The Conceptualization of Perempuan Idaman ‘Ideal Woman’ through Prototype Semantics in Javanese Society

Abstract

This study examines the prototypical attributes that constitute the meaning of the term perempuan idaman (ideal woman) within Javanese society. Despite the growing body of research on women's conceptualization in Indonesian linguistics, prototype semantic studies addressing socio-gender categories, particularly within Javanese cultural contexts, remain limited. This study therefore aims to map and describe the prototypical attributes that structure the semantic category of perempuan idaman among Javanese community members. A mixed-methods design was employed, combining quantitative and qualitative procedures. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire distributed to 25 Javanese respondents selected via purposive sampling based on ethnicity, residential history, and age criteria ranging from 15 to 45 years. The questionnaire was designed based on three dependent variables derived from open-ended responses: (1) devout observance of religious obligations, (2) possession of broad knowledge and intellectual insight, and (3) obedience toward men. Eight narrative scenarios were constructed following the prototype framework of Coleman and Kay, rated on a scale of 1 to 7. Results indicate that obedience toward men constitutes the most influential variable in the overall conceptualization of perempuan idaman, followed by devout observance of religious obligations, while broad knowledge and intellectual insight was identified as the weakest variable. Age-based segmentation reveals that younger respondents (≤30 years) exhibit a tendency to prioritize religious observance over obedience toward men when variables are combined. Gender-based segmentation shows that female respondents place greater emphasis on religious observance, whereas male respondents prioritize obedience toward men. These findings demonstrate that, notwithstanding the ongoing shift of women's roles into the public sphere, patriarchal values remain deeply embedded in Javanese cultural cognition. These findings confirm that the meaning of perempuan idaman is structured as a graded, prototype-based category rather than a fixed set of componential features, thereby extending prototype semantic theory to the domain of socio-gender categorization.