i
SARTREAN EXISTENTIAL AUTHENTICITY SEEN IN THE
MAIN CHARACTER OF KOBO ABE’S
THE WOMAN IN THE
DUNES
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree ofSarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By Damar Purnomo Student number: 05 4214 026
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
iv MOTTO
v
viii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
First of all, I would like to give my utmost gratitude to my parents for their
financial and spiritual support. Without their support, this undergraduate thesis
will never be accomplished. Although in encouraging me they often use hard
words but somehow they work well for me. For my father, I would like to thank
for always using satirical words in guiding me and for my mom, thanks a bunch
for making me the luckiest son in this world. Next I would like to thank my sister
Lisa for cheering me up, my brothers (Gun and Bayu) for the quality time that
refresh me.
I would like to be thankful to my advisor, Dr. F.X. Siswadi, M.A. for
guiding and supporting me during the process of this thesis. Without his patience
in correcting my thesis, there would be many mistakes made. I am also grateful to
him for teaching me how to be objective to my own writing though it is hard to
me to do so. I also thank Elisa Dwi Wardani, S.S., M.Hum. as my reader.
Next, I would express my gratitude to Ian for the early discussion about
Sartre. I also thank Mas Sugeng Utomo and Mas Teguh for their
knowledge-sharing in early times in Sanata Dharma. I also want to express my gratitude to
Gonsaldus Jusin, Doni Agung Setiawan, Audy Bramara, Indra Puspita Dewi, I
also thank all people in Media Sastra especially in Performance Session for giving
me another experience in appreciating literature and to create a performing art. I
also thank people in Lens Club for the learning process, Library Nu for giving me
many books, and Santosa for the Zabalawi. Last but not least, I would like to
thank all the people that I can not mention one by one who directly or indirectly
ix
Lembar Pernyataan Persetujuan Publikasi Karya Ilmiah ... vi
Statement of Work Originality…… ... vii
1. Theories on Character and Characterization ... 7
a. Theory on Character ... 7
b. Theory on Characterization ... 8
2. Sartrean Theory on Existentialism ... 10
a. Theory on Bad Faith ... 10
A. The Characterization of the Main Character ... 30
x
4. A Device Called Hope ... 50
5. The New Self... 52
6. The Untaken Chance ... 53
C. Jumpei’s Attitudes Toward Freedom Leads Him to the Existential Authenticity ... 54
1. Overcoming Bad Faith ... 55
2. Embracement of Responsibility ... 58
3. Respecting Others Freedom ... 59
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION ... 61
SUMMARY ... 64
xi
ABSTRACT
Damar Purnomo. Sartrean Existential Authenticity Seen in the Main Character
of Kobo Abe’s The Woman in the Dunes. Yogyakarta: Department of
English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University. 2011.
This research starts from Adamson and Freadman’s argument that for the last twenty years, literary criticisms have been less explicit in the ethics and it means the absence of the ethics. From this point, the writer chooses a Japanese novel entitled The Woman in the Dunes by Kobo Abe and tries to find ethical value in it. Sartrean ethic is used in this research. The core of Sartrean ethic is authenticity. It says that human should apprehend and embrace freedom. The novel, The Woman in the Dunes tells about the experience of the main character named Nicky Jumpei who is frequently faced with things that are closely related with Sartrean existential authenticity. Jumpei is a school teacher that is characterized as a desperate man. He feels worthless with his condition as a teacher. In fact, he makes a metaphor about himself “year after year students tumble along like the waters of a river, they flow away, and only the teacher is left behind, like some deeply buried rock at the bottom of the current.”
This study is based on three questions. First, how is the main character characterized? Second, how is Jumpei’s attitude toward freedom? Third, how does Jumpei’s attitude toward freedom lead him to the existential authenticity?
This study applies library research and moral philosophical approach. The library research includes the data from internet mainly in the form of web page, and portable document format and printed resources mainly in the form of books. Moral philosophical approach is applied to gain the ethical value on the selected novel. Throughout this two steps this research has been accomplish.
This study proves that there is the value of Sartrean ethical authenticity on the main character, Jumpei. First, Jumpei is not aware and embraces his freedom that makes him fall in bad faith. Thus, he becomes desperate and unable to take a decision because he is ambivalent.
xii
ABSTRAK
Damar Purnomo. Sartrean Existential Authenticity Seen in the Main Character
of Kobo Abe’s The Woman in the Dunes. Yogyakarta: Jurusan Sastra
Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma. 2011.
Penelitian ini bermula dari perkataan Adamson dan Freadman yang menyebutkan bahwa dalam 20 tahun ke belakang, jarang ditemukan kritik sastra yang membahas tentang etika pada suatu karya sastra. Dari poin ini, penulis memilih sebuah novel jepang yang berjudul Perempuan di Gurun (The Woman in the Dunes) karya Kobo Abe dan mencoba menemukan nilai etika didalamnya. Etika yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah etika dari Sartre. Inti dari etika Sartre adalah keaslian (Authenticity) yang berisi bahwa manusia harus menyadari dan menerima kebebasannya. Novel Wanita di Gurun (The Woman in the Dunes) menceitakan pengalaman tokoh utamanya yang bernama Nicky Jumpei yang sering menghadapi hal-hal yang berhubungan dengan dengan etika keaslian (authenticity) ekistensialisme-nya Sartre. Jumpei adalah seorang guru yang ditokohkan sebagai orang yang putus asa. Dia merasa tidak berharga dengan keadaanya sebagai seorang guru. Kenyataannya, dia membuat sebuah metafora tentang dirinya “tahun demi tahun, murid – murid gulung-gemulung seperti air di sungai, mereka mengalir dan hanya guru yang tertinggal ibarat sebuah batu yang terpendam sangat dalam di dasar arus.”
Kajian ini didasari dengan tiga pertanyaan yaitu :bagaimana karakter utama digambarkan, bagaimana perilaku tokoh utama dalam menghadapi kebebasan dan bagaimana perilaku tokoh utama dalam menghadapi kebebasan dapat menhantarkannya ke dalam keaslian (authenticity).
Kajian ini menerapkan penelitian pustaka dan pendekatan moral filosofis. Penelitian pustaka meliputi data-data dari internet yang berupa halaman web dan portable document format (PDF) dan sumber tercetak, yaitu buku-buku. Pendekatan moral filosofis diterapkan untuk mendapatkan nilai-nilai etika Sartre dari novel yang dipilih. Melalui dua tahap tersebut, kajian ini bisa diselesaikan.
