A STUDY ON MITCH’S PERSONALITY CHANGES IN MITCH ALBOM’S TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE

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A STUDY ON MITCH’S PERSONALITY CHANGES

IN MITCH ALBOM’S

TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE

AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree ofSarjana Sastra

in English Letters

By

SATYA ADRI KRISNUGRAHA

Student Number: 034214020

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS

FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

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i

A STUDY ON MITCH’S PERSONALITY CHANGES

IN MITCH ALBOM’S

TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE

AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree ofSarjana Sastra

in English Letters

By

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS

FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

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ii

ASarjana SastraUndergraduate Thesis

A STUDY ON MITCH’S PERSONALITY CHANGES IN MITCH ALBOM’STUESDAYS WITH MORRIE

By

Approved by

Ni Luh Putu Rosiandani, S.S., M.Hum. January 14, 2011 Advisor

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iii

ASarjana SastraUndergraduate Thesis

By

Defended before the Board of Examiners on January 14, 2011

and Declared Acceptable

BOARD OF EXAMINERS

Name Signature

Chairman : Dr. Fr. B. Alip, M. Pd., M.A ______________________

Secretary : Drs. Hirmawan Wijanarka, M. Hum. ______________________

Member : Adventina Putranti, S.S., M.Hum. ______________________

Member : Ni Luh Putu Rosiandani, S.S., M.Hum. ______________________

Member : Modesta Luluk Artika Windrasti ,S.S. ______________________

Yogyakarta, January 31, 2011 Faculty of Letters Sanata Dharma University

Dean

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iv

i am

i'm a mistake

i don’t know what it'll take

i'm a monster

i destroy anything i thought greater

i'm useless

i talk too much and say i'm fearless

i'm a fool

i think love will always beautiful

i'm a negativity

i never see life with sensitifity

i'm a man

i try to run when i can’t stand

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v

this undergraduate thesis is dedicated to:

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vi

LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN

PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS

Yang bertandatangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma:

Nama : Satya Adri Krisnugraha Nomor Mahasiswa : 034214020

Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan , saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul:

Dengan demikian saya memberikan hak kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma hak untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan dalam bentuk media lain,

mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, mendistribusikannya secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di internet atau media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta izin dari saya maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai penulis.

Demikian pernyataan ini yang saya buat dengan sebenarnya.

Yogyakarta, 31 Januari 2011

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vii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Finally after years I could finish this thesis. First of all, I would like to

give my gratitude to The God of the Universewho has always accompanied me,

though most of the time I forgot that He exists.

Second, I would like to thank my advisor, Ni Luh Putu Rosiandani, S.S.,

M.Hum. who has guided patiently and helped me during this thesis writing

process. I would like also to thank my co-advisor, Adventina Putranti, S.S.,

M.Hum.for checking this thesis and giving me her suggestion.

My deepest gratitude also goes to my beloved parents, Bambang Endro

Supriadi and Anna Maria Niken Kristiarti. Thanks for the trust and support

during my study at Sanata Dharma University. Thanks for the love, prayer, and

patience that have been given.

Thanks to my grandparents,Eyang Putri Endro Sutidjap, Eyang Basuki

Kakung,andEyang Basuki Putrifor their prayers, and to my little brother,Man

Bayu, who has grow so fast. Thanks also to the doggies, Peppo, Kecil, and

Mocca who have colored my life and always made me smile. I also dedicate my

gratitude to Andrew, Flora, Lia, Hana, Rangga, and Yessi for their love and

support.

My very special thanks are for my lovely Radio FeMale office crew,Dian,

Isna, Nuri, Geeta, Devi, and Arwin who always support me, and forFiksimini

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viii

English Letters students. My appreciation also goes to all the staff in English

Letters Department and staff in the library for helping me so much.

I give my profound thanks toWidhy for the smile and the stories. Thanks

also toAlfafor graduating before me.

Finally, I would like to thank Bianca and Satya for being there so I can

finish this paper.

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ix

C. Objectives of the study ...4

D. Definition of Terms ...4

CHAPTER II: THEORETICAL REVIEW...6

A. Review of Related Studies ...6

B. Review of Related Theories ...8

1. Theory on Character and Characterization...8

2. Theory on Personality Changes...10

3. Theory on Factors that Cause Personality Changes ...12

C. Theoretical Framework ...15

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ...16

A. Object of the Study...16

B. Approach of the Study...17

C. Method of the Study ...17

CHAPTER IV ...19

A. The Characterization of Mitch ...19

1. The Characterization of Mitch as a Student ...19

2. The Characterization of Mitch as a Journalist Before His Reunion with Morrie...22

3. The Characterization of Mitch as a Journalist After His Reunion with Morrie ...26

B. Factors that Change Mitch’s Personality...30

1. Internal Factors...31

a. Strong Motivation ...31

i. From a student to a journalist before his reunion with Morrie...31

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x

b. Self-concept ...33

ii. From a journalist before his reunion with Morrie to after his reunion with Morrie ...34

2. External Factors...35

a. Environment...36

b. Significant People ...39

c. Social Pressure ...45

d. Role...47

C. The Characteristics of Personality Changes Experienced by Mitch ...49

1. The Kinds of Personality Changes Experienced by Mitch from a Student to a Journalist Before His Reunion with Morrie ...49

2. Kinds of Personality Changes Experienced by Mitch from Before His Reunion with Morrie to after His Reunion with Morrie ...58

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION...64

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...68

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xi ABSTRACT

SATYA ADRI KRISNUGRAHA (2010). A Study on Mitch’s Personality Changes in Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays with Morrie. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University.

This study analyzes the factors that influence the personality changes experienced by Mitch Albom in his nonfictional novel, Tuesdays with Morrie. This topic is chosen because Tuesdays with Morrie is an interesting autobiographical novel which tells about the psychological changes experienced by the author.

This study discusses three problems, namely how Mitch is characterized as a student in university, as a journalist before his reunion with Morrie, and as a journalist after his reunion with Morrie, to find out the factors that develop Mitch’s personality from university until his reunion with Morrie, and to find out the kinds of personality changes experienced by Mitch from university until his reunion with Morrie.

This study uses Abrams, Forster, Murphy, Rotter, and Hurlock’s theories. This study applies the library research method and uses psychological approach. It is the most appropriate approach because this study examines the psychological aspect experienced by the main character.

