Individuals who cannot deal with their horrible memories in the past will find it difficult to face the next phase of life that may involve a more complex problem.
It resembles the epigenetic principle of Erikson, who believes that human development occurs throughout the lifespan, so that how individuals deal with the
past will influence the way they face the next task in the next phase of life. The feeling of acute upset also results in anxiety toward Charlie’s sense of
identity. Charlie’s anxiety never sets him free to share with others. He always feels insecure to introduce himself to someone new. It can be seen when he tries
to hide his identity from the one he sends his letters. “Please dont try to figure out
who she is because then you might figure out who I am, and I really dont want you to do that Chbosky, 1999: 2.” This expression indicates that Charlie
conceals his identity to a person he writes the letters for because he realizes that the letters contain his secrets and those are all the shame for him. He never shares
his problem with people around him, but he speaks everything in the letters to relieve his pain. He really worries that anyone gives him bad remark and cannot
accept him as the way he is after knowing the truth about him who may be perceived as weird and unusual in his society. It portrays that most adolescents
feel worried that all of their weirdness will make them fail to integrate with the society. One thing that becomes the hindrance for adolescents to fit in the society
is the fear of the failure itself. Moreover, it just makes the condition worse. b.
Inability to Concentrate Charlie’s acute upset and anxiety lead him to the inability to concentrate.
Every time he feels anxious, his mind suddenly sweeps away somewhere, thus he
loses focus. The inability to concentrate possibly happens to people who suddenly remember something that irritate their feeling, so that they lose their focus on
everything they do at certain time. The passage below is the example when Charlie gets trouble to concentrate.
I am sitting in my dads old bedroom in Ohio. The family is still downstairs. I really dont feel very well. I dont know whats wrong with me, but Im
starting to get scared. I wish we were going back home tonight, but we always sleep over. I dont want to tell my mom about it because it would just
make her worry. I would tell Sam and Patrick, but they didnt call yesterday. And we left this morning after we opened presents. Maybe they called this
afternoon. I hope they didnt call this afternoon because I wasnt there. I hope its okay that Im telling you this. I just dont know what else to do. I always
get sad when this happens, and I wish Michael were here. And I wish my Aunt Helen were here. I miss my Aunt Helen like this. Reading the book
isnt helping either. I dont know. Im just thinking too fast. Much too fast. Its like tonight.
Chbosky, 1999: 75 Charlie often feels scared without any certain reasons. This feeling strikes
him when he is forced to stay a night in his relative’s house. He tries to reduce his worries by reading, but it cannot fix his feeling. Moreover, his worries affect his
way of thinking, which turns too fast and loses his concentrations. From the dialog above, there is another fact that adolescents who have no one to share with
will suffer more pressure in their life. They tend to hide their burden than share it with others for relieving. As the consequence, the pressure in their life arises, and
it bothers their concentration in requiring the tasks of life. Charlie’s inability to concentrate also can be clenched when he is about to
have sexual encounter with Sam. His memory in the past suddenly appears and distracts his mind during his time with Sam. He feels like he re-experiences the
traumatic event that is the same as what he is about to do with Sam, but with a
different person and it really hurts his feeling. He suddenly turns to be so emotional and tells her that he cannot do it. Charlie loses his concentration and
says something that is not referred to Sam, but to someone else that did hurt him. It is vividly depicted in the quotation below.
Here. Just lie down on the couch, she said. She laid me down on the couch. She brought out a damp washcloth and put it
on my forehead. You can sleep here tonight. Okay?
Okay. Just calm down. Take deep breaths.
I did what she told me. And just before I fell asleep, I said something. I cant do that anymore. Im sorry, I said.
Its okay, Charlie. Just go to sleep, Sam said. But I wasnt talking to Sam anymore. I was talking to someone else.
When I fell asleep, I had this dream. My brother and my sister and I were watching television with my Aunt Helen. Everything was in slow
motion. The sound was thick. And she was doing what Sam was doing. Thats when I woke up. And I didnt know what the hell was going on.
Sam and Patrick were standing over me. Patrick asked if I wanted some breakfast. I guess I nodded. We went and ate. Sam still looked worried.
