here, Tess‟ becomes even more confused of her identity. As a result, her role confusion is getting stronger and it leads her to change job again into becoming an
employee in a bakery. When Tess works in the bakery there is no explanation in the text whether mother forces her to steal stuffs again or not, but from the
quotation above it could be interpreted that she is having a conflict inside herself about stealing items. It is also stated that she takes some leftover cream cakes
from the bakery and insist that she does not nick them. It could be concluded that Tess does not dare to refuse her mother‟s order since she is afraid if her mother
abuses her again. She only tries to ref use her mother‟s order indirectly by running
away from the roles she had taken in her working places and keep on changing jobs until there is no reason for her to steal items from her working place.
3. Isolation
The third effect of the abuses on Tess‟ personality development is isolation. Isolation is the dystonic quality of the age of young adulthood. Young
adulthood is the age starting from 19 until 30 years old. In the age of young adulthood, a person undergoes the conflict between intimacy versus isolation.
According to Erikson in Feist and Feist, 2008: 259 Intimacy is the ability to fuse one‟s identity with another without worrying to lose its own identity Feist and
Feist, 2008: 259. While isolation, is a condition of being alone without anyone to share with or care for. According to Erikson in Feist and Feist, 2008: 259
isolation is “the incapacity to take chances with one‟s identity by sharing true intimacy”. According to the autobiography entitled Sold, Tess feels isolated; it is
an effect of the abuses occurs towards her. There are several texts taken from the
autobiography to prove and explain how the abuses affect Tess‟ personality development into becoming isolated.
How could she betray me? I felt unwanted and really ugly. It was then I realized that my three relationships
– with John, Jean and Marti – had
something in common. Apart from the first few months with each of them, I‟d never felt loved or secure. I wanted love so much yet I
managed to drive it away. Stevens, 2008: 315 The first quotation that proves Tess feels the isolation as the cause of the
abuses she experienced could be seen above. According to the quotation above, Tess is having problems with all of her lovers, starting from John up to Marti. It is
stated that Tess never felt loved and secured when she is with them; this is because of the physical abuses she receives from John and the betrayals from Jean
and Marti. Due to the abuses she receives from John, she started to mistrust him and fear him. Tess wanted to rebuild her relationship with John, but she feels
uncomfortable and worried if the similar abuse occurs again. As a result, she leaves John and looks for a better partner to soothe her loneliness. After leaving
John, she starts to find other partners; Jean and Marti. Her relationship with both Jean and Marti also do not work well; Tess is betrayed by both of them. They both
betrayed her by cheating on her. Due to the abuses launched by John added with the betrayal by Jean and Marti causes Tess to feel the isolation. All that Tess
wanted is love from them, but this conflict with her partners only leads her to the feeling of pain and isolation.
When she arrived on that Friday I insisted she stayed with me, and that night we made love. Not altogether my cup of tea, the way she did it,
but any attention is better than none. Stevens, 2008: 317
The second quotation that proves Tess feels the isolation as a cause of the abuses, could be seen above. Tess is having another relationship with a different
person, she is having a relationship with Chris Cave aka Cavey, a transgender. It is stated that Tess agrees to have a relationship with her because of the loneliness
she feels. According to her, having an attention is better than none. Previously, we know that Tess had problems in gaining intimacy with her partners. These
problems are due to the abuses which are launched by her partners and also due to the betrayals she receives. These abuses and betrayals ruins Tess‟ relationship and
creates a frustration for Tess. This frustration causes Tess to mistrust her partners and leaves them. It could be concluded that due to the isolation and loneliness she
gets from her previous partners, she gamble for love by having relationship with Cavey.
My path was to take me from one doomed relationship to another, to
prison again, to a life in the vice trade, from Brighton to London and back
again. It wasn‟t all gloom – there were some good times, and I mixed with a lot of great characters, mostly on the wrong side of the law. But the
worst times came about because of my need for love. I‟ve done a lot of
thinking over the years, and I keep going back to when I was a kid, when I never felt confident, never felt secure. I‟m no shrink, but I reckon there
must be a connection. And that means Mother. Stevens, 2008: 295 The third quotation that proves Tess feels the isolation could be seen
above. According to the quotation above, Tess‟ life is ruined. She experiences many terrible things happening in her life, starting from her broken relationships
with her partners, the criminality she did, and the abuses she receives from the punters. These terrible things that happen to her make her having difficulties in
socializing with others due to the mistrust which emerge from it. It is also stated that the worst times come about because of her need of love. This lacks in
socialization and mistrust that grew in Tess affects her personality into making her feel the isolation. In addition, her broken life is also caused by her mother whom
neglects her love and abuses her. These neglects and abuses result in Tess‟ low
self-esteem and insecure. The low self-esteem and insecure in Tess also contribute to her difficulties in socializing. This difficulty in socializing contributes greatly
towards Tess‟ isolation.
4. Generativity
The fourth effect of the abuses on Tess‟ personality development is Generativity. Generativity emerges from the stage of adulthood, in the age of 31
up to 60 years old. Generativity versus stagnation occurs at this stage. Erikson defined generativity as the generation of new beings, new products, and new ideas
Erikson in Feist and Feist, 2008: 260. In the adulthood stage, an individual establishes hisher careers, focuses on family, and focuses on being a part of the
society. Yet, stagnation is defined as a failure of making contributions as their existence in the world. They feel that they have no connection with the world they
live in. At the previous stage in young adulthood stage, Tess is isolated and feels
lonely due to the lack of attention neglect and the abuses she received from her mother and partners. Tess tries to create intimate relationships with them, but all
of her efforts are in vain. None of them seems to care and respond to Tess in a good manner. Her mother and partners only pretend to care of her in order to take
advantage of her. As an example, mother pretends to be nice towards Tess in order to make Tess visits the punters so she could earn money. After mother‟s
wish is fulfilled, Tess is being neglected again. So, after Tess‟ daughter is born, Tess tries to give her attention towards her daughter by taking care and nurtures
her as a cause of the isolation or loneliness she feels at her previous stage when no one cares about her. Her daughter is a hope for Tess to express her love and
attention. Hopefully, her daughter would return Tess‟ love in the future and create a better life together, since Tess did not receive a decent life at her previous age.
According to the autobiography entitled Sold, Tess becomes a person who cares for her own daughter. There are several quotation taken from the
autobiography to prove and explain how the abuses affect Tess‟ personality
development in emerging her generativity after she is feeling isolated. More immediately,
there was Angie‟s wedding to think about. I wanted to give her the best wedding ever. It‟d be my pride and pleasure to
give h
er a day she‟d remember for the rest of her life. Stevens, 2008:
332 The first quotation that proves Tess cares towards her daughter could be
seen above. According to the quotation above, Tess‟ daughter, Angie is about to be married and Tess is starting to prepare her wedding. Tess really cares on her
daughter‟s happiness and future since she is eager to give the best wedding for her. She wanted Angie to remember her wedding as one of the best days she ever
had in her life. There is a reason why Tess gives full love and attention toward Angie; that is because she does not want Angie to feel the painful life that Tess
had experienced. If we compare Angie‟s to Tess‟ life in her past, we could see that there is a great contrast in both lives. Tess did not receive much love and attention
from her mother, while Angie receives everything. Tess is always being neglected
