ABSTRACT
Kartika Violita Putri, 2015. SOPHIA’S NEUROSIS AS THE IMPACT
OF HER ANXIETY AS SEEN IN ARNOLD BENNETT’S THE OLD
WIVES’ TALE. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Sanata Dharma University.
The Old Wives Tale (1908) is Arnold Bennet’s work that potrays the life of Sophia. The novel tells the readers on Sophia’s effort to face her husband and people in Paris. Sophia feels anxious all the time in facing her problems. The anxiety then results in Sophia’s clinical pictures of neurosis.
Writing this thesis, three problems are formulated to understand the work deeper. The first objective is to describe Sophia’s conflicts in the story. The second is to observe the progress of how Sophia’s anxiety is developed. The last one is to find the impacts of Sophia’s anxiety.
The data and theories are from library to analyze the problem formulation. This paper applies a psychological approach as well. Psychological approach is expected to treat a specific character such as Sophia who has certain disorders.
The analysis of this paper answers all the problems. External and internal conflicts explain Sophia’s troubles her life. Sophia has conflicts especially with Mrs. Baine and her husband, Gerald. Her mother is a strict person. Sophia is always against her mother’s will. She then escapes to Paris with Gerald. In Paris, Sophia faces conflicts with the environment and people.
Based on those conflicts, Sophia develops her reality, neurotic, and moral anxiety. She feels anxious about the people, surrounding, and herself. Sophia feels anxious toward the lifestyle and characteristics of the people in Paris. The intimidating places make her even more uncomfortable. Sophia’s perception about her wrong decisions also contributes her anxiety.
Sophia’s condition gets worse since she does not treat her anxiety very well. The impact can be seen in her symptoms of neurosis that are classified in traumatic neurosis, neurotic depression, anxiety attack, and hysteria. Her symptoms such as tics is the picture of traumatic neurosis. She also builds a bad relationship with Gerald as one of the symptoms in neurotic depression. The anxiety attack is pictured from her dizziness for years. In the end, Sophia is attacked by hysteria that makes her paralyzed.
ABSTRAK
Kartika Violita Putri, 2015. SOPHIA’S NEUROSIS AS THE IMPACT OF HER SUFFERING ON ANXIETY AS SEEN IN ARNOLD BENNETT’S THE OLD WIVES’ TALE. Yogyakarta: Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma.
The Old Wives Tale (1908) merupakan karya Arnold Bennet yang menggambarkan kehidupan Sophia. Novel ini bercerita kepada para pembaca tentang perjuangan Sophia untuk menghadapi suaminya dan penduduk di kota Paris. Sophia merasa cemas setiap saat dalam menghadapi masalahnya. Lalu kecemasannya berdampak pada gambaran-gambaran dari gejala neurosa.
Dalam menulis tesis ini, tiga permasalahan dirangkai untuk lebih mendalami karya ini lebih dalam. Tujuan pertama adalah untuk menggambarkan konflik-konflik Sophia dalam cerita. Kedua adalah untuk meneliti perkembangan terhadap kecemasan Sophia. Terakhir untuk mengetahui dampak dari kecemasan Sophia.
Data dan teori dikumpulkan dari buku-buku di perpustakaan untuk menganalisa permasalahan. Tesis ini menggunakan pendekatan psikologi. Pendekatan psikologi diharapkan untuk menginterpretasikan karakter seperti Sophia yang memiliki kelainan tertentu.
Bagian analisis dari tesis ini menjawab semua permasalahan. Konflik eksternal dan internal menjelaskan masalah-masalah Sophia dalam hidupnya. Sophia mempunyai konflik-konflik terutama terhadap nyonya Baine dan suaminya, Gerald. Ibunya adalah seseorang yang disiplin. Sophia selalu membangkang keinginan ibunya. Lalu dia kabur ke Paris bersama Gerald. Sophia menghadapi lebih banyak konflik-konflik dengan sekelilingnya dan orang-orang di Paris.
Dari konflik-konflik tersebut, Sophia menumbuhkan kecemasan realita, neurosa, dan moral. Dia merasa cemas tentang orang-orang, lingkungan, dan dirinya sendiri. Sophia merasa cemas terhadap gaya hidup dan sifat-sifat para penduduk di Paris. Tempat-tempat yang menakutkan membuat dia semakin tidak nyaman. Sudut pandang Sophia tentang kesalahanny juga berperan terhadap kecemasannya.
neurotik. Kepanikan digambarkan melalui kepusingan selama bertahun-tahun. Pada akhirnya, Sophia terserang histeria yang membuatnya lumpuh.
SOPHIA’S
NEUROSIS AS SEEN
IN ARNOLD BENNETT’S
THE OLD WIVES’ TALE
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
KARTIKA VIOLITA PUTRI Student Number: 104214077
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
i
SOPHIA’S
NEUROSIS AS SEEN
IN ARNOLD BENNETT’S
THE OLD WIVES’ TALE
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of SarjanaSastra
in English Letters
By
KARTIKA VIOLITA PUTRI Student Number: 104214077
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
vi
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My greatest gratitude goes to the Creator who gives me life. I want to thank my parents who support me. I especially thank my mother, Eva Fistasari who raised me.
I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to my advisor and co-advisor, Dewi Widyastuti, S.Pd., M.Hum.and Dr. F. X. Siswadi, M.A. for their guidance in helping me to finish this undergraduate thesis. They have been amazing advisors for me.
I would like to thank all the lecturers and the staff of English Letters Department because of their support during my study at Sanata Dharma University. I will cherish the valuable moments.
I thank all my classmates for the friendship. They are special for me. I will not forget the priceless moments with them.
I thank all people that I know, whose names cannot be mentioned one by one. I thank them for their support in any form.
vii
a. Sophia’s Problematical Thoughts on Her Neglect ... 29
b. Sophia’s Dilemmatic Thoughts for Watching an Excution 30 c. A conflict for visiting Gerald ... 30
B. The Influence of Sophia’s Conflicts Toward Her Anxiety ... 31
1. Reality Anxiety ... 32
a. Sophia’s Unpleasant Feeling toward the Circumstances .... 32
viii
2. Neurotic Anxiety ... 38
a. Sophia’s Sinful Thoughts ... 39
b. Guilty Emotion for Watching an Execution ... 40
c. Sophia’s Emotion toward Gerald ... 42
d. Disturbing Feeling to Reunite with Gerald ... 43
3. Moral Anxiety ... 44
a. Sophia’s Anxiety for Opposing Her Parents ... 45
b. Sophia’s Shameful Feeling ... 46
C. Sophia’s Reaction in Facing Her Anxiety ... 47
1. Traumatic Neurosis ... 48
2. Neurotic Depression ... 50
3. Anxiety Attack ... 51
4. Hysteria ... 53
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION ... 55
BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 57
ix ABSTRACT
Kartika Violita Putri, 2015. SOPHIA’S NEUROSIS AS THE IMPACT OF HER ANXIETY AS SEEN IN ARNOLD BENNETT’S THE OLD
WIVES’ TALE. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Sanata Dharma University.
The Old Wives Tale (1908) is Arnold Bennet’s work that potrays the life of Sophia. The novel tells the readers on Sophia’s effort to face her husband and people in Paris. Sophia feels anxious all the time in facing her problems. The anxiety then results in Sophia’s clinical pictures of neurosis.
Writing this thesis, three problems are formulated to understand the work deeper. The first objective is to describe Sophia’s conflicts in the story. The second is to observe the progress of how Sophia’s anxiety is developed. The last one is to find the impacts of Sophia’s anxiety.
The data and theories are from library to analyze the problem formulation. This paper applies a psychological approach as well. Psychological approach is expected to treat a specific character such as Sophia who has certain disorders.
The analysis of this paper answers all the problems. External and internal conflicts explain Sophia’s troubles her life. Sophia has conflicts especially with Mrs. Baine and her husband, Gerald. Her mother is a strict person. Sophia is always against her mother’s will. She then escapes to Paris with Gerald. In Paris, Sophia faces conflicts with the environment and people.
Based on those conflicts, Sophia develops her reality, neurotic, and moral anxiety. She feels anxious about the people, surrounding, and herself. Sophia feels anxious toward the lifestyle and characteristics of the people in Paris. The intimidating places make her even more uncomfortable. Sophia’s perception about her wrong decisions also contributes her anxiety.
Sophia’s condition gets worse since she does not treat her anxiety very well. The impact can be seen in her symptoms of neurosis that are classified in traumatic neurosis, neurotic depression, anxiety attack, and hysteria. Her symptoms such as tics is the picture of traumatic neurosis. She also builds a bad relationship with Gerald as one of the symptoms in neurotic depression. The anxiety attack is pictured from her dizziness for years. In the end, Sophia is attacked by hysteria that makes her paralyzed.
x ABSTRAK
Kartika Violita Putri, 2015. SOPHIA’S NEUROSIS AS THE IMPACT OF HER SUFFERING ON ANXIETY AS SEEN IN ARNOLD BENNETT’S THE OLD WIVES’ TALE. Yogyakarta: Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma.
The Old Wives Tale (1908) merupakan karya Arnold Bennet yang menggambarkan kehidupan Sophia. Novel ini bercerita kepada para pembaca tentang perjuangan Sophia untuk menghadapi suaminya dan penduduk di kota Paris. Sophia merasa cemas setiap saat dalam menghadapi masalahnya. Lalu kecemasannya berdampak pada gambaran-gambaran dari gejala neurosa.
Dalam menulis tesis ini, tiga permasalahan dirangkai untuk lebih mendalami karya ini lebih dalam. Tujuan pertama adalah untuk menggambarkan konflik-konflik Sophia dalam cerita. Kedua adalah untuk meneliti perkembangan terhadap kecemasan Sophia. Terakhir untuk mengetahui dampak dari kecemasan Sophia.
Data dan teori dikumpulkan dari buku-buku di perpustakaan untuk menganalisa permasalahan. Tesis ini menggunakan pendekatan psikologi. Pendekatan psikologi diharapkan untuk menginterpretasikan karakter seperti Sophia yang memiliki kelainan tertentu.
Bagian analisis dari tesis ini menjawab semua permasalahan. Konflik eksternal dan internal menjelaskan masalah-masalah Sophia dalam hidupnya. Sophia mempunyai konflik-konflik terutama terhadap nyonya Baine dan suaminya, Gerald. Ibunya adalah seseorang yang disiplin. Sophia selalu membangkang keinginan ibunya. Lalu dia kabur ke Paris bersama Gerald. Sophia menghadapi lebih banyak konflik-konflik dengan sekelilingnya dan orang-orang di Paris.
Dari konflik-konflik tersebut, Sophia menumbuhkan kecemasan realita, neurosa, dan moral. Dia merasa cemas tentang orang-orang, lingkungan, dan dirinya sendiri. Sophia merasa cemas terhadap gaya hidup dan sifat-sifat para penduduk di Paris. Tempat-tempat yang menakutkan membuat dia semakin tidak nyaman. Sudut pandang Sophia tentang kesalahanny juga berperan terhadap kecemasannya.
xi
neurotik. Kepanikan digambarkan melalui kepusingan selama bertahun-tahun. Pada akhirnya, Sophia terserang histeria yang membuatnya lumpuh.
1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
Literature is a human’s work in the form of text that cannot be separated from human value, experience, and culture as its representation. A literary work is the reflection of a human being as there are important life values in discovering the work. According to Welek and Warren in Theory of Literature, literature can take
place of human’s life.
In practice, literature can obviously take the place of many things – of travel or sojourn in foreign lands, of direct experience, vicarious life; and it can be used by the historian as a social document (Wellek and Warren, 1956:31). One of the types in literature is novel which has its attribute in representing the story through characters. A character in the novel is treated as life since in the work it passes the cycle of life. A character cannot be separated from conflicts which every human has in their life. As the character brings conflicts, it brings
human’s value, experience, and culture. Tatang Iskarna, S.S., M.Hum says in his
lecture that literature has important points, there are human’s experience and
value. Therefore, it is worth to state that identifying a character from a novel is important for people to realize more about the life by reflecting the life from the character.
The character which is observed in this paper is a main character from The Old Wives’ Tale, Sophia. In the story, Sophia is described as a rebellious girl. Her
character has contradictive desire with her surroundings. First, she has will to be a teacher that opposes her mother’s will. The story also brings her to the extent of her decision leaving her family behind.
Understanding the character in literature is not only by reading its text, but also observing the unseen part inside the work, especially the character’s mind and behavior, which are worth to observe. In this case, literature and psychology can be one good example of a synergy. As psychology is used to observe human’s mind and her behavior, a character as the reflection of human life can be an appropiate object to explore. Michael Ryan argues in An Introduction to Criticism: Literature, Film, Culture about the importance of revealing the life of the mind and behavior hidden inside a text.
One must also look behind what is said in a text and analyze what the psychic sources might be of the fantasies and emotions one encounters there. Texts
are often themselves “symptoms,” indicators of illness or of troubled personal history. But writers are also astute observers, and sometimes they describe psychological aspects of human life with great insight. They depict for us troubled emotions or upset relationships that resonate with our own lives or that allow access to general aspects of human emotional and psychic life (Ryan, 2012: 43).
Related to the psychological approach of this undergraduate thesis, therefore, the anxiety theory is applied to the main character of the novel The Old Wives’ Tale as a relevant character to discuss as a portrait of how far the conflicts and anxiety give impact to a person. This thesis will discover the systematic mechanism on how a person gets the impact in facing her anxiety.
anxiety. Each person has different ways to suppress the anxiety. This person can use its defense mechanism to cover it, or expresses the anxiety by getting the
neurosis’ symptoms.
B. Problem Formulation
Regarding to Sophia’s neurosis. The following problem formulation is made
to lead this study.
1. What are Sophia’s conflicts described in the story? 2. How do Sophia’s conflicts trigger her anxiety?
3. How does Sophia’s anxiety contribute to her neurosis?
C. Objectives of the Study
The objectives of this study are to answer questions mentioned above. First,
Sophia’s conflicts are compiled as the intrinsic element of literature. Second,
Sophia’s conflicts guide the study to identify her anxiety. As her anxiety is
discovered, the final goal is to see Sophia’s reaction in facing her anxiety.
D. Definition of Terms
This part is intended to clarify the terms that complete the analysis in this study. The terms are from Hall’s book A Primer of Freudian Psychology and
Stone’s The Abnormal Personality Through Literature that the details are
The theory of anxiety defines that anxiety is a painful feeling which is aroused by certain trigger. There are three types of anxiety which are reality anxiety, neurotic anxiety, and moral anxiety. Reality anxiety is a discomfort feeling when a person feels threatened toward the danger of the external world. Whereas, neurotic anxiety is a fear that is aroused by the person’s instincts. The last type of anxiety is moral anxiety, the painful feeling which occurs when a person is against the norm of society (Hall, 1979: 62-67).
This paper also uses theory of neurosis. It is described as a disturbing condition that human has as one of the ways how a person expresses their anxiety.
Stone (1966: 161) explains, “the neuroses can be viewed as either expressing
anxiety, e.g., the acute anxiety attack; compartmentalizing anxiety, e.g., the
5
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
A. Review of Related Studies
The Old Wives’ Tale is written by Arnold Bennett. It was first published in
1908. The Old Wives’ Tale is the reflection of Bennett as a realist. The novel can show the real portrait of the life of English and French people in the middle ages. Roy Hattersley, a novelist, thinks, "The Old Wives Tale is the shining example of realism - the novel which...neither idealises nor caricatures."
(http://www.randomhouse.com.au/books/arnold-bennett/the-old-wives-tale-9780099595359.aspx)
The Old Wives’ Tale tells about the life experience of characters involved
logically. The characters who are inside the story pass stages of life as people usually have. Each character has its unique experience which still can be accepted by the common sense. Almost different from Hattersley, Sunday Times magazine reviews, "For Bennett...compassion is not soggy. It involves understanding. The core of his writing is psychological truth, clinically observed, crisply reported."
(http://www.randomhouse.com.au/books/arnold-bennett/the-old-wives-tale-9780099595359.aspx)
The conclusion for the reviews that have been collected is that The Old Wives’ Tale is a strong novel for its logical content about human’s life and worthy
learning the content of the novel with appropriate approach in appreciating the work.
The psychological study is one relevant approach to apply in Bennet’s literary work. There are many theories of psychology that are used to some literary works. Theories of anxiety and neurosis, especially, are important concepts to consider.
A distinguished study on anxiety A Psychoanalysis Study on Silas Lapham’s Personality to Reveal His Anxiety in William Dean Howell’s The Rise of Silas
Lapham written by Sherly Wellika shows:
After undergoing many anxieties in his life, finally Lapham was able to conduct himself. After the burn of his beloved house on the Beacon Street he started controlling his id and made balance among his id, go, and his
superego.The id’s demand was not so strong anymore, so that the ego could do the best (Wellika, 2008).
The explanation above shows the reaction’s of a person toward his anxiety.
Welika has explained that a person always reacts to his anxiety. This reaction is covering the anxiety itself. In Wellika’s study, the impact of experiencing anxiety can give advantages to someone. However, her study focuses in the process of id, ego, and superego in facing the anxiety.
Another study entitled Neurotic Disorder in Pinter’s Character ‘Stanley’ by Anila Jamil and Sophia Dildar Alvi, exposes:
The study above shows that the neurotic behavior of the character is shaped by the environment surrounded her. Jamil and Dildar defines that the trigger of the neurotic behavior is the environment surrounding the character.
There are studies applying the related theories in the study of this paper, yet there are also different analysis and priority in those studies. The study of Jamil
and Alvi tries to show the impact of environment toward a person’s in becoming a
neurotic. Similar to Jamil and Alvi’s study, this paper also confirms the environment to shape a person’s neurosis. However, in this paper, the
environment element which contributes to shape a person’s neurosis is just one
external factor. In this paper, anxiety theory is also used to convey how far the anxiety gives impact to a person, in this case, it might be a neurosis or defense mechanism.
Wellika’s study shows its focus on the process of id, ego, and superego in
encountering anxiety. Nevertheless, the main focus of this paper is to explicate certain impact in experiencing anxiety. In this psychological study, there are two ways in facing the anxiety. A person might take defense mechanism or neurosis to cover the anxiety. Jack Roy Strange states in his book Abnormal Psychology:
In the anxiety and defense theory we have seen that, whenever anxiety threatens to break through repression, defensive steps are taken. At first, the ego-defense mechanism are used, and, if these fail, stronger defenses are sought in neurotic symptoms such as phobia and compulsions (Strange, 1965:145).
classified to find how far the anxiety brings impacts to her. The main character who suffers bad impacts because of her anxiety are analyzed using the theory of neurosis.
B. Review of Related Theories
This part contains reviews of relevant theories applied to this paper. There are two theories as the solution in solving the problem formulation mentioned before. There are theory of conflict and psychology theory. The theories used are mostly based on Koesnosoebroto and Stone’s book.
1. Theory of Conflict
Conflict is one of the intrinsic elements of literature. Conflict is defined as a situation when forces oppose a person. Holman and Harmon (1986: 107) say in A Handbook to Literature, “the struggle that grows out of the interplay of the opposing forces is usually a person, or, if an animal or an inanimate object is
treated as though it were a person.” The forces of conflict occurred are between
individual, larger group, and even in abstract form as Robert and Jacobs define a conflict as:
the opposition of two people. They may fight, argue, enlist, help against each other, and otherwise carry on their opposition. Conflicts may also exist between larger group of people, although in fiction conflicts between individuals are more identifiable and therefore more interesting. Conflicts may also exist between individual and larger forces, ideas, modes of behavior, public opinion, and the like (Robert and Jacobs, 1987:87-88). Conflict is categorized into internal and external. In The Anatomy of Prose Fiction book, Drs. Sunaryono Basuki Koesnosoebroto explains:
(another person, society, environment, nature, the universe, God) (Koesnosoebroto, 1988:43).
From the quotation above, the external conflict is influenced by a person to person, society, environment, nature, the universe, and God. However, this paper only uses the external conflicts that have been explained by Koesnosoebroto, there are:
a. Man-against-Man
This conflict involves a person opposing another person. In the novel, generally, the character has conflict toward another character. The possibilities also exist that the character opposes other characters.
b. Man-against-Environment
A person in this conflict has an opposing idea with the law of her surroundings. The opposing ideas here could be ideology, law, and custom of people.
Meanwhile, the internal conflict which is applied is between man and himself. This conflict brings a person to struggle with his own idea. This conflict comes with bad ideas. As human has conscience of ego, he will fight the bad impulse naturally.
2. Theory of Anxiety
Anxiety is a painful feeling when a person deals with reality, internal, and moral that may bring problems in her. Anxiety is triggered by the internal and external impulses.
In A Primer of Freudian Psychology, Halls (1979: 62) reviewed about the three types of anxiety which are reality anxiety, neurosis anxiety, and moral anxiety. a. Reality Anxiety
Reality anxiety is the painful feeling occurred when external forces harm a person. The external forces can be from the perception of people or certain experience that a person has. Hall states:
Reality anxiety is a painful emotional experience resulting from a perception of danger in the external world. A danger is any condition of the environment which threatens to harm a person. The perception of danger and the arousal of anxiety may be innate in the sense that one inherits a tendency to become afraid in the presence of certain objects or environmental conditions or it may
be acquired during the person’s lifetime. For example, fear of darkness could
be heredity because past generation of men were constantly being endangered during the night before they had the means of making light or it can be learned because one is more likely to have fear-arousing experiences during the night than during the day (Hall, 1979: 63).
b. Neurotic Anxiety
The neurotic anxiety is a struggle that a person has discomfort feeling toward her mind. Hall (1979:65) explains, “Neurotic anxiety is aroused by a perception of danger from the instincts. Neurotic anxiety can be displayed in three different
forms, that is free floating type, phobia, and panic or near panic reaction.”
c. Moral anxiety
3. Theory of Neurosis
Neurosis is described as a symptom suffered by a person in order to hide her feeling of anxiety. Neurosis is the manifestation of anxiety. In the book The Abnormal Personality Through Literature, Alan A. Stone, M.D. and Sue Smart Stone (1966:7) argues, “The neurotic classically suffers either from anxiety or some symptoms which protects him from his feeling of anxiety.” Stone defines that the concept of neurosis is synergized with the concept of anxiety. These two concepts are related since neurosis is one of the ways a person faces her anxiety. Since anxiety is described as a painful feeling, a person should face those anxiety
in certain way. Stone adds, “Furthermore, contemporary study of the neuroses has
produced a unifying point of view around the concept of anxiety. The neuroses can be viewed as either expressing anxiety, e.g., the acute anxiety attack; compartmentalizing anxiety, e.g., phobia; transforming anxiety, e.g., the
conversion hysteria.”
There are two major types of neurosis that are anxiety attack and hysterical conversion. More categories of neurosis are also developed as the study of neurosis is produced. Other major neuroses are hysteria, the obsessive-compulsive neurosis, phobia, neurotic depression, and the traumatic neurosis.
a. Anxiety Attack
attack as well as a sudden attack that appears as symptoms such as sweating, trembling, and dizziness (Davison,p. 128).
The attribute of anxiety attack is on the direct and fast reaction of the symptom when someone faces her feeling of anxiety. Furthermore, the anxiety attack lasts approximately for few seconds to an hour.
b. Hysterical Conversion
Hysterical conversion is the protection against anxiety. Hysterical conversion has characteristic of paralysis to suffer. Stone (1966:8) describes this neurosis,
“hysterical conversion, where the anxiety and conflict are converted into a
physical symptom without physical cause.”
c. Hysteria
Hysteria is found in the person with weakness, lassitude, lack of energy, and illness related to the feeling of anxiety in repressing sexual impulses. Stone defines the hysteria case through The Barretts Of Wimpole Street by Rudolf Besier:
Freud believed that such instances of neurasthenia were related to the repression of libidinal (sexual) impulses. Perhaps the most famous example of this condition is Elizabeth Barrett. The brilliant invalid of Wimpole Street was caught up in an intense relationship to her father. His love, frustrated in his wife, turned toward his attractive daughter. Caught in the heat of this attachment, his daughter found safety in illness. Through her illness she avoided the feminine sexual aspects of her nature, attaining closeness instead in an infantile sick manner (Stone, 1966:162).
d. Obsessive-Compulsive Neurosis
A person who suffers from obsessive-compulsive usually feels doubt toward the things she has done. The doubt that becomes a characteristic of this neurosis is too much. She might do her action repeatedly to leave her doubt.
The obsessive compulsive is usually a careful person preoccupied with neatness and cleanliness. He plans everything on detail and every decision is a major crisis in which both sides must be weighed and reweighed in a cloud of doubt and confusion (Stone, 1966: 170).
e. Phobia
Phobia is suffered by a person who has an enormous fear on certain object or
situation. Stone (1966: 174) thinks, “A phobia develops when a relatively
harmless situation is reacted to as tough it were dangerous or when the danger is
grossly overestimated.”
f. Neurotic Depression
Neurotic depression is experienced by a person with life stress. Stone (1966:
182) explains, “The neurotic depression is often precipated by current
circumstance. The predominance of depressed mood, however, is maintained, and
usually the person cannot mobilize himself to alter it.” According to Gerald C.
Davidson and John M. Neale (1978: 140) in Abnormal Psychology and Experimental Clinical Approach, the usual clinical pictures of this neurosis are difficulty sleeping, restlessness, hostility, and sadness.
g. The Traumatic Neurosis
Traumatic neurosis involves harassing emotions in a person. The symptom of
this neurosis is appeared very frequently. Stone (1966: 186) exposes, “With its
is the most dramatic of neurotic disturbances. The overpowering emotions that surround the acute trauma are preserved in the symptoms and played out over and over again.”
C. Theoretical Framework
The theoretical framework illustrates of how the theories applied in answering the problem formulation. The theories of conflict and psychology are used to answer the problem formulation.
Firstly, the analysis starts from the theory of conflicts. This paper describes
Sophia’s conflicts objectively by applying theories. The theory of conflicts used is
based on Koesnosoebroto’s book which divides the conflict into internal and
external conflicts. Furthermore, the external conflicts are classified into opposing forces that are another person, society, environment, nature, and the universe.
Secondly, as the conflicts are identified, the analysis explains Sophia’s anxiety by seeing the influence of her conflicts toward her anxiety using the anxiety theory. The external conflicts trigger her reality anxiety, whereas the internal conflicts support her neurosis anxiety. This paper derives the theory of anxiety from Hall’s book. The analysis categorizes each of Sophia’s anxiety to the reality anxiety, neurosis anxiety, and moral anxiety as explained by Hall.
Thirdly, the analysis determines Sophia’s reaction over her anxiety by using theory of neurosis. Based on the work, Sophia suffers from abnormal behaviors and illness which are the signs of her struggle over anxiety. Therefore, the theory
16 CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
A. Object of the Study
In this paper, a classical novel entitled The Old Wives’ Tale is used as the object of the study. The novel was written by Arnold Bennett. The Old Wives’ Tale was first published by Chapman and Hall publisher in 1908, London. The story comes with 624 pages with 4 chapters consisting 27 parts.
The novel is adapted into a film The Old Wives’ Tale in 1921. This film is produced by Ideal and directed by Denison Clift. Then, in 1988, BBC made a drama film entitled Sophia and Constance adapted from The Old Wives’ Tale. Furthermore, The Old Wives’ Tale made it to rank in #87 for 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century in Modern Library list.