Chbosky, 1999: 203-204 Charlie cannot deal with his past, so that he always gets deep down sad and
loses his focus when he remembers that. Besides, his worst memory in the past once haunts him in his dream like what is viewed in the dialog above. The fact
about Charlie’s traumatic experience not only becomes his hindrance to either have sexual encounter or have a relationship with a girl, but also to play his roles
in society. Henceforth, it is required sensitiveness from the surroundings to acknowledge that there is an adolescent who acts differently from others; there
should be a reason behind it. Building a warm communication toward an adolescent and making him feel comfortable to speak his awful memories to
others than just keeping the memory in his mind can prevent him from attaining unhealthy personality.
c. Excessive self-awareness
Another inner conflict arises in Charlie’s identity diffusion is the excessive self-awareness. Adolescents who have too much self-awareness usually compare
and evaluate themselves as they are not as good as others, and do not deserve to get what the others get. This kind of mood becomes the hindrance for adolescents
to achieve the sense of identity since it makes them have no desire to explore their potential and build their strong identity. In Charlie’s case, his excessive self-
awareness is indicated from the feeling of inferiority that always strikes his mind and blocks his way to make a further step of his actions. He never believes his
own potential and always worries that he does not deserve to do what he is supposed to do. As the consequence, he always thinks too much before doing
something because he doubts of his own capability in doing something. It is expressed in the quotation below.
Do you always think this much, Charlie? Is that bad? I just wanted someone to tell me the truth.
Not necessarily. Its just that sometimes people use thought to not participate in life.
Is that bad? Yes.
I think I participate, though. Dont you think I am? Well, are you dancing at these dances?
Im not a very good dancer. Are you going on dates?
Well, I dont have a car, and even if I did, I cant drive because I’m fifteen, and anyway, I haven’t met a girl I like except for Sam, but I am
too young for her, and she would always have to drive, which I dont think is fair.
Chbosky, 1999: 24
The dialog above shows that Charlie mentions many of his weaknesses as a boy who is not a very good dancer, cannot drive, and has no car, as the reason
why he does not deserve to participate in the party that much. Moreover, it is very possible that Charlie still has many more reasons to not to participate more in his
environment. His inferiority resists him to play apart in the party and makes an intimate interaction with his relatives. Charlie is trapped in his negative thoughts,
and his mind is controlled by the feeling of inferiority. Thus, most of adolescents who feel inferior will have so many doubts in taking an initiative to participate
and mingle in the society. Finally, they just do nothing and prefer to observe others from another side.
d. Inability to make decision
Another inconvenience that Charlie experiences identity diffusion as his hindrance in achieving the sense of identity is his inability to make a decision.
Identity is all about the choices of individuals’ life that represents their personalities. Unfortunately, Charlie becomes the one who always doubtfully
makes a decision in several occasions in his life. The example is when Charlie is clueless about his dreams in the future. Besides, he gives random answers for his
teacher’s questions about his favorite songs, movies, and books. Charlie never imagines what he will transform in the future, and it always becomes the hardest
question for him to answer. It is sad to know that Charlie has no dream for his life, since a dream can be a motivation for a person to work harder and better.
What do you want to do when you grow up? I dont know just yet.
Whats your favorite band?
I think maybe the Smiths because I love their song `Asleep, but Im really not sure one way or the other because I dont know any other
songs by them too well. Whats your favorite movie?
I dont know really. Theyre all the same to me. How about your favorite book?
“This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Why?
Because it was the last one I read.”
Chbosky, 1999: 20 Mostly, adolescents find a famous figure to be their idol. It belongs to one of
the steps during the process of gaining identity. They usually follow the style of the figure that they admire. At that point, they will imitate the style of their idol
then adopt it as their identity. However, it is different for Charlie. The quotation above implies that Charlie does not know either anything about the figure he may
admire or how many adolescents out there coloring their life. Therefore, he has no one to adore and emulate the way he gains his identity, thus he has no taste in
enjoying life like others. It proves that Charlie has not attained his identity yet. His confusion endures when he cannot make a daring decision about what
style of writings he wants to bring up if he decides to be a writer for his prospect.
I have decided that maybe I want to write when I grow up. I just dont know what I would write.
