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CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE
A. Review of Related Studies
In this part, the writer is going to quote the studies related to the study in this thesis, writing from other researchers. The studies can be the research on the
same author of the novel and criticism from other people who have read the novel. The purpose of collecting the studies is that the writer wants to have another
perspective about the theme or the object of this study. Unfortunately, the study or criticism of
The Headmaster’s Wager by Vincent Lam are not found. Therefore, the writer is going to use studies that have a similar topic.
A study based on the same topic is taken from a thesis written by Petriza Giovanni Abu, who is an alumnus of Sanata Dhama University, entitled The
Effects of Vietnam War in 1960- 1970 in Robert Olen Butler’s “Missing” and
“Salem”: a Sociocultural-Historical Study. The study questioned about the similarities and differences of two short story Missing and Salem, go deeper the
study is the similarities and differences can lead to the effect of Vietnam War to American soldier in Missing and to Vietnamese peasant in Salem. The study is
stated as follows: The similarities found in both short stories are the setting and the
condition where the main characters are the victims of their government. While the first difference found in both short stories is the identity. The
main character in “Missing” is an American soldier. On the contrary, the
main character in “Salem” is a Vietnamese peasant. The second difference is the freedom of the choice to become disloyal. The similarities and the
differences between both stories draw to the effects of the Vietnam War. The first effect is that there are many casualties from both sides. The
second effect is that Vietnam is destroyed. The third is the Amerasians the mixed children of US servicemen and Vietnamese. The fourth effect
is that the ritual uncertainty which makes the spirits of the Vietnamese who are sent to war are unhappy. The last effect is the obligation for the
Vietnamese and Americans to join the military service 2005: viii.
Abu‟s object of the study has a similar background to the novel that the writer used. “Missing”, “Salem”, and “The Headmaster‟s Wager” take the
Vietnam War as the setting of the novel. However, those works have different characters. “Missing” has an American soldier, “Salem” has a Vietnam peasant,
while “The Headmaster‟s Wager” has a Chinese headmaster. War does not recognize citizenship, everyone get the horrible effect of Vietnam War. Abu‟s
study and this study have a similar objective that is finding the effect of Vietnam to the main character.
Another study comes from a thesis written by Yulita Eva Setiawan, entitled
The Culture Clash of the Chinese American in Amy Tan’s “The Bonesetter Daughter”. The study questioned the characteristics of Lu Ling and
Ruth Young, and go deeper to investigate the culture clash in the novel and the factor that causes it. The study is stated as follows:
It can be summarized that the conflicts regarding the matter of culture happened because of the different characteristics between Lu Ling and
Ruth which then results in misunderstanding of cultures. As a Chinese American, Ruth is accustomed more to the American culture than she is to
Chinese culture. It is because of the nature of the children of the immigrants to assimilate to the culture of the country they were born at. In
contrary, as a Chinese immigrant, Lu Ling tends to preserve the culture of her native country because she believes that her native culture as the best
2012: xii.
The writer thinks that Setiawan‟s research has a relation with this study. The main character Lu Ling is like Percival Chen in
The Headmaster’s Wager.
They are an overseas Chinese. They have similar perspective that Chinese is the best culture, therefore they are trying to preserve it. Regrettably, their culture got
a conflict with the society. Lu Ling gets trouble with her sister who has been assimilated American culture, while Percival gets trouble through situation in
Vietnam. Setiawan‟s study and this study have a similar purpose that is finding the cause of the clash of the culture.
Third study that will be used by the writer is a journal written by Neil Segars, entitled How to Be Chinese in Mississippi: Representation of a Chinese
Grocer in Chyntia Shearer’s “The Celestial Jukebox. This study analyzes the representation of Chinese grocer who lives in Mississippi Delta, go deeper to
investigate the society that influences the main character. The study is stated as follows:
Angus with Chinese heritage of violence through renegade law and order – the description works to contradict the stereotype of Chinese
businessmen as neutral in civic matters, especially regarding racial conflict, by portraying Angus as playing an intimate part in the lives of
everyone who enters his store 2009: 63.
Segars finds that Chinese in “The Celestial Jukebox” is different from the most of Chinese. Angus Chien, a Chinese descent, plays as a neutral player who let
everyone comes to his store, even black people. The writer thinks that this journal has a relation with writer‟s study. This study also tries to find out the
characteristic or the representation of Chinese. Contrarily, Percival is an ethnocentric person while Angus Chien not. Moreover, those main characters also
get a trouble from society because their characteristic. For the last study that the writer finds is a journal written by Jean Amato,
entitled Relocating Notions of National and Ethnic Authenticity in Chinese American and Chinese Literary Theory Through Nieh Hualing’s Overseas
Chinese Novel “Mulberry and Peach”. This study is trying to find out the nationality of an overseas Chinese writer through their literary works. In this case,
Amato takes Nieh Hualing‟s novel “Mulberry and Peach”. Amato‟s research finds out that the main character, Mulberry and Peach which are the same person has
schizophrenia represents the nationality of Chinese, Taiwanese, and North American. The quotation is stated as follows:
Mulberry and Peach lies at the intersection between Asian American and Chinese academic territories of literary research described above. By
drawing on both fields, a comparative study of such text can work to loosen up some of the geographical, cultural, and national borders that
solidify around literary canons and debates over cultural authenticity 1999: 33.
Actually, Amato‟s study is totaly different from the writer‟s study, but the writer thinks that those studies have a relationship. Overseas Chinese writer can reveal
his nationality through the main character in literary work. Vincent Lam is also an overseas Chinese who lives in Canada. He is actually a Canadian-Chinese, but he
does not show off his Canadian, but he shows his Chinese‟s culture through Percival‟s characteristics. The biography of the author can influence how he
writes his literary works. Four studies above are definitely different from
writer‟s studies. Even though those studies look like having a similar idea, in this study, the writer will
focus on the ethnocentrism of the main character. Then, the writer will analyze the situation in Vietnam War that changes Percival‟s ethnocentrism. In the story,
Percival who is an overseas Chinese lives in Vietnam during the war. He used to
be a rich and respectful man, but Vietnam War has changed him to be inferior people. In the other word, this thesis is going to talk about Percival‟s
ethnocentrism and the effect of Vietnam War to his ethnocentrism.
B. Review of Related Theories
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