Category: Topics

In this essay, I argue for an alternative approach to reading Indonesian literature, referred to as distant reading, which challenges canonical hierarchies and contributes to a more critical model of Indonesian literature. I develop the argument in three parts: I first introduce the concept of distant reading, then situate it in the context of Indonesian literature. Finally, I turn to my digital project, a growing, machine-readable corpus of Indonesian literary texts, largely drawn from online periodicals and archives, which I use to experiment with distant reading as a way of “undoing” the Indonesian canon.