Cultural conflicts experienced by Obi Okonkwo as revealed in Chinua Achebe`s No Longer At Ease - USD Repository
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
CULTURAL CONFLICTS EXPERIENCED BY OBI OKONKWO
AS REVEALED IN CHINUA ACHEBE’S NO LONGER AT EASE
A Thesis
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree in English Language Education
By: Susanti Malasari
Student Number: 041214124
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA
CULTURAL CONFLICTS EXPERIENCED BY OBI OKONKWO
AS REVEALED IN CHINUA ACHEBE’S NO LONGER AT EASE
A Thesis
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree in English Language Education
By: Susanti Malasari
Student Number: 041214124
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJIPLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
ABSTRACT
Malasari, Susanti (2009). Cultural Conflicts Experienced by Obi Okonkwo as
Revealed in Chinua Achebe’s No Longer at Ease. Yogyakarta: English
Language Education Study Program Sanata Dharma University.This thesis discusses a novel entitled No Longer at Ease written by Chinua Achebe. It is about a young man, Obi Okonkwo, who returns from studying abroad in England. The influence of western culture makes Obi Okonkwo live with two different cultures. It makes Obi Okonkwo rebel against his Ibo traditions and customs. That is why he tries to break the rule of the tradition by making a decision to marry an osu. However, Obi Okonkwo’s parents, friends and also lover stand against his decision because it is clear that marrying an osu is forbidden in Ibo society. The clashed perception between Obi Okonkwo and his relatives, friends and also his lover leads him to the main conflict of the novel.
There are two problems formulated in the problem formulation, they are: (1) How is Obi Okonkwo’s character described in the novel? (2) How does western culture influence the major conflict of Obi Okonkwo?
The method of this study is library research. There are two main data that the writer used in this study: primary data and secondary data. The primary data is the novel No Longer at Ease. The secondary data is the data that are used to support the analysis such as some books in literature, sociology, culture and also some articles related to Ibo and Western culture taken from the electronic sources.
In order to answer the first problem, the writer used theories of character and characterization. To find out the answer of the second problem, the writer used sociology theories, cultural theories, review on Ibo and Western culture in particular those related to marriage. In addition, the writer used sociocultural approach because it deals with the influence of culture on a conflict in one’s life.
The analysis of the first problem shows that Obi Okonkwo is described as a smart, dishonest, idealistic, responsible, educated, loving and caring person. On the other hand, the analysis of the second problem concerns with the influence of Western culture on the major conflict of Obi Okonkwo. It is concluded that Obi Okonkwo’s decision to marry Clara is the cause of the major conflict. It happens because Obi Okonkwo has been influenced by Western culture that makes him have new perceptions about marriage.
This thesis also gives suggestions for future researchers and for English teaching. There are other things that can be analyzed by future researchers such as the relation between the writer and the story and the influence of love in the major character. The writer also suggests some parts of the novel as the materials for teaching writing for the second semester students of English Education Study Program.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
ABSTRAK
Malasari, Susanti (2009). Cultural Conflicts Experienced by Obi Okonkwo as
Revealed in Chinua Achebe’s No Longer at Ease. Yogyakarta: Program Studi
Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris Universitas Sanata Dharma.Skripsi ini membahas sebuah novel berjudul No Longer at Ease karangan Chinua Achebe. Novel ini menceritakan tentang seorang laki-laki muda bernama Obi Okonkwo yang baru saja kembali dari Inggris. Pengaruh kebudayaan barat membuat Obi Okonkwo hidup dengan dua kebudayaan yang berbeda. Hal itu membuat Obi Okonkwo menentang tradisi dan kebudayaan Ibo yang dianutnya. Oleh karena itu, dia mencoba untuk melanggar tradisi masyarakatnya dengan membuat keputusan untuk menikahi seorang osu. Akan tetapi, orang tua, sahabat- sahabat dan kekasih Obi Okonkwo menentang keputusannya karena masyarakat Ibo melarang seseorang untuk menikahi osu. Perbedaan persepsi diantara Obi Okonkwo dengan kerabatnya, sahabat-sahabatnya dan kekasihnya membuatnya masuk ke dalam konflik utama dalam novel ini.
Ada dua masalah yang dinyatakan dalam rumusan masalah: (1) Bagaimana karakter Obi Okonkwo dideskripsikan? (2) Bagaimana pengaruh budaya barat terhadap konflik utama yang dialami oleh Obi Okonkwo?
