The Analysis Of The Intrinsic Elements In Kathryn Stockett’s Novel The Help

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THE ANALYSIS OF THE INTRINSIC ELEMENTS IN KATHRYN STOCKETT’S NOVEL THE HELP

A PAPER

SUSI SUSANTI REG. NO. 092202043

DIPLOMA III ENGLISH STUDY PROGRAM FACULTY OF CULTURE STUDY

NORTH SUMATERA UNIVERSITY MEDAN

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Approved by

Supervisor,

NIP. 19510907 197902 2 001 Dra. Syahrar Hanum, DPFE

Submitted to Faculty of Culture Study University of North Sumatera

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for Diploma-III in English Study Program

Approved by

Head of English Diploma Study Program,

NIP. 19521126198112 1 001 Dr. Matius C.A. Sembiring, M.A.

Approved by the Diploma-III of English Study Program Faculty of Letters, University of North Sumatera

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Accepted by the Board of Examiner in partial of the requirements for the D-III Examination of the Diploma-III of English Study Program, Faculty of Culture Study, University of North Sumatera.

The examination is held on June 2012

Faculty of Culture Study, University of North Sumatera

Dean,

NIP. 19511013197603 1 001 Dr. Syahron Lubis, M.A.

Board of Examiners : Signature

1. Dr. Matius C.A. Sembiring, M.A. (Head of ESP) _________

2. Dra. Syahrar Hanum, DPFE ( Supervisor) _________

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AUTHOR’S DECLARATION

I am, SUSI SUSANTI, declare that I am the sole of author of this paper. Except where reference is made in the text of this paper, this paper contains no material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from a paper by which I have qualified for or awarded another degree.

No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the main text of this paper. This paper has not been submitted for the award of another degree in any tertiary education.

Signed : ...

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COPYRIGHT DECLARATION

Name : SUSI SUSANTI

Title of paper : The Analysis of the Intrinsic Elements in Kathryn Stockett’s Novel The Help

Qualification : D-III/ Ahli Madya

Study Program : English

I am willing that my paper should be available for reproduction at the discretion of the Libertarian of the Diploma III English Study Program Faculty of Culture USU on the understanding that users are made aware of their obligation under law of the Republic of Indonesia.

Signed : ………

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ABSTRACT

Literature is a form of art that depict human life. Novel is the name of a literary kind. In the novel, there are elements that build the art―they are the intrinsic elements. Intrinsic elements have a very important role in a novel. A novel can be said to be good if it consists of elements that build up in it and one of them is the intrinsic elements. The writer is interesting to discuss more about the intrinsic elements are contained in a novel. Therefore, the author decides to select a title “The Analysis of the Intrinsic Elements in Kathryn Stockett’s Novel The Help”. The writer will analyze the whole of the intrinsic elements. These elements include the theme, the characterization, the plot, the point of view, the style, and the settings. The writer really does hope this paper can be useful for the readers, particularly an understanding of the intrinsic elements are contained in a novel. Finally the writer would like to conclude here that this novel has all of the elements above. The theme of this novel is about racism in the era of civil rights around the 60’s who acted by the three main characters and several prominent supporters. The plot in this novel is flashback. The Help uses the third point of view (omniscient). The style that use in this novel is African American English and African American Vernacular. This novel sets in Jackson, Mississippi, August 1962 – late 1964.

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ABSTRAK

Sastra merupakan suatu bentuk karya seni yang menggambarkan kehidupan manusia. Novel adalah salah satu dari karya seni tersebut. Di dalam novel, terdapat unsur-unsur yang membangun karya seni tersebut-diantaranya adalah unsur intrinsik. Unsur intrinsik memiliki peranan yang sangat penting di dalam sebuah novel. Sebuah novel dapat dikatakan bagus apabila ia terdiri dari unsur-unsur yang membangun di dalamnya dan salah satunya adalah unsur-unsur intrinsik tersebut. Penulis merasa tertarik untuk membahas lebih jauh mengenai unsur intrinsik yang terdapat di dalam sebuah novel. Oleh karena itu, penulis memutuskan untuk memilih judul “The Analysis of the Intrinsic Elements in Kathryn Stockett’s Novel The Help”. Penulis akan menganalisis keseluruhan dari unsur intrinsik tersebut. Unsur-unsur tersebut diantaranya adalah tema, karakter, plot (alur), sudut pandang, gaya bahasa, dan latar. Penulis akan menjelaskan secara terperinci mengenai unsur-unsur tersebut di atas tadi. Penulis sangat mengharapkan agar kertas karya ini dapat bermanfaat bagi para pembaca, khususnya pemahaman mengenai unsur intrinsik yang terdapat di dalam sebuah novel. Akhirnya penulis ingin menyimpulkan disini bahwa Novel The Help karya Kathryn Stockett memiliki keseluruhan dari unsur-unsur di atas tadi―mulai dari tema, karakter, plot (alur),sudut pandang, gaya bahasa, hingga latar. Tema dari novel ini adalah mengenai rasisme di era civil right sekitar tahun 60an yang diperankan oleh tiga orang tokoh utama dan beberapa tokoh pendukung di dalamnya. Alur ceritanya adalah alur flashback. The Help menggunakan sudut pandang orang ketiga (omniscient). Gaya bahasa yang digunakan dalam novel ini adalah African American English and African American Vernacular. Novel ini berlatar di Jackson, Mississippi, Agustus 1962-late 1964.

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ACKNOWLEGMENTS

Firstly, the writer would like to give thanks to my savior, Jesus Christ for His amazing blessing and mercy in my life. The writer say thank You, Lord for this paper that you are still trust to me so that I can complete this paper. The writer also say thank You, Lord for health, strength, wisdom, and everything that you allow happened in my life. The writer knows that the writer is nothing without You.

Secondly, the writer would like to give deep gratitude to Dr. Syahron Lubis, M.A., as the Dean of the Faculty Culture Study, University of North Sumatera and Dr. Matius C.A. Sembiring, M.A. as the Head of English Diploma Study Program, who give the writer directions and instructions wisely so that I can complete this paper.

Thirdly, the writer would like to express thanks to Dra. Syahyar Hanum, DPFE as the supervisor for the precious learning and so many advice that she gave to me and Drs. Chairul Husni, M.Ed. TESOL as the reader of this paper for his precision in correct my paper.

Fourth, the writer would like to give thanks to my big family in Pekanbaru (my parents: J. Simanjuntak (+) and S. Panjaitan, my brothers: Parlindungan Simanjuntak and Tolopan Ferdinand Simanjuntak, and my sisters: Retta Uli Simanjuntak as my oldest sister, Marlina Simanjuntak and Bintang Simanjuntak as my older sister ) for their support, care, and great love to me. I would like to present this paper especially to my beloved father who passed away two years

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ago. I know that you will be proud if you see my graduation later. Unfortunately, you are gone before see my graduation. Dad, this paper is yours.

Fifth, the writer would like to give thanks to my friends at campus in Class A (Irma, Siti, Fitry, Julia, Ismi, Zahra, and friends) and Class B (Aina and friends) that I cannot mention it one by one. Thank you guys for your support in complete this paper. The writer also would like to give thanks to my dear younger brother, ‘Aneh’. Thank you dear for your meaningful support and hear my story every day.

The last, the writer would like thanks to people around me that always support me in finishing this paper. I am really apologized because I cannot mention you one by one in this paper. But, my special thanks which I would give to my big family at Marakas 41 (Sista Rotua, Sista Putri, Sista Tora, Little Nova, and Erpina Sitepu). Thank you for your support to me, sists.

Finally, the writer will accept the suggestions and critics that build her up from the readers because the writer knows that this paper is not perfect. Thanks to all of the readers who read and appreciate this paper.

