In this lively book, Benedict R. O'G. Anderson explores the cultural andpolitical contradictions that have arisen from two critical facts in Indonesianhistory: that while the Indonesian nation is young, the Indonesian nationis ancient originating in the early seventeenth-century Dutch conquests;and that contemporary politics are conducted in a new language. BahasaIndonesia, by peoples (especially the Javanese) whose cultures are rooted inmedieval times. Analyzing a spectrum of examples from classical poetry topublic monuments and cartoons, Anderson deepens our understanding of theinteraction between modern and traditional notions of power, the mediationof power by language, and the development of national consciousness.Language and Power, now republished as part of Equinox Publishing's ClassicIndonesia series, brings together eight of Anderson's most influential essaysover the past two decades and is essential reading for anyone studying theIndonesian country, people or language.Benedict Anderson is one of the world's leading authorities on Southeast Asiannationalism and particularly on Indonesia. He is Professor of InternationalStudies and Director of the Modern Indonesia Project at Cornell University,New York. His other works include Imagined Communities: Reflectionson the Origin and Spread of Nationalism and The Spectre of Comparisons: Nationalism, Southeast Asia, and the World.