author, her soul is going back and forth in the hospital as the symbol of her unconscious condition.
The second term is decision making. Decision making can be referred as
the mental processes resulting in the selection of a matter of action among several alternatives. The output of every decision making process is an action or an
opinion of choices Kahneman, 2000: 18. Decision making is a common thing in human being’s daily life. However, this process has its relation to the mental and
psychological mind of human being. The researcher uses this term to support the most crucial thing discussed in this thesis, which is the decision making process of
the main character to choose to be alive. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
6
CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE
This chapter contains some theories used in this study. There are three parts: Review of Related Studies, Review of Related Theories, and Theoretical
Framework. The Review of Related Studies is about the articles that cover the similar topics to this study. The Review of Related Theories covers theory of
character and characterization, theory of plot, theory of the unconscious, and theory of decision making. The Theoretical Framework explains how each theory
contributes its important point toward the analysis to solve the problems formulated in this study.
A. Review of Related Studies
The content of this part is about the related studies that deal with the work, If I Stay, and the focus of this study, which is psychoanalysis. Related to the work,
there is a study done by Elle Wolterbeek, a student of English Education in Arizona State University, USA, in 2010. Her article is about the brief summary of
Gayle Forman’s If I Stay focusing on telling it from the main character’s point of view. Ms. Wolterbeek says that “Mia Hall is a strong and extremely likeable
narrator who engages the reader. Readers will relate to Mia as she reflects on how she has navigated her first romantic relationship; her relationship with her parents,
friends, and her brother; her dedication to her musical interest, and the hard decisions that she is forced to make” Wolterbeek, 2010: 617.
In her study, Wolterbeek focuses on Mia Hall, as the main character of If I Stay, and the plot is
based on Mia Hall’s point of view. It states that Mia has a strong c
haracteristic and she is likely to keep the readers’ attention and interest, although she has to deal with the gruesome and tragic experience of losing her
family. By keeping the strong engagement to the readers, Mia’s relationship with the people surrounding her is depicted. Wolterbeek also states that this book is
thought-provoking and will certainly give impact to the readers, who will not stop thinking about the storyline and characters after they have read the last page
Wolterbeek, 2010: 617. Being d
ifferent from Wolterbeek’s article which discusses the plot of the story and the characteristics of the main character in a separate way, this thesis
analyzes the characteristics of Mia Hall from the plot development in the novel. The novel uses the chronological plot, and by also relating the characteristics to
the plot development of the novel, the researcher is able to observe the main character’s traits more clearly. By presenting the traits of Mia Hall, this thesis
wants to prove that someone’s decision making process can be influenced and motivated by their characteristics. This aspect can be seen through the main
character’s decision making process during her comatose state. Another article provided for relating this thesis is an article by Kuldip
Kaur Kuwahara entitled “Jung’s “Collective Unconscious”, Literature, and
Cultural Studies, in a ColonialPostcolonial Context ”. This article is written
because of the challenge by postcolonial and postmodern perspectives on how the theory of Carl Jung about
the “Collective Unconscious” grounded in a historical PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
