Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Date of Degree
9-2025
Document Type
Doctoral Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Program
Theatre and Performance
Advisor
Peter Eckersall
Committee Members
Jean Graham-Jones
James F. Wilson
Subject Categories
Theatre and Performance Studies
Keywords
post-authoritarian, agonism, agony, citizenship, Indonesia
Abstract
This dissertation offers a theoretical model of citizenship in contemporary Indonesia, one founded in the performance of agony—through protest, activism, playwriting, choreography, and video art. This model, termed “post-authoritarian agonism” in this dissertation, frames how agonism has become intertwined with the performance of agony amid Indonesia’s democratization process in the two decades since the 1998 Refomarsi, or Reformation. Chantal Mouffe’s concept of agonism is expanded to explore agony- referring to pain and suffering of the people- in contemporary Indonesia; however, the argument departs from Mouffe’s theory in that it contends that Mouffe’s concept overestimates citizen resilience. This dissertation makes the argument, therefore, that agony can be understood as a dramaturgical approach when considering artist and citizen justice movements; it epitomizes the relationship between citizens and Indonesia’s post-authoritarian state. “Post-authoritarian” refers to both the period of time after the end of the authoritarian military regime, and to the current shift toward authoritarianism in Indonesia, embellished as it is with neoliberal policies and increased military control of civil society. A broad, post-authoritarian context sharpens the study of citizenship in Indonesia. Since the country’s independence in 1945, although the right to Indonesian citizenship has been vested in the foundational document of the Pancasila or Indonesia’s five official theories, I argue in this dissertation that this ideal has not yet been realized.
Recommended Citation
Suryatmoko Ndaruhadi, Yoseph Joned, "Post-Authoritarian Agonism: Performing Agony and Citizenship in Contemporary Indonesia" (2025). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/6369