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xii ABSTRAK

SATYA ADRI KRISNUGRAHA (2010). A Study on Mitch’s Personality Changes in Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays with Morrie. Yogyakarta: Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma.

Studi ini menganalisis faktor-faktor yang mempengaruhi perubahan kepribadian yang dialami oleh Mitch Albom dalam novel nonfiksi karyanya, Tuesdays with Morrie. Topik ini dipilih karena Tuesdays with Morrie adalah novel autobiografi yang menarik yang bercerita tentang perubahan psikologis yang dialami oleh penulis.

Studi ini membahas tiga masalah, yaitu bagaimana Mitch dikarakterkan sebagai mahasiswa di universitas, sebagai wartawan sebelum reuninya dengan Morrie, dan sebagai wartawan setelah reuni dengan Morrie, untuk mengetahui faktor-faktor yang membuat kepribadian Mitch berkembang dari universitas hingga reuni nya dengan Morrie, dan untuk mengetahui jenis-jenis perubahan kepribadian yang dialami oleh Mitch dari universitas hingga reuninya dengan Morrie.

Penelitian ini menggunakan teori-teori dari Abrams, Forster, Murphy, Rotter, dan Hurlock's. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode studi kepustakaan dan menggunakan pendekatan psikologis. Ini adalah pendekatan yang paling tepat karena penelitian ini meneliti aspek psikologis yang dialami oleh karakter utama.

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1 CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the Study

Human life and literature cannot be separated because literature usually

deals with human experience in this life. According to Hudson in his book An Introduction to the Study of Literature (1960: 10), literature is expression of life through medium of language. Literature presents some aspects of human life such

as historical, social, moral, psychological, and many more. Therefore, literature

can be regarded as manifestation of human life. It talks about how human beings

work out with their lives; the way how they face and solve their problems; and

their thoughts. Wellek and Warren inTheory of Literarturestate that:

Literature is the reflection of human feeling toward his life. It is closely related to human experience through which we can learn the image of human being that is expressed in the written way. It can also be defined as the work of arts that represents human life (1956: 94)

By reading literature, we can get a lot of experiences of life, and we can

have deeper understanding about something that we have never seen before.

Moreover, we can learn to understand the variety of human personality through

the characters in literary works. As one of the intrinsic elements in literary works,

characters also have an important role. Characters can build the readers’ emotion

so that the readers will be interested to read the whole story. Characters are

described differently, and they also have different problems or conflicts that must

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As a novel which is based on true events, Tuesdays with Morrieby Mitch Albom is a good example of Hudson, Wellek and Warren’s explanation about

literature as expression and reflection of life, because the novel is based on the

true events experienced by the author. The characters in the novel are also based

on persons in real life. There are many important messages in the story that can be

applied in the readers everyday life.

The narrator and main character of this novel is Mitch, the

autobiographical character of Mitch Albom, the novel’s author. Another major

character, Morrie, is based on the late Morrie Schwartz, Mitch’s professor in

college. They first met in the college. Morrie was the sociology professor and

Mitch was the student. In his years in the college, Mitch learned many things from

Morrie, not only about the subject he studied in the class, but also about life which

is given by Morrie outside the class hours by doing discussions with him.

They lost contact after Mitch graduated from the university. Mitch grew to

be a totally different person after he started working as a journalist. He turned into

a workaholic person who valued life based on possession and money. Mitch no

longer kept any contact with any of his old friends or professors, until one day he

saw Morrie on the Nightline on ABC-TV. From this talkshow, he learned that

Morrie had an illness of the neurological system called amyotropic lateral

sclerosis or ALS, and that he was dying.

Mitch decided to visit Morrie, his old professor, in West Newton,

Massachusetts. Then he started visiting Morrie regularly every Tuesday. In each

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again and Morrie is his professor. Throughout their discussions, Mitch slowly

changes his point of view about life. He also finds back the value of life that has

faded away since he began to drown himself in his work. After Morrie’s death of

ALS, Mitch writes his experience as the novel Tuesdays with Morrie in order to help pay for Morrie’s medical expense.

Mitch’s experience shows that someone’s personality will change and

develop through times. According to Hurlock, there are many factors which

influence personality changes such as our desire to change the personality and the

significant people around us. Hurlock also explains that people are not completely

satisfied with their personality and they often desire to change (1976: 120).

SinceTuesdays with Morrie is written based on the real life experience of the author, it is interesting to discuss the personality changes of Mitch as the main

character and narrator of the story. There are three important points in Mitch’s

life, namely his life in college, after he works, and after he meets Morrie again.

Between those three points, Mitch undergoes some changes in his personality,

which are caused by various factors, both internal and external. This thesis aims to

discover how those factors influence Mitch’s personality changes by examining

Mitch’s characterization in each of those points, the factors that change his

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B. Problem Formulation

1. How is Mitch characterized in the novelTuesdays with Morrie?

2. What are the factors that change Mitch’s personality from college until

his reunion with Morrie?

3. How are the characteristics of personality changes experienced by Mitch

from college until his reunion with Morrie?

C. Objective of the Study

The aim of this study is to answer the questions stated in the problem

formulation. The first objective is to examine how Mitch is characterized as a

student in university, as a journalist before his reunion with Morrie, and as a

journalist after his reunion with Morrie. The second objective is to examine the

factors that develop Mitch’s personality from university until his reunion with

Morrie. The last objective is to examine the characteristics of personality changes

experienced by Mitch from university until his reunion with Morrie.

D. Definition of Terms

To avoid any misinterpretation in understanding the title, there will be

some explanation on several important terms mainly used and closely related to

the topic.

1. Character

According to Abrams, characters are “persons presented in a dramatic or

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and emotional qualities that are expresses in their dialogue and actions (1981: 23).

Characterization is the process of presenting a character in literary work (Murphy,

1972: 161), while to characterize a character means to present the qualities of a

character.

2. Personality

According to Hurlock, personality is the characteristics and qualities of a

person as a whole. In literary work, personality is all the characteristics and

qualities that make the imaginary person alive to the readers (1976: 108).

3. Personality Changes

According to Hurlock, personality changes are the “alternation or

variation” of a person’s personality pattern. The personality pattern can change in

some areas and remain persistent in others (1976: 108). The personality changes

have several characteristics, variations, and caused by some factors or conditions

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CHAPTER II

THEORETICAL REVIEW

A. Review of Related Studies

Literary works can never be separated from criticism and comments. It

shows that criticism and comments have a great role in evaluating literary works.