Medan, Wednesday, June 27th, 2012

The writer,

Reg. No : 092202043 Susi Susanti

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

AUTHOR’S DECLARATION ... i

COPYRIGHT DECLARATION ... ii

ABSTRACT ... iii

ABSTRAK ... iv

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ... v

TABLE OF CONTENTS ... vii

1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the Study ... 1

1.2 Problems of the Study ... 3

1.3 Scopes of the Study ... 3

1.4 Reasons for Choosing the Topic ... 4

1.5 The Purpose of Writing ... 4

2. REVIEW AND RELATED OF LITERATURE 2.1 What is Novel? 5 2.2 The Intrinsic Elements 2.2.1 The Theme... 11

2.2.2 The Characterization ... 13

2.2.3 The Plot ... 18

2.2.4 The Point of View ... 22

2.2.5 The Style ... 31

2.2.6 The Settings ... 36

3 THE ANALYSIS OF THE INTRINSIC ELEMENTS IN KATHRYN STOCKETT’S NOVEL THE HELP 3.1 ... The Theme 40 3.2 ... The Characterization 44 3.3 The Plot 55 3.4 The Point of View 56 3.5 The Style 58 3.6 The Settings ... 59

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4. CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS

4.1 ... Conc

lusions ... 73

4.2 Suggestions... 76

REFERENCES ... 77

APPENDICES ... 78

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR ... 78

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ABSTRACT

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ABSTRAK

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1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Roberts (1993:1) says, “Literature refers to compositions that tell stories, dramatize situations, express emotions, and analyze and advocate ideas. Before the invention of writing, literary works were necessarily spoken or sung, and were retained only as long as living people performed them.” Taylor (1981:1) says, “Literature, like other arts, is essentially an imaginative act, that is, an act of the writer’s imagination in selecting, ordering and interpreting life-experience.” Literature may be classified into four categories or genres : (1) poetry, (2 prose fiction), (3) drama, (4) nonfiction prose. Usually the first three are classed as imaginative literature. Prose fiction, or narrative fiction, includes myths, parables, romances, novels, and short stories.

Watson (1979:xi) says, “Novel is the name of a literary kind, and there is a story to tell about how, over the centuries, its substanced has widened and its conventions changed.” Watson (1979:158) says, “Novel is a fictional prose narrative of length, usually with a claim to describe the real.” Novel may be classified into two categories : (1) intrinsic elements, (2) extrinsic elements. Nurgiyantoro (2003:23) says, “Unsur intrinsik sebuah novel adalah unsur-unsur yang (secara langsung) turut serta membangun cerita.” It means that the intrinsic elements in a novel are the elements that directly build the story. The intrinsic

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elements of a novel are theme, characterization, plot, point of view, style, and settings. Nurgiyantoro (2003:23) says, “Unsur ekstrinsik adalah adalah unsur-unsur yang berada di luar karya sastra itu, tetapi secara tidak langsung mempengaruhi bangunan atau sistem organisme karya sastra.” It means that the extrinsic elements in a novel are the elements that indirectly build the story. The extrinsic elements are biography of the author, psychology (psycohology of the author, psychology of the readers, and the application of psychological principles in the works), environmental of the author such as economy, politics, and social, and so on.

The writer will give “The Analysis of the Intrinsic Elements in Kathryn Stockett’s Novel The Help”. These are the theme, the characterization, the plot, the point of view, the style, and the settings. Yelland (1983:189) says, “The theme is the central thought in a literary work.” The characterization is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art such as a novel, play, or film. The plot is a literary term defined as the events that make up the story, particularly as they relate to one another in a pattern, in a sequence, through cause and effect, or by coincidence. One is generally interested in how well this pattern of events accomplishes some artistic or emotional effect. The point of view is a device for in narrator to indicate the position from which an action is observed and narrated. An author of a fiction must choose a point of view from which he will narrate his story. The style is the manner, that is the codified gestures, in which the author tells the story. In fiction, setting includes the time, location, and everything in which a story takes place, and initiates the main backdrop and mood for a story.

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The elements of setting may include culture, historical period, geography, and hour. Along with the theme, the characterization, the plot, the point of view, and the style, the settings is considered one of the fundamental components of fiction. All of them are essentially in a novel. A novel cannot be writing without the intrinsic elements.

In this paper, the writer chooses this topic because she is interested in the story of this novel. This novel tells three women during the formative years of the civil rights movement in Mississippi, where it was dangerous to push the boundaries of segregation for both blacks and whites – though for very different reasons. The Help tells a historical story about women, a story that will make you laugh, and probably cry, and it will likely leave you a better person for having seen it. In pitch-perfect kiss, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women-mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends-view one another. A deeply moving novel filled with poignancy, humor, and hope. The Help is a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don’t. 1.2 The Problem

The problem is to find out the intrinsic elements in Kathryn Stockett’s Novel The Help.

1.3 Scope of the Study

This study is focused on the analysis of the intrinsic elements : the theme, the characterization, the plot, the point of view, the style, and the settings.

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The writer chooses this topic because she is interested in the story of this novel which tells three women during the formative years of the civil rights movement in Mississippi, where it was dangerous to push the boundaries of segregation for both blacks and whites – though for very different reasons. 1.5 Purpose of the Study

• To share the information about the intrinsic elements in a novel : the theme, the characterization, the plot, the point of view, the style, and the settings.

• To give some contribution to the study of literature for readers through this paper.

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2. REVIEW AND RELATED OF LITERATURE 2.1 What is Novel?

Watson (1979:158) says, “Novel is a fictional prose narrative of length, usually with a claim to describe the real.” The novel can present something more and more involved the more complex issues. It includes various elements that build the novel's story.

The novel is a literary prose shaped like a short story. As well as short stories, novels generally also tell all events / problems that occur in human life. That distinguish between the novel of the short story is the scope of the problem presented. The novel has a broader scope, not only focused on one incident / problem alone. Even allowed to reveal the whole episode a novel way of life story characters. The problems that had not had a strong enough connection with the characters or the story can be included in the novel. The purpose of the problem that is not too strong to do with character or subject matter that is the problem or incident that if the issue / incident are not included in this story will not affect / interrupt the cohesiveness of the story. A side issue is commonly referred to as degrees. By understanding the above can be concluded that the novel is a prose literary works that tell the human life episodes / characters that give freedom to the emergence of degrees or not should always be centered on the main story. With the degrees this novel is generally divided into fragments. From that sense we can know that a novel does not have a specific reference in terms of quantity

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of writing. The novel does generally have a long story but did not rule out the existence of a short novel.

The novel itself is based on the content, objectives and purpose of the author can be divided into several types, namely:

A. Tendentious Novel

Novels of this type often called a novel aim. It was said, because in this novel type of the intended purpose the author deeply felt, for example, to educate, criticize the mistakes that often happened, etc. Example: SALAH ASUHAN, a novel written by Abdul Muis.

B. Historical Novel

Novels of this type have to do with historical events. Characters and background story is taken from historical events. Yet the novel remains a novel, although the figures and the background contained in the novel species is related to historical events but the novel cannot be equated with the records / documentation of history. That's because the literature is made on the imagination of the author who certainly mixed with the attitude and Views of author's life. Example: Untung Surapati, a novel written by Abdul Muis.

C. Novel Custom

Traditional novel is a novel whose content is related to indigenous issues. The characters in novels of this type as if only the media to question the

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traditional author of concern to the author. Novels included in this type such as Sitti Nurbaya, a novel written by Marah Rusli.

D. Children's Novel

It is a kind of novel that tells the lives of children. Because its targets children's novel of this type in workmanship adjust the power of thought the kids too, with simple language. Examples of this type such as a novel Si Dul Anak Betawi written by Aman Dt. Majoindo. Characters in the novels of this type do not have children.

E. Political Novel

It is the background of the novel's political problems. The novel is commonly used as a means to fight for the author's political ideas or as a means of fighting spirit burner community in achieving its political ideals.

F. Psychological Novel

In this novel the author's attention has been spilled on the mental development of the characters. Nature and human nature in general, the upheavals of mind, human actions and character are essentially the most highlighted authors. Example: a novel Belenggu, Armyn Pane works.

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The novel is said to include in this type if the contents of the novel is much more to talk about relationships between men and women. Usually this is only a novel type of reading entertainment only and cultivation of the problem is not too deep. Pop novels of today many developing normally included in this type. Example: a novel Karmila works Marga T.

Novel Intrinsic Elements

Intrinsic elements are the elements that build up in the literary works of literature itself. The purpose of the elements those are included in the literary work itself. In general, the intrinsic elements of literary works including novels include theme, plot, characterizations, setting, tension, the atmosphere, the central narrative, and style.

