The main character`s perception of the existence of human being in Osamu Dazai`s No Longer Human.

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xii ABSTRACT

Tumundo, Grace Adeline (2008). The Main Character’s Perception of the Existence of Human Being in Osamu Dazai’s No Longer Human. Yogyakarta: Faculty of Teachers Training and Education, Department of Language and Arts Education, English Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.

The novel No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai describes a man who feels that he is no longer a human being. His society gives a big influence to his perception about the existence of human being. By looking at his society, he thinks that he cannot be like his society demands as a human being.

This study embodies the perception of Yozo, the main character, about the existence of human being which is influenced by his society. This study aims to answer two problems. First is the description of Yozo’s character, and second is to identify the influence of the society to Yozo’s perception about the existence of human being.

This thesis employs a library research where the information can be found from the books related to the topic. There are two kinds of sources: the primary source, which is obtained from the novel itself, No Longer Human, and the secondary sources which are obtained from books and journals on literature, psychology, perception, and culture.

In order to answer the problems, the use of theory of characterization and theory of personality are needed to identify Yozo’s characteristics. Theories of perception and the understanding about the existence of human being are needed to find out the perception about the existence of human being. To identify the influence of the society, the writer got the information from the novel itself, some books and internet.

The result of this study shows that Yozo is an introvert, likes pretending, sensitive, timid and smart. He has a different way of thinking from other people. He is against what his society declares about human being. Society declares that if one wants to live he must eat. On the other hand, Yozo thinks that human beings do not need to eat regularly in order to live. Yozo is confused with the society’s sayings like eating for life or life for eating. Yozo finds it difficult to get the answer. Yozo discovers that society says something good about someone in front of him but says something bad in his back. If one wants to be accepted in his society and considered as a human being, he should follow what the society demands even tough he should pretend to be someone else. Having this thought, Yozo wants to be accepted by his society. So, he pretends to be a clown because by being amusing clown he can be accepted in his society and people realize his existence as a human being. Yozo loves doing it as if it is the only way he could be accepted by his society although he denies his own belief. Yet, Yozo feels that he fails in being a human being. He cannot understand other people’s thoughts. He finds himself different from others. He cannot feel the feelings that other people can feel, for example the feeling of hunger. He thinks that he is not a human being.

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Finally, the implementation of teaching English using literary work is suggested, especially for teaching intensive reading II using No Longer Human.

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xiv ABSTRAK

Tumundo, Grace Adeline (2008). The Main Character’s Perception of the Existence of Human Being in Osamu Dazai’s No Longer Human.Yogyakarta: Fakultas Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan, Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa dan Sastra, Program Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma.

Novel No Longer Human karya Osamu Dazai menceritakan tentang seseorang yang merasa bahwa dia bukan manusia lagi. Lingkungan sosialnya memberi pengaruh yang besar kepada persepsinya tentang keberadaan manusia. Dengan melihat lingkungan sosialnya, dia berpikir bahwa dia tidak bisa menjadi seperti yang lingkungan sosialnya inginkan.

Skripsi ini membahas tentang persepsi Yozo, tokoh utama, tentang keberadaan manusia yang dipengaruhi oleh lingkungan sosialnya. Skripsi ini bertujuan untuk menjawab dua permasalahan. Pertama adalah gambaran karakter Yozo dan yang kedua adalah untuk mengidentifikasi pengaruh dari lingkungan sosial kepada persepsi Yozo tentang keberadaan manusia.

Skripsi ini menerapkan penelitian pustaka yang didapat dari buku-buku yang berhubungan dengan topik. Ada dua jenis sumber: sumber utama, yaitu novel itu sendiri, dan sumber kedua didapat dari buku-buku dan jurnal-jurnal kesusastraan, psikologi, persepsi dan budaya.

Untuk menjawab dua permasalahan tersebut, penggunaan teori karakter dan kepribadian diperlukan untuk mengetahui karakter Yozo. Teori persepsi dan pemahaman akan keberadaan manusia dibutuhkan untuk mengetahui persepsi tentang keberadaan manusia. Untuk mengetahui pengaruh lingkungan sosial, penulis mendapat informasi dari beberapa buku dan internet.

Hasil skripsi ini menunjukkan bahwa Yozo adalah seseorang yang tertutup, suka berpura-pura, sensitif, pendiam dan pintar. Dia mempunyai cara pikir yang berbeda dengan kebanyakan orang. Dia menentang apa yang lingkungan sosialnya nyatakan tentang manusia. Lingkungan sosial menyatakan bahwa jika kamu ingin hidup makanlah. Bertentangan dengan Yozo, dia menganggap bahwa manusia tidak perlu makan teratur untuk hidup. Yozo menghadapi kebingungan dengan apa yang lingkungan sosialnya ungkapkan seperti makan untuk hidup atau hidup untuk makan. Yozo sukar menemukan jawabannya. Yozo menemukan bahwa lingkungan sosialnya mengatakan sesuatu yang baik di depan seseorang tapi mengatakan yang jelek tentang orang itu dibelakangnya. Jika seseorang ingin diterima lingkungan sosialnya dan diakui sebagai manusia, dia harus mengikuti apa yang lingkungan sosialnya tuntut meskipun dia harus berpura-pura menjadi orang lain. Dengan pemikiran seperti ini, Yozo ingin diterima di lingkungan sosialnya. Dia berpura-pura menjadi badut karena dengan menjadi badut yang menyenangkan dia bisa diterima di lingkungan sosialnya dan masyarakat menyadari keberadaannya sebagai manusia. Yozo senang melakukannya jika hanya dengan cara ini dia bisa diterima walaupun dia harus menyangkal keyakinannya sendiri. Tetapi tetap Yozo merasa gagal menjadi manusia. Dia tidak bisa cara berpikir orang lain. Dia menemukan dirinya berbeda

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dengan orang lain. Dia tidak bisa merasakan apa yang orang-orang rasakan seperti rasa lapar misalnya. Dia merasa bahwa dia bukan manusia.

Pada akhirnya, penggunaan karya sastra dalam pengajaran bahasa Inggris sangat dianjurkan, terutama untuk mengajar membaca secara berkesinambungan dengan menggunakan novel No Longer Human disertakan.

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THE MAIN CHARACTER’S PERCEPTION

OF THE EXISTENCE OF HUMAN BEING

IN OSAMU DAZAI’S NO LONGER HUMAN

A THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree

in English Language Education

By:

Grace Adeline T Student Number: 021214110

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION

FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA

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A Thesis on

THE MAIN CHARACTER’S PERCEPTION OF THE EXISTENCE OF HUMAN BEING IN OSAMU DAZAI’S NO LONGER HUMAN

By Grace Adeline T Student Number: 021214110

Approved by

Major sponsor

Henny Herawati, S.Pd., M.Hum. July 17, 2008

Co-sponsor

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iii A Thesis On

THE MAIN CHARACTER’S PERCEPTION OF THE EXISTENCE OF HUMAN BEING IN OSAMU DAZAI’S NO LONGER HUMAN

By Grace Adeline T Student Number: 021214110

Defended before the Board of Examiners on July 24, 2008

and Declared Acceptable

Board of Examiners

Chairperson : Ag. Hardi Prasetyo, S.Pd., M.A. ……… Secretary : Made Frida Yulia, S.Pd., M.Pd. ………

Member : Henny Herawati, S.Pd., M.Hum. ………

Member : Made Frida Yulia, S.Pd., M.Pd. ………

Member : Dr. A. Herujiyanto, M.A. ………

Yogyakarta, July 24, 2008

Faculty of Teachers Training and Education Sanata Dharma University

Dean,

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STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY

I honestly declare that this thesis, which I wrote, does not contain the works or part of the works of other people, except those cited in the quotations and bibliography, as a scientific paper should.

