21 1994, American culture is often considered an individualism-oriented culture, in
contrast with Chinese culture, which emphasizes collectivism. In collective cultures, individuals are willing to subordinate their personal goals to the goals of
various in-groups, such as the family, the tribe, or the work group. By contrast, in individualistic cultures, it is considered to be acceptable for individuals to place
personal goals ahead of the groups goals.
c. Culture Shock
Culture shock is an initial adjustment to an unfamiliar environment in which the psychological process of culture shock has been used to describe the adjustment
process on its emotional, psychological, behavioral, psychological impacts on individual Pedersen, 1995, p. 2. On the other hand, Church 1982 states that
culture shock is the feeling of being anxious, helpless, irritable, and in general, homesick that one experiences on moving to a new culture as cited in Heine, 2008,
p. 514. Furthermore, culture shock happens when an individual starts adjusting to an unfamiliar environment. The process of adjusting to the new culture has
psychological impacts such being anxious, helpless, irritable, and homesick. Those symptoms
will not exist through individual’s life unless the individual has a strategy in acculturation process. Heine 2008 states that one of the best predictors of
acculturative success is language ability p. 521. People need to master the language of the host country in order to get successful in acculturative. According
to Heine 2008 there are other skills that need to be mastered in addition to learning a new language when one moves to new culture for example: people have to
accomplish daily tasks such as making friends.
22 Language plays an important role in the process of acculturation because it
is used in daily interaction. While someone learns about language, the person has to present their success in daily tasks. The process of acculturation cannot leap from
the name of strategies. Positive or negative attitudes towards one’s host culture or
heritage culture yield four different strategies Heine, 2008, p. 521. He distinguishes the acculturation into four types: 1 integration strategy, the strategy
that involves attempts to fit in and fully participate in the host culture while at the same time striving to maintain the traditi
ons of one’s heritage culture, 2 marginalization, the strategy that involves little or no effort to participate in the host
culture or to maintain the heritage culture, 3 assimilation strategy, the strategy that involves an attempt to fit in and fully participate while making little or no effort to
maintain on e’s heritage cultures, 4 separation, the strategy that involves effort to
maintain the tradition of the heritage culture while making little or no effort to participate in the host culture.
d. Stages of Culture Shock
Alder Peter 1975 specify the stages of culture shock into five as cited in Pedersen, 1995, p. 3. The first stage proposed by Alder and Peter 1975 is
honeymoon stage. It is where the newly arrived individual experiences the curiosity and excitement of a tourist, but where the person basic identity is rooted in the back-
home setting. The second stage proposed by Alder and Peter 1975 is disintegration stage. An individ
ual is overwhelmed by the new culture’s requirements. An individual typically experiences self-blame and sense of personal inadequacy for
any difficulties encountered.
23 The third stage proposed by Alder and Peter 1975 is reintegration. It is an
increased ability to function in the new culture. The emotions associated with this stage are typically anger and represent toward the new culture as having caused
difficulties and being less adequate than the old familiar ways. The fourth stage proposed by Alder and Peter 1975 is the continuing of reintegration. It increases
ability to see the bad or good elements in both old and new culture. The last is reciprocal interdependent. It happens when the person has ideally achieved
biculturalism, has become fluent in both old and new culture.
B. Theoretical Framework
In the previous section, the researcher includes four categories of related theories to help analyze the novel and answer the research problems of this study.
Those categories include the theory of character and characterization, the critical approach, the theory of psychology, and the theory of culture. The theory of
character and characterization includes the theory of character and characterization and as well as the method of characterization. The critical approach includes some
approaches that are used to underlay this study. The theory of psychology includes the theory of conflict. In the last category, the theory of culture is stated. Hence, in
this theoretical framework, the researcher explains the contribution of those four categories of theoretical scope to this study.
Since one of the aims of this study is to find the major character’s
characteristics, the researcher uses the methods of characterization by Murphy 1972 and Card 1988. The methods of characterization that are proposed by
