16 more than two individuals and can affect many associate individuals and relationship
in some case. Julien 2010:35 says, “In a work of fiction, conflict is the issue to be resolved in the story. It usually occurs between two characters, the protagonist and
the antagonist, or between the protagonist and society or protagonist and himself of herself.”
Once conflict is sharply established and developed in a story, the conflict must end. There must be a crisis and a resolution. This is not like life either, and
although it is so obvious a point, it needs to be insisted on. Order is a major value that literature offers us, and order implies that the subject has been brought to
closure. In life this never quite happens. Even the natural happy endings, marriage and birth, leave domesticity and childbearing to be dealt with; the natural tragic
endings, separation and death, leave trauma and bereavement in their wake. Literature absolves us of these nuisances. Whether or not the lives of the characters
end, the story does, and leaves us with a satisfying sense of completion. This is one reason we enjoy crying or feeling terrified or even nauseated by fiction; we know in
advance that its going to be over, and by contrast with the continual struggle of living, all that ends, ends well.
2.3.1 Basic nature of conflict
Conflict in literature refers to the different drives of the characters or forces involved. Conflict may be internal or external—that is, it may occur within a
characters mind or between a character and exterior forces. Conflict is most visible between
two or
more characters,
usually a
protagonist and
an antagonistenemyvillain, but can occur in many different forms. A character may as
easily find himself or herself in conflict with a natural force, such as an animal or a
Universitas Sumatera Utara
17 weather event, like a hurricane. The literary purpose of conflict is to create tension in
the story, making readers more interested by leaving them uncertain which of the characters or forces will prevail.
There may be multiple points of conflict in a single story, as characters may have more than one desire or may struggle against more than one opposing force.
When a conflict is resolved and the reader discovers which force or character succeeds, it creates a sense of closure. Conflicts may resolve at any point in a story,
particularly where more than one conflict exists, but stories do not always resolve every conflict. If a story ends without resolving the main or major conflicts, it is
said to have an open ending. Open endings, which can serve to ask the reader to consider the conflict more personally, may not satisfy them, but obvious conflict
resolution may also leave readers disappointed in the story.
2.3.2 Classification
The basic types of conflict in fiction have been commonly codified as man against man, man against nature, and man against self. In each case, man is
the universal and refers to women as well. Although frequently cited, these three types of conflict are not universally
accepted. Ayn Rand, for instance, argued that man against nature is not a conflict because nature has no free will and thus can make no choices. Sometimes a fourth
basic conflict is described, man against society. Some of the other types of conflict referenced include man against machine The Terminator, Brave New World,
man against fate Slaughterhouse Five, man against the supernatural The Shining and man against God A Canticle for Leibowitz.
Universitas Sumatera Utara
18
Man against man
Man against man conflict involves stories where characters are against each other. This is an external conflict. The conflict may be direct opposition, as in a
gunfight or a robbery, or it may be a more subtle conflict between the desires of two or more characters, as in a romance or a family epic. This type of conflict is very
common in traditional literature, fairy tales and myths. One example of the man against man conflict is the relationship struggles between the protagonist and the
antagonist stepfather in This Boys Life. Other examples include Dorothys struggles with the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Tom
Sawyers confrontation with Injun Joe in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Man against society
Where man stands against a man-made institution such as slavery or bullying, man against man conflict may shade into man against society. In such
stories, characters are forced to make moral choices or frustrated by social rules in meeting their own goals. The Handmaids Tale and Fahrenheit 451 are examples of
man against society conflicts. So is Charlottes Web, in which the pig Wilbur fights for his survival against a society that raises pigs for food.
Man against nature
Man against nature conflict is an external struggle positioning the hero against an animal or a force of nature, such as a storm or tornado or snow. The man
against nature conflict is central to Ernest Hemingways The Old Man and the Sea, where the protagonist contends against a marlin. It is also common in adventure
stories, including Robinson Crusoe.
Universitas Sumatera Utara
19
Man against self
With man against self conflict, the struggle is internal. This is a conflict that is usually associated with an external conflict. A character must overcome his own
nature or make a choice between two or more paths - good and evil; logic and emotion. A serious example of man against himself is offered by Hubert Selby,
Jr.s 1978 novel Requiem for a Dream, which centers around stories of addiction. Bridget Joness Diary also focuses on internal conflict, as the titular character deals
with her own neuroses and self-doubts.
Universitas Sumatera Utara
20
CHAPTER III METHOD OF RESEARCH
