DOHERTY’S DEAR NOBODY AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra in English Letters

  POSTMODERN FEMINIST DEPICTED IN BERLIE DOHERTY’S DEAR NOBODY AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra in English Letters

  By: Francisca Carolina Budy Hartanti

  Student Number: 014214022

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS FACULTY OF LETTERS

  POSTMODERN FEMINIST DEPICTED IN BERLIE DOHERTY’S DEAR NOBODY AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra in English Letters

  By: Francisca Carolina Budy Hartanti

  Student Number: 014214022

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS FACULTY OF LETTERS

  A Sarjana Sastra Undergraduate Thesis

  

POSTMODERN FEMINIST DEPICTED IN BERLIE

DOHERTY’S DEAR NOBODY

  By

FRANCISCA CAROLINA BUDY HARTANTI

  Student Number: 014214022 Approved by

  Gabriel Fajar Sasmita Aji, S.S., M. Hum July 26, 2008 Advisor J. Harris Hermansyah S., S.S., M.Hum July 26, 2008 Co-Advisor

  POSTMODERN FEMINIST DEPICTED IN BERLIE DOHERTY’S DEAR NOBODY

  By

FRANCISCA CAROLINA BUDY HARTANTI

  Student Number: 014214022 Defended before the Board of Examiners on July 26 , 2008 and Declared Acceptable

  BOARD EXAMINERS Name Signature

  Chairman : Dr. Fr. B. Alip, M.Pd., M.A Secretary : Drs. Hirmawan Wijanarka, M.Hum Member : P. Sarwoto, S.S., M.A.

  Member : Gabriel Fajar Sasmita Aji, S.S., M. Hum Member : J. Harris Hermansyah S., S.S., M.Hum

  Yogyakarta, Faculty of Letters

  Sanata Dharma University Dean My Definition of an educated man is the fellow who knows the right thing to do at the time it has to be done ….

  You can be sincere and still be stupid.

  Charles F. Kettering Burdens Can Be Blessings…

  Our father knows what is the best for us So why should we complain,

  We always want the sunshine but He knows there must be rain, We love the sound of laughter and the merriment of cheer,

  But our hearts would lose their tenderness if we never shed a tear.

  So whenever we are troubled and life has lost its song It is God testing us with burdens This undergraduate Thesis is Dedicated to The Lord for His blessings

  My Parents: Papa and Mama for their love and caring My Brother: Alex for his support

  My love: Lukas for his loyalty in sadness and happiness

  

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  There are so many problems that the writer faced in finishing this thesis, internally and externally. However, the writer can finally accomplish this study with so many helps and guidance from many people.

  Above all, the writer would like to thank the Lord. This knowledge, this strength, and this perseverance… I may have all of these because of Your grace.

  A sincere gratitude is directed to Mr. Fajar Sasmita and Mr. Harris who have supported the writer since this thesis was begun to happen. They never let the writer stop even for a day to keep going and finishing this thesis.

  The writer is very grateful to my academic advisor Ms. Tata and Ms. Dewi, who guided me during these years. To all the teachers of English Letters, Sanata Dharma University Yogyakarta, the writer would like to thank for those splendid times of learning English.

  The greatest thanks are also extended to my father, Y. E. Budiyana; to my mother, M. M.Sri Hartini; and to my brother Alexander Budhi Dharmawan for letting me do what I want and be what I want to be. “Thank you for always watching and praying for me, I love you”.

  The writer would like to thank all my friends in English Letters Sanata Dharma University: Dita, Risa, Endra, Sinda, Bima, Imbi’, Aryo, Erna, Prima, Dina, Fanky, Monda, Rivina, Sandi, Bagus, Wawan, Mila, Ayu, Ririn, and all of

  I would like to thank all my friends in Cempaka Putih: Kak Tari, Kak Iyank, Mbak Yenlina, Ambar, Mbak Putu, Yanti, Bang Iwan, Bang Budi and all of my friends. Finally, I can make it guys!

  In addition, the writer especially thanks my beloved Lukas Budi Purwanto and my dearest friend Miky for the amazing encouragement, support, understanding, and love.

  Last, but not least, the writer thanks all friends, relatives, and people that I cannot mention one by one for their support and help in the process of this undergraduate thesis writing.

