AN ANALYSIS OF LEADING CHARACTER’S CONFLICT IN
NICHOLAS SPARKS’ NOVEL
THE NOTEBOOK
A THESIS
BY
AGRENY MELISA SIMAMORA
REG.NO. 120721008
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA
AN ANALYSIS OF LEADING CHARACTER’S CONFLICT IN
NICHOLAS SPARKS’ NOVEL
THE NOTEBOOK
A THESIS
BY
AGRENY MELISA SIMAMORA
REG.NO. 120721008
SUPERVISOR
CO-SUPERVISOR
Drs. Parlindungan Purba, M.Hum Drs. Siamir Marulafau, M.Hum
NIP. 19630216 198903 1 003 NIP. 19580517 198503 1 003
Submitted to Faculty of Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utara Medan in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Sarjana Sastra from
Department of English
Approval by the Department of E
of Sumatera Utara (USU) Medan as thesis f
Head,
Dr. H. Muhizar Muchtar, MS
Accepted by the Board of Examiners in partial fulf the degree of Sarjana Sastra from the De
Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utar
The examination is held in Department of E
University of Sumatera Utara
Approval by the Department of English, Faculty of Cultural Studies Univer Utara (USU) Medan as thesis for The Sarjana Sastra Examination.
Secretary,
Muchtar, MS Rahmadsyah Rangkuti, M.A.,
the Board of Examiners in partial fulfillment of requirements for Sarjana Sastra from the Department of English, Faculty Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utara, Medan.
The examination is held in Department of English Faculty of Cultural University of Sumatera Utara on ....
of Cultural Studies University Examination.
Rahmadsyah Rangkuti, M.A., Ph.D.
illment of requirements for Sarjana Sastra from the Department of English, Faculty of
dan.
Dean of Faculty of Cultural Studies
University of Sumatera Utara
Dr. H. Syahron Lubis, MA
NIP. 19511013 197603 1 001
Board of Examiners
Dr. H. Muhizar Muchtar, MS ...
Rahmadsyah Rangkuti, M.A., Ph.D. ...
Drs. Parlindungan Purba, M.Hum ...
AUTHOR’S DECLARATION
I, AGRENY MELISA SIMAMORA, DECLARE THAT I AM THE SOLE AUTHOR OF THIS THESIS EXCEPT WHERE REFERENCE IS MADE IN THE TEXT OF THIS THESIS, THIS THESIS CONTAINS NO MATERIAL PUBLISHED ELSEWHERE OR EXTRACTED IN WHOLE OR IN PART FROM A THESIS BY WHICH I HAVE QUALIFIED FOR OR AWAREDED ANOTHER DEGREE. NO OTHER PERSON’S WORK HAS BEEN USED WITHOUT DUE ACKNOWLEDGMENTS IN THE MAIN TEXT OF THIS THESIS. THIS THESIS HAS NOT BEEN SUBMITTED FOR THE AWARD OF ANOTHER DEGREE IN ANY TERTIARY EDUCATION.
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NAME : AGRENY MELISA SIMAMORA
TITLE OF THESIS : AN ANALYSIS OF LEADING CHARACTER’S CONFLICT IN NICHOLAS SPARKS’ NOVEL
THE NOTEBOOK
QUALIFICATION : S-1/SARJANA SASTRA
DEPARTMENT : ENGLISH
I AM WILLING THAT MY THESIS SHOULD BE AVAILABLE FOR REPRODUCTION AT THE DISCRETION OF THE LIBRARIAN OF DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH, FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA ON THE UNDERSTANDING THAT USERS ARE MADE AWARE OF THEIR OBLIGATION UNDER THE LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First I want to express my gratitude, tribute and honor to my Lord, Jesus Christ who has blessed me with health and capability to finish this thesis in order to fulfill one of the requirements to finish my study at English Department, University of Sumatera Utara.
Second, I would to thank you so much to my beloved Dad, Mom and brother because your love and your support to me so that I can finish my thesis well. All your attention is very important for this time. It is not easy to do all but because of your support, I can pass it. Your prayer is all I need right now. Thank you for loving me. I love you.
Third, I would to thank to the Dean of Faculty of Cultural Studies, Dr. H. Syahron Lubis, M.A.. The head of English Department, Dr. H. Muhizar Muchtar, M.S.. Rahmadsyah Rangkuti, M.A., Ph.D., the secretary of English Department for your advice and encouragement during my study. I also want to say thank you so much to my supervisor, Drs. Parlindungan Purba, M.Hum, for teaching me to finish this thesis, all the suggestions and kindness to me, and to my co-supervisor, Drs. Siamir Marulafau, M.Hum, for your helping.
friends that I cannot say one by one here and to all of my friends at English Department. Thank you for our time, I am so happy to know you.
So many thank you to all of the people in my life to make me a better person. I cannot say anymore, except big thank you. I cannot be like this without the people beside me, support me and love me. I do realize that this thesis is still from being perfect. Therefore, I welcome any constuctive critics and suggestions towards this thesis.
