bertanya kepada prayer mat reciting verses from the
beberapa orang apakah mereka tadi Qur‘an. His sack was placed beside
melihat ada seorang laki – laki him.‖ (Fuller)
pemanggul goni, mereka menggeleng.”
(Darma) This sequence shows abizarre condition
because the Sack-Carrying-Man was suddenly
―... Karmain had rushed down to the in Karmain‘s apartment. A difference can be
sidewalk when he had seen the man seen from the translation of “ayat – ayat
carrying the sack staring up at him. By suci” into ―Qur‘an‖. Those expressions are
the time he reached the sidewalk, the unequal because “ayat – ayat suci” does not
168Herendika, M. S. (2018). Surrealism in Budi Darma‘s Laki – Laki Pemanggul Goni (The Man Carrying the Sack): A
comparative study. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, 12(2), 165—172.
always mean Qur‘an verses. The translator sink further into the ground each time it
might translate ―ayat – ayat suci”into Qur‘an rains and you have never cared about
because he assumed that Karmain was a this.‖ (Fuller)
Moslem because of the word ―sajadah” or
―prayer mat‖, that is usually used by Moslem This passage displays one of the strange
during their prayer. However, the functions of situations in Budi Darma‘s Laki – laki
both expressions are equal: showing the Pemanggul Goni. It can be seen by the fact
sudden appearance of the Sack-Carrying- that the Sack-Carrying-Man recognizesthe
Man. Thus, it can be seen that both versions whole thing about Karmain‘s life. The
has stylistic equivalence. evidence is that the man knew that Karmain
never cared about his parents‘ grave.
The Sack-Carrying-Man’s Familiarity on According to Breton (in Singh, 2011), surreal
Karmain’s Life literary work believes that life condition must
Setelah selesai berdoa, tanpa be changed. By advising Karmain to take care
memandang Karmain, laki – laki of his parents‘ graves, the Sack‘Carrying-Man
pemanggul goni berkata lembut: desired to change Karmain‘s life. This event
“Karmain, kamu sekarang sudah is unusual, nevertheless, for the reason that
menjadi orang penting. Kamu sudah Karmain did not know the man. Accordingly,
menjelajah dunia, dan akhirnya kamu di the surreal condition is clearly seen from this
sini, di negara yang terkenal makmur. sequence of event.
Bahwa kamu tidak mau kembali ke The translation implements word-to-
tanah airmu, bukan masalah penting. word translation, as a result, we can say that
Tapi mengapa kamu tidak pernah lagi the translation and the original texts have
berpikir tentang makam ayahmu? Tidak linguistic equivalence. The sentence
pernah berpikir lagi tentang makam structures of both texts arelikewise identical.
ibumu. Makam orangtuamu sudah lama As a result, it can be said that both texts have
rusak, tidak terawat, tanahnya paradigmatic equivalence. The stylistic and
tenggelam tergerus oleh banjir setiap the textual equivalence are also found the
kali hujan datang, dan kamu tidak same in both texts.
pernah peduli.” (Darma)
The Sack-Carrying-Man’ Ability to Take
After finishing his prayer, without Someone’sSoul
looking at Karmain, he spoke softly. “Tahukah kamu ke mana sahabat –
―Karmain, you have become an sahabatmu itu pergi?”
important person. You‘ve travelled the “Tidak.”
world, and now you are here, in a rich “Mereka saya ambil. Saya tahu,
country. That you don‘t want to come kalau mereka tidak saya ambil, pada
back to your homeland is no problem. suatu saat kelak dunia akan gaduh.
But why don‘t you care for your Gaduh karena, kalau tetaphidup,
father‘s grave? You have never thought mereka akan mengacau, membunuh,
about your mother‘s grave. Their graves dan menyebarkan nafsu besar untuk
are neglected, damaged. Their graves berbuat dosa ...” (Darma)
169LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 12(2) April 2018
sebagai laki – laki pemanggul goni.”
―Do you know where your friends Darma)
have gone?‖
―No.‖ ―Oh, Sack-Carrying-Man,‖ said
―I‘ve taken them all. I knew that if I Karmain after a moment. ―My mother
didn‘t take them, there would be once told me that there is the real sack-
trouble. If they kept on living, they carrying-man and there is also the sack
would create chaos, kill, and spread a carrying-man who is actually Satan
great desire to sin....‖ (Fuller) disguised as the Sack-Carrying-Man,‖
(Fuller)
This sequence of event shows
surrealism. It is seen that the Sack-Carrying- In the above excerpt, Karmain said the
Man was able to predict the future. He knew possibility of false Sack-Carrying-Man. This
that in the future, Karmain‘s best friends is a surrealist characteristic for the reason
would commit sin. This event, therefore, thatit expresses what is hidden in mind
depicts one of the characteristics of surrealism (Breton in Singh, 2011). ―Satan‖ is to some
because it is believed that life condition must degree abstract. It is not a physicalobject. In
be changed. A linguistic un-equivalence is addition, in Darma‘s Lelaki Pemanggul
found in the translation of ―...dunia akan Karung Goni, it is expressed that there is a
gaduh‖ which was translated into ―trouble‖. probability for the Satan to pretend to be a
―Gaduh‖ is something more than just a Sack-Carrying-Man. In an actual world, it is
trouble. According to https://kbbi. impossible. Hence, this event is considered
kemdikbud.go.id/entri/gaduh, ―gaduh‖ means surreal.
