LITERATURE & LITERACY

Volume 1(2), October 2023

Online: https://journal.uny.ac.id/v3/index.php/lit
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21831/litlit.v1i2.28

WOMEN'S DISCRIMINATION OF BEAUTY IS A WOUND:

FEMINIST STYLISTICS APPROACH OF SARA MILLS

Lu’luil Maknun
Universitas Mercu Buana Yogyakarta, Indonesia
E-mail: [email protected]

Rimajon Sotlikova
National University of Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan
E-mail: [email protected]

Elysa Hartati
Universitas Mercu Buana Yogyakarta, Indonesia
E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract
This study investigated woman discrimination by the theory of critical discourse analysis from Sara
Mills perspective. Novel Beauty is a Wound by Kurniawan was the source of the research. The data
were analyzed by qualitative descriptive technique through data reduction, data display, and
conclusion drawing or verification employing the feminist literary criticism theory by revealing
woman’ discrimination in the position of the subject, the object position, and the position of the
reader. The findings and results of this study revealed that there were thirty data of female
discrimination in the position of subject, seven of data female discrimination in the position of object
and three data on discrimination against women in the position of the reader. Then, this study
investigated and found five forms of discrimination against women, namely: (1) marginalization, (2)
subordination of women (secondary), (3) female stereotypes (negative labeling), (4) violence against
women (violence), (5) women's double workload. This study suggests some points, adults’ reader is
encouraged to think openly and not to easily assign any kinds of woman discriminations to other,
spread the woman empowerment spirit to others and unnormalize the kind of discrimination against
women that are subconsciously recognized, accepted, and judged by other women as well.

Keywords: Sara Mills, feminist stylistics approach, women's discrimination, Beauty is a Wound

INTRODUCTION
Feminist stylistic analysis or a feminist approach to stylistics related to the works of
Sara Mills, Deidre Burton, Virginia Woolf, and Helene Cixous and Jacques Lacan (Ufot, 2012).
They argue that for years the characterization of women in literature and literary works
and the way they are treated in the society were under the influence of the dominant male
group Rahimnouri & Ghandehariun (2020). Feminist stylistics refers to the examination of
texts from a feminist perspective. It is a specific branch of stylistics that focuses on the
linguistic portrayal of gender-related concerns within a text. The primary goal of feminist
stylistics is to analyze how viewpoints, agency, metaphors, and transitivity are employed in
representing gender, as well as to elucidate instances of sexism. Through an examination of
a text's style and content, feminist stylistics aims to uncover both overt and subtle forms of
sexism, critiquing the depiction of femininity. It is important to note that there is a
distinction between feminist criticism and feminist stylistics. While feminist criticism aims
to deconstruct established gender roles through discourse analysis, feminist stylistics
places equal emphasis on discourse analysis and the stylistic elements employed to convey
that discourse.
This approach emphasizes the differences between the sexes in a variety of ways. In
the early stages of feminist stylistics, the focus revolved around identifying similarities
between women's and men's writing. At that time, it was widely believed that there were
no significant differences in style between the two genders. It was argued that both sexes
employed simple and complex structures, as well as similar lexical choices, to a similar

95
extent. However, there has been a recent shift in emphasis within feminist stylistics. Many
scholars now assert that there exists a distinct form of women's writing that differs
stylistically from men's writing. It is worth noting that the discussion regarding whether
women write in a distinctly different and significant manner compared to men's writing
style is not a novel debate. This begins by the work of Virginia Woolf who asserted that
women writers have developed sentences called "the female sentences" or "the sentences
of female gender" which are different from the male sentences (Mills, 1995:4).
She (Mills, 1995:11) also emphasizes that “reality is organized along gendered lines”,
and tries to control oppressive, controlling social structures, by using political viewpoints
and socioeconomic factors that permit a language to appear.
On the other hand, it should be noted that feminist stylistics goes beyond being a mere
academic endeavor; instead, it serves a political purpose by directing attention towards
gender as a social, political, and ideological construct. Mills (2002) sees inequality of social
practices towards women in the text based on the context and position of the actor in the
text. These actor positions are divided into two core concepts and form the framework for
Sara Mills' discourse analysis, namely the subject-object position and the reader's position.
There has been many research done to investigate feminism particularly the woman’
discrimination (Irshad, I., & Yasmin, M. (2022); Arayani et al, 2021; Mayer, 2018; Hama,
2017; Abbasi, P., & Moslehi, M. (2016); Ufot, 2012; & Sameer, A.K., et al, 2020).

Critical Discourse Analysis

Critical discourse Analysis (CDA) is a conceptual basis and research movement that
investigate how language functions as a cultural instrument to mediate power and privilege
relationships in social interactions, institutions, and bodies of knowledge (Gu & Catalano,
2022).
Similar statement from Wodak & Meyer (2001), they said that CDA takes a particular
interest in the relation between language and power, the term CDA is used nowadays to
refer more specifically to the critical linguistic approach of scholars who and the larger
discursive unit of text to be the basic unit of communication. According to Fairclough
(2013), the critical rejection analysis (CDA) is part of a comprehensive multidisciplinary
and interdisciplinary analysis of the relationship among both disharmony as well as other
components of the sociological phenomena. Critical discourse analysis is defined as an
attempt to demonstrate a text on social phenomena in order to discover the interests
contained within it.