Medan,
ABSTRAK
ABSTRACT
TABLE OF CONTENTS
AUTHOR’S DECLARATION ... i
COPYRIGHT DECLARATION ... ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ... iii
ABSTRAK ... v
ABSTRACT ... vi
TABLE OF CONTENT ... vii
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the Study ... 1
1.2 Problem of the Study ... 5
1.3 Objective of the Study ... 5
1.4 Scope of the Study ... 5
1.5 Significance of the Study ... 5
CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE 2.1 A brief description of Novel ... 7
2.2 A brief description of Character ... 13
2.3 A general Concept of Conflict ... 15
2.3.1 Basic nature of conflict ... 16
2.3.2 Classification ... 17
CHAPTER III METHOD OF RESEARCH 3.1 Research Design ... 20
3.2 Data Collection ... 21
CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS AND FINDING
4.1 Allie’s Internal Conflict ... 23
4.2 Allie’s External Conflict ... 26
4.2.1 Allie’s External Conflict with Noah... 26
4.2.2 Allie’s External Conflict with Her Parents... 30
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION 5.1 Conclusion ... 34
5.2 Suggestion ... 36
REFERENCES ... 37
APPENDICES
1. BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Despite the tradition of regarding literature as a fine art, literature is imaginative writing. If literature is not simply imaginative, fictional, or poetic discourse, what then, makes a given written work literary? A common, and commonsensial, response is that literature employs a special form of language, more evocative and “connotative” than that used in other forms of writing; in this sense, literature is “fine” or creative writing, no matter what the content. Wellek (1977:94) says,”Literature is a social institution, using as its medium language, a social creation.” Literature is a term used to describe a spoken or written material anything from creative writing to more technical or scientific work.
Literature refers to compotitions that tell stories, dramatize situations, express emotions, and advocate ideas. Literature helps us grow, both personally and intellectually. It provides an objective base for knowledge and understanding. In literature is known the kinds of literature as prose fiction, poetry, drama, and non fiction prose.
ABSTRAK
ABSTRACT
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Despite the tradition of regarding literature as a fine art, literature is imaginative writing. If literature is not simply imaginative, fictional, or poetic discourse, what then, makes a given written work literary? A common, and commonsensial, response is that literature employs a special form of language, more evocative and “connotative” than that used in other forms of writing; in this sense, literature is “fine” or creative writing, no matter what the content. Wellek (1977:94) says,”Literature is a social institution, using as its medium language, a social creation.” Literature is a term used to describe a spoken or written material anything from creative writing to more technical or scientific work.
Literature refers to compotitions that tell stories, dramatize situations, express emotions, and advocate ideas. Literature helps us grow, both personally and intellectually. It provides an objective base for knowledge and understanding. In literature is known the kinds of literature as prose fiction, poetry, drama, and non fiction prose.
real life, or a history of someone’s life in his/her age, which means it tells the readers about a true story.
Elements of novel is devided into five elements. They are character, plot, setting, theme, and style of writing. Gregory (2007:117) says,”The level of action is dominated by character, which is not a “being” in the psychological sense, but a “participant” enacting a function within a specific sequence.” Character is any person, personal, identity, or entity whose existence originate from a fictional work or performance. Character can not be separated from literature, because the author always uses character as the main point and participant in the story. Character is revealed by how a character responds to conflict, by his or her dialogue, and through descriptions.
In literature, characters guide readers through their stories, helping them to understand plots and ponder themes. Edgar (1995:51) says, ”Stories, like plays, are about characters, characters who, though not real people, are drawn from life.” A character is a reasonable facsimile of a human being, with all the good and bad traits of being human. Characters are the most analyzed elements in literature because they provide the richest analysis of the author’s intent. As with ordinary human beings, fictional characters do not necessarily understand how they may be changing or why they do the things they do. Nevertheless, their actions express their characters. Actions may also signal qualities such as naivete, weakness, deceit, strong inner conflicts, or a realization or growth of some sort.
character is such opening quotation marks, opening parentheses, and currency signs that should not be separated from succeeding characters.
The author, Nicholas Charles Sparks can make the readers appreciate all events written in the novel well with the interesting story. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska Dec 31, 1965. When he was 28 years of age in 1994, he wrote the Notebook over a six month period. It was published by Warner Books in October of 1996 and is currently only the third novel in recent history to spend over a year as a hardcover best seller and 7 others novel were domestic and international best-sellers which have been translated into more than 35 langauges, and 2 others which were unpublished.
In this thesis, the writer will analyze about novel The Notebook written by Nicholas Sparks who is an American author most noted for his romance novels, based on true story. The novel was later adapted into a popular romance film. The writer would like to discuss about the conflict from the leading character in this novel. As we know conflict is the part of the basic elements of novel. Conflict also can involve a character’s struggle against another person, against the environment, or against herself or himself and conflict is very important, because conflict needed to move the plot.
The leading character in the novel is Allie. She has many conflicts with another, such as her parents, her boyfriend, and herself. She comes from a privileged family. Since childhood she had been accustomed to living in luxury and not allowed out of the house without the consent of her parents. That conditions make her did not know what she must do for herself. She felt remorse born of a wealthy family. It is the conflict between Allie and herself.
When she was growing up, she knew Noah, a man who lived simply and fell in love with him. But their relationship is not sanctioned by her parents caused by difference in status. That condition makes her and Noah separate for a long time. Noah could not do anything for their relationship anymore. The difference status is the conflict between Allie and Noah, her boyfriend.
She feels disappointed and depressed because her parents are always too set her life. Her parents do not allow she does her choices. It makes she hates her parents so much. Her parents think what they do are the best for their daughter, without ask what she wants. It is the conflict between Allie and her parents. That is all the writer would like to analysis about conflict which are described through the leading character, Allie.
living their life. The Notebook teaches what it means to be good parents and how to maintain love.
1.2 Problems of the Study
The novel The Notebook is a novel which is dominated by conflict, most characters in this novel experience conflict. In this thesis I want to analyze conflict that experienced by the leading character. The problems of the study in this thesis are:
1. What is the root of the conflict? 2. How is the conflict solved?
1.3 Objective of the Study
The objectives lead to something that should be found out and solved. Derived from the problems of the analysis above, the objectives of the study are:
1. To identify the root of conflict experienced by the leading character. 2. To explain the solution of the conflict.
1.4 Scope of the Study
The scope of this study is the leading character’s inner and outer conflict as expressed in the novel.
