The influence of O-lan`s character on resolving her personal conflict found in pearl s. buck`s the good earth.

(1)

ABSTRACT

Janiati. (2007) The Influence of O-lan’s Character on Resolving Her Personal Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Teachers Training and Education Faculty, Department of Language and Arts Education, English Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.

This study discusses personal conflicts which are felt by O-lan, a wife of a farmer who later becomes a landowner. This study focuses on three issues, which are used as the research factors in this thesis. The first issue is about the character of O-lan. The second one is about O-lan’s personal conflicts, both intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts. The last issue discusses the influence of O-lan’s character in resolving her personal conflicts.

By employing library research study, this thesis was finished. This thesis applied psychological approach to comprehend the patterns of human personality and behavior. Besides using this approach, this thesis also applied theory of characterization, theory of conflict and women in Chinese culture. Theory of characterization was used to analyze O-lan’s character. To understand more about O-lan’s personal conflicts, theory of conflict was applied. Women in Chinese culture was discussed to help the writer to understand more about women status in the earlier twentieth century.

The first result of the study was about O-lan’s characters. She was a major character which was round and protagonist. She was seen as a person who is obedient, diligent and hardworking, silent, smart, and economical and industrious. O-lan’s characters were also influenced by the culture at that time.

The second and the third results are combined since it related one another. This study found out that O-lan has two intrapersonal and two interpersonal conflicts. O-lan’s intrapersonal conflicts are her decision to deliver her first baby by herself and to kill her second daughter. The intrapersonal conflicts O-lan faced are double approach – avoidance conflicts. O-lan’s character as a smart person helped her to deliver he first baby safely. O-lan’s character as a tough person made her dare to kill her second daughter after the baby was born.

O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts were her relationship with Wang Lung and her relationship with Cuckoo. O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts were categorized as ego conflict. The conflict between O-lan and Wang Lung was named accommodation style. It was resolved with integrative negotiation. The conflict between O-lan and Cuckoo was classified as avoiding style. It was solved with win-lose solution.

Finally, the writer would like to propose two suggestions to complete this thesis. One suggestion is for the next researcher(s) on The Good Earth in coming years. Another suggestion is to implement The Good Earth as a material in teaching English, especially for teaching Public Speaking I.

(2)

ABSTRAK

Janiati. (2007) The Influence of O-lan’s Character on Resolving Her Personal Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Fakultas Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan, Jurusan Bahasa dan Seni, Program Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris Universitas Sanata Dharma.

Skripsi ini membahas konflik pribadi yang dialami oleh O-lan, istri dari seorang petani yang akhirnya menjadi tuan tanah. Skripsi ini terfokus pada tiga aspek, yang digunakan sebagai faktor penelitian. Aspek pertama menjelaskan mengenai karakter lan. Aspek kedua berhubungan dengan konflik pribadi O-lan, baik konflik dari dalam maupun luar diri O-lan. Aspek terakhir menjelaskan pengaruh karakter O-lan dalam menyelesaikan konflik probadinya.

Dengan menggunakan metode studi pustaka, skripsi ini diselesaikan. Skripsi ini menggunakan teori psikologi untuk mengartikan bentuk kepribadian dan perilaku manusia. Selain teori psikologi, skripsi ini juga menggunakan teori karakterisasi, teori konflik dan wanita dalam kebudayaan China. Teori karakteristik digunakan untuk menganalisa karakter O-lan. Teori konfilk berfungsi untuk mengenal lebih lanjut mengenai konflik pribadi O-lan. Wanita dalam kebudayaan China digunakan untuk membantu penulis memahami kedudukan wanita pada awal abad dua puluh.

Hasil pertama dari skripsi ini mengenai karakter O-lan. Dia merupakan karakter utama yang rumit dan protagonis. Dia dilihat sebagai seorang yang patuh, rajin dan perkerja keras, pendiam, cerdas, serta hemat dan tekun dan tabah. Karakter O-lan juga dipengaruhi oleh kebudayaan pada saat itu.

Penjelasan hasil kedua dan ketiga disatukan karena berhubungan satu sama lain. Skripsi ini menemukan dua konflik dari dalam diri dan dua konflik dari luar diri O-lan. Konflik dari dalam diri O-lan adalah keputusannya melahirkan anak pertamanya sendirian dan keputusannya membunuh anak perempuan keduanya. Konflik yang dihadapi oleh O-lan disebut konflik pendekatan-penghindaran ganda. Karakter O-lan yang pintar membuat dia mampu melahirkan bayinya dengan selamat. Karakter O-lan sebagai wanita yang tabah membuat dia mampu membunuh anak perempuan keduanya setelah melahirkannya.

Konflik dari luar diri O-lan adalah hubungannya dengan Wang Lung dan hubungannya dengan Cuckoo. Konflik dari luar diri O-lan dikategorikan sebagai ego konflik. Tipe konflik antara O-lan dan Wang Lung disebut dengan akomodasi. Konflik ini terselesaikan dengan negosiasi intergratif. Tipe konflik antara O-lan dan Cuckoo dinamakan penghindaran. Konflik ini terselesaikan dengan solusi win-lose.

Akhirnya, penulis mengajukan dua saran untuk melengkapi skripsi ini. Satu saran untuk peneliti novel The Good Earth selanjutnya. Saran lainnya untuk penerapan novel The Good Earth sebagai materi dalam mengajar bahasa Inggris, terutama untuk mengajar Public speaking I.

(3)

THE INFLUENCE OF O-LAN’S CHARACTER ON

RESOLVING HER PERSONAL CONFLICT FOUND IN

PEARL S. BUCK’S THE GOOD EARTH

A Thesis

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree

in English Language Education

By Janiati

Student Number: 03 1214 053

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION

FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA

(4)

THE INFLUENCE OF O-LAN’S CHARACTER ON

RESOLVING HER PERSONAL CONFLICT FOUND IN

PEARL S. BUCK’S THE GOOD EARTH

A Thesis

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree

in English Language Education

By Janiati

Student Number: 03 1214 053

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION

FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA

2007

(5)

ii

(6)

(7)

(8)

DEDICATION PAGE

I

f

y

o

u

d

o

n

o

t

w

a

n

t

o

e

n

t

e

r

t

h

e

t

i

g

e

r

’

s

t

a

l

H

o

w

c

a

n

y

o

u

c

a

t

c

h

t

h

e

l

i

t

l

e

t

i

g

e

r

?

