Source : Pixabay
Reading is a solitary activity, including when determining the books we want to read. We choose the books due to intimate and personal reasons. It's all about taste. Anything that shapes our "tastes" are so different from each other. However, that does not mean it cannot be traced its origins. A Baung Fish aficionado, for example, can pick Baung Fish (Hemibagrus nemurus) among piles of Patin (Pangasius hypophtalmus) in one glance. These sense abilities and sensitivities look trivial but require great effort and perseverance in order to master it.
At first glance, Baung Fish have common resemblances to Patin. They both have a silvery-white lower body and also a brownish color on the back. The difference seen between Baung Fish and Patin is that the stomach of the Baung Fish is much slimmer compared to Patin. The body part of the Baung Fish is not overgrown with scales, but slippery and slimy.
On the pectoral fins of the Baung, there are sharp bones that are poisonous. This bone functions like a sting in Patin. There are also dorsal fins with hard fingers and also venomous. The sting of the fish is enough to provide pain. His upper jawbone was also overgrown with teeth.
A very clear difference between Baung and Patin is the antennae on the upper jaw which is very long and even reaches the rear fin. Baung Fish also have weak fins called adiposefins which are almost the same length as the hind fins.
Of course the reasons people choose Baung or Patin, back to each other. However, I felt the statement "back to each other's" was too simple and seemed to refuse to think further. I wonder, what constitutes a person's taste in choosing a reading book? Why is there a crown between literary and popular works? Aren't they two opposites and they might be in the same box?
Basic and Superstructure
The foundation of society is shaped by material, economic, and social relationships. The way people think, law, morals, ethics, culture, science, art, and literature are part of the superstructure of society. The relationship between the two supports everything that grows and develops in society. The superstructure of society is an extension of the basis of society. In summary, the consciousness that a person uses to process literary works (in this case, choose books to read) is built by the realities of his or her daily life formed from material, economic, and social relationships.
The basis of society itself, at the very bottom level are the conditions of community production. In the context of the selection of reading books, these things are the availability of reading materials such as books or magazines. The wider and diverse the reading book, the more varied a person's reading experience. The availability of reading themes/genres also shapes a person's taste.
At the next level, there is means of community production. These things are related to the existence of libraries, transportation facilities, and facilities. Regional libraries and schools play an important role in shaping the tastes of readers in Indonesia. The tastes of school librarians at least helped shape the reading tastes of the students. So are the reading options provided by the closest people such as family and friendship circles.
At the upper level, there is Community Production. Reading tastes are closely related to everyday reality. A child born in a district in Central Java will be surprised (or even amazed) by the characters who are set in the behavior of the citizens of the capital. For example, traveling to the mall, excessive ways of the figures of the capital writers in enjoying the rural atmosphere, or an absurd activity like the routine of crashing into a drugstore while drunk. The way this society works, perhaps become one of the reason why Latin America literature are easily connected with the minds of Indonesian readers.
Taste according to Kant's Perspective.
Kant divided one's considerations in choosing a work of art, in the context of which this paper is a book, into three considerations, namely taste, pleasure, and morals. Consideration of taste requires "selfless satisfaction." According to Kant, the taste is a person's ability to give an opinion to an object, based on satisfaction or dissatisfaction without selflessness. A good book, based on subjective universality, provides selfless satisfaction or dissatisfaction.
When someone decides a book is good just based on pleasure considerations. In this case, the consideration contains selfishness there is a pleasant effect to fulfill our desires. So are moral considerations. Everything that has to do with morals is never interest-free. Moral choice means wanting order. It's another form of interest.
Therefore, one's taste cannot be determined based on any ideal concept or form. So the debate can't use rational reasons. Tastes can only be evaluated based on conformity or nonconformity with the criteria to which the universal values is. This Universal Values can be in the form of various things because of the condition of society in Indonesia. Cultural institutions, through literary awards, often undermine this diversity to form so-called 'good' or "Indonesian literature."
This is actually not a big problem, if the winners of the literary awards are quite seen as works that suit the tastes of the jury, not Indonesian society as a whole. It is important to know what considerations the jury uses to determine the recipient of a literary award. Thus, people can view a literary work/reading book in other ways to make choices and views in a more independent, intimate, and solitary way.
Writer : Ardhi Setiawan (Public Health'16)
Editor : Ardhi Setiawan (Public Health'16) & Thifa Nabilla Jazaufi (Pharmacy'19)
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