Analysis of Misunderstanding Caused By Different Interpretations of Speech Act Labels in 'Tintin' and 'Asterix' Comic Series.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE ... i
TABLE OF CONTENTS ... ii
ABSTRACT ... iii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Background of the Study ... 1
Statement of the Problem ... 4
Purpose of the Study ... 4
Method of Research ... 5
Organization of the Thesis ... 5
CHAPTER TWO: THEORY OF SPEECH ACTS AND THE NOTION OF FACE ... 7
CHAPTER THREE: ANALYSIS OF MISUNDERSTANDING CAUSED BY DIFFERENT INTERPRETATIONS OF SPEECH ACT LABELS IN ‘TINTIN’ AND ‘ASTERIX’ COMIC SERIES ... 13
CHAPTER FOUR: CONCLUSION ... 50
BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 54
APPENDICES: Dialogue of ‘Tintin’ Comic Series ... 56
Dialogue of ‘Asterix’ Comic Series ... 70
(2)
ABSTRACT
Dalam skripsi ini, saya menganalisis kesalahpahaman yang terjadi dalam suatu percakapan. Kesalahpahaman tersebut diakibatkan oleh adanya perbedaan interpretasi dari Speech Act label di antara pembicara dan pendengar. Saya memilih ini sebagai topik bahasan dalam skripsi saya untuk menunjukkan bahwa bahkan dengan adanya bahasa sebagai alat komunikasi, kesalahpahaman seringkali terjadi dalam kehidupan sehari-hari. Di samping itu, saya juga ingin menunjukkan bahwa kesalahpahaman dapat juga menimbulkan hal-hal yang lucu atau efek humor dalam suatu cerita.
Speech Act label merupakan label suatu ucapan yang diutarakan oleh pembicara atau pendengar dalam sebuah percakapan; misalnya, suatu ucapan dapat dinamakan ‘pernyataan’, ‘pertanyaan’, ‘perintah’ dan lain-lain.
Sebagai sumber analisis, saya menggunakan serial komik ‘Tintin’ dan ‘Asterix’. Kesalahpahaman yang terjadi dalam serial komik ini menimbulkan berbagai efek emosional kepada pendengar yang terlibat dalam percakapan. Pendengar dapat merasa senang, tersanjung, malu, bahkan terhina atas apa yang pembicara sampaikan melalui ucapannya.
Di dalam suatu percakapan, terdapat dua macam notion of face. Notion of face merupakan keadaan dan maksud seseorang dalam menyampaikan suatu
(3)
ucapan, baik itu positif maupun negatif. Maksud yang positif disebut face saving act dan. maksud yang negatif disebut face threatening act.
Proses-proses analisis dalam skripsi saya meliputi bidang linguistik, khususnya Pragmatics yang menggunakan teori Speech Act dan Taxonomy. Teori ini dikembangkan oleh John Searle. Taxonomy merupakan pengelompokan label dari suatu ucapan yang meliputi Directives, Expressives, Representatives dan Commissives. Di samping itu, saya juga menerapkan teori Erving Goffman dari bidang Sosiolinguistik. Teori tersebut adalah teori notion of face, yang terbagi menjadi face saving act dan face threatening act sebagaimana telah dijelaskan sebelumnya.
(4)
APPENDICES
3. 1. Tintin Comic Series Tintin and Alph Art
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants
No. Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
1. Tintin : “Excuse me, if anyone finds a
pipe under their seat, could they please return it to this gentleman at the end of the seminar.”
Captain Haddock: “Blistering barnacles! D you find it funny to publicly humiliate me?”
Directive: Polite request
Expressive: Humiliation
FSA: Helping Captain Haddock
(5)
The Shooting Star
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
2.
3.
Tintin: “And its hairy legs!... it makes me shiver to think of them!”
Professor Decimus: “Its legs?... What legs?”
Tintin: “What legs?... Why, belonging to that
gigantic spider…”
Professor Decimus: “Spider?... is this your idea of a joke, young man?”
Tintin: “But… it’s impossible… you… I mean…
Perhaps you made a mistake in your calculations.”
Professor Decimus: “Made a mistake? Us? You presume to…? Very well! Check them!” Representative: Truth Directive: Suggestion Expressive: Mockery Expressive: Accusation
FSA: telling the fact about the spider
FSA: suggesting Decimus recheck his calculations
FTA: feeling offended
(6)
4. Philippulus: “I am Philippulus the prophet! I proclaim the day of terror!... the end of the world is high! All men will perish!... and the survivors will die of hunger and cold!... There will be pestilence, and famine, and measles!”