Kajian ini membuktikan bahwa ada nilai etika keaslian(ethic of authenticity) Sartre pada tokoh utama, Jumpei. Pertama, Jumpei tidak dapat menyadari dan mengakui kebebasannya yang menyebabkannya mengalami keyakinan buruk (bad faith/salah satu etika dari Sartre). Hal ini membuatnya putus asa dan tidak mampu mengambil keputusan dan teralienasi dari kehidupan sosial.
1
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of Studies
Literature and philosophy are two things that cannot be
separated.Christopher New in his book Philosophy of Literature said that
literature is a discipline which poses its own characteristics philosophical
questions (1999 : i). The specific philosophical question in literature brings its
own ethical or moral philosophical values. Whether it is explicit or implicit, these
values are the most important thing to dig deeper. For further reason, literary
criticisms have been less explicit in the ethics on the last twenty years and it
means “the absence of the ethics”. Most of them were political and concerned
with issue like race, gender, class and sexuality (Adamson and
Freadman1998:3).By finding these facts, the writer is encouraged to find ethical
values on a selected literary work.
As one of the existentialist philosophers,Sartre has his own ethics.
Although he neverwrote a full book of ethics, his ideas of ethical value are
summed up in his lecture Existentialism is a Humanism and some of his essays.
The most famous of Sartrean ethics is the authenticity. It is the solution that Sartre
offers toward humans. Sartre doesn’t believe in human nature. He only believes in
human condition.A human condition is expressed in the tension between
opposites that we live daily - we are both subjects and objects; we both shape our
lives and we are subject to external forces; and our self-identities are both created
ambiguity between freedom and fact. (Heter, 2006:1).
Japanese novel is chosen in this research.Kobe Abe’s “The Woman in The
Dunes”,a novel created after the Second World War that won the 1960 Yomimuri
Prize. Moreover, the chosen novel is a post war literature which denouncing
western existentialism. This novel was filmed by Tesighara Hiroshi in 1964. The
film also won the special jury prize inCannes Film Festival. In fact, Japanese post
war novels offer more existentialist theme. Yuji Matson in his researchThe Word
and The Image: Collaborations between Abe Kôbô and Teshigahara Hiroshisays
that Abe and Tesighara came toknow each other during the period following the
Second World War through the avant-garde circles, which were a gathering place
for artists disillusioned by the postwar ruinand social decay, looking to disavow
the past and promote a new value system throughnew artistic modes of
expression. Another writer and critic,HanadaKiyoterumaintained that in thenew
postwar era in which thefoundation of the traditional value system was
undermined,a new method of representationshould be devised to depict the
changing world.(Matson, 2002:1). It means that Japanese writers and artists at that
time experienced the hard times of ethical crisis especially because of the world
war and they were trying to seek new ethics to face the changing world.
The reason why the writer of this research applied Western philosophy to
the eastern novel is that the theme of the novel which isclosely related with
Sartrean philosophy. The theme is mainly about the existence of man in the world
with its complexness which interrelated between freedom and humanism. One of
novel resembles with Sartre’s literary works, No Exit .In her book “The Ethics of
Aesthetic in Japanese Cinema and Literature” she wrote:
It is worth noting that Abe Kobo, despite some au courant thematic elements, as a novelist has perhaps more affinities with the West than with his Japanese contemporaries . . . The ending [of Woman in the Dunes], in which the hero decides to stay in the sand dune with the woman, was clearly an existential parable, a Sartrean variation on “No Exit.” (2007 : 60)
The main characterNikiJumpei experiences unpredictable things in his
life.Jumpei is a school teacher who has a hobby as an entomologist. He feels
bored with his routines. His boredom leads to the confusion inside himself. He
confuses about the meaning of his life, the relationship to his friend and
society.Afterwards, Jumpeidecides to conduct a three-day trip for collecting insect
specimens as a runaway from his routines.
He chooses a Japan costal remote dune as his destination. However, seven
years has passed by and he never comes back to his boarding house in town. His
unpredictable experiences begin when he arrives in the dunes.He is imprisoned by
the local people and forced to work unpaid in shoveling the sand. Jumpei is placed
in a house located in the bottom of sand pit. He stays there with a woman.
Jumpeithinks that the woman is also a prisoner like him. It means that she
is not free.Jumpei said to her: “But this means you exist only for the purpose of
clearing the sand, doesn’t it?”(Abe, 1964:39).Jumpei then starts to question her
again and again about her existence. He tries to show her about her determined
condition. As Sartre stated in Existentialism is Humanism, “Existence precedes
essence”. This means that man is the freedom itself and leads to the ethics that
isconsidered as a form of bad faith. In the mean time, the woman in whose house
Jumpei lives seems doesn’t care about her being not free.
From this point, the writer thinks that using the philosophical point of
view to analyze the novel is the right thing. In this case, the writer uses
Existentialism that is proposed by Jean Paul Sartre. Freedom itself is authentic
when accepted and becomes inauthentic if rejected. Sartre’s opinion Authentic
existence is understood here as an affirmation of human freedom in which we
each take responsibility for our actions and for the situation. As Sartre himself
frequently acknowledges, this means that freedom is situated and never exists
independent of a situation. To refuse or flee one's freedom in relation to the
situation is inauthentic or sometimes Sartre calls it as bad faith.
In this research, the writer will use Sartrean Authentic Existence to unveil
the problem of bad faith that lies in the novel. By positioning the main character
as the example of the human that experiences situated freedom, the writer will
analyze his being engaged to the reality in the novel and his attitude toward
freedom and as well as his taking choice in his experience of life in the novel.
Finally, by taking this point of view, the writer hopes that this research will find
ethical messages in the chosen novel and try to put Sartrean ethics in practice.
A. Problem Formulations
1. How is themain character (Jumpei) characterized?
2. How is Jumpei’s attitude toward freedom described in the story?
3. How does Jumpei’s attitude toward freedom lead him to the existential
B. Objectives of the Study
The main objective of the study is to find the existential authenticity in the
main character of the novel of Kobe Abe’s The Woman in the Dunes. This
objective will be done by firstly describing the character of Jumpei. By describing
the character, the value of existentialism will be revealed. Then his attitude toward
freedom is described. Finally, by regarding the first and second objectives, the
situation that leads the Sartre’s existential authenticity will be answered.
C. Definition of Terms
1. Bad faith
Bad faith is the term for the man that denies himself and who accepts the
spirit of seriousness as the basis of his life. Any form of denying freedom is also
called Bad Faith (Gould and Truitt 1973:126-127)
2. Freedom
In Sartrean terms, Freedom is the nothingness which is always existing on
humans and which makes human able to make a choice. It forces humans to make
their own essence.