This chapter will provide some related studies on Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays with Morrie.

The first related study which discusses this novel is an undergraduate

thesis by Alisa Widya Mutiara. In her thesis entitled “Moral Lesson on Death and

Love Depicted in Morrie Schwartz in Mitch Albom’sTuesdays with Morrie”, she examines the novel by focusing on two topics, death and love. She is interested in

choosing the title especially because the story is based on true events, and Mitch

and Morrie are real persons, and their discussions really happened. She aims to

find the moral lessons on those topics based on Mitch and Morrie’s discussions.

On the conclusion of her thesis, she states:

The significance of this biographical novel is there are many moral lessons about how to live wisely that readers can learn from the figure of Morrie. To be more focused, the writer will analyze two matter of life. They are death and love matters (2005: 71).

The next related study is by Stephanie Bowen, a book explorer on creative

writing at UCLA and CNN’s staff, in her May edition of 2008’s article entitled

“Tuesdays with Morrie”. According to Bowen, Tuesdays with Morrie is the kind of literary work that can touch those who read it because it based on the author’s

real experiences. As the author took his lessons about life, the readers can also get

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many lessons about life by reading this novel. It can be seen in her following

comment:

Tuesdays with Morrie is more than just a dying man’s last words. It is an inspirational recount of a man’s life—a man whose passion for the human spirit has continued to live long after his last breath. (http://edition.cnn.com/books/reviews/9805/06/index.html)

The success of this novel is shown from another positive opinion from

Charles Derber, a Boston College sociology professor. As quoted by Jim Suhr, an

Associated Press writer in his articles titled “Sick Professor, Ex-student Talk of

Life’s Lessons” in Chronicling Tuesdays with Morrie on February, 1998, Derber says, “The fact that Mitch’s book is so widely read is testimony that he captured

something valuable. Morrie would be smiling about this”

(http://www.s-t.com/daily/02-98/02-15-98/e07li216.html). Derber wants to say that the author’s

findings of life lessons through his experiences with Morrie is one of the strong

factor that made Tuesday with Morrie became a successful book.

By considering the related studies onTuesdays with Morrie, this thesis will discuss and analyze one point which has not appeared much in the previous

studies, namely Mitch’s personality changes. This study contains some aspects

which are similar to most studies above; for example, the writer is interested in

this novel because it is taken from true story. However, this study contains some

aspects which are different to the previous studies, because unlike most previous

studies, this thesis does not focus on the relation between Mitch and Morrie or the

content of their discussions. Instead, this study focuses on the process of

personality changes undergone by Mitch, since he was a young man in college

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This study will examine the novel by analyzing the character of Mitch and the

factors that cause his personality changes.

B. Review of Related Studies

1. Theory on Character and Characterization

M. H. Abrams in his A Glossary of Literature Terms says that character are “persons presented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the

reader as being endowed with moral, dispositional, and emotional qualities that

are expresses in what they say—the dialogue—and by what they do—the action”

(1981: 23)

Meanwhile, to understand more deeply about characters, Forster divides

characters into flat or static characters and round or dynamic characters. A flat

character is static and never changes, and represented by “a single idea or

quality”. It means that personality is not described in detail. The character remains

stable and unchanged from the beginning to the end of the story. A round

character is dynamic and complex in temperament and motivation. A round

character is hard to classify because the character is always changing and hard to

guess. Round character can change or develop according to certain actions. Also,

the character can keep still, change, or develop in the same manner as human

being (1974: 73).

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adds that every speech and action is a manifestation of the character (Stanton,

1965: 18).

While according to Murphy in Understanding Unseens: an Introduction to English Poetry and the English Novel for Overseas Students, there are nine ways in which an author can present the characterization of character in a literary work.

Those nine ways are personal description, character as seen by other, speech, past

life, conversation of others, reactions, direct comment, thoughts, and mannerism.

Through personal descriptions, the author can describe a character by

using the appearance and clothes. The readers will get only a visible look of the

character, like the parts of the body of the character and the clothes he or she

wears (1972: 161).

Through character as seen by other, the author can describe a character

through the view, opinions, attitudes, and comments of other characters. The

readers will get a reflected image of the characters the author means (1972: 162).

Through speech, the author can describe a character by giving readers an

insight into the characteristics through the way he or she speaks and the language

he or she uses. Here the reader enables to analyze from the sentences the character

uses (1972: 164).

Through past life, the author can describe a clue to events that help to

shape characteristics by giving the readers the character’s past life. This is quite

helpful to analyze the motives that a character has when he has a particular

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Through conversations of others, the author can also provide a clue about a

character through the conversation of other people and what they say about him or

her. Readers will learn that what others say about a character may reveal what

kind of characters he or she is (1972: 167).

Through reactions, the author can describe characteristics by showing how

a character responds to various situations and events. The reactions may give a

clue to what characteristic a character has (1972: 168).

Through direct comment, the author may give comments and descriptions

on the characteristics of the character directly to readers. This becomes the best

way for the readers to visualize the characteristics because they know what

exactly the author wants to reveal (1972: 170).

Through thoughts, the author gives readers direct knowledge of what a

person is thinking about. There, he or she can tell readers what different people

are thinking of. Such things cannot be seen but can be represented through the

speech and attitudes. The readers then are in a priviledge position; they have a

secret listening device plugged in to the inmost thoughts of a character in a novel

(1972: 171).

Through mannerism, the author can characterize a character through the

mannerism, habits, or idiosyncrasies. Those things may tell the readers something

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2. Theory on Personality Changes

According to Hurlock in Personality Development, personality is the characteristics and qualities of a person as a whole. In literary work, personality is

all the characteristics and qualities that make the imaginary person alive to the

readers (1976: 108).

Personality changes are the “alternation or variation” of a person’s

personality pattern. The personality pattern can change in some areas and remain

persistent in others. People might try to change their personality to be a better

person because everyone wants to be the best in all aspects, and a nice personality

becomes the demand of society. However, in fact, personality change is not

always synonymous with “improvement”. Instead, there are several kinds of

changes that may happen, because the society has a variety of influences to a

personality (1976: 108-119).

Hurlock divides changes in personality into three categories.Firstly, some

changes are for the better and some are for the worse. The personality for better

and for worse reflects the kind of life adjustment the individual is making at the

time. Successful adjustment improves the self-concept and the person exhibits

greater composure, self-confidence, and self-assurance. On the other hand, failure

to adjust leads the person to deterioration in self-concept and to feelings of

inadequacy and inferiority (1976: 120-122).

Secondly, some personality changes are quantitative and some are for

qualitative. In quantitative changes, characteristics already present are reinforced,

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person is motivated to weaken such traits and conform to socially approved

patterns. The stronger of the motivation to win social approval and acceptance

strengthen desirable traits. In qualitative changes, an already-present trait, usually

an undesirable one is replaced by another trait, usually a desirable one. A person

who has already careful of his money, become more or less as he discovers the

social reaction to stinginess and generosity. If he is normal, he will probably be

somewhat more generous, hoping to win greater social favor. But if he is not

normal, he may change into a spendthrift or he may change into an extravagant

person or he may fluctuate between extreme generosity and miserliness (1976:

121-122).

Thirdly, the changes are also classified based on the period of time. There

are slow changes and rapid changes. Hurlock states that changes are regarded as

slow if they are barely perceptible, while rapid changes are readily apparent to all.

Normally, personality changes are slow and gradual. Every change in personality

involves the violation of previous habit and the learning of a new habit to replace

it (1976: 122).

3. Theory on Factors that Cause Personality Changes

There are some factors that cause personality changes in a person.

According to Rotter (1975: 25), the factors can be internal or external. Internal

means factors within the person, such as his or her level of intelligence or other

variables that make the individual responsible for the event. External means

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While according to Hurlock, there are eight categories of conditions

responsible for personality changes. The first condition is physical changes.

Physical changes may come from maturation, decline, illness, injuries or some

condition resulting from the person’s life pattern but unrelated to the normal

changes in the body structure (1976: 124-125).

The second condition is changes in environment. Changes either in the

physical or in the social environment may produce changes in the person’s

self-concept and his characteristics behavior. A change in environment will not

guarantee an improvement in personality although the change may have the

opposite effect. Moving to a new environment will not automatically improve our

personality. It depends on how well we are accepted in the new environment and

whether it meets our needs (Hurlock, 1976: 125).

The third condition is change in significant people. The experiences of

each individual are the key point in the personality forming. People learn and

imitate. Of course, each person is hoped to imitate the good ones. One thing that

should be remembered is that we are responding to the values in different ways,

and sometimes those values will not match our hopes. When the significant

people in an individual’s life change and when he tries to adapt his pattern of

behavior and his attitudes, beliefs, values and aspiration to theirs, changes in his

personality pattern cannot be avoid. These changes may not be marked. Nor are

they always permanent (Hurlock, 1976: 126).

The fourth condition is changes in social pressure. As childhood

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admired while some are disliked. Since everyone normally has a strong desire to

be accepted by those who are significant to him, he tries to change any personality

trait that will militate against his being accepted. Strong social pressure to

conform to a socially approved personality pattern thus encourages change in

certain aspects of the personality. Traits which are likely to lead to social

rejection, such as shyness, bossiness, aggressiveness and greed are more subject to

change that those, which are usually admired, such as affection, ambition,

cooperativeness and generosity (Hurlock, 1976: 126-127).

The fifth condition is changes in role. Role changes caused the status

changes within the group. One’s role may change because of change in age. A

child changes from being a dependent to being an economically independent

person when is old enough to become a wage earner. The changes role will have a

favorable or unfavorable effect depends how well it fits to the person’s needs and

whether it has greater prestige in the eyes of the social group than the old role

(Hurlock, 1976: 127).

The sixth condition isstrong motivation. When the motivation to improve

the personality pattern is strong enough, changes can be affected. Ordinarily

people are strongly motivated to change those traits, which they believe will

improve their social relationship and earn them greater social acceptance

(Hurlock, 1976: 127).

The seventh condition is changes in concept. A change in the

self-concept may cause the change in the entire personality pattern. This change

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self-concept requires tremendous self-insight. This means that a person must be able to

see himself as he actually is, not as he would like to be as others perceive him

(Hurlock, 1976: 128).

The eighth condition is the use of psychotherapy. Psychotherapy helps a

person to gain a better insight into the reasons for his unrealistically favorable or

unfavorable self-concept, to realize how his self-concept affects the quality of

behavior, to achieve both the motivation and know how to change his

self-concept, to secure the guidance necessary to make his change, without upsetting

the entire personality pattern and to change the condition in the environment

which contribute to an unfavorable self-concept (Hurlock, 1976: 129).

C. Theoretical Framework

This section explains about how the theories presented in this chapter are

used to analyze Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays with Morrie. The theories will be used to answer the questions in the problem formulation. Abrams, Forster, and

Murphy’s theories on character and characterization will be used to answer the

first problem formulation. Hurlock’s theory on factors that cause personality

changes and Rotter’s theory of internal and external factors are used to answer the

second problem formulation. Lastly, Hurlock’s theory on characteristics of

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CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

A. Object of the Study

The object of the study is a bestselling nonfiction book by American writer

Mitch Albom, published by Doubleday in 1997 entitled Tuesdays with Morrie. It consists of 192 pages and is divided into 27 chapters. This novel has won many

awards and achieved great popularity among readers around the world. It was

rewarded as The New York Times best-seller list for two years running with five million copies in print. The book has already been translated also into 30

languages in 34 countries. The story was later adapted by Thomas Rickman into a

television movie directed by Mick Jackson, aired on 5 December 1999.

Tuesdays with Morrie describes the true story of the author’s experience with his former professor, Morrie Schwartz, before Morrie died because of ASL

(amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). In this novel, Mitch Albom as the author describes

his relationship and discussions with Morrie during the time before Morrie’s

death. Therefore,Tuesday with Morrieis the last record from Morrie and Albom’s discussion about life as the greatest lesson.

Mitch Albom is an author and journalist. After graduating from college, he

worked as a sports journalist, then became a nationally-acclaimed sports journalist

at the Detroit Free Press. He also works as a radio host and sports reporter on

ESPN Sports Reporters andSportsCenter. Besides Tuesdays with Morrie, Albom has written some other famous novels, such asBo,Fab Five,Life Albom I-IV, and

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The Five People You Meet in Heaven. His books have collectively sold over 26 million copies worldwide, have been published in forty-two languages around the

world, and have been adapted into successful television movies.

