AN ANALYSIS OF MARIA’S STRUGGLE FOR A BETTER LIFE AS SEEN IN PAULO COELHO’S ELEVEN MINUTES
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
AN ANALYSIS OF MARIA’S STRUGGLE FOR A BETTER LIFE
AS SEEN IN PAULO COELHO’S ELEVEN MINUTES
A THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree in English Language Education
By:
Chatarina Setyastuti Wiedaninggar
Student Number: 02 1214 127
ENGLISH EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
AN ANALYSIS OF MARIA’S STRUGGLE FOR A BETTER LIFE
AS SEEN IN PAULO COELHO’S ELEVEN MINUTES
A THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree in English Language Education
By:
Chatarina Setyastuti Wiedaninggar
Student Number: 02 1214 127
ENGLISH EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
A Sarjana Pendidikan Thesis on
AN ANALYSIS OF MARIA’S STRUGGLE FOR A BETTER LIFE AS SEEN IN PAULO COELHO’S ELEVEN MINUTES
by Chatarina Setyastuti Wiedaninggar
Student Number: 021214127 Approved by: A.
Drs. L. Bambang Hendarto Y., M.Hum. June 12, 2008
Major Sponsor
Ch. Lhaksmita Anandari, S.Pd., M.Ed. June 12, 2008
Co-sponsor
A Sarjana Pendidikan Thesis On
AN ANALYSIS OF MARIA’S STRUGGLE FOR A BETTER LIFE
AS SEEN IN PAULO COELHO’S ELEVEN MINUTES
By
B. Chatarina Setyastuti Wiedaninggar
Student Number: 021214127
Defended before the Board of Examiners On ………………………… and Declared Acceptable
Board of Examiners
NameSignature
Chairperson : __________________________ ___________ Secretary : __________________________ ___________ Member : __________________________ ___________ Member : __________________________ ___________ Member : __________________________ ___________
Yogyakarta, June 12, 2008 Faculty of Teachers Training and Education Sanata Dharma University PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
BE THE BEST OF WHATEVER YOU ARE
IF YOU CAN’T BE A PINE IN THE TOP OF THE HILL, BE A SCRUB IN THE VALLEY BUT BE THE BEST LITTLE SCRUB BY THE SIDE OF THE RILL BE A BUSH IF YOU CAN’T BE A TREE
IF YOU CAN’T BE A BUSH BE A BIT OF THE GRASS AND SOME HIGHWAY HAPPIER MAKE
IF YOU CAN’T BE A MUSKIE THEN JUST BE A BASS BUT THE LIVELIEST BASS IN THE LAKE WE CAN’T ALL CAPTAINS; WE HAVE GOT TO BE CREW THERE’S SOMETHING FOR ALL OF US HERE
THERE’S A BIG WORK TO DO AND THERE’S LESSER TO DO AND THE TASK YOU MUST DO IS NEAR
IF YOU CAN’T BE A HIGHWAY THEN JUST BE A TRAIL
IF YOU CAN’T BE THE SUN BE THE STAR
IT ISN’T BY THE SIZE THAT YOU WIN OR YOU FAIL BE THE BEST OF WHATEVER YOU ARE
DOUGLAS MALLOCH
I dedicate this thesis for my family and for my boyfriend
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
ABSTRACT
Wiedaninggar, Chatarina Setyastuti. 2008. An Analysis of Maria’s Struggle for a
Better Life as seen in Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes. Yogyakarta: English
Language Education Study Program, Department of Language and Arts Education, Faculty of Teachers Training and Education, Sanata Dharma University.
This thesis discusses Paulo Coelho’s novel entitled Eleven Minutes. The analysis focuses on Maria, the major character in the novel. She is considered as a woman who struggles for a better life. The aim of this study is to analyse Maria’s struggles for a better life as seen in Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes. Therefore, here are two problems that should be answered in this thesis, namely: (1) How is Maria characterized in Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes? (2) How does Maria struggle for a better life?