A. Theme

The theme is the basic story that dominated the subject matter of a literary work (Suharianto: 2005). The theme was the starting point in compiling the work of literary authors. This theme is to be conveyed and solved by the author through his story. The theme became the basis of development of the whole story, the theme was nature animates all parts of the story from beginning to end.

B. Storyline plot or plots

It can be defined as the way the author to establish the events in a row by taking into account the law of cause and effect so it is a unitary piece, round, and

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intact (Suharianto: 2005). The flow of the story consists of five parts: exposition / introduction, wiring, climbing, peak or climax, and denouement.

C. Characterizations

Literature is a story which tells the story of human life with all the miscellaneous life. With that understanding there would have been required as a manifestation of the human figure and his life to be told. The characters in this story will do its job to be "a source story". Figure is a living thing (humans) who have physical and temperament.

Characterizations

Characterizations often called disposition, which is depiction of the characters. This depiction includes a state of physical and spiritual leaders. The situation is a form of birth jazzed figures and who the characters, circumstances of birth includes live view of the characters, character attitudes, beliefs, customs, etc.

D. Background

All events that occur in human life certainly will not escape from the bondage of space and time. So also in the short story or novel in which it is the telling of human life and all problems. The scene and will continue to establish the timing behavior of the life of every character in the story. Thus it can be interpreted that the background is a place and time of occurrence or the story. Background or setting is often called in literature prose (short stories and novels) not only serves as a pointer place and time of the story. Background in literary prose is also used as a place of extraction of these values to express the author of

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the story. According Nurgiyantoro (2004:227-233), background can be divided into three main elements, namely setting the place, time setting, social setting.

E. Voltage

Suspense or tension is part of the story that makes the reader excited to continue reading the story. Desire arose because the author seemed promising the reader will find something that readers expect. While foreshadowing is part of the story that gives an idea of something that will happen. So, voltage is inseparable, in other words the presence voltage it created tension.

F. Atmosphere

As well as the time and place in a story, the atmosphere is also a thing that always accompany an event. The atmosphere can be defined as any experienced event experienced by a character in a story. For example a sad atmosphere, fun, and so forth.

G. Center Narration

The story is a picture that displays the life of character. Positioning of characters to display the author of stories about the life of the characters in the story telling is what is called the center (point of view) or sometimes also called the point of view. In general, the central narrative is categorized into 4 types, ie author as the main story, the author come into play but not as a main character, the author of all present, and author of observers.

H. Style of Language

Language in literary prose (short stories and novels) has a dual function as a transmitter of the intention of the author and as a transmitter of feelings. Author in

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making works of literature not only a wish to inform readers of what is experienced by the characters, but the authors also intend to invite the reader to feel what is experienced by the characters in the story. Because desire is a style that is used in literature are often different from the style of language in everyday life. In other words the style of language can be interpreted as a way (speaking) taken by the writer to convey thoughts or intentions.

2.2 The Intrinsic Elements 2.2.1 The Theme

Yelland (1983:189) says, “The theme is the central thought in a literary work.” It means that the theme is the central idea in a literary work. In a novel, the theme is the main idea which developed in a plot. All of almost ideas in our live can be theme, even though in practically the theme that we will find like ambitious, loyalty, jealousy, frustration, patience, and so on.

To determine the main meaning in a novel, we need a clear explanation about the main meaning or theme, itself. Hartoko & Rahmanto (1986:142) says, “Tema merupakan gagasan dasar umum yang menopang sebuah karya sastra dan yang terkandung di dalam teks sebagai struktur semantis dan yang menyangkut persamaan-persamaan atau perbedaan-perbedaan.” The theme of the filtered motifs contained in the relevant literature that determines the presence of the events, conflicts, and situations. Theme in many ways is "binding" the presence or absence of event-specific conflict situations, including various other intrinsic elements, because these things must be to support the clarity of the theme to be

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conveyed. Themes became the basis for developing the whole story, so he is animating the whole story.

To find the theme of a fiction, we must conclude from the whole of the story in a novel. It was not easy to find the theme in a novel. But, we don’t need worried about it because now we have the solution for it. Frederick (1967:323) says, “Remember that theme hunting is possibly the most enjoyable and rewarding ; part of short story, but it is also the most dangerous, and the most open to wild error. If you want to find meaning, you must put yourself in the writer’s hands and efface part of yourself. Otherwise every story, regrettably, will sound exactly like you.”

In contemporary literary studies, a theme is the central topic, subject, or concept the author is trying to point out, not to be confused with whatever message, moral, or commentary it may send or be interpreted as sending regarding said concept (i.e., its inferred "thesis"). While the term "theme" was for a period used to reference "message" or "moral," literary critics now rarely employ it in this fashion, namely due to the confusion it causes regarding the common denotation of theme: "the subject of discourse, discussion, conversation, meditation, or composition; a topic." One historic problem with the previous usage was that readers would frequently conflate "subject" and "theme" as similar concepts, a confusion that the new terminology helps prevent in both scholarship and the classroom. Thus, according to recent scholarship and pedagogy, identifying a story's theme—for example, "death"—does not inherently involve identifying the story's thesis or claims about "death's" definitions, properties, values, or significance. Like morals

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or messages, themes often explore historically common or cross-culturally recognizable ideas and are almost always implied rather than stated explicitly. Along with plot, character, setting, and style, theme is considered one of the fundamental components of fiction.

2.2.2 The Characterization

Characterization is the method used by a writer to develop a character. The method includes (1) showing the character's appearance, (2) displaying the character's actions, (3) revealing the character's thoughts, (4) letting the character speak, and (5) getting the reactions of others.

Roberts, Edgar V and Henry E. Jacobs (1987:131) say, “In fiction, a character may be defined as a verbal representation of a human being. Through action, speech, description, and commentary, authors portray characters who are worth caring about, rooting for, and even loving, although there are also characters you may laugh at, dislike, or even hate.”

In some works, especially essay and lyric, the author reveals a certain quality from their own private. In another works, the author tries to position themselves on background of the story and provide the real characters (like in a novel or drama) in a story.

The characters in a good novel are interesting, intriguing, consistent, convincing, complex, and realistic. If the author has created a particularly vivid or individualistic character, then we, as readers, will find

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the character interesting regardless of whether or not we sympathized with him or her. (Reader and Woods, 1987:51)

(= Para tokoh dalam sebuah novel yang baik itu menarik, menimbulkan rasa ingin tahu, konsisten, meyakinkan, kompleks, dan realistis. Bila seorang pengarang telah menciptakan seorang tokoh yang sangat hidup atau berpribadi, maka kita sebagai pembaca, akan menganggap tokoh itu menarik, terlepas dari apakah kita menyukainya atau tidak.)

A character in a novel is not a real human being and has no life outside the literary composition, however well the illusion of reality has been created by the author. Taylor (1981:62) says, “A character is a mere construction of words meant to express an idea or view of experience and must be considered in relation to other features of the composition, such as action and settings, before its full significance can be appreciated.” An author first conceives of a fictional framework, then selects and organizes incidents from the random and shapeless accidental details of life according to an interpretative principle, in order to build up a coherent pattern and express a theme.

In the same way, elements of character must be selected and combined within a coherent mode or convention of presentation: tragic, comic, epic, satirical, romantic, realistic/naturalistic, dialectic or absurdist. Since each mode or convention has a distinct view of human experience, characters are generally created according to the relevant needs of these aspects, views or outlooks. For example, tragedy involves an investigation of desires and motives, and tragic characterization centers on the psychological study of destructive inner conflict and frustration.

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In a novel, characters function to give substance to the fiction. Assessment of the story is a measurement about successful or unsuccessful of the author to fills up the story with characters which described as the real human being in order to the readers can experience their ideas and emotions.

