The Portrayal Of The Protagonist In The Penny By Joyce Meyer And Deborah Bedford.

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iii Maranatha Christian University

ABSTRACT

Di dalam tesis ini, saya menganalisis karakteristik tokoh utama dari novel yang berjudul The Penny karangan Joyce Meyer dan Deborah Bedford. Setelah membaca dan menganalis novel tersebut saya mendapati bahwa tokoh utama dari novel ini, Jenny Black, memiliki karakter yang round dan dynamic. Ia memiliki banyak karakteristik yang mengalami perubahan. Pada awalnya, ia digambarkan sebagai seorang yang mempunyai sedikit pengetahuan tentang Tuhan. Selain itu, siksaan dan perlakuan semena-mena dari keluarga, terutama sang ayah, menyebabkan ia menjadi seorang yang tidak percaya diri, penyendiri, tidak bisa mempercayai orang lain. Namun, di pertengahan cerita, Jenny mengalami perubahan karakter. Hal ini disebabkan oleh pertemuan dan pengenalan pribadi akan Tuhan. Ia menjadi seorang yang beriman pada Tuhan dan hal ini membuatnya menjadi seorang yang percaya diri, terbuka dan bisa mempercayai orang lain.

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ii Maranatha Christian University

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Joyce Meyer is a Christian motivational speaker and best-selling non-fiction author. She is also internationally known as a celebrated author, speaker

and television personality (“The Penny: Joyce Meyer”). Although she has written

a number of Christian books on various topics, The Penny is her first novel, in which she works with a best-selling fiction author, Deborah Bedford (“Joyce

Meyer: The Cost of a Penny”).

I choose to analyze The Penny by Joyce Meyer with Deborah Bedford for my thesis because I find that the characteristics of the protagonist in this novel,

Jenny Blake, are interesting and “The situation in the novel itself is so well

depicted” (Conrad), because it is based on Meyer’s own life. The story of The

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abuse in her family” (“Joyce Meyer: The Costof a Penny”). The struggle and the

development of the characteristics of the protagonist make this novel more

interesting but still easy to read. Jenny’s characteristics here emphasize the

essence of Christianity and the need to forgive which becomes the main issue in

this novel. “This book is definitely a story of hope, courage, and God’s redeeming

love for us. It’s about the process and courage of giving God control over our

lives. Giving control to no one else but Him” (Nora).

As Robert in Writing about Literature has mentioned, a character is “a verbal representation of a human being as presented to us by authors through the depiction of action, conversations, descriptions, reactions, inner thoughts and

reflections, and also through the authors’ own interpretative commentary” (66).

Therefore, I decide to analyze the portrayal of the character because this novel tells about a young girl who has a difficult life but she is highly determined to have a better life and break the pattern of abuse in her family.

Statement of the Problem

1. How is the protagonist portrayed in the novel?

2. What is the purpose of the author in creating such a protagonist in the novel?

Purpose of the Study

1. To show how the protagonist is portrayed in the novel.

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Method of Research

I use library research in writing this thesis. I begin by reading The Penny by Joyce Meyer and Deborah Bedford as the primary text. Furthermore, I gather some resources and references taken from books and the Internet to support my analysis. Finally, I draw some conclusions from what has been discussed.

Organization of the Thesis

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CHAPTER THREE

CONCLUSION

After analyzing the portrayal of the protagonist in The Penny, I would like to draw some conclusions. There is a young fourteen-year-old girl named Jenny Black, who undergoes a horrible condition in her house, supposedly the safest place for her. However, she is sexually, mentally and physically abused by her own family members, especially her father. This novel shows that Jenny is the victim of a collateral abusive pattern in her family, because the cycle of abuse can run further to the next generation. Jenny’s grandfather abuses her father, and her father abuses her even worse. Moreover, the situation becomes worse because her mother and her sister cannot do anything to help her. Jenny’s mother who is supposed to take care and protect her children, blinds herself from what her husband has done to their own daughter. The result of this condition is a kind of trauma, which later affects and shapes Jenny’s characteristics.

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19 Maranatha Christian University already known. However, there is a point that makes Jenny’s characteristics change. That is, when one day she is on the way to watch a Grace Kelly movie, she picks a penny on the asphalt, which causes a series of events that leads Jenny to a personal relationship with God. From that moment, Jenny starts to accept God in her life and understand the need of forgiving in a purpose to be healed and to break the pattern of abuse in her family to reach a better life.

Jenny is also described as a self-conscious girl. She always lives under

Jean, her sister’s shadow. Physically, when comparing herself to her sister, Jenny

feels as if her sister has everything that she does not. Moreover, Jenny’s father’s bad treatment makes her feel ashamed and worthless. However, in the end of the novel Jenny becomes a confident person. She values herself more and she can proof that she can do something right when she takes a decision to against her father to stop the abused.

