Clay`s struggle for identity against racial stereotyping in Amiri Baraka`s Dutchman

CLAY’S

STRUGGLE FOR IDENTITY AGAINST RACIAL

STEREOTYPING

I

N AMIRI BARAKA’S

DUTCHMAN

AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra

in English Letters

By

VINDY KARTIKA DYAS PRIMANINGRUM Student Number : 094214048

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS

FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA 2017

ii

CLAY’S

STRUGGLE FOR IDENTITY AGAINST RACIAL

STEREOTYPING

I

N AMIRI BARAKA’S

DUTCHMAN

AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra

in English Letters

By

VINDY KARTIKA DYAS PRIMANINGRUM Student Number : 094214048

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS

FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA 2017

vii

َالصَاَةلِ

َالصَاَرَِ

لةسْتََِلنلوةلِ

(... and seek help in patience and prayer).

Al-Baqarah: 45

–

The mind is everything. What you think you become.

Buddha

–

Þetta er ágætis byrjun (... this is a good start).

viii For Papa and Mama

ix

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to give my gratitude to Allah SWT for the blessing and for His guidance especially in my desperation during the hard times in finishing the thesis.

I also want to devote my gratitude to my advisor, Drs. Hirmawan Wijanarka, M. Hum. who guided me through the process of this thesis. I also give my thanks to my co-advisor, Adventina Putranti, S. S., M. Hum. for her willingness to read and review this thesis. I also thank my examiner, E. Arti Wulandari, Ph. D. I also want to thank all the lecturers and staff of English Letters Department.

My deepest thanks and gratitudes go to my parents; Widodo Dyas Irianto, B. A. and Dorkas Kartiwi Wijayanti, for all your love and support, and putting me

through the best education possible. I appreciate your sacrifices and I wouldn’t

have been able to get to this stage without you both. Also for my sisters; Vicky Ayu Dyas Purnama Sari and Vania Shinta Dyas Wijayanti for the supports, prayers, and the unconditional love.

I would like to thank my fellow friends and colleagues for the helps and good times through these years; Louisa Meigytha Manihuruk, Riza Azizah, Titus Dewa Brata, Richard Octha David Taralalu, Matias Sri Aditya, Yoza Artha Iskandar, Morgan de Krafft Feather, and all the names that I do not mention here.

Lastly, I would like to thank Reza Kurnia Iskandar for the times, supports, and stories that we share together.

x

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE ... ii

APPROVAL PAGE ... iii

ACCEPTANCE PAGE ... iv

LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH ... v

STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ... vi

MOTTO PAGE ... vii

DEDICATION PAGE ... viii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ... ix

TABLE OF CONTENTS ... x

ABSTRACT ... xii

ABSTRAK ... xiii

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ... 1

A. Background of the Study ... 1

B. Problem Formulation ... 4

C. Objectives of the Study ... 4

D. Definition of Terms ... 4

CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF LITERATURE ... 6

A. Review of Related Studies ... 6

B. Review of Related Theories ... 8

1. Theory of Character and Characterization ... 8

2. The Relation between Literature and Society ... 10

3. Theory of Identity ... 11

4. Racism and Racial Stereotyping ... 12

a. Race ... 12

b. Racism ... 12

c. Stereotypes ... 13

d. Racial Stereotypes ... 14

C. Review of the History of African American in 1960s ... 15

D. Theoretical Framework ... 18

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ... 20

A. Object of the Study ... 20

B. Approach of the Study ... 20

C. Method of the Study ... 21

CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS ... 23

A. Clay’s Depiction ... 23

1. Nice Man ... 25

2. Naïve Man ... 25

3. Middle-class and Educated Man ... 26

xi

5. Awareness and Good Sense of Humor ... 28

B. The Experience of Racial Stereotyping ... 30

1. African American’s Racial Stereotypes as Seen in Lula’s Perspective ... 31

2. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Clay’s Suit and his Grandfather’s Job ... 33

3. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Plantation ... 34

4. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Belly Rub ... 36

5. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Uncle Thomas ... 37

C. The Struggle of Clay’s Identity towards Racial Stereotyping ... 39

1. Clay’s Responses toward Uncle Thomas and Belly Rub Stereotyping ... 40

2. Clay’s Responses toward Lula’s Statement about Blues ... 41

3. Clay’s Struggle for Discrimination toward his Belief ... 43

4. Clay’s Struggle to Keep being “Sane” ... 44

5. Clay’s Struggle for being Himself ... 45

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION ... 49

xii ABSTRACT

PRIMANINGRUM, VINDY KARTIKA DYAS. Clay’s Identity Struggle

against Racial Stereotyping in Amiri Baraka’s Dutchman. Yogyakarta:

Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2017.

This thesis analyzes Amiri Baraka’s famous play work entitled Dutchman.

The story centers around two interracial characters: a black man and a white woman. The black man, an African American, experiences racial stereotyping

from the white woman. In this thesis, the writer focuses on this black character’s

identity struggle against racial stereotyping.

There are three questions to formulate the main problems. First question is intended to examine the depiction of Clay Williams, the main character in Dutchman. The second one is to find out how Clay experiences racial stereotyping from other characters, especially from Lula, a white American woman. Lastly, the third question helps to analyze his struggle for identity against such racial stereotyping.

In this thesis, the writer applies socio-cultural historical approach. This approach is seen to be the most suitable one because it sees the writing through social, cultural, and historical perspectives. For that matter, the writer uses several theories such as theory of character and characterization, the relation between literature and society, theory of identity, theory of stereotype, and theory of racism and racial stereotyping. Historical review of African American in the 1960s is also included here. In order to help analyzing the problems and gather evidences, the writer uses library research method.

In short, it is not easy as an African American man to dodge issues and ignore events that are related simultaneously with Civil Rights Act during the 1960s. Clay has to surrender his black identity in order to blend with the whites. Through the story, Clay is portrayed as a young, nice, educated, innocent, yet naive black man who faces racial stereotypings delivered by a white American woman named Lula. Their interactions seem to run smoothly at the beginning, but gets heating up because of racist comments as the story goes. Lula includes

‘black’ labels by mentioning Uncle Tom, Blues music, plantation, rub belly, and murderer. Clay is actually covered in manners, speech, and dresses like the whites. He even refers himself to a white French poet, Baudelaire. However,

getting tired of Lula’s racial stereotypings about his life and black people in

general, anger strikes him blindly, as reflected on Clay’s long speech. He shows

his real identity as a black man who struggles from the racial stereotyping. Unfortunately, his long speech leads to his death. Lula stabs him with a small knife, and his body is thrown outside the train.

xiii ABSTRAK

PRIMANINGRUM, VINDY KARTIKA DYAS. Clay’s Identity Struggle

against Racial Stereotyping in Amiri Baraka’s Dutchman. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2017.

Skripsi ini menelaah naskah drama terkenal berjudul Dutchman karya

Amiri Baraka. Cerita berpusat pada dua karakter utama yang berbeda ras: pria berkulit hitam dan wanita berkulit putih. Si pria berkulit hitam, orang Amerika keturunan Afrika, mengalami perlakuan stereotip rasis oleh si karakter lawan jenis. Dalam skripsi ini, penulis berfokus pada perjuangan identitas si karakter kulit hitam terhadap stereotip rasis yang dialaminya.

Ada tiga pertanyaan yang digunakan untuk menganalisa permasalahan utama. Pertanyaan pertama dimaksudkan untuk mengetahui penggambaran Clay

Williams, karakter utama dalam Dutchman. Kemudian, pertanyaan kedua

berpusat pada bagaimana perlakuan stereotip rasis yang dialami Clay, terutama yang dilontarkan oleh Lula, karakter berkulit putih. Rumusan masalah terakhir membahas perjuangan dalam melawan stereotip rasis yang dialaminya.