CHARACTER TRAITS

In studying a literary character, begin by determining the character’s outstanding traits. Roberts, Edgar V and Henry E. Jacobs (1987:132) say, “A trait is a quality of mind or habitual mode of behavior, such as never repaying borrowed money, or avoiding eye contact, or always thinking oneself the center of attention.” A trait may be a person’s primary characteristic (not only in fiction, but also in life). The characters may be ambitious or lazy, serene or anxious, aggressive or fearful, thoughtful or inconsiderate, open or secretive, confident or self-doubting, kind or cruel, quiet or noisy, visionary or practical, careful or careless, impartial or biased, straightforward or underhanded, “winners” or “losers,” and so on.

TYPES OF CHARACTERS: ROUND AND FLAT

The British novelist and critic E.M. Forster, in his critical work Aspects of the Novels, calls the two major types “round” and “flat”.

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Roberts, Edgar V and Henry E. Jacobs (1987:133) say, “The basic trait of round characters is that they recognize, change with, or adjust to circumstances. The round character ― profits from experience and undergoes a change or alteration, which may be shown in (1) an action or actions, (2) the realization of new strength and therefore the affirmation of previous decisions, (3) the acceptance of a new condition, or (4) the discovery of unrecognized truths.” It means that the round character is a character who shows many different faces; often presented in depth and with great detail.

FLAT CHARACTERS

Roberts, Edgar V and Henry E. Jacobs (1987:134) say, “In contrast, flat characters do not grow. They remain the same because they may be stupid or insensitive or lacking in knowledge or insight. They end where they begin and are static, not dynamic. Static character means a character who does not change in any significant way during the course of the work. Dynamic character means a character who changes in some significant way during the course of the work. They usually highlight the development of the round characters. Usually, flat characters are minor (e.g., relatives, acquaintances, functionaries), although not all minor characters are necessarily flat.”

HOW IS CHARACTER DISCLOSED IN FICTION? There are five ways to present the characters in fiction: A. Actions.

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What characters do is our best way to understand what they are. For example, walking in the woods is recreation for most people, and it shows little about their characters.

As with ordinary human beings, fictional characters do not necessarily understand how they may be changing or why they do the things they do. Nevertheless, their actions express their characters.

Actions may also signal qualities such as naiveté, weakness, deceit, a scheming personality, strong inner conflicts, or a realization or growth of some sort.

B. Descriptions, both personal and environmental.

Appearance and environment reveal much about a character’s social and economic status, of course, but they also tell us more about character traits.

C. Dramatic statements and thoughts.

Although the speeches of most characters are functional ― essential to keep the story moving along ― they provide material from which you can draw conclusions. Often, characters use speech to hide their motives, though we as readers should see through such a ploy.

D. Statements by other characters.

By studying what characters say about each other, you can enhance your understanding of the character being discussed. Ironically, the characters doing the talking often indicate something other than what they intend, perhaps because of prejudice, stupidity, or foolishness.

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What the author, speaking with the authorial voice, says about a character is usually accurate, and the authorial voice can be accepted factually. However, when the authorial voice interprets actions and characteristics, the author himself or herself assumes the role of a reader or critic, and any opinions may be questioned.

As you read literature, there are two other important terms to keep in mind for describing people: protagonist and antagonist. The protagonist is the major character with whom we generally sympathize. The antagonist is the character with whom the protagonist is in conflict, generally not a sympathetic character. 2.2.3 The Plot

Plot is a literary term defined as the events that makes up the story, particularly as they relate to one another in a pattern, in a sequence, through cause and effect, or by coincidence. One is generally interested in how well this pattern of events accomplishes some artistic or emotional effect.

Stanford (2003:30) says, “Plot is the sequence of events and actions in a literary work.” Most readers begin by describing external actions, those that, through the writer’s description, we can see and hear.

In a well-done story, all the actions or incidents, speeches, thoughts, and observations are linked together to make up an entirety, sometimes called an organic unity. The essence of this unity is the development and resolution of a conflict―or conflicts―in which the protagonist, or central character is engaged. The pattern in which the protagonist meets and resolves the conflict is called the plot, which has been compared to the story’s map, scheme, or blueprint. The plot is based on the interactions of causes and effects as they develop sequentially or chronologically. That is, the story’s actions follow one another in time as the protagonist meets and tries to overcome the forces of opposition. Often the protagonist’s struggle is directed against another character―an antagonist. The struggle may occur

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between the protagonist and opposing groups, forces, ideas, and choices―all of which make up a collective antagonist. The conflict may be carried out wherever human beings spend their lives, such as a kitchen, a bedroom, a restaurant, a town square, a farm, an estate, a workshop, or a battlefield. The conflict may also take place internally, within the mind of the protagonist. (Robert, 1965:52)

Plot consists of four parts, namely: a. Choice of events strung together by time. b. Events that are interesting.

c. Events which naturally leads to events that are equally interesting. d. Events that indicate the reasons and consequences.

Total unity of the four parts is what we usually call a plot. Broadly speaking, there are three main elements of plot: event - the reason (cause and effect) - a result.

We can describe the plot in two ways: (1) in terms of the dominant human activity, which establish or give rise to self-motivated readers, or (2) in a way more technical. In the first way we can arrange the plot (a) in the surrounding conflict, (b) around a mystery; (c) surrounding the search or pursuit; (d) round trip, or the last (e) around the test.

A novel often has the aim that is coherent and unified, and it can be achieved by the preparation of such a dominant element that has been discussed on the types plot above.

More technical classification plot will lead us to encounter terms such as "picaresque" or "episodic", "well-made" (traditional realist plot of the nineteenth

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century), and "multiple" (many novels have more than one plot line, sometimes interconnected and sometimes in cases like this, we must choose the main plot and sub-sub plot for analytical purposes).

The author communicates something through his characters. These figures carry out their respective roles so that the resulting flow is called a conflict situation. According to Rosenthal (1958:134) there are three kinds of conflict are:

a. between man and the forces of nature or society; b. between one individual and another individual;

c. between the forces struggling within a single individual.

Plot and story carry out the functions which differ from one novel to another novel. The story is never static because of the development of the story should be no change.

Structure

Structure is the pattern formed by the events and actions in a literary work. Robert (1965:53) says, “Structure refers to the way a plot is assembled. Chronologically, all stories are similar because they all move from beginning to end in accord with the time it takes for causes to produce effects. But authors choose many different ways to develop their plots.” The sequence of external and internal actions and events in a literary work creates its structure, the pattern that follow. Traditional elements of structure are introduction, complications, climax, and conclusion.

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a. Introduction is the beginning of a work, which usually suggest the setting (time and place) and shows one or more of the main characters.

b. Complication is events or actions that establish the conflict in a literary work.

c. Climax is the turning point, often signified by a character’s making a significant decision or taking action to resolve a conflict.

d. Conclusion is the ending of a work, which often shows the effects of the climactic action or decision.

Conflict

As you read a literary work and think about the structure of the plot ― and particularly as you focus on the complications and climax ― keep in mind that nearly all fiction and drama, focus on a conflict, a struggle between internal and external forces in a literary work.

In addition to conflicts inside the mind, literary works may focus on conflicts between individuals, between an individual and a social force (a community, school, church, workplace), and between an individual and a natural force (disease, fire, flood, cold, famine). It’s important to note that conflicts do not necessarily belong in just one category.

Whatever the nature of the conflict, it often forces characters to make a decision: to act or not to act, to behave according to a personal moral code or an external moral code, to compromise or to refuse to compromise, to grow and change or to remain more or less the same. The point at which characters make these choices is usually the climactic moment of the story, poem, or play. The effects or

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implications of this choice usually represent the conclusion of the literary work. (Stanford, 2003:29)

Irony of Situation

The actions and events in a work may generate a sense of irony. Stanford (2003:29) says, “Irony of situation is a discrepancy between what is said and what is done or between what is expected and what actually happens.” It also occurs when a character expects one thing to happen and instead something else happens.

2.2.4 The Point of View

One of the most important ways in which writers knit their stories together, and also an important way in which they try to interest and engage readers, is the careful control of point of view. Point of view is the voice of the story, the speaker who does the narrating. It is the way the reality of a story is made to seem authentic. It may be regarded as the story’s focus, the angle of vision from which things are not only seen and reported but also judged.

