Presupposed Meaning in Lexical Presupposition
The seventh utterance is found in Scene 33, portraying Harvey Milk‘s
recorded will in his kitchen. 7
Harvey Milk: There was nobody to look up to, no hope for a better life. Those that did were outcast. . .arrested. .suicide
p.20. The gay community was outcasted, arrested, and they committed
suicide. Based on utterance 7, it presupposes that the gay community was
outcasted, or arrested, and some of them even committed suicide to escape from the blatant treatment to them. It is indicated by the auxiliary verb did which
implies a factual event in the past. Eighth and ninth utterance are found in Scene 61. Both of them portray
Harvey Milk‘s speech at the City Hall. 8
Harvey Milk: We will no longer sit quietly in our closets. We must fight. p.39.
Harvey Milk starts to fight against gay oppresion and discrimination. 9
Harvey Milk: And I say, we have to give them hope p.39. Harvey Milk must give gay people a hope.
In utterance 8, it presupposes that Harvey Milk starts to fight against
gay oppression and discrimination. It can be seen through the phrase no longer which presupposes a state of change that does not retain something in the past. In
the utterance, it shows that Harvey Milk no longer wants to succumb to the gay discrimination and oppression, thus initiating a fight for the gay people‘s cause. In
utterance 9, it presupposes that Harvey Milk must give gay people a hope due to the phrase have to is used to show that you must do something. Thus, the
utterance can presuppose that Harvey Milk must give the hope for the people living in despair in that era, gay community in particular.
The tenth utterance can be found each in Scene 63, showing Harvey Milk‘s recorded will.
10 Harvey Milk: Hope for a better world. . .Hope for a better
tomorrow. . .Hope for a better place to come to if the pressures at home are too great. . . p.39.
Harvey Milk aims for a better world, a better tomorrow, and a better place to come to if the pressures at home are too great.
In utterance 10, it presupposes that Harvey Milk aims for a better
world, better tomorrow, and a better place to come to if the pressures at home are too great. The presupposed meaning is triggered by the verb hope which means
wanting something to happen. Therefore, in his utterance above, there are the things that he aims for which are a better world, a better tomorrow, and a better
place to come to without any pressure. The eleventh utterance is found in Scene 68, transcribing a conversation
between Harvey Milk and Scott Smith. 11
Scott Smith: Since when did you care if anyone took you seriously?
Harvey Milk: Anita wants to put us all back in concentration camps p.41.
Anita intends to put all gay people back in concentration camps. In utterance 11, it presupposes that Anita intends to put all gay people
back in concentration camps. The pressuposed information is trigerred by the verb wants
which means to have a desire or a wish for something. Thus, it is affirmed that Anita has a blatant intention to oppress the gay society with a life-threatening
concentration camps, just like the way Jews were oppressed, killed, and treated as slaves by German nationalist forces during the World War II and Holocaust.
The twelfth utterance can be found each in Scene 87, portraying a conversation between Dan White and Harvey Milk.
12 Harvey Milk: I‘m proposing a citywide ordinance. It ensures that a
person who already has a job can‘t be fired for their orientation.
Dan White: I‘m not sure my constituents would favor that p.55.
A person who already has a job will not be fired for their orientation. In utterance 12, it presupposes a person who already has a job will not
be fired for their orientation. The presupposed meaning is triggered by the verb ensures
in which the isolated meaning is to make sure something happens. In the context of gay liberation, realizing that competenc
e in job is not relevant to one‘s sexual orientation, that is why Harvey Milk intends to glorify the rights of gay
society to maintain their job for a living. The thirteenth utterance can be found each in Scene 90, portraying a
coverage by Harvey Milk on the television. 13
Harvey Milk: Look what happened in Germany. Now Anita Bryant already says that Jews and Muslims are going to hell,
you know she‘s got a shopping list. We are not going to let John Briggs or Anita Bryant legislate bigotry in
this city p.60.
Harvey Milk will prevent John Briggs and Anita Bryant to legalize bigotry in San Francisco
In utterance 13, it presupposes that Harvey Milk will prevent John
Briggs and Anita Bryant to legalize bigotry in San Francisco. It can be indicated by the auxiliary verb are not going to which means that Harvey Milk will keep
opposing to make sure that John Briggs and Anita Bryant forfeit their agenda of legalizing bigotry.
The fourteenth utterance is found in Scene 131, portraying Harvey Milk‘s
speech at the Market Street. 14
Harvey Milk: To the gay community all over this state. . .my message to you is. . .so far a lot of people joined us
and rejected Proposition Six, and now we owe them something. . .We must destroy the myths once and for
all, shatter them. We must continue to speak out and most importantly, most importantly, every gay person
must come out p.95.
Proposition Six has been rejected. In utterance 14, it presupposes that Proposition Six has been rejected. It
is indicated by the past form of verb joined and rejected which illustrates that the fact had happened in the past. The fact that had happened in the past based on the
utterance 14 is a lot of people had joined Harvey Milk to proliferate the gay liberation movement, and it paid off when Proposition Six which banned gay
teachers from being able to teach at school was banned and rejected due to Harvey Milk‘s valiant effort.