  Francisca Carolina Budy Hartanti

  

TABLE OF CONTENT

  TITLE OF PAGE ............................................................................................. i APPROVAL PAGE ......................................................................................... ii ACCEPTANCE PAGE .................................................................................... iii MOTTO PAGE ................................................................................................ iv DEDICATION PAGE...................................................................................... v STATEMENTS OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY.............................................. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ............................................................................... viii TABLE OF CONTENT ................................................................................... ix ABSTRACT..................................................................................................... x ABSTRAK ....................................................................................................... x CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION.....................................................................

  1 A. Background of the Study.............................................................

  1 B. Problem Formulation ..................................................................

  5 C. Objectives of the study................................................................

  5 D. Definition of Term ......................................................................

  6 CHAPTER II: THEORETICAL REVIEW......................................................

  7 A. Review of Related Studies ..........................................................

  7 B. Review of Related Theories ........................................................

  9 C. Theoretical Framework ...............................................................

  19 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY .................................................................

  20 A. Object of the Study......................................................................

  20 B. Approach of the Study ................................................................

  21 C. Method of the Study....................................................................

  22 CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS A. The Characteristic of Helen ........................................................

  24 B. The Characterization of Helen ....................................................

  27 C. Helen as a Feminist .....................................................................

  39 D. Helen as a Postmodern Feminist .................................................

  46 CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION........................................................................

  52 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................

  55 APPENDICE....................................................................................................

  57

  

ABSTRACT

  Francisca Carolina Budy Hartanti. Postmodern Feminist Depicted in Berlie

  

Doherty’s Dear Nobody. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of

Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2008.

  Dear Nobody is one of Berlie Doherty’s novels. This novel tells about a

  young girl who is pregnant before she finishes her study. She is pushed to do abortion by her mother so she can continue her study. However, she wants to give birth.

  This thesis presents a representation of postmodern feminist in Dear

  

Nobody . First, the objective is to know the characteristics of Helen characterized

  in the novel, second, the objective is to find out the characteristic of Helen as a feminist depicted in the novel, and third, the objective is to find out the characteristics of Helen as a representation of postmodern feminist depicted in the novel.

  There were three steps the writer did in making this study. The first step was to read and reread the novel for the better understanding about the story. Secondly, the writer tried to collect some books related to Postmodern Feminism. The approach that was used in this thesis is feminist approach. Thirdly, the writer tried to analyze characteristics of Helen as a feminist and as a postmodern feminist. Finally, the writer drew the conclusion of the analysis.

  In this literary work, Helen’s characteristics are explained using four methods namely character as seen by another, speech, conversation of others and reaction. Shortly, people know Helen as a pretty and fashionable girl. She is also a friendly, calm, and nice girl that people love her. She is smart especially in music and dancing. She is really independent and mature. The second problem formulation has been answered through portraying Helen as a feminist character. First of all is Helen’s decision not to get married. The second feminist character is when Helen struggles against her mother’s wish that is to abort the baby. The third character is Helen’s fights against Chris’ oppression. In addition, the third question of problem formulation is about Helen’s postmodern feminist characteristics. The characteristics of Helen as a postmodern feminist are Helen’s act not to get married while she is pregnant and her desires to give birth. She succeeds in challenging herself while some other women are afraid of. She is proved that what her mother is afraid of is not right. She uses the positive side of otherness as a weapon to get a better life.

  

ABSTRAK

  Francisca Carolina Budy Hartanti. Postmodern Feminist Depicted in Berlie

  

Doherty’s Dear Nobody. Yogyakarta: Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra,

Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2008.

  Dear Nobody adalah salah satu novel karangan Berlie Doherty. Novel ini menceritakan tentang seorang remaja putri yang hamil sebelum lulus dari sekolah.

  Dia dipaksa oleh ibunya untuk melakukan aborsi agar dapat melanjutkan sekolahnya. Padahal gadis ini ingin melahirkan anaknya.

  Penelitian ini menyajikan representasi tentang Feminis Posmodernis di dalam novel Dear Nobody. Pertama, penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui bagaimana penggambaran tokoh Helen di dalam novel. Yang kedua adalah untuk mencari tahu penggambaran tokoh Helen sebagai seorang Feminis. Dan yang ketiga adalah untuk mengetahui pernggambaran tokoh Helen sebagai representasi dari Feminis Posmodernis..

  Ada tiga tahap langkah yang peneliti lakukan dalam membuat penelitian ini. Langkah pertama adalah dengan membaca dan membaca ulang novel tersebut sampai dapat memahami cerita tersebut. Pada langkah kedua, penulis berusaha untuk mengumpulkan beberapa buku yang berhubungan dengan Feminisme dan Postmodernisme. Pendekatan yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah pendekatan Feminis. Langkah ketiga adalah menganalisa tokoh Helen sebagai seorang Feminis dan Feminis Posmodernis. Langkah yang terakhir adalah menarik kesimpulan dari penelitan ini.