Skipsi ini menggunakan metode studi pustaka. Ada dua sumber utama yang digunakan dalam skipsi ini: sumber utama dan sumber kedua. Sumber utamanya adalah novel No Longer at Ease. Sumber keduanya adalah data yang digunakan untuk mendukung analisis seperti buku-buku tentang kesusasteraan, buku-buku tentang sosiologi, buku-buku tentang kebudayaan dan juga beberapa artikel tentang kebudayaan Ibo dan kebadayaan barat yang diambil dari sumber- sumber elektronik.
Untuk menjawab pertanyaan pada masalah pertama, saya menggunakan teori penokohan. Untuk menemukan jawaban masalah kedua, saya menggunakan teori sosiologi, teori budaya, dan ulasan tentang budaya Ibo dan budaya barat pada khususnya yang berhubungan dengan pernikahan. Saya juga menggunakan pendekatan sosial-budaya karena analisis skripsi ini berkaitan dengan pengaruh budaya terhadap konflik dalam kehidupan seseorang.
Analisis masalah pertama menunjukkan bahwa Obi Okonkwo adalah seorang yang pandai, tidak jujur, idealis, bertanggung jawab, berpendidikan dan penyayang. Analisis masalah kedua membahas tentang pengaruh kebudayaan barat terhadap konflik utama yang dialami oleh Obi Okonkwo. Dapat disimpulkan bahwa keputusan Obi Okonkwo untuk menikahi Clara adalah hal yang menjadi sebab konflik utama. Hal tersebut terjadi karena Obi Okonkwo telah terpengaruh oleh budaya barat yang membuatnya mempunyai persepsi-persepsi baru tentang pernikahan.
Skripsi ini juga memberi saran bagi para peneliti selanjutnya dan bagi pengajaran bahasa Inggris. Ada beberapa hal yang dapat dianalisa oleh para peneliti selanjutntya seperti hubungan antara pengarang dengan cerita dan pengaruh cinta pada karakter utama. Penulis juga mengusulkan beberapa bagian
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
dari novel sebagai materi untuk mengajar keahlian menulis yang diperuntukkan bagi mahasiswa semester dua jurusan pendidikan bahasa Inggris.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
I face inconvenience to get something precious in my life... God gives me this chance to prove that I can make one of my dreams comes true...
However this is not the end of my efforts because there is a greatest dream that I want to achieve...
This thesis is gratefully dedicated to:
- My beloved parents
- My younger brother
- My Sun
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all I would like to thank my God, Allah SWT for the Most Gracious love, mercy and guidance in all my life. His strength empowers me to face this hard life especially in writing my thesis. Allah is the only power in my life. I would like to thank Mrs. Henny Herawati, S. Pd., M. Hum. for her time, advice, ideas, comments, suggestions and also for her patience in guiding me during the writing process of my thesis. She is much more than a thesis advisor. She is a very great thesis advisor. I also would like to thank Sister Margaret,
Paskalina Widiastuti Ratnaningsih, and Silvia Krisnawati for reading and
correcting my thesis. I appreciate their help, patience and kindness.A great appreciation goes to all lecturers of English Education Study
Program for helping me to broaden my knowledge that is very useful in writing
this thesis. I also thank all the staff at the secretariat who are always ready to help me in administrative matter during my study. My deepest thanks go to
Sanata Dharma University librarians for their kindness in helping me finding
references that are useful for my study and my thesis.My greatest gratitude goes to my family: My Father, Murjoko Maiyanto, my mother, Warsih, and also my younger brother, Setyo Budi Ariyanto, who always encourages me. I thank them for their love, support and prayers. I also thank for every smile, every joke and every great moment in our lives. I thank them for everything they have given to me. May God always give us a great amount of peace so that we can have such a great live in this world. I also thank
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
my younger brother’s girlfriend, Dhesi. I thank her for her caring and encouragement. Grateful thanks go to My Sun. I thank him for his love, support and encouragement. I thank him for sharing great moments with me and brightening my days. I will never forget all of them.
My special thanks go to my mutual friends, Susan, Bekti and Vensi for coloring my days. They all have been so nice and great friends to me who are willing to help me whenever I need. I thank them for every laugher and tear. We will be good friends forever. May God bless them all. I also thank Yayun for the novel. My deepest thanks go to Mbak Upik, Ferdi, Mbak Ari, and Mbak Niken for their help and encouragement. Special thanks go to Mas Adi, Randy,
Immanuel and also Mas Andri for their encouragement and support. I also thank
my classmates, who are so friendly and kind. I will miss our days together. I would express my gratitude for my partners in conducting PPL II, KKN and SPD project. I thank them for such a great cooperation.