Dynasty Han’s Proverb, 202 BC – 220 C

“

N

o

E

f

o

r

t

s

N

o

R

e

s

u

l

t

”

g{|á à{xá|á |á ÑtÜà|vâÄtÜÄç wxw|vtàxw àÉM

`ç `Éà{xÜ tÇw Ytà{xÜ

Wxã| f{|Çàt câÜÇtÅt? `x|Ä|tàç

`ç Ätàx uÜÉà{xÜ Tzâá _xÉÇtÜw|

`ç áãxxàç [xÜ| ^âÜÇ|tãtÇ

TÇw àÉ tÄÄ Åç yÜ|xÇwá‹‹A

Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) said, “All human problems is caused by his unknown on how to sit quietly.”

Ajahn Brahm adds,”…. and his unknown on the time to sit quietly.” A problem is not a problem when there isn’t any solution.

How many times in our lives that we waste for something, which is at that time, has no solution, and it is because it is not a problem?

(9)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to express my gratitude to everybody that has helped me in

accomplishing this thesis. First and foremost, my deepest gratitude and honor go

to the Three Precious Jewels for their blessing, and the power of perfect

emptiness and the unfailing law of cause and effect, under the generous protection

of my Honored Masters.

My dedication goes to my parents, Mr. Lai Tjhie Jie & Mrs. Jap Lin

Eng, who have given their support along the way. May they be free from all great obstacles and attain the wishes, to lead comfort and happy lives for the rest of

their lives. My dedication also goes to my older sisters, Dewi Shinta Purnama &

Meiliaty, my late younger brother, Agus Leonardi, my brother in law, Eng Wie, and my nephew and niece, Joseph & Jessica, of whom I care very much. In the

end, as time goes by and each part of their life finds her/his own ways, all I could

wish for is their true and genuine happiness.

Next, I would like to thank my major sponsor Dra. Wigati Yektiningtyas,

M.Hum. and my co-sponsor Fidelis Chosa Kastuhandani, S.Pd. Of all lectures in Sanata Dharma University, these two are the ones that I worked with. May they

continue the dedication and guidance toward the other students for the sake of

good improvements for better education in this country.

I would also like to thank the staffs at the library and the library itself

(with all the valuable books). They have been very helpful and supportive, and I

enjoyed my university study years very much, thank to the staffs. Therefore, I

might as well thank the university as whole. I hope this university can contribute

much more to the education in Indonesia, to all the people who deserve better

(10)

education for the better lives.

The dedication goes to my best friends at PBI’03 (Moniq, X-tin, Seevi,

Dudy, Yessi, Vendi, Ajenk and the rest whom I can not mention one by one). I

hope you all achieve great success. To all my friends in GMCBP (Ko Chun Yen,

Ko Amran, Edy, Nana, Diana, Dewi kecil, Robin, Ko Albert, Heryno, Moon and

the rest) and the organization itself, also to all my friends in kamadhis Dharma

Jaya (Tryshia, Vera, Hansen, Ade, Hertanto, Andry, Ajo, Stephen), thank them very much for the lesson, opportunities and inputs that they have given to me. It is

completely a pleasure to work with you all. The same credit goes to my

ex-sutomo 2 friends (Min, Ucox, Jimz, Alex, Benny): ‘Stay together, keep in touch and let’s still be friends until the end of our life’. I also do not forget to share my

deepest thank with Pondok Unyil (Lili, Wuri, Ani, Atik).

My sincere gratitude goes to “Heri Kurniawan-Yen”, for all his

motivation, support, care, understanding, and attention that I sometimes recklessly

take them for granted. He shares a lot of matters which always remind me that I

have a very blessed life. My world will not be completed without his presence. He

is the best Karma I own.

Sabbe Satta Bhavantu Sukkhitatta…. Sadhu, Sadhu, Sadhu….

JANIATI

(11)

ABSTRACT

Janiati. (2007) The Influence of O-lan’s Character on Resolving Her Personal Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Teachers Training and Education Faculty, Department of Language and Arts Education, English Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.

This study discusses personal conflicts which are felt by O-lan, a wife of a farmer who later becomes a landowner. This study focuses on three issues, which are used as the research factors in this thesis. The first issue is about the character of O-lan. The second one is about O-lan’s personal conflicts, both intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts. The last issue discusses the influence of O-lan’s character in resolving her personal conflicts.

By employing library research study, this thesis was finished. This thesis applied psychological approach to comprehend the patterns of human personality and behavior. Besides using this approach, this thesis also applied theory of characterization, theory of conflict and women in Chinese culture. Theory of characterization was used to analyze O-lan’s character. To understand more about O-lan’s personal conflicts, theory of conflict was applied. Women in Chinese culture was discussed to help the writer to understand more about women status in the earlier twentieth century.

The first result of the study was about O-lan’s characters. She was a major character which was round and protagonist. She was seen as a person who is obedient, diligent and hardworking, silent, smart, and economical and industrious. O-lan’s characters were also influenced by the culture at that time.

The second and the third results are combined since it related one another. This study found out that O-lan has two intrapersonal and two interpersonal conflicts. O-lan’s intrapersonal conflicts are her decision to deliver her first baby by herself and to kill her second daughter. The intrapersonal conflicts O-lan faced are double approach – avoidance conflicts. O-lan’s character as a smart person helped her to deliver he first baby safely. O-lan’s character as a tough person made her dare to kill her second daughter after the baby was born.

O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts were her relationship with Wang Lung and her relationship with Cuckoo. O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts were categorized as ego conflict. The conflict between O-lan and Wang Lung was named accommodation style. It was resolved with integrative negotiation. The conflict between O-lan and Cuckoo was classified as avoiding style. It was solved with win-lose solution.

Finally, the writer would like to propose two suggestions to complete this thesis. One suggestion is for the next researcher(s) on The Good Earth in coming years. Another suggestion is to implement The Good Earth as a material in teaching English, especially for teaching Public Speaking I.

(15)

ABSTRAK

Janiati. (2007) The Influence of O-lan’s Character on Resolving Her Personal Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Fakultas Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan, Jurusan Bahasa dan Seni, Program Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris Universitas Sanata Dharma.

Skripsi ini membahas konflik pribadi yang dialami oleh O-lan, istri dari seorang petani yang akhirnya menjadi tuan tanah. Skripsi ini terfokus pada tiga aspek, yang digunakan sebagai faktor penelitian. Aspek pertama menjelaskan mengenai karakter lan. Aspek kedua berhubungan dengan konflik pribadi O-lan, baik konflik dari dalam maupun luar diri O-lan. Aspek terakhir menjelaskan pengaruh karakter O-lan dalam menyelesaikan konflik probadinya.

Dengan menggunakan metode studi pustaka, skripsi ini diselesaikan. Skripsi ini menggunakan teori psikologi untuk mengartikan bentuk kepribadian dan perilaku manusia. Selain teori psikologi, skripsi ini juga menggunakan teori karakterisasi, teori konflik dan wanita dalam kebudayaan China. Teori karakteristik digunakan untuk menganalisa karakter O-lan. Teori konfilk berfungsi untuk mengenal lebih lanjut mengenai konflik pribadi O-lan. Wanita dalam kebudayaan China digunakan untuk membantu penulis memahami kedudukan wanita pada awal abad dua puluh.