Being abused also makes her become a distrustful girl. The traumatic experiences that she has undergone in her family make it difficult for her to trust other people, including herself. However, thanks to Miss Shaw and Aurelia, Jenny starts to trust other people. Jenny’s being an introverted girl because of having been abused and bad treatment of her father drifts herself away from socializing and making friends. However, Jenny’s trust in God’s unconditional love affects her relationship with other people and she turns into an extroverted girl. Now Jenny has a lot of friends and people like her.

Based on the analysis above, there are some things that can be concluded.

Firstly, one’s characteristics can be shaped by traumatic experiences. Then, the

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20 Maranatha Christian University will become worse if there is no support from family and society.In Jenny’s case, she has to undergo the horrible condition of being abused by her family member, and she has to face it on her own. It also becomes worse because it affects Jenny’s personal and social life. However, the condition changes when Jenny earns support from Miss Shaw and Aurelia. It is proven that support from other people can help one to overcome a problem.

I believe the main issue of this novel is Christianity and the need to forgive. In Christianity, one can be healed from his / her past trauma by forgiving those who have hurt them. Thus, my second conclusion is that one’s life can be changed totally when that person accepts God and forgives those who have hurt them. One cannot rely on his / her own power, and without forgiveness, one cannot be free from any pain, any trauma and any pattern of abuse. In Jenny’s case, when she makes a decision to accept God and forgive her father, she is able to stop the abuse in her family and be cured from her past traumatic experience.

In my opinion, the story seems alive and real. It is because the condition

itself is based on the author’s own experience and I find that a lot of people have

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21 Maranatha Christian University condition in the novel seems real because what happens to Jenny has also happened in real life.

I also find an interesting thing in the novel, which is the use of a penny to represent or symbolize God’s messages. Often I find that God uses simple things to give messages and clues. He also works in the smallest details such as a familiar coin of penny, which everyone can easily find on the street or anywhere. In the novel, it is described that Jenny’s life does not suddenly change after she

accepts Jesus. Jenny’s father does not stop abusing her and Jesus does not

suddenly appear and rescue her. However, Jenny’s faith grows slowly together with her hope of a penny. She believes that on the day she finds that penny, she simultaneously finds God’s unconditional love and hope that He can change her life into a better one.

Personally, I admire the character of Jenny and her struggle to reach a better life. Although her life seems so horrible and gloomy, but as a fourteen-year-old girl, she can successfully face all her problems. The process and development

of Jenny’s characteristics makes the protagonist seem more human. I, as a

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Robert, Edgar V. Writing about Literature. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc., 2003.

Internet website(s):

“A Biography of Christian Author Joyce Meyer”. Suite101.com. Jul 2009. 3 Mar. 2011

<http://www.suite101.com/content/joyce-meyer-a-christian-woman-of-our-time-a134414>

“Biography”. Deborah Bedford. 3 Mar. 2011

<http://www.deborahbedfordbooks.com/bedford_bio.html>

Conrad, Tammy Petty. “A Penny is Worth More Than You Think.” Amazon.com.

July 2007. 9 Feb. 2010

<http://www.amazon.com/Penny-Novel-Joyce-Meyer/dp/0446578118> “Deborah Bedford”. Encyclopedia of World Biography. 2006. 3 Mar. 2011

<http://www.notablebiographies.com/newsmakers2/2006-A-Ec/Bedford-Deborah.html>

“Distrustful”. Dictionary.com. 2011. 21 Feb. 2011

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22 Maranatha Christian University "Irreligious." Merriam-Webster. 2011. 21 Feb. 2011

< http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irreligious> “Joyce Meyer Biography”. Quotemonk. 3 Mar. 2011

<http://www.quotemonk.com/authors/joyce-meyer/biography-profile.html>

“Joyce Meyer: The Cost of a Penny.” The 700 Club. 2007. 9 Feb. 2010

<http://www.cbn.com/700club/guests/bios/Joyce_Meyer060707.aspx> McGill, RJ. “Book Review: The Penny by Joyce Meyer.” Blogger News Network.

Dec. 2007. 8 Mar. 2010

<http://www.bloggernews.net/112286>

Meyer, Joyce. “Abuse and the Miracle of Recovery.” Everyday Answer. Joyce Meyer Ministries. 22 Feb. 2010

<http://www.joycemeyer.org/OurMinistries/EverydayAnswers/Articles/art 51.html>

Nora. “Story that Speaks to the Heart.” Amazon.com. July 2007. 9 Feb. 2010 <http://www.amazon.com/Penny-Novel-Joyce-Meyer/dp/0446578118> "Religious." Wikitionary. 2011. 25 Feb. 2011