Critical Discourse Analysis of Sara Mills (Feminist Stylistics Approach/FSA)

With the realization that discrimination against women in society had been widely
reflected in countless literary works, particularly by male authors, the feminist movement
eventually inspired feminist literary criticism. Feminist literary criticism describes injustice
of female characters in literary works and reconstructs and rereads literary works with a
focus on female characters or written by female authors (Wiyatmi, 2012). In recent years,
many authors have used this lens to examine literary works such as novels (Darweesh. A.
D., & Ghayad, H. H (2016) Mayer, A. (2018) & Banu, M. S & Mohanagiri, A.S. (2018). Sara
Mills is a Professor of Linguistics at the University of Sheffield Hallam, UK. Her perspective
discourse is a feminist discourse which is better known as Feminist Stylistic. Her attention
focuses on discourses about injustice and misrepresentation of women. Influenced by
Faucault's thoughts on power relations, even though Faucault has never studied women's
discourse, Mills stated that Faucault's thoughts are relevant to studying discourse from a
feminist point of view that tries to fight patriarchal forms of power (Mills, 2003).
Mills (1995:1) explains that employing a feminist-stylistic framework, the researcher
has applied an analysis to diverse literary texts, examining them at the lexical, syntactical,
and discourse levels. In her findings, she asserts that feminist stylistic analysis goes beyond

96 | Literature & Literacy, Volume 1(2), October 2023

merely identifying instances of sexism in a text. Instead, it delves into the intricate
connections between elements such as point of view, agency, metaphor, and transitivity,
revealing their unexpected relevance to gender-related concerns. Furthermore, the
researcher seeks to determine whether women's writing practices can be characterized and
comprehended within this analytical framework. She also explores the issues pertaining to
feminist stylistics and establishes connections with critical linguistics, Halliday's systematic
linguistics, literary stylistics, and discourse stylistics. These interconnected elements
surpass the confines of theoretical linguistic models and incorporate external factors that
extend beyond the text itself. The researcher emphasizes the importance of considering
contextual elements such as race, class, and gender when analyzing a text, asserting that the
practice of isolating a text for analysis, devoid of these considerations, is no longer deemed
appropriate or prevalent “an outdated inheritance” (Mills, 1995:5). Rahimnouri, Z &
Ghandehariun, A. (2020), considering the connection between language and societal
dynamics provides the field of feminist stylistics, akin to other academic disciplines, with an
opportunity to adopt a political perspective aimed at challenging the ideological
implications present within a text. In addition to its aim of interpreting texts and unraveling
patriarchal discourse within their subject matter and content, feminist stylistics also directs
attention towards the development and functioning of discourse. Sara Mills' critical
discourse analysis approach focuses on how women appear in discourse. So far, women
have always been sidelined and in a bad condition, and the women have not been given the
opportunity to defend themselves. This critical discourse approach is often referred to as a
discourse analysis approach from a feminist/feminist stylistics perspective. According to
Sara Mills quoted by Fauzan (2014), this feminist perspective approach has the goal of
explaining what is in conventional stylistics which will become clearer in analyzing
discourse. This will maximize the stylistic function in discourse analysis that is language
only just exist or indeed must exist and appear.
Sara Mills developed this approach to observe how actors appear in discourse. That
is, who will be the subject of the story and who will be the object of the story. Thus, it will
be obtained what kind of discourse building and what meaning is in the discourse in detail.
Sara Mills also observes how readers and writers are treated and how readers identify and
place themselves in the discourse. This will put the reader in a position and influence how
the discourse is realized. The style of storytelling and the positions placed and displayed in
this discourse make one party legalized and the other party not legalized. Furthermore, Sara
Mills divides into three levels to analyze critical discourse, the three levels are as follows:
(1) Word level, which includes sexism in language and sexism in its meaning, (2)
Phrase/sentence level, including: naming, harassment of women, mercy, stunting, and
smoothing. (3) Levels of discourse, including: characters, roles, fragmentation,
vocalizations, schemata.