To answer those problems, this thesis employed library research. There are two data used in this thesis, namely primary data and secondary data. The primary data is taken from the novel itself, Eleven Minutes. The secondary data is gained from books on psychology and literary theories and internet sources which provide the information related to this analysis. They are theory of character, theory of characterization, theory of critical approach, theory of motivation, struggle for life and theory of human needs. The approach used in this thesis is the psychological approach since it deals with a psychological issue on one’s struggle for a better life.
Based on the analysis, it can be concluded that Maria is a beautiful woman who makes use of her beauty to attract men. However, she always has difficulties in having relationship with men. Maria is also portrayed as a smart, brave, honest and lonely woman. There are some reasons why Maria wants to struggle for her better life. She comes from a low class family. Therefore, she wants to improve her social condition. Moreover, she also has a dream of travelling. She is keen on having adventure by leaving her hometown and having new experiences. Maria’s success in her life struggle can be seen from the way she deals with every job she has. First, she becomes a shop-assistant in her town, Brazil. Then, she has to work as a salsa dancer in Switzerland. Moreover, she wants to try to be a model since she has no other skills but her beauty. Finally, she changes her life by becoming a prostitute. During her experiences, she can fulfil some of her needs.
At the end, some suggestions for the readers are presented. Firstly, this thesis can be a reference for the future researchers if they want to analyse the same novel. Second, this thesis proposes suggestion for the implementation of literature in teaching English especially intensive reading for the second semester students of English Education Study Program.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
ABSTRAK
Wiedaninggar, Chatarina Setyastuti. 2008. An Analysis of Maria’s Struggle for a
Better Life as seen in Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes. Yogyakarta: program
Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa dan Seni, Fakultas Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan, Universitas Sanata Dharma.
Skripsi ini membahas tentang sebuah novel yang berjudul Eleven Minutes karya Paulo Coelho. Analisis terfokus kepada Maria, tokoh utama yang ada di dalam novel tersebut. Dia adalah seorang perempuan yang berjuang untuk sebuah kehidupan yang lebih baik. Tujuan skripsi ini adalah untuk mengetahui perjuangan Maria untuk hidup yang lebih baik seperti yang terlihat dalam novel Eleven Minutes karya Paulo Coelho. Ada dua permasalahan yang menjadi pembahasan utama di dalam skripsi ini (1) Bagaimana Maria, tokoh utama dalam novel ini digambarkan? (2) Bagaimana Maria berjuang untuk mendapat hidup yang lebih baik. Untuk menjawab permasalahan tersebut, skripsi ini menggunakan penelitian perpustakaan untuk mengumpulkan data. Ada dua data yang digunakan yaitu data utama dan data kedua. Data utama adalah novel itu sendiri, Eleven Minutes. Data kedua diambil dari buku-buku tentang teori psikologi dan literature serta sumber dari internet yang menyediakan informasi yang berkaitan dengan analisis ini. Teori-teori tersebut adalah teori tentang karakter, penokohan, teori pendekatan, teori motivasi, perjuangan hidup dan teori kebutuhan manusia. Pendekatan yang digunakan adalah pendekatan psikologi karena skripsi ini berhubungan dengan masalah psikologi dalam perjuangan seseorang untuk hidup yang lebih baik.
Berdasarkan hasil analisis, dapat disimpulkan bahwa Maria adalah seorang perempuan cantik yang menggunakan kecantikannya untuk menarik perhatian laki-laki. Tetapi dia selalu mendapatkan hambatan-hambatan dalam menjalin hubungan dengan laki-laki. Maria juga digambarkan sebagai seorang yang pintar, berani, jujur dan kesepian. Ada beberapa alasan mengapa Maria ingin berjuang untuk hidup yang lebih baik. Dia berasal dari keluarga kelas bawah. Oleh karena itu dia ingin meningkatkan kondisi sosialnya. Dia juga memiliki mimpi untuk traveling. Dia ingin berpetualang dengan meninggalkan kampung halamannya dan mendapatkan pengalaman-pengalaman baru. Kesuksesan Maria dalam perjuangannya dapat dilihat dari cara dia menghadapi setiap pekerjaan. Pertama, dia menjadi asisten toko di kampung di Brazil. Lalu dia bekerja sebagai penari salsa di Swiss. Setelah itu, dia mencoba untuk menjadi model karena dia tahu kecantikannya. Dia tidak mempunyai ketrampilan khusus untuk bekerja. Kemudian, dia mengubah hidupnya dengan menjadi seorang Pekerja Seks Komersil (PSK). Dalam pengalamannya tersebut, Maria bisa memenuhi hampir semua kebutuhannya.