Yogyakarta, July 17, 2006 The Writer,

Grace Adeline T 021214110

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I dedicate this thesis to

my beloved and

marvelous parents The

Djing Siem and

Frederika Rachel

Tumundo

to my sisters and

brother;

Kak Elsa, Kak Inne,

and Kak Dani

This thesis is also

dedicated to my beloved

one,

Ale

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LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN

PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS

Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma :

Nama : Grace Adeline Tumundo Nomor Mahasiswa : 021214110

Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul :

The Main Character’s Perception of The Existence of Human Being in Osamu Dazai’s No Longer Human

beserta. perangkat yang diperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma hak untuk rnenyimpan, mengalihkan dalam bentuk media lain, mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, mendistribusikan secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di Internet atau media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai penulis.

Demikian pernyataan ini yang saya buat dengan sebenarnya.

Dibuat di Yogyakarta

Pada tanggal : 13 September 2008

Yang menyatakan

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost I would like to express my greatest gratitude to my almighty Jesus Christ for His endless love and guidance. He gave me spirit, grace, strength, and power in finishing my thesis. Without Him, I would never have finished this thesis. I believe that there is nothing impossible for Him.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the following people who have supported me in finishing the thesis. I would like to thank my major-sponsor Henny Herawati, S.Pd., M.Hum., and my co-sponsor Ch. Lhaksmita Anandari, S.Pd., M.Ed., who patiently gave me guidance, suggestions, corrections, and encouragement for the completion of this thesis.

My great special gratitude goes to my parents, the greatest mom in the world, Frederika Rachel Tumundo, and the greatest father in the world, The Djing Siem. I would like to thank them for being my great, fabulous parents, for their endless love, care, trust, prayers, patience, tolerance, understanding, encouragement and the financial support. I am proud of having them as my parents. I would like to thank my wonderful beloved brother and sisters, Daniel Arianto Tumundo, Elsa Elisabeth Yuniar and especially Inne Ester Juanita Tumundo for their support, love, care, prayers, patience and understanding. I also want to thank my sister-in-law, Lasmi and my very cute, funny and adorable nieces and nephews, Tasya, Nike, Joe, and Darrent, for being my inspiration and for presenting so many funny things. I love them all sincerely from my heart.

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My greatest gratitude also goes to all the lecturers of the English Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma University, who gave me their best knowledge and skills during my study in the university. The same gratitude also goes to all of the staff of Sanata Dharma Library and the secretariat of PBI for their help and kindness.

My special thank goes to my beloved best friends, Ika, Arai, Regi, Reni, and Cicil for giving me love, support, friendship, loyalty, fun, understanding and unforgettable moments. I thank them for being my best friends, for accepting my weaknesses and strengths, for helping me through the good and bad time. I am also thankful to all of the students of 2002 for their love, kindness, togetherness, cooperation and memorable time.

My special thank also goes to EME’s crew, Mas Aga, Rina, Melly, Mbak Iiek, Mbak Nita, and Pak Kiman. I thank them for their love, support, care, and patience. I also thank my all EME’s friends. They always cheer up my days and make my days so colorful. “I love you all, guys!” I will not forget also to thank Bitta and Iin for their love and support, and because of them I can be in EME.

My greatest gratefulness also goes to someone who is always at my side, Alexius Dharmawan Herny Hutama. I thank him for his deep love, care, affection, support, time, inspiration, patience, prayers, understanding and everything. No one can understand me like him. I am proud of having him beside me. I thank his family too for the support and love, especially to his sister,Tya, for her patience to wait for me when she once accompanied me to meet the lecturers, also for always cheering up my days.

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viii

I would like to thank all of those whom I cannot mention one by one and who directly and indirectly have helped, supported and encouraged me during my study. This thesis could not have been completed without their help. May God bless all of them, amen.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

TITLE PAGE ... i

PAGES OF APPROVAL………. ... ii

STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY ... iv

PAGE OF DEDICATION... v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ... vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS... ix

ABSTRACT... xii

ABSTRAK ... xiv

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ... 1

1.1 Background of the Study... 1

1.2 Problem Formulation ... 3

1.3 Objectives of the Study ... 3

1.4 Benefits of Study... 3

1.5 Definition of Terms... 4

CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ... 6

2.1 Review of Related Theories ... 6

2.1.1 Theory of Character ... 6

2.1.2 Theory of Characterization ... 7

2.1.3 Theory of Critical Approaches... 8

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2.1.4.1Perception... 10

2.2 The Influence of Society to Someone’s Perception ... 12

2.2.1 Japanese Society ... 16

2.3 Theoretical Framework ... 18

CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY ... 20

3.1 Subject Matter ... 20

3.2 Approaches... 21

3.3 Methods of the Study ... 22

3.4 Sources ... 22

CHAPTER 4 ANALYSIS... 24

4.1 The Description of Yozo... 24

4.1.2 Yozo’s Characteristics ... 24

4.1.2.1 Yozo is an Introvert Person... 25

4.1.2.2 Yozo Likes Pretending ... 26

4.1.2.3 Yozo is Sensitive ... 28

4.1.2.4 Yozo is Timid... 28

4.1.2.5 Yozo is Smart ... 29

4.2 The Potrayal of Yozo’s Society in the Novel ... 29

4.2.1 The Influence of Society on Yozo’s Perception of the Existence of Human Being... 35

CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS... 42

5.1 Conclusion ... 42

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5.2.1 Suggestion for the Future Researchers... 45

5.2.2 Suggestion for English Teachers... 45

BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 47

APPENDICES: Appendix 1 Biography of Osamu Dazai ... 49

Appendix 2 Summary of the Novel No Longer Human ...53

Appendix 3 Syllabus of Intensive Reading II ... 55

Appendix 4 The Implementation of Teaching Intensive Reading II... 57

Appendix 5 Lesson Plan ... 58

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xii ABSTRACT

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Finally, the implementation of teaching English using literary work is suggested, especially for teaching intensive reading II using No Longer Human.

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xiv ABSTRAK

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dengan orang lain. Dia tidak bisa merasakan apa yang orang-orang rasakan seperti rasa lapar misalnya. Dia merasa bahwa dia bukan manusia.

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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

This chapter consists of five parts. The first one is the background of the study which discusses the reason for choosing this topic. The second part is the problem formulation which contains two questions that the writer uses to analyze the main character’s point of view of the existence of human being in Osamu Dazai’s novel No Longer Human. The third is the objective of the study that contains the purpose of writing this thesis. The fourth is the benefit of the study which explains the significance of this study to the readers. The last one is the definition of the terms which briefly explains the terms used in this study.

1.1 Background of the Study

What is a human being? Considering this question, there will be another question about who can be included as human beings. Most people who just have ordinary life which means that they try to have a good life, may not think about these questions. They merely follow the cycles of life, born, live and death. According to most people, they will consider themselves as human being.

Being influenced by many factors such as a background from various cultures can be the reason of asking those questions. Having more than one backgrounds of culture could also make someone confused about his existence, his understanding about human being, and his meaning of life. We can find Yozo, the main character of the novel No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai, as the example of a person who asks about what human being is.

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In Biology, human beings are defined as animals. In this case, we would ask the question about other animals whether they have a meaning or significance which attached to their life or not. If human life is the only thing that has a meaning, what is it that sets humans apart from other animals? The great apes are the first cousins of humans. Is there a meaning attached to their life? Does a cow, a pig or a monkey have a meaning or purpose ascribed to its life, except to serve as food for humans? Maybe we never think why we usually eat three times a day and why we eat. There is an easy question with a difficult answer, eating for life or life for eating.

Hence, it is difficult to answer the question about the existence of human being. Maybe we never realize why we are here and how human life comes into existence. We can find these questions in the book How Life Really Works. The answer for the first question about existence is if object or event manifests itself in an observable manner. Human beings obviously exist because they manifest themselves to other human beings. By reading this book, we will know that since we clearly exist we may ask about our origin and the reason why we are here.

The topic about the existence of human being is interesting. That is the reason why the writer chooses to study this topic. We can find the answers for all of those questions by doing some observation, reading books about life and human being, and also by reflecting through our own lives.

