HB Jassin

Hans Bague Jassin
HB Jassin, 1990s
Born	(1917-07-13)13 July 1917 Gorontalo, Dutch East Indies
Died	11 March 2000(2000-03-11) (aged 82) Jakarta
Nationality	Indonesian
Alma mater	University of Indonesia Yale University
Known for	Documentation and criticism of Indonesian literature
Scientific career
Fields	Literary criticism, documentation

Hans Bague Jassin (31 July 1917 – 11 March 2000), better known as HB Jassin, was an Indonesian literary critic, documentarian, and professor. Born in Gorontalo to a bibliophilic petroleum company employee, Jassin began reading while still in elementary school, later writing published reviews before finishing high school. After a while working in the Gorontalo regent's office, he moved to Jakarta where he worked at the state publisher Balai Pustaka. After leaving the publisher, he attended the University of Indonesia and later Yale. Returning to Indonesia to be a teacher, he also headed Sastra magazine. Horison, a literary magazine, was started in July 1966 by Jassin and Mochtar Lubis as a successor to Sastra, and was edited by Taufiq Ismail, Ds. Muljanto, Zaini, Su Hok Djin, and Goenawan Mohamad.^[1] In 1971, Jassin was given a one-year prison sentence and a two-year probation period because as the editor of Sastra, he refused to reveal the identity of an anonymous writer who wrote a story which was considered by the court to be blasphemous.^[2]

After his release, he founded HB Jassin Literary Documentation Center, using it to document Indonesian literature. After suffering six strokes towards the end of his life, Jassin died on 11 March 2000 and was buried in the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery. During his life Jassin was highly recognized for his work, acquiring the nickname "The Pope of Indonesian Literature" and receiving numerous awards.

Biography

Jassin was born in Gorontalo, Gorontalo on 31 July 1917 to a Bague Mantu Jassin, a Muslim bibliophilic Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij employee, and his wife Habibah Jau.^[3] He had five brothers and sisters. He attended at a hollandsch-inlandsche school, a Dutch-language school for native Indonesians, in Gorontalo, where he began to read extensively. His family later moved to Medan, North Sumatra, where he attended a hogere burger school, or five-year secondary education program for native Indonesians. During this period, he began to write literary reviews, which were published in local magazines.^[4] He also read numerous works of Western literature.^[3]

After finishing his studies in Medan, Jassin returned to Gorontalo, where he worked at the local resident's office without pay. In 1940, he was offered a position at Balai Pustaka, the Dutch-owned state publishing house, by then-executive director Sutan Takdir Alisjahbana. He started in short story and poetry writing, but was later moved to reviews and documentation.^[4] During the Japanese occupation, he published several works, both poems and short stories, in the Japanese-sponsored daily Asia Raja.^[5]

In 1953, Jassin enrolled in the literature program of the University of Indonesia (UI), doubling as a lecturer for courses related to modern Indonesian literature. After graduating in 1957, he spent two years at Yale in the United States studying comparative literature. Upon returning to Jakarta, Jassin continued to work as a lecturer at the UI.^[4][6]

Jassin was fired from his position at UI in 1964,^[3] after he was one of the main signatories of the 1963 Manifesto Kebudayaan (Cultural Manifesto),^[7] a response to the continued leftist pressures in literature ( notably from the Lembaga Kebudajaan Rakjat, amongst other organisations). The manifesto was banned on 8 May 1964, resulting in action against all of its signatories.^[7]

In 1971, Jassin was put on trial for blasphemy for refusing to divulge the true name of the author of the short story "Langit Makin Mendung" ("The Sky is Increasingly Cloudy"), which was published in Sastra, which he edited.^[8] The story, written under the pen name Ki Pandji Kusmin, depicted Allah as being similar to a human.^[9] Jassin was sentenced to a year's suspended sentence; he spent two years arguing against the verdict.^[10]

After his probation, Jassin returned to the UI as a permanent lecturer. Two years later, he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree. In 1976, he founded the HB Jassin Literary Documentation Center (HBJLDC), located in Taman Ismail Marzuki, with books from his own collection, which was begun in 1940.^[4][11]