Skripsi ini memberikan beberapa saran untuk pembaca. Pertama, skripsi ini bisa menjadi sebuah referensi bagi peneliti-peneliti lain apabila mereka ingin menganalisa novel yang sama. Kedua, skripsi ini memberikan saran untuk implementasi mengajar bahasa Inggris terutama membaca intensif untuk
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I would like to devote my gratitude to my Almighty God for His blessing and His mercy. He gives me faith and hope to write this thesis. I thank Him for the love, blessing and guidance along the hard path of my life. I realized that because of His blessing through people around me in mysterious ways, I am able to finish this thesis.
I would also like to give my deepest gratitude towards my major sponsor
Drs. L. Bambang Hendarto Y., M.Hum. for his help, advice and his patience in
helping me finish this thesis. I am very happy that I can share about life with him and he gave me many things about the meaning of real life. My great thanks is also given to my special co-sponsor Ch. Lhaksmita Anandari, S.Pd., M.Ed. for her suggestion, correction and her assistance for every page of my thesis writing process.
I am sincerely grateful to my parents. I thank them for their prayers. I beg a big forgiveness for making them worried about my thesis. I thank my father,
Ign. Bambang Mulyadi for giving me advice and his financial support and my
mother, D.M. Kurniati who has given her attention, her accompanying and her prayer for me every night. I thank my brother, Danny who has helped me to correct my thesis and gave me a lot of support. I also thank my little sister, Irma for cheering up my day.
My deepest love goes to my lovely partner in life, Hendrik Buesing. I
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
Those whom I could not forget are my best friends, Dewi, Lissa, Nath,
Rury, and Cicil who always asking me about my improvement. They are really
my very wonderful friends.My special thanks go to the members of Carpathia “Lissa, Nath, Cicil, Rury and Ook”. We have spent our time together to find the bloody difficult clients. Luckily, we made it! I also thank my partners in EXSA English Camp “Galih, Bunga, Cecil, Dedi, Gede, Gaby and the supervisor Mr Bismoko”. Thanks for helping me face the working world. Now, I know how to work in a professional way.
My gratitude goes to all my lecturers of the English Education Study Program in Sanata Dharma University who have been willing to share their valuable knowledge, lessons and experiences during my study in Sanata Dharma University, to all staffs in the secretariat of English Language Education Study Program and all of the librarians who deserve to get special appreciation in arranging the book needs.
The last but not least I would like to thank my PBI ’01, PBI ’02, PBI 03
friends, Dusun Jogja Village Inn, Progo Adventour Tours Magelang,
Colorado School, SD Kanisius Gowongan Jogjakarta, SMU 7 Jogjakarta and
all people who have not mentioned above. I thank them for their help, ideas, energy, times, support and prayers to my life.
Wieda
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page TITLE PAGE ..................................................................................................... i APPROVAL PAGE ........................................................................................... ii DEDICATION PAGE ........................................................................................ iv STATEMENT OF WORK ORIGINALITY ...................................................... v
ABSTRAK ........................................................................................................... vi
ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................... vii LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI.............................. viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................. ix TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................... xi CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................