I thought about maybe writing for magazines just so I could see an article that didnt say things like I mentioned before. As ---- wiped the honey mustard
off of her lips, she spoke to me about her third husband and the healing power of crystals. But honestly, I think I would be a very bad reporter because I
cant imagine sitting across the table from a politician or a movie star and asking them questions. I think I would probably just ask for their autograph
for my mom or something. I would probably get fired for doing this. So, I thought about maybe writing for a newspaper instead because I could ask
regular people questions, but my sister says that newspapers always lie. I do not know if this is true, so Ill just have to see when I get older.”
Chbosky, 1999: 46
From the dialog above, it can be perceived that Charlie has several alternatives in his mind about the styles he may choose for his writings, but he
also has more reasons to interrupt his potential. Finally, he just lets himself waiting until the time gives him the answer of which writing style is the best for
him. It can be concluded that adolescents who are unable to make a decision are undermined by the lack of their confidence. Thus, adolescents doubt their own
potential and they will be trapped in dilemmas of their life without any ability to overcome their own obscurity.
Charlie’s inability to make a decision leads him to have low self-esteem. People who have low self-esteem are those who can defend themselves from the
pressures of life. A straight man should not let his man friend kisses him. However, Charlie lets Patrick to kiss him although he is not gay. He seems like he
does not have any choice except just letting Patrick do it, which actually he can prevent it to happen to him. Awkwardly, he just plainly lets it happen without any
interruption. After that, it was quiet. He drove me home and pulled up in the driveway.
We hugged good night, and when I was just about to let go, he held me a little tighter. And he moved his face to mine. And he kissed me. A real
kiss. Then, he pulled away real slow. Im sorry.
No. Thats okay. Really. Im sorry.
No, really. It was okay. So, he said thanks and hugged me again. And moved in to kiss me
again. And I just let him. I dont know why. We stayed in his car for a long time. We didnt do anything other than kiss. And we didnt even do that
for very long. After a while, his eyes lost the glazey numb look from the wine or the coffee or the fact that he had stayed up the night before. Then,
he started crying. Then, he started talking about Brad.
And I just let him. Because thats what friends are for.
Chbosky, 1999: 160
Indeed, Charlie cannot refuse Patrick’s desire to kiss and hug him although he realizes that it is extremely weird for a straight guy. Even worse, he cannot just
step backward or anything to avoid those actions to occur to him. The worst thing is it happens many times without any resistance. It is essential to note that
adolescents who have low self-esteem are susceptible to the ruthless acts from their surroundings. Henceforth, adolescents are not aware that there are some
people who try to take advantages from their weaknesses. Even if they are aware, they cannot do anything to prevent them on getting forbidden treatments from
unkind people because they are unable to make a decision and clueless about self- defense.
From the points above, it is important to notice that Charlie’s identity diffusion is followed by numerous inappropriate behaviors that become the
hindrance for him to achieve the sense of identity. Those are the feeling of acute upset, the inability to concentrate, the excessive self-awareness, and the inability
to make decision. Therefore, the sensitiveness of the surroundings about the marks on adolescents who seem strange is essential in order to prevent them from having
the unhealthy personality.
2. Identity Foreclosure
Identity foreclosure is when individuals define themselves too early before trying many other choices or opinions. Usually, they base their self-images on
recognition by others who have authority around them Erikson, 1968: 158. Adolescents who experience identity foreclosure are indicated by a the excessive
involvement of parents and friends, b interruption of self-potential, and c the premature establishment of sense of self. In Charlie’s case, the researcher finds
out that there are three main problems that become the indication that he suffers from identity foreclosure, which are presented as below.
a. The excessive involvement of parents
Identity foreclosure is the second problem in psychosocial moratorium that is experienced by Charlie. It seems that Charlie really has a problem in his
personality that is related to the process of gaining identity. The first evidence that denotes that Charlie experiences identity foreclosure is when his parents play the
most roles to lead his life. It is vividly depicted in the dialog below. My dad really hopes he will make it to the pros and play for the Steelers.
My mom is just glad he gets to go to college for free because my sister doesnt play football, and there wouldnt be enough money to send both of
them. Thats why she wants me to keep working hard, so Ill get an academic scholarship.
