A PRAGMATIC ANALYSIS: CONVERSATIONAL IMPLICATURES IN
‘ANTIGONE’, A PLAY BY SOPHOCLES AND ITS APPLICATION TO
TEACHING SPEAKING IN SMA
A Thesis
Written by:
DWI LESTARININGSIH
K 2202022
Submitted to the Teacher Training and Education Faculty
of Sebelas Maret University as a Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
for Obtaining the Undergraduate Degree of Education in English
TEACHER TRAINING AND EDUCATION FACULTY
SEBELAS MARET UNIVERSITY
SURAKARTA
2010
1
A PRAGMATIC ANALYSIS: CONVERSATIONAL IMPLICATURES IN
‘ANTIGONE’, A PLAY BY SOPHOCLES AND ITS APPLICATION TO
TEACHING SPEAKING IN SMA
A Thesis
Written by:
DWI LESTARININGSIH
K 2202022
Submitted to the Teacher Training and Education Faculty
of Sebelas Maret University as a Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
for Obtaining the Undergraduate Degree of Education in English
TEACHER TRAINING AND EDUCATION FACULTY
SEBELAS MARET UNIVERSITY
SURAKARTA
2010
2
ABSTRACT
Dwi Lestariningsih. A PRAGMATIC ANALYSIS: CONVERSATIONAL
IMPLICATURES IN ‘ANTIGONE’, A PLAY BY SOPHOCLES AND ITS
APPLICATION TO TEACHING SPEAKING IN SMA. A Thesis, Surakarta:
Teacher Training and Education Faculty, Sebelas Maret University. 2010.
This research is grounded on some reasons. They are: 1) drama as one of
the genres in literature has dialogue or imitation of speech which is interesting to
be analyzed linguistically, 2) the use of drama in teaching English in SMA is still
limited, whereas in fact drama can be used as a useful and motivating material to
improve students’ skill, especially speaking. Based on the problem statements, the
objectives of this study are: 1) to know how the co-operative principle and context
help the addressee to interpret the meanings which are implied in the dialogues of
Antigone, 2) to know in what way Antigone is applied to teaching speaking in
SMA.
This research is conducted in descriptive qualitative method. The source of
data is dialogues containing conversational implicatures spoken by the main
characters – Antigone, Creon, and Choragos, which are especially perceived as
figure of speech. The sampling technique used is purposive for the sample is
chosen based on certain purpose in order to reach the objective of this research.
The analysis of data was done in two steps. First, each datum was analyzed by
ways of describing the context – the background knowledge and the relevant
aspects of physical or social settings surrounding the dialogues. Second, each
datum was analyzed based on Grice’s maxims of co-operative principle which
include: (1) maxim of quality, (2) maxim of quantity, (3) maxim of relevant, and
(4) maxim of manner.
The result of this research describes that, by maxims of co-operative
principle the addressee assume that the meaning of the utterances which do not
seem to conform to maxims of co-operative principle has deeper meaning. The
addressee, then, look for the implied message which is necessary based on the
background knowledge or context surrounding the dialogue. The conclusion of the
research is that the main characters in Antigone are able to work out implicatures
for they perceive the dialogues as figure of speech. They take the dialogues as the
deliberate violation or flouting to maxims of co-operative principle. The use of
figure of speech is intended to add certain sense or feeling in order to produce a
greater effect of communication. The way how the play entitled Antigone can be
applied to teaching speaking in SMA is by using the drama text to create activities
which helps students practice speaking in long turns, such as: retelling story and
acting out the extract of the play. Of course, a teacher must simplify the structure,
vocabulary, and story of the text to be adjusted to the students’ level of English
mastery so that it will be easy to learn and handle. The principle is that the
simplification of text should be relevant to the original one.
3
APPROVAL
This thesis has been approved by consultants to be examined by the Board
of Thesis Examiners of Teacher Training and Education Faculty of Sebelas Maret
University.
Approved by:
Consultant I
Drs. Siswantoro, M. Hum
NIP 19541009 198503 1 001
Consultant II
Dra. Dewi Rochsantiningsih, M.Ed, Ph.D
NIP 19600918 198702 2 001
4
LEGALIZATION
The thesis has been examined by the Board of Thesis Examiners of
Teacher Training and Education Faculty of Sebelas Maret University and
accepted as partial fulfillment of the requirements for obtaining the Undergraduate
Degree of Education in English.
Day
:
Date
:
The Board of Examiners:
Signature
1. Chairman
: Drs. Martono, M. A.
NIP 19600301 198803 1 004
(..................................)
2. Secretary
: Drs. H. A. Dahlan Rais, M. Hum
NIP 19510326 198303 1 002
(.................................)
3. Examiner I : Drs. Siswantoro, M. Hum
NIP 19541009 198503 1 001
(.................................)
4. Examiner II : Dra. Dewi Rochsantiningsih, M.Ed, Ph.D (.................................)
NIP 19600918 198702 2 001
Approved by,
Teacher Training and Education Faculty
Sebelas Maret University
The Dean
Prof. Dr. M. Furqon Hidayatullah, M.Pd
NIP 19600727 198702 1 001
5
MOTTO
Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in
whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice
the same things.
(Romans 2: 1)
6
DEDICATION
This thesis is whole-hearted dedicated to:
— Her family,
— Her friends,
— And her alma mater
7
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Praise be to the Almighty God, Lord Christ Jesus, for His mercy and
strength, the writer is able to complete this thesis. This thesis is written as a partial
fulfillment of the requirements for the Undergraduate Degree of Education in
English Department of Teacher Training and Education Faculty of Sebelas Maret
University.
The writer realizes that she would not able to finish her work without the
help of the others. Therefore, she is very grateful to:
1. The Dean of Teacher Training and Education Faculty, Sebelas Maret
University, who has permitted the writer to carry out the study.
2. The Head of English Department of Teacher Training and Education
Faculty of Sebelas Maret University, who has given permission to the
writer to write the thesis.
3. Drs. Siswantoro, M. Hum, as the first consultant, and Dra. Dewi
Rochsantiningsih, M.Ed, Ph.D as the second consultant, who have
patiently given their guidance, advice, encouragement, and time from the
beginning up to the completion of the thesis writing.
4. All the lecturers of English Department for the knowledge and experience
shared during her study.
5. Her beloved family, for the love, supports, and prays.
6. The big family of English Department 2002, for their fellowship, courage,
and motivation.
8
At last the writer realizes that this thesis is still far from being perfect. That
is why suggestion and constructive criticism from the readers are needed to make
it better. Finally, this thesis is expected to be able to share contribution, especially
for anyone who is also interested to the similar study.
Surakarta, April 2010
The Writer
9
TABLE OF CONTENT
PAGE
TITLE PAGE
i
ABSTRACT
ii
APPROVAL
iii
LEGALIZATION
iv
MOTTO
v
DEDICATION
vi
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
vii
TABLE OF CONTENT
ix
LIST OF APPENDICES
xi
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
A. Research Background
1
B. Limitation of the Problem
7
C. Problem Statements
7
D. Research Objectives
8
E. Research Significance
8
CHAPTER II LITERARY REVIEW
A. Pragmatics
1. Notion of pragmatics
9
2. Scope of pragmatics
a. Deixis
11
b. Implicature
12
c. Presupposition
14
d. Speech Act
14
e. Discourse Structure
16
B. Conversational Implicature
1. Maxims of Grice
16
2. Context
20
10
3. Figure of Speech
C. Play or Drama
21
25
D. Teaching Speaking
Chapter III
1. Definition of Speaking
27
2. Skills in Speaking
27
3. Teaching Speaking
29
RESEARCH METHOD
A. Subject of the Study
32
B. Sample and Sampling
33
C. Instrument of the Study
33
D. Technique of Coding Data
34
E. Technique of Analyzing Data
35
F. Research Procedure
37
Chapter IV
DATA ANALYSIS
39
Chapter V
CONCLUSION, IMPLICATION, SUGGESTION
AND APPLICATION
A. Conclusion
57
B. Implication
60
C. Suggestion
61
D. Application
62
BIBLIOGRAPHY
72
APPENDICES
11
LIST OF APPENDICES
Appendice 1. The Analyzed Data
74
Appendice 2. The Column of Evaluation
77
Appendice 3. The Synopsis of Antigone
79
Appendice 4. The Script of Antigone
12
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Research Background
Language is a means used by human beings for the communication. In it,
people share their thoughts or ideas. One of the language uses is interactional.
