Women Empowerment in the Shadows of Ethnic Traditions: A Review of “Kartini: Princess of Java”

Kas 2 (Asian History) Movie Review

Watching “Kartini; Princess of Java” reveals how the struggles of women in the Philippines are not that different from the ones in our Southeast Asian neighbors. In real life, the titular character of the movie, Kartini, was a prominent feminist figure in Indonesia who showed that women’s marginalized position in Javanese society was not a hindrance to their empowerment and enlightenment, highlighting how the importance of an educated mind is the path to liberation.

However, Kartini’s socio-political position was intersectional, if not paradoxical. She was born from an aristocratic family, and her father, Sosroningrat, was the bupati or regent of Jepara in the island of Java. She herself became a raden ayu (lady), which means she had the power to make a difference to change the lives of the women on her community for the better. And she did, by building a school that would teach women and children how to read, write, and count (something that most Javanese peasants were deprived). Not to mention that she also helped growing the dying Javanese woodcarving industry by using her family’s Dutch connections to export the products to the Netherlands. She also used her voice to amplify the needs of women and children of Java to the Dutch colonial government. Considering her restricted situation, Kartini still managed to contribute plenty of things to her community.

This brings us, on the other hand, to the fact that as a women, she had to deal with a lot of sexist traditions that prevents the status of womanhood in Indonesia to progress. Despite possessing economic power as a noblewoman, her society often restricts her to exercise that same power. Javanese women were only treated as a broodmare for their future husbands instead of an individual with a thinking mind and autonomy. This is demonstrated in the movie (and in real life) with the fact that all teenage girls of the nobility had to seclude themselves from society by imprisoning them inside their palaces, for the sole purpose of keeping them fresh for their future spouses. Corollary to this, they were prohibited to pursue higher education. But not Kartini, as she used her seclusion years educating herself by reading progressive thinkers and being fluent with Dutch (a feat that was rare for most Javanese women).

A lot of what Kartini advocated for was somewhat similar to her male counterpart in the Philippine, Jose Rizal. Like her, he believed that educating the Filipino people was the key to their liberation from the ignorance perpetuated by our Spanish overlords. They also both utilized what they learned from their Western education to advocate for reforms in their respective communities. Despite being a man in a deeply patriarchal society, Rizal championed women’s education in the Philippines, as reflected by his letter to the women of Malolos supporting their cause to build a night school. But it seems that there is a difference on what Rizal and Kartini believed to be the cause of the ignorance of their people. The movie seems to frame that what hindered Javanese women to enlightenment was their repressive Javanese traditions, while in the Philippines, Spanish conservative education system was what kept our women ignorant.

Part of what makes Southeast Asia connected to each other is how our women share the same struggle of championing feminism in a structurally misogynistic society, even if we differ in some cultural aspects. As a Filipino, it is vital to also be aware of what our neighbors have gone through and to reflect on the lessons of their history, just like how we reflect on ours. With its nuance and good complexity, the movie “Kartini: Princess of Java” had an excellent job of illustrating that to their viewers.

Published on January 22, 2023