Dalam studi ini, penulis menggunakan pendekatan sosio-kultural historis. Pendekatan ini dipandang tepat karena melihat suatu karya sastra melalui perspektif sosial, kebudayaan, dan sejarah. Oleh karena itu, penulis menggunakan teori-teori yang berhubungan, misalnya teori tokoh dan penokohan, teori hubungan antara sastra dan masyarakat, teori identitas, teori stereotip, serta teori rasisme dan stereotip rasis. Di sini, gambaran singkat kehidupan orang Afrika Amerika pada tahun 1960-an juga tak luput dari perhatian. Untuk memudahkan analisa masalah serta mengumpulkan bukti-bukti, penulis menggunakan metode penelitian kepustakaan.

Secara singkat, tidaklah mudah bagi seorang pria Afrika Amerika yang hidup di tahun 1960-an untuk benar-benar menghindari isu maupun mengacuhkan kejadian seputar Civil Rights Act atau aksi hak-hak sipil. Clay harus menyerahkan identitasnya sebagai orang kulit hitam agar dapat berbaur dengan warga kulit putih. Dalam cerita, Clay digambarkan sebagai pria muda kulit hitam yang lugu, sopan, terpelajar, namun naif. Ia mengalami perlakuan stereotip rasial dari karakter wanita kulit putih bernama Lula. Interaksi mereka tampak lancar-lancar saja pada awalnya, namun bertambah panas seiring berjalannya cerita. Lula

menyertakan “label kulit hitam” pada Clay dengan menyebut Uncle Tom, musik

blues, perkebunan, rub belly, dan pembunuh. Clay menutupi dirinya dengan gaya,

bicara, serta pakaian seperti orang kulit putih. Ia bahkan menjuluki dirinya sebagai penyair Perancis berkulit putih, Baudelaire. Hanya saja, karena lelah akan perlakuan stereotip rasial mengenai hidupnya dan orang kulit hitam pada umumnya, Clay dibutakan oleh amarah, yang tercermin melalui perkataan panjang lebarnya di akhir naskah. Ia berusaha identitasnya sebagai orang kulit hitam yang berjuang atas stereotip rasis. Sayangnya, perkataan ini berujung kematian Clay. Lula menusuk Clay dengan sebilah pisau kecil, dan tubuhnya dibuang begitu saja ke luar kereta.

1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the Study

A literary work is a result of personal experience. By reading a literary work, the reader can understand about the process of life. There are some kinds of literary works such as poems, novels, short stories, and play. Comparing with other literary works, a play is often more difficult because instead of merely being read, it is also designed to be performed by actors in the front of audiences. Milly S. Barranger states that reading a play is a unique challenge. As readers, we must visualize all of the elements the playwright has placed on the page to convey a story to us: its characters in action and conflict, its happenings in time and space, and, at the end the complete meaning of all that has happened (Barranger, 1994: 4).

Dutchman is one of the famous plays by Amiri Baraka (born Everett LeRoi Jones and took the title Imamu when he became Muslim) and was first performed at the Cherry Lane Theatre in New York on March 24, 1964. It won the Obie Award for the best American play of the season, and was made into a film in 1966. This play tells of a twenty-year-old black man, named Clay Williams, and thirty-year old woman, named Lula.

The story begins when Clay and Lula met in the subway train while Clay

staring from the train window, and it went on with Lula manipulating the situation until she finally killed him. What happens throughout the play depicts the relationship between both races, in which the main character is an African American and Lula is a White American. From the relationship depicted in the play, it shows how the main character, Clay - an African American, struggles for his identity and his people. It also shows how the way Clay faced the problems related to racial issues occurring in that era, especially racial stereotyping that can be seen throughout the play.

Clay represents the black revolutionary spirit that Baraka possessed when he wrote the play. Like Baraka at the time, Clay was a young black man living in the big city. Clay was associated with the black revolution but he had not yet learned to tame the wild spirit that pumped through his veins. He was a mild mannered, sophisticated young man, much like Baraka.

The antagonist, Lula, represents white society as a whole. She is a beautiful woman with long red hair. Women with red hair are often stereotyped as aggressive and temperamental, and the red atmosphere around her (the hair, the lipstick) seems to add a sense of seductiveness in addition to aforementioned

aggressiveness. Swift stated that “the red-haired of both sexes are more libidinous

and mischievous than the rest” (Swift, 1726: 340).

In February 2007, Hilton Als wrote an article about Dutchman in The New

issues at that time, yet became a controversial race play in 1964. As he describes in the article

Reading Baraka’s script today is like watching an expert butcher at his

bloody chopping block. One hears a terrible kind of music as the

playwright slices through his characters’ flesh, bones, and cartilage. Lula

and Clay, the white woman and the black man who are the play’s

protagonists, screech and wail at each other in ghastly speeches, which

recall the bruising hooks and repetitions that Baraka’s contemporary Ornette Coleman laid down on his 1961 disk, “Free Jazz.” (Als, 2007) The statement below is the reason why the writer chooses this play. It is worth analyzing, especially in the context of Clay struggling for his identity towards

racial stereotyping. It also explains how the play progresses as the story of “an

expert butcher at his bloody chopping block”, which describes how tragic this

play is.

Throughout the whole play, Clay’s interaction with Lula is really a

struggle over his racial identity. But since Lula has a preconceived notion of him, the reader knows Clay will not make it out of the train alive, and many of her statements foreshadow this violence that awaits him.

Racial stereotyping is one of the important elements in this research because it is related to the reason for the actions that both of the characters did in the play, which influenced Clay in struggling with his identity. Clay stands for the Black in the play as does Lula for the White. The generalization that Lula states in the conversation shows her capability in knowing the type of the Blacks.

From Dutchman, it is expected that the information about racial

and proves that Lula’s generalizing of African-Americans takes part on racial

stereotyping towards Clay’s identity. The aim of this research is to show how

Lula’s racial stereotyping conversation with Clay has an implicit meaning which

reveals Clay’s identity struggle. B. Problem Formulation

From the description of the background of the study, the writer determined the problem formulation that will be used for analyzing this thesis. Indeed, to support the problem formulation, the writer needs to formulate some questions:

1. How is Clay depicted in Amiri Baraka’s Dutchman?

2. What racial stereotyping does Clay experience?

3. How does Clay struggle for his identity against racial stereotyping

described in the play? C. Objectives of the Study

This study has three objectives. Based on the problem formulation above, the first objective is to analyze the depiction of Clay found in the play. The second objective is to analyze the racial stereotyping that Clay experiences in the play.

The third objective is to examine Clay’s struggle for his identity from racial stereotyping that appears in the play.

D. Definition of Terms

To help the writer understands this research, the writer should have a better understanding about the definition of struggle, identity, and racial stereotype.

Struggle, Mifflin states that struggle means to be strenuously engaged with a problem, a task, or an undertaking. In other words, struggle is a comprehensive process of surviving difficult situation or achieving certain goals. This might take a long time and tiring process that could require serious thinking and action. (Mifflin, 1996: 1782)

Identity as Harry H. L. Kitano states, it is “how an individual perceives

and feels about “self remains” that serves as the end result of a process of

socialization that includes the family, the community, the ethnic group, and the

society.” (Kitano, 1985: 82)

Racial Stereotypes are automatic and exaggerated mental pictures that we hold about all members of a particular racial group. (uuc.nd.edu, 10 Sept 2016)

6

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

A. Review of Related Studies

Amiri Baraka’s Dutchman is a famous play which tells of the short relationship between a black young man and a white woman inside a subway train. Since it was performed, there has been some research and criticism about this play. Many articles and reviews also appear to criticize and summarize this play.