Hasil pertama dari skripsi ini mengenai karakter O-lan. Dia merupakan karakter utama yang rumit dan protagonis. Dia dilihat sebagai seorang yang patuh, rajin dan perkerja keras, pendiam, cerdas, serta hemat dan tekun dan tabah. Karakter O-lan juga dipengaruhi oleh kebudayaan pada saat itu.

Penjelasan hasil kedua dan ketiga disatukan karena berhubungan satu sama lain. Skripsi ini menemukan dua konflik dari dalam diri dan dua konflik dari luar diri O-lan. Konflik dari dalam diri O-lan adalah keputusannya melahirkan anak pertamanya sendirian dan keputusannya membunuh anak perempuan keduanya. Konflik yang dihadapi oleh O-lan disebut konflik pendekatan-penghindaran ganda. Karakter O-lan yang pintar membuat dia mampu melahirkan bayinya dengan selamat. Karakter O-lan sebagai wanita yang tabah membuat dia mampu membunuh anak perempuan keduanya setelah melahirkannya.

Konflik dari luar diri O-lan adalah hubungannya dengan Wang Lung dan hubungannya dengan Cuckoo. Konflik dari luar diri O-lan dikategorikan sebagai ego konflik. Tipe konflik antara O-lan dan Wang Lung disebut dengan akomodasi. Konflik ini terselesaikan dengan negosiasi intergratif. Tipe konflik antara O-lan dan Cuckoo dinamakan penghindaran. Konflik ini terselesaikan dengan solusi win-lose.

Akhirnya, penulis mengajukan dua saran untuk melengkapi skripsi ini. Satu saran untuk peneliti novel The Good Earth selanjutnya. Saran lainnya untuk penerapan novel The Good Earth sebagai materi dalam mengajar bahasa Inggris, terutama untuk mengajar Public speaking I.

(16)

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

This chapter is divided into five parts. The first part is the background of

the study. This part contains the explanation about the reasons on deciding the

novel to be analyzed. The second part is problem formulation which deals with

the problems analyzed in this study. The third part, the objectives of the study,

points out the purposes of conducting the study. The fourth part shows the

benefits of the study which explain the significance of this study for the readers

and me as a thesis writer. The last part discusses the definition of the important

terms in the title to avoid misunderstanding or misinterpreting.

A. Background of the Study

In a life of a person, he or she always deals with problems or conflicts.

Most of the problems or conflicts may direct him or her to unhappiness or

happiness. Conflicts also may cause crisis in someone’s relation with other. In a

family, conflicts may cause crisis in the relationship between husband and wife,

parent and child, or brother and sister. A conflict, regardless the occasion and how

apparently the minor issues, constitutes a crisis in a relationship (Denham 1984:

43). The crisis in the relationship without a clear resolution might cause damage.

Everything has cause and effect. Similar to that statement before, crisis

arises because of conflict. Usually conflict occurs in a family when the family

members disagree about the events and situation in their lives (Noiler and

Fitzpatrict 1999: 99). Each person has his or her own opinion, idea, or thought.

(17)

Because of the differences, conflict develops even in the small group like family.

People with their ego try to defend their opinions, ideas or thoughts. This ego

influences the changes of someone’s behavior towards others.

People are considered unconscious when they defend their opinions, ideas

or thoughts. According to Isenhart and Spangle, our daily life problems are often

caused by an internal-unconscious state such as anxiety, ego, fear, aggressiveness

or guilt (2000: 7). Based on the statement, it can be stated that someone’s

internal-unconscious indirectly influences his or her behavior or judgment in his or her

relationship with others in their life.

From the description above, conflict plays a big role in someone’s life.

The reason is because a conflict causes a problem that influences the behavior of

someone to others. Conflict also affects the human relationship. Conflict appears

first in the smallest group of society which is family. Because of that, it is

essential to learn about the conflicts and the resolution especially in a family. By

knowing more about the conflict and the resolution, people might be familiar in

solving the conflict.

Conflict can be found not only in the real life but also in the literary work,

like a poem or a novel. In this study, the writer chooses a novel to analyze.

Hudson states that literature is the expression of life through the medium of

language (1960: 10). Agreeing with Hudson statement, novel considers critical to

be analyzed since it may describe life, experiences, thought of people, and their

feeling about life. A novel with its content enriches the knowledge of people who

read it by reflecting the human experience through language.

(18)

rather a highly complex organization of stratified characters with multiple

meaning and relationship (1977: 27). Wellek and Warren show that a literary

work is not just about language but also about the human experiences in a

complex situation which is created by the novelist. The novelist tries to create a

character in a situation with his or her conflict and way of solving the conflict. In

other words, a character of human with his or her responsibility, belief, image,

thought, feeling, problems or conflicts can be found in the novel.

In this study, the writer will use a novel called The Good Earth by Pearl S.

Buck. This novel was published in 1931 and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932 and

William Dean Howells Medal in 1935. The Good Earth describes a daily life of a

farmer who lately became a landowner name Wang Lung. In this study, the writer

chooses to describe the conflict felt by O-lan, Wang Lung’s first wife. O-lan was a

slave before she married to Wang Lung. Having an experience from becoming a

slave, a farmer’s wife to a landowner’s wife, a mother, a daughter in law and an

experience of concubine, O-lan has a personal conflict that is interesting to be

analyzed. It seems like O-lan is hiding her conflict secretly. Besides, O-lan also

has her own way to solve her conflict. This study tries to analyze the character of

O-lan and how the characteristics influence the way of O-lan in resolving her

conflict in her life.

This study focused on O-lan’s character and her personal conflict and the

resolution of O-lan’s personal conflicts.

A. Problem Formulation

(19)

questions as the problem formulation. They are:

1. How is O-lan’s character described in this novel?

2. What are the personal conflicts faced by O-lan?

3. How does O-lan’s character influence her in resolving her personal

conflicts?

B. Objectives of the Study

The aims of this study are to answer the problem stated in the problem

formulation. To be more specific, this study aims to describe the characteristics of

lan found in The Good Earth. After explaining about the characteristics of

O-lan, the study reveals the personal conflicts felt by O-lan. The personal conflicts

contains of both intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts. This study continues to

analyze the influence of O-lan’s character in resolving her personal conflicts.

C. Benefits of the Study

In analyzing Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth, the writer aimed at some

advantages that hopefully could be attained. The study is to make the readers of

this thesis familiar with Buck’s work. By reading this thesis, the readers in general

and the students of Sanata Dharma University may understand how someone’s

character can influence his or her way of resolving the conflict in his or her life.