Tintin: “Look here Mr. Prophet, why don’t you go
home? You’d better off in bed!...”
Philippulus: “You hear that? He dares to set himself up against Philippulus the prophet… an advocate of the devil!… a son of satan!... a tool of beelzebub! Get back to satan, your master!”
Directive: Suggestion
Expressive: Insult
FSA: Suggesting Philippulus
(7)
The Castafiore Emerald
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
5.
6.
Captain Haddock: “Er… it might be as well, for a
clear conscience, to let a doctor have a look at her.”
Mike: “A doctor! I suppose you think we have money to pay for a doctor!”
Captain Haddock: “Well, goodbye, and take care of that little cherub. But if you take
my advice, you’ll camp
somewhere else, and not on this rubbish-dump… in the first place, it’s unhealthy…”
Mike: “D’you think we’re here because we like it? D’ you imagine we enjoy living surrounded by filth?” Directive: Suggestion Directive: Advice Expressive: Insult Expressive: Insult FSA: advising Mike FSA: advising Mike
FTA: Feeling insulted
(8)
7.
8.
9.
Irma : “Excuse me, madame, have you seen my
embroidery scissors… you know, the little gold ones…”
Castafiore: “Why should I have seen them, girl? It’s not my job to look after your things.”
Castafiore: “Have you seen the marvelous article about me in ‘Paris-Flash’”
Captain Haddock: “Yes, I have seen it, madam!...
you call it marvelous?... Announcing our marriage!...”
Castafiore : “oh, yes, priceless, isn’t it?”
Tintin: ”Here, your hats!... and mind the cables!”
Detective Thomson: “Thank you, we can manage… we’ve told you before: we’re not children!”
Directive: Question
Expressive: mockery
Directive: Warning
Directive: Order
Directive: Question
Expressive: Insult
FSA: asking about her scissors.
FTA:
reprimanding Castafiore
FSA: warning the detective
FTA: feeling angry
FSA: answering the question calmly
(9)
10.
11.
Calculus: “Ah, dear lady. It’s quite extraordinary; I just found this magazine on the floor…
and guess whose charming likeness adorns the cover... look!”
Castafiore: “I know, Professor Candyfloss! I know!... and kindly refrain from calling it a likeness!!”
Detective Thomson: “In a nutshell… if the theft
Was committed by someone in the house, then there are only six suspects: Irma, Wagner, Nestor, Tintin, and of course You yourself, captain.”
Captain Haddock: “Are you suggesting…!?”
Expressive: Praise
Representative: Statement
Expressive: Mockery
Expressive: Accusation
FSA: praising Castafiore
FSA: giving the explanation about the suspects
FTA: feeling humiliated
(10)
Red Rackham’s Treasure
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
12.
13.
Detective Thompson: “Captain, is what Tintin says
really true? He’s just told us you’ve decided not to go. It seems you broke a mirror and afraid…”
Captain Haddock: “Afraid? Me, afraid?... Afraid of what?... afraid of whom?... Afraid of you perhaps? Captain Haddock fears nothing! You understand? We weigh anchor at dawn tomorrow, no matter what anyone says!...”
Detective Thomson: “Oh?... but you are sure we’re near it?” Representative: Statement Expressive: Offence FSA: predicting Captain Haddock’s feeling
(11)
14.
Captain Haddock: “Positive! I plotted the position yesterday at noon.”
Detective Thomson: “Yes, I see. But… er…
supposing you made a mistake in your calculations…”
Captain Haddock: “oh, so I made a mistake in My calculations, did I?... All right: they’re on my table. Go and check them!... Yes, you! Now! Go on! Check them!”
Captain Haddock: “Thundering typhoons! What
are you two doing there, instead of pumping?”
Detective Thompson: “Us? We’ re resting… it’s tiring work, you know.“
Captain Haddock: “You infernal impersonations of Abdominable Snowmen! Pump for your lives!... Faster!”
Directive: Suggestion
Directive: Order
Expressive: Insult
Directive: question
FSA: suggesting Captain Haddock recheck his calculation
FTA: asking Thompson angrily to pump the oxygen
FTA: feeling insulted
FSA: Answering the question calmly
(12)
Destination Moon
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
15.
Professor Calculus: “I have been very ably supported by my engineer, Frank Wolff. You met him earlier. And I’m just
completing plans for a nuclear- powered rocket in which I propose to land on the moon…”
Captain Haddock: “Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!... the moon!... Old Calculus on the moon! Ha! ha! Ha! The things you think of!... the moon!... that’s a good one!... ha! Ha! Ha!... the moon!... as easy as pie!... a man on the moon!... you’ll be the man in the moon!... ha! Ha! Ha! Oh! Ho! Ho!... I haven’t laughed so much for years!... on the
(13)
16.
