The Unexpected Manners: Children as the Centre

brutality growing 137 . Not surprising, Blubber is also listed as contested book because of the portrayal of some mean girls. The main character Jill takes part in bullying of one of their classmates Linda. The bullying happens for several times throughout the book verbally by using plenty of bad names like ‘Blubber’ 10, ‘Big Bad Wolf’ 24, ‘flubsy’, ‘carnivore’, ‘bestial’ 77, and ‘the smelly whale’ 109. Even worse, Linda is also mentally bullied by stripping her, making her to say “I am Blubber, the smelly whale of class 206” and to kiss a boy named Bruce Bonaventura, and to show the boys her underpants 76. Here is the example of the psychological bullying. No Linda said. Dont you dare strip me Caroline and Wendy grabbed hold of Lindas arms and held her still. Do your job, Wendy said. Prove what a good flenser you are. Okay, I said, pulling off Lindas cape. She had on a regular skirt and shirt under it. Strip her some more Wendy said, yanking up Lindas skirt. Hey … Blubber wears flowered underpants. Let go of me Linda squirmed and tried to kick but Caroline grabbed her shirt and tugged until two buttons popped off. She wears an undershirt Caroline said. Linda started to cry. 29 Even more, Jill and friends force Linda to kneel to Wendy and to kiss her foot. Curtsy to the queen, Wendy said. Linda tried to tuck her shirt back into her skirt. Didnt you hear me, Blubber? I said, curtsy to the queen. Linda curtsied to Wendy. Thats better, Wendy said. Now kiss my foot. I dont want to, Linda started sniffling. I raised my sword. Do whatever Queen Wendy says, Blubber. Linda bent down and kissed Wendys sneaker. 30 137 Nodelman, The Other 31. In the example above, the physical bullying continues to happen since there are defences from Linda like grabbing, tugging, making fists. The worse of everything she makes, Jill gets involved in making Linda eat chocolate covered-ants. Linda mashed her lips together and moved her head from side to side, all the time making noises that sounded like she was smothering to death. Wendy handed me the candy. Then she said, “Grab her hands, Caroline.” It’s good that Caroline’s so strong because Linda was really wiggling around. Once Caroline had Linda’s hands behind her back, Wendy pinched Linda’s nose which made her open her mouth. As soon as I did I shoved in the chocolate. “Now chew and swallow” Wendy told her, putting one hand over Linda’s mouth so she couldn’t spit anything out. Linda kept her eyes shut and we could see her chewing, the swallowing the candy. Wendy let go of her then an sang, “Blubber ate an ant... Blubber ate ant...” 78 Majorly written from the point of view of a bully, Blubber uniquely tells about bullying among fifth graders in realistic and honest way in which adults’ intervention in dealing with bullying is almost absent. Some parents say it is a painful book because the children in the novel are so cruel to one another. Yet, by the believable characters and logical story, Blubber proves a reliable source for insight into the kid’s world that is also discussed in the later discussion.