A story may be told by a fictions “observer” who tells us what he or she saw, heard, concluded, and thought. This speaker, or narrator ― terms that are interchangeable ― may sometimes seem to be the author speaking directly using an authorial voice, but just as often the speaker is an independent character ― a persona with characteristics that separate him or her from the author. Sometimes the narrator is a participant in the story. stories told in these ways have first-person points of view, for the speaker uses the “I” first-personal pronoun in referring to his or her position as an observer or commentator.

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The author important point of view is the third person. The third-person point of view may be (1) limited, with the focus being on one particular character and what he or she does, says, hears, thinks, and otherwise experiences, (2) omniscient, with the possibility that the thoughts and behaviors of all the character are open and fully known by the speaker, and (3) dramatic, or objective, in which the story is confined only to the reporting of actions and speeches, with no commentary and no revelation of the thoughts of any of the characters unless the characters themselves make these revelations dramatically.

Point of view is one of the many ways in which authors make fiction vital. By controlling point of view, an author helps us make reasonable inferences about the story’s actions. Authors use point of view to raise some of the same questions in their fiction that perplex us in life. We need to evaluate what fictional narrators as well as real people tell us, for what they say is affected by their limitations, attitudes, opinions, and degree of candidness. For readers, the perception of a fictional point of view can be as complex as life itself, and it may be as difficult ― in fiction as in life ― to evaluate our sources of information.

Point of View refers to the position and stance of the voice, or speaker, that authors adopt for their works. It supposes a living narrator or persona who tells stories, presents arguments, or expresses attitudes such as love, anger, or excitement. Practically, point of view involves the actual physical location of this speaker and his or her position to see and record the main actions and ideas. More abstractly and psychologically, point of view may be considered as the centralizing or guiding intelligence in a work ― the mind that filters the fictional

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experience and presents only the most important details to create the maximum possible impact. It may also be considered as a way of seeing, the perspective into which the work of art is cast.

Bear in mind that authors, like painters, try not only to make their works vital and interesting, but also to bring their presentations alive. The situation is like that of actors performing a play: The actors are always themselves, but in their roles they impersonate the characters they act, and temporarily become them.

Authors, too, impersonate characters who do the talking, with the difference that authors also create these impersonations.

CONDITIONS THAT AFFECT POINT OF VIEW

Point of view depends on two major factors. First is the situation of the narrator as an observer. How much is she or her privileged to know? How accurate and complete is his or her observation? What are the narrator’s particular qualifications or limitations to be an observer or commentator? Second is the narrator’s closeness, distance, and involvement in the actions. From what position, both physical and psychological, does the narrator observe the action? Are the narrator’s words colored by any particular interest or direct involvement in the action itself or in the outcome? Does the narrator seem to have any persuasive purpose, beyond serving as the recorder or observer? In a story, the author develops point of view in light of these same considerations.

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In the various works you read you will encounter a wide variety of points of view. To begin your analysis, first determine the work’s grammatical voice. Then you should study the ways in which the subject, characterization, dialogue, and form interact with the point of view.

First-Person Point of View

If the voice of the work is an “I” the author is using the first-person point of view ― the impersonation of a fictional narrator or speaker.

Of all the points of view, the first person is potentially the most independent of the author, for such a speaker is often given a unique identity, with name, job, and economic and social positions. Quite often, however, the author may create a relatively neutral, uninvolved narrator who still uses the first person voice.

First-person speakers might reports events as though they have acquired their knowledge in a number of ways:

What they have done, said, heard, and thought (firsthand experience).

What they have observed others do and say (firsthand witness).

What others have told them (second-hand testimony and hearsay).

What they are able to reconstruct from the information they might have been able to find (hypothetical or imaginative information).

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What they are able to imagine a character or characters might do or think, given the situation.

When you encounter a first-person narrative, determine the narrator’s position and ability, prejudices or self-interest, and judgement of their readers or listeners. When they describe their own experiences, they have great authority and sometimes great power. Whatever their involvement, however, they are to be seen as one of the means by which authors create an authentic, life-like aura around their stories.

Second-Person Point of View

The second-person point of view, the least common of the points of view, offers the writer two major possibilities. In the first, a narrator tells a present and involved listener what he or she has done and said at a past time. The actions might be a simple retelling of events, as when a parent tells a child about an action of the child during infancy, or a doctor tells a patient with amnesia about events before the causative injury. The actions might also be subject to dispute and interpretation, as when a prosecuting attorney describes a crime for which a defendant is on trial, or a spouse lists grievances against an alienated spouse in a custody or divorce case.

The second possibility is more complex. Some narrators seem to be addressing a “you” but are instead referring mainly to themselves, and to listeners only tangentially, in preference to an “I”.

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In ad dition, some n arrators follow the u sag e ― common in colloq uial speech ― of the indefinite “you.” In such a narration, speakers use “you” to refer not to a specific reader or listener bur rather to anyone at all ― in this way avoiding the more formal use of words like “one,” “a person,” or “people.” (incidentally, the selection of “you” is non-gender specific, because it eliminates the need for the pronouns “he,” “she,” “he or she,” and the like.)

Third-Person Point of View

If events in the work are described in the third person (he, she, it, they), the author is using the third-person point of view. It is not always easy to characterize the voice in this point of view. Sometimes the speaker may use an “I” and be seemingly identical with the author, but at other times the author may create a distinct authorial voice. There are three variants of the third-person point of view: dramatic or objective, omniscient, and limited omniscient.

DRAMATIC or OBJECTIVE

The most direct presentation of action and dialogue is the dramatic or objective point of view (also called third-person objective). It is the basic method of rendering action and speech which all the points of view share. The narrator of the dramatic point of view is an unidentified speaker who reports things in a way that is analogous to a hovering or tracking motion-picture camera, or to what some critics have called “a fly on the wall (or tree).” Somehow, the narrato r is always on the sp ot ― with in ro oms, forests, v illag e sq uares, an d

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moving vehicles, or even in outer space ― to tell us what is happening and what is being sad.

The dramatic presentation is limited only to what is said and what happens. There is no attempt to draw conclusions or make interpretations, because the presupposition underlying the dramatic point of view is that readers, like a jury, can form their own interpretations if they are given the right evidence.

OMNISCIENT

The third-person point of view is omniscient (all-knowing) when the speaker not only presents action and dialogue, but also is able to report what goes on in the minds of the characters. The real world does not permit us to know absolutely what other people are thinking. However, we are always making assumptions about the mental activities of others, and these assumptions are the basis of the omniscient point of view. Authors use it freely but judiciously to explain responses, thoughts, feelings, and plans ― and additional dimension that aids in the development of character.

LIMITED, OR LIMITED OMNISCIENT

More common than the omniscient point of view is the limited third person, or limited omniscient third-person point of view, in which the author confines or limits attention to a major character.

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In some works, an author may shift the point of view in order to sustain interest, create suspense, or put the burden of response entirely upon readers.

Suppose you hear a friend talk angrily about an argument with a roommate and later hear the roommate describe the same disagreement. Primarily, they are being told from two distinct points of view. When you inform your own opinion about the disagreement, you take into account who is recounting the incident. In much the same way, readers think carefully about point of view in literary works.

Author and Speaker

Distinguishing author from speaker in a literary work is essential. Unlike roommates describing an argument, poets, playwrights, writers of fiction, and sometimes even writers of nonfiction are not necessarily telling personal stories. Although authors often do write about incidents or people from their own lives, they write through a created voice that is not necessarily identical to their own.

Narrator

Just as the voice in a poem is called the speaker, the voice that tells a story (in a novel or short fiction) is called the narrator. (Sometimes a play has a narrator. Usually, however, a play unfolds directly from the character’s dialogue, along with the playwright’s stage directions.)

In fiction, the narrator is sometime omniscient (all-knowing), moving freely into the minds of all the characters. An omniscient narrator can report not only what characters look like, what they do, and what they say but also what they

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think. A variation is the limited omniscient narrator, who sees into the mind of only one character. Obviously, when the thoughts of only one character are reported, readers know more about the character than any other and see the events of the story ― as well as the other characters ― through that character’s eyes.