In 1978, Jassin produced a translation of the Quran, titled Al Qur'an Bacaan Mulia (The Quran, The Noble Book), which was in verse rather than the traditional prose.^[12] It was controversial due to public perception that Jassin lacked an understanding of Islam and knowledge of Arabic. Jassin later made another translation, Al-Qur'an Berwajah Puisi (The Quran in Poetry), which also proved to be controversial.^[11]

Jassin started using a wheelchair in 1996 due to a stroke. As a result of the stroke, his associates took over work on the four translations he had been working on. Jassin himself attempted to continue his work with the assistance of his niece, but was unable to keep his previous pace.^[11]

Jassin died at Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital in Jakarta after suffering a stroke (his sixth) on the morning of 11 March 2000. Approximately 200 people attended a prayer service for him at the HBJLDC, including noted writers Taufiq Ismail, Ajip Rosidi, and Goenawan Mohamad. He was then buried in a state funeral at the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery in South Jakarta.^[11]

Personal life

Jassin was married three times. His first marriage was to Tientje van Buren, an Indo widow; they later divorced. Jassin then married Arsiti, with whom he had two children;^[11][4] it was Arsiti's death that drove him to translate the Quran, after repeating the Surah Ya Sin while in mourning.^[13] Ten months after Arsiti died in 1962, he married Yuliko Willem, with whom he had two children.^[11][4]

Legacy

Indonesian poet Gajus Siagian gave Jassin the nickname "Paus Sastra Indonesia" ("The Pope of Indonesian Literature") due to the perception that Indonesians could not truly become writers until their writings were accepted by him.^[4][14] Ex-President of Indonesia Abdurrahman Wahid considered Jassin a "literary giant", stating that he had been raised with Jassin's writings.^[11] Poet Sapardi Djoko Damono called Jassin unequalled in his dedication and meticulousness, stating that Jassin "would keep not only the works of authors, but even their laundry bills."^[8]

Jassin was given numerous awards by the government, including the Satyalencana Kebudayaan in 1969 and Anugerah Seni in 1983. He also received numerous civilian awards, including the Martinus Nijhoff Prize in 1973 and the Ramon Magsaysay award in 1987.^[6]

Selected works

Literary criticism

• Angkatan 45 [The Generation of 1945] (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Jajasan Dharma. 1972.
• Kesusastraan Indonesia Modern dalam Kritik dan Esei [Modern Indonesian Literature in Criticisms and Essays] (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Gunung Agung. 1954–1967. (four volumes)

Translations

• Max Havelaar, atau Lelang Kopi Maskapi Dagang Belanda [Max Havelaar: Or the Coffee Auctions of the Dutch Trading Company] (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Djambatan. 1972. Translation of Max Havelaar, of de koffi-veilingen der Nederlandsche Handel-Maatschappy.
• Al Quran Bacaan Mulia [The Quran, The Noble Book] (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Djambatan. 1978. Translation of the Quran.

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

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Ramon Magsaysay Award recipients

Government Service (1958–2008)

Cambodia Ek Sonn Chan  China Yuan Longping  India C.D. Deshmukh J. M. Lyngdoh  Indonesia Raden Kodijat Ali Sadikin  Japan Morihiko Hiramatsu Hiroshi Kuroki Yukiharu Miki  Laos Keo Viphakone  Malaysia Mohamed Suffian Mohamed Hashim B. C. Shekhar  Pakistan Akhtar Hameed Khan Ibn Abdur Rehman  Philippines Jose Vasquez Aguilar Francisca Reyes-Aquino Hilario Davide Jr. Grace Padaca Jesse Robredo Jovito R. Salonga Miriam Defensor Santiago Haydee Yorac  Singapore Goh Keng Swee  Thailand Anand Panyarachun Chamlong Srimuang Jon Ungphakorn Phon Sangsingkeo Prawase Wasi Puey Ungpakorn  Taiwan Shih-chu Hsu Li Kwoh-ting Jiang Menglin

Public Service (1958–2008)