In January 2014, Douglas Kern wrote a research about this play. He

reviews the Dutchman play as a depiction of racial tensions that happened in that

time. As he describes in the article,

Earlier I suggested that Dutchman remains a topic for debate, as the most

written about of all of Baraka’s plays. And yet, because the language and

characters of the play clearly depict the racial tensions present in America during the 1960s, I find a majority of these debates problematic. (Kern, 2014: 33)

As he stated above, this play seems to have issues depicted through the

explanation. He also states “Here, besides exposing her own extreme racism, Lula

criticizes Clay for assimilating and relinquishing his ownership over a unique Black identity; ironically, this complete lack of ownership over identity was the

same fate suffered by American slaves.” (Kern, 2014: 38). Through his statement,

the writer finds an insight that his research has a same play work used by the writer, and it also contains racial and identity issues explained in the research. His

research helps the writer to know and understand about the play better, because it also involves historical stories related to both the play and the event at that time.

Emilia Trisna Adiputri, a student of English Letters at Sanata Dharma

University in 2006 did her undergraduate research about this play. In her research,

she studies the significance of combining realism and theater of the absurd. She states that

The combination of realism and theatre of the absurd in Amiri Baraka’s

Dutchman makes this play achieving its purpose to deliver message about racial discrimination which continuously exist. Both realism and theatre of the absurd has their own contribution to the play. Realism with its lifelike setting makes the author easier in portraying the condition and situation of subway which represent United States in 1960s, especially relationship between Whites and Blacks. (Adiputri, 2006: 51)

Underlining the title that has a same play work used by the writer, her thesis helps the writer understand how the flow of the play goes and helps the writer understand the play more deeply from another perspective. Indeed, from her thesis, it helps the writer understand racial issues from a different perspective.

One of the statements about racial issues found in her thesis is “... this play

achieving its purpose to deliver message about racial discrimination which

continuously exist”.

Another study about this play comes from an article written by Sabah

Atallah K. A Diyaiy, Ph.D. In the article, he describes the dilemma of Clay’s

identity as a Black Man who dresses and speaks resembling a White Man. He states

Of Jones’ play Dutchman (1964). The events takes place when subway train stops at an underground station. ... He is wearing a buttoned-down collar and suit. He surrenders his black identity. He adopts the dress,

speech and manners of the white bourgeois society. His aspirations enslave him. (Diyaiy, 2009: 14)

The statement concerns the same perspective as the writer that Clay’s covers his

Black identity through devices usually worn and used by Whites. Clay’s dilemma

about his identity shows that he wants to have awareness in his society that judges him by the color of skin. He knows that living as a Black Man in America is not easy, especially in that era where all Black people struggled for their freedom as mankind. This article helps the writer understand the issue of self that Clay struggled with.

From the aforementioned study and review, Dutchman becomes a

significant work which talks about the situation of African American life in that time, in the 1960s. Based on the related study above, the writer will use all studies

to help the writer to analyze the racial stereotyping towards Clay’s identity.

B. Review of Related Theories

1. Theory of Character and Characterization

Character is one of the most important elements in literary work, in this case in drama or play work. Without the existence of characters, there are no

stories to be written. According to M. H. Abrams’s about the description about

character and characterization. He states that

The person represented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the reader as being endowed with particular moral, intellectual, and emotional qualities by inferences from what the person

says and their distinctive ways of saying it – the dialogue – from what they

moral nature for their speech and actions are called their motivation (Abrams, 1999:32).

Furthermore, Abrams explains that character may remain stable in their outlooks and disposition from the beginning until the end of the story, or they may undergo some radical changes.

Another theory of character and characterization comes from Christopher Russell Reaske. The combination of speeches and actions throughout a play, small asides and jokes, the short angry speeches, the lengthy diatribes help our mind understand the characters in a drama as people who might really exist (Reaske, 1966: 40). Reaske also states there are some devices of characterization made by the dramatist to help us analyze the characters in a drama.

a. The Appearance of the Character

In the prologue or in the stage directions, playwrights often give

description on the characters’ physical sense. We can learn from the stage

directions how they look, how they walk onto the stage and how they are dressed up. For short, from their appearances, we can obtain our first understanding of certain characters in a drama.

b. Asides and Soliloquies

All of the further characterization is established through dialogue. We learn how they speak, and we understand them specifically when they speak in short asides or in longer soliloquies. From these, we can tell if the characters are antagonists or protagonists.

c. Dialogue between Characters

The language or diction that the characters use when they talk to other characters throughout the drama also gives contributions in revealing their personalities.

d. Hidden Narration

The playwrights always implicitly give a clue about the characters through other characters. If often occurs in a drama when a certain character narrates something about another character.

e. Character in Action

As characters become more engaged in the certain situations, we can gradually learn more about them. When they get involved in the action of the play, they must perform particular acts which later will slowly reveal their motivations in behaving that way (Reaske, 1966: 44-48).

The explanation about character and characterization above helped the

writer to analyze Clay’s depiction as an African American man in the play.

2. The Relation between Literature and Society

Literary works have been very important for people in this living world. Literature is also one media to express many things in many aspects in the society,

and society makes the story alive. Literary work has been a very close “friend”

with society in years, and they related to one another. From Rene Wellek and Austin Warren, they state that

Literature is a social institution, using as its medium language, a social creation. Such traditional literary devices as symbolism and metre are social in their very nature. They are conventions and norms which could

have arisen only in society. But, furthermore, literature ‘represents’ ‘life’;

and ‘life’ is, in large measure, a social reality, even though the natural

world and the inner or subjective world of individual have also been

objects of literary ‘imitation’... But literature is not a reflection of the social process, but the essence, the abridgement, and summary of all history. Much the most common approach to the relation of literature and society is the study of works of literature as social documents, as assumed pictures of social reality. Used as a social document, literature can be made to yield the outlines of social history. For example is social picture of American life (Wellek, 1956: 94-103).

According to the explanation above, the writer sees that the literature is closely related with the society, especially American life in the 1960s, and what happened in society can be revealed from literary work. The society in literature can somewhat represent real-life society, as the poet is a member of the society and the fact that literature has a social use.

However, as the society in the literary work is not always same as the society in real life, the author does not make the content and the detail of the work same with the real life. This can happen only coincidentally.

3. Theory of Identity

There are some theories about identity, one of which comes from Harry H.

L. Kitano. He states that identity is “how an individual perceives and feels about

“self remains” that serves as the end result of a process of socialization that

includes the family, the community, the ethnic group, and the society” (Kitano,

1985: 82). Therefore, an identity is constructed with elements that make a person distinguishable from the others such as name, gender, race, and social status.

Another theory comes from Hans Bertens, which draws on Lacan’s theory

we happen to find ourselves more or less creates us as subjects and thereby situates us as individuals. However, since the social and personal configuration in which we find ourselves at a given point will inevitably change, identity is not

something fixed and stable, it is a process that will never lead to completion.

Identity is not only subject to constant change, it can also never be coherent. (Bertens, 2008:127)

4. Racism and Racial Stereotyping

As the title of this thesis includes the issue of racial stereotyping, which is related and connected to race and racism, the writer will explain about race, racism, stereotype, and racial stereotypes that will help the writer to analyze the problem.

a. Race

Before the writer explains about racism, it is important to know what race

is. Race can be divided into two different meanings, based on Allan G. Johnson’s

book. His statement is “first is as the biological concept, race refers to people who

share a genetic heritage that results in distinct physical features, such as the color of skin, eyes, and hair, or shape of the nose or eyes. Second is as an ascribed social status to which they attach values, attitudes, and norms that produce

important consequences for the occupants of different racial statuses” (Johnson,

1986: 353).

A term related to race is racism. It appears because of the differentiations

among the races in society. Newman states that racism is “any attitude, belief,

behavior, or institutional arrangement that tends to favor over one race or ethnic

group over another” (Newman and E.N.Layfield, 1995: 9). He also states four

types of racism, first is attitudinal racism – is general dislike of a certain race or

group without reason. Second is ideological racism – believing some races

superior to others (for example: Adolf Hitler). Third is individual or group racism (for example: Klu Klux Klan). The last is institutional racism creating patterns of injustice and inequality because of skin color (for example: US voting in 1960 and high prices of some colleges).

