Background of the Study

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Literature was exist in the past, is exist now, and will be exist in the future. If you hear the word “literature”, what is on your mind? There have been various attempts to define what literature actually is. Some people say that literature is imaginative writing. But, anyone who has read a major anthology of literature will discover that substantial amount of the material in it is not imaginative. One is likely to find political, historical or scientific writing as poetry, fiction and drama Castle 2007:6. Writing a literary work can be a good way to express something. It may experience, feeling, point of view about something or kinds of it. Analyzing a literary work can be a good way too for getting new idea, information about something or condition by learning it from its literary story. There are genres in literature, such as prose, drama and poetry are for making easy the reader in choosing which they like most. In this case, the writer chooses prose poetry. Delville 1969: 2 in his book ‘American Prose Poem Poetic Form and the Boundaries of Genre’ quotes Martin Gray’s definition about the prose poetry: “…Martin Gray’s description of the genre as short work of poetic, resembling a poem because its ornate language and imagery, and because it stands on its own, lacks narrative: like a lyric poem but not subjected to patterning of metre.” Delville 1969: 2 Prose poetry can be one of the best ways to explore the experience and the idea of something. When people read it, some people may find that prose poetry is complicate, although the subject matter of the prose poem itself isn’t complicated. Universitas Sumatera Utara The only reason why we find it complicated is because all those patterns serve to concentrate and compress the word into much more meaningful relationship each other. The writer chooses the prose poem because it is more attractive to take attention from someone in playing word. In this thesis the writer wants to analyze Kahlil Gibran’s point of view about self by analyzing selected prose poem that related on it. Self Oxford: 2000 is the type of person you are, especially the way you normally behave. In this thesis, the writer chooses self-knowledge, talking, teaching and pain that are related to self. Here is because the way we talk and teach influence our way to think and behave, meanwhile, self-knowledge and pain are more related to connect us and ourselves. Kahlil Gibran, as a poet, is one of famous author who is good at arranging meaningful word. He is Lebanese American artist, poet and the writer. Born in the town of Bsharri in modern day, as a young man, he immigrated with his family to the United States where he studied art and began his literary career. His most famous work is a book entitled “The Prophet”. That book is written as prose poem. News in BBC, has supported the writer’s idea that the book is prose poem, say in their article that “the book is made of 26 prose poems, delivered as sermons by a wise man called Almustafa. His style, which broke away from the classical school, pioneered a new Romantic movement in Arabic Literature of poetic prose”. BBC News, 12 th May 2012. The writer chooses Kahlil Gibran because he writes many aspects that concerning life in his book “The Prophet” by putting his point of view what actually they are. Everyone has different point of view about something but the writer is interested to analyze Kahlil Gibran’s point of view because it looks like written in positive way. In this thesis, the writer wants to discuss about selected prose poetry to Universitas Sumatera Utara find out Kahlil Gibran’s point of view about self. Madison says in his article that Kahlil Gibran is a beautiful writer and one that gets his point across by painting a picture of life on how one should lead it. In no way does he demand utopianism form his readers. He simple provides examples and thought on how to approach and live a more fruitful and less complicated lifestyle. Kahlil Gibran’s prose poem is also arranged in meaningful lines. For the writer, each of his words is as if saying the general truth of this world. To find out the significance of this thesis, the writer uses library research by having focus on the analysis. A focus is needed to scope the study and limit the subject itself. The method research used by the writer in this thesis is library research by collecting all necessary information. The writer uses intrinsic and extrinsic approach to analyze the prose poetry. Intrinsic approach describe the image that found in those selected theme and extrinsic approach for relate it on self. The writer is following several steps; for example reading the total of the book to find the connection, if available, between each chapter and previous chapter, selecting the theme from all themes that written in “The Prophet” and analysis the data by finding its meaning.

1.2 Problem of the Study