Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Collective Representation & Economic Development
Collective Representation & Economic Development
Collective Representation & Economic Development
TABLE II-B*
Malays
Chinese Indians
Others
TOTAL
2.6
_ 3.2
2.3
11.6
3.0
0.4
1.6
2.8
72.8
negli
gible
2.0
3.7
15.6
37.7
1.0
3.9
9.8
49.2
3.5
7.4
4.0
17.2
1.1
2.2
8.4
55.4
0.6
0.1
0.1
0.3
2.7
3.5
3.4
2.4
3.1
7.6
23.7
20.7
5.7
15.2
7.1
(97.7)
97.6
7.9
7.5
8.5
97.9
97.9
46.4
(98.4)
98.3
0.4
(98.1)
98.0
0.4
0.3
98.3
1.9
100.0
1.7
100.0
Chapter 3
97.8
98.2
0.5
(98.9)
98.8
98.2
1.8
100.0
1.1
100.0
1.8
100.0
0.4
COLLECTIVE REPRESENTATIONS
54
55
56
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57
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58
water by a big fish and kept there for a day and a night.
The fisherman was released by the fish and returned home
to find that his people were conducting the mourning and
prayer ceremony for his death. To prevent a recurrence of
such an incident Lubok B:itu has since been avoided by the
fishermen.
Another instance refers to Kampong Jamuan, approxi
mately four miles from Kuala Kangsar. It is believed that
the founder of the kampong, a certain Moyang Kiam, once
killed a jungle ghost or spirit (Hantu Rimba). As a result
of this a feud started between the descendants of the Hantu
Rimba and Moyang Kiam. The descendants of Moyang Kiam
are not supposed to enter the jungle unless they have with
them a golok or a piece of iron. Should this condition be
ignored the ghost may attack and at nightfall the person
will suffer illness or insanity. This story has a definite effect
on the villagers living in the vicinity. They dare not gather
atap or wood from the area alleged to be the location where
Moyang Kiam killed the Hantu Rimba, and the land in that
area is left undeveloped.
In yet another field of activity we have the dear instance
of how collective representations influence padi-planting in
the Tanjong Karang area of Selangor. In the sections of
Sawah Sempadan and Sungai Burong, planting may not.take
place on certain days of the year. The seed may be planted
only during moonless nights, and special days are also chosen
for sowing. For those who are not adept in calculating the
right days, their own birthdays or those of their children
may be used instead. There are also rules and taboos
connected with the semangat padi (the soul or spirit of the
padi) which is believed to be responsible for the success of
the crop.s
Another instance which we can cite here is that of
Kampong Vlu J elin, about 30 miles north of Seremban,
Negri Sembilan. This village has approximately two hundred
inhabitants. The houses are all located on a plain, surrounded
by padi fields. The main occupations are rubber tapping
and padi planting. The reason why all the houses are located
on the plain is apparently due to the need to avoid gorges,
59
valleys, huge stones, trees and thick jungles, for these are
all likely to be the haunts of ghosts and evil spirits. 1I
This mental outlook toward the environment is not con
ducive to the growth of the developmental spirit, where
nature is seen only as a means for the attainment of human
objectives and is divested of all personified entities which
awaken a subservient and hesitant attitude.
The examples we have so far selected showing the relation
between collective representations and economic develop
ment require further elaboration. Instances of this nature,
though abundant throughout rural Malaysia, do not affect
the major trends in the economic process. They do not, for
instance, inhibit the process of monetization in the rural
areas,l(} neither do they affect the trends in prices and demand.
In short, there is a wide range of economic activity which is
not affected in any significant way by the collective repre
sentations of the kind discussed above. However, this kind
of representation does have an indirect effect on economic
development. Before further discussion it is perhaps necessary
to make one or two points on social causation to avoid the
impression that we are simplifying the issue of collective
representations and economic development. To begin with,
events and processes surrounding such phenomena as
economic development or any other in the social and cultural
life of man always involve a complex network of causation,
conditions and ramifications into the diverse aspects of social
and cultural life.
There is, however, one major aspect in economic develop
ment which is susceptible to influences from the kind of
collective representations discussed earlier. We shall call
these negative representations as oppose(.i....,1:o positive repre
sentations which we shall later discuss. They are negative
in terms of their total effect on economic development. They
inhibit or are not conducive to behaviour traits essential for
economic development, such as self-confidence, the need
for achievement, industriousness, perseverance, rationality,
efficiency, discipline, orderliness, acquisitiveness, inventive
ness, courage to take reasonable risk, ability to' make
decisions, etc. No doubt the effect of negative representations
~,
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60
61
taboo.