Brown (1984: 11-12) says that the interactional use of language is to describe our
reactions to event and to regulate our interaction with other people. This use of
language regulates the function of utterances in interchanges – a question invites a
reply, an apology is often responded to with its acceptance and so forth.
Conversation is the real form of language use in interacting with other
people. Levinson (1983: 284) defines conversation as the familiar kind of talk in
which two or more participants freely alternate in speaking in which generally
occurs outside specific institutional settings. It is assumed that, there are at least
two participants, the speaker and the addressee who carry out the conversation and
they interchange the roles. It takes place outside specific institutional setting such
as religious services, law courts and the like.
Besides taking place outside specific institutional setting, conversation is
characterized by the vague use of language. In other words, the language in daily
conversation sometimes shows its vagueness. It means that the language, the use
of words, is not enough to convey meanings. The speaker sometimes expresses his
meanings indirectly. He intends to communicate more than what he says.
Nevertheless the obscure meanings can be captured by the addressee through the
13
context understood by both participants. What underlies the mutual understanding
is the talk will run well in the condition that the participants observe the same
context of situation. Thus, by means of context we consider the relevant aspects of
the situation of speech interaction.
Leech and Short (1981: 290) say that in order to understand an utterance
with certain context, it is important to recognize its pragmatic interpretation.
Relating to this statement, the philosopher Grice (in Cook, 1997: 29) states that
conversation proceeds according to a principle, known and applied by all human
beings. Using this assumption, combined with general knowledge of the world,
the addressee can reason from the literal, semantic meaning of what is said to the
pragmatic meaning. The understanding of such utterance in pragmatic context is
called implicature.
In order to interpret the utterance containing implicature, Grice proposed
what he described as cooperative principle. According to this principle, we
interpret language on the assumption that its sender is obeying four maxims,
namely: maxim of quality, maxim of quantity, maxim of relevance, and maxim of
manner. Those maxims are the explicitness of cooperative principle underlying
the efficient cooperative use of language.
By means of maxim we assume that the meaning of the conversation
which seems to violate or does not proceed according to the participant’s
specifications or doesn’t seem to conform to cooperative principle has a deeper
level.
14
Yule (1996a: 37) says that it is important to recognize the maxim as
unstated assumptions in conversation. The maxims specify what the participants
have to do in order to converse in a maximally efficient, rational, and cooperative
way. They should speak sincerely, relevantly and clearly, while providing
sufficient information.
After talking about conversation with its maxims and context, now the
researcher is going to talk about conversation in drama in particular. The language
in daily conversation which is so real and natural is also found in drama or play.
Drama which belongs to fiction or literary work is a portrait of real life, so the
dialogue, the imitation of speech, also reflects real form of communication. In this
case, Pratt commented that the belief that literature is formally and functionally
distinct from other kinds of utterances and the concomitant belief that literature is
linguistically autonomous is not valid anymore. It then becomes necessary to
consider literary discourse in terms of its similarities to our other verbal activities
rather than in terms of its differences from them (1977: xii). It means that drama
as literary text can be studied by means of linguistic approach, i.e. pragmatic
approach. Further, Pratt says:
Departing from the claim that literary discourse must be viewed as a use
rather than a kind of language, I have advanced the hypothesis that a
descriptive apparatus which can adequately account for the uses of
language outside literature will be able to give a satisfactory account of
literary discourse as well. Needless to say, no such apparatus exists at
present. However, the hypothesis itself finds ample support in some fairly
recent developments in sociolinguistics and speech act theory, the two
areas of linguistic inquiry most deeply concerned with language use.
(1977: xiii)
15
The quotation suggests that the study of drama can be particularly done
by using speech act theory which is a part of linguistics, or is part of pragmatics.
Drama as one of the genres in literature besides prose and poetry has its
own uniqueness. It is written not primarily to be read but to be represented on
stage by actors to entertain audience. In achieving those goal, drama involve some
supporting elements, such as audience, myth, action, stage, division, and dialogue.
Dialogue or the imitation of speech will have some relation to real
speech. Like the real speech, sometimes we also find that the speaker in drama
intends to communicate more than what he says. The intended meaning can be
captured by the addressee through its context and maxims as unstated assumption
in conversation. That is why the language aspect of drama, especially its
pragmatic aspect, becomes the interesting subject to be analyzed. Drama, in this
case, is not different from poetry or prose which can be analyzed linguistically.
Mcmahan (1996: 653) also says that although there is a performance goal of
drama, it does not mean that a play can not be studied as a story or a poem.
The analysis of maxims and context in interpreting utterance containing
implicature in the play Antigone is shown through the example below:
1/ ANT/ IR/ A/ 589
... That is what they say, and our good Creon is coming here to announce it
publicly; and the penalty – stoning to death in the public square! ...
Data Description
The data is speech found in prologue. It is spoken by Antigone and it is
intended to Ismene. The dialogue takes place in particular event as follows:
16
Creon, the uncle of Antigone, succeeded to the throne of Thebes after the
death of Oedipus. Creon’s first act as a king was to decree that the corpse of
Polyneices should lie unburied in the field. Meanwhile there was a belief among
the people that without the rites of burial, the spirit of a dead man could never find
rest in the afterworld. Besides that, it could be assumed as an insult to gods. The
decree horrified Antigone, so that she asked Ismene to discuss about it secretly.
Ismene didn’t know anything about the decree of King Creon, so Antigone
explained it first to her sister.
Data Interpretation
In the conversation, Antigone talked about the moral quality of Creon
who was described as a good king. Here, the locution ‘good’ is used to mean
irony – a way of communicating intended to say the opposite of its literal
meaning. Therefore, the locution above is used to mean bad or unkind.
The false moral quality of Creon is supported by some information
found in context around the data. Creon, the rules of Thebes, made a proclamation
which prohibits anyone to give a burial for Polyneices or just to mourn for him.
Moreover, he promised a death penalty for whoever broke his law. Based on
Gricean maxims, the utterance above flouts the sub maxim of quality, i.e. do not
say what you believe to be false. In surface meaning, the utterance doesn’t
conform to the formulation above because the illocution good is blatantly false.
On the assumption that the speaker is co-operative, the addressee knows
that the quality maxim has been flouted for a reason, which is to point to irony.
Taking all this into account, it makes possible for the addressee to derive another
17
meaning which can be implied in the utterance, that is to say the opposite of its
literal meaning, such as: cruel or unkind.
From the analysis above, it was clear that maxims and context play a role
in grasping or interpreting the implied meaning of an utterance. It also shows that
the conversational maxims can in turn be flouted for a purpose, such as to express
irony.
The play that would be the subject of this analysis is Antigone. It is the
last part of the trilogy of Sophocles which deals with the Theban saga besides
Oedipus the King or known as Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus. Antigone is
the most interesting play telling about Oedipus’ children after King Oedipus
death.
Antigone had been translated into English in many versions by some
translators. They are Sir Richard C. Jebb, W.B. Yeats, Clarence W. Mendell,
David Grene, and Duddley Fitts-Robert Fitzgerald. The researcher chooses the
version of the collaboration of Duddley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald because it is
easily understandable.
Relating to language teaching, drama or play can be used as the
motivating material for it exposes students to complex themes and unexpected use
of language. This is because drama, like other literary text, is very rich in multiple
levels of meaning. By encouraging students to grapple with the multiple
ambiguities of drama text, it is expected that teacher are helping to develop
student’s overall capacity to infer meaning. This very useful skill can then be
18
transferred to other situations where students used to make an interpretation based
on implicit/ unstated evidence.
A play or drama can in turn be a source of classroom activity in
improving student’s oral skill. Getting the students to act out an extract from a
play will be a useful activity which can be conducted to achieve that goal.
Seeing all the facts mentioned above, the researcher considers that it is
appropriate to take an analysis about drama and its application to teaching
speaking.
B. Limitation of The Problem
In this research, the researcher only explores the dialogues containing
conversational implicatures which are employed by the main characters of
Antigone, namely: Antigone, Creon, and Choragos. The analysis is only focused
on the implicatures which are perceived as figures of speech.
C. Problem Statements
Based on the research background, the problems in this research can be
formulated as follows:
1. How do the maxims of co-operative principle and context help the
addressee to interpret the implicit meanings which are inferred in the
dialogues of Antigone?
