Looking at Multilingual Competence as Reflected in Teenage Literature

This study is looking at how multilingual competence can be reflected in teenager literature. Teenage literature is seen as a medium of interaction where the writers can deliver their ideas to the teen readers. With the assumption of what language mastered by the teenagers, the writers are working on the literature using language that are familiar to the readers. With the long range of time for English learning in Indonesia, it is assumed that the learners, the teenagers in particular, are in a particular stage of being multilingual speakers. By looking at two literature works with different time frames; Balada Si Roy: Joe [1] and Ruang Hampa Prada [2], this study shows the type of multilingual competence performed by the writers. It shows that most of the switching done by the writers are mostly in the forms of switching for expression and not necessarily showing the ability of being bilinguals. It also shows that media and global world are also giving influence in addition to the actual learning experience taking place in the classroom. It also reveals the different concept of identity formed by teenagers from different time frames.