(Gould and Truitt 1973:104)
3. Authenticity
Authenticity is the conversion in which consciousnessembraces freedom
as its primary value by which human existence will reclaim its freedom and
6
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW
A. Review of Related Studies
There are researches conducted to analyze this work. Most of the
researches are focused in the main character of the novel and Jumpei in this case
are always connected to the existential issue. Michelle Bailat-Jones in his research
says that the main Character NikiJumpei faces an extraordinarily difficult
question.
Not only does Niki slowly come to understand that the village has no intention of letting him out, but he must also come to grip with the reality that no one from his former life will ever come looking for him. He will vanish forever, without a trace. And so he must wonder whether his disappearance will actually ever matter and whether his life before coming to the dunes held any real meaning.
(http://asianliterature.suite101.com/article.cfm/review_of_the_woman_in_
the_dunes)
The focus in Jones research is only about the decision that Jumpei will
make. However, it is true that he is also questioning about the essence of his
former existence. The writer assumes that Jumpei experiences the quest of
authenticity this because while he is in the dunes, he accidentally transcends
himself from real world (his former life). He becomes aware of his new mode of
being in the world that is so different from the former one. In this case his
character started to shift. His reaction toward the condition in the novel portrays
Allen Mozek in his research argues that :
The entire novel is engaged with approaching modes of independence and of self-actualized identity, just don’t expect an arrival or revelation. Consider the reality of the novel – the sliding of more sand always counteracts the characters’ shoveling of the sand, and the opportunity to escape the circumstances of the novel is followed by the decision that “there was no particular need to hurry about escaping.” There is no break from the reality of life – even an excursion into the fantastic is only a confirmation of banality. The absurdity of the novel has a Kafkaesque relation to the everyday quite distinct from a more Dadaist disjunctive whim.
(http://imforthebirds.blogspot.com/2008/09/woman-in-dunes.html)
Mozak research is more detail compared with the first research. He also
analyzes the main character (Jumpei) in order to reveal the essence absurdity that
he proposes in his research. However, it is not that simple and it is not absurd. In
the novel, Jumpei deals with many experiences that lead him to authenticity. It
means to accept and trying not to escape freedom. Jumpei is able to face that he is
free. He is free from morale, society even god. By accepting freedom he lives his
life. However it is true that Jumpei is engaged with approaching modes of
independence and of self-actualized identity
B. Review of Related Theories
1. Theories on Character and Characterization
a. Theory on Character
Abram’s Glossary of Literary Term defines characters as “the persons
represented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the readers as
being endowed with particular moral, intellectual, and emotional qualities by
dialogue—and from what they do—the action”(Abrams,1981:20). Abram divides
character, following Foster, into flat and round character. Flat characters are those
“built around a single idea or quality” and without much individualization. Thus,
they can even be described in one sentence. Round characters are complex in
temperament and motivation. Thus, they can hardly be described and they might
surprise the reader.
b. Theory onCharacterization
There are nine ways of describing the characters according to M.J. Murphy
(1972: 161-173). The nine ways will be shed in the paragraphs below.
The first way is by analyzing the character’s personal description. In this
way the writer characterizes the character by seeing a character from his
physical appearance like his build, his face, his skin, his eyes, his hair or his
clothes.
The second is by analyzing from other character point of view or
character as seen by another. A character can be analyzed through another
character’s sight and opinions to describe the character that the writer wants to
expose.
Next, a character can be characterized by character’s speech. The readers
can have an opinion about the character by paying attention on the character’s
speech. The readers can also see the conversation in which the character is
involved; the way he or she gives his or her opinion may also show the
The next is by considering the characters’ past life; the readers are made
known some important clues to get to know about the character. It can be
described by the author’s direct comment, through the character’s thoughts,
through the character’s conversation, or through the medium of another person.
Fifthly, a character could be analyzed from conversation of others; the
readers can get to know a character through the conversations of other people
and the things they say about him.
Sixthly, by perceiving the character’s reactions to various situations and
events, an author shows his character’s tendency, and this tendency gives the
readers a clue about the character’s personality.
Seventhly, a character can be characterized by the author’s direct
comment and description on the character. In this way there is no medium the
author used to characterize the character. The author directly describes the
character and also gives comment on the character.
Eighthly, the thought of the character can be used to characterize the
character. The author shows the character’s personality by letting the readers
understand the deepest thought of the character in a novel.
The last is the author characterizes the character by describing the
character’s mannerisms, habits, or idiosyncrasies. The author shows the
personalities of the character by stating the character’s gestures and habits, so that
2. Sartrean Theories on Existentialism
2.1.Bad Faith
Bad faith is one of Sartre’s virtue ethics. He explains it in his two books
“Being and Nothingness” and “Anti Semite and Jew”. On Being and Nothingness
Sartre explains bad faith in the section entitled “Ethical Implications”. Actually
ontology cannot formulate ethical precept (Sartre,1957:795). He also claims that
bad faith is a descriptive term not prescriptive term. It means that his ethics is an
implication of his ontology.
T Storm Heter (2006) in his book entitled “Sartre’s Ethics of Engagement”
draws two types of bad faith from Sartre’s ontological book “Being and
Nothingness” and “Anti Semite and Jew. In Being and Nothingness, Sartre
describes the first type of bad faith as the denial of one's subjectivity. Sartre's
often-quoted examples are the flirting woman who refuses the implications of her
flirtation and the waiter who tries to identify completely with his role. The
relevant features of this type of bad faith are as follows. First example, I restrict
the implications of my actions (and others' actions) to the present, refusing to
accept that my acts signify something about the future. Second, I attribute to
myself (and others) character traits that cause actions. Thus, action becomes
disarmed, dead and inert. Finally, I attempt to identify wholly with a social role
that I occupy, or a character trait that others see in me. Only social roles that
imprison a man in what he is invite bad faith. A grocer is not wholly a grocer',
The second type of bad faith is the denial of one's objectivity. Sartre’s
controversial example is the homosexual who refuses to identify as homosexual.
The relevant features are as follows. First, one denies that one's past actions
express any coherence. Each act is seen as a 'difference' and 'exception. Second, in
examining one's past actions one 'refuses to draw from them the conclusions
which they impose. Namely, one refuses to accept even weak character judgments
that accurately describe one's conduct. The homosexual, while recognizing his
homosexual inclination refuses with all his strength to consider himself a
homosexual.