1 A. Background of the Study ..............................................................................
1 B. Objectives of the Study ................................................................................
4 C. Problem Formulation ...................................................................................
5 D. Benefits of the Study ....................................................................................
5 E. Definition of Terms ......................................................................................
6 CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ...........................
8 A. Review of Related Theories ..........................................................................
8 1. Theory of Character ...............................................................................
8 a. Definition of Character ....................................................................
9 b. Kinds of Character ...........................................................................
9
2. Theory of Characterization .................................................................... 11
a. Definition of Characterization .......................................................... 11
b. Methods of Characterization ............................................................ 12
3. Critical Approach ................................................................................... 14
4. Motivation .............................................................................................. 15
5. Struggle for Life ..................................................................................... 16
6. Hierarchy of Needs ................................................................................ 18
a. Physiological Needs ........................................................................... 18
5. Lonely ...................................................................................................... 34
d. Becoming A Prostitute ......................................................................... 45
c. Becoming a Model ............................................................................... 44
b. Becoming a Salsa Dancer in Switzerland ............................................ 42
a. Becoming a Shop-Assistant in Brazil ................................................... 41
2. Maria’s Struggle for a Better Life ............................................................ 40
b. Traveling Desire ................................................................................... 39
a. Social Condition ................................................................................... 37
1. Causes of Maria’s Struggle for a Better life ............................................. 36
B. Maria’s Struggle for a Better Life ................................................................ 36
4. Honest ...................................................................................................... 33
b. Safety Needs ....................................................................................... 18
3. Brave ........................................................................................................ 31
2.Smart ......................................................................................................... 29
1.Beautiful .................................................................................................... 27
CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ................................................................ 22
A. Subject Matter.............................................................................................. 22 B. Approach ....................................................................................................... 23 C. Procedures ..................................................................................................... 24CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS ............................................................................. 26
A. Maria’s Characterization .............................................................................. 26C. Theoretical Framework ................................................................................. 20
B. Criticisms ..................................................................................................... 19
e. Self-Actualization Needs .................................................................... 19
d. Self-Esteem Needs ............................................................................. 19
c. Belongingness and Love Needs ......................................................... 18
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS ............................. 55
A. Conclusions .................................................................................................. 55 B. Suggestions .................................................................................................. 571. Suggestion for Future Researcher ....................................................... 58
2. Suggestion for Teaching-Learning Activities ..................................... 58
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................ 60
APPENDICES .................................................................................................. 62
Appendix A: Cover of Eleven Minutes .............................................................. 63 Appendix B: Summary of Eleven Minutes ........................................................ 64 Appendix C: Biography of Paulo Coelho ........................................................... 66 Appendix D: Lesson Plan to Teach Intensive Reading ...................................... 71 Appendix E : Questions to Teach Intensive Reading ......................................... 72
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION This chapter consists of five elements. Those are background of the study,
problem formulation, objectives, benefits and definition of terms. The background of the study highlights the reasons for choosing the topic and the need for analyzing it. The problem formulation presents the general description of questions dealing with the major character that would be analyzed in this study.
The objectives explain the struggle of the major character in detail. The benefits of the study give theoretical benefits for the development of applicable theories.
The last element is definition of terms. In this part, some key words which are related to the study would be defined based on valid references.
A. Background of the Study
Life is beautiful. This sentence is usually said by young people as they hardly find problems in their life. However, we know that life is not only full of beautiful things and happy moments but also difficulties. People, as human beings cannot avoid them. There are so many problems that exist in our life and we need to struggle to overcome our problems so that we can find our happiness and targets of life.
