Speaking to a Silent Cosmos: Shifting Modes of Lyric Address in Subagio Sastrowardoyo’s Manusia Pertama di Angkasa Luar

Abstract

This article aims to analyze Subagio Sastrowardoyo's poem "Manusia Pertama di Angkasa Luar" (MPAL) from the perspective of linguistic events, emphasizing the poem's performative dimension, distinct from its representational one. Employing a textual-discursive method that integrates Jonathan Culler's theory of lyrical address and Merleau-Ponty's concept of bodily perception, this study examines the lyrical persona's strategy of mediating the relationship between language, cosmic space, and existential consciousness. The textual analysis works through three modes of lyrical address—I–You, I–Self, and I–Mother—highlighting apostrophic address as a strategy that makes the operative presence explicit and simultaneously immerses the reader in the poetic event. Rather than serving as a clue to unravel communication, apostrophes intensify relational tensions and reconfigure the communicative field, transforming cosmic alienation into lived linguistic experiences. The research findings show that reading modern Indonesian poetry as a linguistic event allows for the excavation of subtle textual phenomena—such as temporal dislocation and deictic shifts—often overlooked in conventional representational approaches. Ultimately, this article offers a methodological contribution by viewing cosmic imagery as an operative mode of lyrical communication, affirming poetry as a medium for existential engagement.