In the novel No Longer Human, Yozo’s point of view about human being is revealed. Yozo asks about the existence of human being, whether he is a human being or not. There are many questions arise following the question about human

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being. There are also many factors that can influence Yozo in asking about the existence of human being. One of the possible factors of why he asks about this is due to his dual backgrounds, in which they positioned him between the disintegration of the traditions of his aristocratic provincial family and the impact of modernism. Yozo’s society may also give big influence to his question or his perception about human being. It is also interesting to study more about his background and how it influences Yozo.

1.2 Problem Formulation

Considering the discussion above, two problems are formulated as follows:

a. How is Yozo, as the main character, described?

b. How does the society influence Yozo’s perception on the existence of human being?

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The objectives of the study are to describe Yozo as the main character and analyze the influence of society in Yozo’s perception about the existence of human being.

1.4 Benefit of the Study

The analysis of the novel brings two benefits. Firstly, it will broaden the understanding of the existence of human being which is presented in the novel.

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Secondly, it will help the people or the readers who read this to realize about who they are and their existence. By reading this study, they will know themselves well and hopefully they will try to be a better human being than before.

For further researchers, they can develop this study by analyzing the comparison between Eastern culture especially Japanese culture and Western culture. There are many aspects from this novel No Longer Human that can be discussed. Hopefully, this study will give a broaden view about human being for further readers and researchers.

1.5 Definition of Terms

Before discussing this study further, the writer will clarify two important terms used in this study to avoid misunderstanding.

Existence means when an object or event manifests itself in an observable manner (Requadt). Anything that human beings claim to exist must show objective evidence to human beings that it exists; otherwise, it would be meaningless to say that it exists. According to Oxford dictionary, existence is a noun, the state or fact of being real or living.

In Biology, human being is defined as an animal. However, we, human, are different from animal. We are higher than animal in the way of thinking and living. According to Oxford dictionary, human being is a noun, a person rather than an animal or a machine. According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia, humans, or human beings, are bipedal primates belonging to the mammalian species, homo sapiens (Latin: "wise man" or "knowing man") in the family

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Hominidae (the great apes). In this study, human being refers to something which exists and can be observed. Specifically, in this study shows how the main character would like to find out whether he is included as human being or not by stating how human being should be.

Character is a brief descriptive sketch of a personage who typifies some definite quality. So, main character is the character which appears more frequently than the other characters. It is also called major characters. In this study, the main character refers to Yozo.

Perception is the way how we perceive something. In this study, we will analyse Yozo’s perception about the existence of human being.

Society is a particular community of people who share the same customs, laws, etc. In this study, society refers to the Japanese society in which Yozo lives.

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CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter consists of three parts. The first part states reviews of related theories to support the analysis. They are theory of character, theory of characterization, theory of critical approaches, and theory of psychology. The second part talks about the influence of society to someone’s perception. Finally, the third part states theoretical framework that describes how the theories reviewed are applied to solve the problem of the study.

2.1 Review of Related Theories

This section will review theories that are considered relevant in this study. They are, first, theory of character which enhances understanding about character that is presented in the literary work. Second is the theory of characterization that helps to explain how an author characterizes the character in the story. The third is the theory of critical approaches which contains the approaches that are used in this study.

2.1.1 Theory of Character

There are some elements that we can consider in reading a novel or literary work such as characters, settings, plot, and themes. In this study, I will focus on the main character only. Commonly, most of the readers of the literary work know that there are two kinds of characters namely major and secondary characters.

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Further, Milligan (155) says, “Two kinds of characters found in a story namely major and secondary characters. Based on the rule in a story the major characters are those who appear more often than the other characters in the story, while the secondary characters are those who appear less often in the story.”

Abrams defines the word character into two kinds. First, he defines character as “a literary genre: a short, usually witty, sketch in prose of a distinctive type of person” (Abrams 20). Second, he defines character as “the persons, in a dramatic or narrative work, endowed with moral and dispositional qualities that are expressed in what they say – the dialogue-and what they do-the action”. So, character is the person in a narrative work with his or her traits or characteristics.

Harvey (45-47) says that there are three categories of character. They are protagonist, background, and the intermediate figure characters. Protagonist character undergoes conflicts leading his attitudes along the story. Background character that can appear individually and collectively appears just necessarily to become the background for the protagonist character. Intermediate figure characters appear between protagonist and background characters that can become important in certain parts and sometimes less important in other parts.

2.1.2 Theory of Characterization

In order to know deeper about the character of the main character in a novel or story, we can perceive traits of character like what Murphy (161-173) says, there are nine ways of how an author may reveal the character’s personality

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and traits to the readers. The first is personal description which means the author describes the character’s appearances directly. Second is the character as seen by another which means the author uses another character’s opinions to describe a character. It means that we can know the main character by understanding other character’s sayings or thoughts about him/her in a novel. Third is speech which means that what a character says can give the reader some clues to his/her character. Fourth is past life which means the author gives a clue to characters’ past events that help reader to have picture about his character. It is clear that by knowing a character’s past lives, we can relate what the character did in past lives which often affects his/her future life. Fifth is conversation of others which means the conversation of other people and the things they say about a character can be a clue to the person’s characteristics. Sixth is reaction which means the author helps the readers to recognize a person’s character by describing how that person reacts to various situations and events. Seventh is direct comment which means the author gives a comment on a person’s characteristics directly. Eighth is thoughts which means the author can give his readers a direct knowledge of what a person is thinking about. The last one is mannerism which means the author can tell his readers about the character’s characteristics from the character’s mannerism, habits and idiosyncrasies.

2.1.3 Theory of Critical Approaches

In order to have a reasonable point of the story and a better understanding about the form and the meaning of literature, we need to employ a means called

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the critical approach (Rohrberger and Woods, Jr 3). A critical approach to literature is important to be taken as a basic in understanding literary work; it is the nature, function and positive values. In analyzing literary works, we can use different approaches and choose which approach is appropriate to analyze our analysis.

Rohrberger and Woods, Jr. (6-13) mention five kinds of approaches. First, formalist approach is the approach that insists on the total integrity of the literary piece. Second, biographical approach is the approach that insists the importance or an appreciation of the ideas and personality of the author to understand the literary object. Third, sociocultural-historical approach is the approach which considers that literature is not created in a vacuum, but it gains ideas from the culture, so we can have ethnical judgement concerning the truth of the author’s statement. The fourth one is mythopoeic approach. This approach tries to discover certain universally recurrent patterns of human thought, which they believe it will be insignificant works of arts, and the last is psychological approach that views works through the lens of psychology.

2.1.4 Theory of Psychology

To analyze the main character in No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai, this study uses psychological theory. This theory is related tightly to character, because in psychology all the discussion is about understanding, analyzing, and investigating human being. In this section, the study only discusses one aspect of

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human psychology which is perception related to the discussion in understanding the main character, Yozo, in the novel.

2.1.4.1 Perception

Perception is an aspect of human behaviour. Perception is the way how we perceive something. If we see something usually we will give judgement about it. Everyone can have different perception about one thing. That is why we have different opinion or judgement about one thing. For all mankind the basic process of perception is the same; only the contents differ and these differ only because they reflect different perceptual inference habits.

Commonly, perception is related to our sight and our brain. We can perceive something because we can see it. But in fact the eyes play only a part in the identification of objects, in the perception of their appearance, their position in space, and so on, although of course it is an essential part. Therefore between the projection of this visual pattern on the brain, and our full consciousness of the world of object, a series of elaborate mental processes takes place which converts the visual pattern into the perception of the world as we know it (Vernon 15). Some of these processes occur spontaneously. Thus the child from early infancy has some awareness of the shapes and colours of things around him.