1.2. Sibling Rivalry

Among their siblings and peers, kids tease each other. In the adults’ eyes, this unexpected manner is likely prevented for being exposed in books since it is adults’ wish to see their kids in warm relationships with any of the siblings and friends. However Schor explains that through these interactions, siblings learn to be assertive to say what they are feeling, defend themselves, and find solutions. Also, as they PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI compete with one another, they can push themselves to excel 138 . Blume understands that kids feel it is exciting to tease their brothers or sisters as a form of competitions among them. Here are the examples taken from Blubber. “Bye, chicken...watch out for the wolf-man... he just loves Halloween” I snorted and jumped away as Kenny tied to slug me. 35 That is what Jill tries to scare her brother for deciding to stay at home waiting for Trick-or-Treaters instead of going out doing tricks on a Halloween night. In addition, as it is shown her brother Kenny likes to tease her, Jill does the same thing when Kenny has no idea about a flenser. Instead of immediately giving the real answer, Jill teases Kenny’s curiosity by insulting his ability to give world’s facts he gets from The Book of World Records. “Oh...I’ve been thinking I might like to be a flenser.” “What’s that?” Kenny asked. “You mean you don’t know?” I said. “Never heard of it.” With all your facts in The Book of World Records you never learned about the oldest flenser and the younger flenser and the flenser who did the best job and all that?” “Dad...” Kenny said. “She’s starting in again.” I absolutely love to tease Kenny. “Jill, that’s enough.” my father said. “Tell Kenny what a flenser is.” 15 In a part of It’s Not the End, Karen also exposes the unwillingness to shove her seat over with Jeff in their car. Considering that Jeff’s request annoys her comfortable position, Karen does not react for him. Little frictions come to happen between them as they tease each other, 138 Edward L. Schor, Caring for Your School-Age Child, Ages 5 to 12: The Complete and Authoritative Guide. New York: Bantam Books, 1996 344.. “Shove over, Karen,” Jeff said. “No, I like it here.”. I told him. “Get in on the other side.” “I said shove over” Jeff repeated. When I didn’t, he climbed across me and stepped on my foot. I kicked him as hard as I could. He gave me an elbow in the ribs and my ice cream landed in my lap”. 33 Teasing frequently appears in almost all novels that portray the protagonists with siblings. The appearance goes along with the perspective that such communication grow together as kids learn.

1.3. Disobedience

Sarumpaet asserts that adults need to build in the story the images as the giver, the caretaker, the financial supporter, and the place to rely on so that children would compulsorily accept their responsibility to honour, to respect, and eventually to do what adults want 139 . Simultaneously, the depiction of children who disobey their parents and adult people will be automatically silenced. To emphasize this, it is not surprising that books for children expose punishments as the characters become disobedient. Based on Sarumpaet’s study on the Indonesian traditional folktales, punishments are intended to lead kids to learn to a lesson that disobedient kids will be neglected, hit, thrown away, cursed to be stone or ape, pleased for their death 140 . On the contrary, Blume so often represents her children characters for disobeying their parents. Regardless the moral messages whether this is right or wrong, such representation implies that in their books, too, kids should be seen as subjects and individuals who can have heir own logics to make decisions. In Deenie, for example, Deenie disobeys her mother and her aunt to keep trying the dresses they 139 Sarumpaet, Pedoman 111. 140 Sarumpaet 122. want to purchase in order to hide the brace. She feels enough with the things she has got and it is not Deenie’s dream to be a model. Moreover, Deenie does not like the style of the dress that she wants to be appreciated for her own choice. “I don’t want anything new. I like what I’ve got.” “But what you’ve got doesn’t fit, Deenie,” Ma said. “So I’ll wear Helen’s old clothes. Just let’s go home.” We’re all trying to help you,” Ma said. “But if you won’t help yourself there isn’t much we can do.” “I just don’t want to try any more on, that’s all.” Aunt Rae rushed back into the dressing room. I’ve found it,” she told me. “The perfect dress.” ... Here…try this on.” She handed me the dress. “The high neck will hide the brace.” “I don’t like it,” I said, looking at the white ruffles on the sleeves. “It’s too babyish.” “Try anyway,” Ma said. “No” “Deenie, you’re being stubborn” Ma said. “I’m old enough to choose my own things. Don’t you think I know what I like by now?” 113-114 In the other work of Blume like Margaret, the disobedience toward parents is shown during Margaret’s preparation of her first day of school. Margaret plans to wear no socks and her mother disagrees with such idea. “Margaret, you have to walk three-quarters of a mile.” “So?” “So, you know you get blisters every time you go without socks.” “Well then, I’ll just have to suffer.” “But why suffer? Wear socks” .... I told her, “Nancy says nobody in the sixth grade wears socks on the first day of school” “Margaret I don’t know what I’m going to do with you when you’re teenager if you’re acting like this now” 26 PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI Katherine, too, shows her rebel when she knows that she has to go to a summer camp which means she has to be away from Michael the boyfriend for several weeks. Since she previously acknowledges that her father has objected to permit her having skiing together with Michael for three days, Katherine relates this time plan has something to do with her parents who try to separate her away from Michael. “I can’t go to Jamie’s camp, ‘I said, spearing an egg yolk. “He’ll pay you 350,” Dad said. “I don’t care if it’s 3000... I’m not going to New Hampshire.” ... I told Fox I was sure you’d be interested in the job...” “Well, you can tell him you were wrong?” “Daddy went to a lot of trouble to find you a good job.” “Who asked him to?” My mother put down her knife and fork. “I can’t say I like your attitude.” I fought back tears. “Do you think I’m stupid...do you think I can’t see what you’re trying to do...” “This had nothing to do with Michael,” My father said. “Don’t lie...please” 81 In Blume’s novels, kids being disobedient or those who do not present a good show on adults’ will not always result in punishment and their bad lucks. It is simply because the author presents them as the inevitable outcome of particular condition of children.

