Dropping a few or more English words into daily conversation in Indonesia is pretty common these days. No doubt, some of the words used are related to technology such as charge, copy and paste, draft, surfing and so on. But in many cases, people throw as many English words as they can despite their ability to speak a better Indonesian. It seems to me that saying those words are necessary even without a proper pronunciation and spelling.

One might wonder whether this phenomenon suggests that the Indonesian middle classes are now heading towards a rather cosmopolitan approach of communication or a failed attempt to understand modernity?

Cosmopolitan as a concept is very appealing, as it requires all citizens of the world to think themselves as a community, sharing a space and time despite their differences. In this sense, our way of speaking should represent cosmopolitan values, which emphasise on mutual respect, non-discrimination, and compassion. But in reality, racism is still rampant in Indonesia. Sexual democracy is not an option and people with a different belief are subject to repression. All of these demonstrate that the use of English language amongst the middle class in Indonesia is not an indicative of a cosmopolitan approach of communication.

The whole idea of communication is to exchange information between two or more people. In this way, language is a tool with which people understand each other. A Swedish guy who can’t speak a single word in English will find it difficult to ask for direction in Sydney or Jakarta. Using a tool that is familiar for both people is definitely the key for a better communication. On the other hand, mixing English words with Indonesian is rather confusing if not showing-off. There are many words in Indonesian that you can use instead of dropping some English words. Take for example the word ‘worth it’, often it’s ridiculously misspelled ‘worthed’. So many Indonesians I have met using the word ‘worth it’ instead of ‘berguna’ or ‘ada untungnya’. But somehow they like to write or say ‘worthed’.

English language in Indonesia is considered a symbol of modernity. The more proficient you are in English language, the more modern you will be perceived. But is that really true? Modernity is often understood through a binary model as in modern versus traditional (keren versus norak), city versus country (village). This is nothing than reflecting the failure of understanding modernity. IF I like to put it bluntly, mixing up Indonesian words and some English words is just tacky. I am not certain whether Cinta Laura and her infamous mixed language do have something to do with the way the Indonesian middle classes speak? However, it’s bizarre to see that although many people loathe and despise her but they seem to be fine if within their circle of friends, mixed language is often used.

Modern communication is not about how many foreign words you can throw in a sentence but it centres on the idea of effectiveness and efficiency. Mixing Indonesian words with English words is definitely ineffective and inefficient as it confuses people who we speak to. Even for Indonesians whose English is near native speaker, this mixed language is very hard to understand if not annoying. “I think ide-ide yang dipaparkan yesterday less complicated than gagasan-gagasan dia before.” “Oh loe better pergi ke festival laying-layang kalau di Bali, it’s worth it”. “Sangat recommended”. These are sort of mixing language that we have today and to be brutally honest, I can’t stand this. Not only does it sound wrong but this bastardised pronunciation of English words also sound ridiculous.
It’s a challenge for me to stick to one language and more importantly to be able to use it properly.

Perhaps mixing English and Indonesian words in a sentence will boost up their social status. Since these burgeoning nouveau riche people in Indonesia are obsessed with social status, the use of English words in daily conversation is a means of proofing their strata in society. For them English language is a modern tool for communication, without which a global and cosmopolitan vision cannot be achieved. For me it’s just tacky!