Everyone has perception. Not only for adults, children also learn to perceive the world around them. Thus, the most important and fundamental type of classification is probably that which is made in terms of the behaviour which the child finds by experience is appropriate in response to his perceptions. Though

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it is true that the child is immensely interested in his environment, and wants to find out all he can about it and understand it well, nevertheless the function of perception is primarily to enable him to react effectively. In the first place, he must learn to perceive and classify food objects as distinct from objects; and also the food he likes and dislikes. Perception for children is not only for the objects, the appearance and behaviour of other people, but also in terms of the sort of behaviour which it is appropriate for the child to show. Finally, there are objects and situations which it is impossible to perceive satisfactorily because they cannot be seen clearly, or they are so strange and unfamiliar that there is no category of objects into which they can be fitted, so they will react slowly and uncertain.

A large number of experiments have been done in various ways to investigate the perceptual processes of adults. It has been found that people are first of all conscious that there is ‘something there’, something standing out from and different from the general background of the field of view (Vernon 32). In identifying objects, they may be touched and weighed in the hand. In recognizing people, the sound of their voices is often as important as the sight of their faces. If they are food objects, they may be smelt and tasted. Perception is rapid and accurate. The process of classification according to the pattern of appropriate behaviour takes place without any thought on our part, because through frequent experience it has become habitual, automatic, and effective. In fact, in all the innumerable skilled activities we perform in the ordinary course of our lives, perception of the external environment leads automatically to the appropriate form of behaviour without the necessity of deliberating about what we are perceiving,

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what it is called, and what we should do about it. Except the perception of objects, there are also perceptions of shape, colour, space, movement and special types of material such as pictures, films and television, reading, etc. Colour perception is often associated with feelings of pleasure or displeasure. Most people have preferences for certain colours rather than for others.

Perception is related to motivation and emotion. A large amount of experimental work has been carried out to investigate the relationship between motivation and perception. Perception is never instantaneous. The forming of perception takes time. Naturally if the time available for viewing is short, perception is limited in amount. The process of perception will develop gradually. There are many factors that can influence someone’s perception about something. The factors are the culture, the society or the environment, the knowledge, etc.

2.2 The Influence of Society to Someone’s Perception

Society is a particular community of people who share the same customs, laws, etc. Rose (567) defines society as an ordered and dynamic system of all the social interactions involving the members of a total population which can be identified as sharing a culture distinct from that shared by other populations. A society will be composed of lesser social groupings and structures which are themselves subsidiary systems of social interactions of more restricted scope and purpose and which may produce sub-cultures of their own in some respects different from the culture created and maintained by the general society, but in other respects sufficiently similar to or compatible with that overall culture so as

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not to divorce their related social groupings and the individuals who participate in them from the general society.

If a person wants to get involved or to have a society, he/she must follow the rules of the society which he/she chooses. The social group expects every person who belongs or wants to belong to the group to conform to its standards. It judges him according to his ability to come up to these expectations, decides whether to accept or to reject him, and, if accepted, how much acceptance to grant him.

In general, every social group expects its member to do two things: to learn to be “socialized” and to learn to play an approved social role. In becoming socialized, a person must learn what the social group considers “proper” performance behaviour and must use “fronts” to cover up thoughts and feelings which the group considers unacceptable. He must, for example, learn not to look bored no matter how bored he may be. He must learn not to talk about tabooed subjects and not to look pleased when a person is hurt or is beaten in a game. So, sometimes it needs to pretend to survive or exist in a society.

Society gives much influence to someone’s perception. The place where he or she lives in, the condition he or she has, the family and friends he or she has, all of them are called society. It contributes an influence to someone’s perception about something.

It is tempting to assume that perception and reasoning solely entail physiological and psychological processes. If one can understand how the world is perceived and experienced by another person, then one can predict that person's

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behaviour. There are several great tensions shaping the human condition: the role of nature versus nurture in shaping humans' social fates and the tensions between the needs of individuals' and the needs of their social systems. The relative importance of these tensions-and relative potency of one force versus the other-has produced great divides in social psychological theories.

If, for instance, people see what they expect to see and society is the source of these expectations, or if life is but of a series of freely selected behavioural choices which, in turn, are socially-shaped action sequences, then we indeed have the social component of a social psychology. This study intends to stress the socio-cultural component of consciousness and thought. Not only our sensory organs and brain, and personal factors (e.g., personality types, cognitive maturity, emotional status and social experiences) which shape perception and decision-making but also our social environment that largely determines what we perceive (and what we ignore) and which channels the ways in which we cognitively process that information. Shaping perceptions is, as will be seen, the key to social power. People see what they expect (and want) to see, and the source of these expectations derive as much from what they learn from interacting with each other as they do from direct personal experiences. The fact is that we all do not perceive the same things alike. From the very small unit of society which is family will give big contribution or influence to someone’s perception.

It is interesting to read what Eviatar Zerubavel, the author of The Fine Line: Making Distinctions in Everyday Life, calls the "fine lines" whose boundaries give us order and meaningfulness. (1) Individuals and social orders

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can be of two ideal-type minds: the rigid and the fuzzy. The rigid abhors the ambiguous and chaotic and cherishes clear distinctions, purity, and order. It is the mindset characterizing authoritarians and, in its extreme, the closure-seeking agoraphobics who "dread all forms of open-endedness" (49) and the sufferers of anorexia and bulimia, who are obsessed "with maintaining a rigidly bounded self" (51). The fuzzy mind, on the other hand, feels aversion toward all boundaries, mocks and plays with conventional (and arbitrary) distinctions, and gravitates toward ambiguities, novel syntheses, and experiences of communion where one blends in with one's social surroundings. Its mental fluidity characterizes the worlds of the very young, mystics (who "renounce the very idea of `classifying and dissecting,' promoting instead a holistic view of reality whereby everything flows into everything" (84), and the psychotic. Quests to offset experiences of separateness and tyranny of order lead the author to explore sleep, play, humour, and the arts. In sum, rigid and fuzzy mindedness underlies group memberships and individuals' positions toward some of the moral issues of our times.

These fine lines which allow the perception of entities and categories (and thereby giving order and meaning to the chaotic experiences of everyday life) are largely social in origin. They create the boundaries between what's mine and yours, between "us" and "them," what's sacred and profane, and what's "real" and "unreal."

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2.2.1 Japanese Society

The events described in the notebooks or in this novel seem to relate mainly to Tokyo in 1930 or so, but it was not until about 1935, when the Japanese military clique was first beginning to rampage in the open. The story happened during the war.

Japan today is a developed country. It produces many electronic tools and the technology is increasing rapidly. Japan is one of the countries in Asia which can make the same position with another developed country in West. Even Japan has become the community which is capitalist and industrialist and growing rapidly but it is completely different with another capitalist and industrialist countries. Generally, there are positive and negative traits in Japanese society. If one comes to Japan and wants to have better relations, as well as a better understanding of how many Japanese people think and perceive him or her, there are a lot of key items one should be aware of. Some might be liked and others might be not. Do not feel that one will ever have to completely understand the Japanese, since the Japanese don't completely understand themselves either.

The Japanese have been raised to think of themselves as part of a group, and their group is always dealing with other groups. Many westerners see Japanese as aloof which means not friendly or interested in other people, shy, and always walking on eggshells. There is a lot of truth in that -- Japanese are extremely sensitive to what others might think of them (or worse -- what they say behind their backs, and Japanese really do engage in gossip) and are very hesitant to do something new, different, or independent. Being ostracized is one of the

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worst things that can happen to Japanese, who is raised to be part of a group and depend on others (Japanese Culture. A Primer for Newcomers. 1997-2004. 2). Therefore, when making requests, it often takes more time since the person asked usually consults others in the group to reach a consensus. In short, however, while the westerner starts so many sentences with "I", the Japanese "I" usually means "with the approval of the group". Everyone in a Japanese company knows that to succeed they need to act together, and being profitable in the long run is the only way to guarantee employment.