Moreover, in Anti-Semite and Jew, Sartre gives two more type of bad faith
(bad faith from the Jew side and the anti-Semite side). First, there is the bad faith
of the anti-Semite. The anti-Semite misrecognizes his own freedom by denying
his subjectivity. By seeing himself innately superior to Jews, the anti-Semite
attributes to himself a fixed, unchanging essence. Second, there is the bad faith of
the inauthentic Jew. Sartre claims that Jews are in bad faith either if they evade
their Judaism or if they internalize negative stereotypes. (Heter, 2006:65-68)
2.2.Authenticity
Authenticity is the chief of moral virtue of Sartrean existential ethics while
bad faith is the chief vice of Sartrean existential ethics. There are many debates
among expert about Sartre’s authenticity. Since Sartre never offers a prescriptive
virtue ethics, all of his ethics are the implication of the ontological definition of
is given by Sartre in his book entitled Anti-Semite and Jew. Sartre define
authenticity as following:
If it is agreed that man may be defined as a being having freedom within the limits of a situation, then it is easy to see that the exercise of this freedom may be considered as authentic or inauthentic according to the choices made in the situation. Authenticity, it is almost needless to say, consists in having a true and lucid consciousness of the situation, in assuming the responsibilities and risks that it involves, in accepting it in pride or humiliation, sometimes in horror and hate. (Sartre, 1948:90)
From above quotation some implication can be drawn. Firstly, authenticity
consists only in devoting oneself to one's freely chosen project with full
reflectiveness. Clearly, overcoming bad faith by attaining a lucid awareness of
one's actions and situation is one dimension of authenticity. Inauthenticity
involves bad faith, for it is a failure to 'live up to' one's situation, a failure to live
one's condition fully. Inauthentic people conceal certain parts of themselves from
themselves. So the 'lucidity' Sartre refers to above is the self-awareness involved
in overcoming bad faith.
T Storm Heter in his book “Sartre’s Ethics of Engagement: Authenticity
and Civic Virtue has clearly described the three variation of responsibility. The
reason for distinguishing three variations of responsibility has been to provide a
clearer analysis of existential authenticity. Authenticity requires accepting
responsibility. In discussing the notion of responsibility,there are three conditions
of authenticity, namely respect others. Recall that the standard view takes
authenticity to consist in lucidity, responsibility and respect for other. There are
some reasons to include respect for others as a third condition of authenticity. The
assumed to be a subjectivist ideal that is incompatible with obligations to others.
Thus, respecting others is as important to authenticity as awareness and
responsibility are. Second, Sartre's attempt to derive the obligation of respect from
causal and role responsibilities is questionable. Thus, Heter claims that the
intersubjectivity of the self and the need for the self to be recognized through
others provides a strong justification for the obligation of respect. Moreover,
Sartre's view, authenticity requires respect. Respect, in short is incompatible with
torture, murder and oppression. Respect requires abstaining from coercion and
desiring that the other be free from coercion
As a conclusion, Existential authenticity requires three conditions. First,
authenticity requires overcoming bad faith. A person must have a lucid awareness
of himself and of his situation. Since the self is intersubjective, an authentic
person must understand the networks of social dependency that are necessary for
self-identity, including the major social roles he occupies. Second, an authentic
person must embrace his responsibilities. He must accurately understand his
causal liabilities and own up to these liabilities. He must also understand and
perform his role duties. Finally, and most importantly, an authentic person must
be disposed to respect the freedom of other human beings. An authentic person
must not pursue his own freedom at the expense of the freedom of others. (Heter,
2.3.Being For-itself
Being and Nothingness, a book that gives foundation to Sartrean ontology,
has subtitle an essay on phenomenological ontology that indicates his
phenomenological approach. Henceforth, his explanation is highly characterized
by phenomenological investigations. Beings for Sartre is everything perceived. He
names human being as for-itself because of the existence of consciousness that
raises the existence of free-will, a self-determining will.
Barnez, the translator of Being and Nothingness, writes that what
distinguishes for-itself from in it-self is only nothingness (Howells, 2006:1). The
simplest definition of for-itsef is conscious and self-awareness being. For-itself,
although it is a conscious being, it also contains in-itself. In fact, the physical
body is classified as in-itself. Yet, since consciousness exists the body, it changes
the in-itself to for it-self. Therefore, the corpse, body without consciousness, is no
longer for-itself. It is in-itself. He begins his analysis by describing the work of
consciousness, which marks the unique characteristics of human being.
Consciousness is an activity of for-itself that should not be separated and
united from for-itself. They are inseparable. Sartre is a monistic materialist that
believes only material, and refuses spiritual beings. Thus, consciousness is an
activity resulted by the material condition of for-itself. Body has certain character
of being that results existence of consciousness.
To summarize in one sentence, consciousness can be defined as “a being
such that in its being, its being is in question in so far as this being implies a being
consciousness of something. It always has object and never consciousness of
nothing. Thus, the being of consciousness is what consciousness is conscious of.
In reflecting, consciousness also revealing other’s being. The being reveled is also
consciousness’ being. However, consciousness is not an object reveled. In a more
elaborated ideas, Barnez explains “To be aware of an object is not to be the object.
The object does not enter into consciousness any more than consciousness enters
into it. Consciousness is not a thing, not an entity, not a substance. Sartre calls it a
"nonsubstantial absolute" (Howells, 2006:12). Consciousness absolutely has
nothing substantial since its being merely appearance in the sense that
consciousness exists only as long as it appears. Consciousness is completely
emptiness because the entire world is outside of it. “Its existence is only activity
of revealing”(Howells, 2006:15). Consciousness is being which is not what it is
and which is what it is not. Consciousness never is its own and what it is not
consciousness forms consciousness.
He divides consciousness activity based on the object. The first is
non-reflective consciousness. This state of consciousness happens when consciousness
objectifying anything else but itself. The example is when someone is conscious
of a tree, or a house, or other beings. He directs his awareness to outside. The
second, reflective consciousness, happens when the object of consciousness is the
consciousness. However, since consciousness is empty when it is conscious of
itself it always results in consciousness of other than itself. By this reflective
consciousness, the self is constituted. Consciousness is possible to be aware of
Consciousness has the ability to negate as the result of nothingness which
dwells in it. This consciousness negation also separates beings. The world,
according to Sartre, is fullness of beings. There is no empty space in it. When
consciousness negates the fullness of the world, nothingness comes into it. Thus,
the structure of the world becomes being and nothingness. This nothingness in the
world which comes, gives possibility for human to change and shift his attention.