Sometimes the narrator is also a character in the story. in this case, the narrator uses the first person (“I” or “we”). First-person narrators can, of course, report only what is in their own minds or what they see or hear. Omniscient, limited omniscient, and first-person narrators may also make evaluations ― for example, they may state that a character is brave or silly or that an action was wise or foolhardy. As readers, we must consider the source of such judgments. Is the narrator reliable or unreliable? Is there reason to think that the narrator is suppressing information, is lying outright, or is simply incapable of seeing and understanding certain facts? Even if the narrator is reliable, keep in mind that the events are rep o rted from that p erson’s p oint of v iew ― a different v iewp oint might lead to a very different story.

Sometimes the narrator is objective, like a sound camera that reports what it sees and hears.

People in Nonfiction

Nonfiction ― essays, articles, letters, journals, documents ― does not usually have fictional characters, yet in every work of nonfiction there is at least one very important point of view: the author’s. Identifying and understanding the author’s point of view help suggest the work’s meaning.

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2.2.5 The Style

Style is the way an author chooses words; arranges them in lines, sentences, paragraphs, or stanzas; and conveys meaning through the use of imagery, rhythm, rhyme, figurative language, irony, and other devices. Along with plot, character, theme, and setting, style is considered one of the fundamental components of fiction.

Robert (1965:264) says, “Style, derived from the Latin word stilus (a writing instrument), means the way writers assemble words to tell the story, develop the argument, dramatize the play, or compose the poem.” Style is individual, because all authors put words together uniquely to fit the specific conditions in specific works. Different styles convey different outlooks on life. Writers, too, vary manner to suit various purposes. Therefore, in judging style the important criterion is its adaptability. The more appropriately the words fit the situation, the better the style.

DICTION: CHOICE OF WORDS

Robert (1965:47) says, “Diction refers to a writer’s selection of words.” The selection should be accurate and explicit, so that all actions, scenes, and ideas are clear. Stanford (2003:47) says, “Diction (choice of words) helps to establish a writer’s style and tone.” Some writers, for example, choose to use many descriptive words, whereas some use almost none.

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One aspect of word choice is the degree of formality. There are three levels of diction: formal or high, neutral or middle, and informal or low. Formal or high diction consists of standard and also “elegant” words (frequently polysyllabic), the retention of correct word order, and the absence of contractions. The sentence “It is I,” for example, is formal.

Neutral or middle diction is ordinary, everyday, but still standard vocabulary, shunning longer words but using contractions when necessary. The sentence “It’s me” is an example of what many people say in preference to the more formal “It is I” when identifying themselves on the telephone.

Informal or low diction may range from colloquial ― the language of relaxed, common activities ― to the level of substandard or slang expressions. A person speaking to a close friend uses diction that would not be appropriate in public and formal situations, and even in some social situations. Low style language is thus appropriate for dialogue in stories, depending on who is speaking, and for stories told in the first-person point of view as though the speaker is talking directly to sympathetic and relaxed close friends.

Specific-General and Concrete-Abstract Language

Another aspect of language is its degree of explicitness. Specific refers to words that bring to mind images from the real world. General statements refer to broad classes, such as “All people like pets” and “Dogs make good pets.” There is an ascending order of generality from (1) very specific, to (2) less specific, to (3) general, as though the words themselves climb a stairway.

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While specific-general refers to categories, concrete-abstract refers to qua lities of conditions. Concrete words describe qualities of immediate perception. If you say “Ice cream is cold,” the word cold is concrete because it describes a condition that you may feel, just as you may taste ice cream’s sweetness and feel its creamy texture. Abstract words refer to broader, less palpable qualities; they may therefore apply to many separate things. If we describe ice cream as good, we are abstract, because good is far removed from ice cream itself and conveys no descriptive information about it.

Usually, narrative and descriptive writing features specific and concrete words. We can easily visualize passages containing words about specific actions, scenes, and objects, for with more specificity and concreteness there is less ambiguity. Because exactness and vividness are goals of most fiction, specific and concrete words are the writer’s basic tools, and general and abstract words are used only sparingly, if at all. The point is not that abstract and general words have no place at all, but rather that words should be appropriate in the context. Good writers can control style to match their purposes.

Denotation and Connotation

Another way to understand style is to study the author’s management of denotation and connotation. Denotation refers to what a word means, and connotation to what the word suggest. For example, if a person in a social situation behaves in ways that are friendly, warm, polite, or cordial, these words all suggest slight differences in behavior because they have different connotations.

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Similarly, both cat and kitten are close to each other denotatively, but kitten connotes more playfulness and cuteness than cat.

RHETORIC

Robert (1965:268) says, “Rhetoric refers to the art of persuasive writing and, more broadly, to the general art of writing.” There are several ways to study the rhetorical qualities of a passage. Some relatively easy approaches are (a) counting various elements in a passage and (b) analyzing the types of sentences.

Counting

Counting various elements is a quick and easy way to begin the study of style. The number of words in a sentence; the number of verbs, adjectives, prepositions, and adverbs in a passage; or the number of syllables in relation to the total number of words ― can provide valuable clues about the style, especially if the countr is related to other aspects of the passage.

Sentence Types

You can also study the rhetorical qualities of a passage by determining the sorts of the sentences it contains. The basic sentence types: 1. Simple sentences contain one subject and one verb, together with modifiers and complements. They are short, and are most appropriate for actions and declarations. Often they are idiomatic, particularly in dialogue.

Example: It was a banquet in London in honor of one of the two or three conspicuously illustrious English military names of this generation. (Twain)

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2. Compound sentences contain two simple sentences joined by a conjunction (and, but, for, or, nor, or yet) and a comma, or by a semicolon without a conjunction. Frequently, compound sentences are formed by three or four simple sentences joined by conjunctions.

Example: Later he felt the need to talk but no one wanted to hear about it. (Hemingway)

3. Complex sentences contain a main clause and a subordinate clause. Because of the subordinate clause, the complex sentence is suitable for describing cause-and-effect relationships in narrative, and also for analysis and reflection.

Example: It was the Wawanash River, which every spring overflowed its banks. (Munro)

4. Compound-complex sentences contain two main clauses and a subordinate clause. In practice, many authors produce sentences that contain a number of main and subordinate clauses.

Example: Sometimes he was silent for the rest of the evening; and if he spoke, it was usually to hint some criticism of her household arrangements, suggest some change in the domestic administration, to ask, a little nervously, if she didn’t think Joyce’s nursery governess was rather young and flighty, or if she herself always saw to it that Peter ― whose throat was delicate ― was properly wrapped up when he went to school. (Wharton)

Parallelism

To create interest, authors often rely on parallelism, the repetition of the same grammatical form (nouns, verbs, phrases, clauses) to balance expressions, conserve words, and build climaxes. For example, is another sentence by Poe, from “The Black Cat”:

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I grew, day by day, more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings of others.

STYLE IN GENERAL

If a story is good, you probably do not notice its style, for clear expressions and easy reading are marks of a writer’s success. By studying style, however, you can discover and appreciate the author’s achievement. The action described in a particular passage, the relationship of the passage to the entire work, the level of the diction, the vividness of the descriptions ― all these can enter into an assessment of the passage. The more you consider stories for style, the more you will discover your own analytical power.

2.2.6 The Settings

WHAT IS SETTING?

Setting is the natural, manufactured, political, cultural, and temporal environment, including everything that characters know and own. Characters may be either helped or hurt by their surroundings, and they may fight about possessions and goals.

Types of Settings

NATURE AND THE OUTDOORS

The natural world is an obvious location for the action of many narratives and plays. It is therefore important to note natural surroundings (hills, valleys, mountains, meadows, fields, trees, lakes, streams), living creatures (birds, dogs, horses, snakes), and also the conditions in which things happen (sunlight,

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darkness, calm, wind, rain, snow, storm, heat, cold) ― any or all of which may influence character and action.

OBJECTS OF HUMAN MANUFACTURE AND CONSTRUCTION

To reveal or highlight qualities of character, and also to make fiction lifelike, authors include details about buildings and objects of human manufacture and construction. Houses, both interiors and exteriors, are common, as are possessions such as walking sticks, fences, park benches, toys, automobiles, phonograph records, necklaces, hair ribbons, cash registers, and so on. Objects also enter directly into fictional action and character.