1.5 Significance of the Study
leading character’s conflict. The significances which are hoped in doing this thesis are:
1. This thesis will give information to readers about literature especially novel.
2. This thesis can be the reference for those who want to analyze conflict. 3. This thesis will show the root of conflict and how the conflict is solved in
The Notebook.
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Rene Wellek and Austin Warren have two approaches of literature. They are intrinsic and extrinsic approach. Intrinsic approach analyzes a literary work by based on the text and structural points of literary work, such as characters, plot, setting, style, point of view, theme., while extrinsic approach analyzes the relation between the story of the work itself with psychology, religion, moral, history, biography, etc.
2.1 A brief description of Novel
Prose is one of the genres of literature, along with poetry and drama. Prose is the ordinary form of spoken and written language whose unit is the sentence. The language in the prose does not have a regular thythmic pattern that is almost found in traditional poetry. Novel, essay, romance, and short stories are examples of prose.
Elements of prose are divided into six elements. They are, character, plot, setting, theme, point of view and style of writing.
Character is any person, personal, identity, or entity whose existence originates from a fictional work of performance. Character is a participant in the story. Character also refers to moral qualities and ethical standards and principles. Edgar (1995:51) says,”Stories, like plays, are about characters, characters who, though not real people, are drawn from life.” A character is a reasonable facsimile of a human being, with all the good and bad traits of being human. Characters are the most analyzed elements in literature because they provide the richest analysis of the author’s intent. Peck (1986:105) says,”Characters in literary work are not like real life people for they have been specially created by authors. When authors create character, they select some aspect of ordinary people. Develop some of those aspect whilst playing down other and put them together as they please, the result is not an ordinary person but a fictional characters who only exist in the words of literary works.” A novel is a world specially made in words by an author. A novel exists in the way it does because an author has chosen to put it together in that particular way. This means that novels are not real life.
Plot is a stories of events in a narrative that is carefully constructured by the author for artistic purpose, a series of related incidents that build upon one another as the story develops. Roberts & Jacobs (1995:52) explain that,”The pattern in which the protagonist meets and resolves the conflict is called the plot, which has been compared to the story’s map, scheme, or blueprint.” Through the plot, the readers can see the development of the character and the plot itself should be interesting and able to encourage the readers to turn the page continuously untill the end of the story. Plot (mythos) is the most important element of drama—more important than character. It is a beginning, a middle, and an end, and the events of the plot must causally relate to one another as being either necessary or probable. Plot also a narrative structure that divided a story into five parts, like the five acts of a play. These parts are: exposition(of the situation); rising action(through conflict); climax
(or turning point); falling action; and resolution.
The exposition introduces all of the main characters in the story. It shows how they relate to one another, what their goals and motivations are, and the kind of person they are. The audience may have questions about any of these things, which get settled, but if they do have them they are specific and well-focused questions. Most importantly, in the exposition, the audience gets to know the main character (protagonist), and the protagonist gets to know his or her main goal and what is at stake if he or she fails to attain this goal. This phase ends, and the next begins, with the introduction of conflict.
she overcomes these obstacles. Thus, at the end of this phase and at the beginning of the next they are finally in a position to go up against their primary goal. This part begins after the exposition. It consists of a beginnings of a tension or complication that continues with the development of conflict between the characters.
The point of climax is the turning point of the story, where the main character makes the single big decision that defines the outcome of their story and who they are as a person. The dramatic phase that Freytag called the 'climax' is the third of the five phases, which occupies the middle of the story, and that contains the point of climax. Thus "the climax" may refer to the point of climax or to the third phase of the drama.
Falling actionin the sense that the loose ends are being tied up. However, it is often the time of greatest overall tension in the play, because it is the phase in which everything goes most wrong.
Resolution is a final confrontation between the protagonist and antagonist, where one or the other decisively wins. This phase is the story of that confrontation, of what leads up to it, of why it happens the way it happens, what it means, and what its long-term consequences are.
Conflict is the major element of plot because apposing forces arouse curiosity, cause doubt, create tension, and produce interest. There should be uncertainty about a protagonist’s success, for unless there is doubt there is no tension, and without tension there is no interest.
Theme is what author is trying to tell the readers. Theme is a controlling idea of literary work that is a general truth or commentary about life, people, and the world that is brought in a story. When we are trying to decide on theme, we have to consider the title of the work itself, along with the general observations about life made by the characters throughout the story.
Point of view is the speaker in the story. According to Roberts & Jacobs (1995:180) says,”Point of view refers to the position and stance of the voice, or speaker, that authors adopt for their works.” Here, we call the speaker or the voice is a narrator. Through the narrator, the author tells the story, expresses the feelings and attitudes, or describes what is happening to the characters. There are three types of point of view: first person point of view (“I” and “Me”), second person point of view (“You”), and third person point of view (“She”,”He”,”It”,”They”).
Style of writing helps us to indicate the tone. It is the manner in which the work is written. It is about the selection of words (diction), sentence structure (syntax), and narrative modes, all works together to present certain style.
Kennedy (1991:214) divided novel into two class: 1. Non-Fiction novel
The author presents actual people and events in story form, this also called true life novel.
Apprenticeship novel, a kind of novel in which a youth struggles toward maturity, seeking, perhaps, some consistent world view or philosophy of life. Sometimes the apprenticeship novel is evidently the author’s recollection of his own yearly life.
Picaresque novel, a kind of novel which told in episodes rather than in one all-unifying plot and is narrated in the first person by hero at odds with respectable society.
Short novel, a kind of novel refers to a narrative midway in length between a short story and a novel (the latter, according to E.M. Forster, has to have at least 50,000 words). Generally, a short novel like a short story that is focused on just one or two characters but, unlike a short story, has room to reveal them in grater fullness and depth, sometimes taking in a longer span of time.
