Naturalization and Romanticization of Violence in Indonesian Teen Lit Jingga Series by Esti Kinasih

Here's the abstract:

Esti Kinasih is an Indonesian woman writer who writes in the teen lit genre and has a wide readership. This study discusses and problematizes her novels named Jingga Series, a trilogy of novels comprising Jingga dan Senja, Jingga dalam Elegi, and Jingga untuk Matahari. With teenage romance as a backdrop, this series leaves an impression of intense violence towards the female protagonist perpetrated by her male partner, but also by other male and female characters. We find that the novels not only naturalize male aggressiveness, but also normalizes teenage girls as victims of violence. By applying the concepts offered by Connell, Milestone, and Bourdieu, this article aims to conclude that violence is not only depicted as acceptable through continuous consolidation by hegemonic masculinity and legalized by structure and culture, but it also is depicted as manifestation of romantic love. Through the narrative built by the author, the novel further strengthens the idea of violence as an attribute of masculinity desired and naturalized in romance. The highly popular Jingga has the potential to sustain violence amongst teenagers, specifically strengthening hegemonic masculinity.