Through the explanation about racism above, it can be concluded that racism is the way that a people or an individual treats another people or individual

based on his or her race. Racism establishes people’s mind-set to tend to see other

people differently.

c. Stereotypes

Racial stereotype is one of the most important issues in this thesis. But

first, the writer has to explain stereotypes. The writer found a definition of

stereotypes from Joe Feagin. He defines the stereotypes as “an overgeneralization

associated with racial or ethnic group that goes beyond existing evidence”

(Feagin, 1978: 12).

From the statement above, this means that the basic feature of stereotyping is overgeneralization, meaning that people only take some facts about some races and overgeneralize them to represent the whole race. Adding with the statement

from Nelson about stereotypes, he states “stereotypes represent the traits that we view as characteristic of social groups, and particularly those that differentiate groups from each other. . . Stereotypes are problematic because they are negative,

innacurate, and unfair – they would simply be part of the study of person

perception more broadly if they weren’t.” (Nelson, 2009: 2)

That is why stereotypes usually only consist of thought and perspective, not scientifically proven facts as it tends to use overgeneralization and goes beyond evidence. Yet stereotype also has negative traits within generalization toward groups or individuals.

d. Racial Stereotypes

A short explanation about racial stereotyping comes from a journal article by Laura Green that she wrote on the online zine from Virginia Commonwealth

University. In her article titled “Stereotypes: Negative Racial Stereotypes and

Their Effect on Attitudes Toward African-Americans”, she quoted a statement of

racial stereotype from S. K. Jewel’s that

Racial stereotypes are constructed beliefs that all members of the same race share given characteristics. These attributed characteristics are usually negative. (Green, 1998-99)

From the explanation above, racial stereotype is a belief constructed by the members of a race. The belief that usually goes into a negative perspective by looking at the characteristics of a race, in this case is African American. Racial stereotypes indicate, lower standards for a group indicate lower expectations, which lead to anchoring of within-group subjective rating scales at lower levels of a stereotyped dimension (Nelson, 2009: 143).

Racial stereotypes are also automatic and exaggerated mental pictures that we hold about all members of a particular racial group. When we stereotype people based on race, we do not take into account individual differences. Because our racial stereotypes are so rigid, we tend to ignore or discard any information that is not consistent with the stereotype that we have developed about the racial

group. (Overcoming Racial Stereotypes, Sept 10, 2016).

C. Review of the History of African American in 1960s

The story of African Americans is a touching story. In beginning, African Americans first landed in Jamestown, Virginia in the 16th centuty, during the colonial times. They were imported as slaves and treated as property to be bought and sold. Americans needed people who could work all the time with low pay. During the late 17th and early 18th centuries, slavery became a national institution

rather than regional institution (Encyclopaedia Americana, 1978: 28)

The Africans who came to the land of America and became slaves experienced a really tough life, lost their freedom in every aspect of life, such as losing freedom in citizenship, freedom in expressing emotions, and freedom in the right to be humans. Americans generally assumed that blackness meant poverty, ignorance and lack of middle-class, and mainstream. Black people were regarded as the poorest group of people and the most powerless part in the working class. They were defined as a racial group that had been made as subject to

discriminatory treatment because of race. (Ethnic Relations in America, 1982: 50)

According to Adalberto Aguirre, Jr. And Jonathan H. Turner, they state that

slavery became a “positive good”, protecting Africans from their “savage

impulses”, and responding to their “childlike dependency”. Yet, even in the abolitionist North, stereotypes portrayed Africans as ignorant, lazy, and immoral. During this period the “black Sambo” stereotype evolved, which portrayed black people as childlike, helpless, shuffling, and fumbling (but with potentially aggressive tendencies). (Aguirre, 2011: 110)

From the statement above, it is clear that there were many negative stereotypes

generalizing the African in the era of slavery. The White people’s superiority

tends to see the Blacks as inferior, in the lowest level of human beings. As the time went by they, started to rise and develop the Black movement to fight for their rights and freedom as human beings and citizens of the United States America.

In the 1960s, the public sentiment for government assistance for African Americans had turned much harsher than it was at the peak of the civil rights movement. There was Martin Luther King Jr., who led the campaign of nonviolent resistance in the late 1950s. The Civil Rights movement has begun to gain more serious momentum in the United States by 1960. In the same year, John F. Kennedy made a passage of new civil rights legislation part of his presidential campaign platform.

In 1964, Golden wrote a book which tells about African American life

after the signing of the Civil Rights Act. He states that African Americans’ fight

for the right to enter public school was not a fight for education. They fought for life and death as well, because entering public school was the first step to

obtaining adequate hospital care. “Public schools are the first step, adequate

He states that not only educational and health issues are what they should fight for. The discrimination against African Americans was also done by the government. He states that for thirty years, Southern legislators and legislatures had led a legal war against African American people.

They disfranchised the Negroes, denied them in school, hospitals, and access to tax-supported facilities and public accommodations. (Golden, 1964: 38)

He also tells about white men who lynched African Americans and who regularly defiled African American women were not prosecuted, as the Southern government refused to. Those treatments were considered good things by the

Southern politicians as they “boasted of their parental love, knowing all the time

that their strategy would help maintain the status quo” (Golden, 1964: 39).

Furthermore, Golden writes another facts regarding racial discrimination experienced by African American people in daily life. In 1960, African American people had to buy shoes in a store owned by Whites because there where no shoe stores owned by African Americans. They had to pay expensives price to buy shoes.

Another discrimination happened in church as they had no proprietary

rights, although they spoke the same language as Whites. Golden states that “the

colored man’s church, mainly Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian, was

controlled and dictated to by white men who deprived Negroes of religious

African American people had to make their own way to fight the racial discrimination, so they made some of their people become lawyers. They had to do that because it was needed to guide and guard their rights on the law and justice fronts. Again, Golden states that these African American lawyers were the vanguard who initiated the legal study and interpretation of civil rights.

By understanding the history of African Americans above, it can be concluded that their struggle and fight for their rights could only pay off when they were accepted by Americans, especially White Americans. Their successes in getting the freedom leads the Americans to realize that they also have powers, in many aspects.

D. Theoretical Framework

This part will explicate the contribution of the theories applied in this analysis. The writer uses the theory of character and characterization, the relation between literature and society, theory of identity, and racism and racial stereotyping to help this research for answering the problem formulation. The distribution of theories will be explained in the following paragraphs.

The writer uses theories of character and characterization to obtain a better understanding of the depictions of Clay in the play related to this study. Using these theories, the writer will be able to explicate the nature of the depiction in the play.

The relation between literature and society is used to help the writer understand the connection between literary work and society in the play of Dutchman with the society of African Americans in the real life in the 1960s.

The theories of identity are used to analyze the identity of Clay, helping

the writer to explain Clay’s identity struggle towards Lula’s racial stereotyping.

The explanation about racism and racial stereotypes is used to show how Lula uses racist speech that causes Clay to do sorts of things that show the defensive attitude as an African American man.

Last is the review of the history of African Americans. It is used to help the writer to know more about African Americans life in that era, and about racial issues they encountered. This theory helps the writer to see more deeply their struggle for life towards racial issues.

20

CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY

A. Object of the Study

Amiri Baraka’s Dutchman was written and composed in the early 1960s,

near the beginning the author’s involvement with the Black Nationalist movement. It was first performed in 1964 at the Cherry Line Theatre and won the Village Voice’s Obie Award for the Best American Play of the 1963-64 season. It

is also the author’s (Amiri Baraka) last major work under his birth name, LeRoi

Jones.

This play tells about two characters who met inside the subway train, Clay and Lula. Clay is a young black man, and Lula is a middle-aged white woman. In this play, these two characters talk about something that leads to sexual conversation. However, in the end of the play, Lula kills Clay with a knife.