2. Fiction novel
Epistolary novel is a kind of novel, whether or not the events it relates are literally possible. To achieve this sense, novelists have employed many devices, and frequently have tried to pass off their storytelling as reporting. Another method favored by novelist is to write as though setting down a memoir or an autobiography.
2.2 A brief description of Character
Character is any person, personal, identity, or entity whose existence originates from a fictional work or performance. Character is a participant in the story.
In this thesis, the writer focuses on the definition of character, as quoted from Robert and Jacobs (1995:131)
“Character may be defined as a verbal representation of a human being. Through action, speech, description, and commentary, authors portray characters who are worth caring about, rooting for, and even loving, although there are also characters you may laugh at, dislike, or even hate.”
strength and therefore the affirmation of previous decisions, (3) the acceptance of a new condition, or (4) the discovery of unrecognized truths.
Flat character does not grow, it remains and usually highlight the development of round character. Edgar (1995:134) says, ”Sometimes flat characters are prominent in certain types of literature, such as cowboy, police and detective stories, where the focus is less on character than on performance.” Such characters might be lively and engaging, even though they do not develop or change. Authors use five ways to present their characters. Remember that you must use your own knowledge and experience to make judgements about the qualities of the characters being revealed. (1) Actions. What characters do is our best way to understand what they are. As with ordinary human beings, fictional characters do not necessarily understand how they may be changing or what they do the things they do. (2) Descriptions, both personal and environmental. Appearance and environment reveal much about a character’s social and economic status, of course, but they also tell us more about character traits. (3) Dramatic statements and thoughts. Although the speeches of most characters are functional essential to keep the story moving along, they provide material from which you can draw conclusions. (4) Statements by other characters. By studying what characters say about each other, you can enchance your understanding of the character being discussed. (5) Statements by the author speaking as storyteller or observer. What the author, speaking with the authorial voice, says about a character is usually accurate, and the authorial voice can be accepted factually.
She works at the hospital downtown as a nurse. She gets merried with Noah and gets Alzheimer disease. It makes her difficult to remember anything about her memories.
2.3 A General Concept of Conflict
Conflict is an actual or perceived opposition of needs, value and interest. A conflict can be internal (within oneself) and external (out oneself). Internal conflict is a private war within oneself. It could be anything from deciding between two or more choice, to deciding many things in our personal life. There is internal conflict between good and evil strength and weakness love and hate. Internal conflict refers to emotional or analytical struggles a character has due to his values, his role and society, or the company he finds with himself.
The story’s characters will struggle against the circumstances of external conflict, they may even suffer internal conflict resulting from the issues of external conflicts, but this is not as simple as internal conflict. External conflict occurs when characters are involved in the world’s woes, such issues as community, nature, government and other characters are all examples of external conflict. External conflict manifests itself as man versus man, man versus nature, man versus society.
Tennyson (1967:14) says,”The basic conflict most frequently cited is: 1. When the individual in conflict with another individual.
2. The individual in conflict with himself.
3. The individual in conflict with an outside force or forces.”
more than two individuals and can affect many associate individuals and relationship in some case. Julien (2010:35) says, “In a work of fiction, conflict is the issue to be resolved in the story. It usually occurs between two characters, the protagonist and the antagonist, or between the protagonist and society or protagonist and himself of herself.”
Once conflict is sharply established and developed in a story, the conflict must end. There must be a crisis and a resolution. This is not like life either, and although it is so obvious a point, it needs to be insisted on. Order is a major value that literature offers us, and order implies that the subject has been brought to closure. In life this never quite happens. Even the natural "happy endings," marriage and birth, leave domesticity and childbearing to be dealt with; the natural "tragic endings," separation and death, leave trauma and bereavement in their wake. Literature absolves us of these nuisances. Whether or not the lives of the characters end, the story does, and leaves us with a satisfying sense of completion. This is one reason we enjoy crying or feeling terrified or even nauseated by fiction; we know in advance that it's going to be over, and by contrast with the continual struggle of living, all that ends, ends well.
2.3.1 Basic nature of conflict
weather event, like a hurricane. The literary purpose of conflict is to create tension in the story, making readers more interested by leaving them uncertain which of the characters or forces will prevail.
There may be multiple points of conflict in a single story, as characters may have more than one desire or may struggle against more than one opposing force. When a conflict is resolved and the reader discovers which force or character succeeds, it creates a sense of closure. Conflicts may resolve at any point in a story, particularly where more than one conflict exists, but stories do not always resolve every conflict. If a story ends without resolving the main or major conflict(s), it is said to have an "open" ending. Open endings, which can serve to ask the reader to consider the conflict more personally, may not satisfy them, but obvious conflict resolution may also leave readers disappointed in the story.
2.3.2 Classification
The basic types of conflict in fiction have been commonly codified as "man against man", "man against nature", and "man against self." In each case, "man" is the universal and refers to women as well.
Man against man
"Man against man" conflict involves stories where characters are against each other. This is an external conflict. The conflict may be direct opposition, as in a gunfight or a robbery, or it may be a more subtle conflict between the desires of two or more characters, as in a romance or a family epic. This type of conflict is very common in traditional literature, fairy tales and myths. One example of the "man against man" conflict is the relationship struggles between the protagonist and the antagonist stepfather in This Boy's Life. Other examples include Dorothy's struggles with the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Tom Sawyer's confrontation with Injun Joe in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Man against society
Where man stands against a man-made institution (such as slavery or bullying), "man against man" conflict may shade into "man against society". In such stories, characters are forced to make moral choices or frustrated by social rules in meeting their own goals. The Handmaid's Tale and Fahrenheit 451 are examples of "man against society" conflicts. So is Charlotte's Web, in which the pig Wilbur fights for his survival against a society that raises pigs for food.
