Discussion on The Portrayal of Two Major Characters in Barry Dickin's 'The House of The Lord'.

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS…………………………………………… i
TABLE OF CONTENTS ………..………………………………….. ii
ABSTRACT …………………………….…………………………… iii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background of The Study …………………………………..….…… 1
Statement of The Problem ………………….…….………………… 2
Purpose of The Study ……………………………………………… 3
Method of Research …………………………………..…………… 3
Organization Of The Thesis ………….……….………..…………… 3
CHAPTER TWO: DISCUSSION ON THE PORTRAYAL OF TWO
MAJOR CHARACTERS IN THE HOUSE OF THE
LORD….…………………………………………………………….…4
CHAPTER THREE: CONCLUSION ...……………………………15
BIBLIOGRAPHY …..……………………………………………….18
APPENDICES:
Synopsis of The House of The Lord…………………………….……19
Biography of The Author ……………………………………….… 20

 

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ABSTRACT

Dalam penulisan tugas akhir untuk memenuhi persyaratan memperoleh gelar
sarjana jurusan Sastra Inggris di Universitas Kristen Maranatha, saya menganalisis
sebuah novel karya Barry Dickins yang berjudul The House of The Lord. Dalam
analisis novel ini, fokus yang dikemukakan adalah karakteristik yang dimiliki oleh
tokoh-tokoh dalam novel, perubahan karakteristik mereka serta tujuan pengarang
novel menciptakan karakter tokoh-tokoh tersebut.
Novel ini menceritakan tentang dua tokoh utama, Bertie Warble dan Johnny
Rigos. Kedua tokoh ini mengalami perubahan karakteristik dalam kehidupan mereka.

Hal tersebut terjadi karena adanya pengaruh keluarga dan lingkungan sekitar mereka
yang secara tidak langsung membentuk karakteristik mereka sehingga cara pandang
mereka dalam menghadapi permasalahan hidup juga turut terpengaruh.
Dalam analisis ini dikemukakan bagaimana individu mempunyai tanggapan
yang berbeda-beda dalam menghadapi dan menyelesaikan problematika kehidupan.
Bertie yang tumbuh sebagai anak yang manja dan tidak dewasa menghadapi
permasalahannya dengan pandangan yang negatif, sementara Johnny yang penuh
pemikiran tetap memandang segala sesuatunya dengan positif.
 

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APPENDICES

Synopsis of The House of The Lord
The House of The Lord is a novel about Johnny Rigos, the adored son
of a Greek-Australian family. Having been sexually abused by a priest, he escapes

from the horror of his Catholic school dormitory. The experience changes his life
completely and makes him decide on a plan to save humanity by his good deeds.
Bertie Warble, who comes from a White-Australian family, lays his hope and
adoration on his father. He is blinded by the love he feels for his father. However
after being demoralized by his own father and his teachers, who ruin Bertie’s
perception of good men, Bertie becomes a person who does not easily trust
anyone. Both the major characters meet and later on trust each other. They
become friends and even have more than just friends’ feelings. Johnny falls in
love with Bertie but Bertie finds Jane, his first love, thus the three of them stuck in
a love triangle. Finally, they choose their choices of life and are separated. Johnny
dies because of his own good deeds. He is murdered because he refuses to give
some bastards the money he preserves for the poor people. Bertie finally finds the
real love that he is looking for and understands about maturity.

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Biography of the Author
Barry Dickins was born in Melbourne, suburb of Reservoir, Victoria

in 1949. He is married to Sarah Mogridge and they have a son whose name is
Louis. Leaving school early, he worked in a factory and as set-painter for
television. Through his association with La Mama Theatre, his first play, Ghost,
was performed in 1974. His play Remember Ronald Ryan won him the Victorian
Premier’s Literary Award in 1955.
He is known as one of Melbourne’s best-loved and most prolific
writers. He is a novelist who has worked as both a journalist and also an English
teacher in Melbourne. He has written some plays and script as well. His plays
have been produced by theatre companies throughout Australia.
His works including The Banana Bender and The Death of Minnie
(1981), Lennie Lower (1982), One Woman Shoe (1984), The Bridal Suite and
Mag and Bag: Two Plays (1985), Beautland (1985), The Golden Goldenbergs
(1986), The Fool’s Shoe Hotel (1987), Royboys (1987), My Grandmother (1989),
Remember Ronald Ryan (1994), Post Office Restaurant and Other Stories (1992),
My Grandfather: Years of Hope and Vigour (1993), Joey: a Dog for All Seasons
(1995).

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study
Family and environment can influence humans’ characteristics and
personality. The treatment of the parents during one’s childhood is also of great
importance for the development of personality, as stated that “The home is regarded
as being by far the most important factor influencing character development”
(Bakwin 38). That is why childhood experience, especially traumatic experience can
affect someone’s characteristic changes. Barry Dickins brings this issue in his novel,
The House of The Lord.
Barry Dickins is known as one of Australian’s best-loved and prolific writers.
Barry Dickins writes novels, short stories, plays, scripts, biographies, non-fictions
and children books. His plays have been produced by theatres throughout Australia.
As

an

Australian,

Dickins

seems

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to

dedicate

his

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to introduce Australia to the world because most of his work is set in Australia,
especially Melbourne; “Dickins is best described as a humorist who employs the

people, traditions and rituals of Melbourne in his dramatic writing” (www.auslit.edu).
That is the reason why I choose Barry Dickins. There is no doubt about his ability in
writing, which makes this novel is worth analyzing.
I choose Barry Dickins’s novel, The House of The Lord because the
characters in the novel are described in great details. I used formalism approach to do
my analysis. The element that I will analyse from the novel is portrayal of the two
major characters. I am interested to analyse it because the personalities of the major
characters in the story are familiar. I agree with Keeney, who says that “A character
is obviously relevant to us and our experience if he is like ourselves or like others
whom we know. Lifelikeness, then, is properly understood as one form of relevance.
A character is relevant if there are a lot of people like him in the real world” (27).
In my analysis, I want to focus on the major characters, Bertie Warble and
Johnny Rigos. Bertie Warble, the protagonist of the novel, changes into a negative
thinking person especially towards men since he feels demoralized and insulted by
his father and also his teacher. Johnny Rigos, the other major character, becomes a
person who changes his sexual orientation because he has a traumatic experience in
his teens. He has been sexually abused by a priest in his Catholic school. Both of
these major characters have one similarity, that is bad experience in the past that
changes their characteristics.