B. Approach of the Study

There are various applicable approaches to analyze a work of art. These

approaches can be categorized according to the theorists who propose them. To

analyze this novel, the writer will apply psychological approach in analyzing the

main character’s personality development that is influenced by significant people.

Atkinson, et al in Introduction to Psychology defines psychology as the science that studies human’s behavior and mental process (1983: 636). Rene

Wellek and Austin Warren in Theory of Literature also explains that works of literature can be analyzed psychologically, using the term “psychology of

literature” as shown in the quotation below.

By ‘psychology of literature’, we may mean the psychological study of the writer, as type and as individual, or the study of the creative process, or the study of the psychological types and laws present within works of literature (1956: 81).

Meanwhile, Guerin, et al in A Handbook of Critical Approaches to Literaturedescribe the psychological approach as one of the critical approaches to literature which employs “psychological interpretation” to interpret literature

(2005: 152-153). According to them, “the psychological approach is an excellent

tool for reading beneath the lines” (2005: 153). The psychological approach is the

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aspect that is experienced by the main character. The psychological approach will

help to interpret the psychological aspect of the main character in the novel.

C. Method of the Study

Library and internet research is used in this thesis. Two kinds of sources

are used, the primary and secondary sources. The primary source is the novel

Tuesdays with Morrie itself. The secondary sources are books and articles on theories from the library or internet to be used in the analysis, such as Elizabeth

Hurlock’s Pesonality Development, M. J. Murphy’s Understanding Unseens: an Introduction to English Poetry and the English Novel for Overseas Students, Robert Stanton’sAn Introduction to Fiction, and Wellek and Warren’s Theory of Literature.

The first step to analyze the novel was reading it thoroughly in order to

find the most important aspect in the novel. To make the study more focused, the

writer formulated three problems. The second step was collecting data from

secondary data to support the analysis. The secondary data were from library and

internet research. The third step was analyzing the problems. This last step was

divided into three parts. The first part aimed to find out how Mitch is

characterized as a student in university, as a journalist before his reunion with

Morrie, and as a journalist after his reunion with Morrie. The second part aimed to

find out the factors that develop Mitch’s character from university to his reunion

with Morrie. The last part aimed to find out the characteristics of personality

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19 CHAPTER IV

ANALYSIS

This chapter is divided into three parts. The first part describes how Mitch

is characterized in three phases of his life. The second part discusses the factors

that develop Mitch’s personality, and the last part discusses the kinds of

personality changes undergone by Mitch throughout the three phases of his life.

A. The Characterization of Mitch

The novel depicts Mitch in three phases of his life, namely as a young

university student, as a journalist before his reunion his Morrie, and as a journalist

after his reunion with Morrie. This part describes how Mitch is characterized in

those phases, using Forster and Murphy’s theories of character and

characterization. Based on Forster’s theory, Mitch is considered as a “round

character”, who is dynamic and complex and can change or develop throughout

the story (1974: 73), because Mitch is characterized differently in each phase of

his life. Meanwhile, Murphy’s theory is used to discuss the characterization of

Mitch in detail below.

1. The Characterization of Mitch as a University Student

In university, Mitch is characterized as a person who is unconfident,

introverted, but has a lot of potentials. Firstly, Mitch is described as unconfident.

Based on Murphy’s theory, this characteristic is presented through Mitch’s past

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for his identity. He is even younger than his friends, as shown in his statement: “I

am younger than most of the students, having left high school a year early” (1997:

30). Therefore, he does not feel secure or confident about himself, both among

people in general and among his friends in university.

Based on Murphy’s theory, this characteristic is also presented through

Mitch’s personal description and mannerism. In university, Mitch modifies his

clothes and lifestyle in order to appear tougher and conceal his youth, although he

does not really like it. For instance, he often walks around with a cigarette in his

mouth although he does not smoke, and he plays music loudly in his car with the

windows down, pointless habits which reflect his lack of confidence.

To compensate for my youth on campus, I wear old gray sweatshirts and box in a local gym and walk around with an unlit cigarette in my mouth, even though I do not smoke. I drive a beat-up Mercury Cougar, with the windows down and the music up. I seek my identity in toughness ... (1997: 30).

Mitch’s speech and thoughts. At this age, he still needs a lot of guidance on how

to live as an adult. He searches for that guidance from the older people around

him, such as Morrie, who is his favorite professor, and his uncle. Mitch’s lack of

confidence in himself and his abilities to live successfully is shown in his

questions and complaints to those older people, such as the one quoted below.

One afternoon, I am complaining about the confusion of my age, what is expected of me versus what I want for myself (1997: 39)

Secondly, Mitch is described as introverted. Based on Murphy’s theory,

this characteristic is presented through Mitch’s mannerism or habit, namely his

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comfortable talking about my feelings in front of others” and “could sit in the

quiet for hours” (1997: 54). He does not like physical contacts or candid displays

of feeling. When he takes Morrie’s sociology course, the students show or discuss

their feelings as part of the lesson. Mitch does not like such activities, which he

refers to as “touchy-feely” (1997: 60). He avoids hugging Morrie and nods

instead, even though he feels very happy about Morrie’s words.

I want to hug him, to thank him for saying that, but I am not that open. I only nod instead (1997: 47).

This characteristic is also presented through the character as seen by

another character, namely Morrie. Morrie tells Mitch to be more open-minded

about displaying of emotions rather than directly condemning it, as shown in

Mitch’s comment, “Morrie says I should be more open-minded” (1997: 60).

Morrie also sees Mitch as a person who has a lot to say but chooses to keep things

to himself, as shown in the quote below.

"I think you have a lot to add. In fact, Mitch, you remind me of someone I knew who also liked to keep things to himself when he was younger" (1997: 54).

Thirdly, Mitch is described as having a lot of potential to succeed.

Potential refers not only to his intelligence, but also his talent and behavior.

Based on Murphy’s theory, Mitch’s potential is presented through his past life,

especially in his achievements. In high school, he graduates a year earlier than his

friends, as shown in his statement: “I am younger than most of the students,

having left high school a year early” (1997: 30). It means that he could master the

materials faster than his peers in high school. In university, he has taken nearly all

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can master more materials than most of his peers in university. Furthermore, he

soon finishes his honors thesis. Not everyone can do an honors thesis in a short

time, but Mitch can do it although he just starts his senior year.

By the start of my senior year, I have taken so many sociology classes, I am only a few credits shy of a degree. Morrie suggests I try an honors thesis (1997: 67).