Many people coming to Japan ask if the Japanese are racist and cold to westerners. The answer is not that simple. But it is no exaggeration to say that, bending the metaphor a bit, the Japanese see things through race-coloured glasses. It must be emphasized though that Japanese racism is in almost all cases never hostile towards others so the idea of people screaming epithets at you like in the U.S. is inaccurate.

Since avoiding conflict and trouble is extremely important in Japan, using diplomatic language is often used rather than the direct approach. Japanese may say things very politely and vaguely, but if the meaning is not clear it is perfectly acceptable to ask for clarification. It is said that in formal situations a direct "No" is avoided and there are a thousand nicer alternatives which can be true, but it depends a lot on the situation and social status of the parties involved.

Japanese society has two concurrent streams that frequently bump heads and the result as one can guess is tension and stress. One current is protecting one’s own privacy, following one’s dream, and doing things his own way at his

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own pace. Facing this is the overwhelming social pressure to conform, follow the rules, and make sure everyone else is in the same boat as him (Japanese Culture. A Primer for Newcomers. 1997-2004. 5). With big Japanese cities having extremely high population densities, personal space is scarce, and with little space in front of one many Japanese retreat to the only space they can; inside their heads. Becoming introverted, shy and withdrawn is not atypical. There are exceptions to this of course; some young people love to associate with westerners because of this and they can more freely express themselves and not have to worry about being looked down as too gregarious. Liquor consumption is also high in Japan and used as a social lubricant to loosen up. It is the easiest way to loose their stress. We could see the main character of No Longer Human as the example of someone who always drinks liquor if he has problems. But privacy in Japan is a precious commodity, more for cultural than demographic reasons, and nobody likes someone to butt into your life. Everyone belongs to some group, and every group has people of superior rank and status. The notion of boss and worker being perfect buddies after work without a thought of the company relationship for Japanese is impossible.

2.3. Theoretical Framework

There are two problems that should be discussed in this study. The first one is the figure of Yozo as the main character and the second one is the influence of society to Yozo’s perception of the existence of human being. In order to solve those problems, there are some theories used in this study. Using those theories

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the writer expects to find the answers to the problems mentioned in the problem formulation.

First of all, theories of character and characterization are needed to explore the character of Yozo in No Longer Human. Those two theories cannot be separated because if one talks about character, automatically he will relate it to characterization.

The next theory is about the theory about psychology which deals with human perception. The writer chooses human perception because the writer wants to know how the main character perceives about perception. It is also important to study the society especially the Japanese society because it influences the main character’s perception about the existence of human being.

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CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents the methodology that will be used in this study. This chapter consists of four parts. They are subject matter, approaches and method of study and sources. In the first part which is subject matter the writer would like to present the work that the writer uses in this study and the focus of the analysis. The second part is approaches which deal with the approaches that the writer uses in this analysis. The third part is the methods of the study concern the method of analyzing the work. The last part is the sources present the source of analyzing the work.

3.1 Subject Matter

The subject matter is the novel No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai and was published in May 1948, a time fraught with contradictions for Dazai. It was translated in English by Donald Keene. The writer read the ninth printing which was printed in 2000 in Singapore.

According to statistical publication by Shinchosha, Dazai’s Ningen Shikkaku (translated as No Longer Human), surprisingly, is his most representative masterpiece. It was first published in 1952, and has been printed for 5.3 million exemplars until now. As paper back best seller, Dazai’s Ningen Shikkaku competes with Soseki Natsume’s Kokoro all the time. Shuji Tsushima’s master-pieces, Dazai’s original name, lives forever because he loves language.

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Some of his master pieces: Shayo (The Setting Sun, 1947), Biyon no Tsuma (Vilon’s Wife), Ningen Shikkaku (1948). Dazai’s last masterpiece is Goodbye, a novelette series which is published in Asahi Shimbun daily news.

No Longer Human is the story of a young man caught between the disintegration of traditions of his aristocratic provincial family and the impact of modern Western ideas. Largely autobiographical, No Longer Human explores Dazai’s feeling of being “disqualified from being human” (the literal translation of the original title)- a sense of loss and anomie that remains strong in Japan even today among those who struggle to reconcile their attachments to tradition with the necessities of living in a global economy.

3.2 Approaches

To help the writer analyze the character of Yozo, the writer employed the psychological approach and sosio-cultural approach. The writer’s consideration was based on the fact that the aims of this study were to see Yozo’s traits and to know how Yozo’s perception about the existence of human being which is influenced by his society.

Using psychological and sosio-cultural approach, the writer expects to find the things which show Yozo’s perception about human being and how the society influences Yozo’s perception about the existence of human being. The historical and social background gives influence in literary work. The society condition that is represented in the story can contribute a great support to analyse Yozo’s perception of the existence of human being.

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3.3 Methods of the Study

In analysing this study, there were some steps that the writer took. The first step was reading the novel No Longer Human, as the primary source. It was very important to read the novel carefully. The writer concentrated more on the main characters actions and reactions and listed the important points of the important descriptions of the main character which showed the nature of his characteristics.

Second step, the writer read some books and online journals which related to psychology, perception, human being and Japanese society to support the analysis of the main character of the novel. The writer tried to find and relate the support theories to find out the answers of the questions formulated previously.

The third step, the writer began the analysis by paying attention to the main character and taking every note which described the main character’s traits and actions in the novel. Then, the writer tried to apply some supported books for the discussion in the study. Finally, having completed on the analysis, the writer made the conclusion of the study based on answers to the problems.

3.4 Sources

The writer uses two kinds of sources to gather data for this study. They are primary and secondary sources:

1. Primary Source

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2. Secondary Sources

Secondary sources are taken from other sources related to the analysis. The writer uses internet and some books related to the theories. The internet covers various websites related to this study.

In order to understand the novel better, the writer reread the novel many times. The writer also read the other books and journals about perception, human being and Japanese society.

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CHAPTER 4 ANALYSIS

This chapter discusses the two questions which are stated in the problem formulation. The first analysis deals with the description of Yozo, the main character in the work. The second analysis deals with the society that influences Yozo’s perception of the existence of human being.

4.1 The Description of Yozo

According to Harvey (45), a protagonist is a character that undergoes conflicts leading his attitude along the story. Therefore, Yozo is categorized as a protagonist in the story No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai because he also undergoes conflicts leading his attitude along the story.

As the main character and the center of the story, Yozo dominates the story. He appears more often than the other characters in the story. This shows that Yozo is a major character. It is like what Milligan says (155) about the definition of major character. The major character is a character who appears more often than the other character in the story.

4.1.2 Yozo’s Characteristics

In finding out Yozo’s characteristics, I apply Murphy’s theory which states that there are nine ways to reveal the characters’ personality and traits. Yozo has such a complicated character that makes him different from another.

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Yozo has a different way of thinking from the other human beings. There are some descriptions about Yozo’s physical traits in this novel. The narrator says in the prologue that he never sees this kind of smile.

“No human being can smile with his fist doubled like that. It is a monkey” (14).The narrator gives this comment after he sees the first picture, a picture of a little boy. After seeing the second picture, a picture of a student, still he feels confused. Although, this boy looks more handsome than the little child but again he sees an indescribable smile. But here again the face fails inexplicably to give the impression of belonging to a living human being. (15) And yet somehow it is not the smile of a human being: it utterly lacks substance, all of what we might call the “heaviness of blood” or perhaps the “solidity of human life”—it has not even a bird’s weight. (15)

Here are the characteristics of Yozo analyzed by using Murphy’s method of characterization such as personal description, character as seen by another, speech, past life, conversation of others, reaction, direct comment, thoughts, and mannerism (161-173).

4.1.2.1 Yozo is an Introvert Person

Yozo never talks the truth to someone else. He just keeps his feelings in his heart. It is hard for Yozo to open himself to someone else. Every time he meets new people, he never tries to know deeper about the people.

Yozo chooses to be silent when people say something to him even to his own family. So, it is difficult to find out what actually Yozo wants in his life.