B. Approach of the Study

In analyzing this particular research, the writer uses s socio-cultural historical approach. This approach concerns itself particularly with literature that represents and concentrates on writings from social, cultural and historical point of views. Mary Rohrberger and Samuel H. Woods address the socio-cultural historical approach. They state that the socio-cultural historical approach is the only way to locate the real work in reference to the civilization that produced it. Civilization itself is the attitudes and actions as its subject matter. They also add

that this approach leads us to an ethical judgement concerning the truth of the

author’s statement (Rohrberger, 1971: 9-10)

By learning historical background of the play, the reader can connect it to a situation that happened in history dependent on the time that the author uses in the play. It can be said that society and culture in story also reflect to the society and culture in history.

The purpose of this approach is to discuss the novel in the social condition, culture, and historical context. The purpose of applying this approach is to know about social conditions, culture, and historical context in the play work, especially about the struggle for identity againt racial stereotyping in the era of Civil Rights Act in the U. S. Racial stereotyping suffered by Blacks is closely connected to the society and culture practiced in the society in the play work.

C. Method of the Study

This part is about the procedures that were taken in analyzing the work. In the first step, this study uses the library research. This is a method of collecting data by reading books, articles, essays, websites that are collected in sentences. The writer has chosen some books to support the research.

As mentioned the research methodology involves collecting data. The

primary data is the most important one, so the writer uses Dutchman by Amiri

Baraka as the primary data. The second data is taken from books, articles, and online references to support the research.

Some theories are also used as the references for the purpose of analysis. The writer uses books from M. H. Abrams, Christopher Russel Reaske, Rene

Wellek and Austin Warren, Allan G. Johnson, Hans Bertens, Joe R. Feagin,

Newman and E. N. Layfield, Harry H. L. Kitano, and H. Golden. Those books

support the writer in analyzing the depiction of Clay, identity struggle and racial stereotyping. Further information is collected from websites and previous studies.

In the process of writing this study, the writer went through several steps. The first step was close reading and re-reading of the play, in order to understand

more about the story. The second step was choosing the topic. After choosing the

topic, the writer started to find the background of the study and also the problems related to the topic. To solve the major problems, some theories were chosen.

The writer used the theory of character and characterization in the scope of the depiction question. The relation between literature and society is used to help the writer to make a connection between the play and the society of African American in the real life.

The theory of racism and racial stereotype in the scope of racial stereotyping, and used to have a better understanding about the practice of racial stereotyping that Clay experienced. Theory of identity is used to understand of

Clay’s struggle for his identity. The review of history of African American is the 1960s is used to help the writer to know more about racial issues that happened in that era. It also to help the writer to see how they keep struggling against racial discrimination. In the last part of this research, the writer gives conclusion of the analysis.

23

CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS

Dutchman is a play work written by Amiri Baraka that tells the short story of an interracial couple, one of whom is an African American man and, who experiences racial stereotypes from the other one, a White American woman, ending with the murder of the African American Man, killed by the White American woman.

This chapter presents the analysis of the study. The analysis in this chapter is divided into three subchapters based on the problems that are formulated in the first chapter. In the first subchapter, the writer analyzes the racial stereotyping that experienced by the male main character, Clay. In the second subchapter, the writer analyzes the racial stereotyping that Clay experiences. In the third and last

subchapter, the writer analyzes the struggle of Clay’s identity against racial

stereotyping.

A. Clay’s Depiction

In this part, the writer’s analysis is about the depiction of the male main character, Clay Williams. This first analysis is used to support analysis of the next problem formulations. As the writer explained in the Chapter II, character is one of the important elements that make the story come alive. Character is one of the critical elements in literary work, especially, in this case, a play work.

The definition of characters is taken from M. H. Abrams statement in his

book. He statesthe characters are

The persons represented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the reader as being endowed with particular moral, intellectual, and emotional by inferences from what person say and their

distinctive ways of saying it – the dialogue – from what they do – the

action. The grounds in the characters’ temprament, desires, and moral

nature for their speech and actions are called their motivation. (Abrams, 1999:32)

From the quotation above, it is clear that character in the literary works is the maker of the story and gives the reader information about people in the story from dialogue, action, and motivation. The way a person speaks and behaves also

reflects their character’s background.

There are two characters in the play. The first is Clay Williams, he is a middle-class African American man living in New Jersey. The second is Lula, a red long-haired White American woman. The writer tries to examine the depiction fo Clay using the theory of character and characterization that is stated in the Chapter II. First, the writer examines the personal appearance and the personality

of Clay. In this discussion, the writer only examines Clay’s depiction because he

is the main character who experiences racial stereotyping from Lula, the other main character.

To examine his depictions, the theory of characterization taken from Reaske’s book is applied. There are five ways to study their characteristics and the writer applies them all. The ways to study the characteristics are the appearance of

the character, asides and soliloquies, dialogue between characters, hidden narration, and character in action.

1. Nice Man

Clay Williams is a twenty-year-old African American man. Based on

Reaske’s theory of character, a way to define the characters of literary works is from hidden narration. The first depiction of Clay comes from the opening

narration, which states “CLAY, twenty-year-old Negro” (p. 999). From the

quotation of narration, it is clear that Clay is an African American man. He is also

a nice man as he responded Lula’s “hello” nicely as he read his magazine.

LULA. Hello.

CLAY. Uh, hi’re you?

LULA. I’m going to sit down. . . . O.K.?

CLAY. Sure. (Baraka, p. 1-2)

By reading his response, it shows that he is a nice Black man. He is putting aside the racial issue between African Americans and White Americans that appears in that time. Indeed, Lula knows that he is a nice man, so she takes advantage and

starts to lure him into her own “game”, her imagination of Clay as a White man.

2. Naive Man

Clay is a twenty-year-old African American man who still has a young

spirit. In the year where he is looking for his “real-self”. As the conversation goes

along with the “game” that Lula plays toward Clay, another character that the

writer finds about Clay that he is a naive young man.

CLAY. [Cocking his head from one side to the other, embarrassed and try

to make some comeback, but also intrigued by what the woman is

a kind of gentle sidewalk throb] Really? I look like all that?

LULA. But it’s true, most of it, right? Jersey? Your bumpy neck?

CLAY. How’d you know all that? Huh? Really. I mean about Jersey ...

and even the beard. I met you before? You know Warren Enright? LULA. You tried to make it with your sister when you were ten.

[Clay leans back hard against the back of the seat, his eyes opening

now, still trying to look amused]. But I succeeded a few weeks ago [She starts to laugh again](Baraka, p. 2)

As Reaske states, a way to define a characteristic of a person is by examining the dialogue between characters. At the beginning of the conversation, Clay seems

innocent and stupid in reacting to Lula’s statement. He can not cover his young

spirit and answers Lula’s question with excitement. However, his excitement

towards Lula’s question can not hide his knowledge as an educated man.

As the play goes on, the writer sees that Clay actually pretends to be

innocent and stupid to cover his capability to adapt Lula’s more limited capability

to carry out the conversation. From the dialogue above, it can be seen that Lula

begins to enjoy her “game” towards Clay and laughs at Clay’s innocence and stupidity, although he knows and aware of what he is doing with Lula, also the condition of African American and White American people in that time.

3. Middle-class and Educated Man

Living as black people in America is not easy, since they first came to the land of liberty with many struggles as slaves. The situation is almost the same with Clay who struggles to gain his status as an African American man in society. He is a free man, he wants to abolish the systematic connection of an African American man equaling a slave. He goes to college and he refers to himself as Baudelaire, a French poet and critic.

LULA. And who did you think you were? Who do you think you are now?