Man against nature
Man against self
CHAPTER III
METHOD OF RESEARCH
In doing the analysis bestows leading character’s conflict in Allie Hamilton,
The Notebook, a particular be appeared in order to guatantee the validity of this research. Besed on the fact, the elaboration walks on the method called descriptive qualitative method. This method will help to describe about what the reasons in making these letters and what the leading character’s conflict contained in all these letters. The analysis of these things would go under intrinsic and extrinsic approach.
Intrinsic approach contains the elements that focused only on the literary work itself. There are character, point of view, plot, and setting. It is used in this analysis to examine the intrinsic part of The Notebook, the leading character in this novel. And then the writer of this thesis applies extrinsic approach to examine especially the conflict experienced by the leading character.
3.1 Research Design
nominal or ordinal. Quantitative or statistical comparison derived from systematic survey, observation or analysis of the subject this may include probabilistic evaluation. Quantitative research is based on measurable data gathered from a wide range of sources, often followed by objective analysis. A general description includes facts, figures and scientific observation that can be statistically analyzed and then can be reduced to something that can be enumerated. The collected data is often subjected to statistical tests to see if the results are internally consistent or representative of random chance. Typically, it describes patterns and trends in size and quantity. Quantitative data is often classified as being real.
According to the problem and the objective of the analysis, the method that the writer used in this analysis is qualitative method. Qualitative method is explaining the result by words not number. This data has been collected by interview, observation, and documentary and the processed by writing, typing, editing, or composing a text. In this analysis the writer used qualitative method to analyze this novel. Because, the writer uses the data result by words.
3.2 Data Collection
The observation data is collected by instrument data collection, observation or documentation. Based on the text above, the data is collected from a novel entitled The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks.
having understood about it, she selected the appropriate words of the data to be used as a quote on this thesis. Second, the writer analyzed the novel to find the leading character’s conflict. The last, the writer make conclusion about it.
3.3 Data Analysis
After collecting the data from the data sources, the analysis then moves to the analyzing data. Descriptive analysis is aimed to give a description about subject which is based on data taken from some variables which are derived from research subjects and it is not aimed to examine a hypothesis. Through the theory of Tennyson in his book An Introduction To Drama, the analysis will specifically determine which sentences which show the conflict from all data which have been collected previously.
Research
Data:
Text of the novel, books and internet
The data are selected in form of quotation
Descriptive method of analysis
Conclusion
Data sources:
CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS AND FINDING
4.1 Allie’s Internal Conflict
Life is full with choices that cannot be fulfilled totally with satisfaction result. When one fails to satisfy the available choices, the result will be a kind of conflict. It happens so because one must be in the condition of stress knowing his or her choice doesnot come true. In Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook the story goes on class difference that results gap humanly. It emphasizes the discriminated wills that make one is different from the others.
Allie’s internal conflict can be seen when Allie wants to have a relationship with a man, Noah, who comes from a poor family. Her parents donot agree with their daughter choice. It can be seen from the quotation below:
“She had to make excuses to her parents whenever they wanted to see each other. It wasn’t that they didn’t like him— it was that he was from a different class, too poor, and they would never approve if their daughter became serious with someone like him.” (Sparks 1996:25)
relates to the way she chooses Noah to be her boyfriend. She just uses her heart to do whatever she wants to do. She knows that what her heart says is right. But her parents do not understand about her willings. They just know what they do is the best for her without asking first.
In psychology there is selfobject that can explain in this case. Self-object is external objects that function as part of the "self machinery" - 'i.e., objects which are not experienced as separate and independent from the self. They are persons, objects or activities that "complete" the self, and which are necessary for normal functioning. (Kohut 1971:46). Observing the patient's self-object connections is a fundamental part of self-psychology. For instance, a person's particular habits, choice of education and work, taste in life partners, may fill a self-object-function for that particular individual. When a relationship is established with a new self-object, the relationship connection can "lock in place" quite powerfully, and the pull of the connection may affect both self and object. In the other words, Allie has self-object that cannot be seperated, is person (Noah) that complete the self to choose and taste in life partners.
In every condition that has to make a choice, there must be a decision made to clear the choices. Allie’s internal conflict can be seen when Allie has to make a decision for herself. It can be seen from the quotation below:
“Wondering if she’d made the right decision. She’d struggled with it for days—and had struggled some more this evening—but in the end, she knew she would never forgive herself if she let the opportunity slip away.” (Sparks 1996:16)
From the quotation above the words “She’d struggled with it for days” shows that she becomes frustration with herself because her choice is not fulfilled to be with Noah. Every decision-making process produces a final choice that may or may not prompt action. She hopes that her decision made not to regret later on. She has to accept this condition, having parents like that and all the condition they had in family. Because from the religion side, we are taught to respect parents. That is Allie recieves in her mind. She has to respect her parents and make decision for her parents kindness, although not for herself. Personal decisions concerned with the logic of decision-making and rationality leads the invariant choice available.
In psychology when a selfobject is needed, but not accessible, this will create a potential problem for the self, referred to as a "frustration" as with 'the traumatic frustration of the phase appropriate wish or need for parental acceptance...intense narcissistic frustration’. The contrast is what called "optimal frustration" as holds true for the analogous later milieu of the child, the most important aspect of the earliest mother-infant relationship is the principle of optimal frustration. However, the scope of optimal (or other) frustration describes shaping every "nook and cranny" of the self, rather than a few dramatic conflicts. (Kohut 1971:197) It indicates that something is not fulfilled or realized could lead to frustration or trauma to the self that shows to Allie’s condition which cannot be fulfilled and it can lead to frustration on herself. Kohut (1971:37) said,”the therapeutic activation of the idealized parent image referred to as the idealizing transference, is the revival during psychoanalysis of the very early need to establish a mutual selfobject connection with an object of idealization.” It means that to make a good connection between selfobjects and self, the parent image is the most important to have a good connection for idealization that not to cause frustrasion.
