Here Comes the Style: Cultural Modernity in Chinese Indonesian Weddings

Wedding is an important rite of passage in various ethnic groups and cultures. It marks a milestone in individuals� lives. Because of its significance in life, its ceremony and rituals are very elaborate, complex, and full of meanings. Yet, cultural and social factors influence how wedding is conducted. This makes wedding not only a passage of rite, but also a reflection of social and cultural changes in a society. One of the visible changes in wedding is the commodification of its ceremony, which is heavily propelled by social media. In this article, through an ethnographic study of Chinese Indonesians living in Surabaya, I analyze how their wedding ceremonies expose the negotiation of their ethnic, social, and cultural identities. Primary data, gathered from interviews, are analyzed using affect theory. The findings show that because of the historical trajectory in which Chinese tradition and culture were banned when the New Order regime was in power and revived after the fall of the regime, as well as the increasing popularity of social media in which consumption in weddings is pictured, their wedding ceremony and rituals are in a cultural nexus where the ceremony and rituals are still influenced by traditions, yet at the same time they undergo changes because of growing new cultures. The social media that portray ideal weddings increase the intensity of the affective elements of wedding ceremonies, which jump from one individual to another. Their wedding ceremonies are awash with elements suffused with their projected ethnic, social, and cultural identities.