Proceedings of the 28th International Conference on Literature: “Literature as a Source of Wisdom”, July 11-13, 2019, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia ISBN: 978-623-7086-21-5 THE PRODUCTIVITY OF LITERARY LITERACY ARENA IN CENTRAL JAVA *Muhammad Burhanudin & Agus Nuryatin Department of Indonesian Education and Literature, Faculty of Languages and Arts, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Semarang, Indonesia *Corresponding author: [email protected] DOI: 10.24815/.v1i1.14829 Abstract Literature is not merely a complementary activity, but it must be able to bring to a better nation civilization. Literature needs to be read and written as a medium to describe humans with various problems. Literature is created to have recreational function, didactic function, morality and even religious function. So complex is the function of literature, but reading and writing the literary works especially novel often becomes a heavy burden. For this reason, a solution is needed to increase the interest in reading and writing literature among the society. One alternative solution is by producing the literary arena. Investigating the literary arena in Central Java is an important thing to see as well as develop the literary literacy. The literary community can be used as an arena for literacy movements to make its members literate throughout life through community involvement in appreciating and expressing literature. The literary arena in the form of community and organizing a competition in Central Java is interesting to be examined in order to see literary literacy in it. The literary arena in Central Java can be a free and open market for literary quality competition to be used and disseminated. This research used qualitative method to increasing the number of literary works and to explore the productivity of the literacy arena in Central Java. Literary literacy movement certainly cannot be separated from cultural capital, social capital, symbolic capital, and aesthetic capital. For this reason, the role of government is needed to encourage the growth of literary literacy in Central Java. Keywords: Arena, literacy, community, competition. 1. Introduction Arena is defined as the field of “battle,” arena is also a field of “struggle” (Bourdieu & Wacquant, 1992, p. 101). Arena in the context of literacy is a place for individuals or groups to protect and improve the position of the value of works created. The literary arena can be a free and open market for literary quality competition to be used and disseminated. Bourdieu explained three stages to analyze an arena. The first stage is tracking the relationship of each terrain structure that reflects the superiority of the arena. The second 867 Muhammad Burhanudin & Agus Nuryatin step, maps the objective structure of relations between positions in the field. The final step, determines the nature of the agents who occupy various types of positions in the field (Ritzer, 2012, p. 907). The success of a literary arena also cannot be separated from various types of capital. Cultural capital consists of familiarity and ease in utilizing institutionalized cultural forms (schools, colleges, language agents, etc.) which are at the top of the cultural hierarchy of society. Social capital consists of valuable social relations between humans. Symbolic capital comes from one’s honor and prestige. The position of various agents in the arena is determined by the amount of relative weight of capital owned. The arena of literature as a field certainly cannot be separated from the capital in launching its literacy movement. Literary work is the identity of a nation’s civilization. Literary society will be sensitive to the existence and development. Literary literacy is not merely a complementary activity, but must be able to bring better civilization to the nation. Literary works need to be read and written as a medium to describe humans with various problems. Literary works are created to provide pleasure or entertainment to the reader (recreational function). Reading literary works will provide insight into the ins and outs of human life for its readers (functions defined). Knowledge of good and bad moral can also be obtained from reading literary works (morality functions). Literary works that contain religious teachings present works that contain religious teachings that can be imitated by readers (religious functions). Literary works by containing religious teachings have been used since the time of the Walisanga. Sunan Bonang and Sunan Kalijaga are sunan figures who use literary literacy facilities to deliver religious teachings in the coastal areas of Java. The Kraton (palace) also gave birth to famous poets such as Yasadipura I, Yasadipura II, and Ranggawarsita. Kratonworks Gives insight into the ins and outs of human life. Pramudya Ananta Toer and WS Rendra are brilliant literary figures who are productive in creating high quality literary works about humanity and moral knowledge. The emergence of poets, writers and literary works in Central Java became a marker of the life of the literary arena in Central Java. The writers that still exist today are Mustofa Bisri, Ahmad Tohari, Triyanto Triwikromo, Eko Tunas, S. Prasetyo Utomo, Handry TM, Timur Suprabana, Sosiawan Leak, Hanindawan, Wijang Warek, Dorothea Rosa Herliani and others may become a marker of still alive and fertile literary activities in Central Java. Is it possible that the names of writers or poets in Central Java can be used as a benchmark for the life of the literacy arena? How much the role of the literary community can be used as an arena for literacy movements while expressing literature? Is competition for literary writing as a field of struggle and battle effective to increase the position of bargaining value for his work? Certainly, these questions disturb researchers to explore the productivity of the literacy arena in Central Java. 1.1 Literary Literacy Literary literacy can be defined as the ability to read the words on literary works and produce literary meaning. In other words, literary literacy is literacy quality which includes the ability to read and write literary works. Broader scope, literary literacy also includes literary audio-visual literature, which means proficiency to recognize, understand, as well as express ideas that are delivered visually both in drama/theater scenes, literary audio videos, or films based on literary works. Literary literacy is expected to be a capital for the community, especially students and college students to explore and develop their potential in appreciating and expressing literature. Literary literacy activities are expected to make people accept the effects of literary communication. The awareness of reading books of 868 Proceedings of the 28th International Conference on Literature: “Literature as a Source of Wisdom”, July 11-13, 2019, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia ISBN: 978-623-7086-21-5 literature does not have to be planned nationally, but ideally it should be a primary need for each individual. Ability in literary literacy is a right and not everyone’s obligation. Literacy is a form of integration of the ability to listen, speak, write, read and think literally (Baynham, 1995, p. 5). As a unity of communication devices, the meaning of literacy can be interpreted as language skills that cannot be separated from one another. Klein et al (1991) see the relationship between the ability to read and write like two eyes of a coin. Someone who can write well shows a tendency to have good reading skills. Vice versa, someone who has good reading skills has a tendency to be a good writer. Literacy skills can empower and improve the quality of individuals, families and communities. Because it is a multiple effects (can provide an effect on a very wide area), literacy skills help eradicate poverty, reduce child mortality, population growth, ensure sustainable development, and realize peace. This can be pursued through literary literacy. Literary literacy, which can be interpreted as reading and writing ability about the field of literature cannot be separated from language, because literary works use language as a medium. Reading literature is essentially a reading skill with objects of literary works in the form of poetry, prose, and drama scripts while writing literature is an activity to produce writings in the form of literary works. 2. Result and Discussion 2.1 Community as Literary Literacy Arena The literary community as an arena in carrying out its activities cannot be separated from cultural capital. Cultural capital is manifested in establishing intimacy to make it easier to utilize institutionalized cultural forms (schools, colleges, language agents, etc.) that are at the top of the cultural hierarchy of society. The capital is needed because the development of literature cannot be carried out optimally without assistance and cooperation with various parties, both provincial and sub-district regional governments, writers, teachers, lecturers, researchers, students and the community. People who join in a literary community have great care and attention to maintain the continuity of literature, they devote their lives to improve the reading and writing culture in the area through literary literacy movements. The community can be used as an arena for community literacy movements, especially the higher education community. The literary community is a place to make its members literate throughout their lives through community involvement in appreciating and expressing literature. Stakeholders in the literary community as an arena of literacy in their operations use various strategies to sustain the life. The strategy idea was raised by the patron of the literary community to achieve calculated goals. The purpose of the literary community, in general, is to appreciate and express literature. The literary community in its activities should really position literature in accordance with its portion. This is important, considering that literature has only been used as a complementary or additional element in social life. Stakeholders in the literary community continue to try individually or collegially, protect or improve their position.