17.
18.
moon!... and he’s quite serious about it!... you old humbug, Calculus! Here’s to you!... ha! Ha! Ha! Passengers for the moon, all aboard the bus!... Sorry, the rocket!... you are
taking passengers, I hope?”
Professor Calculus: “Of course!... why else do you think I asked you to join me?...”
Detective Thompson: “All the same, be careful.”
Detective Thomson: “I’m not a child, am I?”
Captain Haddock: “Have you seen my pipe?”
Mr. Baxter: “Your pipe? What would I want with your pipe?... I’m sorry but I haven’t time to worry about your pipe now!”
Professor Calculus: “My poor friend! Didn’t you
notice the door was rather low?” Expressive: Mockery Directives: Warning Directive: Question Directive: Question Directive: Question Expressive: Insult Expressive: Accusation Expressive: Insult FTA: mocking Professor Calculus about his rocket FSA: warning Thomson to be careful
FSA: asking about his pipe
FSA: asking about the position of the door
FSA: Answering the question calmly
FTA: feeling insulted
FTA: feeling accused
(14)
19.
20.
Captain Haddock: “D’you think I did it on purpose?... I suppose you think my favorite pastime is cracking my head against doors? Well, I’ve had enough of being a playmate for neurotic mice!”
Detective Thomson: “Well, you’re very wise not to
go on such a wild goose chase!... It’s a ridiculous idea!... Besides, at your age it would be sheer madness!”
Captain Haddock: “What? At my age?!... I suppose you take me for a rusty old tub, ready for the scrapheap?... you’ll see how old I am, you
Bashibazouks!... I’m going, d’you hear?... and I’ll send you a postcard from the moon!”
Captain Haddock: “Thundering typhoons! Why does this cork have to be so stubborn?”
Frank Wolff: “Would you like me to try, captain?”
Representative: Statement
Directive: Offer
Expressive: Insult
Expressive: Humiliation
FSA: supporting about Captain Haddock’s plan
FSA: helping Captain Haddock to open
Champagne
FTA: feeling insulted
(15)
Captain Haddock : “Are you proposing to teach me how to open a bottle of champagne?”
(16)
Explorers on the Moon
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
21. Captain Haddock: “Good heavens, what a leap!”
Tintin: “Ha! Ha! Ha! You see, captain! On the
Moon, gravity is actually six times less than on the earth.”
Captain Haddock: “And I knew that all the time, thundering typhoons!... but I’d completely forgotten.”
Representative: Statement
Expressive: Mockery
FSA: giving the explanation to Captain Haddock
(17)
King Ottokar’s Sceptre
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
22.
Detective Thomson: “Now don’t try any funny business with us, my friend… come on, what’s your name?”
A man: “I… let’s see… it’s really very odd, but I…
I can’t remember!...”
Detective Thomson: “For the last time, my man, don’t try any funny business with us… what’s your name?”
Representative: Statement
Expressive: Joke
FSA: telling the truth
FTA: feeling as if being made fun of
(18)
3. 2. Asterix Comic Series Asterix the Gaul
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
23.
Julius Pompus: “What happened, O Crismus
Bonus?”
Crismus Bonus: “I tripped over my beard, idiot!”
Expressive: Sympathetic expression
Directive: question
FSA: showing a sympathy towards Crismus Bonus
(19)
Asterix in Spain
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
24.
Huevos Y Bacon: “What a big nose you have!”
Vitalstatistix: “Humph! Take him away! We’ll go on this conversation after my afternoon nap!”
Expressive: Awed Expression
Expressive: insult FSA: expressing his surprised feeling
(20)
Asterix in Britain
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
25. Asterix : “That’s wine all right”
Pub owner: “Goodness gracious! Of course it’s wine! It’s perfectly safe to drink it!”
Representative: Statement
Expressive: Insult FTA: Stating the truth about the wine
(21)
Asterix the Gladiator
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
26.
Caius Fatuous: “just taste these pasties! They’re a new recipe – they cost a fortune! Nightingales’ tongues imported from the north of Gaul, sturgeon’s eggs from the farthest barbarian lands, cockroaches’ from Mongolia… well, what do you think of them?”
Obelix: “salty”
Caius Fatuous: “salty! huh! These barbarians don’t appreciate good food! Bring me the giblet jam!”
