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CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This chapter discusses the theories that are used to analyze the topic of this study. This chapter is divided into three sections, namely review of related
theories, criticism, and context of the novel. Review of related theories consists of theory of character, theory of characterization, theory of approaches and theory of
conflict. Criticism contains some criticism on Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
. Theoretical framework explains how the theories in review of related theories are employed to answer the questions in the
problem formulation.
A. Review of Related Theories 1. Character
a. Definition of Character
Character can not be separated from a novel. According to Abrams, in his book A Glossary of Literary Terms, characters are “the person presented in a
narrative or dramatic work, who are interpreted by the reader as being endowed with moral, dispositional, and emotional qualities that are expected in what they
say in the dialogue and what they do in the action” 23. It means character is the person who is presented in a literary work, such a novel. Characters in a novel
have their own characteristics or in another word, each character in a novel has different characteristics.
Character is a person who does the action in a story. From characters, the reader can enjoy the development of the story from beginning to the end. Fictional
characters of a story will lead the reader to imagine or may experience the course and the emotional aspects of the story through their action and their dialogue
Stanton 17.
b. Kinds of Character
Forster states that there are two kinds of characters, flat and round characters. A flat character is simple and there is not much individualizing detail in this
character 74. Forster also says that this kind of character is flat because the readers see only one side of him. Round character is more complex in
temperament and motivation and is represented with subtle individuality. Therefore, it is difficult to describe this kind of character. This character is more
or less the same as a person in real life and has the capability of surprising us. Based on Forster’s statement about kinds of characters, the character can be
recognized from their complexity. A flat character does not have a complexity in the sense that there are not much traits or individualizing details in him.
Therefore, general readers can recognize this character without any difficulty. Furthermore, a round character is more complex than a flat character. Readers do
not easily recognize a round character because this character can change his personality into someone that we do not expect before.
Character can also be categorized into two terms. There are major and minor characters. According to Milligan, a major character is the most important
character in a literary work. He plays a very important role because he becomes PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
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