“G.I. JANE”
AND THE IMAGE OF MASCULINE WOMAN:
A CASE STUDY OF THREE ED GIRLS WATCHING THE FILM
THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan
Cindy Alvionita Hartono 112008012
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
SATYA WACANA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
Hartono ii
“G.I. JANE”
AND THE IMAGE OF MASCULINE WOMAN:
A CASE STUDY OF THREE ED GIRLS WATCHING THE FILM
THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan
Cindy Alvionita Hartono 112008012
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
SATYA WACANA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
Hartono 6
“G.I. Jane” and the Image of Masculine Woman: Three ED Girls Watching the Film
Cindy Alvionita Hartono
Abstract
Jordan O’Neil, the main character in the movie G.I. Jane, a Hollywood production in 1997, is portrayed as a masculine female character. Such masculine characteristics as a woman clash with the Javanese idea of woman-ness. This research was conducted in order to find out the perceptions of Javanese young women raised in Javanese families about Jordan O’Neil and their reason for having such perceptions. Using Reader-Response Criticism as the foundation of the research, and compiling the understandings of gender, masculinity, femininity, and Javanese women from different scholars, three English Department female students of Satya Wacana Christian University were selected to be inquired about their views on the character. Generally, they viewed Jordan almost positively, although there were still some Jordan’s characteristics that were perceived in a slightly negative way. The first participant who was born and raised in Javanese family and Javanese society, perceived Jordan’s appearance, behavior, and attitude as something strange. The second participant who was born and raised in Javanese family but did not consider herself as a Javanese woman, perceived Jordan’s appearance as strange. Yet, she was not bothered by Jordan’s behavior and attitude. The last participant who was born in a Javanese family but once lived outside Javanese culture viewed Jordan’s appearance as strange, but she was not bothered by her behavior and attitude because she used to see women behaved that way when she lived outside Javanese culture.
Key words: Reader-response Criticism, Case Study, Gender Study, Femininity,