2. How is Antigone applied to teaching speaking in SMA?
19
D. Research Objectives
This research is intended to:
1. know how the maxims of co-operative principle and context help the
addressee to interpret the implicit meanings which are inferred in the
dialogues of Antigone.
2. know in what way Antigone is applied to teaching speaking in SMA.
E. Research Significance
This research is expected to give two main contributions; theoretical and
practical:
1. Theoretically
This research is hoped to give theoretical contribution to the development
of research on drama on the basis of pragmatic approach. In other words,
drama is not only studied on the basis of structural, psychological
approaches. Through pragmatic study, this literary work can be studied
through linguistic analysis.
2. Practically
This study is hoped to give a contribution for teaching speaking through
drama as the material.
20
CHAPTER II
UNDERLYING THEORY
A. Pragmatics
1. Notion of Pragmatics
The subject of pragmatics is very familiar in linguistics today. Many
linguists argue that we can not really understand the nature of language itself
unless we understand pragmatics: how language is used in communication.
There are many definitions about the notion of pragmatics defined by
linguists. George Yule (1985: 9) defined pragmatics as the study of contextual
meaning. Pragmatics is concerned with the study of meaning as communicated by
a speaker (or a writer) and interpreted by a listener (or a reader) so that it involves
the interpretation what people mean in a particular context and how the context
influences what is said. Meanwhile, Levinson (1985: 24) defined pragmatics as
the study of the ability of language users to pair sentences with the contexts in
which they would be appropriate. According to Levinson, pragmatics is defined as
the study of those relations between language and context that are
grammaticalized, or encoded in the structure of a language (1985: 9). In other
word, pragmatics is the study of those aspects of the relationship between
language and context that are relevant to the writing of grammars.
From the definitions above, pragmatics always includes the aspects of
participants and context in which the conversation takes place. It is assumed that
speaker and hearer involved in conversation are generally cooperating with each
21
other. Context becomes an important aspect in pragmatics because the same
utterances may have more than one pragmatic meaning when it is uttered in
different context.
Relating to meaning, as Widdowson (1996: 61) says, pragmatics is
concerned with what people mean by the language they use, how they actualize its
meaning potential as a communicative resource. This does not happen in
semantics, which concerns on meaning in language. Yule (1996: 4) differentiates
the two subjects by stating that pragmatics concerns with the relationship between
linguistic forms and the users. While semantics concerns with the relationship
between linguistic forms and entities in the world, that is, how words literally
connect to things.
By studying pragmatics, it makes possible for us to know what might be
meant by an expression in an actual utterance, or when we hear or read it in a
specific context. The intended meaning of an utterance is grasped, as Widdowson
(1996: 62-66) said, by considering some aspects of pragmatics. There are
reference-the pointing or indexical function, proposition-the symbolic conventions
of the code to key us into a context of shared knowledge. Widdowson added that
there is an occasion when speaker is also doing something while he is saying an
utterance. The speaker performs some kind of illocution or communicative force.
When we talk about propositional reference and illocutionary force, it is dealing
with the pragmatic meaning which people achieve in speech acts.
Interpretation commonly involves the parties concerned in the negotiation
of meaning, whereby an agreed frame of reference or set illocutionary condition is
22
established. That is why, a major concern of pragmatics is how discourse is
managed, what the ground rules for negotiation are, and how (how far) the
different parties cooperate in joint enterprise. Clearly, when people seek to
communicate, they enter into a kind of contract which is subscribed into a
cooperative principle. Cooperation does not preclude conflict. Indeed, it is only by
subscribing to the cooperative principle that people can express disagreement or
create conflictual situations (ibid.)
The aspects of pragmatics mentioned above, once again, can not be
separated from the context. Without appreciating context, the messages of speech
cannot be interpreted accurately.
2. The Scope of Pragmatics
There are some central topics in pragmatics that must be considered
because it has something to do with the analysis of what people mean by their
utterances than what the words or phrases in those utterances might mean by
themselves. The topics are suitable with the statement of Levinson; he says that
pragmatics is the study of deixis, implicature, presupposition, speech acts, and
aspects of discourse structure (1985: 27). The brief explanation of those topics
will be discussed below.
a. Deixis
Deixis is a technical term (from Greek) for one of the most basic things
we do with utterances. Deixis means ‘pointing’ via language (Yule, 1996: 9). It is
a term functioning as reference to refer to words, phrases, clauses, or sentences
mentioned before. In deixis, the expressions have their most basic uses in face-to-
23
face spoken interaction where utterances are easily understood by the people
present, but may need a translation for someone who is not right there. Deixis is
clearly a form of referring that is tied to the speaker’s context, with the most basic
distinction between deictic expressions being ‘near speaker’ versus ‘away from
speaker.’ (Yule, 1996: .9)
For example, “Listen, I’m not disagreeing with you but with you, and not
about this but about this” (Levinson, 1985: 55). We do not know how the
participants are, where it occurs, and when it is said. Therefore, the deixis of the
utterances is meaningful if the context of the utterance is accurately known.
b. Implicature
Grice firstly proposed the term of ‘implicature’ in William James lectures
at Harvard University in 1967. He (in Brown and Yule, 1983: 3) states that
implicature is ‘what a speaker can imply, suggest, or mean as distinct from what
the speaker literally says.’ The word ‘implicature’ is derived from the verb ‘to
imply’ which means ‘to fold something into something else’.
Implicature is meaning that is not explicitly conveyed in what is said, but
that can nonetheless be inferred. For example, if Carol points out that Alice is not
present, and Bill replies that Alice has a cold, then there is an implicature that the
cold is the reason, or at least a possible reason for Alice’s absence; this is because
Bill’s comment is not cooperative-does not contribute to the conversation-unless
his point is that Alice’s cold is or might be the reason for her absence.
Grice in Levinson (1985: 126-129) classifies implicatures into two
kinds, namely: conventional and conversational implicatures. Conventional
24
implicatures deal with the conventional features of the words employed in the
utterance. Conventional implicatures are non-truth-conditional inferences that are
not derived from super ordinate pragmatic principles like the maxims, but are
simply attached by convention to particular lexical items or expression (Levinson,
1985: 127). According to George Yule, these kinds of implicatures don’t have to
occur in conversation, and they don’t depend on special context for their
interpretation (1996: 45). He also states that conventional implicatures are
associated with specific words and result in additional conveyed meanings when
those words are used (ibid). ‘But’, ‘even’, ‘yet’ are the words recognized having
this kind of implicatures. Grice (in Levinson, 1985: 127) states that the word ‘but’
has the same truth-conditional (or truth-functional) content as the word ‘and’ with
an additional conventional implicature to the effect that there is some contrast
between the conjuncts. When ‘even’ is included in any sentence describing an
event, there is an implicature of ‘contrary to expectation’. While the conventional
implicature of ‘yet’ is that the present situation is expected to be different, or
perhaps the opposite, of a later time.
Meanwhile, conversational implicature is implicature which is derived
from a general principle of conversation plus a number of maxims which speaker
will normally obey (Brown and Yule, 1996:31). Unlike conventional implicature,
conversational implicature depend on context for their interpretation. The theory
about conversational implicatures itself will be discussed further in the next
subchapter.
25
c. Presupposition
According to George Yule (1996: 25), presupposition is ‘something the
speaker assumes to be the case prior to making an utterance’. Speakers and not the
sentences have presupposition. Presupposition of a statement will remain constant
even when that statement is negated.
For example, two statements ‘John’s car is not red’ and ‘John has a car’
have the similar assumption that John has a car and the color is not red.
d. Speech Act
According Schmidt and Richards (1995: 101) speech act is all we
perform through speaking, all things we do when we speak. When conversing,
people deliver their ideas, intentions, feelings or emotions directly. The
descriptive terms for different kinds of speech acts apply to the speakers’
communicative intention in producing an utterance. The speaker normally expects
that his/ her intention will be recognized by the hearer carries some actions in an
utterance. Austin (in Levinson 1985: 236) states that there are three basic acts in
saying utterances, namely: 1) locutionary act, it is the basic act of utterance
because it produces a meaningful linguistic expression, 2) illocutionary act, it is
performed via the communicative force of an utterance in order to make a
statement, an offer, an explanation or other communicative purposes, and 3)
perlocutionary act, it is done to have an effect from the utterance.
