meanings. Perrin also gives steps to identify the symbols in literary text. Here are the steps:
1. The story itself must furnish a clue that a detail is to be taken
symbolically. It means that symbolic phenomena can be identified by repetition, emphasis or position.
2. The meaning of a literary symbol must be established and supported by
the entire context of the story. It means that the meaning of the symbol can be identified inside the text, not outside it.
3. To be called a symbol, an item must suggest a meaning different in kind
from its literal meaning. 4.
A symbol may have more than one meaning. Symbol differs from metaphor and simile in that it does not contain a comparison, but by
virtue of association represents something more than itself. For example, if the cross symbolizes Christianity, its symbolic meaning does not arise
from a comparison Perrine, 1974: 214.
Perrin’s theory of symbol has an effective way to identify and find the meaning of symbols in literary text. The indications provided in the theory, such as
repetition, emphasis, and position of the symbolic phenomena are adequate in supporting the study of the symbols in literary text. The information that supports
the finding of symbol meaning is basically can be acquired from the text.
5. The Relationship between Psychology and Literature
Psychology and literature are two terms which can be associated and related together. There are some aspects of psychology and literature that can be used
together in working on literary criticism. As Dr. Russell 1964: 420 states that “the word interdisciplinary is still fashionable one but many people do not see, or do not
want to see, much connection between English and psychology”. There are hesitations and difficulties in associating psychology and
literature due to the fields they concern about. Although both deal with human
behavior and thought, their approaches of study are different. Psychology is meant to be dealing with specific behavior while literature is meant to be supposed to mean
more than it says. Psychology looks for logic and order in a situation; the artist, unfettered in imagination, knows that life does not proceed according to rules or
logic. Like what is supposed to be in other sciences, that psychology seeks verifiable general laws. In contrast with this idea, literature deals with the fugitive
truths of a specific person in a specific situation. Psychologists observe what can be replicated, while writers deal with analogy, metaphor, and intentional ambiguities
Russell, 1964: 420. In literature, the analysts take focus on the thinking about imagery, emotion, character, and conflict that are depicted in the literary works. In
psychology, the analysts take focus on relying on relatively crude and isolated tests and experiments.
Although the differences between psychology and literature exist, the overlap in the two fields must be noticed. Both of them may attempt to describe
human lives in relation to personalities. The mutual concerns of the two fields can be described in four categories, such as: the psychology of the writer, the
psychology of the creative process, the study of behavior described in literary works, and responses to literature Russell, 1964: 421. Each of the preceding
categories needs a knowledge of psychology and skills used in analyzing literary works in order to help the analysts to work better in the research. Those four
categories are the examples of activitiesinvestigations in which the content and methods of psychology may be applied to literary studies.
C. Theoretical Framework