Table 1. Sara Mills’ Analysis Framework (Mills, 2003)

Sara Mills’ Analysis Framework
Subject-Object Position - The subject defines itself
- The subject describes the event
- The subject conveys reality
- The subject informs another character
- The object is placed in a low position compared to the subject in
the displayed text
Reader's Position - Greeting Readers in the Mediation Process
- Greeting Readers in the Cultural Code Process

Women’ Discrimination
Gender relations are patterns of relations between men and women that are socially
constructed. In gender relations, certain gender groups are considered to have a higher

Women's discrimination of beauty is a wound: Feminist stylistics approach of Sara Mills | 97

position (dominate), are dominated, and are equal. In a patriarchal society, men are
considered to have a dominant position, while women are subordinate. This unequal and
more dominating-subordinate relationship ultimately provides opportunities for the
emergence of various forms of violence against women both in the household area such as
physical, psychological and economic violence (Wiyatmi, 2009). According to Fakih (2008),
gender differences are formed through socialization, which is strengthened socially and
culturally through religious, cultural, and state teachings, and are not a problem as long as
they do not result in gender inequalities. However, the assumption that gender is a property
of God that cannot be changed has resulted in a patriarchal culture. Patriarchy rigidly
divides gender and social roles between men and women into public and private domains,
resulting in gender discrimination.
Fakih (2012) states that the manifestation of women's discrimination is divided into
five interrelated forms, (1) marginalization of women (marginalization) is a process of
disempowerment that ultimately resulted in poverty for women, causing a process of
disregarding women's rights so that they cannot develop themselves, (2) subordination of
women (secondary) is the notion that women are irrational or emotional so that women
cannot appear to lead, resulting in attitudes that place women in an unimportant and limit
their ability to do things, (3) female stereotypes (negative labeling) are negative labels or
names that are labeled against women, (4) violence against women (violence) is an attack
or invasion of a person's physical and mental psychology, it is caused by the assumption of
gender (gender-related violence) towards power inequality, and (5) women's double
workload, the excessive workload carried out by women.
This research focused on Sara Mills' feminist discourse, known as the feminist stylistic
theory, to examine women's studies in the novel Beauty is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan. It
examines women's studies through concepts that reveal the actor's position into (1) the
position of the subject, (2) the position of the object, and (3) the position of the reader in
which related to five forms of discrimination against women, namely: (1) marginalization,
(2) subordination of women (secondary), (3) female stereotypes (negative labeling), (4)
violence against women (violence), (5) women's double workload.

METHOD
This research uses a qualitative descriptive method by implementing a critical
discourse analysis by Sarah Mills: A Feminist Stylistics Approach. The descriptive method
can be described as a problem-solving procedure that is investigated by describing the
current state of the subject or object of research based on visible facts or as they are. This
method also aims to systematically describe the facts or characteristics of research subjects
factually and accurately. In this research, this method is used to reveal subject-object
positions and the reader's position in which related to women’ discrimination in the novel
Beauty is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan.
The data source is the novel Beauty is a Wound (2002) by Eka Kurniawan. The data
are in the form of syntactic units that contain information related to the research problem
taken from the novels that are the object of research. The data is recorded in the data card
and classified according to the information related to the problem under study. Data
analysis was carried out using qualitative descriptive techniques through data reduction,
data display and conclusion drawing & verification. Data reduction is a selection process,
focusing attention on simplification, abstraction and transformation of raw data obtained
in the field and then grouping, removing unnecessary data and drawing final conclusions on
the analysis. Data display is a description of a collection of information that is structured to
draw conclusions and collect data. The final stage is drawing conclusions and verification
(conclusion drawing and verification) of the data that has been passed in the first and
second stages. Verification is carried out by the author briefly and reopens the results of
notes in the field which are carried out continuously. Conclusions are drawn based on the

98 | Literature & Literacy, Volume 1(2), October 2023

data display, discussion of data with the theory used based on the theoretical framework of
Sarah Mills’ feminist stylistics approach, and the research results according to the research
problem.

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

Findings
In accordance with the formulation of the problem, this study examines woman
discrimination by the theory of critical discourse analysis from Sara Mills perspective to
reveal subject-object positions and the reader's position in which related to women’
discrimination in the novel Beauty is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan. The results of research of
this novel are as follows.

Table 2. Forms of woman discrimination related with Sara Mills’ Framework in Beauty is a Wound by
Eka Kurniawan (2022)
Sara Mills’ Analysis Framework Forms Woman’ Discrimination
Subject- The subject defines Dewi Ayu defines herself as prostitute. violence against women
Object itself She remembered all the man who has (violence)
Position played with her, the man that was taking
her benefit.
Dewi Ayu was already having the fourth 1. marginalization of
children who never be wanted and no women
one knew who was her father including 2. subordination of
Dewi Ayu. She said in the sarcasm women (secondary)
statement by being proud of having
beautiful children, so she could build her
own brothel.
Dewi Ayu wanted to end up her 1. marginalization of the
miserable life. She wanted to stop being woman,
prostitute. The fourth children that she 2. subordination of
had before was enough for completing women (secondary),
her miserable life. 3. female stereotypes
She got a women's double workload, (negative labeling).
where she must raise her children by
herself since she did not have any ideas
who was the father of their children.
The subject The Japanese occupation was taking the violence against
describes the event place and the Dutch women who woman.
colonized Indonesia before were
arrested, they were including Dewi Ayu
hoped that there would be soldiers from
the Netherlands who could help them
getting them out of prison.