For example, “I already closed the door but not the windows.” When the
context of the utterance is between mother and her son and the setting is in their
house at night, the locutionary act refers to the windows that are still opened, the
26
illocutionary force is requesting the son to close the windows; and the
perlocutionary effect is persuading, that is making her son to close the windows.
Yule (1996: 53) states that one general classification system lists five
types of general functions performed by speech acts:
a. Representatives
A kind of speech acts that state what the speaker believes to be the case
or not. Statements of fact, assertions, conclusions, and descriptions are examples
of the speaker representing the world as he or she believes it is.
b. Directives
A kind of speech acts that speakers use to get someone else to do
something. They express what the speaker wants. They are commands, orders,
requests, and suggestions.
c. Commissives
A kind of speech acts that speakers use to commit themselves to some
future action. They express what the speaker intends. They are promises, threats,
refusal, and pledges.
d. Expressives
A kind of speech acts that state what the speaker feels. They espress
psychological states and can be statements of pleasure, pain, likes, dislikes, joy, or
sorrow.
e. Declarations
A kind of speech acts that change the world via their utterance. Searle (in
Levinson, 1997: 240) said that in order to perform a declaration appropriately, the
27
speaker has to have special institutional role in specific context that provides rules
for their use. Thus, the speaker changes the world through words. It includes
declarations, christens, etc.
A different approach to distinguishing types of speech acts can be made
on the basis of structure. Whenever there is a direct relationship between a
structure and a function, we have a direct speech act. Whenever there is an
indirect relationship between a structure and a function, we have an indirect
speech act. Thus, for example, a declarative used to make a statement is a direct
speech act, but a declarative used to make a request is an indirect speech act. For
example:
“It’s hot.”
a. I hereby tell you about the weather.
b. I hereby request of you that you turn on the fan.
From the example above, we know that in order to get the intended meaning or
pragmatic meaning of the utterance, we have to consider the context of situation,
in this case, particularly where and when the dialogue is taken place.
e. Discourse Structure
Discourse structure relates to the organization of conversation. Every
conversation can be analyzed through conversation analysis because it has
structure. For example, turn taking is done when someone respects other people in
taking their turns in speaking. There is also adjacency pairs, a fundamental unit of
conversational organization, that manage the kind of paired utterances of which
question should be replied by answer, greeting by greeting, or offer by acceptance.
28
B. Conversational Implicature
1. Maxims of Grice
Grice’s theory of implicature has started the concept of maxims. The
maxims are the explicitness of a principle known as the cooperative principle – a
principle that is required to account for pragmatic interpretations, saying: “Make
your contribution such as it is required, at the stage at which it occurs, by the
accepted purpose or direction of the talk exchange in which you are engaged.”
The principle, can in turn be divided into four maxims as follows: ((Grice (in
Fasold, 1996: 129-130))
1. The maxim of Quantity
Submaxim: Make your contribution as informative as is required (for
the current purposes of the exchange).
Submaxim: Do not make your contribution more informative than is
required.
2. The maxim of Quality: Try to make your contribution one that is true.
Submaxim: Do not say what you believe to be false.
Submaxim: Do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence.
3. The maxim of Relation: Be relevant
4. The maxim of Manner: Be perspicuous.
Submaxim: Avoid obscurity of expression.
Submaxim: Avoid ambiguity.
Submaxim: Be brief (avoid unnecessary prolixity).
Submaxim: Be orderly.
Relating to the maxims above, the philosopher Kent Bach assumes that
they are not sociological generalizations about speech, nor they are moral
prescriptions or proscriptions on what to say or communicate. They are better
construed as presumptions about utterances, presumptions that we as listeners rely
on and as speakers exploit. (http://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooperative_principle)
The explanation is relevant to Cook’s assumption saying when people
following the cooperative principle, this does not mean that they can consciously
29
and explicitly formulate it to themselves. It means rather that people act as though
they know the principle just as they act as though they know the rules of grammar
– though very few people can even begin to formulate them, and nobody can
formulate them completely.
The existence of the maxims then makes conversational implicatures
possible. Conversational implicatures allow a speaker to convey meaning beyond
what is literally expressed. Those maxims can in turn be manipulated to create
irony, sarcasm, metaphore, and a wide range of inferential meanings.
Grice’s example which involves the flouting of ‘Be brief’, the submaxim
of manner is shown by comparing between two remarks below:
(a) Miss X sang ‘Home sweet home’.
(b) Miss X produced a series of sounds that corresponded closely with the
score of ‘Home sweet home’.
Fasold (1990: 131), explains that a speaker who said (b) is obviously not trying to
claim that there is a clash with the quality submaxim about providing sufficient
information, since it is clearly possible to convey something like (a). The
implicature generated is that for some reason the word ‘sang’ has to be avoided,
and the reader of (b), would draw the conclusion that Miss X’s performance was
too poor to be called ‘singing’.
The other example which involves the flouting to maxim of quantity is
shown below:
A: How did you find Jones’ thesis?
B: It was well typed.
30
Richards and Schmidt (1996: 122), explains that by choosing not to be as
informative as required, B is suggesting that the other qualities of the thesis were
not worth commenting on. B has thus communicated through rules of
conversational implicature that it was a bad thesis.
In the expression saying: My car breaks down every five minutes. We
will perceive such remarks as figures of speech, hyperbole, a way of making a
point more forcefully, rather than as lies.
Based on the examples above, Gricean conversational implicature
generally depends on a three-step process. First, a speaker says something that
seems to involve a maxim violation, or at least it requires a little effort to
understand how what was said conforms to the cooperative principle. Second, the
speaker expects, nevertheless, to be interpreted as being cooperative and the
addressee actually does assume he or she is being cooperative. Third, the speaker
thinks, and expects the addressee to think the speaker thinks, that the addressee
can work out what additional suppositions are necessary in order for the speaker’s
contribution to actually be cooperative (Richards and Schmidt, 1996: 131).
Grice (in Fasold, 1990:132) suggests that there are five characteristics of
conversational implicatures, namely:
1. Conversational implicatures depend on everyone concerned recognizing
the cooperative principle and its maxims.
2. The implicatures will not be part of the meaning of the words in the
sentence. It has to be possible to understand the sentence literally first and
then to work out the implicature.
3. The stress put on the cooperative principle by some utterances may be
relievable by more than one implicature. As a result, the implicature
generated is often indeterminate.
4. Working out an implicature depends on assumptions shared by the
participants in a particular speech event.
31
5. Implicature is cancelable. It is possible to say something following an
utterance that generates an implicature which denies the implicature
without contradiction.
The breaking of maxims reflects that context plays a very important role
in a conversation. Without appreciating the particular context, the conversational
goal cannot be understand. It means that in analyzing a conversation or an
utterance, one must be careful to find out some assumptions of context that is
relevantly taking role in the conversation to support sufficient message.
2. Context
According to Leech (1983: 13) context deals with relevant aspects of the
physical or social settings of an utterance. He also consider context to be any
background knowledge assumed to be shared by the speaker and the hearer which
contributes to hearer’s interpretation of what the speaker means by a given
utterance.
Nunan (1993: 8) says that there are two different types of context,
linguistic context and experimental context. Linguistic context is the language that
surrounds or accompanies the discourse under analysis. It can be in the form of
words or phrases preceding or following the discourse. Yule (1996a: 21) calls this
co-text, which is the linguistic material that accompanies a referring expression.
While, experimental context is the context within which the utterances take place.
This kind of context includes the type of communicative event; the topic; the
purpose of the event; the setting including the location, time of day, season of the
year and physical aspect of situation; the participants and the relationship between
32
them; and the background knowledge and the assumptions underlying the
communicative event.
3. Figures of Speech
Language may be used for communication on literal or on figurative level.
Literal language uses words only for their actual, basic meaning. It may be taken
as face value; it means just what it says on the surface. Thus, in literal use, fire
means a flame-producing oxidation of combustible material; naked means
unclothed or without artificial covering; a cloud is a visible mass of vapor
suspended in the atmosphere; gold is a metal of high value, to throw means to
cause an object to fly through the air; cars are anatomical organs for registering
sound. The sentences below are the examples of the use of figurative language.
