CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study Literary work, in the
wide range of literary world, is the outcome of the author’s imagination which
usually shows a social portrayal towards the social phenomenon in a certain
time. In the society, its emergence is
very significant that, by means of the author, a literary work presents a
combination of both imagination and social reality. This imagination —involves the author’s idea,
feeling and aspiration—is preceded in order that it can serve the author’s view
towards the society (Jabrohim (ed.), 2001:61).
Till then, by giving an extract of the social reality, the author’s view
becomes more and more powerful to function a literary work as a document in a
certain society.
Of the same opinion, Culler
states in his book that the literary work is language event which makes a
display of a fictional world, of which involves the speakers, the actors,
events and implied audience. It
indicates the author’s imagination even though there are several or even lots
of literary works which represent the historical life of the characters within
a certain society. After all, in literary
work, this historical life is still needed to get an extra addition of the author’s
imagination (1997:31). As a result, it
becomes a remarkable fictionalized one of literary work in a particular society.
Among numerous types or genres of
literary work, there are three main divisions which encompass poetry, drama and
novel, that each of those owns diverse
characteristics. In this discussion,
what will be discussed is novel, because novel is a genre of literary work
which invites the readers to explore their imagination widely. It is related to overall details which
describe the individuals in a certain event and situation. Through the given details, novel becomes more
and more interesting to be read as an insightful work. Novel is basically an invented prose
narrative of considerable length and a certain complexity which deals
imaginatively with human experience, usually through a connected sequence of
events involving a group of persons in a specific setting (The New Encyclopedia
Britannica, 1995:810). It is a genre of
literary works which consists of the written word. Moreover, it contains the representation of
human life that may preach, instruct, or even divert.
In discussing literary work,
novel is a sort of genre which looks at people in a particular society. Most of those are connected with ordinary
people and their problems in the societies in which they live. Nevertheless, as has been emphasized by Peck
and Coyle, novels do not present a documentary picture of life. It is due to the fact that the main
characteristic of novels is to tell the story.
Ordinarily, the authors concerns
on the tensions between the characters and the society they live in, and also
present the characters that are in conflict with the society (1986:102).
In order to obtain the obvious
depiction of literary work, Peck and Coyle points out that a single or even
some approaches is required to unwrap the details within the body of literary
work. This approach, then, presents the
critical thinking towards a literary work, of which is usually called as
literary criticism. It is regarded as the analysis, interpretation,
and evaluation of literary work. It does
not mean that it is a way to find out the fault of the author in his or her
work. On the other hand, it is a crucial
way to find out and, afterwards, serves what is depicted and going on within
the literary work itself. Till then, the
literary work is understandable and owns a specific position in a society in
which it is appeared (1986:149).
In accordance with the definition
above, the writer is interested in criticizing a literary work entitled North
and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. The underlying reason of choosing this novel
is, firstly, because it is written by Elizabeth Gaskell—who among the many
skilful Victorian writers—is one of the least taught. But she may not be ignored since her novels
and short stories are about people, places, and events that touch the readers,
and later, carry them into another time, place, and life. Gaskell’s novels are not just story for
entertainment; she intends for the readers to think and even are called into
action. Her discussion on issues in her novels shows that she did not just live
the life, she actually observes and studies it as well
(http://www.lang.nagoya_u.ac.jp/~matsuoka/EGBrenda.html). Whereas the second reason of choosing
Gaskell’s novel among her other novels is that North and South consists of the
issues and injustices of the industrial society, especially towards women.
Besides consisting of working class life, industrial labor, social class, and
family relationship; the women’s role in the family and the society become the
main subject of the novel. In addition,
this phenomenon is displayed interestingly through a female main character’s
point of view, namely Margaret Hale. As pointed out in the New Encyclopedia
Britannica, the author of this novel—Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell—is an English
novelist and short stories writer during the Victorian era. She is well known through her writing about
the life of her friend; The Biography of Charlotte Bronte. She was born on September 1810 in Chelsea, London and died in
Holy Bourne, Hampshire in 1865. In 1832,
she married William Gaskell, a Unitarian minister, and settled in the
industrial society of Manchester which remained her home for the rest of her life.
She did not begin her literary career until middle life, when the death of her only
son intensified her sense of community with the poor and her concern to their agony
(1995:137). Then, the social condition
she lived in, which is collaborated with her life experience, ideas and
imagination lead her to be a skilful writer.
Her first novel, Mary Barton,
reflects the temper of Manchester in the late 1930s. The novel was written in the effort to forget
her grief that she lost her nine-month-old son, but it later marked her debut
as a novelist. It was served to address
the social issues such as urban poverty and the emerging trade union movement. Gaskell’s novel shocked Victorian society,
but it was admired greatly by other writers and she began to associate with
Charles Dickens, Charlotte Bronte, and George Elliot. Then, Dickens invited her to contribute to
his magazine, Household Words, where her next major work Cranford (1851-1853) appeared. Inside the book, the women went visiting and
had card parties, discussed the scandalous Captain Brown, frightened themselves
with the stories of ghosts and burglars, gossiped among themselves, criticized
those around them, but stand together in difficult times. About
Gaskell’s next novel, Ruth (1853), Kliethermes states that it is resulted by
the conflict between Gaskell’s sympathetic feeling and the strictures of Victorian
morality. In Ruth, Gaskell tells
dramatically the story about Ruth, an orphan country girl who was ultimately
able to get a respectable job, and proved her worth in the society. After the dramatic story of Ruth, Gaskell
turns to manufacturing town life in North and South (1854-1855). Sylvia’s
Lovers (1863), Cousin Phillis (1864), and Wives and Daughters (1865) are
Gaskell’s other works she wrote during her lifetime
(http://www.lang.nagoya_u.ac.jp/~matsuoka/EGBrenda.html). Those fictions (novels) are Gaskell’s
remarkable works which indicate how brilliant writer she is. It is the evidence that through her fictions,
her debut as a writer is increasingly well known, even though she does not
begin her career in a young age.
Additionally, it is proved through her works that most of her works
express obviously the social condition during the time. Those are of what her deep sympathy towards
the society which is melted with her experience about urban poverty.
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