Burma Tee Tee Luce  Ceylon Mary H. Rutnam  China Gao Yaojie Jiang Yanyong Liang Congjie Wu Qing  India Baba Amte Banoo Jehangir Coyaji Manibhai Desai Jayaprakash Narayan V. Shanta  Indonesia H.B. Jassin Teten Masduki  Pakistan Ruth Pfau  Philippines Pedro Orata Center for Agriculture and Rural Development Mutually Reinforcing Institutions (CARD MRI)  South Korea Kim Sun-tae Park Won-soon  Spain based in  Philippines Joaquin Villalonga  Thailand Fua Hariphitak Mechai Viravaidya Nilawan Pintong Phra Parnchand Prateep Ungsongtham Hata Sirindhorn Sithiporn Kridakara Sophon Suphapong Therdchai Jivacate Thongbai Thongpao

Community Leadership (1958–2008)

Bangladesh Tahrunessa Abdullah Fazle Hasan Abed Muhammad Yunus Zafrullah Chowdhury Mohammed Yeasin Angela Gomes  Burma Cynthia Maung  India Mandakini Amte & Prakash Amte Mabelle Arole & Rajanikant Arole Pandurang Shastri Athavale Chandi Prasad Bhatt Ela Bhatt Vinoba Bhave Aruna Roy Shantha Sinha Rajendra Singh  Japan Fusaye Ichikawa  Laos Sombath Somphone  Malaysia Tunku Abdul Rahman    Nepal Mahabir Pun  Philippines Gawad Kalinga Community Development Foundation Antonio Meloto  Thailand Aree Valyasevi Krasae Chanawongse Prayong Ronnarong  Tibet 14th Dalai Lama

Journalism, Literature, and the Creative Communication Arts (1958–2008)

Bangladesh Matiur Rahman Abdullah Abu Sayeed  Burma Edward Michael Law-Yone  Ceylon or  Sri Lanka Wannakuwatta Amaradeva Tarzie Vittachi  India Mahasweta Devi Palagummi Sainath Amitabha Chowdhury  Indonesia Atmakusuma Astraatmadja Mochtar Lubis  Japan Akira Kurosawa Yasuji Hanamori Michiko Ishimure Akio Ishii    Nepal Bharat Koirala  Philippines Zacarias Sarian F. Sionil José Lino Brocka Radio Veritas James Reuter Bienvenido Lumbera Nick Joaquin Raul Locsin Eugenia Duran Apostol Sheila Coronel  Thailand Prayoon Chanyavongs  Great Britain based in  Philippines Robert McCulloch Dick

Peace and International Understanding (1958–2008)

China Tang Xiyang  India Mother Teresa Jockin Arputham Laxminarayan Ramdas  Indonesia Ahmad Syafi'i Maarif  Japan Ikuo Hirayama Tetsu Nakamura Saburo Okita Seiei Toyama    Nepal Sanduk Ruit  Pakistan Ibn Abdur Rehman  Philippines Operation Brotherhood Summer Institute of Linguistics William Masterson Harold Ray Watson International Institute of Rural Reconstruction Press Foundation of Asia Asian Institute of Management Corazon Aquino  South Korea Pomnyun Sunim  Thailand Asian Institute of Technology The Royal Project  United States based in  Thailand Genevieve Caulfield

Emergent Leadership (2001–)
Burma Ka Hsaw Wa  China Chen Guangcheng  Cambodia Oung Chanthol  India Sanjiv Chaturvedi Arvind Kejriwal Nileema Mishra Sandeep Pandey  Indonesia Ambrosius Ruwindrijarto Dita Indah Sari  Philippines Benjamin Abadiano  South Korea Yoon Hye-ran  Sri Lanka Ananda Galappatti  East Timor Aniceto Guterres Lopes  United States based in  Hong Kong Chung To

Uncategorized (2009–)

Bangladesh Syeda Rizwana Hasan A.H.M. Noman Khan  Cambodia Yang Saing Koma Koul Panha  China Fu Qiping Huo Daishan Ma Jun Pan Yue Yu Xiaogang  India Kulandei Francis Harish Hande Deep Joshi  Indonesia Hasanain Juaini Tri Mumpuni  Japan Tadatoshi Akiba  Philippines Alternative Indigenous Development Foundation, Inc. (AIDFI) Christopher Bernido Ma. Victoria Carpio-Bernido Romulo Davide Antonio Oposa Jr.  Taiwan Chen Shu-chu  Thailand Krisana Kraisintu