4.2 Allie’s External Conflict
4.2.1 Allie’s External Conflict with Noah (Her Boyfriend)
because different status. But Allie keeps to make Noah understands her parents’ decision. It can be seen from the quotation below:
“That was the first time my parents knew I was serious about you, and my mother had a long talk with me later that night. She said to me, “I’m sure you think that I don’t understand what you’re going through, but I do. It’s just sometimes, our future is dictated by what we are, as opposed when she said that.” “You told me about it the next day. It hurts my feelings, too. I liked your parents, and I had no idea they didn’t like me.” “It wasn’t that they didn’t like you. They didn’t think you deserved me.” “The same as I did back then. That it’s wrong, that it isn’t fair. It was a terrible thing for a girl to learn. That status is more important than feelings.” Noah smiled softly.” (Sparks 1996:58 & 59)
From the quotation above the words “Noah smiled softly” shows that Noah tries to understand Allie’s parents decision about him. He knows there are many differences between them that causes their relationship cannot be sustained. As a man, Noah feels offended bacause cannot give Allie materially. He feels humiliated by her parents. Although he believes that he can give everything to her and make her happy, so does Allie.
at others to indicate a friendly greeting. A smile may be reserved for close friends and family members. Many people in the former Soviet Union area consider smiling at strangers in public to be unusual and even suspicious behavior. Whereas smiling freely is far more prevalent in the Western World. In Southeast Asian cultures, a smile is frequently used to cover emotional pain or embarrassment.
Noah’s smile shows a meaning that he tries to console himself and brave to face the fact that the situation is not good and tries to appreciate Allie’s words. It covers emotional pain or embarrassment. In this situation, he does not know whether their relationship can be fought or not. But he has to choose. Finally he decides to let her go with her life. He makes the decision just for the kindness of Allie’s parents and Allie herself. Allie cannot say anything about his decision. Everything has it own choices. They know it is very hard for them but they have to accept this condition. Life must go on and full of choices.
Allie’s external conflict with Noah can be seen when their love is tested. don’t want to live the rest of my life thinking about you and dreaming of what might have been. Stay with me, Allie.” Tears began to fill her eyes. “I can’t live my life happily knowing you’re with someone else. That would kill a part of me. What we have is rare. It’s too beautiful to just throw it away.” He noticed that she hadn’t stopped crying.” (Sparks 1996:142)
think, and speak. This adulthood is very important to decide what should they do. She follows her parents or her heart; Noah still with her or leave her. But if the adulthood is done in negative or wrong ways, it becomes a regret next, otherwise if the adulthood is done with in positive or right ways, it becomes a valuable lessons for future and self.
Biologically, an adult is a human being or other organism that has reached sexual maturity. In human context, the term adult additionally has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a "minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of majority and is therefore regarded as independent, self-sufficient, and responsible. Human adulthood encompasses psychological adult development. Robin (2010:10) A person may be biologically an adult, and have adult behavior but still be treated as a child if they are under the legal age of majority. Conversely, one may legally be an adult but possess none of the maturity and responsibility that may define adult character. Adulthood split into two forms:
biological adulthood and social adulthood. Thus, there are now two primary forms of adults: biological adults (people who have attained reproductive ability, are fertile, or who evidence secondary sex characteristics) and social adults (people who are recognized by their culture and/or law as being adults). Depending on the context,
adultcan indicate either definition.
4.2.2 Allie’s External Conflict with Her Parents
A relationship between parents and children is very needed to make a good relationship. How the parents act also causing how the children shaped. It can make the children become good in personality or not. Allie’s external conflict with her parents can be seen when they do not have a close relationship at home. Allie becomes a quite and closed girl. It can be seen from the quotation below:
Sparks (1996:58) states that I know that. I always did. Maybe that’s why my mother and I always seem to have a distance between us when we talk.
From the quotation above the words “seem to have a distance” shows that her relationship with her mother isnot close as a mother and a daughter. There is something that covered. The geographies of childhood involves how (adult) society perceives the very idea of childhood and the many ways the attitudes and behaviors of adults affects children's lives. This includes ideas about the surrounding environment of children and its related implications. This requires the role of parent in shaping the character of children.
without much adult interference, aside from parents. It is a time of learning about responsibilities without having to deal with adult responsibilities.
The English philosopher John Locke was particularly influential in defining this new attitude towards children, especially with regard to his theory of the tabula rasa, which considered the mind at birth to be a "blank slate". A corollary of this doctrine was that the mind of the child was born blank, and that it was the duty of the parents to imbue the child with correct notions. John (1986:286) That is why Allie’s parents act is very needed to teach the good kinds and make a quality time, share each other to make a close relationship. A good communication in family will shape a good attitude for children to let them do with their choices under parent’s controlling, espesially for Allie. Those kind that she needs very much with her parents, to let her do whatever she wants as her heart saying.
Parenting in teaching the children is the most important lesson for their personality, especially in their hobby. Because basicly, children were born with their own talents. They may have one or more talent. Here role of parents is very needed to make that talent become great. Parents should support that talent, teach them and let them do it in positive ways. Allie’s external conflict with her parents can be seen when she loves painting, but her parents do not agree or support her talent. It can be seen from the quotation below:
“I’ve been drawing and painting since I was a child. I guess that once I got a little older, I began to think I was good at it. I enjoyed it too.
From the quotation above the words “I just stopped after a while” shows that there is pressure from other parties that bothered her mind. It is because of her parents do not support her hobby. She knows she is very talented in painting and has a lot of talents. By painting she can make something beautiful as she feels inside. But her parents never support her and it makes her just miss to do painting again and do many things in art. She has to stop it all to make her parents happy with their wills and make them proud on her. Although deep down in her heart, she doesnot like.
