MATERIALISM IN MODERN BRITISH WOMEN AS DEPICTED IN JANE GREEN’S MR. MAYBE
Dian Septi Puspita Sari1, Galang Kesatria Tama2 English Literature1
English Education2 [email protected]
Abstract
This research attempted to evaluate Mr. Maybe novel by using sociological approach. The purpose of this research was limited to analyze how the materialism was in modern British women.
Materialism often occurred in modern British women because of the social change. The social change that occurred among them was the economic social change. They were given the right to enter the job freely. It means that they could earn money. Because of that policy British women got their modernity. The social change faced by the modern British women was about the labour force caused the work place for them larger. Sociological approach was used in analyzing this research, supported by the theory of materialism and the materialism that occurred in modern British women. Those are used by the writer to explain textual analysis. Besides, the writer applied the data that were taken from the dialogues and narrations of Mr. Maybe novel as the object of this research. As it is the library research, the writer involved the data needed from some books, journals, articles from the internet and news paper to provide the issue analyzed. Hence, in conducting this research, descriptive qualitative method was applied to elaborate the data concerning to the problem formulated. As the result of this research, the writer underlined that the materialism in modern British women through the characters inside of the story. The character was accepted to work in the company that was led by the man and most of the employees were men.
Another materialism action that was done by the characters could be seen through their actions such as the propensity to possess material goods, the purchase and the consumption of material goods, and the tendency to love money. Those actions were done by the characters to fulfill their materialistic desire in their life.
Key words: Bristish women , Materialism
INTRODUCTION
Everybody in this universe has the main purpose in his life (Abdussamad, 2020), (Sukerti
& Yuliantini, 2018). There is a person who wants to be a helper for the others, and change his life better, so that he will feel happy and get his well-being (Liu et al., 2020). In the other hand, there is a person who believes that the main purpose of his life is to become success one and to have much money, so he can reach the well-being itself. He can feel it if he can fulfill all of his wants and it correlates to the money because he needs money to buy all the things, so it will make him become materialistic one (Berlinda, 2015), (Ade & Novri, 2019). Actually the materialistic person can support the negative effect toward himself in order to fulfill his desire he needs the bigger cost to get it (Sulistiani et al., 2021), (Phelia
& Sinia, 2021), (Sulistiani, 2018). The negative association between materialism and well- being is all the more disturbing because materialistic people incur substantial costs to pursue their materialistic aspiration (Pranoto & Afrilita, 2019), (KUSWOYO et al., 2013), (Kaid, 2004). It means that, the materialistic one will need a big cost to catch his goal. In this case, materialistic person will be spending much money in order to fill up his desire so that he will get the prosperity in his life.
Most of people want to be happy and we know that almost everyone devotes considerable time, energy, and money pursuing happiness, pleasure, and also contentment (Ahdan et al.,
2019), (Jobli et al., 2011), (Ahdan & Susanto, 2021), (Kananda, 2013). For many of them, pursuing the good life is surprisingly difficult. Even though being professionally and financially successful, they wonder whether they would be happier with more money, a more prestigious job, a bigger house, a newer and expensive car, more fashionable clothing, and nice furniture and so on (Anuar et al., 2020).
Those kinds of purposes have impacts toward their life. Finally it can also be a parameter of human individuality, the higher life purposes of someone the more individual of his life (Ulfa et al., 2016). They will not care toward the others. They only think about the goals, the advantages and their wants. People will do everything to get what they want. They will not think twice to do it even they do a hard thing to fulfill what they needs. Most of people think that money and wealthy are more important than themselves. Because of that reason many people adopt materialism unconsciously (Wulantina & Maskar, 2019).
Materialism is the belief that having money and possessions is the most important thing in life. From that meaning we can see that the materialism itself can affect human thought and give negative thing toward their life (Mandasari, 2016), (Mandasari, n.d.), (Sari, 2016).
Materialism as a value that represents the individual’s perspective regarding the role possessions should play in his/her life (Abudhahir et al., 2015). The causes of materialism are, people believe that money is everything. They will get a happiness and their life will be better if they have much money and wealthy (Puspita & Amelia, 2020), (Pustika, 2015).
Besides, there is the perception that human having is the one who tend to perceive others based on what is owned just like having car, home and job because of they can support the envy toward person who believe on it.
The novel entitles Mr. Maybe was written by Jane Green, It tells about the story of woman who tries to find her perfect man. Libby Mason wants a perfect man that has sexy body, handsome and rich. Libby Mason has a pretty good life. She is young, pretty, and sociable.