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Moreover, Yozo has a different way of thinking from most common people, so it is difficult to guess Yozo’s thoughts. As the conclusion, through his reaction and manner, it can be assumed that Yozo is an introvert person.

4.1.2.2 Yozo Likes Pretending

He likes to be the clown of the family. Being a clown is his way to pretend. He just wants to make people around him happy. He does not want people know his true feelings. “Before anyone realized it, I had become an accomplished clown, a child who never spoke a single truthful word.” (27) “This was how I happened to invent my clowning”. (26)

He likes to make people laugh. It is alright for him to act like a clown as long as he can make people around him happy. He is always successful in acting as a clown. This is one of his ways to decrease the dreads about human being. So, Yozo will always become a clown if it is the only way to show that he exists. He can make people around him laugh, even in his classroom. I could always convulse the classroom with laughter, and even as the teacher protested what a good class it would be if only I were not in it, he would be laughing behind his hand. At a word from me even the military drill instructor, whose more usual idiom was a barbarous, thunderous roar, would burst into helpless laughter. (43)

In this novel, we could see that Yozo has many ways to entertain people. He has always a story to create a fun situation. He can do many actions in order to make people laugh.

In the summer I made everybody laugh by sauntering through the house wearing a red woollen sweater. Even my elder brother, who was rarely

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given to mirth, burst out laughing and commented in intolerably affectionate tones, “That doesn’t look good on you, Yozo.” But for all my foolies I was not so insensitive to heat and cold as to walk around in a woollen sweater at the height of summer. (29)

I made everyone roar with laughter by cavorting in a wild Indian dance to his hit and miss tune. (32)

He never runs of idea to be a clown. He can do it naturally. He can make jokes by using any materials he has around him. He usually uses stories in making jokes. “I was never short of material for the absurd stories I solemnly related to make the members of my family laugh”. (33)

So, Yozo will always be a clown if it is the only way to show that he exists. It is alright for him if everybody laughs at him. ”I thought, “As long as I can make them laugh, it doesn’t matter how, I’ll be all right. If I succeed in that, the human beings probably won’t mind it too much if I remain outside their lives”. (28) By the statements above, Yozo’s character as a man who likes pretending is presented in the story in various methods, such as: mannerism, reaction and speech.

“My true nature, however, was one diametrically opposed to the role of a mischievous imp.” (35) Yozo likes making jokes. He likes having fun by playing tricks but he will not disturb or harm someone else. Sometimes he makes fad jokes or just for fun. People around him will not take it seriously. They will just laugh and consider that those things or Yozo’s jokes are okay.

So, Yozo is different from others who like making jokes but sometimes harm the others. Yozo likes amusing people using his own way. Based on his reaction and manner, it can be concluded that Yozo is a nice boy in his own way.

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4.1.2.3 Yozo is Sensitive

Every time Yozo hears something strange about himself from someone else, he will feel sad and he will start doubting himself. His society makes him sensitive to his surroundings. It will be so easy for Yozo to doubt himself if he thinks that he is different from the society. “Again, I never once answered back anything said to me by my family. The least word of reproof struck me with the force of a thunderbolt and drove me almost out of my head. Answer back!” (27)

Yozo will take others’ compliment about him seriously. Moreover, if he gets some criticisms, it will affect him to think that he has failed to be a human being. “Whenever anyone criticized me I felt certain that I had been living under the most dreadful misapprehension. I always accepted the attack in silence, though inwardly so terrified as almost to be out of my mind.”(27) As the conclusion, through his reaction and manner, it can be assumed that Yozo is sensitive.

4.1.2.4 Yozo is Timid

Timid is a kind of character in which the person is shy and nervous. He is not brave to do something. Yozo is timid.

It was my nature to be very timid about meeting people anyway, and so I finally chose the expedient of keeping a safe distance from the Ginza. This timidity of nature was no trickery on my part. Women do not bring to bear so much as a particle of connection between what they do on rising in the morning; they go on living with their world successfully divided in two, as if total oblivion had intervened. My trouble was that I could not yet successfully cope with this extraordinary phenomenon. (82)

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It is better for him to stay away from the others. Especially if it is related to women, then Yozo will choose to keep a distance. Yozo cannot understand women completely. Through his reaction, manner and speech we can conclude that Yozo is timid.

4.1.2.5 Yozo is Smart

Yozo has something what we call aptitude. He does not need to study hard. Even when he should skip the class for many times because he is a kind of child who easily gets sick still he can follow the school subject well. He always becomes the first in his class. He always says that he has “brains”. He never studies, even when he is fine. “… I was always first in my class, thanks to my “brains”. I never studied, even when I was well”. (34)

He always gets good scores for all subject except for deportment “My report card was all A’s except for deportment, where it was never better than a C or a D.” (35) By the statements above, it can be concluded that Yozo is smart through his manner and speech.

4.2. The Portrayal of Yozo’s Society in the Novel

This section will discuss the second question in the problem formulation which deals with Yozo’s society. Society has a big role in forming and building someone’s personality and character. Society also has a big influence on someone’s life in making decision and perception. The norms and values are determined by the society. If we want to be accepted by the society we have to

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behave in the following the norms and values determined by the society. But if we act or behave against the norms and values determined by the society, we will be totally rejected by them and they will hate us. In this study, the description of the society is one important part to analyze Yozo’s perception of the existence of human being uses socio-cultural approach. Yozo lives in Japan. So, more or less his perception about human being will be influenced by the Japanese society. In brief, Japanese society is a society in which the members or the people have been raised to think of themselves as part of a group, and their group is always dealing with other groups. Many westerners see Japanese as aloof which means not friendly or interested in other people, shy, and always walking on eggshells. They seem to live indifferently.

Here, in this study we will see how the Japanese society perceives the existence of human being. And later we will know the influence of the society to Yozo’s own perception about human being.

There are some definitions about society found in this study. We will find the definitions below. A family is a small unit of society. The parents as the members of a family also give big influence to Yozo’s perception of the existence of human being. “…, but because the human beings around me had rigorously sealed me off from the world of trust or distrust. Even my parents at times displayed attitudes which were hard for me to understand.” (38) Even his parents make him confused about the meaning and the existence of human being. Whereas the parents should give a right understanding or even a good example of

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attitude or behaviour of a human being should be. Yozo is denied the love of his father until he does not believe in the love anymore.

After family we have our surrounding and our friends as our society. A good society will give good influence for us to be better people. Unfortunately, Yozo has a society or surrounding which does not help him to grow as a better person. He is taken advantage of by his friends.

Yozo is orphaned from his fellows by their refusal to take him seriously. So, Yozo’s society really gives bad influence to him in giving the meaning of the existence of human being.

Furthermore, how the society is formed depends on its member. Whether we will have a good or bad society, it all depends on the member itself. “The incomprehensibility of society is the incomprehensibility of the individual. The ocean is not society; it is individuals.” (125) The members are needed to make a society. The members take important role in a society. If the members or individuals are paralyzed, the society automatically will be paralyzed too.

If one wants to survive in his society or he wants to have other persons know that he exists, he should struggle or work hard. Even he should compete with the others. Sometimes, one should fight to survive and get what they want. “It is the struggle between one individual and another, a then-and-there struggle, in which the immediate triumph is everything.” (124) It is so humane if someone never feels satisfied with what he has got. He will struggle to reach higher and higher, to prove that he can do better than anyone else.

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Society is not only about individuals but also about the relation among the individuals. One example about individuals’ relationship is friendship. We cannot live alone in this, although we think that we can do it but still we need someone else to help us. We need someone else to share, work together and build each other. Good environment will give good effects, good friends will help us to be better people. In this study, we see that Yozo has many friends but he cannot feel the meaning of friendship. He is taken advantage of by his male and female friends. We have already known that Yozo is liked by many women, but as the time goes by he knows that women also take advantage of him.