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Statement of the Problem
1.

How does the author portray the two major characters?

2.

What is the purpose of the author in creating such characters?

Purpose of the Study
1.

To show how the author portray the major characters.

2.

To show the purpose of the author in creating such characters.

Method of Research
In my analysis, I read Barry Dickins’ novel, which is The House of The Lord
as

the primary text. I choose the most significant element in this novel to be

analysed. Then I search other sources and references from books and electronic
website in order to support my analysis. Finally, I find conclusion based on my
analysis.

Organization of the Thesis
The thesis is organized into three chapters. Chapter One contains Background
of the Study, the Statement of the Problem, the Purpose of the Study, the Method of
Research and the Organization of the Thesis. Chapter Two contains the analysis of
the portrayal of the major characters in Barry Dickins’ novel, The House of The Lord.
Chapter Three is the Conclusion of the analysis. The thesis ends with the
Bibliography and the Appendices, which include the biography of the author and the
synopsis of the novel.

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CHAPTER THREE

CONCLUSION
After reading the novel and discussing the portrayal of the major characters in
The House of The Lord by Barry Dickins, I find that Barry Dickins brings the issues
about perception of role model and maturity. A role model is a figure who is expected
to have high-quality traits, such as physically good, having good attitude and
behavior that people adore. Maturity here explains how the two major characters
respond to their life experience.
The two major characters in the novel have their own figure of role model.
Bertie Warble, one of the major characters who narrates the story, has a perception
that a role model should be perfect. He rejects Keith and Doug Hurdle, his church
members, to be his role models because they have flaws. They are conceited and
slightly persons. He also used to make his father and his teachers his role model.
When they show their imperfections, again, Bertie searches for other role models but
he never finds the perfect role model because there is no perfect human in this world.

The other major character, Johnny Rigos, also has a priest figure as his role

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model but when he feels disappointed, he learns that his life is not all about
finding a role model and he decides to serve other people by doing good deeds.
Dickins’ description of Bertie’s characteristics are immature, talkative,
dependent, diligent, intelligent, religious, observant and he loves his father. His
characteristics that change are quiet, independent, irreligious, alcoholic and he
hates his father and in the end of the story he becomes mature while his
characteristics that do not change are diligent, intelligent and observant. While
Johnny’s characteristics are described by the author as kind-hearted, naive,
thoughtful, religious and forgiving. After the bad experience, Johnny turns into an
unforgiving person to the priest and he experiences a change in his sexual
orientation while the other characteristics do not change throughout the novel.
Such characteristics are realistic and likely to be found in real life because
the two major characters as different persons will also have different perception
and different response towards life experiences. Bertie as a person who is grown
up as a spoilt child and immature, responds to his traumatic experience in a
negative manner, while Johnny, who is independent and thoughtful, keeps living
his life and still thinks positively.
I find that the author presents Bertie Warble’s character as a round and
dynamic character. At the beginning of the story, Bertie is portrayed as an
immature and dependent person. He always thinks like a child and tries to get
anything that he wants. These characteristics are triggered by his parents who
spoil him. After leaving his home, he becomes an independent person because he
lives alone and he has to take care of himself. His acquaintance with Johnny
makes Bertie find Johnny as another role model. Their meeting has caused some

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changes in Bertie’s characteristics; he becomes more mature in thoughts and
selfless because he does not think about himself anymore. He forgives his father
and asks for an apology from Jane, his fiancée for leaving her during her early
pregnancy period.
The author also presents Johnny Rigos’ character as a round and dynamic
character. The bad experience does not change his character to be a bad person
but helps him to be more mature. He still helps others. Even though he is
imperfect as a human, regarding his sexual orientation, Johnny becomes a role
model for people around him, especially for Bertie.
This novel is interesting to be analysed and the most significant issue here
is the characters themselves. I think the title of this novel, The House of The Lord,
represents the meaning of the church. The church itself is not about the building
but about the community who does religious activity. Bertie finds Johnny as a
church because of Johnny’s good deeds. Bertie even regards him as similar to
Jesus.
Bertie Warble, together with Johnny Rigos as the two major characters
has naïve perception of role models and expects perfection from their role models.
They depend on their role models to lead their life but when they feel
disappointed, their experiences teach them to be more mature. I believe the
author’s purpose of creating such major characters is to show how people always
try to find and get perfection in their life but there is no perfect human in this life
and from that imperfection the readers can gain a better comprehension of life.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

References
Bakwin, Harry, and Ruth Morris Bakwin. Behavior Disorders in Children.
London: W.B. Saunders Company, 1972.
Kenney, William. How to Analyze Fiction. New York: Monarch Press, 1996.

Internet Sources
Auslit Agents. 2007. 10 Sept 2008.


Primary Text
Dickins, Barry. The House of The Lord. New South Wales: Vintage, 1999.

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