In "A New Criminal Type in Jakarta", James T. Siegel studies the dependence of Indonesia's post-1965 government on the ubiquitous presence of what he calls criminality, an ensemble of imagined forces within its society that is poised to tear it apart. Siegel, a foremost authority on Indonesia, interprets Suharto's New Order-in powerful contrast to Sukarno's Old Order - and shows a cultural and political life in Jakarta controlled by a repressive regime that has created new ideas among its population about crime, ghosts, fear, and national identity. Examining the links between the concept of criminality and scandal, rumour, fear, and the state, Siegel analyses daily life in Jakarta through the seemingly disparate but strongly connected elements of family life, gossip, and sensationalist journalism. He offers close analysis of the preoccupation with crime in "Pos Kota" (a newspaper directed toward the lower classes) and the middle-class magazine "Tempo".Because criminal activity has been a sensationalised preoccupation in Jakarta's news venues and among its people, criminality, according to Siegel, has pervaded the identities of its ordinary citizens. Siegel examines how and why the government, fearing revolution and in an attempt to assert power, has made criminality itself a disturbing rationalisation for the spectacular massacre of the people it calls criminals-many of whom were never accused of particular crimes."A New Criminal Type in Jakarta" reveals that Indonesians - once united by Sukarno's revolutionary proclamations in the name of 'the people' - are now, lacking any other unifying element, united through their identification with the criminal and through a 'nationalisation of death' that has emerged with Suharto's strong counter-revolutionary measures. A provocative introduction to contemporary Indonesia, this book will engage those interested in Southeast Asian studies, anthropology, history, political science, postcolonial studies, public culture, and cultural studies generally.
阅读这本书的过程,与其说是“读”,不如说是一种深入的“体验”。作者的叙事声线非常独特,它时而冷静客观,如同冰冷的记录仪在捕捉现场;时而又突然转为一种充满内省和哲思的口吻,抛出一些发人深省的问题,迫使我停下来,反复咀嚼那些句子背后的深意。这种叙事焦点的频繁切换,非但没有造成混乱,反而为故事增添了一种多维度的深度。我发现自己不自觉地开始模仿书中的某些人物的思考模式,试图提前预判他们的下一步行动,但每一次的预测似乎都被作者巧妙地绕开了,这种“被戏弄”的感觉,反而带来了一种阅读上的巨大乐趣和智力上的挑战。语言的运用上,大量使用了富有画面感的比喻和意象,有些段落的美感,完全可以单独摘出来作为文学欣赏的对象,它们如同精美的雕塑,闪烁着智慧的光芒。
评分这本书的封面设计真是抓人眼球,色彩搭配大胆而富有张力,黑白与一抹鲜红的对比,仿佛预示着故事中光明与黑暗的激烈碰撞。装帧的质感也相当不错,拿在手里沉甸甸的,让人对内页的内容充满期待。光是看着它静静地躺在书架上,就觉得它自带一种不容忽视的气场。作者在排版和字体选择上也颇费心思,每一页的留白都恰到好处,阅读起来非常舒适,即便是长时间沉浸其中,眼睛也不会感到疲惫。我特别喜欢作者在章节标题旁加入的那些小小的、符号化的插图,它们虽然微小,却像精心设计的暗号,无声地暗示着接下来即将发生的某些关键情节或人物情绪的转折点,这种细微的匠心使得阅读体验从单纯的文字接收升级为一种视觉与触觉的综合享受。整体来看,这本书的外在包装无疑是成功的,它在众多作品中脱颖而出,成功地扮演了“引人入胜的邀请函”的角色,让人迫不及待想要揭开它神秘的面纱。
评分我必须得说,作者在构建宏大叙事背景时的功力令人叹为观止,那种细节的铺陈,简直就像是把读者直接空投到了故事发生地的中心。你几乎能闻到那种特有的、混合了潮湿空气、香料和某种工业废气的味道。人物的刻画更是入木三分,每个人物——即便是出场时间极短的配角——都有着清晰可辨的动机和复杂的内心世界,他们不是扁平的符号,而是活生生的、充满矛盾的个体。我尤其欣赏作者处理道德灰色地带的方式,没有简单粗暴地划分善恶,而是让读者不断地去审视和质疑自己原有的判断标准。整个故事的节奏感把握得极其精妙,时而如同慢火炖煮般酝酿情绪,时而又陡然加速,节奏的张弛有度,牢牢地牵制住了我的注意力,让我几乎无法停下来去思考别的事情,仿佛自己就是那个身处风暴眼中的观察者,既想逃离又忍不住想知道下一秒会发生什么。
评分这本书在处理复杂人际关系网方面展现出了非凡的技巧。那些错综复杂、相互交织的利益链条和情感纠葛,就像一张巨大的蜘蛛网,稍有不慎就会被困住。作者并没有采用那种线性叙事来梳理这些关系,而是通过片段、闪回和不同视角之间的跳跃,让读者自己去拼凑和理解人物之间那盘根错节的联系。这种需要读者主动参与建构的阅读模式,极大地提升了代入感和思考的积极性。更令人称奇的是,作者对于权力运作的剖析,其精准和深刻,让人感到一丝寒意。它揭示了在特定环境下,社会结构是如何形塑个体行为,以及那些看似坚不可摧的规则是如何在幕后被悄悄扭曲和利用的。读完之后,我对现实社会中一些运行机制的看法,无疑是受到了极大的冲击和重塑。
评分我对这本书的结构设计给予最高的评价。它仿佛被切分成无数个精密的齿轮,每一个章节、每一个场景,看似独立,实则紧密相连,共同驱动着整个故事巨轮的向前运转。作者似乎非常擅长玩弄时间线,在关键的节点上设置了意想不到的反转,这些反转并非突兀的“神来之笔”,而是基于前面所有铺垫的逻辑必然,这才是高明之处。最让我印象深刻的是,故事的高潮部分处理得极其克制而有力,没有陷入廉价的感官刺激,而是将所有的情绪张力都凝聚在了人物内心深处那场无声的较量之中。读完最后一页,合上书本的那一刻,心中涌起的是一种复杂的情绪——既有故事结束的失落,又有被如此精妙的叙事艺术所震撼的敬意。这本书绝非是那种读完即忘的消遣之作,它留下的回味是悠长而深刻的,值得反复咀嚼。
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