Moreover, the writer hopes that in the future the readers can make some addition

or correction in order to get a better interpretation. This study also probably brings

(20)

D. Definition of Terms

In order to gain better understanding and to avoid misunderstanding and

misinterpretation, the writer defines some important terms that are used in the

study.

1. Influence

The word “influence” according to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

is the power to affect somebody’s actions, character or beliefs (Hornby, 1995:

611). In this study, the influence refers to the power of somebody’s character to

affect his or her way in resolving his or her personal conflict.

2. Character

Abrams in A Glossary of Literary Terms states that characters are the

person presented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the

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

are expressed in what they say – the dialogue – and by what they do – the action

(1981: 23). In An Introduction to a Literature (Stanton, 1965: 17), “character” is

commonly used in two ways; it designates the individuals who appear in the story

and it refers to the mixtures of interest, desires, emotions and moral principle that

make up each of the individuals. Another opinion comes from Barnet (1986: 113)

is character is a figure that acts out in a story. Hence, character in this study means

not only a person who acts out but also the characteristics of the character.

3. Resolving

The word “resolve” in Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary means to

solve or settle problems, doubts, etc (Hornby, 1995: 998). In this study, the word

(21)

4. Conflict

Jones and Gerard (as cited in Worchel and Cooper, 1979: 460) determine

conflict as a state that requires the person when he is motivated to make two or

more mutual incompatible actions. This means a person will face a conflict when

he can not complete two or more mutual actions together. Another definition of

conflict comes from Hocker and Willmot. According to them (as cited in Isenhart

and Spangle 2000: 3), conflict is an expressed struggle between at least two

interdependent parties who perceive incompatible goals, scare resources and

interference from the other party in achieving their goal. Worchel and Cooper

(1979: 460) also classify conflict into two types; they are intrapersonal and

interpersonal conflict.

Intrapersonal conflict is a conflict that an individual experiences when he

or she makes a decision between two or more alternatives which will lead to a

situation in which other people do not behave as the individual expects them to.

The interpersonal conflict is a conflict which happens between two or more

people when they are involved in achieving the incompatible goal. In this study,

(22)

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter consists of four parts. They are review of related theories,

review of Chinese culture, theoretical framework and criticism. The first part is a

review of related theories which consists of critical approaches, character and

characterization, psychological approach and conflict. The second part is a review

of Chinese culture describes about women in Chinese culture. The third part is

about the theoretical framework which describes the contribution of the theories in

solving the problems of the study. The criticism about the novel and the author is

the last part.

A. Review of Related Theory 1. Critical Approaches

When analyzing a novel, a writer must avoid the subjectivity on his or her study.

In order to avoid the subjectivity, critical approaches are needed. According to

Rohrberger and Woods (1971: 6-15), there are five approaches that can be used to

analyze a novel. They are the formalist approach– concentrating on the total

integrity of the literary work, the biographical approach – focusing on the

importance of the author’s ideas and personal life, the sociocultural – historical

approach – focusing on the social, cultural and historical background as the

reference, the mythopoeic approach – attempting to discover particular patterns of

human thought that shared a same universal belief to certain community mind, the

psychological approach–involving theories of psychology as the references to

(23)

analyze the characters in the story. This approach also has a purpose to

comprehend the patterns of human personality and behavior. Through this

approach, the characters’ thought, personality and behavior can be analyzed

deeply.

1. Character and Characterization

Theory of character is needed to analyze the character. Foster divides

character into two kinds; they are flat and round character (1974: 51). A flat

character is static and does not develop, whereas a round character is complex and

represents many traits and qualities. Henkle (1977: 87-100) divides characters

based on the prominence and function. They are major and secondary characters.

Major characters are the ones who deserve the attention from the readers and other

characters. Secondary characters, on the other hand, are the ones who perform

more limited functions. Characters also can be determined by analyzing the role of

the characters. Characters can be protagonist and antagonist. The antagonist is the

one who directly opposes the protagonist (Holman and Harmon, 1986: 27).

According to Holman and Harmon (1986: 400), the protagonist is the leading

figure both in terms of importance in the play and of ability to enlist the readers’

interest and sympathy.

The theory of characterization is needed in analyzing the characters, how

they are presented, in the novel. The theory can help in representing the discovery

the characteristics of the characters presented in the story.

a. Definition

(24)

the particular type of person he is (Rohrberger and Woods, 1971: 180).

Characterization helps the author to communicate and guide the readers to

interpret and understand more about the character in the story. Murphy (1972:

161) determines characterization as the way an author conveys the characters and

the personalities naturally so that the reader get to know and understand the

characters. In addition, Holman and Harmon (1986: 81-82) state that

characterization is the process of creating an unreal person. Though the characters

are unreal in the story; they appear to be real in the mind of the readers.

b. Methods of Characterization

According to Murphy (1972: 161-172), there are nine ways in which the

author uses to make his or her characters understandable and come alive for his or

her readers. They are:

1) Personal description

In personal description, the author can describe a person’s appearance and

clothes. The author may draw details about the character’s appearance, such as his

or her build, his or her skin color, his or her hair, his or her hand and so on.

Besides the appearance the author also may explain the clothes worn by the

character.

2) Character as seen by another

Instead of describing a character directly, the author can describe him

through the eyes and opinions of another character. This means that the readers

notice the different opinion and judgment on the character. Therefore, the readers

(25)

3) Speech

The author gives the readers a perception on the characteristics of the

character through what the characters says and states. The reader may know the

personality by the character’s opinion or statement.

4) Past life

Through a person’s past life, the author can give the readers a clue to have

helped to shape a person’s character. The author may give a direct or indirect

comment through the person’s thought, his or her conversation or through the

medium of another person.

5) Conversation of others

The author can also portray the character through conversation of others

and what they say about him or her. In other words, this means that the character

can be analyzed through what people think or say about him or her.

6) Reaction

The author shares a clue to a person’s character by letting the reader know

how that person reacts to various situations and events.

7) Direct comment

The author comments on a person’s character in the story directly. Here,

the author gives his or her personal comment or description of the character he or

she creates directly in the story.

8) Thoughts

The author expresses the character’s thought in the story. In other word,

the author helps the readers to know what the character is thinking in his or her

(26)

his or her mind.

9) Mannerisms

The author can illustrate a person’s mannerisms, habit, or modes of

behavior which may also tell the readers something about the character.

2. Theory of Psychology

C.G. Jung states, “The psychological mode works with material drawn

from man’s conscious life with crucial experiences, powerful emotions, suffering

passion, and the stuff of human fate in general” (1972: 89). From the statement

mentioned before, it can be said that the personality of men can be seen through

the experiences they had. One of the experiences that men have is facing conflict

and how to solve the conflict. Theory of psychology reflects that from the

psychological components and the experiences.