1.4. Back Talks and Gazes

When critics are made inclined to judge and to evaluate the merits and faults of adults by children, it would endanger adults’ authority and perfectness. They also create flaws on adults threatening their authority upon their object of study: children. Therefore, the portrayal of cri tical kids barely appears in children’s books. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI Blume senses such depiction of gazing adults back might present in children’s books as in the reality as it actually happens to prove that a child should be seen as a complex individual instead of as a typical group of people. Rather than creating charming characters in accepting what adults want them to do and to be, Blume ’s novels present repulsion, unhappiness, and critiques from children to gaze at adults. Talking back scene is well portrayed in Tiger Eyes in which Davey gets no permission to take Drivers Ed. by Walter, Davey’s uncle whom she lives with after the death of her father. Walter frequently has strict views on anything Davey wants to do: starting from climbing in the canyons, riding in hot air balloons, skiing, and driving. Opposing Davey’s adventurous self, Walter and Davey are too often involved in debates that she explodes, “I’m sick of hearing how dangerous everything is… Dangerous...dangerous....dangerous....Stay out of the canyon, Davey...you could be hit by a falling rock. Dont forget your bicycle helmet, Davey...you could get hit by a car. No, you cant learn to ski, Davey....you might wind up a vegetable I am really yelling now. ….. Some people have lived up here so long theyve forgotten what the real world is like, I shout. and the idea of it scares the... You can just stop it, right now, Walter says, before I have finished. He says it slowly, making every word count. Youre a good one to talk, I tell him. Youre the one whos making the bombs. Youre the one whos figuring out how to blow up the whole world. But you wont let me take Drivers Ed. A person can get killed crossing the street. A person can get killed minding his own store. Did you ever think of that? I kick the wall and stomp out of the room. I am crying hard and my throat is sore.” 161 For more data, Blume’s Deenie, too, has dialogues presenting her repulsion to agree her mother to make her become a model. Like the one below, judging that making her a model is a pressuring ambition of her mother, Deenie criticizes her PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI mother for being regretful that scoliosis becomes the obstacle of her dreams to see Deenie as a perfect model. Deenie feels her mother does not accept her as the way she is. “But I don’t even know if I want to be a model” “Of course you do” Aunt Rae said. “Isn’t it that what we’ve always planned?” She turned to Ma. “Thelma...what’s wrong with her?” “She’s just upset,” Ma told Aunt Rae. “She’s not used to the brace yet.” “You wouldn’t let her waste that face, would you?” Aunt Rae asked Ma. “I’m not just a face” I shouted. “I’m a person, too. Did either one of you ever think of that?” I ran past them and up to my room. Ma yelled after me. “Don’t be ungrateful, Deenie Aunt Rae was only trying to help.” “Ha I’ll bet you’d both like to trade me in for some girl with a straight spine” I shouted downstairs. “Then you wouldn’t have to wait four years” I slammed my door shut. 134 In the other part of the book, Deenie also views her mother as unfair. Witnessing the conflict between her sister Helen and her mother, Deenie concludes that their mother has made mistakes about making their father fire Joe from their gas station so that Helen cannot be together with Joe whose the mother considers him as ‘throwing away your Helen’s life” 150 and as a ‘stupid boy with dirty fingernails’ 151. Knowing that h er mother puts the reason that “Daddy had to let him go because we need the extra money. ” 149 and “We have doctors’ bills to pay” 150 addresses to her, Deenie involves herself to the conflict to talk back about her mother’s wrong perception on Joe and on her. Ma’s not being fair. I thought. Joe does write poems. I know because I found one inside Helen’s math book last Wednesday. I couldn’t tell that to Ma though. Then Helen would know I’d been snooping, so instead I said, “Everybody gets dirty fingernails from working in a gas station... Even Daddy” “Be still, Deenie” Ma yelled. “This has nothing to do with you.” PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI “It does too You just said Daddy fired Joe because of doctors’ bill and I’m the one who’s always seeing doctors” 152 In It’s Not the End, such rebellious character also appears in Karen when she thinks the changes and the divorce in her family’s life are led by her mother’ selfishness. Responding to her mother’s decision to get a job or a college during the divorce process, Karen finds out that her mother dream of working and going to collage has been the reason of the divorce. “What you really want to do?” “I don’t know yet. But I’m going to try to find out.” My mother is grown up. So how come she can’t decide what she want to go to work or does she want to go to college? “I sure hope you find out soon,” I told her. “It has nothing to do with you, Karen. It isn’t going to change your life one way or another.” “That’s what you say” “Look... someday you and Jeff and Amy will grow up and leave home. Then what will I have?” “You see” I raised my voice. “That proves it All you care about is yourself You never think about me.” “That’s not so and you know it” Mom said. “Oh, yes, it is so You never ask me what I think or what I feel or what I want... I wish I was never born”90-91 It is true to say that the voice of children who gaze adults back hardly appears in kids’ books. Blume’s presentation of kids’ disapproval and objection of adults’ willingness and their superiority are even followed by the integrated plots which shows that those kids are not inherent to inferiority and that adults can also make mistakes. It is clear that in writing children’s books, it is important to question how children are viewed. To see them as an object instead of as a subject, writers might forget what kids want to say when they have to accept the reality they do not want. By silencing children’s voice about their unhappiness or repulsion toward what adults want in the books, adults cannot simply assume that those voices would never be heard in the real life.