  Dalam karya sastra ini, tokoh Helen dijelaskan dengan menggunakan empat metode yaitu tokoh dipandang dari sudut pandang orang lain, pembicaraan tokoh itu sendiri, percakapan tokoh lain, dan reaksi sang tokoh. Singkatnya, Helen dikenal sebagai gadis yang cantik and modis. Dia juga seorang gadis yang ramah, tenang, dan menyenangkan sehingga orang-orang menyukainya. Dia juga pintar terutama dalam bermusik dan menari. Dia seorang gadis yang mandiri. Permasalahan yang kedua dijawab dengan menggambarkan Helen sebagai tokoh feminis. Penggambaran karakter feminis yang pertama adalah ketika Helen memutuskan untuk tidak menikah. Karakter feminis yang kedua adalah ketika Helen melawan kehendak ibunya yang menginginkannya untuk melakukan aborsi. Karakter yang ketiga adalah ketika Helen melawan penindasan yang dilakukan oleh Chris. Sedangkan jawaban perumusan masalah yang ketiga adalah penggambaran tokoh Helen sebagai feminis postmodern. Penggambaran Helen sebagai feminis postmodern adalah ketika Helen memutuskan untuk tidak menikah dan ketika dia memutuskan untuk melahirkan. Dia sukses menantang dirinya sendiri ketika wanita lain tidak mampu melakukannya. Dia membuktikan

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION A. Background of the Study Literature is a representation of all history. Humm explains more in

  feminist term that literature does not only contain of a collection of a great text but it is more structured by social or sexual ideologies, and that certain preoccupations and techniques predominate in women’s writing in relation to those social structures (1994, 15). Thus, we can say that literature is a reflection of how women are treated, how their condition is and how they deal with their problems under certain socio-economic system in society.

  Margaret L. Andersen in her book Thinking about Women: Sociological

  

Perspectives on Sex and Gender describes women’s roles that are determined by

some expectations of the society.

  …All of these expectation-communicated through parents, peers, the media, the schools, religious organization, and numerous other facets of society-create a concept of what it means to be a “woman”… (Andersen, 1997:20).

  It is clearly seen from the quotation above that expectation of the society towards an ideal woman is socially and historically constructed. The value of a woman is measured by society’s expectations which use male ideology or it is called patriarchal society. A woman, from the time she was born until she died, is expected to fulfill the society expectation whether she likes it or not. This

  Furthermore, realizing their society life is gendered and oppressed; women start to move by criticizing the power of symbolic misrepresentation women.

  Patriarchal society pictures women as dependent, substitute, and weak that always need men to survive. Humm in Reader’s Guide to Contemporary Feminist

  Literary Criticism mentions that

  Major achievement of feminist criticism are to highlight gender stereotyping, to give reasons for the persistent reproduction of such stereotype. (1992: 8)

  Since the very ancient time, women and all things related to them have always been such a controversial topic. In literature, we can see that many authors use this topic as a subject of their work, for example in poetry, prose, and drama. One of the authors who use it as a topic in novel is Berlie Doherty. Dear Nobody was first published in 2003. The setting of the novel is in the twentieth century in which the heroine of the novel, Helen, faces some problems with the society. This condition influences her to fight for a better life like what she is wanted to be.

  But, the traditional feminist criticism still cannot accommodate what Helen wants as a modern woman who lives in the modern age. According to Vandlers in A Handbook of Critical Approach, early feminism has some weaknesses. She criticizes that early feminist critics presented women as a naïve figure and does not portray them correctly, so that feminism should de-idealize women (Guerin, 1999:213-214). Traditional feminist critic is no longer suitable to be used in the new era, therefore new feminist critic is needed as the continuation th

  In this study, the real condition of the 20 century can be a source to help analyze this novel. Susan E Klep in her article United States People reveals some

  th

  information about women’s role in the 20 century for Microsoft Encarta 2006 as follows, The strict gender roles that once confined men and women to certain activities are disappearing. Many women work and control their own wages, sources of credit, savings, and investments. Women read novels, newspapers, magazines, and religious tracts. Women learned about individuality and self-control and about planning for the future, and they applied these concepts to fertility. They established reform groups and literary and religious societies, indicating their interest in the world outside of marriage and childbearing.