Mitch’s potential is also presented through his reaction, thought, and

conversation with another character. After his discussions with Morrie, his

sociology professor, Mitch starts buying and reading books that Morrie has read.

This reaction shows Mitch’s potential as a keen learner.

In the campus bookstore, I shop for the items on Morrie's reading list. I purchase books that I never knew existed, titles such as Youth: Identity and Crisis,I and Thou,The Divided Self(1997: 39).

Also, Mitch has a dream to be a famous musician. When Morrie tells him

that it is a hard life, Mitch is not hindered by Morrie’s comment. Morrie supports

Mitch to achieve his dream, and Mitch feels very happy (1997: 47). The reaction,

thought, and conversation show Mitch’s potential as a person who is intelligent,

talented and willing to work hard to achieve his dream.

2. The Characterization of Mitch as a Journalist before His Reunion with

Morrie

After his graduation, Mitch goes to New York to work, away from his

hometown and old friends. When he works as a journalist before his reunion with

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Firstly, Mitch is described as self-centered. He only cares about himself

and does not care about others. Based on Murphy’s theory, this characteristic is

presented through Mitch’s past life. Throughout his career as a journalist, Mitch

loses contact with all his old friends and acquaintances, including Morrie, his

former favorite professor. He is occupied with his own affairs and he does not

want to spare a little time to keep in touch with them, although he has promised to

keep in touch with Morrie.

At this point, I should explain what had happened to me since that summer day when I last hugged my dear and wise professor, and promised to keep in touch.

I did not keep in touch.

In fact, I lost contact with most of the people I knew in college, including my beer-drinking friends and the first woman I ever woke up with in the morning (1997: 14).

Furthermore, he does not want to deal with anything that would not profit

himself, which reflects his self-centered characteristic. He deliberately throws

away all news from his old friends in the university because he thinks “they were

only asking for money”, something that would not benefit him (1997: 17).

Mitch’s habit or mannerism. Even when he interacts with other people, he is still

occupied with himself and his own affairs first. For example, when he first visits

Morrie, he thinks about his work rather than Morrie, who is seriously ill then.

Even when he is already in front of Morrie’s house and Morrie is waiting for him,

he keeps talking to a producer for work. He deliberately ignores Morrie until he is

finished with his work and pretends that he was looking for his keys.

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and jumped from the car, run and held him and kissed him hello. Instead, I killed the engine and sunk down off the seat, as if I were looking for something.

I did what I had become best at doing: I tended to my work, even while my dying professor waited on his front lawn. I am not proud of this, but that is what I did (1997: 27).

Mitch’s reaction. When the union at his newspaper goes on strike, he is prohibited

from writing in the newspaper, which has been his main work for years. He

assumes that the readers need his column, that the readers would not be able to

enjoy the newspaper without his column in it. In fact, they do not miss his column

and things go on as usual. His reaction reflects his self-centered characteristic.

I had grown used to thinking readers somehow needed my column. I was stunned at how easily things went on without me (1997:45).

Secondly, Mitch is described as materialistic. Material things like wealth

and career become the most important things and the sole purpose of his life.

Based on Murphy’s theory, this characteristic is presented through Mitch’s habit

or mannerism. Mitch has the habit of chasing material things compulsively. He is

never satisfied with what he has, and always tries to get more and more. As a

result, he always does everything in a hurry and in an agitated state of mind, from

working, exercising, to driving a car, because he always wants to get more.

I stopped renting. I started buying. I bought a house on a hill. I bought cars. I invested in stocks and built a portfolio. I was cranked to a fifth gear, and everything I did, I did on a deadline. I exercised like a demon. I drove my car at breakneck speed. I made more money than I had ever figured to see (1997: 16).

Mitch is willing to sacrifice everything else to chase material things,

including his own dreams, his health, and his relationship with family and friends,

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never even realized I was doing it” (1997: 33). His busy schedule only leaves very

little time for his wife. His wife wants to start a family and have children, but

Mitch is too busy with his work.

I met a dark-haired woman named Janine who somehow loved me despite my schedule and the constant absences. We married after a seven year courtship. I was back to work a week after the wedding. I told her--and myself--that we would one day start a family, something she wanted very much. But that day never came (1997: 17).

Thirdly, Mitch is described as ambitious. Based on Murphy’s theory, this

characteristic is presented through Mitch’s habit or mannerism. Mitch has the

habits of a workaholic. He has such a big ambition to succeed in career that he

works excessively without any regard to his physical and mental health. Beside

his job as a columnist or journalist, he also takes several other sports-related jobs,

such as author, radio and television announcer.

The sports appetite in that city was insatiable--they had professional teams in football, basketball, baseball, and hockey--and it matched my ambition. In a few years, I was not only penning columns, I was writing sports books, doing radio shows, and appearing regularly on TV, spouting my opinions on rich football players and hypocritical college sports programs. I was part of the media thunderstorm that now soaks our country. I was in demand (1997: 16).

As a workaholic, Mitch works without time or place limit, at every time

and in every place. He starts work early in the morning and finishes late at night.

He often works overnight when he covers a special event. According to his own

statement, he “worked at a pace that knew no hours, no limits” (1997: 15). This

habit goes on for a long time until he becomes addicted to his work. When the

union goes on strike and he is not allowed to write, he feels depressed.

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my stories in print in each morning, I knew that, in at least one way, I was alive (1997: 44).

As a workaholic, Mitch is always in a rush. He often works while doing

something else. For example, he is listening to the news on the radio, talking to

his producer on the phone, drinking coffee to reduce his fatigue, while driving a

car and looking for Morrie’s house.

As I turned the rental car onto Morrie's street in West Newton, a quiet suburb of Boston, I had a cup of coffee in one hand and a cellular phone between my ear and shoulder. I was talking to a TV producer about a piece we were doing. My eyes jumped from the digital clock--my return flight was in a few hours--to the mailbox numbers on the tree-lined suburban street. The car radio was on, the all-news station. This was how I operated, five things at once (1997: 26).

These habits, such as working all the time, drinking much coffee, and working

while driving, reflect Mitch’s ambitious characteristic.

3. The Characterization of Mitch as a Journalist after His Reunion with

Morrie

In the middle of his career as a successful journalist, Mitch is reunited with

his old professor, Morrie, who is dying of a disease called ALS. Mitch regularly

visits Morrie until his death. After his reunion with Morrie, Mitch is characterized

as an affectionate, benevolent, and laid-back person.

