6 gods grant Bhisma to choose his own death. In this story, Bhisma’s character is
based on the Mahabarata epic. However, the fate of the story is different from what Bhisma has in Mahabarata. In this study, Bhisma is portrayed as one of
ordinary people struggling against the unfairness.
3. Buru Island
Buru is the third largest island in the Maluku Islands. Buru obtains its major popularity
during President Suharto’s era. In that era, more than 12,000 people were accused of being communists and Communist Party followers. They
were detained without formally charged in such a clear legal process Pamuntjak, 2013. Thus, many prisoners are killed and died in Buru Island. In this novel,
Buru becomes t he setting of Bhisma’s life.
4. Tapol
Tapol stands for tahanan politik, which means political prisoner in New Order e
ra during President Suharto’s authority Pamuntjak, 2013. This term is commonly used to label those who are accused of being communists, left-wing, or
Indonesian Communist Party followers. They are popularly sent to Buru Island in Maluku. In this story, Bhisma is one of those who is accused of being a
communist. Therefore, he is imprisoned in Buru as a tapol.
5. Red
The title in the novel The Question of Red has a meaning of struggle from people in communist era which is popular as a red party. Red colour itself is a
symbolic colour for the Communist. It is firstly introduced in the Soviet Union to mobilize the proletarian class under communism and the Soviet Union itself
7 Bryan, n.d. In addition, in this study, the red means blood of those who are
injured and victimized during some political conflicts in Indonesia.
6. Surface Meaning
Case and Marshall 2009 mention surface meaning as literal meaning. Associate with this concept, literal approach is the tacit acceptance of information
and memorization. It does not promote understanding for long term retention of knowledge pp. 9-18. In short, the surface meaning is meaning that the readers
can obtain without conducting further analysis.
7. Deeper Meaning
On the contrary, deeper meaning comes from the interpretation and further analysis of the literary work. Case and Marshall 2009 define that deep learning
analysis involves the critical analysis on the new idea pp. 9-18. Thus, the readers need background knowledge and critical thinking in order to find the deeper
meaning.
