A Critical Narrative of the Anderson Theory of Imagined Community: An Indonesian Perspective

Abstract

Benedict Richard O’Gorman Anderson was born in Kunming, China on August 26, 1936. A renowned professor in the field of international studies at Cornell University, he is often called Ben Anderson who is a political expert and historian. Anderson also referred to as an Indo-chianist although of Jewish descent, had paid great attention to Javanese culture. His thinking about nationalism was talked about after he published the best-seller book titled “Imagined Unities” in 1983 which is still printed until today. He claimed that the Marxist approach as a factor in the emergence of nationalism in the world. He also analyzed critically about Indonesia and the government of Indonesia until he was banned from entering Indonesia during Suharto’s regime.