Firstly, Mitch is described as an affectionate man. After his reunion with

Morrie, he loves and cares about other people around him. Based on Murphy’s

theory, this characteristic is presented through Mitch’s habit or mannerism. He

develops the habit of openly showing care and affection to the people around him,

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lost contact for a long time, and has a long talk with him (1997: 190). He says “I

love you” to his brother and to Morrie for the first time in his life, as shown

below.

"You're my only brother," I said. "I don't want to lose you. I love you." I had never said such a thing to him before (1997: 191).

"Love . . . you," he rasped.

I love you, too, Coach (1997: 185).

Mitch shows his affection to Morrie by accompanying him as his illness is

getting worse. Mitch willingly does many things he has never done before to help

Morrie. For example, he hugs Morrie, kisses him on the cheek (1997: 52), and

holds Morrie’s hand, although he previously did not like to do physical contact.

I nodded at him and squeezed his hand. We held hands regularly now. This was another change for me. Things that before would have made me embarrassed or squeamish were now routinely handled (1997: 154).

He helps Morrie blow his nose by holding the tissue, squeezing it against

his nostrils, and pulling it off “like a mother does to a child in a car seat” (1997:

143-144). He massages Morrie’s ankles, and helps Morrie in various other ways

(1997: 164), even though it might be inconvenient to Mitch. Mitch is normally

reluctant to involve his family in his everyday activities, but now he involves his

wife in his friendship with Morrie. One day, he finally brings his wife to visit

Morrie (1997: 142). It reflects Mitch’s affection both to Morrie and his wife.

Secondly, Mitch is described as a benevolent man. Now he does not only

chase money or career, but he also chases happiness by maintaining good

relationship with himself and his surroundings instead. Based on Murphy’s

theory, this characteristic is presented through Mitch’s habit or mannerism.

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no longer spends all his time and energy to chase material wealth. These new

habits do not give him any benefit materially, but they make him happier.

I came back the next Tuesday. And for many Tuesdays that followed. I looked forward to these visits more than one would think, considering I was flying seven hundred miles to sit alongside a dying man. But I seemed to slip into a time warp when I visited Morrie, and I liked myself better when I was there. I no longer rented a cellular phone for the rides from the airport.Let them wait, I told myself, mimicking Morrie (1997: 55).

Mitch also writes a book about his experience with Morrie entitled

Tuesdays with Morrie, which is the object of this study. The money from the book is used to help Morrie pay his medical expenses. While Mitch normally writes to

earn money for himself, now he writes without any material compensation. It

reflects his benevolent characteristic. As described in Mitch’s statement, “The

advance money helped pay Morrie's enormous medical bills, and for that we were

both grateful” (1997: 191).

Mitch’s thoughts. He understands that happiness can come from good relationship

with others, not only from materials, which can be seen in his thought about

Morrie’s family. He sees that their happiness comes from good relationship, not

from material wealth.

So the TV was the same old model, the car that Charlotte drove was the same old model, the dishes and the silverware and the towels--all the same. And yet the house had changed so drastically. It had filled with love and teaching and communication. It had filled with friendship and family and honesty and tears (1997: 126).

While he used to feel happiness from material wealth only, now Mitch is

able to feel the happiness from Morrie’s attention to him, as shown in Mitch’s

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135). Consequently, Mitch also realizes the importance of paying attention to

other people, as shown in his statement: “I now know it is more important than

almost everything they taught us in college” (1997: 136). This realization reflects

his benevolent characteristic, because we cannot be benevolent without giving

enough attention to others.

Thirdly, Mitch is described as a laid-back man. Based on Murphy’s theory,

this characteristic is presented through Mitch’s habit or mannerism. He has

enough time to live his life in a balanced way with enough time for leisure. He

can spend some time peacefully in the cemetery where Morrie is buried, enjoy the

scenery around the cemetery, and imagine a conversation with Morrie. Those are

the things that Mitch would not be able to do before his reunion with Morrie.

At one point, when Morrie's ashes were placed into the ground, I glanced around the cemetery. Morrie was right. It was indeed a lovely spot, trees and grass and a sloping hill.

"You talk, I'll listen,” he had said.

I tried doing that in my head and, to my happiness, found that the imagined conversation felt almost natural (1997: 188).

Mitch’s thought. Mitch asked Morrie what would he do if he were healthy again

for one day, and Morrie describes ordinary activities. At first, Mitch cannot

understand how Morrie can be satisfied with an ordinary day, but then he realizes

that anyone can indeed be satisfied and happy with an ordinary day.

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As shown in the quote above, Mitch realizes that people do not need extraordinary

activities to feel satisfied. This realization reflects Mitch’s laid-back characteristic.

B. Factors That Change Mitch’s Personality

As discussed above, Mitch is characterized differently in the three phases

of his life. Thus, Mitch has undergone changes in his personality in-between those

phases. This part discusses the factors that change Mitch’s personality from a

student to a journalist before his reunion with Morrie and from a journalist before

his reunion with Morrie to a journalist after his reunion with Morrie, using Rotter

and Hurlock’s theory on factors that cause personality changes.

According to Rotter, those factors or conditions can be divided into two

categories, internal and external (1975: 25). While according to Hurlock, there are

some factors or conditions that cause personality changes (1976: 124-129).

Rotter’s theory is used to classify those factors into two general categories,

internal factors and external factors, so this part is divided into two, internal and

external factors experienced by Morrie. While Hurlock’s theory is used to define

specifically the factors that contribute to Mitch’s personality change, such as

physical changes, changes in environment, and changes in significant people.

Thus, the discussion of internal and external factors is further divided into several

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1. Internal Factors

Internal factors are the factors within an individual that make the

individual responsible for an event or a change in his or her life (Rotter, 1975:

25). Internal factors that cause Mitch’s personality changes include strong

motivationandself-concept.

a. Strong motivation

Based on Hurlock’s theory, people might have strong motivation to

change their personality traits or characteristics in order to improve their social

relationship and earn greater social acceptance (Hurlock, 1976: 127). Although

strong motivation is an internal factor, it is related to the external factors of

relationship and social acceptance (1976: 127).

i. From a student to a journalist before his reunion with Morrie

As a student, Mitch does not have any strong motivation to change his

characteristics. His motivation is just focused on his study and personal life, and

there is no reason for him to change his characteristics because he already does

well in his study and personal life. However, as a journalist, he grows to feel

strong motivation to change his characteristics.