62
63
64
Chapter 4
CIAL CHANGE
201
NOTES
Chapter 3
1. L. Levy-Bruhl, How Natives Think (tr. L. A. Clare), Washington
Square Press, New York, 1966. Though reference is here made to
Levy-Bruhl, it does not imply an agreement with his theory of
pre-logical and logical mentaliti~s, which he subsequentl~ withd:-ew.
The term collective representatIOn has also been used WIth a WIder
connotation by Durkheim and others.
2. Despite criticism from certain quarters, many of Levy-Bruhl's
findings are sound and illuminating.
3. Levy-Bruhl, op. cit., p. 71.
4. W. 'V. Skeat, Malay Magic, p. 36, Macmillan, London, 1900.
5. As will be discussed later, not every collective representation is
detrimental to social progress.
6. This paper was written in 1965. In 1970 the ruling Malay party in
Malaysia, the United Malays National Organization, published a
book, Revolusi Mental (Mental Revolution) .
7. Reference informant: Meor Ahmad Azam bin Hussin, II year
(1965) undergraduate in Malay Culture.
8. Reference informant: Mohd. Amir bin Jaafar, II year (1965)
undergraduate in Malay Culture.
9. Reference informant: JOhari bin Hassan, II year (1965) under
graduate in Malay Culture.
10. On monetization and rural development in Malaysia, see Ungku A.
Aziz, 'Poverty and Rural Development in Malaysia', Kajian
Ekonomi Malaysia, VoL 1, No. I, June, 1964.
II. It is entirely fortuitous, that negative representations have been
selected from Malay society and positive instances from Chinese
society. Both cultures contain abundant instances of negative as
well as positive collective representations. See Chapter 2 on
positive representations amongst the Malays.
12. Reference informant: Tham Seong Chee, III year (1965) under
graduate in Malay Culture.
13. See Cll. 2.
14. An earlier observer made the following remark concerning the
relation of collective representations to economic activity in rural
Malaya: 'In conclusion I cannot refrain from remarking that it is
idle to hope for the economic progress of the Malays so long as
this and similar beliefs prevail among them'. Dato Sedia Raja,
Pr I',
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The Author
Introduction
vii
Introduction
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xii
'''1'
Introduction
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Introduction
Introduction
~xperience.
their myths. 35 H,J. Rose, in his study of Greek myths, points out
how they reflect the national character of the Greeks. 36
What do the Malay feudal myths reveal of the character
of the group behind them? In my opinion they indicate a group
with a decadent ideology.
In studying Malay historical narratives as the main
sources of Malay feudal myths, we are not denying the
importance of a critical edition of texts. Every piece of evidence
in the texts, though trivial, unhistorical, exaggerated or fictional,
has the value of an important fact. What Brentano says of the
chronicles and annals he uses in the study of feudal France is
relevant here: "Even if this story should lack authenticity the
fact of its having been noted down by a man living at the time
is not the less significant."37
Finally I need to clarify that if this study carries a
negative tone, it is largely determined by the materials. I am
not, however, making a generalization that all myths have
negative connotations. As has been pointed out the negative
connotation arises when myths are exploited in favour of the
interests of certain groups above others, which is the case with
the myths in the Malay historical narratives. I am, further,
aware of the negative connotation of the term 'myth' itself.
Such connotation is derived from a long history. Bel Halpern
appropriately observes that myths took on negative
connotations as far back as the Homeric epics, which are
regarded as implicit critiques and reformulations of earlier
myths and the subsequent criticism of myth by monotheistic
iconoclasm. The long succession of critics of myth finally
stamped on the word the meaning of unfounded fantasy
which it has since retained. 38 David Bidney similarly asserts
that myth is not a scientifically neutral term; on the contrary
xviii
Introduction
29.
30.
Syed Hussein Alatas, The Myth of the Lazy Native, op. cit. p. 1.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
xxii
...~::------
.'
7.
8.
9.
xx
Introduction
David Bidney, "Myth" in Theoretical Anthropology, Columbia
University Press, New York, 1953, p. 325.
Jacques Ellul, "Modern Myths", Diogenes, no. 23, 1958.
Cassirer, op. cit., p. 203.
Syed Hussein Alatas, The Myth of the Laz:y Native, Frank Cass,
London, 1977.
19.
G.S. Kirk states that there are three functions of myth. The first
function is primarily narrative and entertaining; the second
operative, iterative, and validatory; and the third speculative
and explanatory. I believe that the narrative function is common
to all myths and cannot be classified as a separate function. Kirk
himself admits this fact: "Yet myths that are exclusively narrative,
and seem to have no speculative or operative content whatever,
are rare." Refer to G.S. Kirk, Myth: Its Meaning and Functions
in Ancient and Other Cultures, Cambridge University Press,
London, 1970, pp. 253-4.