She felt grateful because her three 1. marginalization of

beautiful daughters did not become women
prostitutes as she was experiencing. (marginalization),
Even though on the other hand, these 2. subordination of
daughters did not respect her and were women (secondary),
unaware that what Dewi Ayu was doing 3. female stereotypes
as a prostitute was to support her (negative labeling),
children and pay off her debt to Mama 4. violence against
Kalong. women (violence),
and
5. women's double
workload.

The subject conveys Dewi Ayu was already having the fourth 1. marginalization of
reality children who never be wanted and no women
one knew who was her father including (marginalization),
Dewi Ayu. She wanted to end up her life. 2. subordination of
women (secondary),

Women's discrimination of beauty is a wound: Feminist stylistics approach of Sara Mills | 99

 3. female stereotypes
(negative labeling),
4. violence against
women (violence),
and
5. women's double
workload.

Dewi Ayu sacrificed herself for someone 1. marginalization of

else, accurately Ola, so that Ola's mother women
could get medicine and a doctor, because (marginalization),
the prison commander would only give 2. subordination of
medicine and a doctor if Dewi Ayu or Ola women (secondary),
were willing to sleep with the and
commander. 3. violence against
women (violence).

Dewi Ayu had to support herself and her women's double

children in order to survive and had to workload.
pay off her debt to Mama Kalong by
becoming a prostitute in order to get her
house back.
The subject informs Dewi Ayu as main actor of this novel 1. marginalization of
another character informing another character which is women
Cantik the fourth daughter of Dewi Ayu. (marginalization), and
She was wondering and getting curious 2. subordination of
who had taught her daughter how to women (secondary).
write, read, cook, embroidery, sew, or
even how to make a love.
The object is placed Dewi Ayu and other women in Mama 1. marginalization of
in a low position Kalong's house would be used as women
compared to the prostitutes for the Japanese soldiers. (marginalization),
subject in the 2. subordination of
displayed text women (secondary),
3. female stereotypes
(negative labeling),
4. violence against
women (violence),
and
5. women's double
workload.

Reader's Greeting Readers in Maman gendeng as the guest want to 1. marginalization of

Position the Mediation control Dewi Ayu’ life. women
Process (marginalization),
2. subordination of
women (secondary),
and
3. violence against
women (violence).

Greeting Readers in Dewi Ayu protested that what she was female stereotypes
the Cultural Code doing was not the same as what (negative labeling),
Process Alamanda was doing. Alamanda thought
that breaking a man's heart was much
more honorable than being a prostitute

From the table above, it can be seen that there are five forms of woman discrimination
in Beauty is a Wound, namely marginalization of women (marginalization), subordination
of women (secondary), female stereotypes (negative labeling), violence against women
(violence), and women's double workload. These acts of discrimination experienced by
Dewi Ayu as main female character in the novel. The complete and detailed discussions of
these woman discrimination discussed in the following sections.

100 | Literature & Literacy, Volume 1(2), October 2023

Discussion
Analysis of Actor's Position as Subject
Sara Mills, revealed that discourse is not a neutral means. Discourse tends to present
certain figures as subjects. Discrimination against women in the novel Beauty is a Wound by
Eka Kurniawan is based on the position of the subject in Sara Mills' perspective in terms of
characters who have criteria to be able to define themselves, tell events, reality, other
characters, and judge the world based on their own point of view to the audience. Thus, the
subject has a high position in the text displayed. The position of the actor as the subject is
proven and described in detail as follows.

The Subject defines Itself

In the novel Beauty of a Wound, the character of Dewi Ayu, the woman and the main
character in the story is positioned by Eka Kurniawan as a subject. The character Dewi Ayu
tells herself.
It is stated in the following conversation in the novel.

"That is correct, it has already been consumed by three previous children, two
hundred males. One hundred and seventy-two males. The oldest one is ninety-two
years old, and the youngest one is twelve years old, one week after the circumcision,
I remember everything well."
(Kurniawan, 2022:3)

This conversation showed that Dewi Ayu defines herself as prostitute. She
remembered all the man who has played with her, the man that was taking her benefit. She
had born three children before without knowing who was their father. It showed that she
did not have any power and justice what happened to her or finding the father of her
children to take any responsibility for the children she was born. The social system that
placing the prostitute to get what they cause, they do not have any right to finding their
justice. It showed the violence as an attack or invasion (assault) against a person's physical
and mental psychology. It is caused by the assumption of gender (gender-related violence)
towards power inequality.

“Four girls, all beautiful, I should have my own brothel establishment.

(Kurniawan, 2022:3)

This conversation revealed that Dewi Ayu was already having the fourth children who
never be wanted and no one knew who was her father including Dewi Ayu. She said in the
sarcasm statement by being proud of having beautiful children, so she could build her own
brothel. This statement showed how tired she was of being prostitute who dragged her for
having a miserable life. It showed marginalization of women (marginalization) and
subordination of women (secondary) where she did not have any power and right to claim
the father of her children. She got women's double workload, where she had to raise her
children by herself since she had no ideas who was the father of their children.