-
She is a snake in my ordered house
-
The meal cost the earth
-
Mr. David was made of iron
-
The cloud that shadows her eyes rains down gentle sorrow.
The descriptive words above are used figuratively. Figurative language,
then, is language wretched from its literal meaning – that is it can’t be true
literally. It in effect tells a lie on the surface in order to express a truth beneath the
surface (Willis, 1996: 240-241).
According to Keney (1966: 64-65), figurative images are sometimes called
tropes, or more commonly, figure of speech. An image is figurative when it must
be understood in some sense other than the literal.
33
Wren and Martin in Siswantoro defines figure of speech as a departure
from the ordinary form of expression or the ordinary course of ideas in order to
produce a greater effect (2002: 24).
From the definitions above it can be concluded that figurative language is
the use of the words non-literally, in order to produce a greater effect and to
achieve a new way in describing or expressing something.
Figurative language can be classified as follows:
1. Those
based
on
resemblance,
cover
simile,
metaphor,
personification, and apostrophe.
2. Those based on the contrast, cover antithesis and epigram.
3. Those based on association, cover metonymy and synecdoche.
4. Those depending on construction, cover climax and anticlimax.
Every expert has different classification. So, it is impossible for the
writer to analyze all the types of figurative language. She will just discuss
following types: simile, metaphor, personification, irony, sarcasm, symbol,
hyperbole, paradox, oxymoron, metonymy, tautology, erothesis, and synechdoche.
1. SIMILE: An explicit comparison between two essentially unlike things,
usually using like, as or than, as in Burns' poem, O, my luve's like A Red, Red
Rose or Shelley's, As still as a brooding dove.
2. METAPHOR: An implied comparison between two unlike things that actually
have something important in common, as in the expressions: He is a lion, or
Mr. Smith was made of iron.
34
3. PERSONIFICATION: A type of metaphor in which distinctive human
characteristics, e.g., honesty, emotion, volition, etc., are attributed to an
animal, object or idea, for example:
Ø The haughty lion surveyed his realm
Ø My car was happy to be washed
Ø The sky is deaf
4. IRONY: The use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning. A
statement or situation where the meaning is contradicted by the appearance or
presentation of the idea, for example:
Ø This meal is delicious (said by a guest who finds the food is disgusting)
5. SARCASM: The rhetorical device of using a characterization of something or
someone in order to express contempt. It is closely connected with irony, in
that the two are often combined in the same statement, as in Sophocles’ play,
Oh tell it! Tell everyone! Think how they will hate when it all comes out …
6. SYMBOL: An image transferred by something that stands for or represents
something else. Symbols can transfer the ideas embodied in the image without
stating them, like flag for country, or autumn for maturity, night for death or
depression, etc.
7. HYPERBOLE: An extravagant statement; the use of exaggerated terms for the
purpose of emphasis or heightened effect, as in the expressions:
Ø I’d give my right arm for a piece of paper
Ø My car breaks down every five minutes
35
8. PARADOX: A seemingly self contradictory statement, which yet is shown to
be true, for examples:
Ø He is hunger in his abundant wealth
Ø Her life was full of loneliness though there are a lot of friends around her.
9. OXYMORON: A figure of speech in which incongruous or contradictory
terms appear side by side or a condensed paradox at the level of a phrase, such
as: a joyful trouble, a joyless laughter.
10. METONYMY: A figure of speech in which one word or phrase is substituted
for another with which it is closely associated; also, the rhetorical strategy of
describing something indirectly by referring to things around it, for example:
Ø May I borrow your Shakespeare?
Ø My Chevrolet has to be repaired next week.
11. TAUTOLOGY: Such a repetition of words without any further explanation.
The example is shown in a situation as follows:
At a lunch time, a woman asked her friend how she likes the hamburger they
are eating. She gets the answer something like: A hamburger is a hamburger.
The implied meaning is that the speaker has no opinion whether it is delicious
or not. The other meaning that may be derived is that there is nothing special
with the hamburger; it has the same taste as the other.
12. EROTHESIS: A figure of speech by which a strong affirmation of the
contrary is implied under the form of an earnest interrogation, as in the
following examples:
Ø Must I give way and room to your rash choler?
36
Ø Shall I be frighted when a madman stares?
13. SYNECHDOCHE: A figure of speech in which a part is used to represent the
whole, the whole for a part, the specific for the general, the general for the
specific, or the material for the thing made from it. For examples:
Ø He has many mouths to feed.
Ø Indonesia defeated Malaysia in prestigious badminton competition last
year.
C. Play or Drama
Literature has three features; they are prose, poem, and drama or play.
Each of them has its own characteristics but they have the same function that is to
entertain.
Play or drama is a unique form of literature because it is written not
primarily to be read by an individual reader but to be represented on stage by
actors. The word drama comes from the Greek verb “dran”, means “to perform”.
In simple senses drama means a story in dialogue performed by actors on a stage
before an audience (Pickering, 1997: 1113). Generally, drama encompasses all
written plays and to the profession involved such as writing producing, and
performing the play itself. The value of drama or play is based on the combination
of writing of dialogue, narration, prologue, or monologue, staging arrangement,
costume, interpretation of gesture, and facial expression.
At the beginning, drama was practiced as a religious and cultural event
of the ancient Greek community. It was held annually in the spring festival to
37
honor Dionysus, a Greek nature god associated with spring, fertility, and wine at
an open air amphitheater built on hillside. Some of the ancient Greek theaters
were enormous and held about fifteen thousands people.
One of the greatest artists of drama in ancient Greek is Sophocles (496
B.C – 406 B.C). He was born at Colonus in Attica, near Athens. Little is
authoritatively known of his life but it is known that he was an important public
and military figure. It is reported that he was handsome, popular, and well versed
in music and gymnastic (Shaw, 1967: 526). Antigone is the third and the last play
in the chronology of events that concern on Sophocles’ Oedipus cycle which also
includes Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus.
Antigone (pronounced /ænˈtɪɡəni/; Greek Αντιγόνη) is the name of two
different women in Greek mythology. The name may be taken to mean
"unbending", coming from "anti-" (against, opposed to) and "-gon / -gony"
(corner, bend, angle; ex: polygon), but has also been suggested to mean "opposed
to motherhood" or "in place of a mother" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigone).
Antigone takes place in one setting. It is set in the mythical past of
ancient Greece and there is only one single place. This is because Sophocles
adheres to Aristotle rule of setting known as “Unity of Place”. The place is in the
throne room of King Creon of Thebes (Prayudhi, 2004: 51-52).
38
D. Speaking
1. Definition of Speaking
To most people, mastering the art of speaking is the single most
important aspect of learning a second or foreign language, and success is
measured in terms of the ability to carry out a conversation in the language.
Widdowson (1996: 59) defines speaking into two definitions. The first is that
speaking is simply the physical embodiment of abstract system in the usage sense
involve the manifestation of the phonological system or of the grammatical
system of language or both. And the second id that speaking is active or
productive and makes use of aural medium.
Furthermore, Lewis and Hill (1993: 54) say that speaking is a process
that covers many things in addition to the pronunciation of individual sounds. It
also covers pronunciation stress and intonation.
From the definition above, it can be concluded that speaking is a process
in which the speakers expresses their idea to the listeners. When the speakers
speak, they produce utterances with specific pronunciation of individual sounds.
2. Skills in Speaking
Mc Laughlin (in O’Maley and Chamot, 1990: 66) states that speaking is
an example of complex cognitive skill that can be differentiated into various
hierarchical sub skills, some of which might require controlled processing while
others could be processed automatically. It means that speaking involves several
skills require processing.
39
According to Bygate (1987: 5) there are two basic skills in speaking:
1. Motor-perceptive skills
These skills involve perceiving, recalling, and articulating in the correct
order sounds and structures of the language. To be a good speaker,
learner must choose the right forms, put them in the correct order, sound
like a native speaker, even produce the right meanings.
2. Interaction skills
These skills involve making decision about communication, such as:
what to say it, how to say it, and whatever to develop it, in accordance
with one’s intentions, while maintaining the desired relations with
others. It covers:
a. Routines
Routines can be defined as ‘conventional ways of presenting
information’.
There are two kinds of routines:
a. 1 Information Routines
Information routines can be identified as:
ü Expository Routines
The principal types of expository routine are description;
narration; instruction; and comparison.
ü Evaluation Routines
Evaluative routines typically involve explanations;
predictions; justifications; preferences; decisions.