She likes her job as a publicist assistant, but she is barely able to afford her fashionable and fabulous lifestyle, just like every single 27-year-old woman. She wonders if she will ever find Mr. Right. Mr. Right here is the one who is very perfect in her mind. She is tired of being single and always dream of finding the perfect rich guy. The person that can change her life better must have all the things that she wants. In this novel there are two guys that have different strengths and weaknesses in her view. The first guy is Nick, he is a writer who lives in a dark and dirty apartment in a less than prime real estate location, but he has sexy body. With Nick, Libby can get a great time together in and out of bed, they laugh, they talk, and Libby despite her resolutions, finds herself falling for him. Unfortunately he has a serious commitment phobia. Mean while for the second guy is Ed McMann. He is genius financier. He has everything such as wealth, powerful, extremely interested in settling down, connected, ready and able to commit. He is not gorgeous, not interesting, not funny, and he is not good in bed, but Libby dreams to buy everything that she wants, Ed gives the entire things that she needs.
From the phenomenon above, the researcher concludes that there is the issue of materialism inside of this literary work. The researcher decides to take this novel and the issue of materialism in modern British women that is described in the novel as the object.
Because the researcher wants to explain how the materialism in modern British women that exists. The researcher wants to convey the aspects that support this materialism. Since the intent of this research is to enhance understanding of how the materialism occurred in modern British women. Hence, the researcher wants to enrich the reader knowledge about this issue of materialism.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Since this analysis is prepared to search more about materialism in modern British women, the writer has to clarify some rules which are considered as the theory which can support and make this study become scientific. To help finding out the answers of the problem formulation in the previous chapter, here are some points that will be conveyed to assist the research.
Materialism
Materialism is close to the material things (Abdussamad, 2020), (Gazali & Yusmaita, 2018), (Andrian, 2021). In which the materialism aims to reach the personal goals in life that is the success and happiness, therefore it will support the satisfying in human’s life.
The values or the beliefs that emphasize to the acquisition and the owning of the material things as the personal aim ofthe success and happiness. Materialism in the other meaning is the kind of values in which owning the material goods even the material things is representing the success so that they will get the happiness in their life (Pamungkas et al., 2020), (Wantoro & Priandika, n.d.), (Darwis & Pamungkas, 2021), (Husna & Novita, 2020). It occurs because their personal goals that is material thing reached by them, so that they feel satisfy and happy. Materialism is a kind of natural respond in the world. In the previous time actually it based on the sense perception only. It showsthat matter is all that exists; even the material is everything and the only one that exist. It can be concluded that materialism was one thing that exists and that one thing is matter, nothing else exists except the matter itself.
British Society
British society is very unique. It has special characteristic (Mulyanto et al., n.d.), (Rido &
Sari, 2018), (Amelia & Dintasi, 2019), (Mertania & Amelia, 2020)¸ (Nurkholis et al., 2020). The people come from different land and they are mingled into one nation that is United Kingdom. The United Kingdom consists of England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. England and Wales became a United Kingdom in the ninth century, which had formerly been a principality, was included into the kingdom in the early of Middle Ages. Meanwhile England and Ireland mingled and leaded by the same king in the late of thirteenth century. Then England and Scotland mix into one in the 1603. British society is the people who live in England, they are come natives or citizens of United Kingdom, British out of territories and their descendants. Since 1801 when the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland) was formed, British state structures and a resulting social life have generally evolved slowly, unevenly and pragmatically, rather than by violent change. It means, after United Kingdom was formed, the conditions of four countries were developed slowly although it was irregularly at all.
Materialism in Modern British Women
The materialism in British women occurred because of the social change. Basically, there is no significant differentiation between materialism in British woman the materialism toward the British society as general. British society makes the cultural materialism as the symbol of their social change in Britain. In last thirty years, there were some things occurred in Britain, in one hand some things got better; in vice versa they got worse.
Because of this condition they do the cultural materialism because they want to make whole better through the cultural materialism.
METHOD
This research applies and adjusted four methods with analysis, they are: research design, data and data source, data collecting techniques, The researcher uses library research in doing her research. Then to elaborate the idea, the researcher applies the descriptive qualitative method. Descriptive qualitative method is employed as well. the writer takes a novel by Green entitled Mr. Maybe as the object of this research and also as the data source. Then takes the dialogues and narrations in the novel related to the research are including as main data. Meanwhile, to support the analysis, the researcher also takes some data from various sources that are taken from some books, journals and articles from the internet in order to find out the other information.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The Propensity to Possess Material Goods
People commonly have no sufficient satisfaction, and then they assume to gain better when there is anyone who has greater life than them. They will do everything to support it. That is why sometime this case affects the possession of material goods. People want the best material goods in their live. In addition when they have the car but they want to have a newest car it because people have no satisfaction in the entire world. In the other hand, it occurs because of the element of materialistic toward themselves. Materialistic people have the propensity to possess the material good and aim the other people respect to them based on what they have, because it can represent their status. As the theory that has been explained by Richins and Dawson, the materialistic person seeks the products that showing the success and status they wish to be observed by the others.