Children develop skills at different rates as a result of differences in these culturally driven parenting practices. Parenting (or child rearing) is the process of promoting and supporting the physical, emotional, social, and intellectual development of a child from infancy to adulthood. Parenting refers to the aspects of raising a child aside from the biological relationship. The most common partaker in parenting is the biological parent(s) of the child in question. Parenting skills vary, and a parent with good parenting skills may be referred to as a good parent. Views on the characteristics that make one a good parent vary from culture to culture.
friends, and community individuals and groups as well as various professionals or experts. Children that grow up in communities with a collaborative orientation to social interaction, are also able to self-regulate and become very self-confident, while remaining involved in the community.
Parenting styles are only a small piece of what it takes to be a "good parent". Parenting takes a lot of skill and patience and is constant work and growth. Research [citation needed] shows that children benefit most when their parents:
communicate honestly about events or discussions that have happened, also that parents explain clearly to children what happened and how they were involved if they were
stay consistent, children need structure, parents that have normal routines benefits children incredibly;
utilize resources available to them, reaching out into the community;
taking more interest in their child's educational needs and early development; and
keeping open communication and staying educated on what their child is learning and doing and how it is affecting them
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
5.1 Conclusion
After portraying the leading character’s conflict in Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook, conflict happens because of unfulfilled desire upon choices available. Not all choices are made into real for man has a limited power to find all what he or she wants. Since the desires fail for satisfaction, the result is stress or frustration. The moment of frustration and disappointment brings the conflict moment for the person or an individual.
Conflict can be grouped into internal conflict and external conflict. The conflict that happens to the person alone without involving others is called internal; meanwhile, the conflict that involves others is called external, otherwise. The conflicts may happen together at the same time in the same situation. It happens so because conflict never comes alone by itself without any trigger or case. Shortly to say, conflict results problematic situation that cannot be solved wisely.
Allie’s internal conflcit is her own anger upon herself to make a right decision on her choice. She fails to control her emotional anger because of her unability convince her parents abot her rights. She has been trapped on family tradition concept that the rich must marry the rich or at least in the same level of social status. Therefore, the personal confusion about the rightness which one is truly right is very personal to be answered.
since childhood. Thus, Allie, as a daughter, seems to be in difficult sitiuatio to set side of her parents or her own wants. This is a kind of situation that brings moment of hard decision to achieve. The solution on this kind of conflict is bravery to take risk for the kindness of what has decided. Whatever the reason is, life needs consequency because all choice cannot be fulfilled completely as what one wants.
The contrast situation of internal conflict is the external one. Allie’s conflict with Noah, her boyfriend and her parents has brought others to get involved on her own life decision. Noah is the one whom she loves is her future life to run it together; on the other hands, the parents are those whom she loves ever and ever because of their love nad care since childhood. Noah is the outsider that comes lately, but parents are the insiders who are always there in lasting. Such a hard choice has led Allie into serious conflict to face.
Great mutuality and understanding wisely have been the key to solve conflicts how heavy the are. Wisedom and love are the glue to look at the differences available. Whether or not, diferences can be the trigger of conflict if there is no wide insights to understand them fairly. Differences are the sort of choices that cannot be avoided to exist. Because of that, conflict because of differences can be solved when there is openness and love to look others as the way they are.
seperated and relationship between Allie and her parents broken. If there is conflict, will always a way to solve it. To solve the conflict depends on your heart to make everything is right.
5.2 Suggestion
As a kind of literature, novel is a social medium to understand what life is. It is a summary of life matters that has been imagined and created by the novelist. Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook is a good example to be one that tells life problem experienced by characters or people in common. Because of that this novel is good enough to tell how people must face the life when problems or conflicts happen. It describes what has happened in the pastto be known at present so the readers may anticipate the future. So, the writer of this thesis suggested that it is good to be analysed accademically or personally.
The analysis of this thesis is only a part from many possibilities that can be studied scientifically. This thesis can be applied as reference for further study for those who want to deal with this novel or novels in general. With great confidence, the writer of this thesis wants to say that literature is a summary of life that needs learning wisely and seriously. This idea is admittedly represented in the novel The Notebook
REFERENCES
Castle, Gregory. 2007. The Blackwell Guide to Literary Theory. UK: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Cleverley, John and D.C. Phillips. 1986. Visions of Childhood: Influential Models from Locke to Spock. New York: Teachers College.
Horton, Paul and chester, L. Hurt. 1976. General Conflict. New York: Random House. Inc.
Kennedy, X.J. 1991. Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama 5th Edition. New York: Harper Collins Publishers.
Kohut, Heinz. 1971.The Analysis of the Self. United States: Chicago Institute. Maranz Henig, Robin. 2010. What Is It About 20-Somethings?. New York:
Adolescence
Peck, John. 1983. How to Study a Novel. London: The Macmillan Press Ltd. Robert, Edgar and Henry E. Jacobs. 1955. Literature: An Introduction to Reading
and Writing. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall,Inc.
Spark, Nicholas. 1996. The Notebook. New York: Hachette Book Group, Inc. Stanford, Judith A. 2002. Responding to Literature Stories, Poems, Plays, and
Essays. New York: Mc Graw Hill.
Taylor, Richard. 1981. Understanding the Elements of Literature. London: Macmillan Press Ltd.
Tennyson, G.B.1967. An Introduction To Drama. Los Angeles: University of California.
APPENDICES
1. BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Nicholas Charles Sparks(born December 31, 1965) is an internationally bestselling American novelist and screenwriter. He has 16 published novels, with themes including cancer, death, pirates, and love. Seven have been adapted to film, including Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, Dear John, The Last SongandThe Lucky One.