Chbosky, 2010: 12 The quotation above clearly shows the role of Charlie’s parents to urge his
son to work hard for to achieve academic scholarship for the sake of their economic condition. It means that Charlie’s mother tries to push him to the limit
in order to take along his responsibility as the youngest child to help their parents meet the financial needs. In the real life, there are many cases having something in
common to what happens to Charlie. Many children are trying hard to be what their parents ask them to be without real enthusiasm to do that. Since parents are
very dominant in taking control in a family, there is nothing that children can do except just following their parents’ commands. Good communication between
parents and children can be achieved when both of them are willing to share and
listen to each other’s problem. However, the good communication is not found in Charlie’s family when his grievance about his family condition does not mean that
much for his parents. It is depicted in the dialog below.
One thing I do know is that it makes me wonder if I have problems at home but it seems to me that a lot of other people have it a lot worse.
Like when my sisters first boyfriend started going around with another girl and my sister cried for the whole weekend.
My dad said, There are other people who have it a lot worse.
Chbosky, 2010: 5 From the quotation above, it can be seen that Charlie’s father seems to belittle
his sigh about his problems. It happens because his father does not wonder the implication of Charlie’s grievance, which has become the main factor that disturbs
his personality. Considering what his father says, Charlie tries to accept the insufficient condition of his family and keeps it in his mind. It is noticed that
Charlie’s way of thinking about problem at home is much influenced by his father, who has assured him that no matter what kind of problem he has in his life,
he needs to be grateful because many other people have it a lot worse. Unfortunately, it does not make Charlie feel relieve, but even gives him more
pressures. Charlie is uncomforted with his problem at home but he has to accept it and pretend like everything is okay, which is actually not at all.
b. Interruption of self-potential
Interruption of self-potential happens to adolescents who have low self- confidence and do not realize that they have good skills and potential on doing
certain things. As a boy who has low self-confidence, Charlie experiences the interruption of self-potential because he never considers himself as a gifted person
who has a good talent on writing and reading. A remarkable fact can be seen when
Charlie continuously receives tasks from his teacher to read many books and write the essays about the stories. The assignments from his teacher are quite difficult,
but he can handle it well. He gets such continuous difficult assignments because his teacher notices that he has talent in reading and writing, so that he is pushed to
his limit in order to find out his potential. His teacher tries to make Charlie realize his potential and keep it up. It is like what his teacher said in the dialog below.
Charlie, he said. Do you know why I gave you all that extra work? I shook my head no. That looks on his face. It made me quiet.
Charlie, do you know how smart you are? I just shook my head no again. He was talking for real. It was strange.
Charlie, youre one of the most gifted people Ive ever known. And I dont mean in terms of my other students. I mean in terms of anyone Ive ever
met. Thats why I gave you the extra work. I was wondering if you were aware of that.
I guess so. I dont know. I felt really strange. I didnt know where this was coming from. I just wrote some essays.
Chbosky, 2010: 181 The passage above emphasizes Charlie’s confusion of himself about in which
part he successfully makes things great and makes his teacher consider him as a gifted person. He always thinks that he is just an innocent boy who has no talent
at all and nothing special to be proud of. It indicates that he is interrupting his self-potential.
c. The premature establishment of sense of self
Identity foreclosure is also signed with the premature establishment sense of identity. It may happen because the surroundings of the adolescents put them on a
label that gives them pressures, thus unconsciously accept it as their identity. In Charlie’s occasion, he receives several stigmas from people around him. For
example is, when his sister considers him as a pervert who always looks freak and annoying, as stated below.
Youre a freak, you know that? Youve always been a freak. Everyone says so. They always have.
Im trying not to be. Then, I turned around and walked to my room and closed my door and put
my head under my pillow and let the quiet put things where they are supposed to be.
Chbosky, 2010: 26 Indeed, Charlie realizes that he is innocent and freak, but he also tries to not
to be that freak anymore and becomes a normal boy who has nothing to be afraid of. Unfortunately, his willingness is not supported by his surroundings, which do
not care about his problem and even give him more pressure. Therefore, he just accepts what the others talk about him, and he acts according to what other people
have made a mark on him.
3. Negative Identity
According to Erikson 1968: 172, negative identity is a choice of a person as a denial toward the rules of family or certain society, which is expressed in a
scornful and snobbish behavior. It is also known as the loss of a sense of identity of individuals since they perform the opposite things of the roles in society or
even their own desire. Bad childhood experience can also be the reason why an individual makes the choice of negative identity. For example, a boy who has
been raped by another older boy will choose to be a gay or a homosexual when he grows up as the expression of his deepest regret of the past. It becomes the
negative identity since it is opposing the rules that are accepted in the society.
