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CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
This chapter presents the mechanism in conducting this study. This chapter discusses the type of the study, the object of the study, and the analysis procedures.
They are needed to systematically solve the research problems by providing descriptions of the nature of the selected data and procedures employed in this
study. The type of the study explains the nature of the field that the study employs the methodology. The object of the study is the discussion of the nature, the form,
and the origin of the data. The analysis procedure contains the detailed steps and the analysis process of the study on how the data are collected, elicited, and
interpreted to solve the problem.
3.1. Type of the Study
This study is a Critical Discourse Analysis CDA because it tries to reveal the transparent practice of power imbalance in a particular society and it employs
rigorous and deep linguistic analysis on the text Fairclough, 1995: 133. Further, this study also preserves a response to a social practice existing in a society. The
linguistic analysis in this study is applied to several folktales originated from Komodo Islands that seem to deliver some ideologies of the society around the
islands. The result of deep and rigorous linguistic analysis is then related to the social and theoretical context to reveal the transparent practice of power imbalance
in the society. In other words, the use of language in the folktales in the forms of clauses in the narration and conversation might illustrate the practice of power
imbalance in the society.
CDA belongs to neither linguistics nor literature as a study but it is an interdisciplinary study. Wodak and Meyer notes that CDA is a continuation of the
previous critical theories that “in agreement with their critical theory predecessors, CDA emphasizes the need for interdisciplinary work in order to gain a proper
understanding of how language functions in, for example, constituting and transmitting knowledge, in organizing social institutions or in exercising power”
2001: 11. It does not mean that it is obligatory to include two or more disciplines in the study but this should be understood as a notion that CDA may utilize more
than one discipline to obtain its objective. Thus this study possibly utilizes and combines two or more disciplines. In this study, the interdisciplinary study is
realized by combining theories belonging to literary studies and the linguistic theories. The literary studies theory is taken because of the nature of the objects of
the study, folktales. In observing folktales, the plot seems give benefits because the messages in the story are delivered, by the characters, throughout the plots. The
linguistic theories are applied in identifying the characteristics of the characters and the theme. The language will be observed under transitivity, modality, and thematic
structure of the sentences according to Systemic Functional Grammar. The theme shows the general picture of each folktale and all of them.
As a CDA this study exerts intertextuality. The intertextuality shows the web among the folktales that connects them based on their similar topics. The
analysis takes a look at each folktale first to study the language use and the practice of power imbalance to reveal the ideologies. Later on, the finding of each folktale
is related with one another to see the general prominent ideologies of the folktales.
3.2. Object of the Study
This study observed six stories taken from a book entitled Putri Naga Komodo and other Folktales
edited by Langenheim 2010. All of them were taken because as folktales they might represent conditions and values of Komodo Islands.
The stories are original and authentic because they are retold by the native people of the islands. There are stories from at least five islands around the Komodo Island.
The book was published by Putri Naga Komodo Company in 2010. In addition, in the introduction page of the book, the purpose of retelling the story is to sustain the
local culture and communities around Komodo Islands. Thus, the book seems to be contemporary. Therefore, the stories are appropriate to be observed as the object of
the study. As the object of the study, the stories are used as language source to observe
the ideology and the power imbalance in Komodo Islands. In that case, therefore the stories are possibly broken down into linguistic units. Not all the clauses and
linguistic units in the folktales represent the ideology and the practice of power imbalance in the society. Thus, the analysis took only those that were relevant in
revealing ideology and the practice of power imbalance for each analysis. The selection of the clauses was by the use of linguistic aspects employed in this study.
For instance, for transitivity analysis, the clause But for the next three days, exactly the same things happened
was not considered as part of the data since it does not reveal any ideologies and the practice of power imbalance. There were 795 clauses
taken out from the folktales due to the nature of CDA presented before. For modality analysis, the data are the clauses containing modals. There are 93 clauses
containing modals extracted from the folktales. The semantic analysis took the words or phrases that supported the characterization of the characters in the
folktales and the building of the general theme. This semantic analysis systematically realized in the examination of atitude. Any linguistic items attached
to the characters in the folktales to show their attitude are the data. Further the selection of the data would be more clearly presented in the next discussion in the
analysis procedures.
3.3. The Analysis Procedures
This thesis was conducted to uncover the ideologies of the stories. The methodology and the procedure are adapted from the framework proposed by van
Dijk 1980, 2001 and by Fairclough 1995, 2001 since they shared the similar goal of CDA. The adaptation is possible as long as the taste of CDA as a study does not
lose. Moreover, Rogers 2004: 7- 8 mentions, “there are no formulas for conducting
CDA. Deciding which set of analytic procedures to use depends on the practical research situation, the texts you are studying, and the research questions”. Weis and
Wodak 2003: 12 amplifies the same tone on the methodology of CDA by stating, “at this point, we would like to stress that CDA has never been and has never
attempted to be to provide one single or specific theory and one specific methodology is not characteristic of CDA”. Therefore, any efforts in the analysis
might be applied and employed. The focus is on the revelation of ideologies and struggle over power relation and dominance.
The revelation of ideologies in this thesis was attempted by analyzing the semantic macrostructure and microstructure of the texts, which further employ
linguistic tools. The analysis of the semantic macrostructure of the texts was conducted by studying the topics and the plot or the text coherence based on the
causal relationship. The analysis of the microstructure of the texts focuses on the local semantic analysis of the clauses in the texts. The linguistic tools to observe
Figure 3.1. Steps in revealing the ideologies adapted from van Dijk 1980, 2001 and by Fairclough 1995, 2001
Plotcausal Coherence
Microstructure Macrostructure
Ideology
Language of Evaluation Transitivity
Modality Topics
Discourse Practice the microstructure meanings are the appraisal theory Martin and White, 2005, and
Modality and Transitivity Halliday and Matthiesen, 2004. The linguistic evidences would convey the characteristics of the characters and the relationships.
The relationship shows the ideology that the thesis started from the assumption that there was power imbalance among the characters. Later on, the result was further
elaborated with the ideological contexts of the social problems. The general analytical elements are figured as follows:
3.3.1. Microstructure Analysis
The microstructure analysis was conducted by three means, namely Attitude Analysis, Modality, and Transitivity. Basically, the purpose of the analysis is to
observe the state of the characteristics and characterization of the characters. Considering the nature of CDA that it sees the power relation in the society, the
characterization takes the representation of ‘us’ versus ‘them’ proposed by van Dijk
2001 in Wodak and Meyer 2001: 103. The purpose is to show the positive self presentation and negative other presentation by analysing the local semantic items.
3.3.1.1. Transitivity
The first means in microstructure analysis was by the interpersonal relation analysis of the characters. This way was possible by observing the transitivity in
the selected clauses. The clause had to be able to show the roles of the characters and their interpersonal relation with other characters.
33 Empu Mburing begged her to forgive him A12158 34 Empu Mburing agreed at once. A12127
First, those sentences, which showed ideologies and the practice of power imbalance were analyzed by using transitivity analysis by using table as follows:
Table 3.1. Data Elicitation Example by Transitivity Analysis No
Participant Verbs
Processes Circumstance
1 Empu Mburing
her to forgive him
begged Verbal
-
2. Empu Mburing
agreed Verbal
at once
Later on, second, the data were elicited again. The analysis was done by the processes. The purpose of the analysis was to observe the participant who does the
action and the participant who receives the action. The analysis is shown in the following table:
Table 3.2. Data Analysis Example Based on The Processes No
Verb Sayer
Addressee Verbiage
Circumstance
1 begged
Empu Mburing her -
To forgive him purpose
2. agreed
Empu Mburing - -
at once time