  th

  It is clearly seen from the note above that women in 20 century are more independent and confident to control their own lives. They have more opportunities and freedom to express themselves. Though the equality between men and women has been echoed and campaigned all over the world, most of the countries in the world are ruled by the patriarchy. As a result, some oppression toward women still happens.

  th

  The oppressions that happened to women in 20 century are described by Brigid O’Farrell in the article Employment of Women for Microsot Encarta 2006 as follows,

  Women continue to be paid less for their labor than men. In 2001 women's median annual full-time earnings were 28 percent less than men's earnings. Women in professional jobs earned 70 cents and saleswomen earned 60 cents for every dollar earned by their male counterparts. One reason for this disparity is that a relatively small number of women hold top-level (and high-paying) jobs, even in such fields as social work, library work, and teaching, in which they greatly outnumber men. Even when they do th

  In 20 century, women are still treated differently in some aspects even though there are some rights and public service that are available for women such as in education and economy.

  Madsen in Feminist Theory and Literary Practice notices that temporary people are appropriate with the development of human life for example in way of thinking, becomes more concerned with women in many aspects of life such as health, human rights, and technology as follows,

  Feminism at the present time is, then, characterized by a diversity of practice, though that very diversity makes feminism vulnerable to the conservative backlash mounted by the New Right, the anti abortion and pro-life campaign, and the whole notion that we have entered “post- feminist” era. (2000: 23) Thus many new rights have been found to express people attention especially women. The novel which raises gender issues in postmodern life, in equality, tries to show Helen’s feminine identity as a woman. Helen’s obsessions as a contemporary woman who chooses to keep her identity of woman. Helen’s emotions lead her to make some important decisions for her life. She decides not to get married and raise the baby alone. Even though traditional feminist and patriarchal society does not agree that a woman with a child is not married.

  Based on all the facts above and the goal of postmodernist feminist, it is obvious that the feminist struggle which has new way to adapt in this new era is worth analyzing.

  B. Problem Formulation

  In order to make the discussion clear and focused, the writer has formulated three questions:

  1. How is Helen characterized in Doherty’s Dear Nobody?

  2. How is Helen as a feminist depicted?

  3. How does Helen represent postmodern feminist?

  C. Objectives of the Study

  The thesis is intended to present deep discussions on the post feminist points of view in modern society in Berlie Doherty through Dear Nobody. The discussion is mainly to answer the three problems stated in the problem formulation above. The objectives of the study are represented as follows.

  Firstly, to know the characteristics of Helen as depicted in Doherty’s

  

Dear Nobody. In this discussion the writer will analyze Helen’s personality

including her behavior and motivation in her life.

  Secondly, to explore Helen’s characteristics, not only as a woman, but also as a feminist. The writer will analyze Helen on her acts and emotions more as a feminist.

  Thirdly, to find out Helen’s characteristics as a postmodern feminist. The writer will analyze Helen’s acts, emotions, and behaviors more as a representation of postmodern feminist.

D. Definition of Terms

  There are some terms the writer needs to define in order to avoid confusion and differences in understanding about certain terms used in this thesis.

  The core of feminism is the belief that women are subordinated to men in western culture. Feminism seeks to free women from this subordination and to rebuild society in such a way that patriarchy is erased and culture created that is fully inclusive of women’s desires and goals. (Edgar, 2002: 143)

  Punch cites Denzin and Lincoln (1994: 15) that postmodern can be described as an intellectual perspective, movement of ‘mood’ – a contemporary sensibility which has developed since World War II. Punch cites Waugh (1992), here the focus is more on postmodernism as a development in thought which disagree the assumption of the Enlightenment, modifying the discourse of modernity and challenging previous conception of reality and knowledge.

  (1998:143-144) In Encyclopedia of Postmodernism, postmodern feminism was referred to as French feminism. Pontoriero states that postmodern feminism is defined as a movement based on Simone de Beauvoir’s La Deuxieme Sexe ( The Second Sex). Asserting, “woman is made not born,” de Beauvoir studied how woman has historically functioned as the culturally constructed and conditioned as Other of Man. (2001:118)

CHAPTER II THEORETICAL REVIEW A. Review of Related Studies Dear Nobody is one of Berlie Doherty’s best novels. It has been

  transformed into play script, radio for play and transformed into school and theaters around the world. However, the popularity of this novel has arisen many comments.

