THE MASCULINITY OF MADURESE MALE BODIES IN PATRIARCHAL CULTURE

Abstract

Power, just like the one discussed by Foucault, is a social, cultural, economic, and political construction, especially those in relation to gender and power between men and women in the domestic circle. Foucault confirmed that inside the body, power or authority becomes a tool of power to dominate and to be dominated (the politics of the body). It works by controlling, restraining, and dominating. In Madura, women are the main determinant in cultural and social recognition of male masculinity. It is because women are those among the first who create and give control and power to call the men (whom they marry) as lake’ or tak lake’. The term of tak lake’ not only marks the disappearance of the biological function of maleness, but also the loss of a man’s “self-esteem” in this highly patriarchal culture. The more terrible thing is when this predicate of tak lake’ triggering the so’ler. How does the political body of so’leran constructs the gender relations of Madurese men and women in the domestic circle? Together with descriptive qualitative methods, the researcher deepens this research by using Foucault’s genealogical perspective. Meanwhile, a case study approach is also used for this research. In this research, the researcher finds the fact that the political body of so’leran is made and divided into two ways, namely discipline and panopticon. Another fact is that the relationship of power and knowledge of the Madurese male masculinity discourse has punished the body of a man by calling it tak lake’, for it is unable to meet the expectations of masculinity constructed by Madurese society.

Keywords

• foucault
• masculinity
• patriarchy
• so’leran
• politics of the body