Andrew Lang's assertion that myth is explanatory is a reaction
against Max Muller's theory of myth. Muller suggests that
myths are formed as a resultof a misunderstanding of names or
what is popularly known as "a disease of language". See Andrew
Lang, Myth, Ritual and Religion, vol. I & II, Longmans, Green,
London, 1913.
xxi
xxii
:--";.---
Ruling Class
into it. The taste was rich and sweet. Then he said to Merah
Silu, 'Your name shall be Sultan Maliku'} Saleh. From now
on your are a Muslim and will recite the words of the profession
of faith .... In forty days' time a ship will arrive from Mecca.
The words spoken by the people on board and all their
observances which are in accordance with the institution of
Islam, these you must follow without deviation. And you must
that he had been circumcized and was able to read the thirty
14
5
4
of the blood stopped. But by that time the princess was dead."26
Here the personality of a being is considered indi visible, residing
27
source:'29
9
8
40
turned to gold and their spume into silver. Rice, blood and
41
human being could turned into stones. In Hikayat Merong
the sense that the possession of the kris marked a new turning
point in his career as a warrior. Coming into possession of the
kris, he was knighted as an admiral.44 Anyone wishing to defeat
him had to first deprive him of his weapon. When he was
brought back from exile and ordered to kill the treacherous
Hang Jebat, his first request to the ruler was the return of his
kris Taming Sari. However, since the weapon was in the hands
of Hang Jebat, the ruler offered Hang Tuah another weapon
which he accepted reluctantly. He expressed pessimism about
defeating Hang Jebat with the new weapon. 45
Given this idea of mystic association between man
and a certain object he comes into contact with, adherents of
such an idea believe that in order to defeat an enemy they
must gain possession of his weapon or for that matter anything
upon which his strength or life depends. In a duel with Hang
Jebat, Hang Tuah had only to seize the magical kris from
Hang Jebat to render Hang Jebat vulnerable to weapons. 46
Hikayat Hang Tuah also relates how Hang Tuah's health
gradually deteriorated after losing his kris in an undersea
battle with a white crocodile. Likewise the health of
Sultan Mahmud, the Malaccan ruler, deteriorated after his
crown fell into the sea. 47 Sejarah Melayu also records a
mystic relation between the royal crown and a storm. It is
related how during a severe storm the ship of Sri Tri Buana
began to sink. In order to save the ship from sinking all
things were thrown overboard. This measure however
failed. It was then believed that the floundering of the
ship had something to do with the royal crown, and that unless
it was also thrown overboard the ship could not be saved. It is
recounted how once the crown was thrown overboard, the
storm suddenly abated and the ship regained her buoyancy
r
f
executed and the soil on which his house stood was dug out and
thrown into the sea. 55
We have seen how physical and moral attributes are
substantialized. This preoccupation with the concrete,
the material and the substantial is an important trait of
mythical thinking. Hang Tuah's strength for example was
concretized in a kris, the king of Malacca's in a crown. The
origin myths in the Malay historical narratives relate how
certain creations originated from simple, concrete substances.
56
Bat was issued from the foam spewed by a white COW.
In Hikayat Hang Tuah a white cow, the incarnation of a
heavenly being, vomitted foam from which emerged a
beautiful woman. 57 Putri Junjung Buih originated from
foam,58 as did Putri Seluang59 in Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa.
Putri Buluh Betung60 in Hikayat Raja-Raja Pasai and Raja
Betung 61 in Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa emerged from
bamboos. Cassirer points out that even when enquiring into
genesis and origin, mythical thinking normally links the
'genesis' with a concrete, given substance. It knows and
apprehends the process of action, only as a simple change from
one concrete individual substance to another. 62 He calls this
tendency the 'material-substantial view of action'.
Notes
1.
2.
3.
4.
19
5.
6.
7.
Ibid., p. 37.
8.
9.
14.
15.
Ibid., p. 5.
16.
17.
Ibid., p. 250.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
Ibid., p. 25.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
Ibid., p. 81.
10.
Jan Van Baal, Symbolsfor Communication, Van Gorcum, Assen,
1971, p. 1.
20
21
49.
50.
5!.
Refer to note no. 22.
52.
53.
57.
58.
59.
60.
61.
62.
63.
Ibid., p. 38.
Ibid., p.
40.
67.
68.
69.
22
23