England and France in the middle ages are the main setting in the novel. The story starts with the life of Sophia in her younger days at her parents’ house. The
at their shop. She successfully makes a conversation with the man whose name is Gerald. By the time she comes back at her father’s room, she finds it that her father has been died.
Sophia acknowledges that Gerald is a traveler. Gerald never comes again until three months later he shows up at Sophia’s house. Sophia and Gerald get closer to each other. They are even in love. Sophia thinks that Gerald is the best man she has ever met. At the same time, Sophia goes against her mother’s rules. She often goes out without permission. She even runs off with Gerald.
The elopement changes Sophia so much. She is in her early twenty when she has the elopement with Gerald. She follows Gerald to Paris, France. Sophia faces a high-end community in Paris. She struggles to encounter the different cultures, language, and also the people in Paris. Sophia has many fights with Gerald, generally because of the money he spends on. At that time, Sophia often feels dizziness. She also has tics, which is a habit in pushing in her lips tightly. Gerald eventually leaves Sophia alone in Paris. After Gerald leaves Sophia, she gets really sick. She is then nursed by a kind woman, Madame Foucalt. It takes nine weeks for her to get better.
B. Approach of the Study
behavior. Wilfred L. Guerin defines in his book A Handbook of Critical Approaches to Literature:
A brilliant creative genius, Freud provided convincing evidence, through his many carefully recorded case studies, that most of our actions are motivated by psychological forces over which we have very limited control. He demonstrated that, like the icerberg, the human mind is structured so that its great weight and density lie beneath the surface (below the level of consciousness) (2005: 154).
The approach is expected to reveal the character’s mind and behavior from a novel. Analyzing the caharacter’s behavior is important because the character from literary work is the reflection of human’s life. Learning human’s behavior is
equal to understanding the human deeper.
The psychology has a branch field which is abnormal psychology. The abnormal psychology is used to examine people with abnormal personality. There are many kinds of abnormal personality. An individual can suffer from psychosis, neurosis, psychomatic disorders, sociopathic reactions, psychopathic personality, and also mental deficiency.
A psychological approach is used in this paper to analyze how far a person might respond in encountering anxiety triggered by the conflicts. Each person has their own anxiety for sure. The way a person faces the anxiety is also different from one to another.
C. Method of the Study
and secondary sources. The primary source in this study was the literary work entitled The Old Wives’ Tale by Arnold Bennett. The novel became a primary source because this study was intended for literary study. The secondary sources were from Stone’s book The Abnormal Personality Through Literature and Hall’s book A Primer of Freudian Psychology. The secondary sources were used to support the literary study in solving the analysis.
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CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS
The analysis in this chapter is lead by the problem formulation in the previous chapter. There are three discussions in the analysis of this paper. First, the conflicts of Sophia are discussed. Then, Sophia‟s anxiety toward the conflicts will be analyzed. At the end of the analysis, the reaction of the anxiety will be revealed. To get in final analysis, relevant theories are used.
A. Sophia’s Conflicts
Conflicts are distinguished into two kinds. There are external conflicts and internal conflicts. The external conflict is influenced by the external factors such as people and environment. While the internal conflict involves a person to struggle with her own idea.
1. External Conflict a. Man-against-Man
A conflict can occur between a person and another person. It can appear as well between a person and group of people. It is called as a conflict of man-against-man. Koesnosoebroto defines about a conflict of man-against-man, “the main character may be pitted against some other person or group of persons. This is called a conflict of man-against-man” (Koesnosoebroto, 1988:43).
faces clash of ideas and wills with them. Mostly she confronts conflicts with her mother, Mrs. Baines, and her husband, Gerald.
1) Sophia‟s Conflicts with Mrs. Baines
Sophia lives with her mother, Mrs. Baines, at the family shop in Staffordshire. She passes her life full of dispute with Mrs. Baines. This hostile relationship is formed because of the clash between the two. Mrs. Baines‟ expectation, domination, and intervention are contrary with Sophia‟s. Those make the conflicts are complete between them. As a rebellion, Sophia always confronts her mother‟s intention. As a result, both Sophia and Mrs. Baines‟ interactions are
surrounded by some conflicts.
Mrs. Baines‟ expectation to Sophia is in contrary with Sophia‟s will. During
the early stage as a teenager, Sophia lives her life with her family in the shop. Day by day, she and the other people in the house help to maintain the shop. Mrs. Baines is the one who takes care of the family shop very well. Mrs. Baines has expected Sophia to manage the shop right after she graduates from school. Unfortunately, this expectation is opposed by Sophia. She has her own plan for her life. The plan which has been decided by Sophia is to leave the shop. It is related to her adventurous personality that explains her unwillingness to stay at home. Sophia wants to go to London to be a teacher in a big school. This decision surely opposes Mrs. Baines‟ expectation to have her daughters to help managing the family shop.
„I don‟t want to go into the shop, Mother‟ (p. 38).
But that the daughter of comfortable parents, surrounded by love and the pleasure of an excellent home, should wish to teach in a school was beyond the horizons of Mrs. Baines‟s common sense (p. 39).
Sophia also tries to break her mother‟s domination. She believes that she has her own fate. But on the other hand, Mrs. Baines always control her daughters life. As in the story, Mrs. Baines‟ domination in the house is shown clearly. She takes responsibility as a mother of two. Her domination over the children grows as her husband gets sick. For this, Mrs. Baines replaces her position as the head of the family, since her husband can only sleep on the bed. She organizes both her daughters and the family shop. Mrs. Baines gives direction to her daughters how to treat the customer coming by the shop. At the same time, she guides her daughters to be obedient.
She did not understand how her mother and Constance could bring themselves to be deferential and flattering to every customer that entered. No, she did not understand it ; but her mother (though a proud woman) and Constance seemed to practise such behaviour so naturally, so unquestionably, that she had never imparted to either of them her feelings ; she guessed that she would not be comprehended. But long ago she had decided that she would never „go into the shop‟. She knew that she would be expected to do something, and she had fixed on teaching as the one possibility (p. 51).
„I will have an answer,‟ pursued Mrs. Baines. „What were you doing out in the town this morning?‟
„I just went out,‟ answered Sophia at length (p. 57).
„You are deceiving me, Sophia,‟ said Mrs. Baines, with fierce solemnity. „Where have you been this afternoon?‟
Sophia‟s foot was restless on the carpet behind the table. „I haven‟t been anywhere,‟ she murmured glumly (p. 124).
Mrs. Baines even sends Sophia to accompany Aunt Harriet. Sophia reluctantly accept the decision. Actually, she does not want to go to her aunt‟s
town. She hates the town. Under those circumstances, Sophia runs off, leaving her family behind.
„Where‟s Sophia?‟ demanded Mrs Baines.
„You don‟t mean to say she‟s not come, sister?‟ Mrs Maddack sank down on the sofa.
„Serious it is!‟ murmured Mrs Baines. „What —„
„Sophia‟s run off. That‟s the plain English of it!‟ said Mrs Baines with frigid calm (p. 137).
