Early life and education

Hoerip was born in

Lamongan Regency Lamongan Regency () is a regency () of the East Java Province of Indonesia. It has a total land area of approximately or + 3.78% of the area of East Java Province. With a length of along the coastline (comprising Paciran and Brondong Distric ...

on 7 April 1934, as the eldest of four children. His parents were of Javanese nobility and worked as civil servants in the colonial government, his mother a cousin of later president

Sukarno Sukarno (6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967. Sukarno was the leader of the Indonesian struggle for independenc ...

. He for a time studied at a Dutch

Europeesche Lagere School Europeesche Lagere School (ELS) was a European elementary school system in what was then the Dutch East Indies during colonial rule. The schools were intended primarily for Europeans. The implementation of basic education at that time was diffe ...

, before completing his middle and high school education across

East Java East Java (, , ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost third of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean border its northern ...

in independent Indonesia. While in high school, he studied under novelist

Iwan Simatupang Iwan Martua Lokot Dongan Simatupang, more commonly known as Iwan Simatupang (18 January 1928 in Sibolga, North Sumatra – 4 August 1970 in Jakarta, Indonesia) was an Indonesian novelist, poet and essayist. Life and works He joined the (TRIP), ...

. After completing high school, he enrolled first at the law faculty of the

University of Indonesia The University of Indonesia (UI; ) is a public university in Depok, West Java and Salemba, Jakarta, Indonesia. It is one of the oldest tertiary-level educational institutions in Indonesia (known as the Dutch East Indies when UI was established) ...

. However, he did not have interest in law, and was more interested in literature. Due to this, he did not complete his degree, and after two years he moved to

Gadjah Mada University Gadjah Mada University (; , abbreviated as UGM) is a public research university located in Sleman, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Officially founded on 19 December 1949, Gadjah Mada University is one of the oldest and largest institut ...

still in the law faculty. At Gadjah Mada, he more often attended literature classes, and so he once more moved to

Padjadjaran University Padjadjaran University (; ), abbreviated as UNPAD) is a public university located in Sumedang Regency and Bandung, which is the provincial capital of West Java, Indonesia. It was established on 11 September 1957. UNPAD has gained the most appl ...

's law faculty. Again, he was more interested in literature, and eventually he never attained a degree. During his studies, he edited student magazines in addition to writing for external magazines and newspapers.

Career

After his education, Hoerip did not hold any permanent jobs for extended periods. He worked as a journalist and editor for several newspapers such as ''

Sinar Harapan ''Sinar Harapan'' (''Rays of Hope'') was an Indonesian evening daily newspaper published by PT Sinar Harapan Persada and is currently an online-only portal. First published on 27 April 1961, ''Sinar Harapan'' underwent several bans during both ...

'', lectured at several universities in Indonesia and abroad, and for a time at the Algerian embassy in Jakarta. Due to his tendency to move jobs, Hoerip described himself as an "unemployed homeless intellectual". Hoerip had been an active writer since his time in middle school, mostly writing short stories and poetry initially under the pen name "I Gst Poreh". His works focused on the life of the poor and social criticism of the rich and powerful. He also authored a

wayang ( , ) is a traditional form of puppet theatre play originating from the Indonesian island of Java. The term refers both to the show as a whole and the puppet in particular. Performances of wayang puppet theatre are accompanied by a ''gamel ...

-based novel, and a movie script titled ''Palupi'' - later made into the film '' Apa Jang Kau Tjari, Palupi?'' (1969) by director

Asrul Sani Asrul Sani (10 June 1926 – 11 January 2004) was an Indonesian writer, poet and screenwriter. Biography Sani was born in Rao, West Sumatra on 10 June 1926. His father was Sultan Marah Sani Syair Alamsyah. Together with Chairil Anwar and Ri ...

. His 1966 short story, ''Pada Titik Kulminasi'', was set in the ongoing mass killings at that time, written in a perspective sympathetic to the perpetrators of the killings. ''Sebelum Yang Terakhir'' (1968), another of Hoerip's short stories, also covered the mass killings, was described as "vague" and "slant". Hoerip also compiled a collection of 12 short stories set during the killings and written in the late 1960s by other senior authors such as

Mochtar Lubis Mochtar Lubis (; 7 March 1922 – 2 July 2004) was an Indonesian journalist and novelist who co-founded ''Indonesia Raya (newspaper), Indonesia Raya'' and monthly literary magazine ''Horison''. His novel ''Senja di Jakarta'' (''Twilight in ...

and Gerson Poyk. He continued to write later during the New Order era, although not as productive as previously.

Personal life

While Hoerip was born a Muslim, he converted to Christianity after marrying his wife Agustina Wilhelmina Ulag Nieman in 1964. The couple has five children. He was described as a

bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, originally practised by 19th–20th century European and American artists and writers. * Bohemian style, a ...

who always carried a pair of sunglasses.

Goenawan Mohamad Goenawan Mohamad (born 29 July 1941) is an Indonesian poet, essayist, playwright and editor. He is the founder and editor of the Indonesian magazine ''Tempo''. Mohamad is a vocal critic of the Indonesian government, and his magazine was periodi ...

described Hoerip as a "follower of Sjahrir", heavily affected by Sjahrir's imprisonment and the emergence of "

Guided Democracy Guided democracy, also called directed democracy and managed democracy, is a formally democratic government that functions as a ''de facto'' authoritarian government or, in some cases, as an autocratic government. Such hybrid regimes are legit ...

". He died on 14 October 1998 in

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoerip, Satyagraha 1934 births 1998 deaths People from Lamongan Regency Indonesian writers Indonesian Christians Converts to Christianity from Sunni Islam Indonesian former Sunni Muslims Indonesian journalists Javanese people