ENG
INA
Prof. Antonia from Napoli Gives Ethnography Lecture at Doctoral Program in Cultural Sciences, Udayana University
The Doctoral Program in Cultural Sciences, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Udayana University invited a professor in the field of ethnography and oral tradition from Naples, Italy, Prof. Antonia Soriente to give a guest lecture on the theme "Ethnography in Cultural Studies", at the local campus, Monday, January 13, 2025.
The guest lecture which lasted for 2 hours was attended by 31 participants consisting of students, lecturers, alumni, and academics from other campuses in Bali, such as ISI Denpasar, STAH Mpu Kuturan Singaraja, and ISBI Papua lecturers. The guest lecture which was guided by a Doctoral student in Cultural Sciences, Unud, Ni Made Ari Yanti Putri Negara, S.Sn., M.Si. was effective and the question and answer session was dynamic.
The Head of the Doctoral Program in Cultural Sciences, Unud, Prof. I Nyoman Darma Putra said that this guest lecture aims to increase students' insight into theories in Cultural Studies by presenting international speakers.
"Prof. Antonia is an ethnographer, who has conducted extensive research on ethnography in Indonesia. We are grateful to be able to gain extensive and in-depth knowledge from international academics,” said Prof. Darma when opening the Guest Lecture.
Prof. Antonia from Università di Napoli L’Orientale, Italy, is a researcher and translator of Indonesian literature into Italian. She has translated several works such as Saman by Ayu Utami, Tarian Bumi by Oka Rusmini, and the novel Pulang by Leila S. Chudori.
In her lecture, Prof. Antonia said that ethnography is very important in cultural studies and also Cultural Studies.
According to her, ethnography must be carried out by researchers seriously, conducting field research effectively and over a long period of time so that it can describe the field being studied in depth and accurately. She quoted the opinion of anthropologist Clifford Geertz who offered the concept of thick description, something that can only be implemented if researchers conduct long-term research and are close to the community being studied.
“If researchers only come for three days, that is ordinary observation, not ethnography,” said Prof. Antonia, who is also a linguist, teaches Indonesian language and literature at her campus, Università di Napoli L’Orientale, Italy.
Prof. Antonia emphasized, do not claim to do ethnography if your research is mediocre.
On that occasion, Prof. Antonia also explained a little about ethnology, as a science that describes an ethnicity such as ethnography by including comparisons.
“For example, research on the supernatural or horror in Bali, compared to what is in Southern Italy about horror,” she said while giving an example of a comparison.
In the question and answer session, participants asked about Prof. Antonia’s interests and experiences as an Indonesian novel translator. “I did this because of my interests and experiences while in Jakarta, I often attended literary events such as discussions and literary book launches,” she said.
Through the process of translating literary works, it provides an extraordinary experience to learn language and culture, as well as reflect on culture.
Guest Lecture participants, students of Sandijaya Maulana, expressed their gratitude to Prof. Antonia for the lecture and knowledge provided by Prof. Antonia, through pantun: Basil fruit, papaya fruit, grouper fish mixed with mushrooms/ Thank you Mrs. Antonia, may you always be healthy and have a long life (*)
FACULTY OF HUMANITIES UDAYANA UNIVERSITY