3. Theory of Conflict

Theory of conflict covers the explanations of definition of conflicts, kinds

of the conflict and conflict resolution.

a. Definition

Jones and Gerard (as cited in Worchel and Cooper, 1979: 460) determine

conflict as a state that requires the person when he is motivated to make two or

more mutual incompatible actions. This means a person will face a conflict when

he can not complete two or more mutual actions together. For that, a person has to

choose one action only as the consequence of the conflict.

(27)

to them (as cited in Isenhart and Spangle 2000: 3), conflict is an expressed

struggle between at least two interdependent parties who perceive incompatible

goals, scare resources and interference from the other party in achieving their

goal. This implies that conflict may occur because of the involvement of at least

two parties or more. Because of the purpose to defend their goal, two or more

parties involve and produce a conflict.

Conflicts are felt by people in the real life. A person might feel a conflict

in his or her life when he or she finds an action in which he or she should decide

the options in order to reach a resolution.

b. Types of Conflicts

There are two types of conflict that people have experienced in the daily

life. They are intrapersonal and interpersonal conflict.

Worchel and Cooper (1979: 460-464) describe intrapersonal conflict as a

conflict that an individual experiences when he or she makes a decision between

two or more alternatives which will lead to a situation in which other people do

not behave as the individual expects them to.

Based on the dilemmas in responding the situation, there are four kinds of

conflict. Those are approach – approach, avoidance – avoidance, approach –

avoidance and double approach – avoidance conflicts.

In approach – approach conflict, an individual can only choose one actions

toward two positive goals. The individual has to make a decision between two

attractive alternatives. This is the simplest conflict.

(28)

one between two equally unattractive goals. An individual, engages in this

conflict, usually avoid choosing between two unattractive alternatives.

When an individual has to choose one goal which has both attractive and

unattractive qualities is called an approach – avoidance conflict. An individual

involves in the conflict because of his or her fear or doubt in choosing the goal.

The most common conflict situation is double approach – avoidance

conflict. This conflict contains two goals which both have the positive and

negative sides. There are some factors that influence the individual in choosing

the goal. The factors are how close the individual is to the goal, the amount of the

goal, the kind of the goal, and the attractiveness of the goal.

The second conflict, the interpersonal conflict, deals with two or more

people. The interpersonal conflict is a conflict which happens between two or

more people when they are involved in achieving the incompatible goal. This

conflict can also occur when the two people or parties agree with the goal but

disagree with the manner in achieving the goal.

According to Beebe, Beebe and Redmon (1996: 297-300), the

interpersonal conflict can be divided into three types. They are pseudo conflict,

simple conflict and ego conflict. Pseudo conflict is conflict caused by the lack of

understanding between the individuals or parties. Simple conflict happens because

of the differences on definition, goals, ideas, and perceptions. While ego conflict

appears when personal differences attached to each individual in a group.

c. Causes of Conflicts

(29)

conflict is believed to happen when the disagreement about the goals, behavior,

attitudes and needs appears (Verderber 1984: 97).

They may be many other causes or sources of the conflict. Isenhart and

Spangle (2000: 14-15) resume the most common sources of conflict into seven

sources. The first is data – people often have differences of opinion about the best

source, reliability, or interpretation of data. The second is interest – conflict

specifically happens when two or more parties have different interest. The third is

procedures – parties will not involve in a discussion if they do not agree with the

procedure in solving the problem. The fourth is values – the hardest conflict will

occur when the priority of values is different. The fifth is relationships – a conflict

exists when people can not trust each other or respect each other’s feeling. The

sixth is roles – a conflict appears because of the imbalance role of the people

among the rules towards their own roles. The last is communication – conflict

frequently results from how something is said and not interpreted among people.

d. Styles of Conflicts

According to Isenhart and Spangle, there are five styles which described

some of the most common ways how people approach conflict (2000: 26-27).

They are avoiding, accommodation, comprising, competitive, and collaborative.

In avoiding style, one party denies that there is a conflict. He or she insists

not to change the topic; he or she tries to avoid talking or discussing the conflict.

This style is the most effective because there is danger of physical violence. The

issue that the parties have is not important; there is no achievement of goals, or

(30)

When one party sacrifices his or her own interests and concerns for other

as a result the parties can achieve the interests; this situation is called

accommodation style. This style is effective in situations in which one party feels

the impossibility in achieving his or her own so that the outcome is not important.

Furthermore, when a party thinks that satisfying his or her goal might alter or

damage the relationship with the other party, this style can be conducted.

Through recognitions by all parties, each party’s fulfillment of interest is

considered to be only partial. In other word, each party sacrifices part of his or her

interest to achieve a negotiation. This compromising style happens in situation

that requires a quick resolution of the issue, especially when other parties resist

collaboration, when complete achievement of goals is not important, or when

there will be no hard feelings for settling for less than expected.

Competitive style is characterized by aggressive, self-focused, forcing,

verbally assertive, and uncooperative behaviors that are done to satisfy one party’s

interests at the expense of the interests of others. This style is effectively used in

situations in which decisions must be made quickly, then the option of the

solution is restricted. For that, there is nothing to lose by pushing, other parties

resist cooperation, and there is no consequence of damaging the relationship.

Unlike the competitive style, collaborative style involves the active

listening, issues-focused and also emphatic communication. This style seeks to

satisfy the interests and concerns of all parties. The situation in which power is

reasonable balanced, the long term relation is valued, is suitable for the

collaborative style. This style requires the cooperative behavior of both parties

(31)

e. Conflict Resolutions

People have different opinion or ideas which could lead to a conflict. The

same ways happen when people try to solve the conflict. Experts have their

opinion in solving the conflict.

Worchel and Cooper suggest for those who have the intrapersonal conflict

to aware with the types of conflict they have. Worchel and Cooper (1974:

460-464) propose several resolutions for the intrapersonal conflicts. In approach –

approach type, people can solve the conflict by defining the motivation to the goal

they want to achieve more. The most potential ways to solve the avoidance –

avoidance conflict is by leaving the conflict. This conflict is hard to solve because

the nearer the negative goal is, the higher the drives to avoid it. An approach –

avoidance conflict hardly has resolution because the person can not make any

decision to solve it. In double approach – avoidance, there are two sub-types of

resolution. The first sub-type is determining one goal and as a consequence giving

up the other option. The second sub-type depends on the value of each goal. When

the positive aspects of goal are higher than the negative, the goal can be reached

and the reverse.

Considering the ability of the individual in controlling the conflicts,

Beebe, Beebe and Redmon (1996: 314-326) propose four conflict management

skills. The first is managing emotions. The early signs of recognizing people

being in conflict are anger, fear, frustration, and sadness which flow rapidly.