"If I live for a hundred years, then I would give birth to eight babies, which is too
many."
(Kurniawan, 2022:7)

The conversation revealed that she wanted to end up her miserable life. She wanted
to stop being prostitute. The fourth children that she had before was enough for completing
her miserable life. She got a women's double workload, where she must raise her children
by herself since she did not have any ideas who was the father of their children. It showed

Women's discrimination of beauty is a wound: Feminist stylistics approach of Sara Mills | 101
marginalization of the woman, subordination of women (secondary), female stereotypes
(negative labeling).

"I do not disbelieve that love exists, and on the contrary, I do all of this with utmost
love. I was born into a Dutch Catholic family and became a Catholic before reciting the
Shahada and becoming a Muslim on the day of my first marriage. I was married once
and was a religious person, but now I have lost everything. However, it does not mean
that I have lost love. As a prostitute, you have to love everything, everyone, every
object, genitals, fingertips, or cow's feet. I feel like a saint and a Sufi at the same time."
(Kurniawan, 2022:134)

The conversation explained that Dewi Ayu was forced to become a prostitute
because of her twists and turns in life, but that didn't make her a person who doesn't have
love and doesn't care about herself. It showed marginalization of the woman, subordination
of women (secondary), female stereotypes (negative labeling).

The subject describes the event

In this novel, the character of Dewi Ayu, a woman and the main character in the story
was positioned as the subject by Eka Kurniawan. Dewi Ayu narrated incidents of
discrimination against women in the text based on her point of view. It was discovered in
the following conversation.

"Let us hope that our soldiers can capture the Japanese people, and we will be
exchanged like rice and sugar."
(Kurniawan, 2022:62)

This conversation revealed events where the Japanese occupation was taking place
and the Dutch women who colonized Indonesia before were arrested, they including Dewi
Ayu hoped that there would be soldiers from the Netherlands who could help them get them
out of prison.
This conversation showed the cultural of colonialism in which there were a practice
or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing
colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation,
colonisers may impose their religion, language, economics, and other cultural practices. It
showed the violence against woman.

"The only thing I should be thankful for is that my daughter did not become a
prostitute, because if that happened, you probably wouldn't be here on this bed with
me."
(Kurniawan, 2022:200)

This conversation revealed the event where the guest of Dewi Ayu visit Dewi Ayu. She
felt grateful because her three beautiful daughters did not become prostitutes as she was
experiencing. Even though on the other hand, these daughters did not respect her and were
unaware that what Dewi Ayu was doing as a prostitute was to support her children and pay
off her debt to Mama Kalong. This conversation revealed about marginalization of women
(marginalization), subordination of women (secondary), female stereotypes (negative
labeling), violence against women (violence) and women's double workload.

The subject conveys reality

In the novel, the character of Dewi Ayu, a woman and the main character in the story
is positioned by Eka Kurniawan as the subject. The character Dewi Ayu tells the reality,

102 | Literature & Literacy, Volume 1(2), October 2023

reality which refers to real incidents of discrimination against women. This is found in the
following conversation.

"Buy me a burial shroud, for I have given birth to four daughters in this accursed
world. The time has come for my deathbed to pass."
(Kurniawan, 2022:7)

This conversation revealed that Dewi Ayu was already having the fourth children who
never be wanted and no one knew who was her father including Dewi Ayu. She wanted to
end up her life. This statement showed how tired she was of being prostitute who dragged
her for having a miserable life. This conversation revealed about marginalization of women
(marginalization), subordination of women (secondary), female stereotypes (negative
labeling), violence against women (violence) and women's double workload.

"I'll take the place of the girl, Commander, and you can sleep with me, but give her
mother medicine and a doctor!"
(Kurniawan, 2022:71)

This conversation explained how Dewi Ayu sacrificed herself for someone else,
accurately Ola, so that Ola's mother could get medicine and a doctor, because the prison
commander would only give medicine and a doctor if Dewi Ayu or Ola were willing to sleep
with the commander. This situation demonstrated opposition to human rights, which would
include unjustifiable and inhumane treatment of women. This conversation revealed about
marginalization of women (marginalization), subordination of women (secondary), and
violence against women (violence).

"Mother, lend me some money. I want to buy back my house. I have a treasure, from
before the war, I hoarded all of my grandmother's jewelry in a place that no one would
know about except me and God. If God steals it, I will return to you as a prostitute to
pay off my debt."
(Kurniawan, 2022:106-107)

The description of Dewi Ayu's negotiations convinced her that there was a workload
where she, as a woman, had to support herself and her children in order to survive and had
to pay off her debt to Mama Kalong by becoming a prostitute in order to get her house back.

The subject informs another character

In the novel, the character of Dewi Ayu, a woman and the main character in the story
is positioned by Eka Kurniawan as the subject. The character of Dewi Ayu describes other
characters from the text. This is demonstrated in the following conversation.