Representative: Fact
Expressive: Insult FSA: Saying the fact about the dishes’ taste
(22)
Asterix and the Big Fight
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
27. Psychoanaltyx: “What happened to him? Some sort of a shock?”
Asterix: “yes, it was a menhir got him down”
Obelix: “I don’t think it was that at all. You always make out it was my fault. You’re not going to tell me that little tap with a…”
Representative: Explanation
Expressive: Accusation
FSA: Giving the explanation about Getafix’
condition
(23)
Asterix and the Roman Agent
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
28. Fulliautomatix: “The Romans have got the magic potion! We saw them!”
Asterix: “That’s ridiculous! How could they have managed to find out the secret?”
Fulliautomatix: “We’ve been seeing a lot of
Romans around the village lately.”
Asterix: “Are you accusing me of giving the Romans secret of the magic potion?”
Representative: Report
Expresive: Accusation
FSA: reporting about the event
(24)
Asterix and the Laurel Wreath
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
29. Impedimenta: “Oh, Tapioca, how wonderful!”
Homeophatix: “Of course, it must be a bit of a
change from the stuff you get to eat at home!”
Vitalstatistix: “And what’s wrong with what we get to eat at home?”
Representative: Explanation
Expressive: Offence
FSA: giving the explanation about the food
(25)
Asterix and the Chieftain’s Shield
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
30. Julius Caesar: “well, my dear Vapus, you’ll just have to go back to Gaul and look for the shield Vercingetorix threw at my feet”
Noxious Vapus: “Er… Caesar… it might save time
to use some other shield… a nice new one. I happen to know a little armourer who…”
Julius Caesar: “Vade retro, Vapus! I shall have my triumph on that Arvernian shield and none other! And don’t you try to deceive me! To deceive Caesar is to deceive the Gods, and the anger of the Gods would be terrible!”
Directive: Suggestion
Representative: Lie
FSA: suggesting to Julius Caesar
(26)
Obelix and co
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
31. Geriartrix: “You’re buying menhirs here, right?”
Caius Preposterus: “Yes, indeed! Let us help you
unload them, venerable old gentleman”
Geriartrix: “Old? I’ll show you if I’m old, Roman!”
Directive: Offer Expresive: Insult FSA: offering a help to lift the menhirs
(27)
Asterix and the Banquet
Misunderstanding of Speech Act labels
Effects of Misunderstanding on the Participants No.
Dialogue
Speaker's Intended Speech Act label
Hearer’s Interpretation Speech Act label
Speaker's Intended Notion of Face
Hearer’s Interpretation of Speaker's Notion of Face
32. Asterix: “We can move freely without the cart…
but you’d better give me the bag. The poor horse can’t carry its weight as well as yours”
Obelix: “My weight? What about my weight?”
Directive: Offer Expressive: Insult FSA: offering a help to carry the bag
(28)
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Language is one of the most important aspects in building communication. Without language, both the verbal and non verbal language, people will not be able to communicate well. However, as an utterance conveyed by a speaker may be interpreted as many more than one meaning by a hearer, even with the existence of language, misinterpretation may happen. A good communication, of course, needs to be supported by the use of appropriate language in one circumstance with the intention of conveying the correct information or messages to the other participants, so as to avoid misinterpretation.
The subject of misunderstanding is interesting to discuss because it is something that commonly happens, regardless of time, place and participants of the conversation. In addition, it gives me such a big curiosity to find out some factors affecting misunderstanding and the various emotional effects on the participants appearing in a certain conversation.
One of the factors that cause misinterpretation in human communication is the different interpretation of Speech Act labels. One utterance which is labeled a
(29)
question by a speaker may be interpreted differently by a hearer. For instance, he may interpret it as an insult. As a result, this misinterpretation may cause him or her to feel offended.
In this thesis, I would like to discuss misunderstanding caused by different interpretations of Speech Act labels in the comic series ‘Tintin’ entitled Tintin and Alph- Art, The Shooting Star, The Castafiore Emerald, Red Rackham’s Treasure, Destination Moon, Explores on the Moon, and King Ottokar’s Sceptre. I also use ‘Asterix’ comic series as my data source entitled Asterix The Gaul, Asterix in Britain, Asterix in Spain, Asterix the Gladiator, Asterix and the Big Fight, Asterix and the Roman Agent, Asterix and the Laurel Wreath, Asterix and the Chieftain’s Shield, Obelix and co, and Asterix and the Banquet.
I choose comic series as the data source because I notice that it is popular not only with children, but also with adults. Besides, a comic series contains many pictures which are interesting to see, so that people may enjoy following the story without feeling bored. In my opinion, a comic series is also easy to understand because it usually reveals a simple plot of story. Moreover, reading comic books has been one of my hobbies since I was in the elementary school.
