Running head: ANALYTICAL BOOK REVIEW 1

Analytical Book Review: Footsteps and Showa

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Analytical Book Review: Footsteps and Showa

Ways Each of the Two Works Present History

Pramoedya Toer’s Footsteps presents Indonesia’s history as a novel using political

reporting and personal account detailing the life of Minke, the fictional character of Tirko. The

detailing relies on the period of colonization of Netherland Indies, current Indonesia, towards the

dawning of the 20th century. At the time, natives faced widespread injustice from the Dutch. Toer

falls a victim of the Dutch’s prejudice as he is held for 14 years in Buru without trial facing

accusation on involvement in the 1965 coup attempt and associating with communists. In Toer’s

narration, Minke moves from Surabaya to Batavia in search of higher education (Toer, 1996).

Batavia is the east indies capital, serving as the intellectual and political center, its resources

inform Minke’s optimism towards an independent Indonesia when he asserts “Farewell to all that

is past. And the dark times, neither are you exempt, farewell.” In Batavia, he joins the Stovia

native medical school, and he forges new friendships as well as enemies, all of which influence

his decisions as an individual and as a political activist.

In contrast, Shigeru Mizuki talks about Japan’s history in three volumes of comic series

titled Showa: A History of Japan. The comic series provides a comprehensive detailing of the

Japanese heritage and sentiments in the war period, inclusive of the Great Depression, the

Korean war, the Vietnam war, and world war two. Shigeru also uses the comic to narrate how the

joint occupation affected the country, especially strengthening Japan’s economy under the

leadership of Emperor Hirohito between 1926 to 1989. Alongside the historical facts, Showa

encompasses personal accounts from Shigeru, having served as an infantryman during the

Imphal campaign and a soldier in the Japan wars. His narrative gives clarity on how the Japanese

troops continually grew dispirited in the wars and the indecisiveness among citizens who sought
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to reinforce their allegiance to the governor while despairing with every lost battle and increased

number of soldier’s possessions sent home to the mourning families, additionally, the struggles

he underwent in moving back to society after the war.

Kind of View of History Presented in the Two Books

Throughout his stay at Batavia, Minke faces colonialism injustices such as oppression,

exploitation, slavery, and ethnicity. Preceding his arrival at Batavia, Minke had passed Ancol, a

place where sixty thousand native soldiers had lost their lives as they slaved in building Batavia.

In the school, Minke first meets an office clerk whose directives and assertions are offensive;

when he asks Minke if he can follow through the rules, the clerk is assuming that Minke being

Javanese would affect his obedience (Toer, 1996). Additionally, Minke is not allowed to put on

European wear; instead, he is forced to put them away and in turn, put on a destar and walk

barefoot.

At the dormitory, a Eurasian boy and a European boy attack him calling him a village

boy; the encounter leaves him naked and humiliated while the European boy loses two teeth

(Toer, 1996). The office clerk who had witnessed the attack, reports nothing of it. In his stay at

Batavia, Minke forms a political organization for the Indies natives criticizing the Dutch’s rule.

His political views soon lead to his expulsion from the medical school. Undeterred, he continues

his criticism of the Dutch government inclusive of the governor-general, resulting in the banning

of his magazine, his arrest, and later exiled.

The first volume of Showa elaborates on the economic crisis and fiscal slowdown caused

by the Kanto earthquake. Tokyo much felt the effects and resultantly had the nation under

military dictatorship. Instead of uniting, the country developed warring factions with the right-

wing soldiers consistently murdered the protesters citing nationalism combined with Buddhism
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(Mizuki, 2013). At the same time, the left-wing troops championed a fairer society. As the

economic crisis persisted, prices of commodities varied, limiting affordability and subjecting the

citizens to malnourishment. Shigeru expresses the gravity of the deprivation as he asserts,

“desperate people are forced to sell their families, meaning, of course, their daughters.” Families

gave out their daughters as gifts like in the case of Jin Bihui, or the girls indulged in prostitution

and later committing suicide.

The second volume details the plight of the Japanese soldiers; Shigeru is part of the unit

deployed to Papua New Guinea to carry out a suicide charge. The soldiers have to find food

while battling diseases; again, they suffer corporal punishment effected by the Japanese military

officers (Mizuki, 2013). Nonetheless, the soldiers are resilient as the mentality of militarism is

instilled in them from childhood. They proceed to carry out their orders, mostly massacres, and

work as a team. The Japanese troops also face brutality from the U.S soldiers during the pacific

war as Shigeru’s brother is prosecuted for having killed a pilot from a downed plane (Mizuki,

2013). Shigeru shows endurance when he creates a relationship with Papua New Guinea’s

natives after losing his arm after a bomb detonated.

