THE FEMININE SIDE OF GOD IN COELHO’S BY THE RIVER PIEDRA I SAT DOWN AND WEPT
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
DIANA MEIRAWATI Student Number: 084214010
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
i
THE FEMININE SIDE OF GOD IN COELHO’S BY THE RIVER PIEDRA I SAT DOWN AND WEPT
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
DIANA MEIRAWATI Student Number: 084214010
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
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“Here am I, the servant of Lord; let it be done
with
me according to your word”
(Luke 1:38)
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For Vincentius de Paulo Soediyono T.A in Heaven, for
our unforgettable togetherness taught me to reflect the
journey in the past is learned as the first step to face the
future,
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I am deeply grateful to my Lord Jesus Christ for blessing me in every single day of my life’s journey. I also thank Mother Mary who becomes my spiritual inspiration, her love gives me strength to always be ready in facing the mystery of life.
My greatest gratitude goes to my advisor, Dr. F.X. Siswadi, M.A. for his advice, understanding, and encouragement. He is very patient to support and give me correction and suggestion along my undergradute thesis writing. He inspires me to be a crtitical and tough person. I also thank my co. advisor, Dewi Widyastuti, S.Pd., M.Hum. for her willingness in reading my undergraduate thesis. I thank her for giving suggestions, corrections and comments on my undergraduate thesis.
My appreciation is also given to all lecturers in English Letters Department at Sanata Dharma University for providing a good education. I thank Mbak Ninik who always helps me in completing my secretarial needs and also library staff for their assistance along my study.
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I thank God for giving me special persons who contribute some sweet experiences during my collegiate life; I thank Aditya Dwi Kurniawan for the support, love, and togetherness that we have built between us, my best friend Saverin Punkas - Pi’in. I thank her for the laugh and tears which bring our friendship more colorful forever and ever, also Deni, Yeyen, Momon, Achen, Rani, Lando, Rinrin, Arin, Topan, Ajeng, Rintan, Rina and all my classmates in A class. I thank them for the unforgettable experiences.
I thank all my friends in PSM CANTUS FIRMUS who have wonderful talents. They are my new family and I learn how to more appreciate myself from them. I also give my greatest gratitude to Pak Mbong who can transform himself to be my teacher, father and also brother. He teaches me to develop my talent in singing wisely. I learn many things from him about classical song, life and loyalty.
Last but not the least, I also thank all my friends in Beauty and the Beast the Musical; actors and actress, wardrobe, make up, setting, lighting, music, ticketing, and refreshment team who become my new family during my last semester in this university. I love them, I thank them for our sweet togetherness that we have built. We have shared our experiences among us to present a wonderful performance. I am thankful especially to Ms. Linda and Ms. Dewi, for inspiring me to be a better person.
x LEMBAR PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH …………... STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ………... 2. Theory of the feminine Side of God……….. C. Theoretical Framework ……… 2. The Characterization of Pilar’s lover ………..
a. Religious ……….……….
b. Intellectual ………... c. Talented …...... B. Analysis of the Characterization of Pilar and Her Lover Revealing
the Feminine Side of God ... 1. The Veneration of Virgin Mary ………...……
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2. The Reflection of Total Surrender from Mother Mary as the Model of Faith …... a. Pilar ……... b. Pilar’s lover ... 3. The link between Mother Mary and the Divine ...
a. Pilar ...
b. Pilar’s lover ……....
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION ………
BIBLIOGRAPHY ………....
APPENDIX ………. 37 37 39 41 41 43
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ABSTRACT
DIANA MEIRAWATI. Feminine Side of God in Coelho’sBy The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2013.
Patriarchy is found in many fields of human life, including in a religious field. Thus, it creates a paradigm that God is a man. In Catholic religion, people know Mother Mary, a woman who gives a new paradigm that God has a feminine side. This study analyzes how the characterization of Pilar and Pilar’s lover reveals the feminine side of God in a novel entitled By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept written by Paulo Coelho.
To analyze the novel, the writer formulates two research problems as follows: (1) how are Pilar and Pilar’s lover described? (2) how does the characterization of Pilar and her lover reveal the feminine side of God?
This undergraduate thesis uses the library research. The main data is taken from the novel By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept written by Paulo Coelho. The writer applies moral philosophical approach to analyze the problems in this topic because this approach morally focuses on what is taught in a literary work. Therefore, moral philosophical approach is suitable to be applied in this topic because this study focuses on how the characterization of Pilar and her lover reveals the feminine side of God in this novel.
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ABSTRAK
DIANA MEIRAWATI. Feminine Side of God in Coelho’s By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept. Yogyararta: Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2013.
Patriarki ditemukan di banyak bidang kehidupan manusia, termasuk di dalam bidang keagamaan. Oleh karena itu, hal ini menciptakan sebuah paradigma bahwa Tuhan seorang laki-laki. Di dalam agama Katolik, orang-orang mengenal Bunda Maria, seorang wanita yang memberikan pandangan baru bahwa Tuhan memiliki sisi femininitas. Studi ini menganalisis bagaimana penokohan dari Pilar dan kekasihmya dalam memaparkan sisi femininitas Tuhan di dalam sebuah novel berjudul By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept yang ditulis oleh Paulo Coelho.
Guna mendapatkan hasil dari analisis ini, penulis memformulasikan dua permasalahan sebagai berikut: (1) bagaimana Pilar dan kekasihnya dideskripsikan? (2) bagaimana penokohan Pilar dan kekasihnya memunculkan sisi femininitas Tuhan?
Skripsi ini menerapkan studi pustaka. Data utama diambil dari novel yang ditulis oleh Paulo Coelho berjudul By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept. Penulis mengaplikasikan pendekatan filosofi moral untuk menganalisis permasalahan-permasalahan yang diangkat di dalam kajian ini karena pendekatan ini secara moral merujuk pada apa yang diajarkan di dalam sebuah karya sastra. Oleh karena itu, pendekatan filosofi moral tepat untuk diaplikasikan karena kajian ini menekankan tentang penokohan Pilar dan kekasihnya memunculkan femininitas Tuhan di dalam novel yang diangkat.
Dari hasil analisis pertama ditemukan bahwa Pilar dideskripsikan sebagai seorang wanita yang penuh perhatian dan belas kasih. Penokohan Pilar ditunjukkan melalui perkataan, reaksi dan pemikirannya. Kekasihnya Pilar digambarkan sebagai seorang laki-laki yang religius, pandai dan bertalenta. Penokohan kekasihnya Pilar dipaparkan melalui perkataan, penggambaran diri, tanggapan langsung, karakter yang dilihat oleh tokoh lain dan percakapan dari tokoh lain.