People face problems in their life. Sometimes, it is not easy for them to accept the problems. Sometimes problems affect people’s mind. Problems can influence their way of thinking. At this starting point, they have to choose how to
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
overcome their problems. For example, since the economic crisis in 1998, people cannot maintain their incomes and expenses. Many people, especially women have worked as labors in factories to support financial problems. However, their salary as labors is still less than the standard money for living. Nowadays, the condition is getting worse. Because of the increasing price of fuel, many factories are closed and most of the workers are laid off. Lia, one of the labors who has been laid off decided to be a prostitute. She said that she has dilemma in her choice. However, she realizes that being a prostitute is the best solution she can find to cope with the financial burdens. (http://www.hartford- hwp.com/54/212.html)
We cannot avoid our destiny. However, once we have problems in our life, we still must continue our path. We cannot stay in the same place. People need to struggle and survive their own life. Sometimes, people can survive in their life because they have dreams. They want to make their dream come true. Therefore, dream can help them to survive. In Lia’s case, one of the causes for her choice was because she wants to feed her children at home and be able to send them to school.
Such a condition can also be found in a work of literature such as a novel. According to Hudson, literature is the expression of life through the medium of language. It can be regarded as something essential since it portrays real life, experiences, people, thoughts and people’s feeling about life (10). A novel can arouse our feelings and emotions since what exists in a novel are portrayal of human’s real experiences. This is why the most often used word to describe the
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
novel is “realistic” (Rohrberger and Woods Jr. 29). Therefore, it is clear that characters and struggle of life in a novel are realistic and can exist in our daily life.
One of the authors who has tried to portray human’s life experiences in a novel as described above is Paulo Coelho. His novel entitled Eleven Minutes tells us a taboo, shocking and difficult subject, namely sex. The story tells about Maria, a young girl from the interior Brazil whose dream is to find a charming prince in her life to help her overcome all her problems. In the beginning of the story, it is described that Maria comes from a low class family whose father is only a traveling salesman and her mother is a seamstress. Then, she falls in love with several men. However, her adolescence gives her bad experiences towards love relationship and sex relationship. Therefore, she tends to see love as the most painful thing in the world which only brings sadness.
Then, her struggle of life begins. She works in a draper’s shop to help her parents’ financial condition. Then she goes to Switzerland to search for her fortune by chance. She tries all she can do to prove that she can have a better life. During her journey of life, she works as a prostitute. Furthermore, she finds some crucial things that should be achieved in order to get a better life. Therefore, in her journey she struggles to find her better life in dealing with her needs.
The story is interesting to me because I can see Maria’s problems in life. From the excerpt of her diary, I can understand Maria’s struggle for her survival. The way she reacts to each problem makes me interested in analyzing Maria’s struggle for a better life.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
Secondly, the way Paulo Coelho, the author, creates some problems which are usually faced by people is interesting to discuss. He describes the story in such a way that Maria, the major character, should deal with her social condition, herself and surroundings. He puts forward some essences of each problem in Maria’s life.
In general, by reading and analyzing this novel, one can learn and understand how to view the world and behave to oneself. Moreover, Maria, the major character says whether she wants to be the victim of life or become an adventurer who is searching for treasure. Her choice proves that she wants to struggle for a better life.
B. The Objectives of the Study
There objectives of the study is to find out Maria’s struggles for a better life as seen in Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes. Therefore, there are two problems need to answer in this study. The first question is to reveal Maria’s characteristics as the major character in the novel. The second is to find out how Maria struggles for a better life in Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes. There are many values that we can get from her action.
From the portrayal of Maria in the story, we can assume that we cannot avoid problems we are facing. What we can do is to face them bravely. We are equipped with many kinds of skills that help us to anticipate and face the
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
problems and difficulties in our life. Thus, we can still survive and continue our journey of life.
C. Problem Formulation
In analyzing the novel, there are two problems related to the topic of the study. They can be formulated as follows:
1. How is Maria, the major character, described in the novel?
2. How does Maria’s struggle to have a better life?
D. The Benefits of the Study
This study deals with Maria’s struggle for a better life as seen in Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes. The first benefit goes to the readers, especially the students of English Education study program of Sanata Dharma University.
Hopefully, this study will deepen their understanding of life through literary work especially in Paulo Coelho’s novels. Moreover, it can be a good way to introduce them Paulo Coelho’s literary works. The readers can implement the important values in the novel into their real life.
