Normalizing Whiteness: A Multimodal Analysis of Cultural Representation in a French Textbook from an Indonesian Perspective

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Abstract

This study investigates the normalization of whiteness through a multimodal construction of “Frenchness” and its ideological implications for the intercultural identity formation of Indonesian learners. Utilizing a triadic Multimodal Discourse Analysis (MDA) framework, the research deconstructs (Mon Alter Ego A1, a French textbook widely used in Indonesian higher education, by synthesizing Text (Cultural Content), Image (Visual Transitivity), and Task (Verbal Transitivity). Analysis of eight dossiers reveals a persistent regime of representation that prioritizes a narrow, idealized image of French culture. Findings indicate that visual participants are predominantly white, middle-class, and urban, effectively normalizing “metropolitan whiteness” while marginalizing the ethnic diversity of the broader Francophone world. Spatially, the textbook reinforces a Paris-centric worldview through iconic landmarks and curated urban lifestyles. The study demonstrates how high-modality tasks and selective imagery function as cultural gatekeepers that obstruct the possibility of reciprocal intercultural dialogue. By erasing learners’ local cultural resources and plural Francophone realities, the textbook reproduces postcolonial hierarchies and positions Indonesian learners as perpetual “outsiders” rather than active intercultural mediators. This research argues that the dominance of “Whiteness” as a singular cultural benchmark creates identity dissonance, hindering students from engaging in a genuine, bi-directional exchange between their own Indonesian identities and the Francophone world. The findings contribute to discourses on the politics of representation in educational media and offer recommendations for developing more culturally equitable materials in Asian higher education.

Keywords

intercultural dialogue / Whiteness / cultural representation / multimodal discourse analysis / Indonesian higher education

CHANGE HISTORY

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