I also have the impression that many women have been able, instinctively, to sniff out this loneliness of mine, which I confided to no one, and this in later years was become one of the causes of my being taken advantage of in so many years. (38)

I had no friends. I had nowhere to go. (108)

Even though he could make other people easily happy by being a clown, still he cannot get the feeling of having friendship. According to him, having a friendship may give painful relationship.

Though I have always made it my practice to be pleasant to everybody, I have not once actually experienced friendship. I have only the most painful recollections of my various acquaintances with the exception of such companions in pleasure as Horiki. I have frantically played the clown in order to disentangle myself from these painful relationships, only to wear myself out as a result. Even now it comes as a shock if by chance I notice in the street a face resembling someone I know however slightly, and I am at once seized by a shivering violent enough to make me dizzy. (107)

Being a clown gives him a lot of friends. They like Yozo. They might love Yozo but it seems that Yozo cannot reply their love. He does not know how to love the others. He is not successful in loving others.

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I know that I am liked by other people, but I seem to be deficient in the faculty to love others. (I should add that I have very strong doubts as to whether even human beings really posses this faculty.) It was hardly to be expected that someone like myself could ever develop any close friendships—besides, I lacked even ability to pay visits. The front door of another person’s house terrified me more than the gate of Inferno in the Divine Comedy, and I am not exaggerating when I say that I really felt I could detect within the door the presence of a horrible dragon-like monster writhing there with a dank, raw smell. (107)

Yozo feels weird or maybe afraid every time he has to visit someone else. It is so dreadful for him to visit others. It is hard for him to make contact with other human beings. “I decided on a visit, the most difficult thing in the world for me.” (108)

The relationship between a man and a woman is also a part of the society. In this novel, we can see that Yozo cannot build a good relationship with a woman although there are many women who like him. “I have always found the female of the human species many times more difficult to understand than the male.” (48) It is easy for girls to laugh every time Yozo becomes a clown. They are also less demanding than men when it comes to Yozo’s clowning. When he entertains people especially men, they will not laugh easily. Yozo will be careful in playing the jester. He will keep his comedy not to fall flat so he will stop on the right time. On the other hand, women will ask for more and Yozo will be tired in responding them. He supposes that women stuff themselves with far more pleasures than men.

There are many things which make Yozo cannot understand women. For example, he is confused why women sleep so soundly. He realizes that women

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and men are different. Although, he feels that women and men are different but he knows that these women look after him.

Women led me on only to throw me aside; they mocked and tortured me when others were around, only to embrace me with passion as soon as everyone had left. Women sleep so soundly they seem to be dead. Who knows? Women may live in order to sleep. These and various other generalizations were products of an observation of women since boyhood days, but my conclusion was that though women appear to belong to the same species as man, they are actually quite different creatures, and these incomprehensible, insidious beings have, fantastic as it seems, always looked after me. In my case such an expression as “to be fallen for” or even “to be loved” is not in the least appropriate; perhaps it describes the situation more accurately to say that I was “looked after.” (49)

There are many women around Yozo. They can feel comfortable if they are close to Yozo. They can share anything about their problem and they can even cry in Yozo’s shoulders. “Women found in me a man who could keep a love secret.” (38) Surprisingly, it does not affect Yozo a lot. He still cannot understand women. “This, however, by no means implies that Takeichi’s compliment, “Women’ll fall for you” had as yet been realized.” (52)

Most of the members in his family are girls from his cousins until his maidservant. So, it can be said that Yozo lives and grows up with girls as his playmates. Although he lives with many girls but still he cannot understand them. “Nevertheless, it was with very much the sensation of treading on thin ice that I associated with these girls. I could almost never guess their motives.” (48)

In conclusion, there are many elements forming the society from the individual itself, the smallest unit which is family until the relationship between man and a woman and among groups. We have seen how the society of Yozo is. Yozo’s perception is more or less influenced by his society.

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4.2.1 The Influence of Society on Yozo’s Perception of the Existence of Human Being

Because of the influence from his society, Yozo makes his own perception about the existence of human being. Yozo has some different perception from the society about human being. Yozo has different way of thinking from the most common people. That is why he feels that he is no longer human because he is very different from the others. He does not have the same perception with his society about human being. He could not get the same understanding with the society. So, he is against what society says about human being. “I can’t even guess myself what it must be to live the life of a human being.” (21)

As a normal person, one will have many kind of feelings for example feeling of hurt, happiness, sadness, boredom, etc. One example of the feelings is the feeling of hungry or hunger. The normal people will feel hungry but Yozo does not feel that. He is confused why people have that kind of hunger.

Again, I have never known what it means to be hungry. I don’t mean by this statement that I was raised in a well-to-do family—I have no such banal intent. I mean that I have had not the remotest idea of the nature of the sensation of “hunger”. It sounds peculiar to say it, but I have never been aware that my stomach was empty. (22)

He is never aware that his stomach is empty. When he goes home after school, the people at home treat him and think that he must be hungry then they will ask him to eat. To please them, he will pretend that he is hungry and he will eat.

Seeking to please, as I invariably did, I would mumble that I was hungry, and stuff a dozen jelly beans in my mouth, but what they meant by feeling hungry completely escaped me. (23)

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Of course I do a great deal all the same, but I have almost no recollection of ever having done so out of hunger. Unusual or extravagant things tempt me, and when I go to the house of somebody else I eat almost everything put before me, even if it takes some effort. As a child the most painful part of the day was unquestionably mealtime, especially in my own home. (23) There is a custom in Yozo’s family about having mealtime. They have to eat together, lined up in two facing rows at table. Yozo sits at the end because he is the youngest child. The dining room is dark, the atmosphere is gloomy and all the members about ten or more are silent. This condition gives him enough chills. Moreover, Yozo lives in an old-fashioned country household where there is no extravagant food only prescribed food. It would be useless for Yozo to hope for unusual or special food. Yozo is always afraid every time he has mealtime because he will be forced to eat.

The dining room was dark, and the sight of the ten or more members of the household eating their lunch, or whatever the meal was, in gloomy silence was enough to send chills through me. Besides, this was an old-fashioned country household where the food was more or less prescribed, and it was useless even to hope for unusual or extravagant dishes. I dreaded mealtime more each day. I would sit there at the end of the table in the dimly lit room and, trembling all over as with the cold, I would lift a few morsels of food to my mouth and push them in. (24)

Those things make him confused. He asks himself why people do that, how necessary it is. He does not understand why people sometimes have to eat regularly even maybe they do not feel hungry. In Yozo’s experience, he is confused why all the members in his family should eat together even in a gloomy room and it becomes a ritual.

“Why must human beings eat three meals every single day? What extraordinarily solemn faces they all make as they eat! It seems to be some kind of ritual. Three times every day at the regulated hour the family gathers in this gloomy room. …” (24)

(57)

It’s common for people to eat because they will die if they do not eat. So, there is a big doubt and fear arise in Yozo’s mind about eating. He cannot get the meaning, he has different perception about this. He thinks that people do not have to eat that regularly. In his perception, people have to think about another thing not only about food. Yozo is against what society says about eating and food.

Eat or die, the saying goes, but to my ears it sounded like just one more unpleasant threat. Nevertheless this superstition (I could only think of it as such) always aroused doubt and fear in me. Nothing was so hard for me to understand, so baffling, and at the same time so filled with menacing overtones as the commonplace remark, “Human beings work to earn their bread, for if they don’t eat, they die.” (24)

Yozo still has no understanding about what makes human beings behave in the way that they do. That is why Yozo feels different with the others and thinks that he is not included as human beings.