In this research, Charlie is suspected as a boy who performs the choice of negative identity, which is indicated by a an undesirable choice of an action to
gain an acceptable identity, and b a denial action toward the rule in a family. Charlie shows actions that are totally different from the expectation of his family
toward him. In addition, he also performs different behaviors that have been adjusted to his new environment as he becomes a freshman, which leads him to
the choice of negative identity. a.
Performance of undesirable choice of an action to gain an acceptable identity. Charlie realizes that he is introverted and has difficulty in forming
relationship with others. Therefore, he begins to try to change his behavior to follow the life style that are mostly adopted by adolescents in his society in order
to be accepted and has more friends. His first effort to be accepted in his society can be seen when he decides to drink brandy that is expressed in the passage
below.
So, everyone asked me to stand up and read the poem. And I wasnt shy because we were trying to act like grown-ups, and we drank brandy. And
I was warm. Im still a little warm, but I have to tell you this. So, I stood up, and just before I read this poem, I asked everyone if they knew who wrote it
to please tell me.
Chbosky, 1999: 66 The passage above shows that Charlie begins to act like a real teenager. He
tries to drink brandy, a strong alcoholic beverage that is usually consumed by adults. He wants to be accepted in his new group, most members of which are
older than him and all of them drink brandy. It is considered as a negative identity since drinking brandy is only allowed for people above 18 years old. At this point,
Charlie has broken the rule as the process of gaining his self-identity, which is
based on the environment around him. The same case as what happens to Charlie is often found among adolescents who show the negative identity in order to be
accepted in a certain group. It happens because recently, there is a wrong idea regarding efflorescence among adolescent’s life, which believes that everybody
who is brave enough to break the rules is the impressive one. Therefore, many adolescents are against their feeling just to follow what the majority says it is
good for them and strengthen their existence in the society. Charlie’s negative identity then continues by consuming one kind of drugs
named LSD. LSD is a kind of drugs usually known as the most potent mood-
changing chemical. It can be seen when he says “Regardless, I decided to never take LSD again Chbosky, 1999: 100”. Charlie tries to follow the lifestyle of his
new friends who lead him to the drugs using. He gets LSD from his senior named Bob, the one who introduces him to the drug dealing. It can be seen from the
passage below.
After a week of not talking to anyone, I finally called Bob. I know thats wrong, but I didnt know what else to do. I asked him if he had anything
I could buy. He said he had a quarter ounce of pot left. So, I took some of my Easter money and bought it.
Ive been smoking it all the time since.
Chbosky, 1999: 139 From the quotation above, the term ‘pot’ refers to the drug or LSD, an illegal
chemical that is taken for pleasure. Even Charlie notices that what he did is opposing the rules in his family; he keeps taking it until he gets addicted to the
drug. Moreover, Charlie chooses to consume drug as his expression of his deep regret toward the environment around him that do not help him to get out from the
pressure of his life. In addition, his new friends in high school have made a
significant influence in forming his new identity as a boy who is addicted to the drug using.
Another behavior that becomes the indication of Charlie’s negative identity is when he begins to smoke a cigarette. It is expressed in the dialog below.
Looking sharp, Charlie, Patrick said grinning. Can I have a cigarette? I said. I couldnt bring myself to say bum a
smoke. Not for my first one. I just couldnt.
Chbosky, 1999: 101 Actually, it is quite strange for Charlie to smoke because he is marked as the
pervert one, who has low self-esteem and low self-confidence to do such inappropriate habit. Smoking cigarettes becomes his choice of negative identity
since it is considered as his effort to follow the lifestyle that is adopted by many teenagers in his environment around. Besides, he chooses to act like what most
teenagers do because he wants to try to break the ‘wallflower’ mark on him. Henceforth, the environment around him has made a big deal toward his choices
in his current life. b.
A denial action toward the rule in family. Charlie is also breaking the rules in his family through some of his negative
identity that are not representing the tradition of his family. First evidence that all of his negative identity are in contrast with his family rule is seen from the
expression of his sister, who is shocked to know that he consumes cigarettes now. I must have been in the car for a long time because eventually my sister found
me there. I was chain-smoking cigarettes and crying still. My sister knocked on the window. I rolled it down. She looked at me with this curious
expression. Then, her curiosity turned to anger. Charlie, are you smoking?