Each person generally has the greatest dream, so they have to get the dream come true, as a result, they do many actions because of the dream. They dreamed to be a rich man, having all material things etc. Those are aiming to make the dreamer very enthusiast to catch them.
After wards, they are happy because they have successfully achieved the dream and also satisfy with the live. This action can be found in the novel as following:
“I used to have these dreams about being a career woman. I wanted shoulder pads, briefcases and mobile phones. I wanted designer clothes and a fuck-off flat which had wooden floors and white sofas and enormous bowls of lilies on every polished fruitwood table.
I wanted a Mercedes sports car and chunky gold jewellery. Unfortunately, life in PR is probably not the best way of going about it, because PR seems to be one of the worst-paid professions in the world.” (Green, 2001:3)
The narration is about Libby’s dreams, she wants to be a career woman, she also wants to have some things like designer clothes with the shoulder pads, she wants to have the mobile phone, and wants to have the house with the wooden floors with white sofas and with the beautiful lilies on the table. Besides, she also wants to have the sport car and jewelry. But, she awares that as the PR worker, she cannot makes her dreams come to her, because working as PR only can produce a little bit salary for her. Meanwhile in the other hand she really wants to get her dreams closer.
The Purchase and the Consumption of Material Goods
The story of the novel concerns about how women try to fulfill their desire to be a successful and to get the goal through the purchase and consumption of the material goods.
It is very contrary to the theory stated that materialism is related to the ambition to be success by purchasing the material good itself.
As evidence, it is officially seen in Green’s Mr. Maybe, the depiction of the purchasing and consumption of the material good which can be seen through the character.
“I sit back, thinking about all the lovely things I could buy with five million pounds.
'Well,' I start. 'I'd buy a house.' 'What kind of house and where?' 'One of those huge white ones in Holland Park.'” (Green, 2001:14)
This dialogue belongs to Libby and Nick. Libby explains what she is going to do with her five million pounds, she says that she wants to buy a house, and it is located in Holland Park. In which, Holland Park is the kind of elite housing in England. Libby says that she will pay for a white and big house in Holland Park. It indicates that the character wants to purchase the material good that is the big house in Holland Park means the expensive house since Holland Park is known for attractive large Victorian townhouses and also high class shopping and restaurant.
The Tendency to Love Money
Sometime people think that money is everything. When we see to the function of money itself, we will think that it is true. Money can be used by people to purchase everything. By money also people can be separated in the part of the social status. Taken for the example, people who have no money even have money only for paying the foods they are categorized as the poor one or the lower class society. Meanwhile for people, who have the higher status than people that has been explained above, mean they are middle class society. The last for people who have the highest status and have much money they are called as upper class society.
Talking about money, the novel of Mr. Maybe is talking more about money. In which the characters inside of the story tend to love money. As the proof we can see to the narration:
“He's probably rolling in money, and yes, I know that I'm looking for a rich man, but I don't want him to be straight,” (Green, 2001:113)
The quotation above describes, Libby loves money. This narration of Libby occurs when Libby meets Ed at first time. Actually Libby does not like Ed anymore, but it will be changed. She will love Ed because of his money. She knows Ed is a very rich guy. In short, money has the highest power in everything.
CONCLUSION
After all explained, and considering to the analysis in the previous chapter, this chapter gives such kind of the main point of whole explanations in this research. The things that can be underlined from the result of the analysis of Jane Green’s Mr. Maybe are:
The first the materialism in modern British women occurred because of the economic social change. The social change gives the impact toward the work place of the British woman. They can enter the job freely; there is no limitation for them to enter whatever the job is. The action of it reveals in the story of Mr. Maybe, the character of Libby Mason
accepted by Joe Cooper to work in his company that is Public Relation office. The economic social change in this case occurs because, when Libby accepted in work so that she can earn money by herself.
The second, people actually have no sufficient satisfaction in live, so they assume to gain better life when there is another one who has greater life than them. People actually have the great feeling to make what they want come true. Because of that, sometimes it affects their mind and become their dream. It also occurred through Libby. Libby’s dreams become a career woman, having jewelry, having a car and other material goods.
Unfortunately she aware that her job in PR cannot fulfill her wants. Besides, Libby also shows her materialistic through her action in purchasing other material goods. She will buy the branded things like Armani, Prada and Gucci. She aware that her money cannot pays all the things. Therefore, she tries to marry Ed (the wealthy man).
The third, by having the materialism action, it brings herself become happy and satisfies toward what she has already done. Dealing with the theory, the values of materialism are success in live by possessing the material goods. Libby satisfy because she caught the things that she wants, it also means that she success. After all Libby feel happy because she has done all the things and achieve them in her live.
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