In other word, the nothingness of consciousness, by projecting its nothingness to
outside, creates nothingness in fullness of beings.
The existence of nothingness in the fullness of being can be justified by
the distinction of ground and picture. He writes “….we seem to have found
fullness everywhere. But we must observe that in perception there is always the
construction of figure on a ground” (Sarte,1958:9). Sartre gives example of how
consciousness works in his searching for a friend named Pierre in a cafe. When he
entered the cafe, he was making an object as a picture and the rest as the ground.
He moved his picture to one object and raises the objects to found Pierre out. He
tells that “I am witness to the successive disappearance of all the objects which I
look at-in particular of the faces, which detain me for an instant (Could this be
Pierre?) and which as quickly decompose precisely because they ‘are not’ the face
of Pierre”(Sartre,1958:10). Finally he found that there was no Pierre in the Cafe.
When creating a picture, consciousness sinks the others into nothingness to make
those things fall into ground. Thus, when raising an object, consciousness sinks
others. Consciousness’ spontaneity determines what to sink and rise. The
Sartre also finds that consciousness is indeed impersonal spontaneity. It
determines its existence at each instant, without our being able to conceive
anything beforeit. Thus, each instant of our conscious reveals to us a creation ex
nihilo.Not a newarrangement¸but a new existence (Sartre,1960:99). To hide and
mask this spontaneity consciousness is “the essential role of the
ego”(Sartre,1960:99). TheIalso serves as unity of all the spontaneity.
The ability to negate also creates human’s projection for the future and
relates for-itself with its past. Between the present world and the future projection
of for-itself, there is nothingness. He writes “there is already a relation between
my future being and my present being. But nothingness has slipped into the heart
of this relation; I am not the self which I will be” (Sartre, 1958:31). Man projects
his desire into the world. He makes appointment with himself in the future.
Through his acts, he struggles to meet his projection. Like his future, past is also
separated by nothingness from the present for-itself. For-itself departs from the
past and makes break with it in order to keep transcending.
Although nothingness benefits self-awareness for itself, nothingness also
creates a lack inside the heart of for-itself. Sartre writes “the existence of desire as
a human fact is sufficient to prove that human reality is a lack”(Sartre, 1958:87).
Thus, this lack projects itself to the world and seeks fulfillment of in-itsef. Sartre
urges to understand humans as totality not humans as a part lack and a part full.
Yet, the existing and the lacking “are at the same moment apprehended and
surpassed in the unity of a single totality “(Sartre, 1958:88). For-itself basically
Ironically, as long as for-itself is for-itself, for-itself cannot full itself.
When for-itself can be a fullness, for-itself ceases into in-itself because
nothingness no more lies in itself. The fulfilled itself while enduring
for-itself without being in-for-itself forms the being-in-for-itself-for-for-itself. This being unites
both in-itself and for-itself. Since for-itself opposes the in-itself, both
characteristics are impossible to meet in a being. However, this is the fundamental
goal of human projection. As a result, the being of human reality is “suffering
because it rises in being as perpetually haunted by a totality which it is without
being able to be it, precisely because it could not attain the in-itself without losing
itself as for-itself”(Sartre,1958:90). This according to Sartre means fundamental
project of for-itself.
If there would be such being, this being would be God. Rhetorically Sartre
quests “Is not God a being who is what he is-in that he is all positivity and the
foundation of the world- and at the same time a being who is not what he is and
who is what he is not-in that he is self-consciousness and the necessary foundation
of himself?” (Sartre,1958:90). In the other page he also states the failure of human
as follow: “The for-itself in its being is failure because it is the foundation only of
itself as nothingness “(Sartre, 1958:89). In summary, Sartre concludes that
2.4.Freedom
As explained in the section of for-itself, freedom originates from for-itself
‘s negativity that penetrates the in-itself. Because the structure of for-itself,
freedom is an absolute and intolerable. Although facticity deludes people not to
believe the absolute freedom and fall to spirit of seriousness and bad faith, this
absolute freedom inevitably brings its own consequences toward for-itself.
Absolute freedom means that human is completely free. There is no
external force that determines one’s own life. Nobody decides one’s destiny, life,
situation, emotion, feelings, and values but oneself. Even when one seems to be
forced into war, one chooses one’s own war. In Existentialism and Human
Emotion, Sartre gives an example about a war he has joined. He writes “If I am
mobilized into a war, this war is mywar”(Sartre,1958:54). Sartre argues that if he
denied the war, he could have chosen to do suicide. Here, he would have got rid of
the war. Moreover, he could also choose not to join the war. He could just run
away because he enabled to choose another value but value that drives him to the
war. Since there is possibility to negate the war, he indeed chooses the war.
Because of their freedom, man should choose among their possibilities.
They are incapable not to choose. Not to choose means choosing not to choose.
For example when one is offered tea or coffee, one chooses not to choose means
that one chooses not to drink both drinks. Freedom is inescapable. When outside
situations circumscribe man, he can only let them gain power over themselves
when they are affirmed. The example is traffic light. People stop when red light
one fate is still the one. Thus, there is no accident in life. Everything happens
because of choice andthere is no other’s cause but oneself.
Freedom resultsin the existence of value and responsibility. Sartre,
following Socrates, believes that people always choose what is good for them.
When faced to possibilities, they make a choice based on their value. However,
for human freedom does not stand or rely on anything else but man himself, he is
the only source ofvalues. Sartre writes ““it follows that my freedom is the unique
foundation of values and thatnothing,absolutely nothing, justifies me in adopting
this or that particular value, this or that particular scale of values.As being by
whom values exist, I am unjustifiable”(Sartre, 1958:38). The values of others
cannot be imposed unless one chooses to affirm the value.
As man can only rely on himself as the source of value, existentialism
refuses objective moral values. Every value is caused by a subjective projection.
In other words, in term of morality Sartre’s existentialism proposes subjectivism.
Values are relative for humansbecause it araises from subjective individual and it
never fixed since it has to be chosen again and again.
By choosing, man creates himself. This is the context of the first principle
of existentialism, “existence precedes essence.” Sartre explains this phrase by
arguing that “first of all, man exists, turn up, appears on the scene, and only
afterward, defines himself”(Sartre,1985:15). When faced to possibilities, man
chooses and through his choice he creates his world. When Sartre has decided to
go into a war, he decided to create a world of war for himself. This choice is
Inside this chosen world, man perpetually changes. In Sartre’s own words, man
“is nothing else but what he makes of himself” (Sartre, 1985:103).
