The contribution of plot in revealing American capitalism in the 1990s in John Grisham`s the firm - USD Repository
THE CONTRIBUTION OF PLOT
IN REVEALING AMERICAN CAPITALISM IN THE 1990s
IN JOHN GRISHAM’S THE FIRM
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra in English Letters
By
ERNA AGUS PARMAWATI
Student Number: 014214017
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
THE CONTRIBUTION OF PLOT
IN REVEALING AMERICAN CAPITALISM IN THE 1990s
IN JOHN GRISHAM’S THE FIRM
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra in English Letters
By
ERNA AGUS PARMAWATI
Student Number: 014214017
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOUR LIFE HOLDS UNLIMITED POTENTIAL AND WONDERFUL DREAMS
- - Edmund O’Neill-
This undergraduate thesis is dedicated to My beloved family & My dear friends
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
In this occasion, I would like to give my gratitude to many people around me who have given their love, support, advice, care, time, energy, and thoughts for me at any moment. I really thank them all for everything they did. However, I apologize for I cannot mention all of them one by one.
First of all, I would like to thank my Lord, Jesus Christ, for every blessing you have given me. You are the one who has never left me alone and always enriched me by giving me love, strength, guidance and patience to keep on moving whenever I fell and failed. I thank you for giving me opportunities to meet these all amazing people in my life who always beside me during these years.
Then, I would like to thank my beloved family: my mom and dad, Mrs. and Mr. Usman Cu; my brother in law, my sister, and my little brother, Mas Danar, Mbak Lenny, and Adita; my uncle and my aunty or my second parents, Mr. and Mrs. Agus Suryanto; Mr. and Mrs. Karjo or my third parents in Klaten. I thank you for always believing in me when no one did; for always giving me the best you could do or give, so that I can be what I always wanted to be; for every prayer you sent to God for me. I also want to apologize for every tear dropped from your eyes every time I broke your hearts, and I thank you for always forgiving me whenever I made mistakes.
My great appreciation is intended to my Advisor, Dewi Widyastuti, S.Pd., M.Hum. I thank you for giving me advice, suggestion and guidance in completing my final thesis; for always supporting me whenever I was down with my thesis; for always being patient in guiding me during these three years. It is a blessing for me that made me proud as your student. Besides, I also want to thank my Co- Advisor, Ni Luh Putu Rosiandani, S.S. I thank you for giving me suggestion and advice in finishing my thesis. It means a lot for me.
My gratitude is also aimed to Maria Ananta, S.S. or Mommy Tata, and Th. Utik Triningsih, S.Pd. or Maam Utik. I thank you for giving me time, care, advices, and support whenever I need someone to listen to me and strengthen me; for always believing in me that I could be a better person and to feel confident of what I am; for being patient in guiding me through these years.
Special thanks I give to all my friends in English Letters, especially all the 2001s: Sinda, Ayu, Dian Bangka, Lita, Kristin, Rivina, Dian Q-Tink, Ian, Bimo, Vava, Endra, Sandi, Obed, Mas Imbik, Mas Fariz, Garry, Wawan, Wisnu, Fangkie, and many more. I thank you for sharing our every moment and I also want to thank my other friends in Sanata Dharma University. For my other dear brothers, Edi and Niko, I thank you for always beside me and taking care of me every time I need someone to lean on and encourage me. For UKMK guys (all of you, without exception), I thank you for your brotherhood and for giving me a chance to develop my talent. I apologize if I cannot mention all of you one by one. For KKN guys, I thank you for that unforgettable moment. For PSM guys, I thank you for the cooperation, great job! For Sengon guys, I thank you for giving me a chance to see and ease other people’s suffering. For English Letters secretary officers, lecturers, Sanata Dharma employees, I thank you so much for serving and helping me during my study in Sanata Dharma University
Many thanks I would like to say to everyone in my boarding house: Nana, Dwi, Alfi, Afi, Mbak Ida, Mbok Ikem, Tante Ratna, Bu Dewi, Alm. Om Herman, Cheche, Ennu, Mbak Dwi, Yayan, Mbak Lily, Pak Un. I thank you for the sisterhood we have; for always accompanying me so that I have never felt lonely in this city.
At last, I would like to thank all of you once more. I know words are not enough to tell how grateful I am to have you all by my side. I am thankful that God sent me to you. Thank you for sharing everything (happiness and sadness) during the years. Thank you for always loving, taking care and standing by my side. THANK YOU!
