Women of the Kakawin World: Marriage and Sexuality in the Indic Courts of Java and Bali

Overview

Creese (Indonesian, U. of Queensland) examines the experiences of the women of the royal court of the kakawin as expressed in narratives about their expectations, lives, daily activities, growing sense of sexuality as they waited for their weddings, their fulfillment after marriage, and all too often their burning to death on the pyres of their husbands or their complete withdrawal from court life in a hermitage. Providing extensive commentary on her texts and illustrative materials, Creese presents the narratives—epic poems of hundreds of lines—on the subjects of royal power, appropriate behavior in court, and gender and sexuality in Java and Bali, stretching back to at least the ninth century. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR