International Journal of Indonesian Studies Volume 1, Issue 3 | Page 149

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INDONESIAN STUDIES SPRING 2016 dandisanamendapathiburandarisepi. Karenahanyasepi mampumenghisapdendamdansakithati. Thousands of condors, millions of condors, move toward the high mountains, and there get entertainment from deserted. Because only lonely able to suck revenge and hurt. The repetition of these numbers in Indonesian and the allied alliteration pronounces a musical beat like that of the heart. Thus, the rhythmic oral delivery sounds similar to a drumbeat urging audiences to internalize the meanings and to follow the drummer boy. He frequently used loathsome animals as metaphors. In his poem, ‘Khotbah’ (‘Sermon’), he describes the Indonesian people ‘Sebagaiseklompokserigala yang malasdanlapar’ (‘Like a flock of hungry lazy jackals’) (Avelling p.4); in ‘Pemandangansenjakala 1968,’ (‘Twilight View’)‘Sekolompokanjing liar’ (‘A pack of wild dogs’) (Ibid. p.44) and ‘Kelelawar-kelelawarraksasa’ (‘vampire bats’) (Ibid.). These are all mean and dastardly animals not deserving of empathy and his subjects are justified by such ugly comparisons. His words could also be heartfelt and deeply moving: ‘The wind’s heart ached as it watched the sad strides of peasant labourers, working on fertile land, which did not give them prosperity’ (Rendra cited in Lane, 2009) This translated stanza may not have the same soft, simple musical tones of the Indonesian language version; however, it still captures the sorrow and exhaustion of the people. His observations of the poor stated their downtrodden existence and also imbued them with the spirit of regal birds such as eagles and condors, even when they were overwhelmed by anguish and pain. In his early poetry, Rendra writes of human suffering in a sympathetic voice and his style is influenced by the traditional song form of the tembang, a style of classical vocal music which is sung in free verse poetry (Literatuan 1976). There is evidence also of the music of Negro Spirituals in the poem, Khotbah (Sermon), integrated with the chant of the Balinese Kecakmonkey dance. Such an approach 149 | P a g e