ERNA AGUS PARMAWATI
TABLE OF CONTENT TITLE PAGE.................................................................................................... i
APPROVAL PAGE.......................................................................................... ii
MOTTO PAGE................................................................................................ iii
DEDICATION PAGE...................................................................................... iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT................................................................................ v
TABLE OF CONTENT.................................................................................... vii
ABSTRACT..................................................................................................... viii
ABSTRAK....................................................................................................... ix
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ...................................................................1 A. Background of the Study..........................................................
1 B. Problem Formulation................................................................ 3 C. Objective of the Study..............................................................
3 D. Definition of Terms..................................................................
4 ...................................................
5 CHAPTER II THEORITICAL REVIEW A. Review of Related Studies.......................................................
5 B. Review of Related Theories.....................................................
9 1. Theory on Plot...................................................................
9 2. Literature and Society........................................................
12 3. American in the 1990s.......................................................
13 4. Theory of American Capitalism.........................................
14 C. Theoritical Framework.............................................................
18 ............................................................... 19
CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY A. Object of the Study..................................................................
19 B. Approach of the Study.............................................................
21 C. Method of the Study................................................................
23 ...........................................................................
24 CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS A. The Plot of The Firm................................................................
24
1. Exposition (Beginning)....................................................... 25
2. Complication....................................................................... 30
3. Climax................................................................................. 36
4. Denouement........................................................................ 39
B. The American Capitalism in the 1990s in John Grisham’s
The Firm .................................................................................... 44....................................................................... 65
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................ 70
ABSTRACT
ERNA AGUS PARMAWATI. The Contribution of Plot in Revealing Yogyakarta: American Capitalism in the 1990s in John Grisham’s The Firm. Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2007.
A novel cannot be separated from its intrinsic elements. One of them is plot which constructs the body of a story. Plot takes an important role in revealing any specific idea that is wanted to show by the author through the novel. This thesis analyzes the contribution of plot in revealing the idea of American capitalism in the 1990s in John Grisham’s The Firm. Grisham does not only succeed in arranging the plot in such an organized way, but he also succeeds in portraying the condition of American capitalist society in the 1990s through the actions and the conflicts among the characters in the novel.
This thesis is made to answer two problems. The first problem is to analyze the plot of the story. It will explain how John Grisham arranges the plot and its formula so that it can reveal the idea of American capitalism in the 1990s. The second problem is to analyze what kind of issues of American capitalism that are represented in the novel. This problem will show Grisham’s aim in creating such story, which portrays the American capitalist society in the 1990s.
In this thesis, a library research method is applied in order to study the work. Some significant theories and data, which are gathered from the library research, are used in analyzing the study. It is suitable to apply the sociological approach in this analysis. This approach is useful to show the specific idea that want to be revealed by the author through a novel for it treats a novel as a work that is affected by the social condition that happens at certain time and place.
In the analysis, it can be seen that the plot is divided into four parts (beginning, complication, climax, and denouement) which contains the idea of American capitalism in its every part. This finding then leads to deeper discussion about the issues of American capitalism in the 1990s that are represented through the actions and the conflicts among the characters in the novel. This part gives details about the issues of American capitalism in further and deeper explanation.
By seeing the analysis, it can be concluded that Grisham succeeds in arranging the plot interestingly. This well-organized plot gives significant contribution in revealing the idea of American capitalism in the 1990s. From this analysis, it can be found out that this novel was made by Grisham as his criticism towards American capitalism in the 1990s, which has been indoctrinalized in American society for years.
ABSTRAK
ERNA AGUS PARMAWATI. The Contribution of Plot in Revealing Yogyakarta: American Capitalism in the 1990s in John Grisham’s The Firm. Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2007.
Sebuah novel tidak dapat dipisahkan dari elemen-elemen intrinsiknya. Salah satu elemen itu adalah plot yang menyusun kerangka sebuah cerita. Plot memegang peranan penting dalam memunculkan ide-ide tertentu yang ingin ditunjukkan oleh pengarang melalui sebuah novel. Tesis ini menganalisa kontribusi plot dalam memunculkan ide kapitalisme Amerika pada tahun 1990an yang tampak pada novel The Firm karya John Grisham. Grisham tidak hanya berhasil menyusun plot dengan susunan yang terstruktur, tetapi ia juga berhasil menggambarkan kondisi masyarakat kapitalis Amerika pada tahun 1990an melalui tingkah laku dan konflik yang terjadi di antara tokoh-tokoh dalam novel tersebut.
