CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
This chapter elaborates on the background of
the study, statement of the problems,
objectives of the study, scope and limitation, significance of the study, research method and definition of the key
terms.
1.1 Background of the Study There
are miscellaneous definitions given by the expert to answer what the literature is. It does not mean that all of
them are wrong or they are unable to give the exact definition. Basically, their
definitions have the same point although they are explained in different ways (Fananie,
2002:3). Suggested by Rene Wellek and Austin
Warren (1989:11) that to define the literary is to differ the literary text
with other non-literary
texts. It is
categorized as literary
work if the
text owns an esthetic
aspects combined with other intellectual aspects. Fannanie (2002:2) said that
the language usage
is often ambiguous,
abstract, symbolic and unconventional.
This causes the work of art has its own esthetic that in turn makes it different from other non-literary texts.
In a study of literature, we find
at least two terms; genre of literary work and literary criticism. Genre of literature is a term refers to the classification of literature. Explained by Luxemburg that
Aristotle classified literary work into two genres;
dramatic and narrating
literary work (Wiyatmi,
2006:27). Besides them some
added one genre; poetic literary work. These three genres of literature, then, are accepted from time to time and finally
they are well known as poem, drama and
narration (novel, novella, short story, etc).
All of them can be easily
recognized based on the typography or the way the story told. Poem, for example, can be
identified from typography and language usage.
If we read narrating texts having characters, plot, setting, point of view and others, we soon realize that it is narration.
In the other sides, if we find the text that
is set in dialogues, we could say that it must be drama (Wiyatmi, 2006:28-77). In
this case, Our Townby
Thornton Wilder can
be classified as
drama because it is set in
dialogues. The way the story told in Our Town is also different from poem and narration. The story is divided
into some scenes that have some acts.
They indicate that Our Townis considered as drama.
The word dramacomes from the
Greek verb dran, which means to ‘do’ or to ‘act’.
The Ancient Greek
philosopher Aristotle used
this term in
a very influential
treatise called the Poetics.
In this text,
he used the
term ‘drama’ to describe literary
work that was
‘acted’ in front
of audiences in a
theatron.
Aristotle identified
different types of
drama including comedy
and tragedy. He regarded comedy
as a form
of drama because
it represented acts
that made audiences laugh and he considered tragedy a
form of drama because it represented acts
that made audiences feel pity or fear.
The typical
appearance of a
script with its
stage directions, characters parts,
and divisions into
acts and scenes,
identifies drama as a unique
form of literature.
A play is written to be performed in
front of audience by actors who take on the roles of the characters and who
present the story through dialogue and action.
Drama is different from other literary work in many aspects. Unlike novel and short story, a play does not usually have
narrators, except Our Town, to tell the
audience what a
character is thinking
or what happened
in the pass.
The audience knows only what the
characters reveal.
Besides the
genre, we also
find the term
literary criticism. Literary criticism
is a process
or effort in
understanding, interpreting literary
work systematically and
methodologically for certain
proposes. Basically, the
literary criticism is
conducted for the
development of literary
work itself (intrinsic) (Tuloli, 1990:902) and its implicit meaning
(extrinsic) (Pradopo, 2005:942).
Literary work is a work of
imagination. The meaning is often ambiguous, and
unconventional. Critics have
great job to
make the meaning
clear and understandable. Critics have to start from
which side of literary work they want to analyze.
This is known as an
approach. Tanaka presents two approaches; micro literature and macro literature (Endaswara,
2008:9). Micro literature is criticizing a
literary work using
its own internal
aspects such as
plot, characters, setting, theme,
rhyme, rhythm, etc.,
while macro is
criticizing a literary
work using extrinsic aspects such as historical,
economic, religious, psychological aspect and so
forth. These two
approaches actually have
the same idea
with approaches presented by Wellek and Warren (Endaswara,
2008:9) intrinsic and extrinsic.
Although several
approaches rise from
time to time,
all of them
can be classified
into intrinsic or
extrinsic. Intrinsic approaches,
for example, are pure
structuralism, genetic
structuralism, dynamic structuralism, semiotic
and others, while
extrinsic approaches are
historical, psychological, anthropological, sociological approach and so forth.
Choosing an appropriate approach
and method to analyze literary work is very
significant. Unlike other works of
art, literary work is
a work of
art using language
as its medium
(Pradopo, 2005:121). The
author communicates with readers
using language. He wants to transform some messages, ideas, ideologies etc. Unfortunately, language usage is not an
ordinary language. As researcher has said, the language usage in literary work
is often ambiguous, unclear, connotative, abstract,
symbolic and unconventional. This
makes the message
cannot be transformed.
The ordinary readers
are not able
to catch easily
what the author wants
to say easily. In turn, a
literature is considered less meaning.
It functions only as a simple
work that is read to fulfill their leisure time. Facing this problem, there
must be anyone
who analyzes the
literary work using
an appropriate approach
and method. In
this case, the
researcher think semiotic
is the suitable approach and heuristic and hermeneutic are the
suitable method.
Chandler (2009) wrote
that the shortest definition of semiotics
is simply “the
study of signs”.
According to Paul
Cobley and Litza
Janz, Semiotic was derived
from the Greek word semeion, which means “sign” (Ratna, 2007:97). A sign is anything-a color, a body language,
gesture, an object, etc.-that stands for something other than itself (Danesi, 2004:4).
In short, semiotic studies meaning of any sign.
Semiotics is a science trying
to answer the
following question: What does X
mean? The X
is everything having
meaning Y. For
example the color “red”
means “stop” in the traffic light. In this case “red” is X and “stop” is Y. In literary work, the author often says
something (Y) by saying something else (X).
Another example is “light”. What
is the meaning of “light” for people who is lost in a cave? The character says “I see light”
when he is lost in a cave means that he sees
the way out. He is not happy because of seeing light. He is glad to see light because
there is a
way out. This is
what semiotic does.
Critics try to
find the meaning
of “red” and
“light” using semiotic
in order to
help the reader
not to misunderstand.
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