In the third volume of the Showa series for the period 1944 to 1953, Shigeru informs

Japan’s state after the war. Soldiers return home having no jobs and are left to scout the country

seeking employment and begging for food.

Emotional Relevance of the History

Toer employs the use of personification, friendships, betrayal, and conflicts in the life of

Minke, showing the tumultuous times Indonesia experienced. In his quest to convey and advance

political and social knowledge, Minke reconnects with Ter Haar, who is a liberal Dutch

Journalist. Ter claims that natives can only increase their value and earn respectability by
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offering free labor, just that it is all they did. At the end of their meeting, Minke concludes that

Ter is no different from the colonialist as he chooses only to ask questions appealing to the

“wolves.” Minke, again, meets an exiled Chinese girl, Mei, who much inspires him. Mei worked

to establish a Chinese organization known as Tiong Hoa Hwee Koan, which focused on the

liberation of the Asian country through education (Toer, 1996). At their first meet, Minke is

“enthralled by her beauty” he goes on to say, “his eyes reached out to grasp her beauty.”

However, he soon finds out that Mei is not only endowed with beauty but also with knowledge.

The newly founded friendship enables openness and has Mei advising Minke to finish his

medical career to help his community and not to claim liberation in saying but follow through

with actions in freeing Indonesia.

Moreover, Minke had gained favor from Governor Van Heutsz through his paper Medan.

The governor endorses Minke’s work as he does not ask questions during the press briefings

indicating authority’s inclination towards people who do not question their actions. The weekly

newspaper effectively reinforced and clarified the government’s legal system; however, after two

years, the government was not willing to print it again (Toer, 1996). Minke is surprised by the

change and alleges deception by Van Heutsz. He also learns that his long-time rival, Robert

Suurhof, is after him and is behind the printing issues; the turn of events informs changeability of

relationships with foes quickly turned to allies and vice-versa.

In the three volumes, Shigeru talks of the desperation felt by both the citizens and

Japanese soldiers through the war periods and economic depreciation, and in desperate times,

people act irrationally. In context, the widespread fiscal crush results in unemployment, and one

man, a victim of unemployment goes up the chimney tower of a renowned factory and stays

there for six days (Mizuki, 2013). The leaders, too, instead of uniting to find a solution to the
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crisis, divide the citizens through their factions, putting their selfish needs first and even moving

into china. Those contrasting the popular opinion faced torture, imprisonment, or assassination.

The unfair treatment resonates with the current ruling governments, where those in power

continually impose harsh treatment on the opposition or utterly silencing them. Shigeru’s

account shows in his use of a character called NonNonBa, who is living with the grandmother.

The lessons from his grandmother influence his quest to seek the unknown and effects of

military occupation and imperialism in China. Shigeru discloses that children lose their lives

during the military sweeps in the neighborhood and also gang wars as they are easily gullible and

view the generals as the country’s heroes.

Which One is Effective and Why

Comic illustration by Shigeru in the Showa series is adequate in detailing history than the

Footsteps novel. Cartoon presentation of history provides a subjective view encompassing the

authors drawing preference. As comics have no limitations on the drawing style applied, an

illustrator can either use a blueprint or painting with the aid of other media or a blend of the two,

each having a specific meaning depending on what the author seeks to portray. The comics used

by Shigeru demonstrate how pestilence caused suffering among the Japanese soldiers, the picture

of young Jin also tugs emotions from the readers seeing how young she was when separated

from the parents in exchange for sustained life. The authenticity of the comics translates to the

current experiences and helps both the young and old readers to learn of the past events, relate

them to the current occurrences and ways to contest existing injustices.

The Trusted Perspective and the Supporting Reason

The sequential outlining of the significant events in Japan’s history by Shigeru draws

more trust. In his illustrations, he takes the reader through the different phases of his life and how
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it influenced his life during the 20th century. He comprehensively gives an account of those

involved in each event, their contribution, and the survivors' live after the happenings. With each

chapter, Shigeru enforces the virtue of compassion and adjustability even in the face of conflict.

He also presents the effect of imperialism, the resilience of a country in protecting its sovereignty

and impact of the allied occupation. Collectively, the themes examined in Shigeru’s comic are

useful in the formulation of a united Japan.

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References

Mizuki, S. (2013). Showa: A History of Japan (1st ed.). Canada: Drawn and Quarterly.

Toer, P. (1996). Footsteps (pp. 8-362). New York: Penguin.