2) Sophia‟s Conflicts with Gerald Scales
Sophia knows Gerald as a traveller coming by the shop frequently. Sophia and other people in the shop adore Gerald for his charm. Sophia is the one who gets closer with him. Both of them are attracted to each other because of their charisma and charm. At that time, Sophia is nineteen while Gerald is thirty. She is attracted to Gerald that she even thinks Gerald is the man of people. Sophia takes her chance to get to know Gerald further. They even write letter to each other. Moreover, Sophia sneaks out to meet Gerald secretly. From time to time, they are in love.
Right after Sophia successfully runs off from Aunt Harriet‟s resident, she
soon. Unfortunately, Gerald disappoints her. The clash of expectation occurs between both of them. He states that he cannot marry her at that short time. It is because he has business to be done in Paris. For this reason, Gerald insists Sophia to move out to France with him. Sophia who expects him to marry her soon is really disappointed.
Sophia is not sure to go. Seeing this, Gerald gives in and marries her. After that, Gerald takes Sophia to Paris. There, some conflicts appear between the two. Sophia and Gerald face different point of view toward money and trust.
In Paris, Gerald and Sophia‟s confronted habit is described. Gerald brings Sophia to luxurious places. There, he spends much money. He wastes money for the costumes, hotels, and supper. Whereas, Sophia does not like the idea of spending much money. She hardly accepts that Gerald would buy such a frigthened price for a costume. Sophia who worries about the money, is disturbed by this spending.
With extraordinary rapidity she had formed a habit of preaching moderation to Gerald. She hated to „see money thrown away‟, and her notion of the boundary line between throwing money away and judiciously spending it was still the notion of the Square (p. 303).
Gerald and Sophia has conflict toward the trust between them. Sophia is always curious about Gerald‟s spending. But conversely, Gerald is being inclosed
francs. Gerald and Sophia stays at the hotel near by the execution spot. But the bad thing is Gerald lies to Sophia. Gerald does not want her to know about his spending. On the other side, Sophia really worries about Gerald‟s spending that she wants to know.
„She wants sixty francs,‟ Chirac said, and in answer to Sophia‟s startled question, he explained that Gerald had agreed to pay a hundred francs for the room, which was the landlady‟s own — fifty francs in advance and the fifty after the execution. The other ten was for the dinner ... Sophia made no remark as to Gerald‟s lie to her (p. 336).
Four years later, Sophia is at her age of twenty-four. The marriage between the two is bad enough to meet the final ruin. Gerald keeps living with the high-end lifestyle. At last, there is a day when Gerald does not have any five francs in his pocket. At this point, Gerald has an idea to call for help. This idea is to contact Sophia‟s mother. However, Sophia disagree with his idea. Gerald insists Sophia to
ask for a help to her family. But, Sophia persists to not cry for help to her family. Besides, she does not believe what Gerald has told her that he runs out of money. Sophia‟s response makes Gerald overwhelmed. At this instant, the two has a fight
over the crisis. Then, all of sudden, Gerald leaves Sophia alone and never come back.
„I‟m quite without money,‟ he went on. „And I‟m sure your people will be glad to lend us a bit till I get some. Especially as it‟s a question of you starving as well as me. If I had enough to pay your fares to Bursley I‟d pack you off. But I haven‟t.‟
She could only hear his exasperating voice. The end of the bed was between her eyes and his.
„Liar!‟ she said, with uncompromising distinctness (p. 350). „You understand,‟ he said menacingly : „I‟m off.‟
„Hm!‟ he sniffed, bringing his reserves of pride to combat the persistent silence that wa damaging his dignity. And he went off, sticking his head forward like a pugilist (p. 352).
b. Man-against-Environment
A person can have conflict with her surroundings. The conflict is presented as opposing ideas which are against the fate, nature, and society‟s custom, law, and
ideology. Koesnosoebroto explains:
He may also be confronted against some external forces— physical nature, society, or „fate.‟ This is called a conflict of man-against-environment (1988: 43).
In The Old Wives’ Tale, the main character faces clash with the custom, places, society, and surroundings. Sophia is accustomed to live in England. When she encounters new environment in Paris, she is really shocked to see the different places and society. Important to realize, Sophia‟s standard of life contrasts with the lifestyle in Paris. Therefore, the society‟s behaviors in Paris always oppose her custom.
1) Sophia‟s Opposing Ideas toward Society
Sophia moves out to Paris to follow Gerald. At the first time, she does not want to go. But Gerald forces Sophia to move out by marrying her. Sophia then, follows Gerald to Paris. In there, she encounters clash of customs. She faces many things that are contrary with her own customs. The high price for a living, classy costumes, unfamiliar foods, and luxurious places that are too much for Sophia. In addition, she also stays at a horrible place that harms her standard of living.
The high price for a living in Paris contrasts with Sophia‟s standard of life.
simplest thing costs sixteen pounds. It is in contrary with her standard for a living in Bursley. She follows Gerald as the price keeps sailing in her mind.
The simplest trifle here cost sixteen pounds ; and her mother‟s historic „silk‟, whose elaborateness had cost twelve pounds, was supposed to have approached the inexpressible! Gerald said that she was not to think about prices. She was, however, forced by some instinct to think about prices —she who at home had scorned the narrowness of life in the Square (303).
When Sophia comes to a restaurant called Sylvain, she saw many glittering costumes worn by the people. The costumes also matches with the makeup that covers people there. Sophia does not understand the purpose of the competition between those costumes. The restaurant itself conveys a high quality of place. It is famous and expensive. Sophia even cannot recognize the food in the restaurant. These phenomenas opposes Sophia‟s custom since she is not a French woman.
After the supper, Gerald and Sophia go to see an execution in an old town. They go there by a train. Everyone can feel that the train is hot, noisy, and dusty. When they arrive at the old town, Gerald rents a room in a hotel near by the square which will be used as the spot of the execution. The hotel is called as Hotel de Vezelay. It is dark and dreadful. The hotel is surrounded by sounds of the square which are loud and clear. Sophia hates these conditions because the nice place for her should be calm and good.
is hard for her to throw money, but Gerald insists her to wear what the people wear. Sophia resists both society at the Restaurant Sylvain and Hotel de Vezelay in Paris. She just uses to interact with the society in Bursley, England. At Sylvain, she sees all of the women covers with thick powder, cold eyes and violent red lips. While the people in Hotel de Vezelay are so crowded and brutal. But Gerald keeps following that society. Sophia thinks that that society only wastes the money for their lifestyle.
They frigthened her: they appeared to her so corrupt and so proud in their corruption. She had already seen a dozen women in various situations of conspicuousness apply powder to their complexions with no more ado than if they had been giving a pat to their hair. She could not understand such boldness (p. 306).
2) Language in Society
The french language that is used by the society opposes her custom to use english language. She is required to be able to speak French, but on the other hand, she cannot understand French at all. The language becomes a disadvantage for Sophia since she cannot speak France. Sophia is an English woman. She never speaks French before. So, she cannot understand French language. As the result, she cannot understand what people say. When a group of people speak, she cannot understand it. Therefore, while she lives at France, she counts on Gerald.
