INTERNALIZATION OF CULTURAL VALUES IN DEWA RUCI THROUGH THE ARTISTIC EXPERIENCES OF YOUNG NGESTIPANDOWO MEMBERS
INTERNALIZATION OF CULTURAL VALUES IN DEWA RUCI THROUGH THE ARTISTIC EXPERIENCES OF YOUNG NGESTIPANDOWO MEMBERS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56107/ijpa.v5i1.338Keywords:
Dewa Ruci; cultural values; Ngestipandowo; artistic experience; identity exploration.Abstract
This study examines how the cultural values embedded in the Dewa Ruci narrative are internalized through the artistic experiences of young members of the Ngestipandowo Wayang Orang community and considers their relevance to identity exploration and character development. A descriptive–interpretive qualitative approach was adopted in Semarang, Indonesia. Data were gathered through observation, semi-structured interviews, documentation, and a literature review involving the director, young and senior performers, and group administrators. Analysis involved data condensation, display, and conclusion drawing and verification; source and methodological triangulation supported the trustworthiness of the findings. The findings suggest that values are not transmitted directly from the narrative to young performers. Rather, senior performers and the director mediate them through interpretation, rehearsal, enactment, interpersonal interaction, and performance. Five interrelated analytical dimensions were identified: recognition, understanding, experience, affective engagement, and meaning-making. Whereas Yusuf Arifin emphasized obedience to teachers, Fajri emphasized steadfastness, perseverance, and responsibility. Their differing interpretations demonstrate how artistic participation creates opportunities to relate inherited cultural values to personal experience. The evidence supports interpretations in terms of moral knowing and moral feeling, with only tentative indications of moral action; it does not establish a causal relationship between performance and character formation. Ngestipandowo thus serves not only as a site for sustaining traditional performing arts but also as a setting for cultural learning, intergenerational value transmission, and self-reflection.
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