CLAY. [Laughs as if so make light to the whole trend of the

Conversation]. Well, in college I thought I was Baudelaire. ButI've

slowed down since. (Baraka, p. 5)

Based on the conversation above, the writer finds that Clay is an educated African American man. An educated African American man in that time means he was not in the lower-class, his class status brings him to the college to gain knowledge in

education. Following with the statement of Clay’s long speech, “. . . If I’m a

middle-class fake white man ... let me be. . .” (Baraka, p. 8), which shows Clay is

a middle-class man. He also tries to imitate himself to a poet and critic who was a White French man, Baudelaire. Although, the others used to imitate Averell Harriman, who was a White American Democratic Party politician, diplomat, and businessman. Baudelaire addressed his literary works through themes such as sex, death, metamorphosis, lost innocence, the corruption of the city and melancholy, all themes familiar to Clay, since he goes to college and is interested to poetry.

4. Identity Issues Experienced by Clay

The writer finds another depiction of Clay in the play that he has an identity issues with himself as an African American man. The suit he is wearing during the event, a three button suit, which shows his class status in the society as a middle-class African American man, instead of dressing like a White American.

Reaske states the appearance of a character is a device that can be used to

analyze the character “we can learn from the stage directions how they look, how

LULA. ... Did your people ever burn witches or start revolutions over the price of tea? Boy, those narrow-shoulder clothes come from a tradition you ought to feel oppressed by. A three button suit. What right do you have to be wearing a three button suit and striped tie? (Baraka, p. 5)

Lula’s statement about the suit he is wearing during the event becomes evidence

that Lula accuses Clay of wearing the suit which usually being worn by the White Americans, her people. In fact, he is an African American man, and for Lula, he is not supposed to wear the same suit as her people.

Also on the statement about Baudelaire, it shows that he differentiates himself from the stereotypes about African American men. This is evidence that Clay has identity issues as an African American man by referring to himself as a White poet. This is also evidence that indicates Clay wished to be equal with White Americans. Indeed, it shows that he might want to be a White man. He chooses to stay away from any problems he might encounter with White Americans. Yet he still has the heart of a Black man, which he covers from the world he lives in, including Lula.

5. Awareness and Good Sense of Humor

As the writer states, Clay is an educated man, indeed he has a large knowledge and vocabulary that support his intelligence. Lula might actually pretend not to understand him in order to reduce his intelligence to the role of

“game” she has prepared. Whether he is aware of this possibility or not, Clay does not really care about it. However, another depiction that writer found about Clay is he has a good sense of humor.

LULA. Clay? Really? Clay what?

CLAY. Take your pick. Jackson, Johnson, or Williams.

LULA. Oh, really? Good for you. But it’s got to be Williams. You’re too

pretentious to be a Jackson or Johnson. (Baraka, p. 4)

Owning the self-derision and humor are such remedies to sadness, which was widely used by the African American men in that era, incarnated by Clay. He understands that things and events only have the importance that people grants them. Additionally, the statement that self-derision as an African American man is to keep from being sane.

CLAY. .... And I’m the grezt would-be poet. Yes. That’s right! Poet.

Some kind of bastard literature ... all it needs is a simple knife thrust. Just let me bleed you, ... A whole people of neurotics, struggling to keep from being sane (Baraka, p. 9)

As Clay states above, he is aware and concerned about the condition of African Americans in that era. Black movements had spread widely and rapidly across the U. S. It is he who should control himself for being sane, to face the situation between him and Lula. Being sane would mean revenge, but violence never

seemed to pay off for the African American man until then – and violence causes

violence. Yet he consciously understands that he still has a spirit and identity as an African American man.

Clay is seen to be a nice African American gentleman. He answers and

responds to Lula’s questions in the most polite way possible. He puts aside any

racial issues happening at that time, and keeps being nice until Lula drives him

mad by telling him racial statements his ‘kind’. Yet, Clay is a naive young man.

Clay shows how naive he is by responding to Lula’s statement during Scene One

it excitingly and innocently. Educated middle-class man also becomes an aspect in

Clay’s depiction. His statement about going to college, and the suit he is wearing during the event, shows his social status as a middle-class African American man. Though he is depicted that way, he can not cover something that is important for this research: identity. Through the play, the writer finds evidences that Clay has identity issues as an African American man. However, above everything he is depicted in the play, indeed, he is still seen as someone with good sense of humor. Apart from that, he is still aware about happening issues during that time, including occurences he is involved in.

B. Clay’s Experiences of Racial Stereotyping

Dutchman is nevertheless only a theatrical play: a representation of reality. The experience of racial stereotyping that appears in the play has to be replaced in reality so that we can judge its relevance or applicability.

The publication of such a play in 1964 was not innocent. This year saw the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which banned discrimination based on race, color, religion, or natural origin in employment practices and public accommodations. The situation depicted in the play is indeed a very topical one.

The 1964 spectator was also aware of the fragility of such a depiction. Seeing a White American woman sitting next to an African American man in a subway was still an unusual situation that caused tensions. Apart from the drunken man, the other passengers who gradually appear on the setting probably

sense the dangerous characters of Lula and Clay’s meeting and prefer to ignore it.

The passing of an Act does not mean immediate practical application, it is just the official beginning of a process. It will take months, years before people accept it as the normal course of things.

This part will analyze the racial stereotyping that Clay experiences. It is such a portrayal of the relationship situation between African American people and White American people, in which African American people encounter so

many racial issues with White American people. Based on Joe Feagin’s book,

stereotype is “an overgeneralization associated with racial or ethnic group that

goes beyond existing evidence” (1978: 12).

It is clear that stereotype involves racial issues. On the other hand, racial

stereotyping is a “constructed beliefs that all members of the same race share

given characteristics. These attributed characteristics are usually negative”

(Green, 1998-99). Thus, racial stereotyping is one of the types of stereotype which contains racial issues that influence one another. Some people might use stereotype as a tool to get know someone based on their races, ethnics, even their skin colors. In fact, it cannot be proven that someone has similar personality with others by generalizing from their races.

1. African American’s Racial Stereotypes as Seen in Lula’s Perspective

Lula seems to have an eye for and be very interested in Clay from the first time she sees Clay inside the train. As she walks inside the train and take a seat beside Clay, the conversation goes along as the train runs to another station. They actually could have been friends, a White American woman and an African American man in the 1950-60s.

Lula seems to have studied a lot of characteristics of African American people as she manages to make Clay believe that she knows him by mentioning details of his life that applied in reality to many African American men of that era. Her statements of African American characteristics that she stereotypes towards Clay are the evidence of racial stereotyping that appears in the conversation between them. The evidence of racial stereotype that Lula says about Clay is

LULA. You look like you been trying to grow a beard. That’s exactly what

you look like. You look like you live in New Jersey with your parents

and are trying to grow a beard. That’s what. You look like you’ve been

reading Chinese poetry and drinking lukewarm sugarless tea. [Laughs,

uncrossing and recrossing her legs.]You look like death eating soda crackers. (Baraka, p. 2)

From the excerpt abpve, Clay seems embarrassed about what Lula states about his

life, based on her knowledge about African American men’s life at his age. Lula

finds a space to crawl deeper in revealing Clay’s real identity.

Further statements from Lula make Clay astonished that he could not believe she knows what had happened in his personal experience, although Lula states that she lies.

LULA. But it’s true, most of it, right? Jersey? Your bumpy neck?

CLAY. How’d you know all that? Huh? Really. I mean about Jersey ...

and even the beard. I met you before? You know Warren Enright? LULA. You tried to make it with your sister when you were ten. (Baraka, p. 2)

From that conversation, Lula stereotypes about Clay makes him amused. Clay

does not believe that Lula seems “know” about his childhood memories with his

“magically” makes Clay believes that she knows him very well. Indeed, he still could not be more amused that he states

CLAY. What’re you talking about? Warrentell you that? You’re a friend

of Georgia’s?

LULA. I told you I lie. I don’t know your sister. I don’t know your sister.

I don’t know Warren Enright.

