Sorry, I should have posted this long time ago…. But I was way too busy with $$$ works.
By now, a lot of readers have commented that some of the characters are… a little exaggerated 😛 Let me assure you, all characters (except Roger Gunawan) are based on real people.
1. Armand Santos
You, readers, must think this Armand is soooo stupid, willing to be “taken for a ride” by Lisa. Is there such a guy so blinded by love?
Remember, Armand has loved Lisa since their college days (read: years), and both incidents that are the background conflict of #SepotongKataMaaf happens when Armand and Lisa are engaged and the wedding dates, place, and all other parts of the wedding reception is in place. In short, everybody around them know that Armand and Lisa will get married on 3 November 2012.
Regret? Anguish? If Armand is being honest to himself, we all sure he will feel them. But the financial cost plus his family reputation will put Armand in catch 22 situation if Armand suddenly decides to cancel his wedding with Lisa. Further, his character has been proven as weak, can be controlled by Lisa (There will be a sequel in another novel about the church mediation before their church wedding). So we have to understand if Armand finally decides to “close eyes, close ears” to all the bitter fact: that Lisa’s heart is still with another guy. After all, Lisa will still be his wife, her body is still his.
2. Lisa Hisman
Show, don’t tell. This is the technique that I use to show the character of Lisa Hisman. From the email that she wrote, the readers can conclude that she is manipulative, liar, and has no manner at all. She has absolutely zero values and norms as Indonesian, although she was born and raised until High School in Surabaya.
Because Armand is not strict with her, of course Lisa wears the pants in their relationship (read: from dating to marriage). Lisa can do whatever she wants, while Armand is like the girl in the relationship (close eyes & years although the partner cheated on him psychologically)
3. Dewi Saraswati Galuh Oetomo
Yes, she is perfect. Born in a rich family, pretty, smart, and sexy. She also demands perfection from her partner. Dewi is raised in a strict eastern culture, emphasizing on how to act gracefully in front of others. Dewi didn’t expect that Jeremy, her husband, is very naive. And Jeremy’s “naiveness” that hurts her psychologically – because she has to “guide” Jeremy that Indonesian must respect manners, that friendship must be built with both husband and wife, and other small little things that are important in society.
As a normal woman, Dewi hopes that Jeremy can think for himself and protect his wife. But in fact, Dewi must fight to protect her own rights. This makes Dewi angry, sad, disappointed, depressed, anguished (remember she is of rich family, she can always marry some rich guy who knows the social norm). If Jeremy is firmer, Dewi will not fall into depression. Dewi’s weakness is her high moral ideals, supported by her way of seeing the world in black and white.
Ignoring Lisa, treat her as an insignificant matter? Well, I have put a lot of quotes, one of them from Albert Einstein. “The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything”. This moral principle might be way too high of a standard for some readers, but as a writer, I want to encourage my readers to take a firm stand against evil. Be the top 1% of this world’s population, be a courageous person who is willing to die for righteousness.
4. Jeremy Soebroto
This character develops from being naive (assuming everybody is kind, just like himself) to learning the priority in his life. If we love somebody, of course we will try as hard as we can – not to disappoint the person and reach the performance standard expected by that person. He realized that him being too soft to Lisa is wrong. (This story of Lisa-Armand vs. Dewi-Jeremy will be continued. Jeremy will see further how evil Lisa is framing him in front of a pastor and a church elder- ooopss, spoiler!)
Tags: Sepotong-Kata-Maaf