"I don't care how he comes, or how he comes without you and me knowing. But he
comes and teaches her everything, and he even teaches her how to make love."
(Kurniawan, 2022:27)

This conversation described that Dewi Ayu as main actor of this novel informing
another character which is Cantik the fourth daughter of Dewi Ayu. She was wondering and
getting curious who had taught her daughter how to write, read, cook, embroidery, sew, or
even how to make a love. This conversation revealed about marginalization of women
(marginalization), and subordination of women (secondary).

"Anxiety comes from uncertainty, and we will become prostitutes."

(Kurniawan, 2022:84)

Women's discrimination of beauty is a wound: Feminist stylistics approach of Sara Mills | 103
 "I have checked everything, there is no escape. We will become prostitutes, even
worse, without payment."
(Kurniawan, 2022:89)

This conversation explained that Dewi Ayu and other women in Mama Kalong's house
would be used as prostitutes for the Japanese soldiers. This situation demonstrated opposition
to human rights, which would include unjustifiable and inhumane treatment of women.
This conversation revealed about marginalization of women (marginalization),
subordination of women (secondary), female stereotypes (negative labeling), violence
against women (violence) and women's double workload.

Analysis of Actor Position as Object

Sara Mills' Feminist Stylistic Theory focuses on the discourse on injustice and the bad
portrayal of women shown in literary texts, pictures, photographs and news. The object is
placed in a low position compared to the subject in the displayed text. The position of
women as objects is proven and described in detail as follows.

"Whether the woman is a prostitute or not, I will sleep with her. I will stay in this city,
I will mark her genitals like a tiger marking its territory."
(Kurniawan, 2022:126-127)
"If I can't marry you, at least I will pay you every day as a prostitute."
(Kurniawan, 2022:133)

In the conversation, explained the existence of patriarchal ideology which is a

representation of masculine identity that has a will for power, the power of men over
women. Maman gendeng as the guest want to control Dewi Ayu’ life. This conversation
revealed about marginalization of women (marginalization), subordination of women
(secondary), and violence against women (violence).

"During peacetime, Mama made those men line up and pay to sleep with her, and I
made many men cry because of a broken heart."
(Kurniawan, 2022:200)

In the conversation, explained that the daughter of Dewi Ayu protested that what she
was doing was not the same as what Alamanda was doing. Alamanda thought that breaking
a man's heart was much more honorable than being a prostitute. This conversation revealed
about stereotype.

Analysis Reader’ position

Mills (1995) said that text is the result of negotiations between writers and readers,
so it places the reader's position as very important and taken into account in the text. For
Mills, building a model that connects text and writers with texts and readers has two
advantages.
First, comprehensively looking at the text is not only related to factors of production
but also reception. Second, the position of the reader is placed in an important position
because the text aims to communicate with the audience. The placement of the reader's
position relates to greeting or mentioning the reader in the text. Greetings to readers are
carried out indirectly (indirect address) in two ways, namely mediation and cultural code.

Greeting Readers in the Mediation Process

The mediation process occurs when the discourse indirectly suggests to the reader to
place a position of truth and support certain characters in the text. The position of truth can

104 | Literature & Literacy, Volume 1(2), October 2023

be seen through the partiality of the attitudes and views of the characters in the text (Mills,
2003). The findings of the mediation process greeting reader data will be explained in detail
as follows.
In the novel Beauty is a Wound, the mediation process to readers is conveyed by Eka
Kurniawan through the character Dewi Ayu. Readers are led to position the truth in Dewi
Ayu's experience as a woman who is the object of discrimination. This is found in the
following quote.

"Marrying someone who has never been loved is much worse than living as a
prostitute."
(Kurniawan, 2022:264)

This conversation leads the reader to position the truth on Dewi Ayu's courage and
criticality as a woman against discrimination. The author attempts to lead the readers to
concern about woman’ marginalization that causing a process of neglecting women’s right
so that they cannot develop themselves. All women have the right to love and be loved, have
the right to refuse if they do not love the man they will marry.
In the novel Beauty is a Wound, the mediation process to readers is conveyed by Eka
Kurniawan through the character Rosinah. Readers are led to position the truth that having
children was not the sin. This is found in the following quote.

"Why should we feel bored? You haven't even had twenty children yet, while Gandhari
gave birth to a hundred Kaurava sons."
(Kurniawan, 2022:9)

This conversation leads the reader to position the truth on Dewi Ayu's courage and
criticality as a woman against discrimination. The author attempts to lead the readers to
concern about woman’ marginalization that causing a process of neglecting women’s right
so that they cannot develop themselves. Women have the right to love and be loved, have
the right to refuse having children or expecting for having many children.

Greeting Readers in the Cultural Code Process

The process of greeting the cultural code, refers to cultural values that are believed or
recognized together and considered as shared truth in society. The findings of the data
greeting readers of the cultural code process will be explained in detail as follows.
In the novel Beauty is a Wound, the cultural code process to readers is conveyed by
Eka Kurniawan through the character Maman Gendeng. Readers are led to position the truth
that being husband must respect, be loyal and love his wife for the rest of his life. This is
found in the following quote.

