The Representation of Patriarchal Culture in the Film “Andai Ibu Tidak Menikah dengan Ayah”

Representasi Budaya Patriarki pada Film “Andai Ibu Tidak Menikah dengan Ayah”

Abstract

The film “Andai Ibu Tidak Menikah dengan Ayah” (2025) represents the interconnection between patriarchal culture, economic pressure, and domestic conflict within the lives of urban families in Indonesia. This descriptive qualitative study aims to analyze the representation of patriarchal culture through the dynamics of gender relations, domestic space, and psychological conflict portrayed in the film. The study employs Stuart Hall’s theory of representation and Charles Sanders Peirce’s semiotic framework to examine visual and audio signs in the form of icons, indices, and symbols embedded in the film’s key scenes.

The findings reveal that patriarchy is represented not only through direct forms of domination, but also through the control of physical, emotional, and symbolic spaces that weaken women’s bargaining position within the family. The film further demonstrates that patriarchal authority becomes fragile when male economic legitimacy collapses, resulting in a crisis of masculinity, emotional aggression, and domestic dysfunction. On the other hand, women are portrayed as bearing a double burden consisting of domestic responsibilities, emotional labor, and family survival, which leads to physical exhaustion and psychological isolation, while simultaneously forcing them to develop resilience in order to survive. In addition, the domestic space in the film is represented not as a place of protection, but as a traumatic environment that generates intergenerational emotional wounds. This study concludes that patriarchal domination within urban families is closely associated with unequal power relations, economic vulnerability, and psychological instability, all of which ultimately damage human relationships within the family structure.