Secondly, it is hoped that this study will help the teachers of English because it gives them a good source in teaching literature especially “Eleven Minutes” to the students. The third benefit is for other researchers who want to analyze this novel. Hopefully this study will be useful for them. This study will provide them with a helpful source and a relevant reference for conducting their study on the novel.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
Finally, for me as the writer, it is interesting to know one’s struggle in dealing with one’s own life, especially in the work of literature because it reflects the real life. I can see other’s experience in dealing with life. This convinces me that I have to struggle to achieve my targets of life.
E. Definition of Terms
Clarifying the important terms related to the study is obviously needed in order to avoid misunderstanding. For that purpose, some related terms are defined and presented as follows:
1. Struggle According to McKechnie (367), struggle is a task or goal requiring much effort to accomplish or achieve. Moreover, Webster states that struggle means to try very hard to deal with a challenge, problem or difficulty (1430). In this study, struggle refers to human’s effort in dealing with any difficult condition to gain a better life.
2. Character The word character has two meanings. The first meaning of character refers to the person who appears in the story (Stanton 17). The second meaning of character refers to the person who is presented in dramatic or narrative works who are interpreted by readers as being endowed with moral dispositions qualities that they are expressed in what they say through their dialogues and what they do (Abrams 20). In this study, a character is a person who is created by an author to form a story through his or her action, feeling and expression.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
3. Better Life According to Hornby, life is described as a way in which somebody lives or condition of an individual’s existence (1120). While Webster states that better means in a more acceptable, appropriate or effective way (133). In this study, a better life can be defined as a situation in which a person has achieved his or her targets of life after dealing with all his or her problems so that he or she feels more comfortable and settled than before dealing with all his or her problems.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE This chapter consists of three parts. The first part presents a review of
related theories that contains of theory of character, characterization, theory of critical approach, struggle for life, theory of motivation and hierarchy of needs.
The second part presents the criticism and resources. It provides some criticisms about Paulo Coelho and his works. The third part is the theoretical framework.
C. Review of Related Theories
This section presents relevant theories that are used as the basis in analyzing the novel. They are theory of character and theory of characterization, which help me to find out the description of the main character. Theory of critical approach is an important element in this section to make a better understanding on the work of literature. Struggle for life, motivation and hierarchy of needs help me to find out the struggle dealing with the main character.
1. Character
The existence of characters in a literary work especially a novel is considered significant. Forster states that a novelist can reveal problems in the novel if he or she can describe characters gently and naturally (30-31). Therefore, characters play an important role in the story.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
a. Definition of Character Character is one of the most important things that appear in the novel.
Here, the author creates the character and uses it as an instrument to voice what he or she wants to convey in the story. Barnet (71) says that there are two definitions of character. Firstly, character is a figure in a literary work and secondly, character is the personality, that is, the mental and moral qualities of a figure as when we say that a character is strong or weak, moral or immoral.
Abrams states that character is a representation of a person in narrative and dramatic works as a result of the readers’ interpretation (20). His or her words and acts express their moral and dispositional qualities that are expressed in what they say – the dialogues and what they do – the action. Traits and the relationships among them are vital in our understanding of the character. It is not easy to examine the character in term of their traits. However, the difficulty we may experience in such an effort contributes to a deeper understanding of the fictional character as well to a greater understanding of what it is to be a real person.
b. Kinds of Character
According to Henkle (92-93), character is divided into two namely, major and secondary characters. A major character is the most important and complex in a literary work or novel. He or she can be identified by looking into the complexity of his or her characterization. Thus, the readers’ fullest attention is completely given to the major character for the sake of the understanding the story of the novel. It is also the major character that performs structural key function;
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
10 upon his or her, the readers build expectations and desires. To some extent, as he or she undergoes changes, the reader’s values can be changed or set up.
The secondary characters are those who appear in certain scenes. Generally they are used to become the background of the major character. Basically, secondary characters are to live in the world in the novel. Secondary characters can function as a ‘point of reference’ if they act as if they were to see the major character’s great intensity (Henkle 94-95). Their role is less important than the major character because the story of the novel usually deals with the major character.