1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
Nowadays patriarchal practices still take place in many fields of human life. A patriarchal system is a part of the world’s “heritage”, which can be found around the world. It is incomplete to speak of the patriarchal system without taking a look at the history of industrial revolution which breaks out in Europe 1760 and it needs men’s hand to operate machine in a factory in which physically women do not have powerful energy as men. It causes women to “grow up” and “develop” inside of a house since men are the breadwinners of the family. As a
result, women take the second position after the men because power is in the men’s hand (http://wps.ablongman.com/long_levack_wc_1/43/11053/2829693.
cw/index.html). The impact of industrial revolution for women is also felt by Javanese, one of Indonesian tribes. One example of the impact is woman has a duty to work inside a house such as taking care of the children, cooking, and cleaning the house, in other word woman has position in the back. No space for woman to look outside because it is the man’s job. In Javanese, the situation
The above illustration clearly shows negative impact of patriarchal system for women which is described based on political and social point of view. Furthermore, patriarchy is also found in religious field such as Christian tradition. Elizabeth Johnson’s article entitled Mary and the Image of God as quoted in
Donnelly’s Mary, Woman of Nazareth Biblical and Theological Perspectives stated that masculine point of view or androcentric dominates religious language and imagery of God. It is stated as follows
The Christian tradition’s patriarchy with its accompanying androcentric structures of thought has shortchanged the fullness of religious language and imagery of the divine, locking the divine mystery into the single predominant image of a male person or persons (Johnson, 1989: 28). The above quotation shows that patriarchal system influences the development of several religions in the world that also causes the imagery of God to become more dominant image of male person. For example, Jews, Protestant, Catholic and Islam. In reality, people sometimes take for granted the patriarchal system which lives in Jews, Protestant, Catholic and Islam. For example, those religions teach that Eve is born out of the thirteenth Adam’s rib as is told in Holy Bible and Al-Quran. If Christian, Catholic and Moslem do not understand the verse of Eve and Adam which mentioned above correctly, it creates a wrong understanding that afflicts woman’s position. Related to that case, the writer agrees with Nawal El Saadawi’s statement in her book entitled The Hidden Face of Eve that woman is
impact for women because people do not separate between anthropological perspective and a belief in a religion. As a result women get a subordinate position.
The case of patriarchal system above happens because of the domination of male, then it creates a paradigm that God is a man. It might be different paradigm if people realize that God also has feminine side. In Catholic church, Catholics are taught to understand the feminine side of God. Here, woman’s characteristic is exposed to picture God. Johnson, as quoted in Coyle’s Mary in the Christian Tradition, states that
Since it is women whose bodies bear, nourish, and deliver new persons into life and, as society is traditionally structured, are most often charged with the responsibility to nurture and raise them into maturity, language about God as mother carries a uniques power to express human relationship to the mystery who generates and cares for everything (Coyle, 1996: 96).
Johnson’s quotation shows that women who have capability of bearing,
nourishing and caring are chosen to picture God. It declares a unique power of God who cares for human’s need. Then, there is a special woman who applies her feminine characteristics in answering the God’s will. She is Mother Mary who
shares her experience in understanding God.
Despite the Holy Bible written by the Apostles, Catholic Church has introduced Mother Mary to its Catholics as “Mother of God”. The council of Ephesus stated thousands years ago that
If anyone does not confess that Emmanuel is truly God, and therefore that the blessed Virgin is truly Mother of God, theotokos, for she bore according to the flesh him who is word from God, let him be anathema (Coyle, 1996: 23).
It has a meaning that Virgin Mary is Mother of Christ, Mother of Jesus; she who bore Jesus in the world may be called the Mother of God. Here, the writer emphasizes how Mother Mary reflects her experience in answering the God’s will and how she totally surrenders to accept God’s word. One quotation as ”Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be done with me according to your word” (Luke
1:38) pictures Mother Mary’s way responses to the angel and it interprets that she totally surrenders to God’s will and she depends on God’s initiative. Additionally, Catholics also adapt the characteristic of Mother Mary in experiencing Catholics’ life. Mother Mary’s characteristic leads the writer to analyze feminism perspective in understanding the feminine side of God.
Therefore, to see the understanding of feminine side of God the writer tries to provide an analysis from Coelho’s novel entitled By The River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept. This novel mentions Immaculate Conception, Virgin Mary, and
the miracle of the Virgin which reveal the existence of Mother Mary who serves the feminine side of God. There is a quotation found in this novel which is related to the above description as follows.
“Wait,” I said, grabbing his arm. “You didn’t answer me.”… “I want to know anyway.”
Taking a deep breath, he led me to a corner of the room. “All of the great religions- including Judaism, Catholicism, and Islam- are masculine. Men are in charge of the dogmas, men make the laws, and usually all priests are men.”
“Is that what the woman meant?”
He hesitated before he answered. “Yes. I have a different view of things: I believe in the feminine side of God.” (Coelho, 1996: 11).
The above quotation shows that there is a debatable argument about the position of women in a Church who do not have a chance to take the Church „role and God is described as a man not a woman. When Mother Mary introduces a new paradigm of God, Catholics may learn the feminine side of God from her. The writer chooses this novel as the object of the study because the feminine side of God is revealed through the experience of the character who realizes the existence of Mother Mary. In other words, the writer analyzed the feminine side of God through a woman’s glasses. For this case, the writer argues with what Edward Said as quoted in Sears’s Fantasizing the Feminine in Indonesia that to learn the feminine experience, women’s point of view is the main subject to be analyzed because women can understand their feminine experience. It is stated as follows.
at the same time to build analyses of historical experience around exclusions, exclusions that stipulate, for instance, only women can understand feminine experience, only Jews can understand Jewish suffering, only formerly colonial subjects can understand colonal experience (Sears, 1999: 9).
Coelho’s novel tells the story of Pilar, a woman who learns her faith in
B. Problem Formulation
Based on the topic of this study the feminine side of God learned by Pilar in Coelho’s By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept, the writer needs two
problem formulations in analyzing this study as follows. 1. How are Pilar and Pilar’s lover described?
2. How does the characterizations of Pilar and her lover reveal the feminine side of God?
C. Objectives of the Study
To answer the first question which is related to the intrinsic elements, character and characterization, firstly the writer finds out the characterization of the character. Then, the writer needs to review a theory on character and characterization from the literary perspective in order to help the writer to analyze the character and characterization.
To find out the answer to the second question, the writer analyzes how the feminine side of God is revealed by the characterization of Pilar and her lover. Therefore, the theory of the feminine side of God is needed in order to analyze the feminine side of God which is revealed in the novel.
