Tenggelamnja Kapal van der Wijck (The Sinking of the van der Wijck) is an Indonesian serial and later novel by Haji Abdul Malik Karim Amrullah (Hamka; 1908–1981) published in 1938. It follows the failed love between Zainuddin, a mixed-race man, and Hayati, a pure Minang woman. Hamka, an Islamic scholar who disapproved of Minang adat (traditions), wrote Van der Wijck as a critique of the discrimination against mixed-race persons prevalent in Minang society at the time, as well as the subservient role of women. Originally released as a serial, Van der Wijck was republished as a novel after favourable popular reception. Described by the socialist literary critic Bakri Siregar as Hamka's best work, the work came under fire in 1962 because of similarities between it and Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr's Sous les Tilleuls (Under the Limes; 1832). Background Haji Abdul Malik Karim Amrullah, better known as simply Hamka, was the Sumatran-born son of a devout Muslim who viewed local traditions as hindering the progress of religion – his father's opinions influenced his. After a trip to Java and Mecca beginning when he was sixteen, he became a religious scholar in Deli, East Sumatra, then in Makassar, South Sulawesi. During these travels, especially while in the Middle East, he extensively read works by Islamic scholars and authors, such as those by the Egyptian writer Mustafa Lutfi al-Manfaluti, as well as Arabic-language translations of European works. In 1935 he left Makassar for Medan, North Sumatra, where he became the editor of an Islamic weekly magazine, Pedoman Masjarakat. It was while in Medan that he wrote Van der Wijck, which was inspired in part by the sinking of an actual vessel in 1936. Plot Zainuddin is an orphan. His Minang father died in exile after killing a relative over inheritance; his non-Minang mother has also died. He is now living with his father's friend Mak Base in Batipuh, Sumatra. As a person of mixed descent, he faces much discrimination from Minang conservatives. Although he loves Hayati, the daughter of local nobleman, he is not allowed to be with her. He decides to move to Padang Panjang, although he continues to write to Hayati. One day, Hayati goes to Padang Panjang to see Zainuddin and stays with her friend Khadijah. However, Khadijah's elder brother Aziz falls in love with Hayati, leading to Zainuddin and Aziz to compete for Hayati's affections. Aziz, who is of purely