Tesis ini disusun untuk menjawab dua permasalahan. Permasalahan pertama untuk menganalisa plot dari novel tersebut. Analisis ini akan menjelaskan bagaimana John Grisham menyusun plot dan elemen-elemennya sehingga dapat memunculkan ide kapitalisme Amerika pada tahun 1990an. Permasalahan kedua untuk menganalisa persoalan-persoalan yang merupakan bentuk-bentuk kapitalisme Amerika yang tercermin di novel tersebut. Permasalahan ini akan menunjukkan tujuan Grisham dalam mengarang cerita seperti ini yang menggambarkan kondisi masyarakat kapitalis Amerika pada tahun 1990an.
Dalam tesis ini, metode studi pustaka digunakan untuk mempelajari karya sastra ini. Beberapa teori dan data penting yang dikumpulkan dari studi pustaka ini digunakan untuk menganalisa studi ini. Pendekatan sosiologik sangat tepat diaplikasikan dalam analisis ini. Pendekatan ini berguna untuk menunjukkan ide- ide tertentu yang ingin dimunculkan oleh pengarang melalui sebuah novel sebagai sebuah karya yang dipengaruhi oleh kondisi sosial yang terjadi pada waktu dan tempat tertentu.
Dalam analisis ini, dapat dilihat bahwa plot dibagi menjadi empat bagian (awal, komplikasi masalah, klimaks, dan akhir) yang di dalamnya terkandung ide kapitalisme Amerika di setiap bagiannya. Penemuan ini kemudian menuju pada diskusi yang lebih dalam tentang bentuk-bentuk kapitalisme Amerika pada tahun 1990an yang tergambarkan melalui tingkah laku dan konflik di antara tokoh-tokoh dalam novel tersebut. Pada bagian ini secara detil dijabarkankan bentuk-bentuk kapitalisme Amerika dalam penjelasan yang lebih jauh dan lebih dalam.
Denganmelihat analisis ini, dapat disimpulkan bahwa Grisham berhasil menyusun plot secara menarik. Plot yang tersusun dengan baik ini memberikan kontribusi penting dalam memunculkan ide kapitalisme Amerika pada tahun 1990an. Dari analisis ini dapat ditemukan bahwa novel ini dibuat oleh John
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION A. Background of the Study A novel needs some intrinsic elements to construct its body and content. They include plot that cannot be separated from other intrinsic elements. It is
mentioned in The Encyclopedia Britannica, plot is “the main story of a literary work also known as the narrative structure. Plot involves a considerably higher level of narrative organization than normally occurs in a story” (1983: 890).
Plot has an important role in constructing the body of a novel. Then, it depends on the author in making the plot interesting or not. It also becomes the significant element that makes a novel worthy enough to read or not. The author should arrange it in an organized way so that the novel will not be boring for the reader.
Besides, the plot also has a significant role in revealing some ideas that want to be presented by the author. M.H. Abrams in his book, A Glossary of Term, said, “A plot is commonly said to have unity of actions...or
Literary
incidents” (1993: 160). The readers can see the important ideas revealed by the author in a novel through these actions or incidents from the very beginning until the end of the story. Sometimes the important ideas illustrate in a simple actions or speech or even words.
Plot can be used effectively by authors to reveal certain topics through its
2 see that the idea of American capitalism in the 1990s was illuminated by the author through the plot in its actions or incidents. There are several actions and conflicts that reflect capitalism that have occurred in several places in the world, especially in American society as one of the most powerful countries in the world in the 1990s.
In The Capitalist System, Richard C. Edwards stated that in a capitalist society, the land, factories machines, and offices are owned privately by a small group of people who use their control to organize the work process and sell goods and services in order to make profits for themselves (1972: 51). This shows that the capitalists dominated the economic field in order to get big profit for themselves, even though they had to oppress their employees.
Capitalism has occurred in American society for centuries and it has been indoctrinated in their way of thinking, especially in economic system, where the capitalists, who own the biggest income and authority, directly or indirectly, force their employees to work for them and give them the profit they want.
In John Grisham’s The Firm, capitalism also happened to the associates and the partners that work for the Bendini, Lambert, and Locke law firm. There are several actions that reveal the capitalist system through the actions of the owner, the partners, the associates, and even the clients. John Grisham tries to present the way American people present the capitalism in the 1990s through this novel.