D. Definition of Terms 1. Feminine Side of God
Maternity with its nurturing and warmth; unbounded compassion; power that protects, heals and liberates; all-embracing immanence; recreative energy: thus is borne out the hypothesis that the Marian tradition is fruitful source of female imagery of God (Donnelly, 1989: 54).
2. Characterization
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CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW
A. Review of Related Studies
In order to get deeper analysis on Paulo Coelho’s By The River Piedra I
Sat Down And Wept, the writer needs to review opinions, criticisms or even analysis from other writers about this novel. Then, after doing the library research, the writer finds that Coelho’s novel entitled By The River Piedra I Sat Down And
Wept has been used by some students for their undergraduate thesis with using different point of view and aprroach. Later, the following review also presents some criticisms and comments on this novel.
By The River Piedra I sat Down And Wept is a novel about a woman named Pilar who tries to find her true love. After eleven years, Pilar finally finds her lover but she has to face the fact that the man who she loves is a missionary. Therefore, Pilar feels that her love is meaningless. That statement was stated in Lusia Wikanita in her undergraduate thesis Plot And Symbols to Reveal the Message in Paulo Coelho’s By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept, she states
The other criticism commented by Susanti Kristianingrum in her undergraduate thesis A Psychological Study of Self Actualization through Characterization of the Main Characters in Paulo Coelho’s By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept. By focusing on the main character named Pilar, Susanti
Kristianingrum states that the recovery of her faith in God is the product of her moral character (2005: 33). The above quotation shows that firstly Pilar blames God because she can not reach her love, but then Pilar recovers her faith in God from her lover and it shows her moral character.
Fernando Morais, the most important journalist in South America and the one who makes a biography of Paulo Coelho through his novel A Warrior’s Life a Biography of Paulo Coelho, states that
The image remained in his head for months, until he decided to use it as a representation of Good and Evil. With The Devil and Miss Prym, Coelho was completing a trilogy that he called „And on the Seventh Day’, which began with By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept (1994) and was followed by Veronika (1998). According to him, „they are three books that desccribes a week in the life of normal people who suddenly find themselves confronted by love, death and power’ (Morais, 2009: 538). It implies that By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept is the first part of triology „And on the Seventh Day’ which emphasizes complicated journey of one’s life in struggling a love. Although the journey takes a week, one may
experience every moment that one meets in finding a love.
Another statement also added by Fernando Morais in his book A Warrior’s Life a Biography of Paulo Coelho that according to Paulo, that book is about the
Sat Down And Wept emphasizes the obstacle of human being that sometimes is trapped from a sin.
Geraldo Galvão Ferraz as quoted in Morais’s A Warrior’s Life a Biography of Paulo Coelho states that
The critic Geraldo Galvão Ferraz, of the São Paulo Jornal da Trade,
religion and mysticism which shows stereotypical character. He argues that the novel is an old cliche, it is seen from the way of man character, Pilar’s lover delivers his speech by giving an old fiction and religion. Another journalist also adds that „the feminine side of God’ which is used by Coelho only represents the
feminine side to picture a woman. As Ferraz’s criticisms shows his contradictory statement that the novel By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept is a mediocre combination of mysticism and religion, the writer has different point of view of certain religion scope revealed in this novel.
Anna Hassani also states her opinion in bookreviews.nabou.com/reviews/bytheriverpiedra.html that
The above quotation shows that Hassani’s analysis focus on the relationship
between Pilar and her lover provides the feminine side of God like Great Mother, Isis, and Virgin Mary. Hassani has analyzed the love relationship to reveal the feminine side of God.
The writer focuses on how Pilar and her lover learn the feminine side of God in Catholic religion through their journey. The feminine side of God is raised in Catholic religion. Meanwhile, that religion stands on patriachy. Besides, the writer’s focus here shows that this undergraduate thesis has different topic with
some students who have taken Coelho’s novel By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept as their thesis before. The writer positions this undergraduate thesis as the progress of Anna Hassani’s opinion. If Anna Hassani analyzes the love
relationship between Pilar and her lover to reveal the feminine face of God like paganism (Great Mother), the ancient fertility goddess, Isis, and the Virgin Mary. Then, the writer more explores the characterization of Pilar and her lover to reveal the feminine side of God.
B. Review of Related Theories
1. Theory of Character and Characterization
Character plays an important role in the literary work particularly in drama and prose. It is used to help the reader in order to understand the main message in the story. Since the character is the key to reveal the message, therefor the writer has to find and analyze the character.
According to Robert and Jacob (1989: 143) in Fiction An Introduction to Reading and Writing state that “character is an extended verbal representation of a human being, the inner self that determines thought, speech and behaviour.” From the quotation above, it means that the character’s thought, speech and behaviour
are the representation of human being.
Further, the writer uses the theory on characterization by Murphy. There are many ways to understand the characterization of character in a literary work. According to Murphy (1972: 161-173) in his book Understanding Unseen: An Introduction to English Poetry and Novels for Overseas Students states that there
are a nine ways the author characterizes the characters. a. Personal Description
The author describes character’s appearance and clothes. It consists of the face, skin, eyes, and the castaway’s extraordinary clothing. Those appearances
show personal description of a character. b. Characters as Seen by Another
choice of words and phrases, like unquiet eyes, dim smile, rare sound of her voice, unapproachable aspect, gazing at him stealthily.
c. Speech
The author describes the character through a person in the book who gives his or her opinion into the character. It can be seen when he or she speaks or make conversation with other. His or her speech gives some clue to a character.
d. Past Life
To shape a character, the author gives a clue to the events, such as direct comment, thr person’s thought or through his or her conversation.
e. Conversation of Others
The author describes a character by showing other person. The other persons do conversation with other people and they say things about a character. Those conversation contributes a clue to describe a character that they spoken about.
f. Reactions
The author describes a character by giving the reaction of a character to many kinds of situations and events.
g. Direct Comment
h. Thoughts
The author describes direct knowledge of what a person’s thought. He or she has different idea from other people and he is able to do what people cannot do in a real life.
i. Mannerisms
A person’s mannerisms, habits, or idiosyncrasies are described bt the
author to give a clue to a character.
In other words, it is said that by knowing personal description; characters as seen by another; speech; past life; conversation of other; reactions; direct comment; thoughts; and mannerisms, therefore the characterization of the character can be revealed easily. All elements have contribution to find the way in describing the characterization of the character.
Further, the writer applies some of nine ways Murphy’s theory in analyzing the characterization of characters because the writer indicates some ways of Murphy’s theory based on the evidence in the novel which shows the
characterization of the characters in this study. 2. Theory of the Feminine Side of God
Theory on the feminine side of God is applied in analyzing the way of Pilar and her lover to understand the feminine side of God. The writer uses Elizabeth Johnson’s theory on Mary and the Image of God that through Mary’s
patriarchalization in Catholic tradition. The concept of God in character of a man shaped from the patriarchy culture which produces a paradigm that God is a man. But then, the appearance of Mother Mary gives a different figure of God. The explanation above is stated based on Elizabeth Johnson as quoted in Donelly’s Mary, Woman of Nazareth Biblical and Theological Perspectivesss below
In that time and place, the God presented for belief had been shaped by a long process of patriarchalization as a result of which the divine image became ever more remote and judgemental. Mary became the beloved “other face” of God, the figure who bore the life-giving, compassionate, caring, saving, and closely intimate qualities so characteristic of the Abba whom Jesus preached (Johnson, 1989:43-44).
a. The Veneration of Virgin Mary
Catholic tradition has a firm conviction to venerate Mary as the mother of Jesus Christ. It is stated that the veneration of Mary as mother of Christ has always been an important part of Catholic devotion; her praise has been sung in every age of the church; her example is offered as an example of the ideal Catholics life (Brantl, 1962: 74). Therefore, it is very important to devote Mary because during her life, she surrenders her whole life to God. Her surrender is the example for the Catholics in developing their faith to God.
Besides, Catholics have a way to devote Mother Mary, one of them is celebrating The Immaculate Conception. It is done by Catholics as the sign and expression to venerate Mother Mary. Pope Pius IX describes the Immaculate Conception as mentioned below.
The Immaculate Conception : Pope Pius IX
from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful (Brantl, 1962: 78). The above quotation shows that Catholics have a belief that veneration to Mother Mary is an important thing in Catholic’s way of life.
b. The Reflection of Total Surrender from Mother Mary as the Model of Faith
Mother Mary is pictured as a woman who has total surrender in accepting God’s plan. It is seen through Her answer “Be it done to me according to your
word” (Luke 1:38). Further, Ivone Gebara and Maria Clara Bingemer as quoted in Coyle’s Mary in the Christian Tradition reflect theologically that Mary is a
woman with faithful figure. They say that the figure of a Jewish woman who gave birth to the messiah under the law of judaism is the sign that God’s kingdom has arrived (Coyle, 1996: 9). Ivone Gebara and Maria Clara Bingemer as quoted in Coyle’s Mary in the Christian Tradition also comment that
The “fullness of time” that the apostle mentions is both end and beginning; it is the end of a journey during which God led God’s people, God speaking to the people “in fragmentary and diverse ways”; it is the beginning, of a new state of things in which God takes human flesh and a human face within history, in the midst of a people, of which the woman Mary is the faithful figure (Coyle, 1996: 9).
The above quotation shows that through Mother Mary, people realizes that the mystery of God in the “fullness time” is the central of history when the Son of God was born. Here, Mother Mary with her total surrender participates in the God’s plan. A young woman in a patriarchal society in that time has a strong
c. The Link between the Figure of Mary and Imagery of the Divine Development of the study of Marian tradition moves from time to time. It is signaled from many kinds of title given to Mother Mary such as Our All Holy, Immaculate, Most Blessed and Glorified Lady, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary. Every title has certain history to picture Mother Mary. It is the same as well as the figure of Mary and imagery of The Divine. Johnson’s theory (1989: 31) on Mary and the Image of God as quoted in Donnelly’s Mary, Woman of Nazareth Biblical and Theological Perspectives stated that figure of Mary and imagery of the divine have morphological similarities between the post-Constantinian eclesial cult of Mary and the cult of the great mother in the Mediterranean world where Christianity was moving. In other words, between Catholic faith and the mystery of cults give an evidence that there is a process of adaptation and deeper understanding in figuring Mary and imagery of The Divine. This symbolism opens the female representation of God.
Related to the process of assimilation between Mary and the female representation of God, Elizabeth Johnson as quoted in Donnelly’s Mary, Woman of Nazareth Biblical and Theological Perspectives that
Places in nature where female deities had been honored with pilgrimage and prayer became associated with Mary: grottoes, springs, promontories, mountains, lakes, woods. Shrines and temples to the goddess were rededicated to Mary the mother of God, outstanding examples being found in Rome, Athens, Chartres, and Ephesus (Johnson, 1989: 32).
promontories, mountain and lake become a place where female deities are respected, in this case those places are associated with Mother Mary.
The appearance of Mother Mary produces a phenomenon in Chatolic Church which has strong mainline of patriarchy. The Marian tradition has broken the structure of Bibilical and traditional faith which over-masculinized. Therefore, people search for female metaphore who has an image of The Divine. It is stated in Johnson’s statement as quoted in Donnelly’s Mary, Woman of Nazareth
Biblical and Theological Perspectives below.
The theological distortions of the period were very real, yet the phenomenon offers another interpretive principle for our inquiry: especially where the Marian tradition breaks the boundaries of the structure of biblical and traditional faith, there one can look for a source of female metaphores for the ultimate saving mystery of the divine, created by a dynamic of compensation for an over-masculinized and harsh, i.e. deficient patriarchal concept of God (Johnson, 1989: 37).
Further, Edward Schillebeeckx’s statement as quoted in Donnelly’s Mary,
Woman of Nazareth Biblical and Theological Perspectives also gives his strong
reason about the relationship between figure of Mary and The Divine. He states that Mary is the translation and effective expression in maternal terms of God’s
mercy and grace. The feminine and maternal aspect of divine love needs expression through the figure of a woman (Donnelly, 1989: 37-38). From Schillebeeckx’s theory, it can be noticed that Mother Mary has a maternal aspect
C. Theoretical Framework
Based on the problem formulation, the writer needs the theories which are mentioned above. The theory of character and characterization are used to answer the first problem formulation. Those theories are applied in the study to identify the characterization of the character.
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CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
This chapter consists of three parts, they are object of the study, approach of the study and method of the study. The object of the study covers the identity and the description of the data, the data is taken from a work of literary. Then, approach of the study explains what approach that is used in analysing the literary work. The last part is method of the study which states the procedure to analyse the work.
A. Object of the Study
The object of the study is a novel written by Paulo Coelho. He is a great writer from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He is the author of The Alchemist and The Zahir, he also has other novels which become international bestseller. One of them is By The river Piedra I Sat Down and Wept which is used as the object of this study. This novel is an English version of Na margem do rio Piedra eu sentei e chorei, it is the original Portugese edition and it is translated into English
version by Alan R. This novel is published by Harper Collins Publisher in 1994 and it is the first edition. By The river Piedra I Sat Down and Wept sold 70,000 copies on the first day publication (Morais, 2009:396).