40
a. 2 Interaction Routine
Interaction routines are based not so much on information
content as a sequence of kinds of interactions. It includes kinds
of turns typically occurring in given situations.
b. Negotiation Skills
This is the skill of getting through the routines on specific occasions,
so that understanding is achieved.
3. Teaching Speaking
According to Ur (1996: 121-122), there are four problems with speaking
activities, namely: inhibitation, nothing to say, low or uneven participation, and
mother-tongue use. Here, the writer only discusses the two of them and tries to
relate them to the application of drama text of Antigone. The explanation is as
follows:
1. Inhibitation.
Learners are often inhibited about trying to say things in a foreign
language in the classroom. A teacher can use group work as a good way to solve
the problem because it increases the sheer amount of learner talk going on in a
limited period of time and also lowers the inhibitations of learners who are
unwilling to speak in front of the full class. The examples of activities using group
work that can be applied through the drama text of Antigone are discussion and
demonstrating the dialogues.
41
2. Nothing to say.
Sometimes learners complain that they can not think of anything to say:
they have not any motivation to express themselves beyond the guilty feeling that
they should be speaking. Therefore, a careful choice of topic and task to stimulate
students’ interest becomes an important thing that must be considered by a teacher
in classroom. Drama text is one of motivating materials for it expresses complex
themes. Antigone brings the students to the other part of the world. Through the
play, they can learn the culture of Greek people and their interaction behavior to
another.
Drama also exposes unexpected use of language for the text is very rich in
multiple levels of meaning, for example the use of figure of speech as it is
exploited in drama text of Antigone.
Ur (1996: 129) suggests kinds of spoken interaction which tend to be
neglected, namely: interactional talk; long turns; and talk which is based on varied
situations, feelings and relationships.
1. Interactional talk
This is a matter of learning conventional formulae of courtesy such as: how to
greet, take leave, begin and end conversations, apologize, thank, and so on.
Some kinds of role play can give opportunities for practicing it.
2. Long turns
This is the ability which adult, more advanced or academic students will need
and therefore needs cultivating. Some activities that helps students to practice
42
speaking in long turns, for example: telling stories, telling jokes, recounting
the plot of film or play.
3. Varied situations, feelings, and relationships
The obvious classroom activities to use here are those based on role play. Role
play, here, is used to refer to all sort of activities where learners imagine
themselves in a situation outside the classroom. The term of role play can also
be used in narrower sense, to denote only those activities where each learner is
allotted a specific character role.
The use of drama text is able to accommodate the two kinds of
interaction above - long turns and talk which is based on (non-classroom)
situations, emotions and personal relationships. The examples of activity which
can be applied to practice speaking in long turns through drama text are re-telling
story and recounting the plot. While, the example of activity which can be applied
to practice speaking through role play using drama text is by asking class to learns
and performs a play. It can be used as an expansion of dialogues technique and it
most appropriate to be produced at the end of a course or year’s study.
43
CHAPTER III
RESEARCH METHOD
In conducting this research, the researcher uses descriptive qualitative
method. This research is qualitative because the data are in the form of words and
are analyzed based on the natural setting or context. Qualitative research is a kind
of research in which the data are studied naturally without treatments or the
researcher’s intervention.
About descriptive research, Allison et al (1996: 14) state, “Descriptive
research sets out to seek accurate and adequate descriptions of activities, objects,
processes, and persons”. The descriptive method applied here deals with verbal
description not numerical description. It is suitable with the objective of this
research, that is, to describe pragmatic phenomena particularly implicature in
conversation of the play Antigone by Sophocles.
Considering that this research is descriptive-qualitative, so it doesn’t use
hypothesis of the problem statements as usually applied in quantitative method.
The underlying theories discussed in previous chapter have the function as the
basis and sufficient information used by the writer to analyze the utterances
containing conversational implicature.
A. Subject of the Study
In this study, the writer takes literature as the subject of her research.
Relating to this subject, M. Atar Semi (1993: 18) points out that literary research
44
is “usaha pencarian pengetahuan dan pemberi maknaan dengan hati-hati dan
kritis secara terus-menerus terhadap masalah sastra”. Here, literary research can
be viewed as an effort to seek knowledge and to interpret critically and
continuously toward literature phenomena.
Since literary work itself is too broad and has some genres, the writer
focuses the subject of this study mainly on play. The writer is going to analyze a
play entitled Antigone, one of the Theban Trilogy works of Sophocles. The play
is going to be analyzed by using pragmatic approach in order to understand about
the phenomena in conversation.
B. Sample and Sampling
Sample is the object of the study. It can also be so-called as the source of
the data. The samples in qualitative research are taken by considering the specific
characteristics based on the field of the study. Here, the researcher employs
purposive sampling technique. By so doing, the samples are chosen based on
certain purposes in order to reach the objectives of this research. Thus, the sample
of this study is utterances containing conversational implicatures, specifically that
are employed by the main character.
C. Instrument of the Study
The instrument of the study is the researcher herself. She will get the
data, which are the dialogues containing conversational implicatures after the
process of reading the play intensively. The underlying theory about
45
conversational implicatures itself is used as the source of information in getting
the relevant data. Besides that the instrument is observation. Seliger and Shohamy
(in Haryanti, 2001: 73) say that observation is one of a family of procedures used
to collect data in qualitative research. Observations have always been considered a
major data collecting tool in qualitative research. The observation applied in this
research is different from that usually applied in social research because the data
are taken from literary work. The observation is focused on the reading activity
and making a note of the data together with its context situation.
D. Technique of Coding Data
In order to make easier the classification and the analysis of the data,
each datum will be marked by a code. The coding of the data in this research is as
follows:
1. The number of the datum.
2. The character who utters speech containing implicature. Antigone
is abbreviated into ANT, Creon is abbreviated into CRE, and
Choragos is abbreviated into CHO.
3. The type of figure of speech. The abbreviation of each type is as
follows:
a. Irony is abbreviated into IR
b. Metaphor is abbreviated into ME
c. Oxymoron is abbreviated into OX
46
d. Hyperbole is abbreviated into HY
e. Sarcasm is abbreviated into SA
f. Erothesis is abbreviated into ER
g. Tautology is abbreviated into TA
h. Personification is abbreviated into PE
4.
The title of the play Antigone is abbreviated into A
5. The page in which the dialogue can be found in the drama text.
To make clearer of the coding, an example will be presented:
01/ ANT/ IR/ A/ 589
It means the datum is number 1 uttered by Antigone by using irony
expression and it is taken from the drama text of Antigone on page 589.
E. Technique of Analyzing Data
This section deals with the technique of analysis which is very important
in this study. Here, the writer uses “interactive model” as proposed by Miles and
Huberman, which includes 4 activities: data collection, data reduction, data
display and data conclusion or verification. The activities mentioned above are
presented in a circle’s process in which its components are interacting each other.
Since the step of data collecting has been discussed on the previous discussion,
the writer will discuss the rest of analysis components.
1). Data Reduction
Data reduction can be defined as process of selecting, focusing,
simplifying, abstracting, and rough data transforming on the collected data. It is a
47
continuous process which takes place after field research until the report is
completed. Data reduction is a sort of analysis used to sharpen, to classify, to
direct, to get rid off, and to organize data up to the final conclusion can be
achieved and be verified. In this activity, the writer selects the suitable data from
the first activity.
2). Data Display
Data display is a well organized group of information or data
created from the previous activity, data reduction, which gives possibility to
drawn conclusion. Based on the displayed data, the writer will be able to
understand of what is going on and what should be done. Data is presented in the
form of written-up text or figure including matrix, chart, and check list. Here, the
writer uses written-up text as data display.
3). Data Conclusion or Verification
After the data displayed completely, the writer can take a conclusion. At
the first step of making the conclusion, it is still vague and half-formed. Final
conclusion may not appear until data collecting is over.
Those three points; data reduction, data display, and data conclusion; are
interconnected activities, before, during, and after the data collecting in order to
construct analysis. They are an interactive process for those the writer has to move
back and forth among them.