She was so mad. I cant tell you how mad she was. I cant believe youre smoking
Thats when I stopped crying. And started laughing. Because of all the things she could have said right after she got out of there, she picked my smoking.
And she got angry about it. And I knew if my sister was angry, then her face wouldnt be that different. And she would be okay.
Im going to tell Mom and Dad, you know? No, youre not. God, I couldnt stop laughing.
Chbosky, 1999: 119 Charlie’s sister is mad at him because she never wonders that he is brave
enough to smoke, especially noticing that smoking belongs to one thing that is not appropriate to do. Charlie smokes cigarettes behind his parents because he is
afraid they will get mad at him. It means that Charlie realizes that what he has done is in contradiction with the rule of his family. However, he keeps smoking as
the process of gaining his self-identity in accordance with the society around him. From this point, it can be concluded that children’s interaction with larger society
without parents control can lead them to the negative choice of identity. Another expression that shows that Charlie has broken the rules in his family
is when his mother still thinks that he is an amateur boy about the life outside, that actually he has been transformed to be a little bit rougher than he was. It is seen in
the quotation below. And again my mom asked my brother not to use such language in front of
me, which was strange again because I think Im the only person in my family whos ever been high. Maybe also my brother. Im not sure.
Definitely not my sister. Then again, maybe my whole family has been high, and we just dont tell each other these things.
Chbosky, 1999: 182 The passage above vividly shows Charlie’s mother expectation toward her
children in family to acquire good attitudes and personality. Although she has a good expectation of her children, she cannot guide her children well until she
knows what actually matters to them, especially Charlie. As a result, she never
knows that Charlie has changed to be a different person, who has ever been high, consuming drugs, even smoking every day. Charlie has succeeded to camouflage
his life to look normal in front of his family when he is at home. Without the sensitiveness of his parents to identify and understand him, it is hard for his
parents to recognize and treat him well through his self-development. Therefore, the roles of parents are really important to guide their children to grow well and
avoid any negative influence from the outside society around.
B. Charlie’s Failure toward His Personality in the Sixth Stage of Erikson’s
Psychosocial Development
In Erikson’s theory of personality development, it is believed that each crisis has its own problem, and the way individuals deal with the earlier crisis will
influence the result in the later stage. In the previous finding, it has been described that Charlie fails to accomplish the basic strength in the fifth stage because of his
traumatic experience in the past. His failure in the previous stage leads him to acquire unhealthy personality; as a result, he also fails to solve the problem in the
sixth stage. Intimacy vs. Isolation is the sixth stage of Erikson’s psychosocial development, which averagely occurs at late adolescence or early adult. This is
the period when individuals have to build an intimate relationship with the opposite sex, or even build a family. However, it is not an easy task for
individuals who have not yet established their sense of identity to build such an intimate relationship. Therefore, the outcome of the previous stage whether the
individuals’ sense of identity grows healthy or not, highly influences their
personality to handle the conflicts arising in this stage. It is in accordance with Erikson 1963: 101, who says that the real intimacy with the other sex is only
possible if individuals have established their sense of identity. Based on the previous findings, Charlie is suffering from identity confusion
indicated from the identity diffusion, identity foreclosure, and negative identity. He has not established his sense of identity yet, which affects his personality at
this stage. As the consequence, he feels difficult in dealing with the more complicated conflicts arising in this phase.
In this stage, Charlie tries to complete the tasks to acquire a healthy personality, such as participating in groups or parties and establishing a peer
relationship. Nevertheless, his efforts do not work well since he still becomes the observer in almost their gathering. Besides, he also fails in making an intimate
relationship with the opposite sex. He once has a relationship with a girl named Mary Elizabeth, but it seems like he is never really enchanted to date with her. In
order to scrutiny the analysis of Charlie’s personality development in this stage, the researcher has separated the findings of the second research question into two
subchapters below.
