ИСТИНА

Contrary to general opinion, early modern Malay literature displays interesting examples of its contacts with Western writing. Considering very limited educational possibilities open to the Malay writers in the first half of the 20th century, such influences might appear unlikely, but their traces do exist and form a vivid set of interesting cases. One such case is a short story Hindun, a Poor Student (1941) by someone only known as Ariffin. The basic points of the storyline display distinct resemblances with the famous epistolary novel by J.Webster Daddy-Long-Legs. A poor student receives assistance from an anonymous benefactor, and in the end their encounter leads to a happy marriage. However, Ariffin treated the plot rather freely, and the romantic line is overshadowed by the stress upon the problem of education for the poor. Another important idea is that hard work and study must bring about the well-deserved success. Another point is a tolerant attitude towards mesalliance. All these issues were actively discussed by the writers of pre-World War II period, who were under strong influence of Islamic reformism. Thus, Ariffin’s story builds a totally different structure on the basis of the plot of Daddy-Long-Legs.