A Study of Carl Gustav Jung’s Analytical Psychology on the Character Magi Diela in the Novel Women Who Cry to the Black Moon by Dian Purnomo

Abstract

The practice of kawin tangkap (marriage by capture) in Sumba remains a social problem that causes profound psychological impacts on female victims, including inner conflict, trauma, and identity struggles under patriarchal cultural pressure. The novel Perempuan yang Menangis kepada Bulan Hitam by Dian Purnomo represents these experiences through the main character, Magi Diela. This study aims to analyze the psychological development of Magi Diela using Carl Gustav Jung’s analytical psychology framework. The analysis focuses on the manifestation of archetypes (persona, shadow, anima/animus, and Self), confrontation with the shadow, and the individuation process experienced by the character. The method employed is qualitative descriptive with content analysis and heuristic-hermeneutic reading techniques applied to the novel’s text. The findings show that Magi Diela experiences intense conflict between her persona as an educated, independent woman and the collective demands of patriarchal customary law. The shadow appears in the form of trauma, anger, suicidal ideation, and the internalization of oppressive values. The individuation process unfolds through repeated confrontations with the shadow, resistance against cultural structures, and efforts to reconstruct identity toward personality integration (the Self). The symbols of the “black moon” and tears serve as representations of the collective unconscious and markers of the character’s psychic journey. The study affirms that the novel not only voices social criticism of custom-based violence but also depicts the psychological dynamics of women as they pursue self-wholeness amid cultural pressure.