„What do you suppose those people are talking about?‟ he said with a jerk of the head towards a chattering group of three gorgeous lorettes and two middle-aged men at the next table but one.
2. Internal Conflict
Internal conflict lives inside a person‟s mind. A conflict of man-against-himself includes in the internal conflict. To highlight, this conflict involves the right or wrong ideas inside the mind. Koesnosoebroto describes, “He may also have a conflict of man-against-himself —the internal conflict, when he is confronted against some elements in his own nature.” Koesnosoebroto defines the internal conflict as a clash between man and himself. A person in this case might face two opposing ideas in his mind.
A character might struggle with the opposing ideas inside her mind. Several times in the novel, Sophia confronts against her own thoughts. Some make it so hard for her to face. There are some eventful points of Sophia‟s internal conflicts that are analyzed below.
a. Sophia‟s Problematic Thoughts on Her Neglect
Sophia does not stop thinking about Gerald. Even when her father dies, she still struggles with her thoughts of being happy to see Gerald Scales or sympathetic for the death of her father. Sophia considers that Gerald Scales is the man of all people. Gerald is a traveller. Sophia who wants to be free from the shop admires Gerald so much. She sees him as a symbol of freedom. For this, Sophia thinks that Gerald is an important person for her. She cannot waste the chance to get closer to him. She is really curious about Gerald, at the same time, she has to think about her father‟s bad condition. The quotation below describes how Sophia concerns about her father‟s condition, but she also keeps thinking about Gerald
„Galivanting with that young Scales!‟ said Mr Critchlow, with devilish ferocity. „Well, you‟ve killed yer father; that‟s all!‟ ...
„Is he dead?‟ she asked in a quite tone. (Somewhere within a voice was whispering, „So his name is Scales‟) (p.79).
b. Sophia‟s Dilemmatic Thoughts for Watching an Execution
She hated the thought of going to see him. She flinched from it. She felt herself under no moral obligation to go. Why should she go? Gerald was nothing to her, and had no claim on her of any kind. This she honestly believed. And yet she knew that she must go to him. She knew it to be impossible that she should not go (p. 562).
B. The Influence of Sophia’s Conflicts Toward Her Anxiety
In the previous analysis, the conflicts of a character have been discussed. This analysis of conflicts guides this chapter to observe deeper inside the literary work.The continuationof analyzing the conflicts draws the attention to the impact of conflicts. The potential impact of conflicts is the development of anxiety in the main character. This is based on the development of the anxiety that is produced by internal and external stimulation. Since the conflicts have internal and external influences, it can be said that these conflicts contribute to the development of anxiety. Therefore, this part deliberates about the development of anxiety as the result of encountering conflicts. In The Old Wives’ Tale, Sophia meets many conflicts that cause her to suffer from anxiety.
Anxiety is a painful emotion suffered by a person when something threatens her.
Anxiety is synonymous with the emotion of fear. Freud preferred the term anxiety to that of fear because fear is usually thought of in the sense of being afraid of something in the external world. Freud recognized that one could be afraid of internal dangers as well as external ones (Halls, 1954: 62).
An anxiety state may have more than one source. It can be a blend of neurotic and objective anxiety, or of moral and objective anxiety, or of neurotic and moral anxiety. It can also be a blend of all three (p. 63).
Sophia has all the three types of anxiety analyzed as below. 3. Reality Anxiety
Reality anxiety can occur to a person. The characteristic of this anxiety is its external causal, that is the external world or environment. A person can feel fear when she considers that a thing threatens her, for example, fear of darkness and thunder. This anxiety is usually transformed in the form of fear.
Reality anxiety is a painful emotional experience resulting from a perception of danger in the external world. A danger is any condition of the environment which threatens to harm the person. The perception of danger and the arousal of anxiety maybe innate in the sense that one inherits a tendency to become afraid in the presence of certain objects or environmental conditions, or it may be acquired during the person's lifetime (Halls, 1954: 61).
In the novel, Sophia suffers from reality anxiety. Sophia faces reality anxiety at the moment when she encounters harmful circumstances and objects in the external world. Sophia, especially, has her reality anxiety since she moves in France. The new external world is harmful for her. There are some cases that show her reality anxiety in the following analysis.
c. Sophia‟s Anxiety toward the Circumstances
While living in France, Sophia faces anxiety that she feels threatened to live among the people of France. This anxiety is influenced by her previous conflicts with Gerald. Sophia actually does not want to live in Paris, but finally she moves to Paris. At the moment she arrives in Paris, her will to not move to Paris makes sense. Sophia cannot live side by side with the circumstances there. It can be seen in the section when Gerald brings her to a shop where fascinating clothes are there. She compares her dresses to the dresses of French people that are classy and expensive. Sophia even cannot classify her own dress as either French or British. She finds out that her style is not good that she is ashamed of what she wears. Because of this, she feels that she is inferior among the people in Paris. This inferiority develops Sophia‟s painful feeling in her days because of the
threatening society. She begins to feel that living in Paris really harms her.
Sophia suffered a brief humiliation in the discovery that his private opinion of her dresses was that they were not dresses at all. She had been aware that they were not Parisian, nor even of London (p. 303).
frightened during her stay at the hotel. She feels that the hotel is dark and crowded. Inside the hotel, she senses all those negative conditions. This situation shows Sophia‟s fear.
The heavy crimson curtains had been drawn across the dirty lace curtains of the windows, but the lights of the little square faintly penetrated through chinks into the room. The sounds of the square also penetrated, extraordinarily loud and clear, for the unbated heat had compelled her to leave the window open (p. 327).
Sophia does not find any peace during her stay at the hotel. The crowd is also described in the quotation below. She tries to sleep but instead she is interupted by the crowd at the hotel.
It was as if, beneath and within all the noises of the square, every movement in the hotel reached her ears through cardboard walls: distant shoutings and laughter below; rattlings of crockery below; stampings up and down stairs; brusque calls; fragments of songs, whisperings; long sighs sudden stifled; mysterious groans as of torture, broken by a giggle; quarrels and brickerings—she was spared nothing in the strangely resonant darkness (p. 329).
d. Sophia‟s Fear Toward the People
Sophia has fear to meet with the French people. This fear is motivated by her conflict with Gerald. There is contradictory decision that Sophia does not want to move out from England, but on the other hand, Gerald insists her to. This situation affects her really well. The result for this conflict is that she suffers from unpleasant feelings to face people in Paris. Sophia meets two types of society in France. There are classy and brutal people. They scare Sophia.
her as Gerald wins to ask her moving out. This fact intrudes to develop her anxiety while living in Paris. Her doubt to move in Paris affects her to always be insecure to live in Paris. In this case, Sophia cannot get along with the people there because she has felt insecure because of the conflict and the fact since beginning. She meets all people from different background but she cannot interact with them at all. Even at a store, Sophia is afraid to make contact with a saleswoman. She does not want to interact with the saleswoman even though the saleswoman speaks in English. The primary conflict that Sophia passes is the cause of this fear. The conflict that she does not plan to move in France influences her anxiety. Therefore, in Paris, she does not find any confidence to live at there. From this hesitant feeling, she experiences fear to meet the people of Paris. Additional factor for her fear toward the saleswoman is she considers herself as inferior because of the high price at the store.