  Many comments and criticisms come from many people but mostly come from the object of her novel, teenager. Trier in German states that: This book to me gives a great perspective of a teenage girl, going through very confusing issue and how she deals with the changes her body is going through. The author does a very tremendous job of starting realistic facts. By seeing the explanation stated by Trier, It shows that the author of this novel pays attention to the girl and woman issues. The novel is really accepted by teenage girls because it raises issues that happened but less to talk about. This novel has fulfilled the questions especially about teenage girl’s problems.

  Another comment comes from one of Amazone customers: I would recommend the novel because it shows very well the problems girls and women have with an unwanted pregnancy. And the novel shows the helplessness of the girls and the members of the family and necessity of a friend.

  In his or her opinion, the Amazone’s customer wants to say that the author cares caring through some problems that she has been raised in the novel such as unwanted pregnancy and the relation with family and society.

  However, Jenni posted a critic toward the novel: I am reminded of Berlie Doherty responding to criticism that Dear Nobody failed to explore the alternatives to teenage motherhood and made having and bringing up a child seem too easy.

  Jenni states that Berlie Doherty does not give a better solution for teenage motherhood instead. Nowadays, there are so many alternatives to solve the problem. Moreover the author does not go deep through the reality of motherhood and makes the problem in the story too simple and easy to be solved.

  From the quotation above, it is clear that Dear Nobody has strong influence toward teenagers. The messages in the novel are really close to their daily lives. Furthermore, there is another analysis on this novel about the effect of love as moral teaching, how love is showed and its influences toward the characters.

  Even though some of them state that Dear Nobody contains some moral messages, there is no deep analysis on it. Therefore, the writer wants to analyze more about the moral messages reflected in the novel and how love can affect people in doing something because the writer thinks that it is never done before. (Susanti, 2005: 8) Nevertheless, by looking at the critical opinions and comments above, it is clear that mostly, the readers have great enthusiasm to the novel. They are hooked by the theme that Berlie Doherty has raised and the way she tells the story. It is also interesting to study deeper about woman’s problem that Berlie Furthermore, my thesis examines Helen’s struggle against oppression by the patriarchal society. Helen as a woman has the qualities of feminist. Moreover this thesis tries to study if Helen is more than a feminist. This study will examines Helen qualities as a postmodern feminist.

B. Review of Related Theories

  1. Theory on Characters and Characterization One of the important elements in the literary work is character. Bernet stated in his book Literature for Composition that there are some important points that must be considered when learning about characters in fiction.

  Those are: (1) What the character say, (2) What the character does, (3) What other characters (including the narrator of the story) say about the character, and (4) What other characters do. (1988: 72) In conclusion, the role of character in literary work is very important.

  Thus, to understand the character we need concerns with what the characters say, do, and other characters or the author describes he or she.

  In Understanding Unseen, Murphy (1988:30-38) mentions more about how a character is presented to the readers so that the character will be understandable:

  a. Personal description The author explains to the reader about the physical appearance of the character directly for example tall or small, young or old, rich or poor, fat or thin.

  This description is often related to psychological condition of the personality that b. Character as seen by another A character can be described through the ways and opinions of others.

  The others will give explanation about their impression of the character. Someone tries to tell characteristics of a character from his or her own point of view. What they think about a certain character can build up our understanding on the character.

  c. Speech Speech is a reflection of a character. Through what the character says, the author can give us deep understanding about the character. Whenever a person speaks, whenever he or she is in conversation with another, whenever he or she puts forward an opinion, he or she is giving us some clues to his character. From the character’s speech we know his or her motivation and attitude towards life.

  d. Past Life Past life can give a clue to events that have helped to shape the present characteristics of a character. This can be done by direct comment by the author, though the person’s thoughts, through the character’s conversation, or through another person. Whenever the author provides picture of the character’s past life, it can be traced and learnt to help us figure out his behavior or the character’s action toward certain condition at the present time.

  e. Conversation of Others The conversation of other people and the things they say about the conversation of other characters. It is useful to go through speech by speech, to determine exactly what is said by each other.

  f. Reaction A character can be observed by knowing how the character reacts to various situations and events that are the author presented. A reaction of a character toward a situation shows his or her motive, attitude, and thought.

  g. Direct Comments A character can be analyzed by giving a straight forward description or comment on the character. Direct comments from the author can explain the nature of a character.

  h. Thoughts The readers are able to find out someone’s character through the direct knowledge of what a person has in mind presented by the author. Here, the readers have a privileged position to come to the most thoughts of a person in a story. i. Mannerism

  Finally, the author can explain the characteristics of a character through a character’s mannerism and habits. Nine methods above will help the readers in understanding characters in the story.