CLAY. You mean you’re just picking these things out of the air?

LULA. Is Warren Enright a tall skinny black black boy with a phony English accent?

CLAY. I figured you knew him.

LULA. But I don’t. I just figured you would know somebody like that.

[Laugh]. (Baraka, p. 3)

Clay still does not believe what Lula is saying about his friend named Warren

Enright; she knows Clay is on the way to Warren’s house. Yet he puts such humor

replies in responding Lula’s statement. Lula claims that she knows Clay because he is a merely a well-known type, the black man who repudiates his racial identity to adopt a white culture (Diyaiy, 14: 2009).

However, Lula’s racial stereotypes over Clay do not stop at that

conversation and the writer finds that Lula is enjoying playing her “game” with

Clay’s depiction as a naive man, and his “well-known” life.

2. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Clay’s Suit and his

Grandfather’s Job

Clay seems not to even take her statements seriously, yet that conversation

is just a beginning of Lula’s generalizing about Clay in the play. The stereotype

goes farther when they have conversation about Clay’s three button suit, his

Clay’s outfit and the general debilitating tone she addresses him with fully belong

to this discourse

LULA. Everything you say is wrong ... What’ve you got the jacket and tie

on in all this heat for? And why’re you wearing a jacket and tie like

that? Did your people ever burn witches or start revolutions over the price of tea? Boy, those narrow-shoulder clothes come from a tradition you ought to feel oppressed by. A three button suit. What right do you have to be wearing a three button suit and striped tie? Your grandfather

was a slave, he didn’t go to Harvard. (Baraka, p. 5)

From the Lula’s statement above, Lula seems try to annoy Clay by speaking about

the suit he is wearing and about his grandfather, which contain racial issues. She insults, embarrasses, humiliates, and blames him for repudiating his identity (Diyaiy, 15: 2009). Yet she belittles and criticizes the way Clay wears the suit because the suit he wears belongs to White American people. It can also be concluded as the writer stated in the depiction scope that he has an identity issue.

Hence, Clay’s answer in this monologue is “You don’t know anything

except what’s there for you to see. An act. Lies. Device. Not the pure heart, the

pumping black heart” (Baraka, p. 9). Still in a hostile environment and with such a terrible heritage, the African American man of the 1960s while remaining in constant danger, was also starving for existence. He had to find a place in society in such ways.

3. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Plantation

The way Lula describes what Clay looks like, and another history of the suit he is wearing, are the evidence that Lula stereotypes Clay with racial issues

that happened at that time in the U. S.. The writer finds further possible historical evidence related to racial stereotyping in the utterance below

LULA. ‘Cause you’re an escaped nigger.

CLAY. Yeah?

LULA. ‘Cause you crawled through the wire and made track to my side.

CLAY. Wire?

LULA. Don’t they have wire around plantations?

CLAY. You must be Jewish. All you can think about is wire. Plantations

didn’t have any wire. Plantations were big open whitewashed places

like heaven, and everybody on ‘em was grooved to be there. Just

strummin’ and hummin’ all day (Baraka, p. 8)

From the excerpt above, it can be concluded that Lula is trying to stereotypes African American people history as slaves on Clay. Through her statement about

wire, Lula is trying to ridicule Clay of his “slave origins”, as we know African

American people have a very long history of slavery and her sarcasm about going out of the wire and plantation may most likely be related to that certain part of

history. Along with his responses toward Lula’s statement, it shows how Clay

replies it nicely as a common conversation.

The statement above takes the writer back to Aguirre’s statement that “...

stereotypes portrayed Africans as ignorant, lazy, and immoral. ... which portrayed black people as childlike, helpless, shuffling and fumbling but with potentially

aggressive tendencies.” (Aguirre, 2010: 110) which can be seen from Lula’s

statement regarding escaped nigger, meaning a slave. Yet, through her statements that Lula says to Clay, it can be seen that she sees Clay in such ways like a

childlike and helpless Black man. She controls the “game” toward him through

conversation just like parents use toys to lure their children into doing what they want.

4. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Belly Rub

By adding more and more racial stereotypes toward Clay, she also mentions and mocks some labels or persons for the purpose of upsetting Clay. There is one statement that Lula says during her dancing and singing blues scene, asking Clay to join her

LULA. . . . And that’s how the blues was born. Yes. Yes. . . Let’s do the

nasty. Rub bellies. Rub bellies. ... Come on, Clay . . . let’s do the thing.

Uhh! Uhh! Clay! Clay! You middle-class black bastard. Forget your

social-working mother for a few seconds and let’s knock stomachs.

Clay, you liver-lipped white man. You would-be Christian. You ain’t

no nigger, you’re just a dirty white man. Get up, Clay. Dance with me,

Clay.

CLAY. Lula! Sit down, now. Be cool.

LULA. [Mocking him, in wild dance]. Be cool. Be cool. That’s all you

know . . . shaking the wild root cream-oil on your knotty head, jackets

buttoning up to your chin, so full of white man’s words. Christ! God!

Get up and scream at these people. Like scream meaningless shit in these hopeless faces. (Baraka, p. 8)

Clay seems to calm Lula down, her speech humiliates him. Yet he starts to feel annoyed instead of having awareness of what she says about him. The argument

about belly rub is a severe critique on White American’s propensity to try to

appropriate to themselves anything they find interesting in another culture, often

inadequately but with the pretension to know what they are doing. “Belly rub”

nowadays like in the 1960s had a sexual meaning.

However the term applies in Dutchman to a sexy dance practiced at the

time mostly by African Americans on particular occasions and rather than

exclusive circles. Just like boogie-woogie, the style caught White American’s eye

5. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Uncle Thomas Lula statements about belly rub does not make her satisfied enough in mocking, humiliating, and discriminating Clay in front of the passangers, who

most of them are Lula’s people. Another statement labelling African Americans with a racial stereotype to mock Clay, was when Lula called Clay an Uncle Thomas.

LULA. Screw yourself, Uncle Tom. Thomas Woolly-Head. . . . There is Uncle Tom . . . I mean, Uncle Tom Woolly-Head. With old white matted mane. He hobbles on his wooden cane. Old Tom. Old Tom. Let the white man hump his ol’ mama, and he jes’ shuffle off the woods and

hide his gentle grey head. Ol’ Thomas Woolly-Head” (Baraka, p. 8).

“Uncle Thomas” has become a racist Black stereotype since the story of Uncle

Tom was published in 1852 by Harriet Beecher, the author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin.

The novel tells about the life of Uncle Tom as a slave. He is a well educated slave and very obedient to his slave master so he does not get into too much trouble. On a moment, Tom is sold to another slave owner because his slave master had to pay off a debt that he owed. He begins to work hard so he can become a free man because he wants to get back to his family and live a normal life again.

As the writer finds out more about Uncle Tom, he is quite an overeager Black person to win the approval of the whites. Yet for Lula, the mockery about Uncle Tom is her way to disgrace Clay in front of people in the train, especially her white people. She knows exactly her position, she feels inferior and surrounded by another inferiors, the white people. Lula is taking further advantage of Clay to dig out his real identity through such ways include stereotyping and discriminating against his race.

Clay is an African American man who needs acceptance from White American society for his existence as an African American man. He has to work hard to escape from the chains that linger on his black wrists to have a normal life equal to White Americans. His position is like a joke in front of all the white passengers inside the train. He tries to preserve his identity in order to keep being sane, a sane black man living in America. The way he faces several racial stereotypes that he gets and accepts from Lula is something impossible for most African Americans to do.