I would like to thank my Sweety Supra Fit AB 5225 G. I thank it so much for accompanying me everywhere. I thank it for being my friend in all conditions.
It is the most loyal friend that I have ever had.
Last but not least I would like to express my deepest thanks to everybody who has helped and supported me in writing my thesis and for those who have come and beautified my life. I cannot mention one by one but I truly thank them for everything they have given to me. May the best come to us all.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
TITLE PAGE ................................................................................................ i
APPROVAL PAGES .................................................................................... ii
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY ........................................... iv
ABSTRACT ................................................................................................... v
ABSTRAK ....................................................................................................... vi
PAGE OF DEDICATION ............................................................................ viii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................... ix
TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................. xi
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ................................................................1 A. Background of the Study . ...........................................................................
1 B. Problem Formulation ..................................................................................
3 C. Problem Limitation .....................................................................................
4 D. Objectives of the Study ..............................................................................
4 E. Benefits of the Study ..................................................................................
4 F. Definition of Terms ....................................................................................
4 CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ........................
7 A. Theoretical Review .....................................................................................
7 1. Theory of Literature .........................................................................
7 a. Theory of Character ................................................................
7
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
b. Theory of Characterization .....................................................
9 1) Meaning of Characterization ............................................
9 2) Ways of Characterization..................................................
9 c. Theory of Critical Approach ..................................................
10 d. Theory of Conflict ..................................................................
12 2. Sociological Theory of Conflict ...................................................
12 3. Cultural Theory of Social Class and Caste System ......................
14 a. Social Class ...........................................................................
14 b. Caste System .........................................................................
14 4. Review on Igbo Culture ..................................................................
15 a. Caste System .........................................................................
15 b. Igbo Marriage Tradition ........................................................
17 5. Review on Western Culture ............................................................
17 a. Social Class in the United States ...........................................
17 b. Western Marriage Tradition ..................................................
18 B. Theoretical Framework ..............................................................................
18 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ............................................................
20 A. Object of the Study .....................................................................................
20 B. Approach of the Study .................................................................................
21 C. Method of the Study ....................................................................................
22
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS .........................................................................
23 A. The Description of Obi Okonkwo ..............................................................
23 1. Smart ...............................................................................................
25 2. Dishonest. .........................................................................................
26 3. Idealistic ...........................................................................................
28 4. Responsible ......................................................................................
31 5. Educated ...........................................................................................
33 6. Loving and Caring ...........................................................................
36 B. The Influence of Western Culture on the Major Conflict of Obi – Okonkwo ....................................................................................................
41
1. The Identification of the Cause of the Major Conflict of Obi – Okonkwo .........................................................................................
41 a. Perceptions of Clara ...............................................................
43 b. Perceptions of Obi’s Friends ..................................................
45 c. Perceptions of Obi’s Parents ...................................................
47 2. Obi’s New Perceptions about Marriage ..........................................
50 CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS ...........................
56 A. Conclusions ................................................................................................
56 B. Suggestions .................................................................................................
59 1. Suggestions for Future Researchers ................................................
59
2. Suggestions for English Teachers: The Implementation of No Longer at Ease to teach writing .................................................
59
REFERENCES ..............................................................................................
62 APPENDICES ...............................................................................................
65 Appendix 1: Summary of No Longer at Ease .................................................
66 Appendix 2: Biography of Chinua Achebe .....................................................
69 Appendix 3: Chinua Achebe’s Works .............................................................
76 Appendix 4: Picture of Chinua Achebe ..........................................................
77 Appendix 5: Map of the Places in the novel ...................................................
78 Appendix 6: Syllabus ......................................................................................
79 Appendix 7: Implementation of No Longer at Ease to Teach Writing ...........
81 PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION This chapter consists of six major parts. The first part, background of the
study, explains the writer’s reasons in choosing the topic. The second part, problem formulation, formulates the problems that the writer wants to discuss.
The third part, problem limitation, describes the focus and the scope of the study. The fourth part, objectives of the study, presents the objectives of this study. The fifth part, research benefits, presents the benefits of this study. In addition, the last part, definition of terms, explains some key terms used in this study.
