Style and Authority in Javanese Muslim Sermons

The languages of preaching: Code selection inSundaneseIslamic oratory,WestJava

“…Ward Keeler's () analysis of code selection and Islamic oratory illustrate the national standard's instrumental value in performing transformation. His research was carried out within the Javanese ethnic group, which occupies the provinces of Java to the east of West Java Province.…”

“…Male audience members mostly gave negative critiques of festive, multivocal preaching, even when they themselves were stimulated by such performances. They approved of preaching delivered in a ‘constricted style’ characterised by a ‘single, serious tone, constant use of either refined Javanese or the national language, Indonesian, or perhaps a mixture of the two, plus a great deal of Arabic, and the exclusion of song and narrative’ (Keeler : 166). It is important to note precisely what was excluded: not the use of the expressive registers of Javanese, but a preaching style rich in multivocality and diverse ways of speaking.…”

“…They expressed a correlative perception that Indonesian formality was the code of status and power in the contemporary nation. Hence, ‘The serious, monological tone of official speech strikes (Javanese villagers) as more persuasive than a more entertaining tone’ (Keeler : 175) . They felt compelling reasons for showing deference to the social value of transformation.…”

“… My thinking on the anachronistic meanings of conventional oratorical frames has developed out of my reading of Keeler () and Keane (). …”

“… Norms of public display in Indonesian cultures play a role here also. Keeler notes that men approved of the restrained, less expressive preaching style because it is ‘indicative of self‐possession and control, an attribute of people who are in possession of power and deserve to exercise authority’ (Keeler : 174). …”