Due to the fact that man is ntohing else but what he makes of himself,
Sartre insists that the essence of a man is never fixed. He argues that “human
freedom precedes essence in man and makes it possible; the essence of the human
being is suspended in his freedom”(Sartre, 1958:25). Man can never reach his
essence since it is always suspended. He can try to perpetually create certain
essence by his actions.
This can be understood more obviously within atheistic position of Sartre.
Theistic position leads man to believe that the essence of man is given by God.
Since God has created man, he inevitably creates man’s essence. Although this is
only a very little part to be man’s starting point for man to develop or grow, this
given starting point determines the rest of man’s life.
Because man chooses freely, he must be responsible for what he choose.
This, Sartre says “this absolute responsibility is not resignation; it is simply the
logical requirements of the consequences of our freedom”(Sartre, 1958:53). As he
is solely causes his own world, values, and action, he must be responsible for all
those. If there is a creator of fate or destiny determines those, entire human cannot
be responsible. Responsibility here means receiving all consequences of the
choices instead of the common sense responsbility meaning doing what other’s
desire for having a debt. Therefore, Sartre affirms Romains’ notion, as quoted by
Sartre, that “in war there are no innocent victims”(Sartre, 1958:54). Man,
Man, by choosing for himself, also responsible for choosing all mankind.
In his action which based on his values, he determines the best for mankind. He
writes “in creating the man that we want to be, there is not a single one of our acts
which do not at the same time create an image of man as we think he ought to be”
(Sartre, 1985:17).
In addition, man also responsible for meaning that he gives to the world.
Although the world in nature is in-itself, the meaning is given by the man. Sartre
explains a moment when four people climbing a mountain. They meet a big stone
before their way. Those four people give different reactions of the stone based on
how they give meaning to it. The one gives meaning to the world determines the
world. As toward the past, the world might be in the state condition like past, yet,
the meaning of the world depends completely on human.
C. Theoretical Framework
The main object in this research is to analyze the main character Nicky
Jumpei. The theories will be applied in three steeps.
First, the theory of character and characterization will be applied to
analyze the intrinsic element and to show Jumpei’s Character shifting. Jumpei’s
thought, how he deals with his experience, and make a choice become the focuses
in this step. By applying the two theories, it will answer the first problem
formulation
The second, Sartre’s theory in Existentialism is employed especially
Sartre’s theory about freedom. In order to know Jumpei’s attitude toward
Junpei’sattitude toward freedom in the novel. This can be done after analyzing
Junpei’s Character and Characterization.
The third is analyzing Jumpe’s attitude toward freedom in relation with
SartreanAuthenticity. In this step, the theory of Sartrean ethic of Authenticity and
Bad Faith will be compared with Jumpei’s attitude toward freedom to analyzing
24
CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
A. Object of the Study
The object of this research is a novel entitled The Woman in the Dunes
or Suna no Onna. This was Kobo Abe’s first novel that is translated into English
and the 1960 winner of Yomiuri Prize. Abe was awarded the Akutagawa literary
prize for The Crime of Mr. S. Karuma and from this point, there was no turning
back. His career was set, and his theme—that of alienation and loss of identity in
modern society—was established and would be repeated throughout his life’s
work. By this fact this research is conducted to find the Authenticity to grasp the
true identity of a person.The Woman in the Duneswas adapted as a film in 1963,
directed by Hiroshi Teshigahara and starring an all Japanese cast. The movie won
the Jury Prize at Cannes in 1964.
Some of Abe’s most important novels include: Suna no Onna (1962)
(The Woman in the Dunes, 1964); Tanin no Kao (1964) (The Face of Another,
1966);Moetsukita Chizu(1967) (The Ruined Map, 1969);HakoOtoko(1973) (The
Box Man, 1975); and his last novel, KangaruNoto (1991) (The Kangaroo
Notebook, 1960). All of above works are still echoing the theme of existentialism.
In this research the writer is using the edition of The Woman in the
Dunes from Tuttle publishing. It is the twentieth edition and was printed in year of
edition was printed in 1964.
The Woman in the Dunes consists of 239 pages which is divided into
three parts. And in the end of the novel there are two additional pages, the first is
the notification letter of missing person and the second is about the Judgment that
the protagonist is declared missing.
The woman in the dunes tells us about a man that is already declared
missing. In the beginning of the story, it will be flashed back on his experience
when he started his journey to the seashore to look for bugs. He is a dedicated
Entomologist that hoping for finding a new insect to be given with his name.
However, he will get an unexpected experience.
He is finally being kidnapped by the villager in the seashore and forced
to work for them. His only companion is the woman with no name. During his
time in the seashore, he gains self awareness about himself. And he also has a
great conversation with the woman. However, he feels that his freedom is being
trespassed.So, he tries to escape from the woman’s house many times but it
doesn’t work. Until in the end of the novel he has a great opportunity to escape
but he doesn’t do it because some reason that he found himself realizing new
concept of his life. Finally, seven years later, the case is closed.
B. Approach of the Study
The approach used is moral-philosophical approach. This theory argues that
that “the basic position of such critics isthat the larger function of literature is to
teach morality and to probe philosophical issues”(Gueirin,1979:25). This
approach argues that all works of art have philosophical ideas. Consequently, they
“would interpret literature within a context of philosophical thought of a period or
a group”(Guerin, 1979:25).
To approach a philosophical problem, moral philosophical approach is the
right approach to be used. As in this research, the main problem is about the
existentialism, especially Sartrean existential authenticity. One example is the
protagonist’s way in accepting the freedom with its responsibility and his struggle
to avoid bad faith as the form of escaping the freedom with its responsibility. To
analyze philosophical troubles and study philosophical influences, it is needed to
apply moral-philosophical approach. This approach is appropriate because
according to this approach, literary works always have certain values or
philosophical belief that wanted to be delivered toward the appreciators.
What makes this approach chosen rather than the others is its concern to the
philosophical issue. Only moral-philosophical approach focuses on philosophy
and moral that is recommended by the work of literature. By employing the
approach of moral-philosophical, the writer can approach and analyze the work
and its problem with Sartre’s theory on Existentialism.
C. Method of the Study
This research is conducted by doing a library research. Almost all the
books are from private collections and from library, while the e-books are
collected from the internet in the form of pdf journal, essay and web pages. The
theories in the previous chapter will be used to analyze the literary work. The
primary source is the novel written by Kobo Abe entitled The Woman in the
Dunes. Whereas, the secondary sources are the books in which the theories used
contained. To analyze the character, the books that are used are A Glossary of
Literary Terms by M.H. Abrams (1981),. To analyze the Sartrean existential
authenticity, the books that are used areBeing and Nothingness, Cambridge
Companion to Sartre and Sartre Studies International, and Existentialist
Philosophyby James A. Gould and Willis H. Truitt.
