Object of the Study

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CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY

A. Object of the Study

The object of this research is a modern novel entitled, The Timekeeper. It is a novel by Mitch Albom which was published by Hyperion New York in 2012. The novel is divided into 81 parts and it had 222 pages. Unlike most novels that have a main sentence and supporting sentences in a paragraph, this novel was delivered in sentences which delivers general truth about life and commonly spoken sentences in short paragraphs. To substitute the function of the main and supporting sentences in a paragraph, some of the sentences were styled in bold to emphasize the idea that the writer wanted to deliver. Here is the example: “Try to imagine a life without timekeeping” You probably can’t. You know the month, the year, the day of the week. There is a clock on your wall or the dashboard of your car. You have a schedule, a calendar, a time for dinner or a movie. Yet, all around you, timekeeping is ignored. Birds are not late. A dog does not check its watch, Deer do not fret over passing birthdays. Man alone measures time. Man alone chimes the hour. And, because of this, man alone suffers a paralyzing fear that no other creature endures. A fear of time running out. Albom, 2012: 8 As exemplified, Albom uses the bold sentences to deliver the main idea. In addition to emphasizing his main idea, the bold print is also used to deliver the maxim or moral and philosophical ideas to the reader. By using this style, Albom wants to gain more of the readers ’ attention so that they would start to reflect and think deeper about the meaning instead of just reading the sentences as a normal storytext. Just like Albom’s other works, this novel also has the reflexivity points for the readers. Based on Norah Piehl 2012 review, this novel is “a story that weaves together religion, philosophy and common sense in a way that results in a very defined message or even moral” www.thebookreporter.com. The story itself is a simplified story that seemed to read like a fairytale, which would make the reader remember about their childhood stories without feeling that they were being preached to with the moral and philosophical ideas. On the contrary, some critics sees the simplification of the story as a weakness of this novel. Draucker stated that this novel has a cliché and weak plotline www.thedartmouth.com. However, her critique is mostly based on her comparison of this novel with other great novels with the same theme, time. Apart from the fact that the plot of this story was simplified, she does not discuss how Albom tries to make the philosophical and moral values delivered more easily accessible to the reader. Just like the title, the main idea that is represented in The Timekeeper is time. The story opens with the description of The Father of Time, Dor. He was punished because he measured everything when everyone never did. So when he wanted to stop time, as his wife was dying, God made him to be ‘the father of time’. He was banished to a cave where he had to live for eternity. In this banishment, he had to think about time and how it changed hu man’s life. His banishment would end if he could help two people; one who wanted more or too much time and one who wanted too little or less time. He then went to search for and to help them. Later in the story, the three characters have to struggle against their own fate and choose their own ending. The ending of the story is a happy ending since all of them were able to enjoy the time they had and live it to the fullest. Mitch Albom himself was well known for his books with great reflexivity points of view. Piehl even said that, “Albom has gained a well-deserved reputation for writing about matters of faith, mortality and the afterlife in ways that resonate with readers” www.thebookreporter.com. He is a well-known author who published great works. One of his bestselling books is entitled Tuesday With Morrie1997.That book also offered his signature style of high reflexivity points of view. Therefore, just like his other novels, this novel also offered the moral and philosophical values for the reader to consider how to live each day to the fullest because it might be the last.

B. Approach of the Study