In other words, you might say that I still have no understanding of what makes human beings tick. My apprehension on discovering that my concept of happiness seemed to be completely at variance with that of everyone else was so great as to make me toss sleeplessly and groan night after night in my bed. It drove me indeed to the brink of lunacy. I wonder if I have actually been happy. (24-25)

He does not understand the meaning of happiness. He cannot feel what other people feel about happiness. He does not know why people could feel the happiness of their life. He asks whether all these people feel the truth happiness or just pretend if they are happy. Although people tell him for many times how lucky he is but still he always feels that he is suffering in hell. Yozo thinks that those people who say that are actually much happier than him. Yozo sometimes thinks that his life is full of burdens. “I have sometimes thought that I have been burdened with a pack of ten misfortunes, any one of which if borne by my

(58)

neighbour would be enough to make a murderer of him.” (25) Yozo thinks their neighbours are completely egoists if they could survive without doing something and because they are accustomed to the way they live and never doubt themselves. I simply don’t understand. I have not the remotest clue what the nature or extent of my neighbour’s woes can be. Practical troubles, grieves that can be assuaged if only there is enough to eat—these may be the most intense of all burning hells, horrible enough to blast to smithereens my ten misfortunes, but that is precisely what I don’t understand: if my neighbours manage to survive without killing themselves, without going mad, maintaining an interest in political parties, not yielding to despair, resolutely pursuing the fight for the existence, can their grieves really be genuine? Am I wrong in thinking that these people have become such complete egoists and are so convinced of the normality of their way of life that they have never once doubted themselves? If it is the case, their sufferings should be easy to bear: they are the common lot of human beings and perhaps the best one can hope for. (25-26)

Yozo thinks and also asks what kind of dream they have, what they think while they are walking whether it is money or the other things. The more Yozo tries to understand, the more confused he is. After thinking about it Yozo feels that he is completely not like the rest or the other people. It is hard for Yozo to mingle with others. He does not know what to say and how to say it.

I seem to have heard the theory advanced that human beings live in order to eat, but I’ve never heard anyone say that they lived in order to make money. … It is almost impossible for me to converse with other people. What should I talk about, how should I say it? –I don’t know. (26)

That is why he invents his clowning, his way to pretend to someone else. Although he has a mortal dread of human beings he seems quite unable to renounce their society. He feels that he no longer belongs to the society. He never answers back anything said to him by his family. He always accepts the attack in silence.

(1)

Information Agency. 1987. (4)

Mikulecky, Beatrice S., and Linda Jeffries. More Reading Power. Reading For Pleasure, Comprehension Skills, Thinking Skills, Reading Faster. 2nd Edition. New York: Pearson Education, Inc. 2004. (5)

(2)

Appendix 4

The Implementation of Teaching Intensive Reading 2

Material: No Longer Human (pp 124-127)

Pre-reading Questions: 1. What is society?

2. What do you think about society and its influence to someone’s perception?

3. What is the connection between society and an individual?

Comprehensive Questions:

1. What does Yozo think about society?

2. How does the society influence Yozo’s perception of the existence of human being?

3. Does Yozo think that all human beings in a society have the same thought? Why?

(3)

LESSON PLAN

Subject : Intensive Reading II

Semester : II

Topic : Society and its influence to someone’s perception about the existence of human being

Material : No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai (pp 124-127) Time Allocation : 100 minutes

Basic

Competencies

Achievement indicators

Learning experiences Material

• Students improve their reading skills by comprehending

the reading material taken from a literary work.

• Students are able to develop reading ability.

• Students are able to apply reading strategies.

• Students are able to express critical responses to the topics and ideas conveyed in the text.

• Students read and

try to understand the material.

• Students identify

some difficult words in the materials.

• Students answer

the questions from the passage.

No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai page 124-127.

Evaluation: The teacher evaluates the students’ comprehension by checking the students’ answers of the questions.

(4)

Appendix 6

No Longer Human pp 124-127

Society. I felt as though even I were beginning at last to acquire some vague notion of what it meant. It is the struggle between one individual and another, a then-and-there struggle, in which the immediate triumph is everything. Human beings never submit to human beings. Even slaves practice their mean retaliations. Human beings cannot conceive of any means of survival except in terms of a single then-and-there contest. They speak of duty to one’s country and suchlike things, but the object of their efforts is invariably the individual, and, even once the individual’s needs have been met, again the individual comes in. The incomprehensibility of society is the incomprehensibility of the individual. The ocean is not society; it is individuals. This way how I managed to gain a modicum of freedom from my terror at the illusion of the ocean called the world. I learned to behave rather aggressively, without the endless anxious worrying I knew before, responding as it were to the needs of the moment.

When I left the apartment in Koenji I told the madam of the bar in Kyobashi, “I’ve left her and come to you.” That was all I said, and it was enough. In other words, my single then-and-there contest had been decided, and from that night I lodged myself without ceremony on the second floor of her place. “Society” which by all rights should have been implacable, inflicted not a particle

(5)

At the bar I was treated like a customer, like the owner, like an errand boy, like a relative of the management; one might have expected that I would be considered a very dubious character, but “society” was not in the least suspicious of me, and the regular customers of the bar treated me with almost painful kindness. They called me by my first name and bought me drinks.

I gradually came to relax my vigilance towards the world. I came to think that it was not such a dreadful place. My feelings of panic had been molded by the unholy fear aroused in me by such superstitions of science as the hundreds of thousands of whooping-cough germs borne by the spring breezes, the hundreds of thousands of eye-destroying bacteria which infest the public baths, the hundreds of thousands of microbes in a barber shop which will cause baldness, the swarms of scabious parasites infecting the leather straps in the subway cars; or the tapeworm, fluke and heaven knows what eggs that undoubtedly lurk in raw fish and in undercooked beef and pork; or the fact that if you walk barefoot a tiny sliver of glass may penetrate the sole of your foot and after circulating through your body reach the eye and cause blindness. There is no disputing the accurate, scientific fact that millions of germs are floating, swimming, wriggling everywhere. At the same time, however, if you ignore them completely they lose all possible connection with yourself and at once become nothing more than vanishing “ghosts of science.” This too I came to understand. I had been so terrorized by scientific statistics (if ten million people each leave over three gains

(6)

of rice from their lunch, how many sacks of rice are wasted in one day; if ten million people each economize one paper handkerchief a day, how much pulp will be saved?) that whenever I left over a single grain of rice, whenever I blew my nose, I imagined that I was wasting mountains of rice, tons of paper, and I fell prey to a mood dark as if I had committed some terrible crime. But these were the lies of science, the lies of statistics and mathematics: you can’t collect three gains of rice from everybody. Even as an exercise in multiplication or division, t ranks as one of the most elementary and feeble-minded problems, about on a par with the computation of the percentage of times that people slip in dark, unlighted bathrooms and fall into the toilet, or the percentage of passengers who get their feet caught in the space between the door of a subway train and the edge of platform, or other such footling exercises in probability. These events seem entirely within the bounds of possibility, but I have never heard a single instance of anyone hurting himself by falling into the toilet. I felt pity and cottempt for the self which until yesterday had accepted such hypothetical situations as eminently factual scientific truths and was terrified by them. This shows the degree to which I had bit by bit arrived at a knowledge of the real nature of what is called the world.

The main character`s perception of the existence of human being in Osamu Dazai`s No Longer Human.

THE MAIN CHARACTER’S PERCEPTION

OF THE EXISTENCE OF HUMAN BEING

IN OSAMU DAZAI’S NO LONGER HUMAN

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION

FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA

I dedicate this thesis to

my beloved and

marvelous parents The

Djing Siem and

Frederika Rachel

Tumundo

to my sisters and

brother;

Kak Elsa, Kak Inne,

and Kak Dani

This thesis is also

dedicated to my beloved

one,

Ale

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The main character`s perception of the existence of human being in Osamu Dazai`s No Longer Human.

THE MAIN CHARACTER’S PERCEPTION

OF THE EXISTENCE OF HUMAN BEING

IN OSAMU DAZAI’S NO LONGER HUMAN

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION

FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA

I dedicate this thesis to

my beloved and

marvelous parents The

Djing Siem and

Frederika Rachel

Tumundo

to my sisters and

brother;

Kak Elsa, Kak Inne,

and Kak Dani

This thesis is also

dedicated to my beloved

one,

Ale

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