This research is conducted in some steps. The first would be doing a
deep reading to the novel and try to find the main problem of the novel and also
read the theories that chosen to analyze the work. After the problems were
formulated, the next steps were following the problem formulations.
The first problem formulation was to find how the character of Jumpei
described. This was done in order to know how he perceives himself, the world,
reality and his position toward every decision that he makes. From this point, the
second problem formulation was started to be revealed slightly. Then, found out
the main character’s attitude toward freedom by applying Sartre’s theory about
freedom and bad faith. By doing this the protagonist’s attitude would be faced to
Sartre’s theory about freedom and bad faith.
After that, the third problem was to know Jumpei’s attitude toward
Jumpei’sattitude toward freedom had been finished in term of being analyzed with
Sartre’s theory of freedom and bad faith would be faced to the theory of
authenticity. Finally, it would be revealed how his attitude toward freedom can
29
CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS
This chapter is divided into three major parts based on the problem
formulations on the first chapter. In order to gain both objective and scientific
research, the theories written in chapter two and its methodology written in
chapter three will be applied to the object of the studies, a novel by Kobo Abe
entitled The Woman in the Dunes. MH Abram said that characters are persons
represented in the fictional works who are interpreted by the reader as being
endowed with particular moral value. Affirming what MH Abram said, the writer
of this research decides Nicky Jumpei the main character of this novel as the main
concern of this research.
In the first part, the character and characterization of the main character
will be discussed with the theory of character and characterization proposed by
MJ Murphy and MH Abram. The writer of this research argues that the main
character has a round characteristic. To be more systematic, the first part will be
divided into two sub parts: physical character; and non physical character.
In the second part Jumpei’s attitude toward freedom will be analyzed. All
examination of the characterization in the first part will resultin some basic
assumptions about his attitudes toward freedom. The next step is to apply Sartre’s
theory on freedom and bad faith. Thus,Jumpei’s attitude will be revealed.
In the last part,Jumpei’s attitude toward freedom will be the point of his
and applying Sartre’s theory of authenticity, his attitudes toward freedom which
lead him to the Satrean existential authenticity will be revealed.
A. The Characterization of the Main Character
On this part, the writer of this research will use MJ Murphy’s nine ways
and MH Abrams theory to analyze the character to gain the deeper understanding
toward the main character.
1. Physical Characterization of Jumpei
In this part, according to MJ Murphy, the first way to describe the
character is by analyzing the character’s personal description. In this way the
writer of the novel characterizes the character by seeing a character from his
physical appearance like his build, his face, his skin, his eyes, his hair or his
clothes (Murphy,1972: 161-173). Thus, in this first sub part, the physical
characterization will be analyzed. In the novel, the description of the physical
characterization is rather scattered. Most of the physical characterization is
obtained through the other characters that report his missing and the witness. So,
the writer will begin from the very first part of the novel. In the beginning of the
novel, the physical characterization of Jumpei is described through a station
employee that becomes the witness and the last person seeing him before his
disappearance. The station employee describes Jumpei’s physical appearance as
follows:
Another description comes from the narrator of the story:
He wore a gray peaked hat, and the cuffs of his trousers were tucked into his stockings. A canteen and a large wooden box were slung overhis shoulders. He seemed about to set out on a mountain-climbingexpedition(Abe, 2000:6)
The last description of Jumpei’s physical appearance is from his headmaster that
reported his missing, the description is:
. "Full name: NikiJumpei. Age: thirty-one. Height:five feet five inches.
Weight: a hundred and forty pounds. Hair: slightlythin, worn straight back; no hair oil. Eyesight: right 20/30; left, 2O/ 20.Coforof skin: darkish.
Features: long face, a slight cast to the eyes, snubnose, square jaws; no other special characteristics except for a conspicuous mole under the left ear.Blood type: AB. Speaks thickly with a stammer. Introverted, stubborn, but not especially inept socially.Clothing: perhaps dressed for entomological work. The full-facephotograph attached above was taken two months ago."(Abe, 2000:81)
It is stated in the above quotation that Jumpei does not use hair oil. The reason
why his headmaster gives that information is to give impression that Jumpei is a
man that not really concerns about his looks. In addition, the headmaster also
mentions that Jumpeiphysically has no other special characteristics. So, people
who meet Jumpei will get the impression that Jumpei is an ordinary people. From
the way he speaks, people will judge that he is lack of confidence and introverted.
In fact he speaks thickly with a stammer.
From the fact finding about the physical characterization, it can be
concluded that Jumpei really has enough preparation for his journey to find the
new kinds of insect specimens.As an entomologist, he already fulfills the standard
operational for conducting a research. Moreover, the impression of people who
2. Non-Physical Characterization of Jumpei
a. Dedicated
His dedication can be seen in his hobby in collecting insect specimens.
And the only goal for his trip is to find a new kind of insects that live in the dunes.
Jumpei as an entomologist, although he is amateur one, remains stick to the
standard procedure in doing a research. He also follows the expert ways in doing
his research by not tempted to things like dragonflies or butterflies for those
sample is just for the amateur one. In fact he also knows the essence of being an
entomologist. That is by finding a new kind of insects specimens and his name is
recorded in the encyclopedia of entomology.According to MJ Murphy, another
way to describe the character is from the author’s direct comment and description
on the character. In this way there is no medium the author used to characterize
the character. The author directly describes the character and also gives comment
on the character. (1972:161-173). Moreover, in the novel, the narrator of the story
also says that Jumpei is a dedicated person:
b. Visionary
According to MJ Murphy, the thought of the character can be used to
characterize the character. The author shows the character’s personality by
letting the readers understand the deepest thought of the character in a novel.
(972:161-173). From the quotation the first non physical characteristics, the
second characteristics can be drawn. From the last two sentences of the
quotation, it is clear that Jumpei is also a visionary person. His vision or project
is to be a great entomologist. That will come true if he conducts a trip to find the
new insect specimens. This indicates that Jumpei’s hobby is something for his
future, in his mind, it is not just merely a hobby but a hobby that can make him
to be a great entomologist in the future. This fact indicates that he is a visionary
person. Moreover, in the end of the novel he has an ambition to share his
precious invention toward the villagers. In the novel he accidentally invents a
water pump. He thinks that the right people to share with are the villagers
because it is useful for them.