CULTURAL CONDITIONS AND ASSUMPTIONS

Just as a physical setting influences characters, so do cultural conditions and assumptions.

THE LITERARY USES OF SETTING

Author use setting to create meaning, just as painters include backgrounds and objects to render ideas.

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To study the setting in a story, discover the important details, and then try to explain their function. Depending on the author’s purpose, the amount of detail may vary.

SETTING AND CREDIBILITY

One of the major purposes of setting in fiction is to lend realism, or verisimilitude to the story. As the description of location and objects becomes particular and detailed, the events of the work become more believable.

SETTING AND CHARACTER

Setting may intersect with character as a means by which authors underscore the importance of place, circumstance, and time on human growth and change.

SETTING AND ORGANIZATION

Authors often use setting to organize the story. Another organizational application of place, time, and object is the framing or enclosing setting, when an author opens with a particular description and then returns to the same setting at the end. In such ways, framing creates a formal completeness, just as it may underscore the author’s ideas about the human condition.

SETTING AND SYMBOL

If the scenes and materials of setting are highlighted or emphasized, they also may be taken as symbols through which the author expresses ideas.

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SETTING AND ATMOSPHERE

Setting also helps to create atmosphere or mood. Most actions require no more than a functional description of setting. Thus, taking a walk in a forest needs just the statement that there are trees. However, if you find descriptions of shapes, light and shadows, animals, wind, and sounds, you may be sure that the author is creating an atmosphere or mood for the action. There are many ways to develop moods. Descriptions of bright colors (red, orange, yellow) may contribute to a mood of happiness. References to smells and sounds further bring the setting to life by asking additional sensory responses from the reader. The setting of a story in a small town or large city, or green or snow-covered fields, or middle-class or lower-class residences, may evoke responses to these places that contribute to the work’s atmosphere.

SETTING AND IRONY

Just as setting may reinforce character and theme, so it may ironically establish expectations that are opposite of what occurs.

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3. THE ANALYSIS OF THE INTRINSIC ELEMENTS IN KATHRYN STOCKETT’S NOVEL THE HELP

3.1The Theme

The Help Theme of Race

Race is not a neutral concept in The Help – 1960s Jackson, Mississippi is one heck of a segregated society. Still firmly stuck in th strict rules, laws, and norms restricting the lives of the black townspeople. These rules also restrict white people who want to cross the color line.

Kathryn Stockett's novel unflinchingly explores the worst of the false stereotypes about black people – that they are lazy, dirty, carry diseases, and are in general less intelligent and less valuable than whites. She shows how these fictions are woven into the fabric of everyday life in Jackson, from the laws to ordinary conversations, and how these beliefs get passed from generation to generation. It shows a deep mistrust of whites on the part of the black community, who have been betrayed by them again and again. It also shows how powerful and

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how dangerous it can be to challenge the stereotypes and dissolve the lines that are meant to separate people from each other on the basis of skin color.

Jim Crow In A Nutshell

By the mid-1880s, a new generation of southern blacks—the first to be born after Emancipation—had begun to come of age. Many had vivid memories of Radical Reconstruction, a period of biracial democracy in which blacks seized which they lived. And even as the radical era came to an end, black citizens continued to vie for greater freedom, often boldly challenging centuries of anti-black traditions.

These "new negroes" troubled the white South, which sought to reclaim the power it had lost after the Civil War. White lawmakers, business-owners, employers, landlords, educators, religious leaders, and politicians enforced new, more stringent patterns of racial etiquette to control black citizens who defied southern racial mores. By the end of the nineteenth century, institution in the American South.

But the story of the "Jim Crow era" is much more than a mere tale of white violence and black subjugation; descriptions of disenfranchisement, anti-black laws and codes, and lynching statistics illuminate only one side of this complex tale. For nearly a century, African-Americans—black leaders as well as average men and women—resisted, rationalized, undermined, accommodated to, migrated

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from, and tested the limits of a system created to control every aspect of their lives.

Race Quotes

Quote #1

"A bill that requires every white home to have a separate bathroom for the colored help. I've even notified the surgeon general of Mississippi to see if he'll endorse the idea. I'll pass." (1.32)

Much of the racism in The Help is institutional. Laws like the one Hilly wants passed, which is shown endorsed by the Surgeon General, legalize discriminatory practices and reinforce racist opinions.

Quote #2

I knew he wasn't married to Constantine's mother, because that was against the law. (5.121)

Skeeter remembers when Constantine told her that her father was a white man. From at least 1630 until the mid 1960s, many states in the U.S. forbade interracial marriages.

Quote #3

I want to yell so loud that Baby Girl can hear me that dirty ain't a color, disease ain't the negro side of town. I want to stop that moment from coming – and it come in every white child's life – when they start to think that colored folks are not as good as whites. (7.80)

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This passage points out that kids are born with racial prejudices, it's something they're taught from the older generation. Aibileen works hard to keep Mae Mobley's mind from being polluted.

Quote #4

"You know colored folks ain't allowed in that library." (11.21)

Before the novel ends, the library in question will open its doors to black people. Finally, a bit of progress.

Quote #5

"These is white rules. I don't know which ones you following and which ones you ain't. (11.81)

We look at each other for a second. "I'm tired of rules," I say. (12.82)

In Aibileen and Skeeter's early interviews, Aibileen is terrified of saying the wrong thing. In her experience, the friendliest white person can snap and change in a moment's notice if the wrong rule is broken.

Quote #6

Hilly raises her voice about three octaves when talking to black people. Elizabeth smiles like she's talking to a child, although certainly not her own. I'm starting to notice things. (12.57)

Hilly and Elizabeth's belief that black people are of lesser intelligence is apparent in their manner of speaking. Skeeter only notices it once she begins hearing the maids' stories.

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Quote #7

[…] I'm proud a what I'm selling. I can't help it. We all telling stories that need to be told. (16.3)

Aibileen believes that revealing her perspective, and encouraging the other maids to reveal theirs, will help dissipate some of the racial tension in the town.

Quote #8

"What am I doing? I must be crazy, giving a white woman the sworn secrets of the colored race to a white lady. […] Feel like I'm talking behind my own back." (17.50)

Minny is afraid that if she tells her secrets, they will only be used against her. Quote #9

Is this really happening? Is a white woman really beating up a white man to save me? Or did he shake my brain pan loose and I'm over there dead on the ground… (24.95)

Quote #10

This one's for the white lady. Tell her we love her like, like she's our own family. (29.107)

Working on Help and going up against Hilly makes Skeeter an outcast in the white community. But it sure earns her acceptance into the black community. Minny begins to understand that Celia Rae Foote is more than just a white lady – she's a tough, big-hearted woman who will do just about anything for Minny. 3.2 The Characterization

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Major Characters

Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan

Skeeter is the 22-year-old privileged daughter of a cotton plantation owner. She returns to Jackson, Mississippi, following her college graduation and finds that her perspective on the division between white Southern households and black maids has changed. Skeeter wants to be a writer, but her mother wants her to be a wife. Skeeter falls for the senator's son but the romance ends when Stuart learns of her civil rights leanings. She approaches an editor in New York City with the idea of writing about black maids in her town and is tentatively given approval. The project begins her transformation from the woman she was raised to be to the independent, brave woman who chooses her own path.

“Miss Skeeter real tall and skinny. Her hair yellow and cut short above her shoulders cause she get the frizz year round. She twenty-three or so, same as Miss Leefolt and the rest of em. She set her pocketbook on the chair, kind a itch around in her clothes a second. She wearing a white lace blouse buttoned up like a nun, flat shoes so I reckon she don’t look any taller. Her blue skirt gaps open in the waist. Miss Skeeter always look like somebody else told her what to wear.” (P.4)

“I turn up the lane that leads to Longleaf, my family’s cotton plantation.” (P.54)

“Surrounding our yard lie ten thousand acres of Daddy’s cotton fileds, the plants green and strong, tall as my waist.” (P.55)

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Skeeter's character represents the theme of alienation throughout the novel. For example, she becomes isolated from the community of southern women in which she was raised. She fails at meeting her mother's expectations for what a proper woman should do and creates conflicts within her group of friends because she questions the way things are done. When Skeeter returns from university, she tries to reenter her old life but finds that the life she left behind now looks different. Her alienation eventually leads to self-awareness of her role within the segregated society, which shocks her and motivates her writing project. The writing project also leads to a friendship with Aibileen that never would have been possible if Skeeter hadn't chosen to break from her own community. Eventually, she must choose between her past and her future. Skeeter decides to leave her community and move to New York City to follow her dream of writing.