However, individuals should manage their emotions since deciding an action in

such condition will lead them to difficulties of taking logical and rational

(32)

that most conflicts arise from uncertainty, misinformation, and misunderstanding,

the next step is to manage the conflict which concerns with how the individuals

manage the information. By managing the information, the individuals are closer

to the step of avoiding the conflict because of uncertainty, misinformation, and

misunderstanding. The third is managing goals. Conflict might happen because of

the different opinions among individuals. Therefore, it is important to understand

each goal and identify where they overlap. The last is managing the problems.

Managing the problems means defining the problem, analyzing it, then,

determining the goal, generating several solutions, and last selecting the most

applicable solution.

Besides the ability of controlling the emotions, individuals also should

determine their mind in ending the interpersonal conflict to achieve a better

condition. There are three manners of taking decision to do or not to do something

in facing the interpersonal conflicts (Alder and Towne 1990: 376-380). The first

one is win – lose. In win – lose problem solving, an individual reaches his or her

goal while the other does not. For that, there is only one side that feels satisfied

with the result of the conflict. The second one is lose – lose. Neither side is

satisfied with the decision made. Even though this manner is a discouraging

approach, many conflicts occurs in this manner. The last one is win – win. This

manner tries to find the result that satisfies both sides. In this manner, there is no

involvement of giving up something or finding the correct solution for everybody.

Instead, this manner succeeds when the individuals find the right answer, which is

the best for each side, to solve the problem.

(33)

Cooper give their suggestion only for those who have the intrapersonal conflict

and Alder and Towne give their opinion about the resolution for interpersonal

conflict. Isenhart and Spangle have their own approach to solve both intrapersonal

and interpersonal conflict. According to Isenhart and Spangle (2000: 45- 152),

there are five alternatives to achieve the resolution for the conflicts; they are

negotiation, mediation, facilitation, arbitration, and judicial process.

The first alternative is negotiation. Negotiation is as much about a state of

mind as it is a strategic choice for managing problem. In negotiation, the conflict

is resolved by the compromise between the parties peacefully to achieve the

mutual goal for both sides. In this conflict resolution, third party is not needed.

There are two types of negotiation; those are integrative and distributive.

Integrative negotiation is a constructive and problem solving process. Both parties

rarely use threats or demands in order to achieve a goal compatible with the goal

of others. Both parties exchange the information, then, they identify the problem

while protecting their relationship and interests. The distributive approach is also

known as a bargaining approach. In this negotiation style, both parties state their

goals and their advantages in achieving the goal. They force the other party

through demands and threats. Parties do not concern the relationship with other

parties or their interest.

The second alternative is mediation. This alternative is a problem solving

process in which the third party is needed. The participation of the third party is

only to guide the parties, which are in conflict, to discuss their problem together.

The third party appears as a neutral party who has no right to argue or influence in

(34)

The third alternative is facilitation. This alternative also needs third party’s

help in resolving the conflict. Here, the third party acts as a facilitator who creates

the collaborative discussion process. The process might use many techniques such

as brainstorming, opinion surveying or image building. Usually this alternative,

facilitation is applied in a conflict with a large size of groups and is a complex

conflict.

The fourth alternative is arbitration. It is applied when the parties can not

find the beneficial goal for both parties. Then in the process of resolution, the

third party is selected by the conflicting parties. The role of the third party

(arbitrator) is to make the decision. However, the norms and the rules of the

process itself still depend on the parties’ agreement.

The last alternative is judicial process. It combines legal and non legal

procedures, social norms and legal laws in the process of conflict resolution. The

third party in this conflict resolution is court. This alternative is chosen after all

the alternatives are failed to be applied.

B. Women in Chinese Culture

In Chinese culture, women status changes during time. In the early

twentieth century, women were subordinated to men. In this section, this study

discusses more about women status in the early twentieth century.

Since infant period, a girl baby was already treated differently. It was a

birth of a son that was celebrated. Besides, Chinese girl baby were more likely to

suffer from infanticide in poor family. Yet presumably they must have made up

(35)

were exposed by families to die (Robert, 1993: 361). Another reason of this

treatment is because a girl baby was a poor social investment, since after the years

of nature the majority of them would simply marry and become the part of other

household (Smith, 1994: 248).

The different gender did not stop at that age. In the childhood age, a

daughter faced the pain because of the custom. In order to keep the girl’s feet at a

tiny size, the girl feet were bound in the ages between five and ten (O’neill, 1987:

94). The process of foot binding was really painful. The girl was incapable to

walk normally because the feet were bound with cloth. The Chinese euphemism

for the bound foot was “golden lotus” (O’neill, 1987: 94). However, this custom

did not apply universal; the Hakkas, Manchus, non – Chinese tribes, the boat

population in the south, and some of the very poor did not conform to it. The very

poor did not conform to it for economical reason. Unbinding the foot in later years

also brought a pain. Latourette (1951: 680) in his book The Chinese Their History

and Culture states that a girl without small feet was regarded as disgraced and it was impossible to get a desirable husband for her.

A girl not only suffered from the binding feet but also the relationship with

outside. In general, non family contacts became important for boys; whereas girls

were more and more confined to the home and had fewer outside contacts (Hu,

1960: 169). Because of that, a girl at that era had almost no friends.

After the childhood period is the youth generation. In this period, a girl

was suffered from the prostitution or slavery. Hard-pressed families might sell

their female children into slavery or prostitution, while a boy was considered

(36)

sacrifice (Smith, 1994: 248). In this age stage, usually a marriage took place.

Being a wife of a husband continued the pain of a woman. There was not

any equal position between a wife and a husband in a family. A wife had to

submit her husband as long as he lived. This means that a wife did not freely do

what she wanted to. She should obey her husband’s command. If a wife did

something wrong, a husband might beat his wife (Hu, 1960: 160). Nevertheless, a

wife could never strike him. In a peasant family, women and girls performed the

household tasks and made the family clothing, while the men and boys usually

cultivated the land (Hu, 1960: 162). Women and girls were banned to go and have

contact outside. Although a wife performed household tasks, a wife’s first duty

was to produce sons to continue the male line. A wife position in her husband’s

family was unenviable after her duty had been fulfilled (Hu, 1960: 160). A wife

was considered invaluable when she could not give a son in her family.

Without a son, a wife might suffer from concubine. In theory, the reason

for concubinage was to insure the all important continuation of the male line (Hu,

1960: 170). Yet, concubinage was done because of sexual desire and competitive

argons of man. Smith also agreed that concubinage is also done for a man

prestige, for example a rich man will take a concubine due to her beauty or talent

in singing or playing instrument (1994: 258).

Women were subordinate to men under most circumstances. A widowed

mother of a young son might considered the head of her family, but once the son

was grown any transactions made by the mother would be invalid unless her son

approved (Hu, 1960: 161). For that reason, a widowed actually had no power to

(37)

Women in the early twentieth century were treated differently from men.