….he realized that he was bursting with a desire to talk to someone about the water trap. And if he wanted to talk about it, there wouldn't be better listeners than the villagers (Abe, 2000:165)
c. Introverted
In this part, MJ Murphy’s second theory of characterization will be
applied. According to Murphy character can be analyzed from other character’s
point of view or character as seen by another. A character can be analyzed through
another character’s sight and opinions to describe the character that the writer
describes that nobody knows about the reason of his disappearance. This
strengthens that he rarely gets along with his acquaintances and his hobby is
extraordinary compared with his friends. In fact, Jumpei’s friend and his
headmaster also give their opinion about him as follows:
The man had been alone, quite alone, the employee said, so speculationabout a girl was groundless.The theory had been advanced that the man, tired of life, had committedsuicide. One of his colleagues, who was an amateur psychoanalyst, held tothis view. He claimed that in a grownman enthusiasm for such a useless pastime as collecting insects wasevidence enough of a mental quirk.Even in children, unusualpreoccupation with insect collecting frequently indicates an Oedipus complex. In order to compensate for his unsatisfied desires, the childenjoys sticking pins into insects, which he need never fear will escape.And the fact that he does not leave off once he has grown up is quitedefinitely a sign that the condition has become worse. Thus it is far from accidental that entomologists frequently have an acute desire for acquisitions and that they are extremely reclusive, kleptomaniac,homosexual. From this point to suicide out of weariness with the worldis but a step. As a matter of fact, there are even some collectors who areattracted by the potassium cyanide in their bottles rather than by the collecting itself, and no matter how they try they are quite incapable of washing their hands of the business. Indeed, the man had not onceconfided his interests to anyone, and this would seem to be proof thathe realized they were rather dubious. Yet, since no body had actually been discovered, all of these ingeniousspeculations were groundless. at least the woman he lived with, announced that the object(Abe, 2000: 4-6)
From his friend’s point of view, although it is groundless, it is indicating
that his friend also has a kind of negative analysis toward his personality through
his hobby. This perhaps, among his friends, a teacher rarely has a hobby as an
insect collector. In short his friend argues that Jumpei has a kind of mental quirk
or Oedipus complex just because he has a hobby as an insect collector. This
statement strengthens the argument thatJumpei’s hobby is extraordinary if it is
compared with his friends’ hobby. Supposed that our friend accuses us to have a
testimony. First, our friends really know about us. Second, our friends do not
know at all about us or in other words they just make a plausible hypothesis about
our personality. In this case, the possibility is closer to the second one. Another
proof which is strengthening the argument that Jumpei has introvert
characteristics comes from his headmaster. Several days after his disappearance,
the headmaster gives a report about his physical information and slightly of his
personality to a police officer. The headmaster said that :
no other special characteristics except for a conspicuous mole under the left ear. Blood type: AB. Speaks thickly with a stammer. Introverted, stubborn, but not especially inept socially.Clothing: perhaps dressed for entomological work.(Abe, 2000:56)
d. Creative
Jumpei is characterized as a creative man. He sees things differently.
According to MJ Murphy, the author characterizes the character by describing the
character’s mannerisms, habits, or idiosyncrasies. The author shows the
personalities of the character by stating the character’s gestures and habits, so that
it can help the reader to get closer to the character’s personalities.(1972 :161-173).
First, when he arrives at the dunes, he is attracted to the insects that are able to
dwell in such harsh condition. Then he isalso attracted to the sand. He sees the
sand differently. He himself makes an analogy of sand. Firstly, he looks up the
definition of the word sand in encyclopedia and then he compares it toward the
human condition.
but surely they invaded and destroyed the surface of the earth.This image of the flowing sand made an indescribably exciting impacton the man. The barrenness of sand, as it is usually pictured, was not caused by simple dryness, but apparently was due to the ceaseless movement that made it inhospitable to all living things. What adifference compared with the dreary way human beings clung togetheryear in year out.(Abe, 2000:13-15)
In addition, in the middle of his despair as a prisoner of the local people,
Jumpei keeps struggling to get rid off the hole. He designs several tools that can
be used to escape from the hole that imprisoned him. With minimum equipment
he succeeds in making a rope. Before that, he also calculates the height of the sand
wall in order to gaining a precise length of the rope.
Whenever he could, he stealthily worked at making a rope. He tore hisextra shirt intopieces, twisted them together, and then joined them to the kimono sash of the woman's dead husband; altogether his rope wasnow about five yards long. When the time came, he would fasten oneend to a pair of rusty shears, which he would prop half open with apiece of wood. (Abe, 2000:114)
Almost at the end of the story he also makes a device and he names it
“hope”. He makes it right after his last attempts to escape using a rope failed.
Hisfailure is not due to the rope but he is sucked on the quicksand. Although
inside his memory still repeating his failure of his last escape, his idea inside his
head never dies. Not wasting the time, he makes the device. “One day he tried
setting a trap to catch crows in the empty space behind the house. He named it
e. Submissive
The submissiveness Jumpei’s characteristics can be seen when he is
begging the villager to give him the opportunity to take a walk for a while in
order to get the fresh air outside the dunes. According to MJ Murphy a character
can be characterized by character’s speech. The readers can have an opinion
about the character by paying attention on the character’s speech. The reader can
also see the conversation in which the character is involved; the way he or she
gives his or her opinion may also show the personality of the character. (1972 :
161-173).
Below quotation is the villager who asks Jumpei for making love with the
woman as the requirement for the fulfillment his request to take a walk.
"Well, let's see…" the old man said slowly and falteringly, speaking as if he were arranging his old papers in his head. "It's, ah… not… ah… absolutely impossible to arrange… Well, this is just an example, but ifthe two of you came out front… with all of us watching you… and ifyou'd go to it… and let us see… Well, what you want is reasonableenough, so we've all decided… uh… that it's all right…" "What do you mean, let you see?"
"Well… uh… the two of you… doing it together… that's what wemean." … "What shall we do?"
The woman's muffled voice came from directly behind the wall. "Let them be!"
"But I want to get out I really do…"
"But how can you..."You mustn't take it so seriously." "Have you gone out of your mind?" the woman suddenly gasped. "You must have. You've left your senses. I couldn't do a thing like that. I'm not sex-mad."(Abe,
2000:157-158)
From above quotation, it is obvious that he is submissively obeying the villager
obligation to seduce the woman. His submissiveness has occupied his normal
sense. On the other hand, it arouses his shallow sense of humanity. He disregards