1.5. Dishonesty: Cheating, Snooping, Lying

In a similar pattern, behaviour problems like cheating and stealing apparently come rarely in children’s books without punishments so that child readers would not do those bad behaviours. On the contrary, Blume can deliver her writing which portray these bad attitudes as the unavoidable reactions toward the surrounding high and impossible pressures or expectations so that they lie and become dishonest. For examples, it happens when Margaret and her PTS club is discussing about Gretchen who promised not to get naked in front of anybody. Arguing this, Nancy bets that she will want everybody to see her when she is grown, just like the girls in Playboy to discuss further about the magazine, Margaret is asked to take his father’s. Yet, because she knows that the magazine is inappropriate for kids at her age, Margaret takes it secretly. Although lately I think he’s been hiding it Playboy magazine because it’s never in the magazine rack where it used to be. Finally, I found it in his night table drawer and I thought if my mother caught me and asked me what I was doing I’d say we were making booklets and needed some old magazines to cut up. But she didn’t catch me. 64 At the other part of the story, Margaret also asks Janie to lie to her mother if she asks about what they have bought. It is not because it is forbidden to buy sanitary napkins, but it might be a crazy idea for keeping them even before they know when their menstruation comes. As a result, Margaret suggests Janie and herself to lie to their mothers. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI “Buy it for what?’ Janie asked. ‘Just in case,’ I told her. ‘You mean to keep at home?’ ‘Sure. Why not?’ ‘I don’t know. My mother might not like it,’ Janie said. ‘So don’t tell her.’ ‘But what if she sees it?’ ‘It’ll be in a bag. You can say it’s school supplies,’ I said.” 112-113 While in Deenie, Blume, too, has one of its parts to bring the character to her dishonesty as her mother has a plan to make her becoming a model and asks Deenie to be cooperative in this. However, Deenie has another dream of being a cheerleader that she keeps practicing without her mother’s approval. Me and Janet have been practicing our cheers in her garage for two weeks. My mother doesn’t know anything about it. She’d kill me. A lot of the games are on Saturdays and if i make the squad she won’t be able to drag me around to any more modelling agencies. I’m counting on Daddy to make Ma understand...I’d really like to be a cheerleader and a famous model. If only getting to be a model wasn’t so much trouble. It would be fun to see my face in some magazine, if it could get there without my going through all of dumb interviews 13 Not only in those novels, Blume also puts the same issue on her other book like in Then Again in which Tony lies to his parents the reason he asks binoculars for the Christmas present. This time I looked at her. “What? Oh, binoculars... “I had my answer carefully planned. I knew they’d ask why I wanted them, but I had to be really casual about it or they might get suspicious, “Watch birds,” I said. “Birds?” my mother asked. “Yes,” I told her. “This spring. I want to find out all I can about birds.” 97 Tony answers his parents’ question about what he is going to do with the binoculars with a lie of watching birds. Indeed he knows exactly that binoculars will help him watching Lisa, the neighbour, getting undressed. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI

1.6. Impudent Teases

Troublesome kids also appear in Blume’s novels like in Blubber. Jill and Tracy did a mean trick to Mr Machinist in Halloween because they think that Mr Machinist hates kids and therefore deserves a mean thing. Above all, that is the best way to have fun in the Halloween night. Yet, it is not uncommon to see children engage in teasing behavior because they may perceive it as being the “cool” thing to do that Jill and Tracy “started to laugh” as they finished cracking six rotten eggs in the grump y Mr. Machinist’s mailbox. Tracy cracked her egg and threw it inside the box too. We looked at each other, then reached for two more eggs and did the same thing again. When we came to the last eggs we didn’t bother cracking them first. We just tossed them into the mailbox, shell and all. After that we picked up our things and ran as fast as we could 37. When obedience is celebrated as an absolute good and when the detached child appears to be ‘ideal’ child in stories, Zornado suggests children ultimately fail to connect themselves in satisfying way 141 . This explains why in child readers, Blume has been famous to be an honest writer.

1.7. Swearing

As children is commonly understood as lawless, irrational, irresponsible, evil, and being uncivilized is danger for adults to behave childish and lawless, adults put them values to be more like adults who know well manners and behaviours; therefore, to be civilized. That things like swearing dirty words or four letter words might be imp ossible to exist in children’s books, so often it is accused to provoke children’s evil-ness that they barely come in books for children. 141 Zornado 10. On the contrary, Blume voices these profanities in her books for young readers. Not worrying to the assumption that children would imitate, she wrote those bad language along with the characters’ development in showing their desecration of someone or something. Here are the profanities used by the characters. First by Deenie when she has got a brace put on her body. S he says, “Damn you” I shouted at my reflection. “Damn you crooked spine” 105. Karen is also found to use swearing words more than Deenie. For example when she acknowledges that her parents get divorce at the first time she speaks to herself, “I felt tears come to my eyes. I told myself, don’t start crying now Karen, you jerk” 30. In the other moment she calls her teacher ‘witch’ to give a D for her book report 46. Tony, too, curses a cashier in his imagination for being unaware of a stealing, while Tony himself can do nothing because the person stealing is his own best friend Joel, “Call the principal, stupid” 72. Being so upset to know that his brother Ralph who acts like a high class person instead of like the way he was in the old days in New Jersey Tony said to himself, “Hey Ralph...You stink You’re a sell out . You’ve gone soft-just like Mom-just like Pop-just like Angie” 129. Jill in Blubber is probably a girl swearing more frequent than the other characters. As her teacher Mrs Minish asked her to do her math paper over to do it the right way, Jill feels so mad that she says, “Mrs Minish is such a bitch” 27. Jill, too, calls the costumes judges “dumb” to win Fred’s fried-egg costume in the Halloween Parade 27. As part of the bullying to Linda, Jill also swears to her friend Michael to toss out her shoe landing in the bushes, “”You jerk You absolutely idiot” 48. To her brother Kenny, so often Jill curses him like what she does when he gets into her business of getting a big trou ble with their neighbour, Mr. Machinist. She said, “Oh... shut up, you dumb ass , before I bash your face in” 84 or when Kenny teases Jill with her inability to eat anything except peanut butter, “Shut up, you little brat” 89 and “butt out” 94 Sw earing is almost universal in people’s lives. For its cathartic nature, swearing is beneficial in freezing someone’s feelings of anger and frustration that are hold and allowing expression for them. It sometime can be a useful substitute to physical violence. Blume understands, no matter adults or children, virtually people swear throughout their lifetime. It is natural part of human speech development. Yet, some people as well as children learn which words are taboos and which are not so that some conside r other’s people approval even though some do not. From the data it can be seen that instead of denying children’s feeling or felt experiences as a child which imply the denial of children’s books in placing children as the centre of the story, Blume sho ws her disapproval to see children’s body and child characters in the story are simply the vehicle and the container. Rather than keeping saying that children’s feelings of anger, shame, or longing as bad or that misbehaved children are not the ‘ideal’ character in stories, Blume accept children as the way they are.