"I came just to say that I will no longer touch you, Dewi Ayu. With a wife like your
youngest daughter, Maya Dewi, I don't want to touch any woman again."
(Kurniawan, 2022:281)

The process of cultural code in this conversation showed the perspective of Maman
Gendeng that placed the truth and agreement that woman as wife must be respected by
being loyal and loved by husband. Maman Gendeng has been treated well by Maya Dewi as
his wife, he has taken cared of, respected, cooked for, and given a home, as a good husband
by Maya Dewi. Maman Gendeng, of course must also be a good husband, loyal and loving his
wife for the rest of his life. The author attempts to instill in the reader that the patriarchal
shackles that subordinate women have been recognized for their truth. Women are
regarded as the second creation, and the second creation was created solely to serve the

Women's discrimination of beauty is a wound: Feminist stylistics approach of Sara Mills | 105
desires of men. This serves as the foundation for justifying sexual violence against women.
As a result, the reader is led to believe that Maman Gendeng's opinion is correct.
The cultural code process of the following conversation to readers is conveyed by Eka
Kurniawan through the character Rosinah. Readers are led to position the truth about
woman stereotype. This is found in the following quote.

“Rosinah recounts what happened to Dewi Ayu during the war, how she was forced
into prostitution by the Japanese army. "I learned something after becoming a
prostitute," said Dewi Ayu, "that a good prostitute is a woman without lovers." After
the war ended, she became a prostitute not only to repay Mama Kalong's debt, but
also because she did not want what happened to Ma Iyang and Ma Gedik to be
repeated with other loving couples. "At least a prostitute does not make people have
mistresses because every time you take a mistress, you might hurt someone who is
the lover of that mistress. Love is destroyed and lives are shattered every time a man
keeps a mistress. But a prostitute at most hurts a clearly married wife, and it is her
fault that the husband has to go to a brothel."
(Kurniawan, 2022:372)

This conversation explained that the process of cultural code from Rosinah. The
author attempts to instill in the readers that the shackles of patriarchy that women
stereotype have been recognized for their truth. The negative stereotype for the woman that
being prostitutes led the community that all they did was negative, the author wants to show
another perspective on the story of being a prostitute.
The cultural code process of the next conversation to readers is conveyed by Eka
Kurniawan through the character Henri. Readers are led to position the truth about woman
stereotype. This is found in the following quote.

"Don't think badly of Dewi Ayu," said Henri. "We are no less innocent than she is. We
are blood siblings who decided to marry; you must not forget that."
(Kurniawan, 2022:373)

This conversation revealed that the process of cultural code by showing the
perspective from Henri, father of Dewi Ayu who never met her since he left her after she
was born. Henri thought that every people had their own sin and stories, no one is allowed
to judge or think badly about other people's lives, we are all sinners, we have to deal with
our own sins. The author attempts to instill in the readers that the shackles of patriarchy
that women stereotype have been recognized for their truth. The negative stereotype for
the woman that being prostitutes led the community that all they did was negative, the
author wants to show another perspective on the story of being a prostitute.

Woman’ Discrimination in the Position of Actors as Subjects and Objects in the Novel
Beauty is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan.
The researcher employs Sara Mills' (2002) Feminist Stylistic theory, which contends
that discourse is not a neutral medium because discourse tends to present certain
characters as subjects, who have certain criteria, such as being able to define themselves,
tell reality, tell events, and tell other characters, based on his own point of view of the public.
As a result, the subject is prominent in the visible text. Furthermore, women are frequently
represented in the text as objects as well who face injustice and negative characterizations.
Objects are at the bottom of the text. Objects are unable to present themselves, and their
presence and representation are even shown through the eyes of another character
(subject).