The writer concludes that Clay really experiences racial stereotyping through happenings in the play. Lula seems to have knowledge about African American men in general and tends to apply such knowledge on Clay. By

showing her capability in “identifying” African American man’s perspective towards Clay, she indirectly drives the statements of her knowledge as the

portrayal of racial stereotypings. Beside “identifying” her perspective and

knowledge of African American men, Lula’s racial stereotyping refers to Clay’s

suit and his grandfather’s job. She states the suit worn by Clay is the suit that belongs to white people. She also tells Clay that his grandfather was just a slave

and did not go to Harvard, meaning that she humiliates Clay’s ancestry of

uneducated African American slave. Lula also mentions racial comments about

plantation, which most likely relates to the history of United State’ slavery era, as

well as when she sings about rub bellies in blues-y tune. Blues music was widely popular in the plantations. African slaves sang blues music while working there. Story of Uncle Tom is also taken as reference, showing evidence that Lula tries to

humiliate and mock Clay as an African American man who would do anything to release the chain over his “owner”, the white people.

C. Clay’s Struggle for Identity against Racial Stereotyping

In this sub-chapter, the writer will explain about the identity struggle that Clay experiences towards racial stereotyping, which comes from Lula. Identity and struggle in this subchapter will be the important elements to support the analysis. As the writer quotes a statement about identity from Harry H. L. Kitano,

he states that identity is “how an individual perceives and feels about self remains

that serves as the end result of a process of socialization that includes the family,

the community, the ethnic group, and the society” (Kitano, 1985: 82). That is,

instead, taking identity as an important element.

Another important element that also needs to be explained is struggle. Struggle means to be strenuously engaged with a problem, a task, or an undertaking. In other words, struggle is a comprehensive process of surviving a difficult situation or achieving certain goals. This might take a long time and be a tiring process that could require serious thinking and action (Mifflin, 1996: 1782). By taking identity and struggle, the writer will explain the identity struggle that happened in Clay.

Kern states that “put another way, Blacks who choose to assimilate within

the dominant white American culture deliberately eradicate their true Black identity and consciousness. ... . In essence, early on, Clay has symbolically

murdered his sense of self as a Black man by conforming to white society” (Kern,

struggle over his racial identity. But since Lula has a preconceived notion of him, the reader knows Clay will not make it out of the train alive, and many of her statements foreshadow the violence that awaits him.

By entering Scene Two, everything comes clear and it appears that Clay attempts to reclaim his African American identity. It is in the pivotal second scene during his extended conversation at the climatic end of the play, that Clay begins to assert black-selfhood. He speaks about Black Nationalist beliefs.

Lula astonishes Clay with her knowledge of his life and identity without ever having met him before. The writer already explained in the second problem

analysis about Lula’s knowledge of African American men, which tends to be

racial stereotypes.

The identity issues can be seen from the question of Clay’s identity which

is addressed when Lula asks him what he was like in college “And who did you

think you were? Who do you think you are now?” (Baraka, p. 5). The writer sees

that Lula’s question is pointless, because Lula has already decided who he is

going to be from the start by luring him to join her “game”. Lula manipulates Clay

as a character that she wanted to be. On the other hand, at the beginning, Clay just follows where the conversation goes to without taking it very seriously.

1. Clay’s Responses toward Uncle Thomas and Belly Rub Stereotyping

The heat rises between those two characters as the story advances to the last scene. The writer only focuses on the part in which Clay seems to have had enough of all the fuss caused by Lula.

You don’t know what’s there for you to see. An act. Lies. Device. Not the pure heart, the pumping black heart. (Baraka, p. 9)

Clay’s statement above regards Lula’s statement about Uncle Tom, which the writer already stated in the second problem formulation. Based on his statement, he aggressively asserts his identity by telling Lula that who he is, is not any of her business. And he claims that White people are foolish to realize that there is a mask blacks present to the world, so as much as White people claim to know blacks, in fact, they actually do not.

CLAY. The belly rub? You wanted to do the belly rub? Shit, you don’t

even know how. That ol’ dipty-dip shit you do, rolling your ass like

elephant. That’s not my kind of belly rub. Belly rub is not Queens.

Belly rub is dark places, with big hats and over-coats held up with one arm. Belly rub hates you. (Baraka, p. 9)

With this remark, Clay not only criticizes the Whites’ propensity to appropriation

but also ridicules Lula. She who in the beginning seems to be an attractive woman is now a common fool. Clay manages to reverse the white usage of black as a signifier of evil, death, and darkness to make white carry the suggestions of sickness, death, and absence. Yet, from his responses, Clay shows his real identity as an African American to fight against racist issues happened towards him and his people.

2. Clay’s Responses toward Lula’s Statement about Blues

Lula delivers cynical comments about blues music, which can be heard

usually in the plantations, more because it is the African American’s music. And

plantations are closely related to African Americans in the slavery era. In Clay’s

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last evidence of Clay’s struggle is for being himself, as African American man. He tells Lula to let him be whatever he wants to be, yet he does not care about Lula’s statement regarding “fake white man” label she addresses to him.

49 CHAPTER V CONCLUSION

This chapter concludes the explanations and analysis in the previous chapters. In this thesis, the writer discusses Clay’s identity struggle against racial stereotyping in the play script Dutchman written by Amiri Baraka. The story tells about two characters, a twenty-year-old black man, named Clay Williams, and a thirty-year-old woman, named Lula. Clay experiences racial stereotyping from Lula and he struggles against it.

As the writer states in the first chapter, there are three problem formulations that were analyzed. First is about the characteristics of Clay. The second is about the experience of racial stereotyping towards Clay. Then the last is about Clay’s struggle for identity against racial stereotyping.

In analyzing Clay’s depictions in the play script, the writer concludes that Clay’s depictions are nice, naive, middle class, educated, but he has identity issues about himself as a Black man. He responds to Lula’s statements nicely and friendly at the beginning of the play, even as Lula says so many cynical statements about Clay and his people. He is also either naive or innocent because of his age and lack of experience in facing Lula, as she is a slender and tall White woman. Even though Lula tries many times to ridicule Clay, his responses are showing that he is an educated young Black man. He always treats Lula’s mock and cynical speech as a common joke, so the writer finds Clay has a good sense of

50

humor, instead of having awareness about the situation between him and Lula. In addition to all of those depictions, Clay also has identity issues in that he dresses, acts, and speaks just like a White man.

The second problem analyzed is the experience of racial stereotyping experienced by Clay. The first racial stereotyping that Clay experienced is African American as seen in Lula’s perspective. She says some things related to Clay’s stereotype and history as African American man. The other stereotyping statement can be seen when Lula speaks about Clay’s suit, grandfather, and Harvard, all of which are evidence of racist speech that Lula uses to stereotype toward Clay. Further evidences that the writer found from Lula’s statements are about plantation, rub bellies, and Uncle Tom that alludes into racial stereotyping.

The last part analyzed is about Clay’s struggle for identity against racial stereotyping. Clay faced some racial stereotypes regarding to his Blackness, which is concentrated on his Black identity. The writer found that Clay was once trying to struggle for the racial stereotyping of Uncle Thomas, yet struggle for belly rub statement. In struggle for his people’s music; blues, Clay mentions about Bessie Smith who was a blues singer to mock back at Lula and her people. The religious aspect became one of his struggle against racial discrimination of his people. He stated about Christian charity as for African American people encountered political and racial issues inside the church, which is controlled by the Whites. As an African American man in the 1960s, it was very hard for Clay to maintain the urge of killing the people who discriminates and humiliates his race in front of passangers inside the train. Instead of keep being “sane”, he had

51

self awareness for not doing such things. Because for Clay sanity equals murder, he decided for being insane. The last struggle he had to fight with was himself. It was the way he tries to cover his Blackness by dressing and speaking like a White man on purpose to behave and not get in trouble with White people. Instead of be the person he wanted to be, he also was trying to be equal to White people in many aspects, since the play was published in the era of Black Movements to get their rights as citizens of the U. S.

His struggle to keep his identity ended tragically because Lula stabbed him on his stomach. Then he was thrown outside the train by Lula’s people while other Blacks just sat and saw the tragic moment.

52

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