Capitalism, which is mostly discussed in this novel, is about the inequality
3 the employees. The employers or the capitalists tend to exploit the employees in order to get great profit. While the capitalist can live prosperously and comfortably, the employees had to work hard time to time so that they can earn money, for themselves, and, of course, for the employers.
B. Problem Formulation
To make the analysis well organized, there are two problems that are formulated into certain topics as follows.
1. How is the plot arranged by John Grisham in The Firm?
2. What issues of American capitalism, which happened in the 1990s, are revealed through the plot in John Grisham’s The Firm?
C. Objectives of the Study Through this thesis, I try to answer the questions in the problem formulation.
Since the problem formulation consists of two questions, therefore the objectives of study are divided into two parts also.
First of all, I will try to find out the formula of the plot presented by John Grisham in The Firm. It is important to analyze the importance of this intrinsic element because this thesis deals with the narration of the story so that it will help me to discover the specific idea that wants to be revealed by John Grisham. Secondly, I will try to find out the issues revealed in the novel through plot and the actions of the characters. However, before discussing the issues, I will also try
4 that I can see the impact of the real condition in the society to the novel; whether it represents the society at that time or not. Hopefully, these objectives can encourage and also can be used as references for other students who are interested in doing further researches.
D. Definition of Terms
1. Plot
According to Robert Stanton in An Introduction to Fiction, plot is the entire sequence of events of a novel. These events are not only causally linked events, but also anything that adjusts the course of affairs. A plot is the backbone of a story. There must be some links of cause-and-effect. A plot must have a beginning, middle and end, and it must reasonable and logical (1965: 14 – 15).
2. Capitalism
In Studies in The Development of Capitalism, Maurice Dobb identifies Capitalism with a system of free individual enterprise: Capitalism is a system where economic and social relations are ruled by contract, where men are free agents in seeking their living, and legal obligation and control are absent (1959: 3). This means that capitalism is seen as a system where people have their own right to choose their own living (economic) and they have no responsibility to others (social).
CHAPTER II THEORETICAL REVIEW A. Review of Related Studies
is one of John Grisham’s best-known novels, which brought him
The Firm
into fame as one of best legal thriller authors since the 1990s to present. John Grisham’s The Firm was firstly published in 1991 by Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group in New York. The Firm was sold 1 million copies in 1991 and it is still sold until the present day, though it has arisen many controversies from critics and readers.
Moreover, John Grisham’s The Firm became a mega bestseller in list for nearly a year in 1991. The paperback version, which was
Newsweek
published in February 1992, remained at or near the top of Publishers Weekly’s mass-market bestseller list for eighteen months. It has also been translated into 27 languages, and became a bestseller in Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain, and Italy.
In 1993, Sydney Pollack directed a movie based on John Grisham’s The The movie version was produced by Paramount Pictures, which brought the Firm. movie right from Grisham for $ 600,000 in 1990. The Firm starred Tom Cruise, Gene Hackman, and Jeanne Tripplehorn. In its first two weeks of release, the movie took in almost $ 74 million at the box office and eventually being turned into the 3rd most successful film of 1993 . By the time the movie was released, there were five hundred fifty thousand hardback copies of The Firm were sold and
6 (http://www3.isrl.uiuc.edu/~unsworth/courses/bestsellers/search.cgi?title=The+Fir m)
As we see, The Firm deserves to be a bestseller novel at its publishing time. In 1991, Grisham made a surprising work in literary world by writing and publishing this successful novel. The Firm also made a controversy among the critics and American readers, which reveals some critical reception. However, generally, those responses accorded The Firm such a favorable novel.
Susan Toepfer wrote in People (April 8, 1991), “The Firm is a thriller of the first order, powered to pulse-racing”. Peter S. Prescott declared in Newsweek (February 25, 1991), “Improbabilities abound, the characters are ciphers – and yet the story has significant strengths, [including] and irresistible plot”.
(http://webmail.ops.org/~akrabben/grisham) In his opinion, Prescott wants to say that this story are full with doubtfulness that the readers cannot guess what will happen on the following part.
The characters symbolically represent the people and their problems in real life, such as the relation and the conflicts between the capitalists and the employees.