“And then I’ll go to New York the next morning.” (P.436) Aibileen

Aibileen is a wise and weathered black maid who has raised seven white children. She works for Elizabeth Leefolt and adores toddler Mae Mobley Leefolt— even though she knows that the loving relationship could hurt them both. Aibileen has changed since her son's death, and she finds that she cannot accept the way things are so easily now. The book she writes with Skeeter and the other maids empowers her to stand up for injustices. She teaches the children she raises that the color of skin does not matter but love and kindness do; but she often feels that the message is countered by the racism in Jackson. Aibileen

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REFERENCES

Aminuddin. 2000. Pengantar Apresiasi Karya Sastra. Jakarta: Sinar Baru Algesindo.

Foster, E.M. 1970. Aspect of the Novel. Arnold: Penguin

Gwyn, R.S.2002. Fiction: A Pocket Anthology Third Edition. New York: Penguin Academics

Hamalian, Leo and Frederick R. Karl. 1967. The Shape of Fiction ‘British and

American Short Stories’. United States of America: Mc Graw-Hill, Inc.

Hudson, William Henry. 1958. An Introduction to the Study of the Literature. London: George G. Harrap & Co., Ltd.

Kenedy, X.J. 1991. Literature an Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and

Drama. London: Harper Collins Publisher.

Kennedy, William. 1966. How to Analyze Fiction. New York: Monarch Press. Nazir, Moh.1983. Metode Penelitian. Jakarta Timur: Ghalia Indonesia.

Nurgiyantoro, Burhan. 1995. Teori Pengkajian Fiksi. Yogyakarta: Gadjah Mada University Press.

Peck, John. 1983. How to Study a Novel. Great Britain: The Camelot Press Ltd. Stanford, Judieth. 2003. Responding to Literature ‘Stories, Poems, Plays, and

Essays’. United States of America: McGraw-Hill Inc.

Stanton, Robert. 1965. An Introduction to Fiction. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

Stockett, Kathryn. 2009. The Help. United States of America: Penguin Books. Taylor, Richard. 1981. Understanding the Elements of Literature. London and

Basingstoke: The Macmillan Press Ltd.

Taylor, Robert. 2007. Teori Fiksi. Yogyakarta: Pustaka Pelajar.

Watson, George. 1979. The Story of the Novel. London and Basingstoke: The Macmillan Press Ltd.

Wellek, Rene and Warren, Austin. 1982. Theory Literary. Hardmond Sworth, Middlesex: England, Penguin Book Ltd.

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APPENDICES Biography of Kathryn Stockett

Born in 1969 in Jackson, Mississippi, writer and editor Kathryn Stockett earned her undergraduate degree in English and creative writing from the University of Alabama, then headed to New York City with plans to work in publishing.

She spent nine years there, working both in magazine publishing and in marketing, before moving to Atlanta, Georgia, where she lives with her husband and daughter. Since moving back to the South, Stockett has been focusing on writing for herself, having shifted her attention to fiction. Her debut novel, The Help, was published by Amy Einhorn Books in 2009, and proved to be one of the hit books of the summer season.

The Help garnered instant attention due to its unusual and rarely addressed

subject matter: the relationship in the South between white families and the domestic servants, who were primarily black, whom they employed in their homes during the 1960s. Having grown up during this period in Mississippi, Stockett was familiar with the dynamic, but nervous about addressing it in a novel, understanding that it was a controversial subject and could result in criticism from both reviewers and from general readers. In an interview with a writer for Bookreporter Web site, Stockett explained her attitude as a child:

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“Growing up in Mississippi, almost every family I knew had a black woman working in their house—cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the white children. That was life in Mississippi. I was young and asszumed that’s how most of America lived.” Only after she moved north did Stockett realize that she had grown up in a microcosm, and that her memories of her childhood were not of a universal experience. She found herself reminiscing with other Southerners she met in New York, trading stories about growing up with black domestic help. Gradually, those memories began to spark an idea and she decided to write a story about her relationship with her family’s maid when she was a child.

Early on in the writing process, Stockett chose to frame her narrative from the point of view of a black maid. It seemed logical, and she had no qualms abouther choice because at the time she did not believe anyone else would ever read the story. Only when she reached the stage of getting friends to look at her work did she start to get nervous about how she had portrayed the characters and whether their voices rang true. Stockett told the interviewer for Bookreporter Web site: “I’ll never know what it really felt like to be in the shoes of those black women who worked in the white homes of the South during the 1960s and I hope that no one thinks I presume to know that.”

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Summary of the Novel

The Help By Kathryn Stockett Book Summary

The Help, Kathryn Stockett's debut novel, tells the story of black maids

working in white Southern homes in the early 1960s in Jackson, Mississippi, and of Miss Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan, a 22-year-old graduate from Ole Miss, who returns to her family's cotton plantation, Longleaf, to find that her beloved maid and nanny, Constantine, has left and no one will tell her why. Skeeter tries to behave as a proper Southern lady: She plays bridge with the young married women; edits the newsletter for the Junior League; and endures her mother's constant advice on how to find a man and start a family. However, Skeeter's real dream is to be a writer, but the only job she can find is with the Jackson Journal writing a housekeeping advice column called "Miss Myrna." Skeeter knows little about housekeeping, so she turns to her friend's maid, Aibileen, for answers and finds a lot more.

Aibileen works tirelessly raising her employer's child (Aibileen's seventh one) and keeps a tidy house, yet none of this distracts her from the recent loss of her own son who died in an accident at work while his white bosses turned away. Two events bring Skeeter and Aibileen even closer: Skeeter is haunted by a copy of Jim Crow laws she found in the library, and she receives a letter from a publisher in New York interested in Skeeter's idea of writing the true stories of domestic servants.

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Skeeter approaches Aibileen with the idea to write narratives from the point of view of 12 black maids. Aibileen reluctantly agrees, but soon finds herself as engrossed in the project as Skeeter. They meet clandestinely in the evenings at Aibileen's house to write the book together as the town's struggles with race heat up all around them. Aibileen brings in her best friend, Minny, a sassy maid who is repeatedly fired for speaking her mind, to tell her story, too. Hearing their stories changes Skeeter as her eyes open to the true prejudices of her upbringing. Aibileen and Minny also develop a friendship and understanding with Skeeter that neither believed possible.

Along the way, Skeeter learns the truth of what happened to her beloved maid, Constantine. Constantine had given birth, out of wedlock, to Lulabelle who turned out to look white even though both parents were black. Neither the black nor the white community would accept Lulabelle, so Constantine gave her up for adoption when she was four years old. When the little girl grew up, she and Constantine were reunited. While Skeeter was away at college, Lulabelle came to visit her mother in Jackson and showed up at a party being held in Skeeter's mother's living room. When Charlotte Phelan discovered who Lulabelle was, she kicked her out and fired Constantine. Constantine had nowhere else to go, so she moved with her daughter to Chicago and an even worse fate. Skeeter never saw Constantine again.

Skeeter's book is set in the fictional town of Niceville and published anonymously. It becomes a national bestseller and, soon, the white women of Jackson begin recognizing themselves in the book's characters. Hilly Holbrook, in

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particular, is set on vengeance due to the details in the book. Hilly and Skeeter grew up best friends, but they now have very different views on race and the future of integration in Mississippi. Hilly, who leads the Junior League and bosses around the other white women in the town, reveals to Stuart, Skeeter's boyfriend, that she found a copy of the Jim Crow laws in Skeeter's purse, which further ostracizes Skeeter from their community.

In the end, it is a secret about Hilly that Minny reveals in Skeeter's book that silences Hilly. The book becomes a powerful force in giving a voice to the black maids and causes the community of Jackson to reconsider the carefully drawn lines between white and black.

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