48
The components of data analysis in interactive model can be seen as
follows:
Data Collection
Data Display
Conclusion/
Verification
Data Reduction
Figure of Interactive model (Miles and Huberman; 1992: 20)
F. Research Procedure
In order to know the steps of the process how the research will be
conducted, the researcher will show the research procedures by dividing it into
two steps, namely the preparatory study and field study. They are arranged as
follows:
a. Preparatory Study
1. Choosing the approach of the study. Here, the researcher takes a
pragmatic approach in order to understand the pragmatic
phenomena, particularly conversational implicature.
2. Selecting the subject of the study. The researcher chooses literary
work, especially drama or play in which the dialogue is as real
49
and natural as found in daily conversation. The play considered
to be analyzed is Antigone by Sophocles.
3. Reading the play intensively for identifying conversational
implicatures found in the dialogue.
4. Making the title of the research.
5. Making a proposal.
b. Field Study
1. Preparing some equipments:
1.1. Copying the text Antigone.
1.2. Preparing a number of data collecting sheets.
2. Collecting the needed data and give it a code.
3. Analyzing the data.
4. Drawing conclusion.
c. Report Writing
50
CHAPTER IV
DATA ANALYSIS
The researcher employs Grice’s theory of cooperative principle in
describing how the maxims of cooperation help the addressee to interpret the
intended meanings. Besides, she considers the context of situation which has a
significant role in interpreting the utterances.
The data are classified into 9 (nine) categories of figure of speech, namely:
irony, sarcasm, hyperbole, metaphor, oxymoron, personification, erothesis, and
tautology. Before the data is going to be analyzed further, it will be described first.
The description presents the participants and the particular event surround the
utterances. Meanwhile, the setting is taken place in the throne room of Creon after
the big war of Argive and Thebes. The analysis of data then can be presented as
follows:
IRONY
1/ ANT/ IR/ A/ 589
... That is what they say, and our good Creon is coming here to announce it
publicly; and the penalty – stoning to death in the public square! ...
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in prologue. It is spoken by Antigone and
is intended to Ismene. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
39
51
Creon, the uncle of Antigone, succeeded to the throne of Thebes after the
death of Oedipus. Creon’s first act as king was to decree that the corpse of
Polyneices should lie unburied in the field. Meanwhile there was a belief among
the people that without the rites of burial, the spirit of a dead man could never find
rest in the afterworld. Besides that, it could be assumed as an insult to gods. The
decree horrified Antigone, so that she asked Ismene to discuss about it secretly.
Ismene didn’t know anything about the decree of King Creon, so Antigone
explained it first to her sister.
Data Interpretation
In the conversation, Antigone talked about the moral quality of Creon
who was described as a good king. Here, the locution ‘good’ is used to mean
irony – a way of communicating intended to say the opposite of its literal
meaning. Therefore, the locution above is used to mean bad or unkind.
The false moral quality of Creon is supported by some information
found in context around the data. Creon, the rules of Thebes, made a proclamation
which prohibits anyone to give a burial for Polyneices or just to mourn for him.
Moreover, he promised a death penalty for whoever broke his law.
Based on Gricean maxims, the utterance above flouts the sub maxim of
quality, i.e. “do not say what you believe to be false”. In surface meaning, the
utterance doesn’t conform to the formulation above because the locution ‘good’ is
blatantly false.
On the assumption that the speaker is co-operative, the addressee knows
that the quality maxim has been flouted for some reasons. Taking all this into
52
account, it makes possible for the addressee to derive another meaning which can
be implied in the utterance, that is to say the opposite of its literal meaning.
10/ CRE/ IR/ A/ 596
You dazzle me. – ...
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene two. It is spoken by Creon and is
intended to Choragos. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
Choragos asked Creon whether he really intend to steal Antigone from
his son or not. The question of Choragos related to Creon’s final decision whether
he would really give the death punishment to Antigone or not. Seeing the context,
Antigone is the bride of Creon’s son, Haimon. For this reason, Choragos might
feel that it was necessary to ask Creon to think it over carefully.
Data Interpretation
The reply of King Creon implied message that the answer is ‘yes’. This
intended meaning derives from Creon’s presumably deliberate failure to give the
informative answer as was required. The response of Creon, taken literally, didn’t
meet to Choragos’ need for an information whether Antigone would die or not,
but on the assumption that Creon was duly co-operative and was sufficiently
informative, Choragos could reasonably infer that the death penalty for Antigone
was definite. By answering the question in such way, Creon implied an irony
expression – he asserted that his decree touching Antigone was fixed. Seeing the
context, Antigone is the bride of Creon’s son, Haimon.
53
Referring to Grice’s maxims, Creon deliberately had broken the first
submaxim of quantity, i.e. “Make your contribution as informative as is required”.
By choosing not to be informative, Creon suggested that the answer for the
question had been clear so that he let the addressee to find the answer by himself.
Therefore, the speaker had communicated through implicature that Antigone must
die. The utterance above can be expressed in another way something like: you
have already known the answer but you still ask for it anyway.
SARCASM
2/ ANT/ SA/ A/ 590
Oh tell it! Tell everyone! Think how they’ll hate you when it all comes out. If they
learn that you knew about it all the time!
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in prologue. It is spoken by Antigone and is
intended to Ismene. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
There was a conflict between Antigone and Ismene touching a plan to bury
Polyneices. Antigone thought that it was a must for giving burial to Polyneices for
he was her brother. Meanwhile, Ismene felt that she didn’t have any strength to
break Creon’s law. Ismene, then, promised to keep the plan a secret so at least it
would be safe for Antigone to carry out the burial.
Data Interpretation
In the utterance above, Antigone asked Ismene to tell the secret plan to
everyone, but in another side she gave the consequence of it. Considering these
54
contradictory statements, it was known that the utterance was used to mean
sarcasm – a way of communicating intended to suggest a bitter critique in order to
hurt other’s feeling. Here, Antigone expected bad luck for Ismene. As it was
expressed above, Antigone hoped that the people would hate Ismene at last.
Referring to the maxim of Grice, the utterance didn’t conform to the sub
maxim of quality saying “do not say what you believe to be false”. Antigone
conveyed a suggestion that she herself believed Ismene would take it to be false.
Ismene realized it so that she was able to conclude that the utterance was uttered
for some reason. And the most obvious reason for expressing the utterance is to
hurt her feeling.
3/ CRE/ SA/ A/ 593
Your very voice distresses me.
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene one. It is spoken by Creon and is
intended to his sentry. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
A sentry told Creon the detail information how he found that the corpse of
Polyneices had been buried. Assuming that the sentry had been involved in a
conspiracy, Creon treated to kill him unless he found the guilty one. The sentry
then asked for permission to give a response touching that matter.
Data Interpretation
The reply of Creon is intended to refuse the sentry’s request. By saying
the utterance as it is expressed above, Creon wants to imply that he doesn’t want
55
to hear any explanation of the sentry anymore. Seeing the context, Creon might
have been distressed by the news telling that someone dared to defy his law.
Referring to the maxim of Grice, taken literally, the utterance doesn’t
conform to the maxim of relevance. The response doesn’t meet to the sentry’s
need for information whether he may speak or not. But on the assumption that
Creon was duly co-operative and was sufficiently informative, the sentry could
reasonably infer that Creon doesn’t want to hear any explanation from him for his
voice had already make him distress. Therefore, the utterance above is the reason
why he refuses to give permission for the sentry to speak.
8/ ANT/ SA/ A/ 596
Ask Creon. You’re always hanging on his opinions.
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene two. It is spoken by Antigone and
is intended to Ismene. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
Ismene was brought to King Creon touching her involvement in burying
the corpse of Polyneices. She said that she had a share in the crime of Antigone
though actually she did not give any help to Antigone before. Ismene asserted that
she wanted to join Antigone to take her share of punishment for she also had a
duty she must pay to Polyneices. Her intention was refused by Antigone for she
assumed that her death shouldn’t be lessened by sharing it. Ismene wondered what
she care for life then if she lost Antigone.
56
Data Interpretation
In this context, Antigone was not telling the truth for she said something
while believing it to be false. Of course Ismene wouldn’t really ask Creon as it
was suggested by Antigone. Antigone said the expression with a belief that
Ismene would take it to be false, so that she could get an implied message behind
the expression. The speech implied an inferential meaning that Ismene’s care for
life so far was not about Antigone but Creon – the expression then intended to
make such sarcasm.
Referring to Gricean maxim, Antigone had broken the first sub maxim
of quality, i.e. “do not say what you believe to be false” for some purposes. The
flouting of the maxim of quality above was contextually intended to create
sarcasm. That was how Antigone tried to look down upon Ismene.