As discussed by Hurlock, strong motivation is related to the external

factors of relationship and social acceptance (1976: 127). Mitch’s strong

motivation as a journalist is also related to external events at that time, such as his

uncle’s death and his failure at his previous work as a musician. Those events

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surroundings. Therefore, the form and type of changes in Mitch’s personality are

suited to what is demanded by Mitch’s surroundings.

Mitch’s surroundings as a journalist consist of business people and famous

athletes, who demand businesslike and glamorous personality. As an effort to earn

greater social acceptance, Mitch consciously and unconsciously changes his

characteristics. Mitch’s strong motivation brings some changes in his

characteristics. His unconfident characteristic disappears along with time, since it

would not help him earn acceptance from his surroundings. His introverted

characteristic is intensified and develops into a self-centered characteristic. Due to

his strong motivation to succeed, Mitch develops his potential into excessive

ambition, especially the ambition to gain material wealth by utilizing his potential

as best as he can.

ii. From a journalist before his reunion with Morrie to after his reunion with

Morrie

As a journalist before his reunion with Morrie, Mitch has strong

motivation to change his characteristics. He changes his characteristics in order to

earn greater social acceptance from his surroundings as a journalist, which consist

of businesslike and glamorous people as described above. He shapes his

characteristics to match his surroundings without thinking critically and without

considering whether they suit him.

However, after his reunion with Morrie, he feels strong motivation to

change his characteristics again. His motivation is related to another internal

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environment. As he undergoes some changes in these factors after his reunion

with Morrie, those factors rouse his realization that his current personality is not

the personality he wants, and thus rouse a strong motivation from within himself

to improve his personality by changing his characteristics.

For instance, Mitch has realized that his characteristics at work in fact

hinder instead of improve his social relationship. He also realizes that his way of

seeking social acceptance through his characteristics in fact does not bring him the

kind of social acceptance he needs. In the effort to improve his social relationship

and earn greater social acceptance, Mitch changes his characteristic to ones which

would improve his social relationship and bring him social acceptance. His

centered characteristic changes into affectionate, because he realizes his

self-centered characteristic would hinder him from improving his social relationship or

earning acceptance. His materialistic characteristic changes into benevolent,

because he realizes that material possessions do not necessarily bring him the

social relationship or acceptance he aims for.

b. Self-concept

Based on Hurlock’s theory, self concept is related to the way a person sees

himself, and a change in the self-concept may cause the change in the entire

personality pattern (1976: 128). This is also related to the change in environment,

which may produce changes in a person’s self-concept (1976: 125).

Mitch does not undergo any significant change in self-concept between

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point of view of success in the society. As a student, he tries to realize that view

of success by studying hard. It can be seen in his achievement in high school and

university, where he graduates faster than his friends with good grades. It can also

be seen in his effort to follow the trends among youths, such as putting a cigarette

in his mouth although he does not smoke, driving a car while playing loud music,

and so on. As a journalist, he tries to realize the view of success by working hard

and following whatever is favored by the society.

ii. From a journalist before his reunion with Morrie to after his reunion with

Morrie

As a journalist before his reunion with Morrie, Mitch strives to be seen as

successful by the society. He sees himself in terms of his success from the

society’s point of view only. Therefore, he blindly follows whatever seems to be

favored by the society, without thinking critically whether or not the values or the

things he chases are really necessary or really suitable with his life. As material

possessions and career are regarded as signs of success, Mitch blindly chases

those things, although it does not make him happy.

After his reunion with Morrie, Mitch has a different way altogether of

seeing himself. He sees himself as a human being now. Every human being needs

many things to be happy, not only money and career but also love, respect,

relationship with other people and the community, and peace of mind. Every

human being is going to die, so he or she must fill his or her life with a balance of

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self-concept, Mitch no longer devotes his life to chase success only, but also learns to

chase all aspects of his life as a human being.

His self-centered characteristic changes into an affectionate characteristic.

Previously, he only cares about himself and his efforts to chase success; after his

reunion with Morrie, he cares about people around him, such as Morrie and his

brother. His materialistic characteristic changes into benevolent. Previously, his

sole objective in life is to chase material wealth, which is considered as mark of

success in the society; after his reunion with Morrie, he has a more balanced

objective between material and non-material achievement. His ambitious

characteristic changes into laid-back. Previously he uses all his time to work as

much as possible; after his reunion with Morrie, he goes at a slower pace, which

enables him to enjoy life and fulfill his needs. The evidence of this change is

shown in Mitch’s statement below. In the statement below, he explains that he

starts to be more open, ignore the lure of the values advertised by the society, and

he wishes that he had been having that self-concept even before he meets Morrie.

I look back sometimes at the person I was before I rediscovered my old professor. I want to talk to that person. I want to tell him what to look out for, what mistakes to avoid. I want to tell him to be more open, to ignore the lure of advertised values, to pay attention when your loved ones are speaking, as if it were the last time you might hear them (1997: 190).

2. External Factors

External factors are the factors outside an individual, or other

circumstances that cause an event or a change in his or her life (Rotter, 1975: 25).

External factors that cause Mitch’s personality changes include environment,

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a. Environment

As a student, the university environment is relatively homogenous. It

consists of students, who are mostly young people, and the professors who teach

the students. The university environment also has relaxed atmosphere because the

students do not have much responsibility yet, apart from academic work and

socialization. Mitch is accepted relatively well in this environment. The

environment meets his simple needs. Academically, he has good achievement,

and he has some friends, whom he calls “the ‘buddies’ that circled my orbit back

in college” (1997: 30).

As a journalist, the work environment demands more responsibility and is

wider than the university environment. A journalist’s job is more demanding than

a student’s work or Mitch’s previous job as a musician. As a journalist, Mitch

must work quickly and tirelessly because freshness is an important factor in

delivering news. He must cover events in various places and writes his column in

a short time.

I did four or five media jobs in England, juggling them like a clown. I spent eight hours a day on a computer, feeding my stories back to the States. Then I did TV pieces, traveling with a crew throughout parts of London. I also phoned in radio reports every morning and afternoon (1997: 43).

As a sports journalist, his environment includes athletes and celebrities

with their glamorous life. In this environment, the limit of achievement and the

demands are infinite. The level of acceptance also depends on a person’s wealth