106 | Literature & Literacy, Volume 1(2), October 2023

 Based on the results of research data analysis which refers to research theory, the
researcher found that in the novel Beauty is a Wound, the character Dewi Ayu, women and
the main character in the story are positioned by Eka Kurniawan as subject and object. As
subject, Dewi Ayu can define herself, tell events, tell the reality, and tell other characters
from her point of view. As an object, the representation of Ayu Dewi as a woman who is
forced to become a prostitute is portrayed badly in the family and socio-cultural (society)
sphere. From those position, there are some woman’ discrimination based on Fakih's theory
(2012), found in this novel, namely marginalization, subordination, stereotypes, violence,
and double workload for women. Five forms of discrimination will be described as follows.
1) Marginalization is a process of marginalization that results in poverty for women,
resulting in a process of neglecting women's rights, preventing them from developing
themselves (Fakih, 2012). Forms of marginalization discrimination were discovered in six
different datasets. The seven data fulfill the requirements of marginalization discrimination,
specifically the process of marginalizing and ignoring Dewi Ayu's rights as a woman until
she eventually becomes a prostitute.
2) Subordination (secondary) is the belief that women are irrational or emotional in
such a way that they cannot appear to lead, resulting in attitudes that place women in an
unimportant position and limit their ability to do things (Fakih, 2012). A total of eight data
points were found to be forms of subordination discrimination. The eight data fulfill the
requirements for subordination discrimination, namely the assumption that Dewi Ayu, as a
woman forced to become a prostitute, is unable to seek rights and responsibilities for the
children she has given birth to.
3) Stereotypes (labeling) are negative labels or names that are labeled against women
(Fakih, 2012). Forms of stereotype discrimination were found in four datasets. Both of these
data meet the criteria of stereotype discrimination, namely the negative labeling of the
character Dewi
Ayu as a prostitute. According to Biswas, (2021) argues that negative stereotype calls for a
cultural revolution to raise consciousness of the victims of representation or women in this
regard and warn the re-presenters to re-think and re-evaluate, to broaden their views to be
sensitive and accept cultural diversity.
4) Violence is defined as an assault on a person's physical and mental psychology
(Fakih, 2012). Forms of violent discrimination were discovered in six data sets, which were
divided into two categories of violence against women: psychological violence and sexual
harassment. The nine data points fulfill the criteria for discrimination against Dewi Ayu,
which are psychological and sexual violence.
5) Double workload, namely workload that is done too much by women (Fakih, 2012).
A form of discrimination of multiple workloads was found in a number of 6 datasets. The
sixth data fulfills the criteria of the double burden experienced by the character Dewi Ayu
because she was forced to become a prostitute for raising her three children without a
father or husband and become a prostitute in order to be able to pay off debts. Similar
findings from (Wiyatmi, 2009), patriarchal domination as well in Beauty is a Wound,
especially evident in the rape committed by the Japanese military against the character
Dewi Ayu and her friends during the Japanese colonial period,

Woman’ Discrimination in the Position of Readers in the Novel Beauty is a Wound by

Eka Kurniawa
The researcher employs Sara Mills' (2002) Feminist Stylistic theory, which indicates
that text is the result of negotiations among both writers and readers, attempting to make
the reader's position very important and taken into account in the text. Sara Mills invites
readers indirectly (indirect address) in two ways: mediation and cultural code. In
accordance with the findings of the research data analysis, which is based on the research
theory, the researcher discovers that the greeting of the reader by Dewi Ayu in the novel
Beauty is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan.

Women's discrimination of beauty is a wound: Feminist stylistics approach of Sara Mills | 107
Researcher found the mediation process based on the researcher’ point of view that
mediation process occurred to the conversation leads the researcher to position the truth
on Dewi Ayu's courage and criticality as a woman against discrimination. The author
attempts to lead the readers to concern about woman’ marginalization that causing a
process of neglecting women’s right so that they cannot develop themselves.
Furthermore, greeting the cultural code, in the novel Beauty is a Wound by Eka
Kurniawan referred to cultural values that were believed or recognized together and
considered as shared truth in society. The researcher found that the process of cultural code
in findings showed the perspective of the researcher as the reader that the patriarchal
shackles, in which subordinate women have been recognized for their truth. Women were
regarded as the second creation, and the second creation was created solely to serve the
desires of men. This serves as the foundation for justifying sexual violence against women.
In addition, the findings investigated the process of cultural code that the negative
stereotype for the woman that being prostitutes led the community negative thoughts,
however, the author tried to reveal another perspective on the story of being a prostitute.

CONCLUSION
Issues pertaining to discrimination against women persistently garner attention from
various stakeholders, particularly female observers and advocates for human rights and
gender equality. In the context of Indonesia, the incidence of gender-based violence
continues to occur with alarming frequency from year to year. In fact, over the past two
years, the escalation of such violence has exhibited a significant and dramatic rise. Diligent
efforts are being undertaken to prevent acts of violence against women, employing both
legal and social approaches. The overarching objective is to foster a comprehensive
understanding and awareness among individuals that crimes committed against women are
grave offenses, exerting detrimental impacts on their lives, particularly for women
themselves.
This is precisely the intention of novelist Eka Kurniawan in his work "Beauty is a
Wound" (2022), wherein he endeavors to shed light on injustices and various
manifestations of women's marginalisation, subordination, stereotypes, violence against
women within familial and societal contexts. The analysis of the novel reveals that the
central character, Dewi Ayu, endures emotional, physical, and sexual violence and
harassment. The dominant patriarchal system, which associates negative stereotypes with
women engaged in prostitution, results in a community that perceives their actions solely
through a negative lens. It becomes imperative to explore alternative perspectives
regarding prostitution within the narrative. Women are relegated to secondary status,
existing solely to cater to the desires of men. Such a notion serves as a foundation for
rationalizing sexual violence directed at women. By engaging with this novel and
conducting research, a heightened consciousness regarding the urgency to eradicate
gender-based discrimination should emerge, as women rightfully deserve the freedom to
experience love, be loved, exercise autonomy in decisions related to childbirth, and be
regarded as objects of affection and symbols of peace in both familial and societal domains.

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