A. Background of the Study
As social beings, human beings could not live by themselves. They are always related to their society. It means that they need their society to fulfill their needs. They need to interact with their society in order to survive. The interaction between them is often called social interaction. According to Gillin and Gillin (489) “social interaction refers to social relations of all sorts in function - dynamic social relations of all kinds – whether such relations exist between individual and individual, between group and group, or between group and individual, as the case may be.” In the process of social interaction, human beings may find some problems. The problems may cause conflict between them.
Fichter (230) states “conflict is that form of mutual interaction through which two or more persons attempt to remove each other, either by annihilating or
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
by rendering the other party ineffectual.” While Gillin and Gillin (625) state “conflict is the social process in which individuals or groups seek their ends by directly challenging the antagonist by violence or threat of violence.” However, conflicts are not necessarily violence but it can be the conflict in the form of contrary ideas or values. There are many causes of conflicts. According to Gillin and Gillin, conflicts may grow up through cultural differences. This statement is supported by LeBaron which states “culture is always a factor in conflict, whether it plays a central role or influences it subtly and gently.”
It is so because there are some people who have a narrow view of another’s culture. Usually people feel proud of their own culture. However, their way of thinking sometimes leads them to judge another culture is worse compare to their own culture. Therefore, conflict cannot be avoided. People usually feel that they belong to certain cultural values, whenever they are threatened by others they will act violently or they may react to it by being angry with the people who threaten them. It means that cultural differences may raise conflict between individual or between groups in the society even conflict in the family.
This phenomenon makes people who deal with literature have an idea that cultural conflict may become a great soul of a story. A story that raises issues of cultural differences offers great values for human beings. The novel that the writer chose is one of the novels that raise social and cultural issues in human life that we can easily find in our society. It tells about a man, Obi Okonkwo, who has just come back from England after four years of studying abroad. During his years in England, Obi Okonkwo is unconsiously influenced by western culture.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
As a result, while Obi Okonkwo comes back to his hometown, he lives with two different cultures. His Ibo culture is mixed with western culture. He is an
Ibo but he has westernized ways of thinking. As a result, Obi Okonkwo feels that
he is uncomfortable with his own culture. In addition, he rebels against the Ibo traditions that he previously believes in and follows western traditions.
Culture is something precious for a country. It is the identity of a country. A good country must be able to keep their own culture because by keeping their culture, it means that they keep their own identity. What the writer found in the novel is that the major character cannot maintain his own culture which raises the major conflict among the characters. The conflict occurred between the major character and his lover and between the major character and his family. This novel is very interesting since it shows how western culture influences the major conflict of Obi Okonkwo. That is why the writer wants to analyze more on the conflict which is caused by the influence of western culture in this novel. The writer hopes that this work becomes an overview that culture has a big role in the traditional society which still holds on to their traditional rules.
B. Problem Formulation
1. How is Obi Okonkwo’s character described in the novel?
2. How does western culture influence the major conflict of Obi Okonkwo?
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
C. Problem Limitation
This study focuses on the discussion on the major character’s description in the story and the discussion on how western culture influences the major conflict of Obi Okonkwo.
D. Objectives of the Study
In this study, there are two objectives that the writer wants to achieve. The first is to find out how Obi Okonkwo’s character is described in the novel. The writer tries to explore his attitudes and behavior and also how he is characterized by another character. The second objective is to find out how western culture influences the major conflict of Obi Okonkwo.
E. Benefits of the Study There are at least two groups of people who get the benefits of the study.
They are readers in general and students. The readers in general get more knowledge on how cultural differences cause conflicts in the society. The writer hopes that this study gives contribution to the readers and the students who want to take the same study.
F. Definition of Terms
To avoid misunderstanding and to get better understanding, the writer provides the definitions of some terms that are used in this study.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
The first term is character. Gill (127) states “a character is someone in a literary work who has some sort of identity (it does not need be a strong one), an identity which is made up by appearance, conversation, action, name and (possibly) thoughts in the head.” In this study, the term character has two meanings. Firstly, it means the person that becomes the focus of the novel that is described deeply through their attitudes and performance. Secondly, they are described through their psychological behavior which is concerned with their emotion, feeling and motivation.
The second term is conflict. According to Laurence Perrine (44) conflict means a clash of action, ideas, desires or wills between two individuals or among people in the society. In this study, conflict refers to the problems caused by the influence of western culture that the major character faces in the story.