2. Unexpected Manners: Building Organized Stories

Surely it is gratifying to find a story with the organized patterns in which emotion is involved, the suspense is well delayed, the climax and resolution is nicely presented, and the pattern of chance and coincidence is intricate to make up a well- PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI structured plot. Nodelman argues literature enables readers to meet the delight as they are aware the ways in which all elements of a work seem to fit together to form a whole 142 . As readers of realistic fictions are spoiled with self-reflective characters, the pleasure of story comes from characters whose actions are logical to take and are three-dimensional in which their decisions and actions are respected so that the wholeness are well enjoyed as a meaningful structure 143 . As a matter of fact, respecting how a character copes with his or her problem by using their best and available solution serves readers’ satisfaction even though they know the solution d ecided might not meet the ideal image of children yet best applied in the character’s situation. It is acknowledged by parents that Blubber is found to be offensive because of the harsh bullying. Even as it was published, critics took aim at Blume’s description of the students’ mean behaviour could be used as a manual for bullies 144 . Yet, Blubber ’s enjoyable story’s plot starts from the existence of bullying as one of its big theme. Blume dragged it into an ordered sequence of actions that readers accept it as what the characters are mostly going to deal. However, it is necessary to note that a good story must afford a logic cause and effect in its plot so that the structure of the story from the beginning to the end of the book should be essentially considered. This means that every event in a story should be arranged in a logical unity. No unrelated and incidental event can follow or prior to the other event as well as no unreasonable and careless censorship can be managed to prevent the unrelated cause and effect 142 Nodelman, The Pleasures 21. 143 Lukens 80. 144 Ludwig, et al. 56. story plot. This is why Blume did not have any choice to silence any part of it, including the cruel depiction of the bullying. The pleasure of the story then is related to the fact that the characters cannot display himherself as interesting person with his or her good and bad sides without the movement of the events. In Jill’s case, it can be seen that her prior personality as a bully is a result of Wendy’s influence. With Wendy and the gangs, Jill is involved in the cruel actions. Then, readers get the point that it is the sequence of the events which lets a character to develop as the last bullying for Linda brings Jill move away from Wendy’s leadership. In this part, Blume turns the bullying to be a boomerang for Jill to get bullied at last. Especially after Jill realizes that Wendy takes the control over her by ordering whatever Wendy pleases and gets insulted when Wendy calls her best friend Tracy as ‘chink’. As Blume puts Jill in Linda’s shoes that she now becomes the bullying target to learn a lesson, readers find the complete personality of Jill through the whole story. Once readers realize how often depictions of bullying throughout the book, they build the consistency by probing the implications of the pattern they create. Nodelman states that when the repeated words or images occur frequently, readers can enjoy the rhythmic pattern and can build the consistency by seeing how the make the book meaningful 145 . That is why this will make them accept that bullying is the central of the novel or the major theme. It is obvious bullying does not appear without any significance. Therefore if the books ignorantly simplify children’s reading process into such reading-imitation- 145 Nodelman, The Pleasures 57.