Paulo Coelho’s By The river Piedra I Sat Down and Wept consists of 180
eleven years they are seperated. Unexpectedly, she has to accept that her lover has grown into a missionaire and a devotee of Immaculate Conception. Pilar’s spiritual experience begins when the man asks Pilar to accompany him in a conference that he organized during a week. Every moment in their journey teaches Pilar about different side of God which is called a feminine side of God. On the other hand, the reunion between Pilar and the man places the man in a dilemma, between serving people in his life time as a missionaire or living with Pilar.
On the bank of the river Piedra, Pilar memorizes her experiences in meeting the man and writes them in a handwriting. She writes all her feelings. At the end, on the bank of the river Piedra a final decision is made by Pilar and her lover, the truth which reflects their deepest feeling.
B. Approach of the Study
In this study the writer uses moral philosophical approach to reveal the feminine side of God. According to Guerin in A Handbook of Critical Approaches to Literature, the moral philosophical criticism concerns on what is taught in the literary work itself. It is a critic which educates the reader to think critically in moral teaching.
Further, Guerin (2011: 62) also stated that moral philosophical emphasizes on getting at the total meaning of a literary work when the work seems to call for them. Therefore, this criticism is used to find out the values of life which exist in the literary work.
This criticism is chosen to analyze Coelho’s By The River Piedra I Sat
Down And Wept in order to see what are the feminine sides of God which are revealed in this novel. Since moral philosophical approach more focus on what is taught in a literary work, here the writer emphasizes what are the feminine sides which are learned by Pilar from her lover.
C. Method of the Study
The writer was doing the library research. In the first step, the writer read the whole story of this novel. In reading the story, the writer tried to identify the important intrinsic element in the novel. The writer found that character and characterization were the intrinsic elements to be analyzed. Those intrinsic elements were related to the title of the study which analyzed about the character. After the writer found the intrinsic element which was used as the first problem formulation, the writer found the second problem formulation which was related to the feminine side of God.
Understanding Unseen: An Introduction to English Poetry and Novels for Overseas Students to help the writer in order to analyze the characterization of the
character. In this study, the writer used moral philosophical approach, the writer used A handbook of Critical Approaches to Literature by Wilfred L. Guerin. To analyze the second problem formulation, the writer used theory from George Brantl’s book entitled Catholicism and Doris Donnnelly’s book entitled Mary,
Woman of Nazareth Biblical and Theological Perspective.
25
CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS
This chapter presents the analysis of the problems that have been formulated in the first chapter. First, the writer analyzes the characterization of main characters, Pilar and her lover. Second, the writer analyzes the characterization of Pilar and her lover reveals the feminine sides of God.
A. Analysis of the Characters
Character is one of important elements in the literary work such as a drama and a novel. According to Murphy (1972: 161-173), there are nine ways to characterize the characters.The writer applies Murphy’s theory on characterization in analysing the characterization of Pilar and her lover. This analysis is divided into two parts, the characterization of Pilar and the characterization of Pilar’s
lover.
1. The Characterization of Pilar
Pilar is the female main character in this novel. The analysis below shows that Pilar is described as a nurturing and compassionate woman. As what the writer stated in the previous chapter, the writer applies some of the nine ways Murphy’s theory to analyze characterization of Pilar. The writer applies three ways Murphy’s theory of speech, reaction and thought because those three ways
a. Nurturing
Pilar is a woman who grows in her lover’s shadow. She has a huge desire
to meet her childhood friend after eleven years they are separated. They just share their experience through a letter. One day, in his letter, the man asks Pilar to come to a small group in Madrid, the place where the man gives a lecture. Pilar is very enthusiastic to prepare herself to meet him again. Although she finds some information that her lover has a willingness to enter a seminary, but she goes to come in his sermon.
That Pilar is a nurturing woman can be analyzed from one of the situations when her lover is giving a sermon and many people gather around him. Suddenly, two women say to Pilar about her lover. It is stated as follows that her reaction represents her as a nurturing woman.
“He’s giving us back what was ours,” said a woman seated next to me. A strange thing to say.
“What is he giving back?” I asked. “What was stolen from us. Religion.” (Coelho, 1994:5)
The above quotation shows that Pilar feels strange when they discuss about her lover and it is very rare to be heard by Pilar. Pilar keeps on questioning that woman’s statement, this is strange that the man gives back their religion.
Therefore, after the sermon ends critically Pilar meets her lover and she honestly asks her lover about that. It can be seen through the quotation as follows that her speech represents her as a nurturing woman.
“Yes, before your lecture, a woman said that you were giving her back what had been hers. What did she mean?”
“But it’s important to me. I don’t know anything about your life; I’m even surprised to see so many people here.”
He just laughed, and then he started to turn away to answer other people’s questions.
“Wait,” I said, grabbing his arm. “You didn’t answer me.” “I don’t think it would interest you, Pilar.”
“I want to know anyway” (Coelho, 1994:10).
Based on the quotation above, it can be noticed that Pilar is a nurturing woman; she has a willingness to ask her lover the meaning of her conversation with two women that she meets. Pilar shows her caring to her lover by asking the life of her lover during they are separated. Pilar wants to know his life and Pilar tries to understand the life of his lover.
The writer finds that Pilar is a nurturing woman, it can be analyzed from her speech and her reaction. Pilar’s speech shows that she needs a clear explanation from the man, she asks the background of the woman’s statement. Then, Pilar asks to her lover although the man tries to avoid to answer Pilar’s
question but she still asks to her lover until he answer it.
That Pilar is a nurturing woman can be seen from her thought. It is stated as follows.
I spend day after day with my texts and notebooks, making the superhuman effort just to purchase my own servitude, I thought. Why do I want that job? What does it offer to me as a human being, a woman?
Nothing! I wasn’t born to spend my life behind a desk, helping judges dispose of their cases (Coelho, 1994: 25).
b. Compassionate
Pilar is also analyzed as a compassionate woman. Pilar has sympathy to the case that she meets. The quotation below shows that Pilar’s speech represents her as a compassionate woman.
“It was he. Come in, please.” I recalled the previous night. When we arrived at the cathedral, a man had told me I was with a man who performed miracles. “We’re in a hurry,” the padre said. “No! No, we’re not,” I said, in my halting French. “I’m cold and I’d like some coffee.” The woman took me by the hand, and entered the house (Coelho, 1994: 121).
The situation in the quotation above describes when Pilar meets the superior of the monastery. They are on the way to look for Pilar’s lover but suddenly a woman comes to their direction. The woman asks Padre and Pilar to stay for a while in her house but Padre refuses her request. Knowing the woman’s
expression little bit sad, Pilar agrees to come to the woman’s house. Here, Pilar shows her compassion by giving her sympathy to the woman and Pilar does not want to hurt the woman’s feeling.