―rusuh dan gempar karena perkelahian In terms of equivalence, in those two
(percekcokan dan sebagainya); ribut; huru- versions, there is no word-to-word translation,
hara.‖ From https://id.oxforddictionaries. or we might say that those versions do not
com/terjemahkan/indonesia-inggris/gaduh, have linguistic equivalence. As a proof, the
the most appropriate translation for ―gaduh‖ word ―goni‖ is translated into ―sack‖. Goni is
is ―commotion, noisy, or uproar.‖ Therefore, a special material, i.e. a plant fiber
it can be concluded that from this excerpt, (Corchorus capsularis, that is very common
there is a bit problem in the stylistic in Asia and Africa (https://en.wikipedia.org/
equivalence because of lack linguistic wiki/Corchorus_capsularis). The translator
equivalence. might find problems in finding the word-by-
word translation. However, the function of the
Myth about Satan Who Disguised as a Sack- two versions is identical. It is to inform the
Carrying-Man readers on the possibility of a fake Sack-
“Wahai laki – laki pemanggul goni,” Carrying-Man. Therefore, we can say that
kata Karmain setelah terdiam agak those versions have functional equivalence.
lama. “Ibu dulu saya pernah berkata,
ada laki – laki pemanggul goni yang The Sack-Carryng-Man’s Presence in
sebenarnya, ada pula pemanggul goni Karmain’s Past Life
yang sebetulnya setan, dan menyamar Dan Karmain ingat benar, dulu
menjelang kebakaran hebat melanda
170Herendika, M. S. (2018). Surrealism in Budi Darma‘s Laki – Laki Pemanggul Goni (The Man Carrying the Sack): A
comparative study. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, 12(2), 165—172.
kampung burikan, kata beberapa orang original version. Another example was the
saksi, laki – laki pemanggul goni words ―kebakaran hebat‖ which was
datang. Lalu kata beberapa saksi pula, translated into ―fire‖ which again had less
laki – laki pemanggul goni masuk ke sense than the original vesion. Therefore, it
rumah Karmain, kemudian bergegas – can be concluded that the linguistic
gegas ke luar, dan melemparkan bola – equivalence is not found in those excerpts.
bola api ke rumah Karmain. Dan However, the stylistic equivalence is found
setelah api berkobar – kobar ganas there because the event‘s purpose is the same
menjilati sebagian rumah dikampung in both the original and the translation
Burika, beberapa orang dari kampung version.
Burikan dan kampung Barongan sempat
melihat, laki –laki pemanggul goni Conclusion
melarikan diri di anatara lidah – lidah Darma‘s Laki-laki Pemanggul Goni and its‘
api yang makin membesar.( Darma) English version: The Man Carrying the Sack
expresses surrealist characteristics. They both
And Karmain remembered, before tell that life condition, i.e. Karmain‘s, must be
the fire in Burikan, several witnesses changed. This can be seen from the Sack-
said that the man carrying the sack Carrying-Man who warned Karmain on the
came. Then, several witnesses said, the fault he had done previously. It as well
man carrying the sack visited Karmain‘s expresses what is hidden in mind (represented
house and then quickly hurried out, by the possibility of Satan who disguised as a
throwing fireballs toward Karmain‘s Sack-Carrying-Man). Moreover, the sequence
house. And after the flames had burned of event is also irrational shown by the Sack-
down the kampong of Burikan, several Carrying-Man‘s sudden come and go.
people from Burikan and Barongan saw Both versions do not have a perfect
the man carrying the sack running away linguistic equivalence, however, since it was
from the growing flames. (Fuller) not an exact word-to-word translation. Some
of the expressions are untranslatable, such as
This event is odd because at the end of goni, and some others are dismissed or are
the story, Karmain remembered that the translated in different senses in the English
person he met abroad was the similar person versions. Conversely, they have the stylistic
from his past life. It is also strange because it equivalence since the functions of both
is revealed in the plot that the Sack-Carrying- versions are the same. It can be seen by the
Man was in fact an evil person. He had same plot and idea of both versions. In brief,
burned Karmain‘ house. This condition is in the surrealism might be a bit stronger in the
contrast with what is expressed in the Indonesian version than in the English one.
previous event that the man was religious, and The untranslatable specific Indonesian terms
he directed Karmain to change his life. are the reason of it. This untranslatability
This translation is not a word-to-word might occur because of the cultural gap
translation. It can be seen from the word between the author and the translator. Overall,
―ingat benar‖ that was translated into the English version is still able to bring the
―remember‖ which had less sense than the Budi Darma-esque.
171LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 12(2) April 2018
References
Corchorus capsularis. Retrieved on 28 January 2018 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Corchorus_capsularis
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about/welcome
Indonesian Oxford Living Dictionaries. Retrieved on 26 January 2018 from
https://id.oxforddictionaries.com/terjemahkan/indonesia-inggris/
KBBI Online. (Retrieved on 26 January 2018) from https://kbbi.kemdikbud.go.id/entri/
Lefevere, A. (1991). Translation and Comparative Literature: The Search for the Center.
Languages and Cultures in Translation Theories, 4(1). Retrieved from
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Longman. (2001). Dictionary of Contemporary English 3rd Ed. Harlow Essex: Pearson
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