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CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE
A. Review of Related Studies
This part consists of related studies that support this analysis. The first study is from Anita Auliya N
uraini’s undergraduate thesis entitled Marguerites’s Struggles against the Practices of Racial Discrimination as Seen in Maya
Angelou’s Gather Together in My Name. Nuraini finds that Rita as the main character is strong, rebellious, optimistic, smart and
independent woman. She also experiences the practices of racial discrimination in some form such as humiliation, prejudice,
underestimation, and rejection. The situation makes her do some struggles in many ways in order to get her right as a human being 2008: X.
Both Nuraini ’s study and the writer’s study are discuss about African American
women struggles against racial discrimination. The difference is that Nurain i’s
analysis was focused on one black woman character from Maya Angelou’s novel.
However, the writer’s analysis is focus on five characters of African American
women from Sue Monk Kidd’s, The Secret Life of Bees. The second related study is from Benedicta Novena Sheilla Putri
’s undergraduate thesis entitled
The Influence of Minor Characters on Lily’s Personality Development The Secret life of Bees. Putri finds that:
Finally it can be seen that Lili’s personality develops as the result of minor character’ influence. The minor characters influence Lily’s personality to
develop from an introverted person into extroverted person. Lily also changes from lack of confident person into a confident person and calm to
face her problems 2010: vii.
Both the writer and Putri use the same novel from Sue Monk kidd ’s The Secret
Life of bees. The difference is that the writer ’s study is to focus on African
American women’s struggles toward racial discrimination. African American women in that novel is the minor character. One the contrary, Putri
’s study was to focus on Lily’s personality development that influenced by African American
women. Lily is the major character in the novel who finds the love of mother from African American women.
The third related study is from Rintan Kusumaningtyas ’s undergraduate
thesis entitled The Reaction of African American’s People toward Racial
Discrimination in the 1960s Reflected in Kathryn S tockett’s The Help.
Kusumaningtyas finds that: the white still treats the blacks inferiorly as we know, the white belief that
they are superior both intellectually and physically. The main characters, Aibileen and Minny that experience the treatments of racial
discrimination. By analyzing the blacks’ characteristics, the writer is able
to find out the different reaction of them. The writer understands that Aibileen Clarck depicts the blacks who react in a passive way. On the
other hand, Minny Jackson reflects the blacks who respon bravely in the 1960s. Later, the forms of reactions that can be seen are acceptance and
resistance 2012: X.
Kusumaningtya s’ thesis also develops the writer’s study because the writer can
understand the reaction of black women toward racial discrimination from Kusumaningtyas’s analysis. Both the writer and Kusumaningtyas’s study is focus
on African American’s people lives toward racial discrimination in the 1960s. The fourth related study is from La
ura Miller’s article entitled The Help and The secret Life of Bees presentation. She says
All of the African-American individuals in these novels are struggling to face racial discrimination because of the inequalities they are forced to
deal with the condition and become accustomed to what they got from superior. These individuals are looked upon as scum, who are uneducated
and untrustworthy 2012: 1.
From her analysis, the writer finds that the African American women characters in The Secret Life of Bees are the struggle. Racial discrimination does not make them
get down but they keep finding their rights that are taken by White people. Those related studies above have a connection to
the writer’s analysis. Those four related study also discovers the
writer’s study to understand about African American women’s struggle against racial discrimination. Although,
those related studies above are different from the writer ’s study because the
writer focuses on the struggle of 5 minor characters of African American women against the practice of racial discrimination in the novel The Secret Life of Bees by
Sue Monk Kidd. Each character has their own unique characteristics toward racial discrimination.
B. Review of Related Theories
To support the analysis, the writer uses some theories to answer the problems mentioned in the problem formulation. The writer reviews some
theories in order to find out which theories that might be able to be used to answer those problems. The theories are character and characterization, race, racism and
racial discrimination.
1. Theory on Character and Characterization
M.H. Abrams and Geoffrey Harpham, in their book A Glossary of Literary Terms, said that:
The persons represented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the reader as possessing particular moral, intellectual, and
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