Moreover, this novel has a function to mirror the condition in the reality into a fiction literature, in this case, the American Capitalism in the 1990s. also gave comments on John Grisham’s The Firm,
The Wall Street Journal
“Keeps the reader hooked…from the creepy first chapters…to the vise-tightening midsection and on to the take-the-money-and-run finale”.
(http://www.randomhouse.com/features/grisham/books/firm/)
According to The Wall Street Journal, Grisham’s The Firm can intensely attract the readers by its plot. It keeps them enthusiastic to read the novel from the very beginning to the last section for the plot provides tightening chapters that the readers will not miss.
Another comment was also written by Barbara Conaty in Library Journal: No aphorism, though, can convey the suspense, wit, and polished writing of this laser-sharp candidate for the best recent updating of the David and Goliath story. What's more, it is all accomplished with just a few whiffs of the heavy duty violence and sex that kick many cops-and-robbers stories along today. Set in Tennessee, the Cayman Islands, and other southerly points, the action moves briskly, relying on character types that are quickly made likable or repulsive. The author, a Mississippi-based criminal defense lawyer, has in this first novel set a daringly high standard, one that his readers will hope he can reach again and again. (http://lawsmiths.com/law-books/free.php?in=us&asin=044021145X) By seeing the explanation stated by Conaty, it can be understood that through this novel, the author portrays the relation between the capitalists and the employees by providing the tightening actions presented by the characters in the story. The setting is also chosen perfectly to represent the condition of American capitalism in the 1990s.
Furthermore, I found also another previous study which was written by another English Letters student who had graduated from Sanata Dharma University. The thesis has almost similar idea and the same discussion. However, the following explanation show that they are different.
The thesis was composed by Yurita Metariana in 2005. The title of her thesis is Revealing Theme through Main Characters and Plot in Grisham’s The
Client. Both Yurita and I used novels from the same author, John Grisham.
7
8 that is plot. It seems that John Grisham always attracts the readers by his ability in arranging hooked plot and it is worthy to analyze.
Though Yurita and I discuss the same intrinsic element, that is plot, we analyze a different topic. Yurita’s thesis discusses the main characters and the plot in order to reaveal the theme that is the relation of human ambition which is related to the law. On the other hand, my thesis analyzes the contribution of plot in revealing American capitalism in 1990s.
For the first time in reading The Firm, I am interested to find out what made this novel a bestseller. That is why I use some comments, responses, and critical opinions in developing this thesis in order to understand more about the novel. Later on, after reading it closely, it can be known that there is a specific idea that wants to be revealed by John Grisham through this novel. Most of those critics only talk about the story and re-tell what it is about. They do not see that there is something more important than the story, which is the idea of capitalism that represents the American society in the 1990s. By considering this reason, I decide to write this thesis. Through this thesis, I want to show other people, who read this thesis, that there is a certain issue that wants to be revealed by John Grisham in the novel that is American capitalism in the 1990s.
Nevertheless, by looking at the critical opinions and comments above, it is clear that mostly, the readers are hooked by the plot provided by John Grisham.
Those opinions only give comments about the plot. It does not give further explanation about certain issue that revealed by Grisham. However, they help me
9 Grisham presented it in a well-organized way. It is not only the plot that is important, but also the function of the plot in order to explain and describe an idea that is presented by the Grisham, which is American capitalism in the 1990s, through the actions that are arranged in the plot of The Firm.
B. Review of Related Theory
1. Theory on Plot
The first theory used in this study is the theory of plot for this thesis will discuss mostly about plot; what kind of plot used in The Firm and how it is presented by John Grisham. The main sources for the theory of plot used in this thesis are M.H. Abrams’ A Glossary of Literary Terms (1993), and Edgar V.
Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs’ Fiction: An Introduction to Reading and Writing (1989). However, I also took the theory from some other sources in order to get an objective opinion.
Abrams mentions that plot is “the structure of the narrative work action, which is ordered and rendered toward achieving particular emotional and artistic effect” (1993: 159). Plot provides the structural events and an organized and arranged narration in a story so that it can be easily understood by the readers in reading the novel.
As Robert Stanton says in An Introduction to Fiction that plot is the backbone of a story and it has its own rules, which means that a plot must have a true beginning, middle and end. The plot movement comes mainly from its ability
10 to arouse our curiosity, hope, and fear. The movement of the plot from the beginning to the end should be reasonable, rational, and logical (1965: 15).