The third term is culture. Fichter (270) states “culture is the total configuration of institutions that people in a society share in common.” In this study, culture refers to the tradition that the major character holds and new beliefs that the major character acquires when he is studying in England.
The fourth term is Ibo or Igbo. Igbo is one of ethnic groups in Negeria. According to Froiland “the Ibos live in the Iboland.” VanderSluis explains that “Igbo people find their home in a rich and fertile crescent created by the lower Niger River within Nigeria.” In this study, Igbo refers to the ethnic in which Obi Okonkwo belongs to.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
The sixth term is Diala. According to Igwe, Diala are the freeborn. Igwe states that in its literary meaning Diala means “the son of the soil.” He also states that Diala are “the master.” In this study Diala refers to the Obi Okonkwo’s caste.
The seventh term is Osu. According to Onyemaechi, “an osu is a person who is sacrificed or consecrated alive together with his or her descendants to the service of a pagan god.” Igwe states osu are “the slaves, the strangers, the outcasts, and the untouchables.” In this study, osu refers to Clara’s caste.
The last term is bride price. Onyemaechi states bride price is “a token appreciation for the loss of a daughter.” According to him bride price is given to the bride’s father or relatives. He also states that bride price is a form of a contract between the couple. In this study, bride price refers to some money that Obi Okonkwo has to pay to his bride’s father or relatives.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE This chapter includes the theories that the writer takes in the research to
support the analysis of the formulated problems stated in chapter I. This chapter is divided into two parts. They are theoretical review and theoretical framework.
Theoretical review covers the theories of literature, sociological theory of conflict, cultural theory of social class and caste system and reviews on Igbo and western culture. Theoretical framework describes the application of all theories used in this study.
A. Theoretical Review
This part deals with literary theory that the writer uses in the research to support the analysis of the study. In this part, the writer presents The Theory of Character, The Theory of Characterization, The Theory of Critical Approach, The Theory of Conflict, The Sociological Theory of Conflict, Cultural Theory of Social Class and Caste System, and also Reviews on Igbo and Western Culture.
1. Theory of Literature
a. Theory of Character
Gill (127) states “a character is someone in a literary work who has some sort of identity, an identity which is made up by appearance, conversation, action, name and (possibly) thoughts in the head.” While Stanton (17) states that
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
“character is commonly used in two ways; it designates the individuals who appear in the story and it refers to the mixture of interests, desires, emotions and moral principles that makes up each of these individuals.” On the other hand, Robert and Jacobs (119) defines “character is an extended verbal representation of a human being, the inner self that determines thought, speech, and behavior.”
There are many ways to distinguish character. According to Stanton (17) characters in a story play very important roles because the characters make the readers understand the story. Major character is the most important but he needs other characters to make the story more interesting. According to Milligan (155) there are two types of character. The first type is called major character, a character who plays an important role in the story. A major character appears more often than the other character because he or she is the center of the story. The second type is minor character, a character who plays a less important role in the story. This character does not appear in the story frequently because his or her role is only to support the major character to develop the story in the novel.
Barnet and Burto (228-229) explain about flat and round character. They state “flat character is relatively simple and usually has only one trait: loving wife (or jealous wife), tyrannical husband (or meek husband), braggart, pedant, hypocrite, or whatever.” On the other hand, Barnet and Burto states “a round character embodies several or many traits that cohere to form a complex personality.” Holman and Harmon (83) state that character may be static or dynamic based on their development and changes. Static characters are characters who do not undergo any changes in their behavior, appearance, disposition, and
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
their way of thinking. Dynamic characters, unlike static characters undergo changes in their personalities, outlook and the way of thinking. According to Barnet and Burto “a flat character is usually static (at the end of story the character is pretty much what he or she was at the start), a round character is likely to be dynamic, changing considerably as the story progress.”
b. Theory of Characterization 1) Meaning of Characterization
Characterization is establishing the distinctive character of the persons in a narrative (Abrams, 24). There are two methods that can be used in order to reveal the personality of the character. They are direct method and indirect method.
2) Ways of Characterization
There are nine ways of character analysis as stated by Murphy (161-173) to make the characters understandable and come alive for the readers. First, character can be analyzed through personal description. Here readers can analyze a character by seeing the character’s appearance. Second, readers can analyze character through character as seen by another. Other characters play an important role to a character. They have their own judgment of a character. Their judgment will help the readers to know the character’s personality.
