Code-Switching or Bahasa Gado-Gado in Discussion of Homosexuality in Indonesian Films

Abstract

The article offers insights on how code-switching (CS) as a linguistic device and mechanism has served as an act of empowerment for the bilingual filmmaker to challenge government domination. Bahasa gado-gado, an Indonesian-English CS, is normatively unfavorable language use in Indonesia. The negative sentiment toward CS has been expressed by many Indonesians and the government. This article investigates the English switches in otherwise Indonesian popular cinematic texts: two films released after 1998, a critical political moment in Indonesia. Since the collapse of the New Order era in 1998, the use of bahasa gado-gado has been significantly visible in public spaces. Using a textual interpretive analysis, I show how CS is a tool used by characters to express “non-normative” sexual orientations in a liberating and open manner; by extension, CS in this context serves to expand monolithic definitions of Indonesianness.

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