Basically, a plot has functions to give and to show the structure of the unified and completed dramatic action. Generally, it tends to follow a regular formula of common plot. This formula consists of exposition (beginning), complication, climax and resolution/ending/denouement (Abrams, 1993: 161).
a. Exposition (Beginning)
The first thing that is necessary for the reader in reading a story is to understand the situation in the beginning of an action. A plot mostly begins with the exposition (beginning), which commonly provides the introduction of the characters, the sketch of the background, and the description of the situation (Abrams, 1993: 161).
According to Edgar V. Roberts and Henry Jacobs in An Introduction To , “Exposition is the laying out, the putting forth, of the
Reading and Writing
materials in the work: the main characters, their backgrounds, characterization, basic assumptions about life, goal, limitation, and potentials” (1989: 101). It means that this part will introduce everything that is going to be important in the story later on.
b. Complication The exposition then moves to the complication or the rising action.
Roberts and Jacobs state that the complication marks the beginning of the main conflict in the story – the onset of the plot. The participants are all the characters
11 values those characters represent, such as childhood and age, love and hate, good and evil, freedom and slavery, and the like (1989: 101).
In addition, this section usually provides the rising of the problems and the introduction of some difficulties faced by the character(s). This situation keeps on increasing with complexity and tensions of the problems and the difficulties until it reaches the climax (Abrams, 1993: 161).
c. Climax
Climax is the high point in the action or the point of greatest expectancy and the cumulative effect of the previous incidents. In this part the conflicts and the following tension are brought to the fullest level. Climax is the point that is inevitable and no return, where all the rest of the action becomes firmly set (Roberts and Jacobs, 1989: 101).
Furthermore, the problems or the conflicts reach the top and make the highest point of complexity and emotional intensity in the action. Though it is not always the best part of the whole unified story, however, the climax is the main part that is what the story mostly talks about. And then, this most complex event will find the resolution of the problems and the conflicts (Abrams, 1993: 162).
d. Denouement (End)
According to Roberts and Jacobs, the resolution or denouement or “the unknotting” is the last section of plot which brings the story to its conclusion. The resolution usually directed as quickly as possible for the conflicts are over. On the other hand, once the main conflict is resolved, a brief action of this sort
12 Moreover, this section presents the direct consequences of the decisive climax, and it brings the problems and the conflicts to a logical end. The resolution may vary greatly in duration, but usually it forms the shortest part of the plot in a novel. The ending of plot, generally, is divided into two kinds, an open end and a close end. An open end is an end that gives another or other possibility(s) for the ending of a story. A close end means that it is the end of the story and there will be no another or other possibility(s) for an ending of a story (Abrams, 1993: 162).
2. Literature and Society
In Theory of Literature by Rene Wellek and Austin Warren, there is a relation between literature and society. It is that literature is an expression of society. Though literature is an expression of society, it does not mirror the current life situation correctly. It does not duplicate the events or the life itself in details. The author’s experience and total conception of life are expressed through literature. However, it does not mean that the author expresses the whole life completely in his works (1956: 95).
Furthermore, Wellek and Warren state that literature has a function as a social document, as an assumed picture of social reality which is able to record the features of the society (1956: 95). Thus, literature is served as references or the source books for the history civilization chiefly for modern readers who have deep impressions of foreign society. By reading literary works, modern readers
13 The author expresses his idea and experience about society in literature by using words or language as the medium in his fictitious characters. In the world of literature, those fictitious characters offer interesting clues of social attitude which is similar to the characteristic of the people in his real society (Wellek, 1956: 104).
3. America in the 1990s
Capitalism is based on market, and it requires a possibility for political freedom, which creates wealth and also the fairness in its distribution. The American economy reflected these values until the 1980s. It was the time when American capitalism and European social democracy formed practically similar economic outcomes. After the New Deal and the Great Society, there was an implicit social contract among business, labor and government. This kind of contract had maintained economic stability, a strong social safety net, and an increasingly large distribution of wealth in America. (http://www.brookings.edu/fp/cuse/council/rohatyn20050421.htm)
However, as a result of higher population growth rates in the U.S. and greater investments in research and technology, America began to be different with Europe in the 1980s. Moreover, there were some accelerating changes in American corporate culture and in the functioning of the financial markets by the 1990s. It was coupled with cheap money and easy speculation. These conditions resulted the creation of astounding levels of wealth. These in turn led to serious
14 of wealth fair distribution.
