VISUAL REPRESENTATION OF CHILDHOOD IN INPRES STORYBOOKS FROM 1974-1984

• Main Author: Defa Rachmadian, Anneke
• Format: Theses
• Language: Indonesia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/86198
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

This research focuses on the visual representation of children in Inpres storybooks, published between 1974-1984, during Indonesia’s New Order era. These storybooks, widely distributed to elementary schools across the country, became a key medium in shaping children's views about themselves and society. While the Inpres books combined text and illustrations, previous studies have primarily focused on narrative analysis, leaving the visual aspect of the illustrations, which also played a critical role in conveying messages, relatively unexplored. Therefore, this study aims to examine the representation of children and the social interactions depicted through illustrations in the Inpres storybooks. This study employs a visual content analysis method to analyze the images found in the Inpres storybooks. The research explores various visual elements such as image composition and character interactions. Additionally, it delves into dominant themes, including rural life, the prominence of male child characters, and the representation of children as subjects of development. The findings reveal that the visualization of childhood in Inpres storybooks was heavily influenced by rural life settings. Illustrations often depict village scenes with natural elements such as mountains, rice fields, and palm trees, reflecting Indonesia's social conditions at the time. This aligns with the New Order government’s rural development programs, which emphasized infrastructure development in rural areas. Children are frequently portrayed in everyday activities, such as helping their parents in the fields or participating in village cooperative activities. These themes mirror Indonesia’s state of development at the time, focusing on improving the welfare of rural communities. Furthermore, the representation of child characters in these storybooks is dominated by boys, while female characters are often depicted as passive figures, usually in the roles of mothers or younger sisters. Male characters typically take center stage, actively participating in activities related to development or social roles. For instance, boys are often depicted as initiators of school cooperatives or expressing a desire to contribute to village development. Another significant finding is that children are often depicted as objects in development-themed storybooks. They are not portrayed as subjects with full control over their lives, but rather as part of development projects led by adults or the government. These illustrations suggest that childhood during the New Order era was not only constructed by parents but also shaped by the state. This finding aligns with previous studies, which showed that the idealized view of children at that time was influenced by national development agendas and authority control. In conclusion, the illustrations in Inpres storybooks played a significant role in conveying the social and political ideologies of the New Order. These images were not merely supplementary to the narratives but also served as propaganda tools, illustrating how children were expected to contribute to a developing society. As such, the visual content in Inpres storybooks reflects a construction of childhood influenced by development agendas and social control during that period.