Being inferior from men, women gained pain during their lives. From infant,

child, youth until old, women became less important than men.

C. Theoretical Framework

There are some theories applied in order to answer the problem formulated

in this study. First is the theory of critical approach. This theory is used to analyze

the problem in the novel, there are five approaches and this study is emphasized

on the psychological approach.

Theory of character is needed to analyze the character. The theory of

characterization is used to analyze the character in the novel, especially the

character of O-Lan. By understanding the definition of the character and the

characterization, the writer hopes that the reader will attain a better understanding

of the character’s personality, way of thinking, and also her development in the

story.

Other theory used for this study is theory of conflict. The writer used the

theory of conflict proposed by Worchel and Cooper in analyzing the types of

conflict felt by the character of O-Lan. After analyzing the types of the conflict,

the study moved to the source of the conflict, then the conflict resolution. In

analyzing the conflict resolution, the writer preferred to use the theory proposed

by Isenhart and Spangle.

Women status in Chinese culture also helps this study to reveal the

influence of culture through O-lan character and O-lan way of thinking in

(38)

D. Criticism

This part talks about the critics about Pearl S. Buck and her work, The

Good Earth. Buck is one of the most famous novelists of the twentieth century and her work, The Good Earth is probably Buck’s the most popular and widely

read novel. In 1932, the Good Earth earned the Pulitzer Prize. It is because of

some reasons. First, Buck rarely wrote about a simple Chinese life in her former

novels. In The Good Earth, Buck paid a very detailed attention about the

description of everyday life of the Chinese in the novel. Second, the theme in this

novel is not complex. People like to read novel with a simple a literary techniques

and theme so they can understand it well. Third, this novel gives a universal

appeal of a man who struggles to survive, succeed and gain happiness. Magill in

Masterpiece of World Literature says:

Buck’s feeling for the fundamental truths of life transcended any preconceived notion that the reading public may have had about China, and portrayed her people as understandable human being who struggled from happiness and success like anyone else (1989: 336).

The writer shares the same opinion with what Magill says. In this novel,

Buck is very intelligent in describing the Chinese character; though she is not a

Chinese. This statement is also supported by Stuckey in his book The Pulitzer

Price Novels: The Critical Backward Look. Stuckey states:

The Good Earth is a childishly simple book in which good and evil are neat labeled. Mrs. Buck always stays outside her characters, judging them sympathetically, but at the same time from a superior and somewhat patronizing altitude (1966: 92-93).

The writer agrees what Stuckey stated is not that simple. Most characters

(39)

Then the other character which supposed to be a bad person behaves correctly.

The different behavior also shows the real character of a person in the real life.

Buck also gives a brief explanation about the land of China. Even though,

Buck is not a Chinese. Magill says, “She wrote about what she knew best; these

were the people whom came to love during her years in the interior of China”

(40)

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

This chapter will cover three main parts. The first part is subject matter

which is about the subject of the study, the novel The Good Earth itself. The

second part is approach of the study which explains the use of the approaches in

analyzing the novel. In this study, the writer uses the psychological approach. The

last part is method of the study which contains the steps taken in doing the

analysis.

A. Subject Matter

Pearl S. Buck began her carrier by publishing her first novel in 1930, East Wind: West Wind. Then, in 1931 she wrote The Good Earth which is considered

to be Buck’s most famous novel. The Good Earth, a story of a peasant farmer made her won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932 and William Dean Howells Medal in 1935. Besides writing novels, Buck also published collections of stories, biography and autobiography, poetry, drama, children's literature, and translations from the Chinese.

This study analyzed the novel, The Good Earth. This novel was written by

Pearl S. Buck and published in 1959. This study used the cardinal edition novel

published by Pocket Books, Inc. This novel contains of thirty four chapters and

344 pages.

In this study, the writer attempts to analyze the conflict faced by O-Lan,

who is Wang Lung’s wife. O-Lan is one of the strong characters found in The

(41)

Good Earth. In order to analyze the conflict, the writer started by analyzing the character of O-Lan. Then, by knowing the characteristic, the writer investigates

the conflict felt by O-Lan and how she solved the conflict.

Buck created O-Lan as a slave who marries to a farmer and lately in her

old age she became a wife of landowner. Buck created an atmosphere of conflict

felt by the poor people as a farmer and the rich as a landowner. Buck gave a sense

of irony in her novel, The Good Earth.

A. Approach of the Study

In order to analyze a novel deeper, in this study, the writer preferred to use

the psychological approach to get a better understanding of the character in the

novel. In analyzing someone’s characters, the approach can also show his or her

personality and his or her relationship with others. By using the psychological

approach, the character’s mind, behavior, and appearance can be noticed well.

Besides the character’s behavior, mind and appearance, psychological

approach also leads to the analysis of the character’s relationship with others.

When having a relation with other, the character may face conflicts. For that, the

psychological approach is suitable to be applied.

C.G. Jung states, “The psychological mode works with material drawn

from man’s conscious life with crucial experiences, powerful emotions, suffering

passion, and the stuff of human fate in general” (1972: 89). From the statement

mentioned before, it can be said that the personality of men can be seen through

the experiences they have had. Because of that reason, the psychological approach

(42)

conflict.

B. Method of the Study

The writer in this study used library research which means that the data is

gathered by taking important notes, reading books and doing research in analyzing

the novel. The writer collected the primary source from the deep analysis of the

novel The Good Earth itself. The secondary sources are some references related to

theory of psychological approach, theory of character and characterization, and

theory of conflict and conflict resolution.

There were some steps taken in completing this study. First, the writer

read the novel The Good Earth many times in order to get a better understanding

and comprehension of the story. The initial reading process was to read without

pauses for several times and the last reading process was to reread the novel

thoroughly and underline the important things which reflect the problem

formulated in the problem formulation of the study. Second, the writer formulated

the problem of the study. The writer is interested in O-Lan character, the first wife

of the main character Wang Lung. O-Lan faced many conflicts during her life. In

order to analyze the conflict faced by O-Lan, the writer needed to analyze the

character of O-Lan in this novel. After that, the writer began to analyze the

conflict. So in order to generate the problem formulation about the conflict, the

writer first began to formulate the first question about the character of O-Lan then

the second question about the conflict. The method used in the analysis was the

psychological approach. The approach used was from Rohnberger and Wood’s in

(43)

O-Lan and the conflicts faced by her based on the novel. The writer also gathered

the data needed in answering the questions formulated in the problem formulation.

Noticing the information needed could not be found in the library, the writer used

the internet browsing to enrich the information needed. Last, the writer drew

conclusions as a result of the analysis which answered the problems formulated in

(44)

CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS

This chapter is aimed to answer the problem formulated in the problem

formulation. It can be divided into three parts. The first part is the description of

the characterization of O-lan found in The Good Earth. The second part discusses

the personal conflicts faced by O-lan and how she deals with her conflict in her

life. The last part explains about the influence of O-lan’s character in resolving the

conflict.