‘Tintin’ is one of the most famous comic series in the world. It was first printed in 1930. The characters are well-known, especially Tintin, the intelligent detective, and his clever dog named Snowy. There are some of Tintin’s friends who are also famous and have their own unique characteristics: Captain Haddock and the twin siblings, Detective Thomson and Thompson, who are always loyal to accompany Tintin in solving the problems.
(30)
‘Asterix’ is a fictional character, created in 1959 as the hero of a French comic series. He lives around 50 BC in a fictional village in northwest Armorica, which is a region of ancient Gaul mostly identical to modern Brittany. This village is celebrated amongst the Gauls as the only part of that country not yet conquered by Julius Caesar and his Roman legions.
The Gaullish village is famous for its magic potion which gives superhuman strength made by a druid named Getafix. The main characters of this story are very unique such as, Asterix, who is very clever, and his close friend Obelix, a menhir (big rock) delivery man, who is not too bright. He is a big man with superhuman strength because he falls into the cauldron of magic potion when he is a baby, and it gives a permanent effect. However, there are some other characters who also create the funny events in this story, such as Vitalstatistix, as the chief of Gaullish village; Impedimenta, as Vitalstatistix’s wife; Unhygenix as the fishmonger; Cacofonix as the bard; and Dogmatix as Obelix’s dog.
Both ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ have a very good story. The story is a combination of a thriller, adventure and comedy which usually takes place in many countries. In those comic series, I can find a lot of amusingly funny scenes and they are often caused by some elements of misunderstanding in the characters’ interactions.
In this analysis, there are two linguistic areas that I use as the approaches. The first area is Pragmatics. In this area, I apply the Speech Act Theory on Taxonomy by John Searle. Searle presents a rational taxonomy of types of speech acts and he explores the relation between the meaning of sentences and the contexts of their utterances.
(31)
The second linguistic area is Sociolinguistics. The theory applied in this area is Erving Goffman’s theory of the notion of face, which is closely connected to face saving and face threatening acts. Erving Goffman is a well-known sociologist who provides a description of how language is positioned in particular circumstances of social life, and how it reflects, and adds meaning and structure in those circumstances. (Schiffrin, 1994: 97) By applying the theory of the notion of face, we may discover that misunderstanding will cause the different emotional reaction of face saving and face threatening acts between the participants. Goffman considers emotions and feelings such as embarrassment, shame, pride, and he makes these an integral part of his analysis of social face. <http://uregina.ca/~gingrich/n25f99.htm>
Statement of the Problem
In this thesis, I would like to discuss the following problems:
1. Which Speech Act labels are misinterpreted in the conversation in ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ comic series?
2. How are the Speech Act labels misinterpreted?
3. What is the effect of each misinterpretation in the conversation on the participants?
Purpose of the Study
In this thesis, I would like to show:
1. The Speech Act labels which are misinterpreted in the conversation in ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ comic series.
(32)
2. How the Speech Act labels are misinterpreted.
3. The effect of each misinterpretation in the conversation on the participants.
Method of Research
In gathering and processing the data for my analysis, I first read some episodes of ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ comic series entitled Tintin and Alph- Art, The Shooting Star, The Castafiore Emerald, Red Rackham’s Treasure, Destination Moon, Explores on the Moon, King Ottokar’s Sceptre, Asterix The Gaul, Asterix in Britain, Asterix in Spain, Asterix the Gladiator, Asterix and the Big Fight, Asterix and the Roman Agent, Asterix and the Laurel Wreath, Asterix and the Chieftain’s Shield, Obelix and co, and Asterix and the Banquet as the primary texts.
Second, I collect, select and classify the data, which are in the form of sentences or phrases as the utterances of the conversations in those comic series which cause misinterpretation. Third, I analyze the data by focusing on the misinterpretations which have been caused by the different interpretations of Speech Act labels, and by observing the effects of those misinterpretations on the participants. Finally, I write a report of my research.
Organization of the Thesis
This thesis consists of four chapters. The first chapter is the Introduction, which contains the Background of the Study, Statement of the Problem, Purpose of the Study, Method of Research, and Organization of the Thesis. The second chapter provides the linguistic approaches used to analyze the misinterpretation of
(33)
the conversations. The third chapter contains the discussion on the misunderstanding caused by different interpretations of Speech Act labels and the reaction of the participants in the comic ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ entitled Tintin and Alph- Art, The Shooting Star, The Castafiore Emerald, Red Rackham’s Treasure, Destination Moon, Explores on the Moon, King Ottokar’s Sceptre , Asterix The Gaul, Asterix in Britain, Asterix in Spain, Asterix the Gladiator, Asterix and the Big Fight, Asterix and the Roman Agent, Asterix and the Laurel Wreath, Asterix and the Chieftain’s Shield, Obelix and co, and Asterix and the Banquet. Finally, the last chapter, the Conclusion, contains my personal comments and opinion based on my findings in this analysis. The thesis ends with the Bibliography and the Appendices.