  We cannot use only one of these methods but blends them skillfully together so that the reader can be aware of personality and characteristics of a

  Another method in describing the character deeper is made through the terms “flatness” and “roundness”. (Eastmen, 1965: 17-18) A flat character has only one outstanding consistent feature. It is more a type rather than an individual It stays the same throughout of the story. A flat character may picture a certain social or economic class, a virtue or folly, a basic temperament or outlook. The flat character does not engage in inner conflicts. Flat character is not changeable, static, and predictable.

  A round character considers as a person. A Round character is portrayed more deeply with generous details. A round character is dynamic, it always changes and grows. The reader can see a round character more than one side. Round character has many purposes that make this character interesting. It aims to gain the readers sympathy because the round character illustrates the uncertainty, the sufferings, and the needs they face.

  2. Theory on Femininity and Feminism It is stated by Toril Moi in The Beginning Theory, an Introduction to

  

Literary and Cultural Theory (Barry, 2002: 122) that there are some terms that are

  significant in feminist literary criticism. First term is feminist. This term shows a political position of a woman. Second term is female. This term explains a woman’s biological position. And third term is feminine. This term shows a set of cultural defined characteristics.

  Glover states in Genders (2000: 2-4) that femininity can be defined as a passivity and activity with men. It makes women do not want to be thought feminine. But society is often divided and moralized femininity and also sets up as binary such as mother and prostitute, straight and lesbian, etc. So, it is important to see femininity as a term for all different ways in which women are defined by other and by themselves, and not identical with biological sexed body.

  In 1790-1850, emotion is a significant term related to femininity. Showing emotion is something that is not accepted in society at that time because it is not masculine qualities. If women want to be accepted in society they must not show their emotion so they can be accepted as equal as men. Women from this period seek more rights and more freedoms, have little choice but cannot show the emotional and they cannot do public work. Women at this time feel like what men feel but they cannot show their emotion in front of public.

  During the world war, women at this time do not want to show women’s sexuality and rejects feminine. Shortly, they do not seem to want to be women anymore. They dress up like men, and act like men. It is a realization of women’s rebellion at that time. Feminist criticism is showed through some characters of a novel such as Orlando, a woman who imagines life as a man in Woolf’s Orlando and Anna who is lesbian in Halls’ The Well of Loneliness. This novel represents female rebellion and independence in conventional marriage and motherhood.

  After the emergence of French Feminist, femininity is changing trough the time. At this time, women considers equal to men. Women become ‘like men,

  In the twenty-first century femininity persists as a contradictory meaning that can refer at once to normative, flawed, and even ‘preserve’ categories of the human. Feminist tries to get social sympathy and nurturance, seeing in femininity an enlarge capacity for supportive human relations with caring motherhood at its centre. At this time, female difference should be understood as both natural and desirable attraction that will be the new common sense of popular feminism. As a feminist Jaggar states in The Foundation of Social Research (Crotty, 2003: 175- 176) that it is not right to relate emotion to women. There is no reason that women’s thoughts and actions are more influenced by emotions than the thoughts and actions of men. According to Jaggar, this statement is racist, classist, and masculinist. Here feminist struggles to change the way one looks at the world.

  The different condition in twenty first century makes previous feminist out of date. The change of the characteristic of feminist in that time needs another idea.

  Feminism is the belief that women are subordinated to men in western culture (Edgar, 2002:143). Feminism fight to liberate women from this subordination and to reconstruct society in such a way that patriarchy is eliminated and a culture created fully supports for women desires and purposes.

  Here, Edgar explains that men culture (patriarchal) which is supported by men society that is put women as subordinates, so that, to get better world for women, all the old things including culture, way of thinking, society must be changed into culture, way of thinking, and society that support women existence.

  According to Tong, there are some feminism varieties of thinking. Marxist feminist believes that women cannot get equal opportunity in class society. Fredrich Engles cited in Tong, states that women oppression originated in the introduction of private property, an institution that obliterated whatever equality the human community had previously enjoyed.(1989: 2) Women is oppressed by capitalism. If women want to be liberated, capitalism must be changed into socialist system in which the means of production belong to one and all. Thus, no one can be economically independent.

  Radical feminist states that patriarchal system that oppresses women can be changed by changing patriarchal legal and political structures and by changing its social and cultural institutional. Their aim is to question the concept of a natural order and to overcome whatever negative effects biology has had on women and perhaps also on men. (Tong, 1989: 3) They believe that women’s biology and the nurturant psychology are the potential source to liberate women from man power.