1. Intimacy
The intimate individual is characterized by having close friendships characterized by depth and openness of communication, as well as an exclusive,
committed partner relationship. Individuals who do not yet achieve the sense of identity will hardly build an intimate relationship with the opposite sex. It is as
what Feist 2008: 259 says that “People who are unsure of their identity may either be shy away from psychosocial intimacy or desperately seek intimacy
through meaningless sexual encounters”. Therefore, there are two possibilities for individuals who fail in this stage, whether they exile from the society or even push
themselves to engage with a worthless relationship. Individuals who cannot cope with their trauma in the past will be unable to take their responsibility as young
adults in this stage. In this case, Charlie’s efforts to achieve the basic strength in this stage are seen from a his participation in groups and b his encouragement
in a worthless relationship. a.
Participation in groups As the process to pass the tasks in this stage runs successfully, Charlie begins
to be more socialized in his high school by his willingness to join a larger group or party. Charlie has met more people in the party he attends and established new
friendships. However, it does not make him easily build an intimate relationship with others, since he still becomes the passive one who prefers to be alone and
observe others from his own side. It happens because he still has the unresolved problem in the previous stage, which leads him to have low self-confidence and
have no bravery to interact with more people. Therefore, although he has succeeded in establishing new relationship with his new friends, he still fails to be
intimate with them all. It is seen when Christmas is about to come, he feels sad when he realizes that nobody gives him Christmas present, except Sam a
beautiful girl who wins Charlie’s affection since the first time they met and
Patrick a gay guy who firstly introduces and welcomes Charlie into his larger group of friends.
Bob gave Patrick an eighth of marijuana with a Christmas card attached. He even wrapped it. Mary Elizabeth gave Sam earrings. So did Alice. And Sam
gave them earrings, too. I think that is a private girl thing. I have to admit, I felt a little sad because other than Sam and Patrick, nobody got me a
present. I guess Im not that close with them, so it makes sense. But I still felt a little sad.
Chbosky, 1999: 67 Clearly, Charlie only receives two presents from Sam and Patrick, while he
gives all of his new friends Christmas presents. Charlie admits that he cannot be so close with his friends except Sam and Patrick. This proof shows that his
improvement does not have much impact he is still so passive to communicate and participate with his new friends. Moreover, he also fails to strengthen his
existence among his friends and is unsuccessful in making his presence being special to many people around him.
b. Encouragement in a worthless relationship
Although Charlie is still taciturn and unable to be intimate with the other friends, it does not stop his effort to achieve the sense of his identity through this
stage. As the task in this stage is to build a love partner, Charlie starts to try to have a date like other common teenagers in order to find his love partner.
Charlie’s effort to make a relationship with the opposite sex is seen when he tries to build an intimate relationship with Mary Elizabeth. Charlie’s experience in
some events that sends him to meet more people does not make him become more confident to start the conversation with others, especially with a girl. Since
Charlie is always nervous and timid, it seems hard for him to have a date until
Mary Elizabeth comes to him and asks him first to go on date with her. It makes Charlie a bit amazed that finally he is asked for a date, which is expressed in the
dialog below. I have a date for the Sadie Hawkins dance. In case you didnt have one of
those, its the dance where the girl asks the boy. In my case, the girl is Mary Elizabeth, and the boy is me. Can you believe it?
Chbosky, 1999: 108 Charlie really realizes that he is undesirable for women and has nothing
fascinating on him; so that he never wonders that there is a girl who is attracted to him. Since he never dates a girl before, he has no clue about how to treat a girl
right during the date. As a result, he only listens to Mary all the time and only answers one question from her, whether he wants to kiss her or not. Remembering
that Charlie is marked as a pervert, certainly the answer is not. The quotation below shows how Charlie gives a little narrative of impression about his first date
with Mary Elizabeth.
The only thing she asked me the whole time was whether or not I wanted to kiss her good night. When I said that I wasnt ready, she said she
understood and told me what a great time she had. She said I was the most sensitive boy shed ever met, which I didnt understand because really all
I did was not interrupt her.
Chbosky, 1999: 114 Charlie describes that all he can do during the date is not interrupting Mary,
which means that she talks a lot. Although Charlie is not yet ready to kiss her good night, Mary is still interested to date him because he lets her all the time to
take over the conversation. On the other hand, Charlie does not look like he has a fusion on his date because there is no expression about his excitement after the
date. Actually, he is never interested in Mary Elizabeth, but he agrees to go on a