(34)
CHAPTER FOUR
CONCLUSION
In this chapter, I would like to draw some conclusions based on the analysis that I have carried out in the previous chapter. After doing the analysis of ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ comic series, I find out that there are some events of misunderstanding which are based on the Taxonomy types involved. In this case, a speech act label of one utterance which is conveyed by a speaker is differently interpreted by a hearer.
From the 32 data that have been analyzed, I find that most of the data show that the misunderstandings happen because the speaker and the hearer have different interpretations concerning the taxonomy classification. There are 13 data showing the misunderstandings from Directive to Expressive types. In addition, there are also 11 data which show the misunderstandings from Representative to Expressive types. There are 3 data showing the misunderstanding from Expressive to Directive types, and 1 data from Directive to Representative types.
In the findings above, it is clear that most of the misunderstandings happen because the speaker’s utterances are misinterpreted as the Expressive type. In my opinion, this happens due to the fact that the hearers in the conversations involve
(35)
their feelings in interpreting the speaker’s utterances so that they have various emotional responses such as feeling angry, accused, offended, humiliated, insulted or even happy for what the speakers have said.
Besides, I would also like to point out that there are some data showing misunderstandings although they are still in the same Taxonomy classification. In this case, the misunderstandings happen because both of the speaker and hearer have different interpretations of speech act labels. There are 2 data showing misunderstandings of this kind in the Directive type. As mentioned in the analysis, the speaker’s order is interpreted as a question by the hearer, and a question is interpreted as an order. There are also 2 data showing this kind of misunderstanding in the Expressive type. They are the speaker’s praise which is interpreted as a mockery by the hearer, and the speaker’s awed expression which is interpreted as an insult.
Those misunderstandings happen because, although the Taxonomy classification is the same, each dialogue consists of different speech act labels which reveal different messages and responses. In this case, I would like to give an example taken from data number 7 when Lady Castafiore considers Irma’s question an order. It can be clearly seen that Lady Castafiore as the hearer feels offended because Irma, the assistant, asks about her lost scissors. Castafiore feels that by Irma’s uttering such a question (Directive), she implies an order (Directive) to Castafiore to find the scissors. In this event, Castafiore gets the negative impression from Irma’s utterance so that she responds negatively.
It is common that in our daily conversation the speaker and hearer often misunderstand each other through the positive or negative impression and
(36)
meaning of an utterance. Sometimes, the positive impression intended by the speaker is interpreted wrongly by the hearer. It depends on how the speaker conveys the utterance and whether the language is used in the appropriate context or not.
From the misunderstandings that have been discussed, there must be some effects on the participants in the conversations. This is illustrated as the ‘notion of face’. In the 29 data of misunderstandings, the effects show that the hearers interpret the speakers’ face saving act as face threatening act. Meanwhile, only in the 3 data do the effects imply that the hearers interpret the speakers’ face threatening act as face saving act.
In my opinion, the misunderstandings in ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ comic series tend to perform a face threatening act because most of the hearers in the conversations feel embarrassed and threatened by the speakers’ utterances. Most of them interpret the speaker’s utterances negatively.
In these comic series, we often find the funny scenes caused by some factors. In this case, ‘misunderstanding’ becomes one of the influencing factors because the reader will be amusingly entertained by noticing that there is something wrong yet funny in the conversations. Those conversations usually will lead the readers to a different perception of what has been said by the speaker and what has been understood by the hearer. As mentioned in data number 24, the funny scene appears when a little boy, Huevos Y bacon, as the speaker, innocently expresses his shock about Vitalstatistix’s big nose through his statement. Meanwhile, Vitalstatistix is angry and feeling insulted. This example is considered funny because there is an unexpected event when a little boy like
(37)
Huevos will honestly express his shock to the chief of Gaullish Village and this makes Vitalstatistix angry.
Besides, I can say that there are also other elements causing the funny scenes which support the misunderstanding events both in ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ comic series. In ’Tintin’ comic series, the misunderstanding is strongly supported by the stereotypical characters appearing in the story. For example, the misunderstandings often happen through the characterization of Captain Haddock, who is almost always bad-tempered and stubborn, and the twin detectives Thomson and Thompson, who are always clumsy and careless. The characterization of Professor Calculus and Lady Castafiore also plays an important role in creating the funny scenes in the comic series.