(http://www.brookings.edu/fp/cuse/council/rohatyn20050421.htm).
In addition, Douglas Greenwald in The McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of tries to explain how capitalism developed in America in the 1990s.
Economics
According to Greenwald, through capitalism the world has come to the perfect competition among the economists. However, this competition eventually has moved further from the competitive ones (1994: 133).
In the 1990s, criminal behavior in America extended not only to speculators or insider traders, but also to a number of CEO's and senior corporate officers who manipulated their financial statements in order to inflate the price of their stock. In doing this kind of cheating, they were often aided by their auditors, their bankers and, in some cases, their lawyers. (http://www.brookings.edu/fp/cuse/council/rohatyn20050421.htm)
These conditions explained above also happen in John Grisham’s The
Firm ; the huge inequality of wealth distribution and many kinds of cheating that is
illegally done by the firm. However, it seems that these conditions considered to be legal and had been being indoctrinalized in American Capitalist society in the 1990s.
4. Theory of Capitalism
John Grisham’s The Firm provides several actions and conflicts that reveal American capitalism in the 1990s. Joseph Monsen in his book Modern American
15 ownership operates in a market environment for the ostensible purpose of profit making” (1963: 13).
Furthermore, in The Capitalist System, Richard C. Edwards gives another explanation that while the inequalities in income and wealth reveal the primary feature of inequality in a capitalist society, they also give rise to further inequalities – in power, political influence, occupational status, and privilege – which exist along and strengthen the inequalities in income and wealth. The workers’ incomes depend on how much the employers are willing to pay their particular kind of employee. The capitalists’ incomes depend on how much profit they can make with their capital (1972: 206).
Capitalism has historically always been characterized by great inequalities in the distribution of income, wealth and power. The great inequalities probably reflect the growth of the white-collar working class; more people now rely on the sale of their labor-power (skill) as their main source of income. The inequality in Capitalism is created because people received different incomes according to the market-determined return to their own skill and their productive capital.
(Edwards, 1972: 131).
Wall Street is a place which is filled with most of the business transactions among corporations and institution that occur in American economy. However, not all the transaction in Wall Street is legal and ‘clean’. In August 1999, Martin McLaughin in an article, which titled Wall Street's Dirty Secret: 1990s Boom
, writes:
Based on Smashing of Labor in the 1980s
16 standards and driving up the rate of exploitation of the working class (http://www.wsws.org/articles/1999/aug1999/frie-a24.shtml). Capitalism is always related to freedom. However, most of the time, only certain groups, who own the capital or the capitalists, can use their freedom to explore their skill. In the book titled Economics: Capitalism and The Market
Economy (Fourth Edition) , David H. Hyman states, “In the capitalist system
freedom of enterprise is the right of business firm owners to employ private economic resources for whatever purpose they want” (1997: 102).
In addition, while the freedom of the capitalists are being explored and protected, the freedom of the employees is being invaded. John Ikerd, a professor, who lectures in University of Missouri, presented his opinion about this issue through his speech, titled The Corporation of America at the Summer Canvassers’
Conference at The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, on July 26-28, 2001.
Most of us work for some “corporate” business organization that makes all of the major workplace decisions for us. For the most part, at work, we do what we are told to do. We have no true economic independence. We do what we have to do to keep our jobs and to survive. (http://www.ssu.missouri.edu/faculty/jikerd/papers/OhioCorporatization1. html) Moreover, as pointed out by an economist, Joseph Schumpeter, in The
Fragile Global Economy, capitalism is the most successful wealth-creating
economic system that the world has ever known. According to his opinion, there is no other economic system has benefits as much. He observed that capitalism creates wealth through proceeding continuously to higher levels of productivity and technological complexity. This process requires that the "old" ones be
17 driving force of capitalism, requires the continuous removal of old-fashioned factories, economic sectors, and even human skills. The system rewards the adaptable and the efficient. However, it punishes the redundant and the less productive things (http://www.pupress.princeton.edu/chapters/i6778.html).