  Psychoanalytic Feminist finds that women oppression embedded in her psyche. This kind of feminist is based on sexuality emergence according to Freudian Theory such as the pre-Oedipal stage and Oedipus. But he Oedipus complex is the root of male rule, some psychoanalytic feminists suggest that it is invention of men’s imagination especially women should escape. (Tong, 1989: 6)

  While, Tong links postmodern feminism very closely to deconstruction, as reason/ emotion, beautiful/ ugly, self/ other, and the conventional boundaries between established disciplines.” (Crotty, 2003:167-168)

  3. Theory on Postmodern Feminist Tong in Feminist Thought explains more about Postmodern Feminism

  (1989: 215-233). Postmodern Feminism refers to French feminism. Many women who declared this thought were either French nationals or women living in France (especially Paris), thus Anglo-Saxon. America labeled of them “French”. An organization called Psychoanalyze et politique (Psych et po) served for many years as a gatekeeper for what Anglo-American audiences regard as “postmodern feminist” texts.

  Postmodern feminists such as Helene Cixous, Luce Irigay, and Julia Kristeva develop their ideas based on the work of the existentialist Simone de Beauvoir, deconstructionist Jacques Derrida, and psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan.

  What Postmdern Feminism offer to each woman who reads them is an opportunity to become herself.

  Simone de Beauvoir as an existentialist phrases the essential question of feminist theory as, “Why is woman the second sex? or Why is woman the other? Why woman remain immanent and determine while man remains transcendence?

  Postmodern feminist uses Beauvoir’s understanding about the other and turn it back. Woman is still the other but rather than interpreting this condition as a transcended, postmodern feminism admits its benefits. The condition of and practices that patriarchy as a dominant culture wants to impose on everyone, including women. Thus, Otherness with all inferiority and oppression actually is much more than that. It is a way to show an existentialism, way of thinking, and speaking that open for plurality, diversity, openness, and difference.

  The ability to see the positive side of Otherness- being excluded, stunned, frozen out, disadvantaged, unprivileged, rejected, unwanted, abandoned, dislocated, marginalized- is a major theme in deconstruction. Deconstruction takes critical attitude toward traditional boundaries, all things that the society consider as good, beautiful, reason and all things that give any possibility to be bad, ugly, emotion. Deconstructionist believes that neither self-identity nor truth-order within our lives and our language is an idea that is imposed.

  Based on Claude Levi-Strauss’s, every society is ruled by a series of interrelated signs, roles, and rituals, Lacan terms this series ‘the symbolic order’.

  Symbolic order ruled society through the regulation of individuals, as long as the individual speak within symbolic order, society will reproduce in constant form.

  Lacan states that women cannot fully accept and internalize the symbolic order because women are biologically and psychologically different than men. .

  As a result women are excluded from the symbolic order and confined to its margin. Because women cannot internalize ‘father law’, so this law must be imposed by outside. Women receive masculine language that is used by men too. This language cannot express women’s desire. Women must be silent or that to find out about women, we must find the words to express herselves. Then women will release herselves and destroy the symbolic order.

  While Derrida wants to free thinking from assumption of singularity- the only one single truth or essence- as a giver of meaning. Derrida uses difference- the inevitable meaning-creative gap between the object of perception and our perception of it. Shortly, Derrida wants women to think altogether differently.

  This theory inspires postmodern feminist to break the oppression.

  Cixous, Irigaray, and Cristeva who are admitted as postmodern feminists by the public, offer women freedom from oppressive thought. Helene Cixous is a writer. However, Cixous disagree with Lacan who states that men always dominate and put women at the margin of social order. Cixous believes that woman can break free this circumscribing order. In applying the theory of difference, she compares feminine writing (le’ecriture feminine) with masculine writing (literature). Cixous criticize masculine writing because they are cast in binary opposition. Man has segmented reality by coupling concept and terms in pair of polar opposite. Cixous finds out that the dichotomies comes from the fundamental dichotomous couple, man/ woman, which man considers strong active, high, and have positive meaning, while woman is passive, low, and have negative meaning. Cixous challenge women to write out of the world of men by putting into the words of unthinkable. By developing the way of writing, woman will change the way of Western world thinks and write, with women’s place in it. according to her, there is another feminine that is ‘feminine feminine’, a feminine based on women’s point of view. But we cannot get this ‘feminine feminine’ as long as we live in patriarchal society. Thus, it is important to create feminine language by speaking in active voice, one not articulated by men and for away to selfhood and language that is not mediated by men.