In ‘Asterix’ comic series, the funny scenes are not only supported by the events of misunderstanding, but they are also supported by the unique characterization of every character. In this case, the character of Obelix is described as a rather stupid, sensitive and clumsy person, Asterix, is described as a smart and serious character. Usually, the misunderstandings happen between the opposing characters. Every character in these comic series has his or her own specialty which is very dominant so he or she is often involved in the events of misunderstanding.
As a closing remark, I would like to say that some comic series, especially ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ are not only entertaining us through their comedy situation, but they also have many elements which are worth being analyzed through linguistic area.
(38)
PREFACE
This thesis is submitted to the English Department of the Faculty of Letters, Maranatha Christian University, as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Sarjana degree.
In this thesis, I would like to analyze misunderstanding caused by different interpretations of Speech Act labels in some of comic series ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’. I choose to discuss this topic because misunderstanding is something that commonly happens in our surroundings. Besides, I am curious to know more about some factors that cause the misunderstanding viewed by linguistic theories.
I would like to express my deepest and greatest gratitude firstly to The Almighty, my Lord, for His greatest love, blessings, consolation, help and guidance that enable me to write and complete this thesis. Secondly, I would like to thank both of my parents for their support and prayer. I also would like to thank both my supervisors for their patience, help, kindness, and guidance during my writing process. Thirdly, I would like to thank my friends for their help, love, support, and understanding.
(39)
BIBLIOGRAPHY
References
Holmes, Janet. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. Pearson Education, 1992. Schiffrin, Deborah. Approaches to Discourse. Oxford, 1994.
Yule, George. Pragmatics. Oxford University Press, 1996.
Electronic Publications Uregina. 17 April 2006
<http://uregina.ca/~gingrich/n25f99.htm>.
Primary sources
Hergé. Destination Moon. Little Brown, 1976. ---, Explorers on the Moon. Little Brown, 1976.
---, King Ottokar Sceptre. Egmont Childrens Books, 2002. ---, Red Rackham’s Treasure. Little Brown, 1974.
---, The Castafiore Emerald. Little Brown, 1975. ---, The Shooting Star. Little Brown, 1978.
---, Tintin and Alph-Art. Egmont Childrens Books, 2004.
Goscinny, René, and Albert Uderzo. Asterix the Gauls. Orion, 2004. ---, Asterix in Britain. Orion, 2004.
(40)
---, Asterix in Spain. Orion, 2004.
---, Asterix and the Banquet. Orion, 2004. ---, Asterix and the Big Fight. Orion, 2004. . ---, Asterix and the Chieftain Shield. Orion, 2004. ---, Asterix the Gladiator. Orion, 2004.
---, Asterix and the Laurel Wreath. Orion, 2005. ---, Asterix and the Roman Agent. Orion, 2004. ---, Obelix and Co. Orion, 2005.
(1)
their feelings in interpreting the speaker’s utterances so that they have various emotional responses such as feeling angry, accused, offended, humiliated, insulted or even happy for what the speakers have said.
Besides, I would also like to point out that there are some data showing misunderstandings although they are still in the same Taxonomy classification. In this case, the misunderstandings happen because both of the speaker and hearer have different interpretations of speech act labels. There are 2 data showing misunderstandings of this kind in the Directive type. As mentioned in the analysis, the speaker’s order is interpreted as a question by the hearer, and a question is interpreted as an order. There are also 2 data showing this kind of misunderstanding in the Expressive type. They are the speaker’s praise which is interpreted as a mockery by the hearer, and the speaker’s awed expression which is interpreted as an insult.
Those misunderstandings happen because, although the Taxonomy classification is the same, each dialogue consists of different speech act labels which reveal different messages and responses. In this case, I would like to give an example taken from data number 7 when Lady Castafiore considers Irma’s question an order. It can be clearly seen that Lady Castafiore as the hearer feels offended because Irma, the assistant, asks about her lost scissors. Castafiore feels that by Irma’s uttering such a question (Directive), she implies an order (Directive) to Castafiore to find the scissors. In this event, Castafiore gets the negative impression from Irma’s utterance so that she responds negatively.
It is common that in our daily conversation the speaker and hearer often misunderstand each other through the positive or negative impression and
(2)
meaning of an utterance. Sometimes, the positive impression intended by the speaker is interpreted wrongly by the hearer. It depends on how the speaker conveys the utterance and whether the language is used in the appropriate context or not.
