First in the series of excerpts from my MA dissertation I looked at the tolerant attitudes toward homoerotic relations in Indonesian religious boarding schools as depicted in the novel Mairil. Below I explore the way the Indonesian tradition of the gemblak and warok relationship is framed in a novel by Enang Rokajat Asura. Unlike Mairil,… Continue reading An excerpt from my dissertation on ‘traditional’ same-sex eroticisms in Indonesian fiction – Part 2
Research and publications
On male public intellectuals of the Twitter age and gender
We can trust the public intellectual – the voice of the zeitgeist, so to speak – to be clever, witty, sometimes rather sexy (because they’re clever and witty), and male. Though it seems that lately being male is a crippling impediment to being the voice of the zeitgeist. Recently, Stephen Fry caused the chattering classes… Continue reading On male public intellectuals of the Twitter age and gender
Survey on feminism and women’s rights in Malaysia
Back in September, I conducted a survey on how Malaysians felt about women’s rights as well as their views on feminism. My interest in Malaysians’ perceptions about women’s rights and feminism grew out of seeing the complacent attitudes of the general populace with regards to the status of women in our society today. Simply put,… Continue reading Survey on feminism and women’s rights in Malaysia
Book review: The Rey Chow Reader
(Crossposted from Elevate Difference) Edited by Bowman, Columbia University Press Not many theorists would re-imagine Jane Eyre as a Maoist. However, postcolonial thinker Rey Chow does and with great aplomb. Furthermore, it’s not in the context of English literature in which Chow invokes the fictional heroine, but rather the issue of Orientalism in today’s academia.… Continue reading Book review: The Rey Chow Reader
By yet another fluke I am nominated for the Brass Crescent award again!
I was nominated for best Southeast Asian blog by the lovely Brass Crescent selection committee two years ago, and here I am again nominated for the same category this year! Yay, me. As much as I am thrilled and humbled, I am surprised. I was going through some life-changing events in the last two years… Continue reading By yet another fluke I am nominated for the Brass Crescent award again!
Book review: The Material of Knowledge: Feminist Disclosures
By Susan Hekman, Indiana University Press This is a book for the post post-modernist thinker. Written by professor of political science, Susan Hekman, The Material of Knowledge: Feminist Disclosures seeks to alleviate the theorist’s conundrum with the material consequences in the event of natural disasters and destruction. Many theorists today are curiously silent on tsunamis,… Continue reading Book review: The Material of Knowledge: Feminist Disclosures
Is Muslim feminism more than just a hijab defense?
There may be 1,001 Muslim feminist critiques on the European burqa ban and its attendant jokes and jibes, insults, and ridiculousness. But what should remain clear is that we Muslim feminists are not just about the hijab. The recent discussion on LGBT acceptance on MMW revealed the cracks in the Muslim “sisterhood” and it began… Continue reading Is Muslim feminism more than just a hijab defense?
Eid Mubarak / Selamat Hari Raya!
September is a difficult month. It’s when my MA overlaps with my PhD, and when I’m finishing my dissertation on “traditional” homosexuality in Indonesian fiction, which is not going as well as I initially intended. DGM still seems half-constructed, like an unfinished new home, and I feel a bit sad about that. BUT, the grand… Continue reading Eid Mubarak / Selamat Hari Raya!
Must science reign supreme?
In the beginning of ‘The Enemies of Reason‘, Richard Dawkins’ latest TV crusade against the irrationality of religion and spiritualism, he asks: why is it during an age in which science is proving more ‘truths’ about life and the universe do people still turn to UFOs and miraculous burnt marks on toast that look like… Continue reading Must science reign supreme?
When the green-eyed monster is female, my feminist heart dies a little
We envy only those whom we feel ourselves to be like—we envy only members of our reference group. There are few successes more unendurable than those of our ostensible equals.” Status Anxiety by Alain de Botton Once, I had pooh-poohed the idea that female friendships are tricky. What’s so difficult about maintaining friendships with another… Continue reading When the green-eyed monster is female, my feminist heart dies a little
Alicia Izharuddin 