  Kristeva explains that nowadays feminism should use the term ‘ women’ wisely or the liberation politic will change into determination politic toward other women who have different needs and purpose such as women with multicultural and different color skin.

  Cixous, Irigaray, and Kristeva share the same idea of desire to think the non binary, non oppositional thought. And they have the same tendencies such as appreciate the possibilities latent in nothingness, the marginal, and the repressed.

C. Theoretical Framework The theories and reviews are needed in order to analyze the literary work.

  Review of related studies is needed to give some information about criticism on Berlie Doherty’s Dear Nobody to give more input in analyzing the work. From this review, the writer tries to develop the studies. However, this thesis is different from other studies because the writer tries to analyze about feminism and postmodern feminism.

  Review of related theories stated above is used to support her study on feminist and postmodern feminist. To analyze the personality of the character, the

CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY A. Object of the Study The object of this study in this analysis is a novel entitled Dear Nobody,

  which was written by Berlie Doherty. This novel was published by Hamish Hamilton London in 1991. This novel consists of 200 pages which are grouped into 11 chapters and has been published all around the world and translated into many languages. This novel also has been turned into a radio play, a theater play, and a television play. Most of Berlie Doherty’s novels are the novels for children and teenagers. She was born in Knotty Ash, Liverpool. She has been a social worker, a teacher, and a broadcaster and writer for both schools and national radio, as well as a playwright, poet, and novelist. Her achievement as young-adult writer are the Carnegie Medal in 1987 for Granny and a Buffer Girl, in 1992 for Dear Nobody, and the Winner of Sankei Japan at the same year for Dear Nobody.

  The novel talks about Helen who gets pregnant in school age. She feels lonely because she does not have someone to talk to. Then, she expresses her emotion in a letter that she dedicates for her unborn baby, Dear Nobody. Helen’s condition is getting worse when her family cannot accept her pregnancy and her friends leave her. Meanwhile, Chris, her boyfriend, cannot understand her difficulty with the pregnancy.

b. Approach of the Study

  In order to give an exploration of representation and the postmodern feminism in Berlie Doherty’s Dear Nobody, the author will use feminist approach.

  This approach is used because feminist literary theory tends to focus on the marginalization of women. Most feminist believes that human culture is run under men interest. Feminist literary theory tries to explain that unequal power due to gender in culture is showed and challenged through literature. Guerin in A

  

Handbook of Critical Approach to Literature explains that “feminist critics

  generally agree that their goals are to expose patriarchal premises and resulting prejudices, to promote discovery and reevaluation of literature by women, and to examine social, cultural, and psychosexual contexts of literature and literary criticism (1992: 197)”. However, Millet cited in Madsen, adds that the goal of feminist literary theory are to promote positive image of woman in art and to raise the consciousness of women about their oppression by looking at the women’s character portrayed and in what position they are placed in literary works (2000: 15)

  It is clearly seen from Guerin and Millet’s explanation that literary theory is the right way to show women oppression and to re-evaluate it. But, it is also the right way to wake women up about their condition. Thus, feminist literary approach is appropriate in analyzing Berlie Doherty’s Dear Nobody.

c. Method of the Study

  The study was conducted by library research. The writer used written sources from many books and articles in addition to some information from the Internet. The main source of this study was a novel titled Dear Nobody which was written by Berlie Doherty. Other sources that the writer used, were some books and articles that reviewed on Berlie Doherty’s work and biography. The writer also used some books of the related theories and studies.

  The writer took some steps in order to help in analyzing the novel. The first step was reading the novel while writing some notes of the important information to help in understanding how the main character is characterized in the novel.

  The second step was applying the theory on characterization to reveal Helen’s character. The writer observed closely in her action, impression, relation with other character and dialogue so that the character of Helen would be analyzed thoroughly. Here, the writer gave more attention to character of Helen in general.

  In the third step, the writer gathered some books and papers about feminism in order to find out the concept of feminism and femininity. It was used to observe the idea of feminism in Helen’s character.

  The fourth step was gathering all the information about postmodern feminist theory. This theory was used to analyze the idea of postmodernism

  The fifth step was observed the postmodern feminism theory. It would be used to analyze Helen’s character as a postmodernist feminist.

  The last step was that the writer drew the conclusion of the analysis. This step was done by relating all the data in the analysis based on the approach that the writer used and made into general statement. Therefore, this study was finished.