Relasi Kuasa dan Pembentukan Identitas Pribumi dalam Novel Bumi Manusia Karya Pramoedya Ananta Toer: Kajian Poskolonialisme Homi K. Bhabha

Abstract

This study aims to examine colonial power relations and the process of indigenous identity formation in the novel Bumi Manusia by Pramoedya Ananta Toer using Homi K. Bhabha’s postcolonial approach. The study is based on the assumption that colonialism operates not only through political and economic domination, but also through cultural discourses that shape the subjectivity and identity of colonized societies. The method employed is descriptive qualitative research with thematic content analysis of the novel’s text. The analysis focuses on the concepts of mimicry, hybridity, and ambivalence to reveal the dynamics of colonial power relations and the negotiation of indigenous identity, particularly in the characters of Minke and Nyai Ontosoroh. The findings indicate that mimicry in the novel is ambiguous, as the imitation of colonial culture never fully results in equality, but instead reinforces racial hierarchies. Hybridity produces a dual identity situated within an in-between space (third space), while ambivalence reflects ideological tensions between acceptance and rejection of colonial values. Within unequal power structures, indigenous characters also demonstrate symbolic resistance through the mastery of knowledge and economic independence. This study concludes that Bumi Manusia represents colonialism as an unstable form of power that continually opens spaces for negotiation, thereby enabling the formation of dynamic indigenous identities in a postcolonial context.