Pilar’s speech shows that she is a compassionate woman. The way Pilar
speaks and accepts the woman’s request represents Pilar’s characterization as a
compassionate woman.
That Pilar is a compassionate woman can be seen from the quotation below when she has a conversation with the superior of the monastery. The quotation below also a proof that Pilar is a compassionate woman; it can be seen from her speech.
The padre took a deep breath. He hesitated for a moment and then said “A scientist who studied…” (Coelho, 1994: 128).
The above quotation shows the conversation between Pilar and Padre. They are talking about Pilar’s lover. In the beginning Padre gives a long story about the life
of Pilar’s lover in the monastery and their conversation comes to the Pilar’s
statement. Pilar says that she falls in love with a special man; therefore she needs to know more about him. Pilar has compassion to help the man she loves and Pilar has strong feeling of sympathy to the man that she loves.
From Pilar’s speech about her willingness to understand and help her
lover, the writer classifies Pilar as a compassionate woman. 1. The Characterization of Pilar’s lover
The second character that the writer analyzes is Pilar’s lover. This second character is an anonymous male character, therefore the writer mentions him as Pilar’s lover or the man. The writer descibes Pilar’s lover as a religious man,
intellectual man and talented man. Based Murphy’s theory on characterization (1972: 161-173) that is mentioned in the previous chapter, the writer analyzes the characterization of Pilar’s lover through the speech, the personal description, the
direct comment, the character as seen by another, and the conversation of others. Further analysis on characterization of Pilar’s lover is descried as follows.
a. Religious
Pilar’s lover is a missionaire and he is taught to be a religious man. He
learns Catholic teaching from the monastry that he enters. The writer classifies Pilar’s lover as a religious man because of his speech shows the veneration to
on,”(Coelho, 1994: 47). Pilar’s lover expression shows that he is a religious man.
According to Murphy (1972: 163), someone’s speech chows her or his characterization. The quotation above shows that the speech of Pilar’s lover
represents that he is a religious man.
The other proof can be seen when Pilar’s lover has a willingness to enter a seminary and he learns Catholic teaching and he tries to apply that teaching in his life. He also learns about certain group of prayer in order to have spiritual experience to make a closer relationship to God. From Pilar’s lover speech about
his expereience life, the writer classifies him as a religious man. It is seen in the quotation below that his speech represents him as a religious man.
“I entered a monastery close to here. For four years, I studied everything I could. During that time, I made contact with the Clarifieds and the Charismatics, the sects that have been trying to open doors that have been closed for so long to certain spiritual experiences. I discovered that God was not the ogre that had frightened me as a child. There was a movement afoot for a return to the original innosence of Christianity.”(Coelho, 1994: 81)
b. Intellectual
The second characterization of Pilar’s lover is an intellectual man. It
means that Pilar’s lover is a smart person who has an ability to speak in front of
people. He is very fluent in giving sermon in the conference. He has a confident to give a long speech to many persons. His speech in his conference shows that Pilar’s lover is an intellectual man. Every word that comes up from his mouth can
inspire people who listen to him. His speech below shows that he is an intellectual man.
us the sun- and also one moment in which we have the ability to change everything that makes unhappy... ” (Coelho, 1994: 7-8).
The other proof that shows Pilar’s lover is an intellectual man is seen from his personal description which is described by Pilar. When Pilar meets her lover for the first time after eleven years, Pilar sees her lover is a different boy that grows become a mature and smart person. Pilar describes his lover that his eyes are shining and he looks wonderful. From the personal description in the quotation below, the writer defines him as an intellectual man.
I was even more surprised when I saw him enter the room. He was quite different from the boy I had known- but of course, it had been twelve years; people change. Tonight his eyes were shining- he looked wonderful (Coelho, 1994: 5).
c. Talented
The writer defines Pilar’s lover as a talented man. Talented here is considered as a man who gets a special gift from God. In this case, Pilar’s lover is
known as a man who can perform miracle. It is pictured from the quotation below that the direct comment to Pilar’s lover represents him as a talented man.
“You are with a very special man,” he said.
“A man who performs miracles” (Coelho, 1994: 94).
That short quotation above describes a man who speaks to Pilar and he says that Pilar is with a man who can perform miracle from God. That direct comment from the man is considered by the writer to define Pilar’s lover as a talented man.
The other evidence that Pilar’s lover is a talented man can be shown from Pilar’s thought when she realizes that his lover can cure a person who gets sick. It
I was in love with a man who was capable of performing cures. A man who could help others, bring relief to suffering, give health to the sick and hope to their loved ones (Coelho, 1994: 124).
The direct evidence is also pictured by Pilar’s lover. He says to Pilar that he has
an ability to cure the sick. When Pilar and her lover meet together, he shares what they get from Charismatic practice and day by day people know it and he is famous because of his special thing. From Pilar’s lover speech, the writer defines
him as a talented man. It is shown from the quotation below.
“The fact is that I developed a gift. I am able to cure, when God so wills it.”
…
“I developed my gift through the Charismatic practices that you saw,” he went on. “… I would restore many of the sick to good health. My reputation began to spread, and every day people lined at the gates of the seminary, seeking my help. In every infected, smelly laceration, I saw the wounds of Jesus” (Coelho, 1994: 163).
The above quotation shows that Pilar’s lover is a talented man who can
perform a gift from God, he can cure the sick to have good health. Pilar’s lover
also has a strong belief that Holy Spirit appear and through God’s will, he can perform miracle to cure the sick.
B. Analysis of the Characterization of Pilar and Her Lover Revealing the Feminine Side of God
After the writer analyses the characterization of Pilar and Pilar’s lover, the
God. Firstly, Pilar and her lover are introduced to the veneration of Virgin Mary. Then, reflecting total surrender from Mother Mary as the model of faith becomes the second layer in understanding the feminine side of God. The third layer, Pilar and her lover learn the link between Mother Mary and The Divine. Further, the writer applies the characterization of Pilar and her lover to reveal the feminine side of God.
1. The Veneration Of Virgin Mary
Venerating Virgin Mary becomes important part of Catholic devotion. It is stated in the theoretical review that through Mother Mary, Catholics learn the meaning of total surrender. By knowing Mother Mary, Catholics are taught to develop their faith to God and Mother Mary is an example of the ideal Catholics life (Brantl, 1962: 74). Here, the writer positions veneration of Virgin Mary as the first layer to learn the feminine side of God.
a. Pilar
Mother Mary is known as an example of the ideal Catholics life. The reason Mother Mary called as the example of the ideal Catholics’ life because her way to surrender her whole life to God. Although Catholics are taught to work and pray for being a better person, Catholics are also taught to surrender their life to God.
path of faith which makes her experiences the appearance of Mother Mary. It is stated as follows.