Forster (46-51) in Aspect of the Novel divides the character of the novel into two kinds, namely flat characters and round characters. A flat character is created around “a single idea or quality”. It is snatched under one aspects and a particular angle. Usually, a flat character is characterized only by one or two traits. One great advantage of a flat character is that he or she is recognized easily whenever he or she comes. They usually stay the same. They are static. In other words, it will be easier for the reader to obtain the description of the characters entirely only by seeing one side of a person’s character. The other advantage is that the reader can easily remember a flat character. It is because the character will remain the same despite his or her moving through circumstances. On the other hand, the circumstances are not likely to change the character so that he or she stays in the reader’s mind as unalterable.
A round character cannot be categorized in a single phrase or sentence.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
temperament and motivation. The readers can only remember his or her in connection with the great scenes by which he or she is modified since he or she passes through them. It means that it is difficult for the readers to remember him or her so easily because he or she may have many individual and unpredictable human traits. Moreover, he or she is also capable of surprising the reader in a convincing way since he or she has the incalculability of life about it.
2. Characterization
Understanding theory of characterization is important to know the novel deeper. There are some different definitions about characterization by some authors. Each has his or her own statement in delivering the theory of characterization.
a. Definition of Characterization
According to Rohrberger and Woods Jr., the process in which an author creates a character is called characterization. Basically, character and characterization are connected and they cannot be separated. A character is recognized by what is appearing in the story (20).
Moreover, Holman and Harmon state that characterization is the creation of an imaginary person in the story so that she exists for the reader as a living character (81). The author usually reveals the character as an imagery person in the story.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
12
b. Methods of characterization
According to Murphy in his book Understanding Unseens (161-173), there are nine ways of characterization to make the characters understandable to and come alive for the readers. 1) Personal Description Here, the author attempts to describe a person’s appearance and clothes.
Therefore, the reader knows one’s character directly by the way she dresses and the appearance. For example, a long and blonde hair young woman is considered as a spoil woman and beauty-oriented. 2) Character as Seen by Another
Instead of describing a character directly, the author describes her through the eyes and opinion of another character. Therefore, based on the other characters’ judgment, the reader gets a reflected image. 3) Speech
Here, the author gives the details of the character in the novel through what the person says. It means that whenever the person says, whenever she is in the conversation with another, whenever she puts forward an opinion, she is giving a clue to her character. Briefly, through her daily speech in the novel, the reader knows about her character. 4) Past life
The author gives the reader a clue to events that have helped to create a character by giving some description and stories about a person’s past life. The
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
13 reader can find them by direct comment from the author, the person’s thought, the person’s conversation or through the medium of another person. 5) Conversation of Others
The author gives a clue to the reader about a person’s character through the conversation of other people and the things they say about her. People do talk about other people and the things they say often give the reader a clue to the character of the person spoken about.
6) Reactions The author can give the reader a clue to a person’s character by letting the reader knows how that person reacts to various situation and events.
7) Direct Comment It is quite different from personal description. Here, the author can describe or comment on a person’s character directly.
8) Thoughts The author gives the reader direct knowledge of what a person is thinking about. In this case, the person is able to do what we cannot do in real life.
Therefore, the reader will know the character of the person simply by knowing what is in her mind.
9) Mannerism Here, the author describes a person’s mannerism, habits or idiosyncrasies, which may also tell the reader something about the character. Therefore, the reader can get a clue of a person’s character from the way she behaves and acts in
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
3. Critical Approach
Literary work has an aesthetic value. It is very common for the readers to response after reading a literary work. Knowing and understanding critical approaches are very important to give aesthetic response to the literary work. According to Rohrberger and Woods Jr. (6-15), critical approach involves five approaches. They are: a. The Formalist Approach
The proponents of this approach concentrate on the aesthetic value of literary work. This approach concerns on the total integrity of literary piece. In determining the structure and meaning of literary work, demonstrating the harmonious involvement of parts and pointing out the technique are used.