A. The Character of O-lan in Buck’s The Good Earth

O-lan is also a major character in this novel since she plays a big role

from the beginning of the story. O-lan is also a complex character. She represents

many traits which are discussed in the next page. O-lan plays as a protagonist

character which leads the readers to have sympathy on her character. She is drawn

as a common Chinese wife.

Characterization is the process by which an author creates the character,

the particular type of person he or she is (Rohrberger and Woods, 1971: 180). In

this novel, O-lan is described as a wife of a poor farmer who later becomes a land

owner. She is twenty years old and a virgin the first time she meets Wang Lung.

She has a strong body and square cheeks. She is not a beautiful woman or in her

face nor the whole body. Wang Lung’s first impression to O-lan is a

disappointment because her feet were not bound. For that, O-lan is considered to

be an ugly woman with big feet.

(45)

He saw with an instant’s disappointment that her feet were not bound. (p. 19)

“This woman came into our house when she was a child of ten and here she has lived until now, when she is twenty years old…. You see she has the strong body and square cheeks of her kind. She will work well for you in the field and drawing water and all else that you wish. She is not beautiful but that you do not need. Neither is she clever. But she does well what she is told to do and she has a good temper. So far as I know she is virgin…” (pp. 19-20)

Then Wang Lung turned to the woman and looked at her for the first time. She had a square, honest face, a short, broad nose with large black nostrils, and her mouth was wide as a gash in her face. Her eyes were small and of a dull black in color, and were filled with some sadness that was not clearly expressed…. He saw that it was true there was not beauty of any kind in her face. (pp. 20-21)

Another way to analyze a character is purposed by Murphy. According

to Murphy (1972: 161-172), there are nine ways in which the author uses to make

his or her characters understandable, and come alive for his or her readers. They

are personal description, character seen by other, speech, past life, conversation

with others, reaction, direct common, thoughts and mannerism. This study

includes all the ways proposed by Murphy in analyzing the character of O-lan.

Here are O-lan’s characteristics:

1. Obedient

Though Wang Lung’s first impression is not a satisfaction, Wang Lung,

then, marries O-lan and takes her to his house. When the Mistress of the great

House of Hwang gives her a command, she does the command.

And to the woman she said,

“Obey him and bear him sons and yet more sons. Bring the first child to me to see.”

“Yes, Ancient Mistress,” said the woman submissively. (p. 20)

(46)

As being stated also by the mistress of the Hwang, O-lan always does well what

she is told to do. O-lan is an obedient wife; she rarely confronts what Wang Lung

tells her to.

“Here is this box and this basket,” he said gruffly.

Without a word she bent over and picking up one end of the box she placed it upon her shoulder and, staggering under its weight, tried to rise. (p. 21)

Reaction is one of the characterization ways purposed by Murphy (1972: 168).

The author, Buck shares the clue in various situations and events. By Wang

Lung’s command, Buck shares O-lan’s obedience by trying to lift the box and

basket though she has not enough power to do it. O-lan knows that she is not

strong enough to carry both the box and the basket given by her husband.

However, she obeys her husband by trying to get a position in which she can lift

both box and basket. O-lan does the command from her husband, Wang Lung.

The next morning after O-lan was taken to Wang Lung house; she does the house

hold work. Wang Lung asks O-lan to take a bowl of hot water for his father. O-lan

does as what Wang Lung asks her to.

The old man’s cough rose querulously out of the dusky and he said to her, “Take to my father first a bowl of hot water for his lungs.”

She asked her voice exactly as it had been yesterday when she spoke, “Are there to be tea leaves in it?” ….

“Tea? No–no–it makes his cough worse.” (pp. 26-27)

O-lan’s obedience is shown through Wang Lung’s way of looking after she does

his command. O-lan, an obedient wife, does exactly what her husband tells her to

but she still feels afraid that what she does was wrong. This is another

(47)

sight, O-lan’s obedience character is reflected.

There were tea leaves floating upon the surface of the water. He looked up at her quickly. She was at once afraid and she said,

“I took no tea to the Old One – I did as you said – but to you I …” Wang Lung saw that she was afraid of him and he was pleased and he answered before she finished, “I liked it – I liked it.” (p. 28)

One day Wang Lung demands that O-lan gives him the pearls that she had

stolen from the rich man’s house, which he allowed her to save. Wang Lung asks

the pearls because he gives them to Lotus as a gift.

And he muttered, not looking at her wrinkled, wet hands, “There is no use in keeping pearls for nothing.”

Then she said slowly, “I thought one day I might have them set in earrings,” and fearing his laughter she said again, “I could have them for the younger girl when she is wed.”

And he answered her loudly, hardening his heart, “Why should that one wear pearls with her skin as black as earth? Pearls are for fair women!” And then after an instant’s silence he cried out suddenly, “Give them to me – I have need of them!”

Then slowly she thrust her wet wrinkled hand into her bosom and drew forth the small package and she gave it to him…. (p. 178)

O-lan has forced to keep the pearls, however her husband wants them so much.

With depressed feeling, she hands in the pearls to him. O-lan likes the pearls so

much that she is not willing to make use of them.

O-lan becomes an obedient person because of the Chinese culture. A

woman is supposed to listen to her husband, her father in law or her son. In this

case, O-lan obeys her husband. As Chang Tu Hu states that a husband may strike

his wife if his wife does not do his command (1960: 60). Buck shows facts that

described O-lan as a typical Chinese wife who obeys his husband’s command in

any situation.

2. Diligent and Hardworking

(48)

O-lan marries to Wang Lung, the next day in the morning she gets up earlier

and

The influence of O-lan`s character on resolving her personal conflict found in pearl s. buck`s the good earth.

ABSTRACT

ABSTRAK

THE INFLUENCE OF O-LAN’S CHARACTER ON

A Thesis

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

A Thesis

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

`ç áãxxàç [xÜ| ^âÜÇ|tãtÇ

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

JANIATI

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGES OF APPROVAL ... ii

BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 59

ABSTRACT

ABSTRAK

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the Study

A. Problem Formulation

C. Benefits of the Study

D. Definition of Terms

CHAPTER II

A. Review of Related Theory 1. Critical Approaches

1. Character and Characterization

a. Definition

b. Methods of Characterization

2. Theory of Psychology

3. Theory of Conflict

b. Types of Conflicts

d. Styles of Conflicts

e. Conflict Resolutions

B. Women in Chinese Culture

C. Theoretical Framework

D. Criticism

CHAPTER III

A. Subject Matter

A. Approach of the Study

B. Method of the Study

CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS

A. The Character of O-lan in Buck’s The Good Earth

1. Obedient

2. Diligent and Hardworking