For the first time since I had abandoned the path of faith, I felt a strong desire to pray. Although I was seated in a pew. My soul was kneeling at the feet of the Lady before me, the woman who had said, “Yes,” when She could have said “no.” The angel would have sought out someone else, and there would have been no sin in the eyes of the Lord, because God knows His children’s weakness. (Coelho, 1994: 85)
Pilar’s prayer becomes a sign that she starts to know Mother Mary. The situation
of the above quotation pictures that Pilar is in the church and she prays in front of Mother Mary’s statue, she does not only see the existence of the statue, but she
also feels the existance of Mother Mary who lives in her heart and communicates with her. Pilar cares to herself and tries to open her heart and mind that she has a great help to find her way.
After Pilar recovers her faith and knows about Mother Mary, she tries to learn something that encourages her faith from Mother Mary. Pilar’s way to
venerate Mother Mary can also be seen when she says “may the Immaculate Conception teach me to love as She loves” (Coelho, 1994 :104). It means that
Pilar venerates Mother Mary based on her experience in meeting Mother Mary in her prayer. She believes that Mother Mary leads her in her life. Pilar’s experience in meeting Mother Mary shows that she is a nurturing woman, she cares to herself that she realizes Mother Mary loves her through her prayer.
a loyalty to keep her faith. Pilar’s loyalty shows that she cares to herself. It is
shown in the following quotation.
Then the world changes and we change with it. But I didn’t want to be that way anymore. Fate had returned to me what had been mine and now offered me to change myself and the world. (Coelho, 1994: 156)
The above quotation shows that Pilar has a faith in order to face many problems that she meets. She learns from Mother Mary for being a loyal woman who keeps her faith in God in every situation that she faces.
b. Pilar’s lover
The writer also analyzes the way of Pilar’s lover venerates Virgin Mary. Pilar’s lover is pictured as a religious, talented and an intellectual man. The writer
analyzes those characteristics to reveal the feminine side of God. There is a quotation below.
The mystery of life fascinated me, and I wanted to understand them better. I looked for signs that would tell me that someone knew nothing. I went to India and Egypt. I sat with masters of magic and of meditation. And finally I discovered what I was looking for: the truth resides where there is faith.” (Coelho, 1994: 79)
He goes to India and Egypt to do meditation to find his faith. After his journey, he finds what he searches for, he finds what he believes. It is shown from the quotation of Pilar’s lover such as “may the Great Mother inspire me” (Coelho,
declare and pronounce Virgin Mary (1962: 78). Pilar’s lover has a belief that God has a feminine side and he can learn it from Mother Mary who inspires his life. It is quoted in the quotation below.
One of the faces of God is the face of a woman. She is present in the first chapter of the Bible- when the spirit of God hovered over the waters, and He placed them below and above the stars. It was the mystic marriage of earth and heaven. In every religion and in every tradition, she manifests Herself in one form or another- She always manifests Herself. Since I am a Catholic, I perceive Her as the Virgin Mary. (Coelho, 1994: 60-61)
Pilar’s lover tries to venerate Mother Mary based on the biblical perspective and his sharing with special person during his journey. The above quotation shows that Pilar’s lover experience in having a faith in Mother Mary. Pilar’s lover is an
intellectual man who has a deep knowledge about feminine side of God. The characteristic of intellectual person is needed to understand the feminine side of God as an ideal of Catholics life in venerating Mother Mary.
As a talented person who receives a gift from God, he venerates Mother Mary through his experience to meet Mother Mary.
“the truth is that instead of going to the monastry, I went up on the mountain and conversed with the Great Mother” (Coelho, 1994: 166). The short quotation above shows that Pilar’s lover has a gift to meet Mother Mary
2. The Reflection of Total Surrender from Mother Mary as The Model of Faith
In the previous chapter, the writer mentions theory from Coyle that Mary is a faithful figure who has total surrender in accepting the God’s will (1996: 9).
Here, the writer applies the theory that is mentioned above in analysing how Pilar and her lover reflect total surrender that they learn form Mother Mary.
a. Pilar
Firstly, the writer analyzes the way Pilar reflects total surrender from Mother Mary. It is signaled when Pilar decides to go to Madrid to meet his lover. She surrenders to God about what she decides. She has a willingness to meet her lover and leave her study.
One day I learned that he had begun to give lectures. This surprised me, I thought he was too young to be able to teach anything to anyone. And then he wrote to me that he was going to speak to a small gorup in Madrid- and he asked me to come. So I made the four-hour trip from Zaragoza to Madrid (Coelho, 1994: 4).
The quotation above is a proof that Pilar has a bravery to make a decision to go to Madrid and leave her study in order to meet her lover. It also shows that Pilar is a nurturing woman; Pilar cares to her lover by meeting him. Other quotation shows that Pilar surrenders to be the instrument of God to serve other people. It is quoted below.
It shows that Pilar does not only venerate Mother Mary, but also she learns the meaning of total surrender from Mother Mary. She learns that she can feels her love when she helps the needy, when she surrenders to God she can make her dream comes true. The above quotation also explains that Pilar has a willingness to be part of her lover’s mission. Pilar’s way shows that she is a compassionate
woman. It means that she surrenders to God by developing her spiritual life through help the needy, cure the sick, go from place to place speak of Mother Mary’s love. The proof that Pilar presents an act of total surrender is seen through
her decision to not force her lover to choose her since he is a missionaire who sacrifices his life to serve God. On the other hand, she surrenders to God by becoming the part of his mission. She has a willingness to serve and help for those who need to be helped. It means that Pilar shows her sympathy to help the needy. Pilar’s willingness shows her surrender to continue her life. Pilar is a nurturing
and compassionate woman who decides her way to be part of his lover’s mission. She puts a side her individual will to live together with the man she loved. By venerating Virgin Mary, Pilar learns the meaning of total surrender which shows her faith in God. The feminine side of God that Pilar learns is from the way of Mother Mary accepts the God’s will by surrendering Her life. God who has
compassioante, caring and saving character helps Pilar to find her faith again. Pilar allows herself to receive total surrender.
written by Luke in the Holy Bible when she answers God’s plan that be it done to
me according to your word (1:38). Here, Pilar says in her pray that
For the first time since I had abandoned the path of faith, I felt a strong desire to pray. Although I was seated in a pew, my soul was kneeling at the feet of the Lady before me, the woman who had said “Yes,” when She could have said “no.” But she had said, “Thy will be done,”… (Coelho, 1994: 85).