From the misunderstandings that have been discussed, there must be some effects on the participants in the conversations. This is illustrated as the ‘notion of face’. In the 29 data of misunderstandings, the effects show that the hearers interpret the speakers’ face saving act as face threatening act. Meanwhile, only in the 3 data do the effects imply that the hearers interpret the speakers’ face threatening act as face saving act.
In my opinion, the misunderstandings in ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ comic series tend to perform a face threatening act because most of the hearers in the conversations feel embarrassed and threatened by the speakers’ utterances. Most of them interpret the speaker’s utterances negatively.
In these comic series, we often find the funny scenes caused by some factors. In this case, ‘misunderstanding’ becomes one of the influencing factors because the reader will be amusingly entertained by noticing that there is something wrong yet funny in the conversations. Those conversations usually will lead the readers to a different perception of what has been said by the speaker and what has been understood by the hearer. As mentioned in data number 24, the funny scene appears when a little boy, Huevos Y bacon, as the speaker, innocently expresses his shock about Vitalstatistix’s big nose through his statement. Meanwhile, Vitalstatistix is angry and feeling insulted. This example is considered funny because there is an unexpected event when a little boy like
(3)
Huevos will honestly express his shock to the chief of Gaullish Village and this makes Vitalstatistix angry.
Besides, I can say that there are also other elements causing the funny scenes which support the misunderstanding events both in ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ comic series. In ’Tintin’ comic series, the misunderstanding is strongly supported by the stereotypical characters appearing in the story. For example, the misunderstandings often happen through the characterization of Captain Haddock, who is almost always bad-tempered and stubborn, and the twin detectives Thomson and Thompson, who are always clumsy and careless. The characterization of Professor Calculus and Lady Castafiore also plays an important role in creating the funny scenes in the comic series.
In ‘Asterix’ comic series, the funny scenes are not only supported by the events of misunderstanding, but they are also supported by the unique characterization of every character. In this case, the character of Obelix is described as a rather stupid, sensitive and clumsy person, Asterix, is described as a smart and serious character. Usually, the misunderstandings happen between the opposing characters. Every character in these comic series has his or her own specialty which is very dominant so he or she is often involved in the events of misunderstanding.
As a closing remark, I would like to say that some comic series, especially ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’ are not only entertaining us through their comedy situation, but they also have many elements which are worth being analyzed through linguistic area.
(4)
PREFACE
This thesis is submitted to the English Department of the Faculty of Letters, Maranatha Christian University, as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Sarjana degree.
In this thesis, I would like to analyze misunderstanding caused by different interpretations of Speech Act labels in some of comic series ‘Tintin’ and ‘Asterix’. I choose to discuss this topic because misunderstanding is something that commonly happens in our surroundings. Besides, I am curious to know more about some factors that cause the misunderstanding viewed by linguistic theories.
I would like to express my deepest and greatest gratitude firstly to The Almighty, my Lord, for His greatest love, blessings, consolation, help and guidance that enable me to write and complete this thesis. Secondly, I would like to thank both of my parents for their support and prayer. I also would like to thank both my supervisors for their patience, help, kindness, and guidance during my writing process. Thirdly, I would like to thank my friends for their help, love, support, and understanding.
(5)
BIBLIOGRAPHY
References
Holmes, Janet. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. Pearson Education, 1992. Schiffrin, Deborah. Approaches to Discourse. Oxford, 1994.
Yule, George. Pragmatics. Oxford University Press, 1996.
Electronic Publications Uregina. 17 April 2006
<http://uregina.ca/~gingrich/n25f99.htm>.
Primary sources
Hergé. Destination Moon. Little Brown, 1976. ---, Explorers on the Moon. Little Brown, 1976.
---, King Ottokar Sceptre. Egmont Childrens Books, 2002. ---, Red Rackham’s Treasure. Little Brown, 1974.
---, The Castafiore Emerald. Little Brown, 1975. ---, The Shooting Star. Little Brown, 1978.
---, Tintin and Alph-Art. Egmont Childrens Books, 2004.
Goscinny, René, and Albert Uderzo. Asterix the Gauls. Orion, 2004. ---, Asterix in Britain. Orion, 2004.
(6)
---, Asterix in Spain. Orion, 2004.
---, Asterix and the Banquet. Orion, 2004. ---, Asterix and the Big Fight. Orion, 2004. . ---, Asterix and the Chieftain Shield. Orion, 2004. ---, Asterix the Gladiator. Orion, 2004.
---, Asterix and the Laurel Wreath. Orion, 2005. ---, Asterix and the Roman Agent. Orion, 2004. ---, Obelix and Co. Orion, 2005.