The third way is through speech. Whatever the character says in any situation will show what kind of person the character is to the readers. By using this method, the readers will easily determine what kind of person is the character.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
Fourth, character can be analyzed through past life. A character’s past life let the readers to know what factors that shape a person’s character. Fifth, the readers can analyze a character by paying attention to the conversation of other characters. Here readers can analyze a character by seeing other characters’ conversation about a character. What other characters say about a character may become a clue of his or her personality. Sixth, readers can analyze a character by focusing on his or her reactions toward the various situations and events. How the person reaches various situations will give a clue to the readers to know a person’s character. How the character solves the problems shows his or her personality.
Seventh, a character can be analyzed by direct comments. Direct comments make the readers have a better understanding about a character in a story. Eighth, readers can analyze a character by paying attention to a character’s thought. The reader will be able to know a person’s character through what the character is thinking about and what is going on in the person’s mind. And the last way to analyze a character can be done by seeing a character’s mannerism, habits or particular behavior. The habits or activity of the character can help the readers to see his characterization.
c. Theory of Critical Approach
Reading a novel offers many advantages. Besides the interesting story, there are many life values that we can get by reading a novel. The life values provided by a novel are very good to improve our knowledge. However, readers have to comprehend and analyze the story to get the life values of the novel. For
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
that reason, readers need some approaches in analyzing the values. Rohrberger and Woods Jr. (6-15) state there are five approaches that we can use to analyze and make understandable judgment of the literary works. The five approaches are the formalist approach, the biographical approach, the sociocultural-historical approach, the mythopoeic approach, and the psychological approach.
The formalist approach focuses on the total integrity of a literary work. It concerns on its esthetic value. It investigates the work of literature itself. It examines a literary work without the reference to facts of the author’s life and the genre of a literary history, society and culture. The biographical approach is used when readers want to examine a literary work based on the author’s ideas and personality understanding of the literary work. The critics insist that a work of art is a reflection of a personality. The sociocultural-historical approach deals with the reference of social, cultural and historical background of a literary work. The critics of this approach believe that it is necessary to investigate the society and culture in which a work was created. The mythopoeic approach attempts to find particular recurrent patterns of human thought, which are considered sharing the same universal beliefs to certain community mind. Finally, the psychological approach, involves effort to locate and demonstrate certain recurrent patterns. This approach deals with human’s psychology aspects such as imagination, thought and behavior.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
d. Theory of Conflict
According to Roberts and Jacobs (88) “conflict may be presented not as direct opposition, but rather as a set of comparative or contrastive ideas or values.” While Jaffe and Scott (2) state that “conflict simply means that a story brings together two opposing forces which we call a protagonist (that is, “one who struggles for”) and an antagonist (“one who struggles against”) and then resolves the resultant struggle between these forces.” According to them conflict is a necessary element in fiction. They state that conflict is the backbone of a story; it is conflict that provides the pattern and direction and gives the sense of a story going somewhere. On the other hand, Stanton (16) explains that there are two kinds of conflicts, “the internal conflicts between two desires within a character” and “the external conflicts between characters or between a character and his environment.”
2. Sociological Theory of Conflict
Fichter (230) states “conflict is that form of mutual interaction through which two or more persons attempt to remove each other, either by annihilating or by rendering the other party ineffectual.” While Gillin and Gillin (625) state “conflict is the social process in which individuals or groups seek their ends by directly challenging the antagonist by violence or threat of violence.” According to Koenig (262) “conflict usually involves violence and is personal, in its higher forms it becomes an impersonal struggle to establish and preserve rules of justice and moral precepts.”
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
Gillin and Gillin (633-634) distinguish there are four roots of conflict. The first root of conflict is individual differences. According to Gillin and Gillin “individual differences give different point of view and provide disparities which lead to clashes.” The second is that cultural differences. Cultural differences often make people misjudge another culture so that it may form conflicts between individual and also conflict between groups. The third is clashing interests. Each individual has its own interests. The differences of interests may become the source of conflict. The last root is social change. Social change may divide and separate people into groups which cause competition. Therefore, it may become the cause of the conflict.