In using Schumpeter’s term, this "process of creative destruction" not only produces many winners, but also many losers that are involved in the economic system. It also poses a serious threat to traditional social values, beliefs, and institutions. Capitalism eventually distributes wealth more equally than any other known economic system. However, as it tends to reward the most efficient and productive, then it tends to concentrate wealth, power, and economic activities for certain groups, in this case, the capitalists. (http://www.pupress.princeton.edu/chapters/i6778.html)
In the international economic system, revolution against a global economy is characterized by open markets, unlimited capital flows, and the activities of multinational firms. It appears repeatedly in the guise of trade protection, closed economic blocs, and various kinds of cheating. Individual nations and powerful groups believe that the world economy functions unfairly and to their disadvantage. They wish to change the system to benefit themselves and to harm others. These groups are a threat to the stability of the system. (http://www.pupress.princeton.edu/chapters/i6778.html)
Capitalism was accepted morally, legally, and socially in American society. By looking at that fact, it is not impossible that the capitalists will oppress
18 force the employees to work harder that those employers could enrich themselves and left the employees in poverty. There is still a sharp inequality between the rich and the poor, the capitalists and the labors, in American capitalist society.
Inequalities in wealth/income will lead to inequalities in power/authority, where the capitalists hold the highest power, and the employees are controlled by the power.
C. Theoretical Framework
By using and exploring more theories, this thesis will reach its aim to answer the problems that have been formulated in the previous chapter. It means that the theory of plot, the theory of capitalism, and the description of American condition in the 1990s will help the writer in finding out how John Grisham revealed the issue of American capitalism that happened in the 1990s through The Firm.
Firstly, in order to find out how John Grisham arranged the plot of The , the theory of plot is used in this thesis. At first, the analysis of plot begins
Firm
with finding the plot of the story using the regular formula of plot that consists of exposition, complication, climax and resolution. Moreover, the analysis on the plot of John Grisham’s The Firm will show the facts that it is the plot which has been the most interesting part in reading the novel.
Secondly, in order to discover the idea of American Capitalism in 1990s in John Grisham’s The Firm, the condition of America in 1990s and the theory of
19 story reflects the condition of American society in 1990s or not. Then, it continued by analyzing whether the story provides or revealed the idea of Capitalism or not. At last, it can be found out that the idea of American Capitalism in 1990s is revealed in John Grisham’s The Firm.
Finally, at the end of the analysis, it will lead us to the answers of the problems that were formulated previously. It then can be concluded that plot has great contribution in revealing the specific idea which is presented by the author through a novel.
CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY A. Object of the Study This thesis uses the first edition of John Grisham’s second novel, The
, which was firstly published in 1991 by Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing
Firm
Group in New York. It was the bestseller that had made John Grisham a household name. The film, with same title, The Firm, is also successful in 1993 (http://www3.isrl.uiuc.edu/~unsworth/courses/bestsellers/search.cgi?title=The+Fir m).
John Grisham’s The Firm is about a poor young smart lawyer, Mitch McDeere, who had just graduated from Harvard Law. Then, he signed a contract to work for the law firm of Bendini, Lambert, and Locke in Memphis, for a salary of $120,000 a year. The firm was going to pay his school loans, arrange a bank loan for a house, and give a brand new BMW for him. He was just the type of person the firm wanted: a poor boy who would be silent about the illegal activities done by the firm to keep his high salary and high standard of living. Mitch soon discovered that the law firm’s biggest client was a group of mafia, the Morolto family. The Morolto family controlled the senior partners in the firm. Mitch was contacted by FBI for his help to give them information about Morolto family and their illegal business. Now, Mitch was caught between the firm and the FBI. If he gave what the FBI wanted, the FBI would not accuse him for his involvement in
21 law firm as its cover. On the other hand, Mitch also knew that he would never work in a law firm again because, ethically, he could not release the information on clients. Mitch then figured out the plan to get himself out of the situation. He took millions of dollars from the Moroltos fund at the firm. He also made a deal with the FBI to give him one million dollars for his information. He arranged for the FBI to get his brother, Ray, out of jail also. Then, Mitch copied the client files that the FBI wanted but kept the real files for himself. He made a videotape about what he knew of the Morolto family and their illegal businesses. He left the videotape with the copied files in a motel room. A friend told the FBI where the files and tape were. And then he escaped with his wife and brother to Little Cayman Island by boat. They had plenty of money to live on and no one knew they were there. They read later that over half the members of the law firm had been arrested and indicted. Mitch saw himself as very lucky for he and his family were still alive.
B. Approach of the Study
To get a better understanding about John Grisham’s The Firm, the writer used the sociological approach in analyzing the American capitalism in the 1990s which is obviously revealed through the actions and the conflicts in Grisham’s The Firm.