Sparks was raised Roman Catholic and is of German, Czech, English and Irish ancestry. He and his wife are devout Catholics, and are raising their children in the Catholic faith. "I was raised Catholic, baptized, confirmed, Sunday School, went to Notre Dame, go to confession, go to church weekly," the author says. "My oldest son is an altar boy. All my children go to the Catholic school. My wife Catherine was raised Catholic. We were married in the Catholic Church. God is the most important thing in our lives. I suppose that's true of everybody's lives, whether or not they want to believe it."
His father was pursuing graduate studies, and the family moved a great deal, so by the time Sparks was 8, he had lived in Watertown, Minnesota, Los Angeles, and Grand Island, Nebraska. In 1974 his family settled in Fair Oaks, California, and remained there through Nicholas's high school days. He graduated in 1984 as valedictorian from Bella Vista High School, then enrolling at the University of Notre Dame, having received a full track and field scholarship. In his freshman year, his team set a record for the 4 x 800 relay. Sparks majored in business finance and years at Notre Dame. He wrote another novel in 1989, also unpublished,The Royal Murders.
starting his own manufacturing business. In 1990, Sparks co-wrote with Billy MillsWokini: A Lakota Journey to Happiness and Self-Understanding. The book was published by Feather Publishing, Random House, and Hay House. Sales for this book approximated 50,000 copies in its first year after release.
In 1992, Sparks began selling pharmaceuticals and in 1993 was transferred to Greenville, SC. It was there that he wrote another novel in his spare time,The Notebook. Two years later, he was discovered by literary agent Theresa Park, who pickedThe Notebookout of her agency's slush pile, liked it, and offered to represent him. In October 1995, Park secured a $1 million advance for The Notebookfrom Time Warner Book Group. The novel was published in October 1996 and made theNew York Timesbest-seller list in its first week of release.
With the success of his first novel, he moved to New Bern, NC. After his first publishing success, he wrote several international bestsellers. Six of his novels have been made into films:Message in a Bottle(1999),A Walk to Remember(2002),The Notebook(2004), Nights in Rodanthe(2008), Dear John(2010), andThe Last Song(2010). A seventh, The Lucky One, will be out this year (2012).
According to his website, he has also sold the screenplay adaptations ofTrue BelieverandAt First Sight, though it is uncertain whether either film will be made. His latest screenplay turned novel, The Last Song, has been turned into a film produced by Offspring Entertainment for Touchstone Pictures featuring Miley Cyrus.
Warner Bros. had bought the movie rights to his new bookThe Best of Me, which is coming out October 11, 2011. The production date for the movie has not been verified, although Sparks believes that filming of the movie will start in 2012. On August 2, 2011, Nicholas Sparks stated via his Twitter page thatSafe Havenshould begin production some time in October 2011.The Lucky One, starring Zac Efron, will be in theaters on April 20, 2012.
2. SUMMARY OF THE NOVEL
The film stars, Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams as a young couple who fall in love during the early 1940s. Their story is narrated from the present day by an elderly man played by James Garner, telling the tale to a fellow nursing home resident, played by Gena Rowlands.
A modern-day nursing home, an elderly man named Noah (James Garner) begins to read a love story from his notebook to a female fellow patient (Gena Rowlands). The story begins in 1940. At a carnival in Seabrook Island, South Carolina, local country boy Noah Calhoun (Ryan Gosling) sees seventeen-year-old heiress Allie Hamilton (Rachel McAdams) for the first time and is immediately smitten. She continuously refuses his persistent advances until their well-meaning friends lure them together; they then get to know each other on a midnight walk through empty Seabrook.
good-bye. The Hamiltons then send Allie to New York, where she begins attending Sarah Lawrence College. Noah, devastated by his separation from Allie, writes her one letter a day for a year, only to get no reply as Allie's mother keeps the letters from her. Noah and Allie have no choice but to move on with their lives. Allie continues to attend school, while Noah and Fin enlist to fight in World War II. Fin is killed in battle.
Allie becomes a nurse for wounded soldiers. There, she meets the wealthy Lon Hammond, Jr. (James Marsden), a well-connected young lawyer who is handsome, sophisticated, charming and comes from old Southern money. The two eventually become engaged, to the joy of Allie's parents, although Allie sees Noah's face when Lon asks her to marry him. When Noah returns home, he discovers his father has sold their home so that Noah can go ahead and buy the Windsor Plantation. While visiting Charleston to file some paper work, Noah witnesses Allie and Lon kissing at a restaurant, causing Noah to go a little crazy, convincing himself that if he fixes up the house, Allie will come back to him.
While trying on her wedding dress in the 1940s, Allie is startled to read about Noah completing the house in the style section of a Raleigh newspaper and faints. She visits Noah in Seabrook and he invites her to dinner, during which Allie tells Noah about her engagement. Noah questions whether Allie's future husband is a good man and she reassures Noah that he is. Later in the evening, Noah invites Allie to come back tomorrow.
The next day, Allie's mother appears on Noahs doorstep, telling Allie that Lon has followed her to Seabrook after Allie's father told him about Noah. Her mother takes Allie out for a drive to show her that there had been a time in her life when she could relate to Allie's present situation. On returning to Noah's, she hands her daughter the bundle of 365 letters that Noah had written to her. When alone, Noah asks Allie what she is going to do; Allie is confused and confesses that she doesn't know. Noah asks her to just stay with him, admitting it is going to be really hard, but he is willing to go through anything because he wants to be with her. Confused as ever, Allie drives off.
Allie drives to the hotel and confesses to Lon, who is angry but admits that he still loves her. He tells her that he does not want to convince his fiancée that she should be with him, but Allie tells him he does not have to, because she already knows she should be with him. The film goes back to the elderly couple, and Duke asks Allie who she chose. She soon realizes the answer herself; young Allie appears at Noah's doorstep, having left Lon at the hotel and chosen Noah. They embrace in reunion.