Simmel (263) in Koenig’s book distinguishes four types of conflict. The first type is war. War is universal in primitive life. He states that “relationships between tribes are almost always marked by hostility.” In addition, he states “war provides almost the only means of contact between alien groups; so long as peace exists, the groups remain indifferent to each other.” The second type is feud or factional strife. It is “an intragroup form of war.” According to him feud or factional strife is “based on an alleged injustice done to one member, or family, by another which is regarded by the group as a threat to its unity.” The third type of conflict is litigation. It is a “conflict which assumes a judicial form”. Simmel states “it is a struggle waged by an individual, or group, to protect rights to possessions.” The last type of conflict is the conflict of impersonal ideals. He states “in the conflict of impersonal ideals, the struggle is differentiated from the personalities waging it.” Because this type of conflict is carried on by individuals
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
not for themselves but for an ideal, the struggle often assumes an extremely fierce and merciless character.
3. Cultural Theory of Social Class and Caste System
a. Social Class
According to Bates and Fratkin (321) “social class is used to describe people who have generally similar educational histories, job opportunities, and social standing.” According to Nanda (312) “in a class system, the different strata (classes) are not sharply separated from one another but form a continuum.” Hodges (173) in Bertrand’s book states “social class is a distinct reality which embraces the fact that people live, eat, play, mate, dress, work, and think at contrasting and dissimilar levels.” According to Hodges, the levels in the social classes are the mixed of shared analgous occupational orientations, educational backgrounds, economic wherewithal, and life experiences. Bertrand (170) states “in class system there is no rigid limitation on movement from one strata to another.” It means that in this kind of system, people have chance to move from one class to another. The mobility can be upward or downward.
b. Caste System
Bates and Fratkin (324) state that “membership in caste system is managed at birth.” According to them, caste is unchangeable. It means the caste is attached permanently and they cannot move across the caste barrier though they have high position in the society. In a caste system, “somebody must marry someone
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
endogamously within the caste.” This statement is supported by Nanda (313) which says “a caste is based on birth.” She states that “an individual who belongs to the caste of his or her parents cannot move from one caste to another.” In a caste system society, an individual can marry only within his caste. According to Nanda, “a caste system consists of a ranked and culturally distinct number of interdependent endogamous group.” Caste system has a clear distinction between castes. No matter how high a position of a person, he cannot move to the upper caste. Bertrand (165) states that “caste system is characterized by a system of horizontal classes or castes (strata) which represent functional areas within a society.” According to him, caste system is recognized as the most rigid.
Therefore, it is called closed societies. Hence, the people do not have the opportunity to move from one caste to another because it is blocked by strong sanctions.
4. Review on Igbo Culture
Due to the different spelling between Ibo and Igbo in this thesis, the writer wants to underline that Ibo and Igbo come from the same society and share the same values of tradition.
a. Caste System
According to Igwe there are two classes of people in Igboland. The first class is the Nwadiala. It means ‘sons of the soil’. They are the freeborn, the masters. The second class is the osu. Onyemaechi states “an osu is a person who is
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
sacrificed or consecrated alive together with his or her descendants to the service of a pagan god.” According to Igwe the “osu are the slaves, the strangers, the outcasts, and the untouchables.” The osu is considered as low class so that there are various forms of discrimination against them. He states that the osu are made to live separately from the freeborn. That is why the osu are not allowed to join any occasion with the freeborn, such as dancing, drinking, eating and having sex relations. Igwe states that “no osu can pour libation or pray to God on behalf of a freeborn at any community gathering”. He states that Ibo society believes that “such prayers will bring calamity and misfortune.”
Another discrimination that is stated by Igwe is that “an osu cannot marry a freeborn.” He states that if the freeborn marry an osu their family will be dishonored. That is why freeborn families always forbid their members who want to marry an osu. For this reason, marriages in Iboland are preceded by the elders on both sides to go to the native villages in order to find out the social status. If it is found that one of them is an osu, the plan will be cancelled. He states that the
osu caste system has refused to go away even among educated Igbos because this
cultural practice is hinged among religion, supernaturalism and theism. In addition, Igbos are very religious and theistic people. Igwe states “osu are regarded as unclean or untouchable because they are dedicated to the gods.” According to him, “the dedication to the gods that makes the osu status a condition of permanent and irreversible disability and stigma.”
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
b. Igbo Marriage Tradition
According to Onyemaechi, the marriage in Igbo society is patrilineal. He states that a man should marry a woman from different community. According to Agbasiere (96) “marriage is governed by the notion of birth status.” He states that “it is forbidden for nwa or diala, freeborn, to marry an osu, a cut slave or ohu, a bought slave and their descendants.” On the other hand, Onyemaechi states that
Igbo marriage is emphasized on arranged marriage rather than on love marriage.