She recoiled before them and seemed to hide for refuge in Gerald, as it were appealing to him instead of to the saleswoman when the saleswoman offered remarks in stiff English (p. 303).
does not know how to face them. Therefore, it makes her frightened to face them. At the page 306, the story describes, “They seemed to say, „We are the renowned
Parisiennes.‟ They frightened her: they appeared to her so corrupt and so proud in
their corruption.”
Another proof is Sophia‟s fear toward the people of France. All levels of society in France scare Sophia. Another society of France is so loud and brutal. She sees the people laughing hysterically, kissing with the lover, and roaring at the dinner. The people can interact with each other, while Sophia cannot do the same thing since she cannot understand French. In the middle of the crowd, she feels small and different. It is she who only stays quiet in the middle of the crowd. By those scenes, she feels that the people there are frightening.
She remembered the dinner with horror. The long, crowded table, with semicircular ends, in the oppressive and reeking dining-room lighted by oil-lamps! There must have been at least forty people at that table. . . She was afraid. The company shocked her by its gesture alone. . . That situation seemed to shelter her even from the conversation (p. 327).
e. Threatening Price in Paris
Sophia‟s anxiety is also influenced by her conflict in term of high prices for a living in France. There are many expensive things bought in Paris. The earlier conflict between her and the environment supports this anxiety. She has her own standard for a living, but in France, everything opposes her idea, especially, the high price to live in France. Because of this, her anxiety occurs. The shocking price in Paris makes Sophia scare to even look at it.
her. Sophia does not live the luxurious life like the French people do. It is just not for her. As the result, she acquired her anxiety as the high price intimidates her. She considers it as harmful problem. Sophia keeps feeling threatened as the price tag does not fit with her standard of life. It contrasts from Sophia‟s standard of life. She visits a clothes store in Paris with Gerald. She finds it hard to believe that the simplest thing is worth for sixteen pounds. It is contrary with her standard for a living in Bursley. Gerald tells Sophia to not thinking about the price. Even so, the price keeps bothering inside her mind. Sophia is too threatened seeing the price that she thinks about it over and over.
The simplest trifle here cost sixteen pounds ; and her mother‟s historic „silk‟, whose elaborateness had cost twelve pounds, was supposed to have approached the inexpressible! Gerald said that she was not to think about prices. She was, however, forced by some instinct to think about prices—she who at home had scorned the narrowness of life in the Square (p. 303).
Sophia‟s anxiety occurs in some events. The expensive price for one night in a hotel is a proof to see Sophia‟s anxiety toward the high price. Gerald spends so
much money. Sophia thinks that all of his spending are just waste. In just a day, Gerald pays more than two pounds for the hotel. Gerald does not care about this spending at all. Nevertheless, Sophia worries about this rate.
It seemed impossible that twelve thousand pounds, while continually getting less, could ultimately quite disappear. The notion lived longer in the mind of Gerald than in that of Sophia; for Gerald would never look at a disturbing fact, whereas Sophia‟s gaze was morbidly fascinated by such phenomena…Gerald never paid less than two pounds a day in hotel bills alone (p. 338-339).
for a living in Bursley. Moreover, Gerald‟s lifestyle shocks her. Sophia always concerns about Gerald‟s spending. Her fear is to lose all the money.
With extraordinary rapidity she had formed a habit of preaching moderation to Gerald. She hated to „see money thrown away‟, and her notion of the boundary line between throwing money away and judiciously spending it was still the notion of the Square (p. 303).
One more proof is in the event when Sophia is really annoyed to lose hundred francs for a hotel. She cannot stop thinking about it. It is once again related to her fear to suffer from poverty.
She kept repeating to herself, in amazed resentment, „A hundred francs for this room! A hundred francs! And he hadn‟t the pluck to tell me!‟ She could not have expressed her contempt (p. 338).
4. Neurotic Anxiety
Neurotic anxiety is a struggle of a person who has discomfort feeling to do unwanted desire or wrong action. The characteristics of neurotic anxiety are thata person does not realize about it and represses the id impulses. Halls explains:
Neurotic anxiety is aroused by a perception of danger from the instincts. It is a fear of what might happen should the anti-cathexes of the ego fail to prevent the instinctual object-cathexes from discharging themselves in some
impulsive action (Halls, 1954: 64-65).
d. Sophia‟s Sinful Thoughts
In the story, Sophia successfully greets Gerald at the shop that lead her to some conflicts. She carelessly forgets about her duty to takes care of her father.Sophia cannot stop thinking about Gerald. Even when her father dies, she still struggles with her thoughts of being happy to see Gerald Scales or sympathetic for the death of her father.
Sophia is frightened in the day her father died. This fear is born because of her internal conflict to choose between her father and Gerald. When Sophia finds out that her father has died, she faces two contradictory minds. She faces that she should choose her priority between her father and Gerald. While her priority is Gerald, her superego and ego tries to defend her from her pleasure to celebrate her success in getting closer to Gerald. Her ego represses her joy to honor the death of her father. This repression finally arises Sophia‟s anxiety because the id impulse
tries to break through reality. Her anxiety in this case appears as fear. According to the conflict, Sophia feels frightened that she runs to her mother. Her fear is the result of her joy in being closer to Gerald on the day of her father‟s death. She
does not realize about her feeling of joy at all. In the story, Sophia‟s desire is
father‟s illness triggers her neurotic anxiety. The quote below explains how
Sophia unconsciously more cares about Gerald than her father that her id impulse tries to break out.
„Galivanting with that young Scales!‟ said Mr Critchlow, with devilish ferocity. „Well, you‟ve killed yer father; that‟s all!‟ ...
„Is he dead?‟ she asked in a quite tone. (Somewhere within a voice waswhispering, („So his name is Scales‟) (p.79).
The indication of her sense of guilt can be found when she gives a sob and hides herself in her mother.
Mrs Baines, driven from the banquet by her feelings, went into the drawing-room. Sophia was there, and Sophia, seeing tears in her mother‟s eyes, gave a sob, and flung herself bodily against her mother, clutching her, and hiding her face in that broad crape, which abraded her soft skin (p. 87).
e. Guilty Emotion for Watching an Execution
Sophia is threatened by seeing the execution that is related to her previous conflict. Sophia‟s conflict occurs when she joins to watch the execution with
Gerald. Sophia thinks that watching the execution is wrong for her. Watching the execution is cruel for her because it shows the death of a person. She persists that it is a cruel event to watch. She never tells about this thought to Gerald. However, she has to quickly make a decision to go watching the execution with him, because at Paris, Sophia follows Gerald wherever he goes. She does not know about Paris at all. This conflict contributes to the development of her anxious feeling toward the execution.