b. The Biographical Approach The proponents of this approach tend to apply the author’s background of life and his or her idea to dig out the understanding of literary work. Therefore, biographical approach uses the biography of the author as the basic of analysis. As a consequence, the readers attempt to learn about the life and the development of the author as much as they can in order to understand his or her writings.
c. The Sociocultural-historical Approach The proponents of sociocultural-historical approach attempt to find the idea by emphasizing to learn the culture which exists in the civilization. The proponents believe that social and historical condition of the author can influence his or her literary work. Therefore, the proponents convince that the only way to
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
locate the real world into literary work refers to the civilization that creates the culture.
d. The Mythopoeic Approach The proponents of this mythopoeic approach understand the literary work by finding particular recurrent patterns of human though which are considered sharing the same universal belief to certain community mind. They are found expressed in ancient myths and folk terms. Therefore, the mystical relationship found in a story can be explained by the use of this approach.
e. The Psychological Approach The proponents of this approach use the theory of human psychology as the references to analyze the character’s behavior, motivation and personality pattern that can be interrelated into the psychology of human beings. Through this approach, the character’s thought, idea and behavior can be analyzed deeper.
Each approach has its own strength, weaknesses, values and limitations. It also has its proper insight and this will be the duty of the readers to figure out the approach that would guide to the better understanding and comprehension to the works of literature, as we know that not all of the approaches would be suitable to be applied in every study.
4. Motivation
In the novel, motivation is an internal process that controls Maria’s behavior in order to gain the goals. Maria’s motivation to change her life makes
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
behavior cannot be separated from her emotions because her emotion influences her to have certain goals to be achieved. Therefore, I will review the theory of motivation to know Maria’s motivation to struggle for better life.
Usually, people think that emotion is another term for motivation. In fact, they are quite different. According to Buck as quoted by Worcher and Shebilske (417), actually motivation and emotion may be related but they are not the same thing. They define motivation as arousal or energy that directs behavior.
According to Murray (7), motivation is desire. It is related to behavior because it is involved in all kinds of behavior; learning, performing, perceiving, attending, remembering, forgetting, thinking, creating and feeling.
In addition, Smith (282) states that motivation is categorized as an internal process that influences the direction, persistence and vigor of goal directed behavior. Motivation comes from Latin word, “moveo” which means as an internal factor that moves human beings and animal toward the goal that is to be achieved. Motivation makes human beings keep their effort and keep them on their goal to prevent from loosing their way to attain the goal. Motivation also makes human beings behave in a specific behavior that support them in the process of attaining the goal. Therefore, motivation usually influences someone’s behavior.
5. Struggle for Life
People face problems in life. Braun, Linder and Asimov (478-480) state
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
17 difficult. Sometimes, they affect their way of thinking in facing life. Therefore, they need to struggle to overcome their problems. Struggle can be one of the reasons why people want to protect their life. According to Bernard (64), “Individuals also may consciously and rationally implement strategies that enable them to cope with stresses and problems in life”.
According to Braun, Linder and Asimov (478-480) how people will react to all the stresses and problems is one aspect of the process called adjustment.
Adjustment is the process for people to cope with the difficult situations in their struggle. There are three aspects of adjustment. The first is problem solving. We must deal with the problems and try to find the solution whether it is a bad or good solution. If we have to deal with many situations, our problem solving skills will be developed. The second is acceptance of situation. We do not need to response too much toward our problems. It is better for us to accept the problem and its consequences. However, we still must be careful about unconsidered acceptance. The third is the use of defense mechanism to cope with stress and anxiety.
Bernard (64) states that human uses some strategies to protect his ego. He can fight by his repression, perceptual, denial and intellectualization. He can learn the positive things from his struggle. Each person realizes that he needs to struggle because he will be satisfied by his effort. Therefore, struggle for life is needed to attain the target of life and overcome the problems of life.