Slowly but full of recovering faith, Pilar learns the meaning of total surrender from Mother Mary. The Mother Mary’s expression “Thy will be done,”
influences Pilar to surrender what she does in her life. b. Pilar’s lover
Pilar’s lover also reflects total surrender from Mother Mary by developing his gift from God. Pilar’s lover is a talented person who receives gift from God to
cure the sick. He surrenders to God and let his gift works with him in his life. “Every person on earth has a gift,” he began. “In some, the gift manifests itself spontaneously; others have to work to discover what it is. I worked with my gift during the four years I was at the seminary. (Coelho, 1994: 162-163)
It means that Pilar’s lover realizes that he needs time to discover his gift and tries
to explore that gift in his life. He accepts love from heaven and he allows himself to be guided. In other words, Pilar’s lover surrenders to allow himself to be
guided. At the seminary, Pilar’s lover finds the answer that the gift that he receives is a way to surrender to God by performing miracles and helping the needy.
Pilar’s lover also understand the meaning of total surrender. He learns it
about what he believes. The quotation below shows that Pilar’s lover understand
the meaning of total surrender.
“God is love. But the one who understands the best is the Virgin.”
“The Virgin understands the mystery of total surrender,” he went on. “And having loved and suffered, she freed us from pain. In the same way that Jesus freed us from sin.” (Coelho, 1994: 48)
The explanation of Pilar’s lover provides that Mother Mary has capability on
understanding the mystery of total surrender. He learns from Mother Mary and applies it in his life by developing his gift. In the next conversation below, Pilar’s
lover emphasizes on The Virgin who also teaches total surrender. “You said that something here in this city altered your course.”
“Yes, I think it did. I’m still not absolutely sure, and that’s why I wanted you to bring you here.”
“Is this some kind of test?”
“No. It’s a surrender. So that She will help me to make the right decision.”
“Who will?” “The Virgin.” (Coelho, 1994: 57)
It can be noticed that every answer of Pilar’s lover there is a strong belief
of surrender. The man believes if he surrenders of what he does, so that The Virgin helps him to make a right decision. Based on the characterization of Pilar’s lover who is a religious man, he has a faith that there is a way if he surrenders of what he does in his life.
“The artist knew the Great Mother, the Goddesss, and the sympathetic face of God…It was „Where did you learn all this?”
“Well, I learned in the same way that this artist did: I accepted love from on high...Truth resides where there is faith! I looked around again at the interior of the church- the worn stones, fallen and replaced so many times. What had made human being so insistent? What had caused them to work so hard at rebuilding this small temple in such a remote spot, hidden in the mountains? Faith (Coelho, 1994: 78-79).
Pilar’s lover tells his spiritual life experience through his learning of Virgin Mary.
He says that he has the similar way the artist does. He realizes that what he searching for is truth resides where there is faith. The location of the church they visit is in a remote area in the middle of mountain with old building and the reason this place is still kept is a faith. Pilar’s lover learns the important of total surrender leads him to find the truth, the right decision and it is influenced by a faith.
3. The link between Mother Mary and the Divine
This part deals with the study of Marian tradition. Previously, the writer analyses on the veneration of Virgin Mary and reflecting total surrender from Mother Mary as the model of faith. This third part discusses the link between Mother Mary and The Divine. It is raised based on the quotation from Pilar’s
lover “She is the feminine side of God. She has her own divinity” (Coelho, 1994:
59).
a. Pilar
In this analysis, Pilar is described as a nurturing and compassionate character. Pilar’s characteristic leads her to have an intimate relationship with
God. It is shown in the quotation below.
Thank you Lord… because I was a lost sheep, and you brought me back. Because my life was dead, and you revived it. Because love wasn’t alive in my heart, and you gave me back that gift (Coelho, 1994: 160).
Pilar realizes that she finds her faith in God by learning from Mother Mary. Pilar learns the meaning of total surrender and she experiences Mother Mary who shows her divinity in a special place where the history of a place is fully trusted.
When Pilar’s lover asks her to enter Lourdes, Pilar tries to feel the
atmosphere around the grotto and see many people pray there. Based on Johnson„s theory about places in nature become associated with Mary, the writer
reveals the process of assimilation between Mary and the female representation of God. There is a quotation below
We walked in silence through the rain until finally we reached the place where the visions of Mary had occured. It was exactly as I had imagined: the grotto, the statue of Our Lady, and the fountain- protected by glass- where the miracle of the water had taken place. Some pilgrims were praying; others were seated silently inside the grotto, their eyes closed. A river ran past the entrance, and the sound of the water made me feel at peace. As soon as I saw the image, I said a quick prayer, asking the Virgin to help me- my heart needed no more suferring ( Coelho, 1994: 95).
intimate. Pilar reveals the divinity of Mother Mary from the place where grotto is associated with Mother Mary.
b. Pilar’s lover
The writer applies Johnson’s theory on figure of Mary and imagery of the
divine. Pilar’s lover says that Mother Mary brings a new generation of grace. That
expression shows that Mother Mary breaks the boundaries of the patriarchalization in Catholic church and she becomes the female metaphor who has her divinity to a new generation. The writer also uses Schillebeeckx’s theory
(1989: 37-38) that Mother Mary has a maternal aspect of divine love. This acpect actually needs expression through the figure of a woman. Here, Pilar learns that this kind of expression may be shown in the figure of Mother Mary.
“Why is she „The virgin’? why isn’t She presented to us as a normal woman, like any other?”
“She was normal. She had already had other children. The Bible tells us that Jesus had two brothers. Virginity, as it relates to Jesus, is based on a different thing: Mary initiated a new generation of grace. A new era began. She is the cosmic bride, Earth, which opens to the heavens and allows itself to be fertilized. Because of the courage She showed in accepting her destiny, She allowed God to come down to earth- and She was transformed into the Great Mother.” I didn’t understand exactly what he was telling me, and he could see that.
“She is the feminine side of God. She has her own divinity.” (Coelho, 1994: 58-59).
The other aspect of divinity is seen through the history of a place. Based on the Johnson’s theory (1989: 32), there is a morphological similarities between
the post-Constantinian eclesical cult of Mary and the cult of the Great Mother in the Mediterannian world where Christianity was moving. The writer relates Johnson’s theory with the story of Bernaddette which is told by Pilar’s lover.
“There are two important things that Bernadette didn’t know,” he finallly said. “The first was that prior to the arrival of the Christian religion in these parts, these mountains were inhabited by Celts- and the goddess was their principal object of devotion. Generations and generations had understood the feminine face of God and shared in Her love and Her glory.” (Coelho, 1994: 65)
