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CHAPTER IV THE RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
There are two major parts in this chapter. The first major part is the research findings which are essential to answer the research questions. It is broken down
into three divisions in which each of them answers one research question. To identify the problems faced by Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ronald Weasley
and Neville Longbottom in Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s
Stone
, the researcher finds some problems which are categorized into some classifications.
To reveal the process of child empowerment experienced by those four characters in the novel, the researcher identifies five ways to empower those children. To
reveal the influences of child empowerment to those child characters in the novel, the researcher finds some changes as the result of this process. The last major part
is the discussion on the further implication of these research findings in Rowling’s
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and child empowerment.
A. Research Findings
After reading and examining Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s
Stone
, the researcher finds data which have been divided into three tables: problems faced by the children, the process of child empowerment and the
influences of child empowerment. The data can be found in the Appendices. These data have been selected purposively in order to fulfill the purposes of the
research.
1. Kinds of Problems Faced by Children
In Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the researcher finds various data related to problems faced by children. These problems faced by
children are divided into two categories: the source of problems as the main category and the kind of problems as the sub category. The problems from
external sources are divided into three categories and the ones from internal sources are divided into two categories. These findings are explained in the
following.
a. Problems from External Sources
Problems from external sources mean difficulties faced by children which come from many external factors outside the children themselves. In the novel,
the problems faced by children from external sources come from other people. These problems from external sources are classified into three parts. These parts
are p eople’s negative judgment, people’s suppression and people’s mistreatment.
These classifications become problems faced by children because they make children face several difficulties in their lives. These problems from external
sources are explained further in the following.
1 People’s Negative Judgment
In Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, there are some people’s negative judgments faced by Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ronald Weasley
and Neville Longbottom. These negative judgments come from other people such
as family members, teachers, friends and others. The judgments make children suffer because they are stereotyped falsely and unfairly.
Some adults think that they know children especially how children think and do. However, they actually do not understand them well. What they know is not in
line with children’s action and thought. It happens because adults do not perceive children as they really are. Yet, they “add” their own judgment when they see
children. As a result, children face difficulty in communicating with them and experience problems in their life. One of the examples can be seen through the
following quotation. He wouldn’t believe they were lost, was sure they were trying to break into it
on purpose, and was threatening to lock them in the dungeons when they were rescued by Professor Quirrell, who was passing. Rowling, 1998: 132
This quotation shows that Filch, the caretaker of Hogwarts believes that Harry and Ron broke the rule by trying to enter to the forbidden corridor. He neither trusts
both children nor wants to hear any reason from them. Filch judges them according to what he thinks about them as bad and naughty children. Meanwhile,
Harry and Ron experience a hard time because they get false judgment from adults.
Furthermore, children rarely get the trust from adults. They are considered as both too weak to tell the truth and too confused to differentiate between good and
bad. Adults do not trust them because they think children should not be trusted. It can be seen through the quotation below.
But Uncle Vernon didn’t believe him. No one ever did. Rowling, 1998: 24
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