12/ CRE/ SA/ A/ 602
As surely as bribes are baser than any baseness.
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene five. It is spoken by Creon and is
intended to Teiresias. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
Teiresias warned Creon that the gods did not approve of his treatment of
Polyneices’ body but Creon insulted him. Teiresias wondered whether there is still
a man who knows that wisdoms outweigh any wealth or not.
57
Data Interpretation
The response of Creon is more than to imply that there is no one who
knows that wisdoms outweigh any wealth. Through the expression, Creon implies
a deeper meaning. He assumed that Teiresias has been bribed.
The reply of Creon, taken literally, doesn’t seem to be relevant. By
choosing not to give ‘yes’ or its equivalent to the composite proposition, he
intended to make an intended message. Referring to the maxim of Grice, the
speaker has flouted the maxim of relevant. Assuming that the speaker is,
nevertheless being cooperative, the addressee then looks for the possible another
meaning that also implied by the utterance.
EROTHESIS
4/ ANT/ ER/ A/ 594
It was public. Could I help hearing it?
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene two. It is spoken by Antigone and
is intended to Creon. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
Antigone was being interrogated by Creon. Creon wanted to know
whether she had heard the proclamation which defying anyone to bury the corpse
of Polyneices or not.
Data Interpretation
By choosing not to give ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer, the speaker intended to
give an implied message in her utterance. Through the erothesis expression saying
58
Could I help hearing it? Antigone would imply that she had heard the
proclamation already for she said before that the decree was public as uttered in It
was public.
Referring to Grice’s maxims, the expression meets the third maxim of
Grice, i.e. maxim of relevance. But quantitatively, the maxim has been flouted
because it doesn’t give contributive information as is required. Explicitly the
speaker would possibly mean Yes, I have heard the proclamation already.
Seeing the context, Antigone’s reply implied that she was consistent
with her belief that she had high respect to God’s law above all. For this reason,
she dared to defy Creon’s law. Her act was also motivated by her great love to
Polyneices for she knew that without the rites of burial, the spirit of the dead man
couldn’t find rest in the afterworld.
11/ CRE/ ER/ A/ 598
You consider it right for a man of my years and experience to go to school to a
boy?
Data Description
The datum is part of dialogue in scene three. There is conversation
between Choragos, Haimon, and Creon in a particular event as described below:
Haimon visited Creon to talk about Antigone, his bride. Motivated by his love for
Antigone, Haimon argued with Creon touching the decision to punish Antigone.
He warned his father by stating that the people of Thebes gave sympathy to
Antigone for what she had done to her brother, Polyneices. Haimon begged Creon
to change his decision. Choragos advised King Creon to listen to Haimon.
59
Data Interpretation
The erothesis expression above was used by Creon as his response to
Choragos’ suggestion saying you will do well to listen to him, King... – Both speak
well.” Choragos felt that it was good to listen to Haimon’s advice that Creon must
give in to the law of god for his decision might be false.
In surface meaning, the response of King Creon didn’t seem to be
relevant. But on the assumption that Creon was cooperative, the speech above
could be expressed in another way something like I don’t need any advice from a
young man. The speech uttered in erothesis is usually intended for implying
certain effect of communication. It was expressed by using such question in which
it doesn’t need any answer for it was assumed that the addressee would be able to
figure out the implied message. The utterance, taken literally, doesn’t seem to
have any relevance to the previous statement spoken by Choragos. But observed
carefully it is still relevant in the sense that Creon refused to listen to Haimon’s
advice. Instead of saying it, Creon said it in indirect way, i.e. You consider it right
for a man of my years and experience to go to school to a boy? Once again, it can
be concluded that there is a flouting to submaxim of manner, i.e. “avoid obscurity
expression” for the speaker intends to make his point more forcefully.
HYPERBOLE
5/ ANT/ HY/ A/ 595
...But they keep their tongues in leash
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Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene two. It is spoken by Antigone and
is intended to Creon. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
Antigone frankly confessed her share in burying Polyneices. She
assumed the people of Thebes would praise her for her act but they didn’t say it
openly for their fear of Creon. Creon contradicted that opinion, he believed that it
certainly just Antigone’s assumption, and it didn’t represent people’s opinion. The
utterance above is Antigone’s reply touching that matter.
Data Interpretation
The utterance above was equivalent with the expression The people are
afraid of you, Creon, so that they keep silent. Instead of saying it in direct way,
Antigone spoke it in indirectly; to keep silent is substituted by to keep their
tongues in leash. The expression intended to make a point more forcefully. Here,
the speaker implied that the people were in pressure so that they didn’t have any
bravely to say something to Creon.
Referring to Grice’s maxims, Antigone’s speech ... they keep their
tongues in leash doesn’t fulfill the sub maxim of quality, i.e. “do not say that for
which you lack adequate evidence” because the literal sense of the speech is
contextually improbable – they didn’t really keep their tongues in leash, as it
literally expressed. But for assuming that the speaker is co-operative, the
addressee perceived such remark as symbolic expression. By saying it, the speaker
61
intends to tell something which certainly makes sense and also must have
contribution to the conversation.
13/ CRE/ HY/ A/ 605
... Surely a god has crushed me beneath the hugest weight of heaven...
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in exodos. It is spoken by Creon and is
intended to Choragos. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
Creon returned from the vault where Antigone was locked in order to set
her free. Unfortunately, he was too late because Antigone had hanged herself.
Haimon laid beside her, crying out that his father had stolen his beloved fiancé
away from him. In his despair, he killed by his own sword after attempting to kill
Creon. Creon entered the palace with his attendants while bearing Haimon’s body.
Data Interpretation
The expression above was the way Creon intended to describe his
burden touching the death of his own son. It was described as if he were crushed
beneath the hugest weight of heaven and driven headlong a barbaric way. The
description was used to intensify how awful the burden is.
Referring to Grice’s maxims, the utterance flouted the maxim of quality
for the literal sense was contextually irrelevant or improbable. Rather than
assumed it as a lie, the addressee would receive it as a hyperbolic expression – a
way of making a point more forcefully. Using this assumption, the addressee,
62
then, tried to figure out the intended message that may be implied by the
utterance.
14/ CRE/ HY/ A/ 606
Lead me away. I have been rash and foolish. I have killed my son and my wife.
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in exodos. It is spoken by Creon and is
intended to Choragos. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
A messenger found that Eurydice, the queen, was dead. She had killed
herself because of her great sorrow for Haimon. The messenger then told it to
King Creon. Creon was shocked; he couldn’t believe that his wife was dead. He
was so distress for he lost his son and his wife at once. He then confessed his fault
and blamed himself for the death of his beloved family.
Data Interpretation
The utterance above is the way how Creon expressed his regret touching
the death of Haimon and Eurydice. It doesn’t really mean as it is literally said. He
said as if he was the killer of them. Here, the expression I have killed my son and
my wife is used in order to create a hyperbolic statement – the use of exaggerated
terms for the purpose of emphasis or heightened effect. So it doesn’t intended to
make a lie.
Based on Gricean maxims, the speaker has flouted the first submaxim of
quality ‘don’t say what you believe to be false’. The breaking of the maxim
induces the addressee to look for another meaning that can be implied from the
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utterance. The expression is equivalent with something like I am the guilty one
who causes the death of my own family.
TAUTOLOGY
6/ CREON/ TA/ A/ 595
An enemy is an enemy, even dead.
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene two. It is spoken by Creon and is
intended to Antigone. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
Antigone said that it was a must for Polyneices to be honored as properly
as Eteocles. While Creon assumed that there must be different honor for the
wicked like Polyneices from Eteocles who had protected his country. The data
was the response of King Creon to Antigone’s speech saying: Ah Creon, Creon,
which of us can say what the gods hold wicked?
Data Interpretation
The speech above could be expressed in another way something like: no
matter what the gods hold wicked, Polyneices was after all the one who had made
war on this city. Instead of saying in more informative way as it was expressed
above, Creon spoke it tautologically – such communicating way by using words
repetition without any further explanation. Since the expression, taken literally,
was intrinsically uninformative, the addressee assumed that the speaker intended
to give more information then it was actually said.
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The meaningless expression which is uttered in tautological way above
cause it always to flout the first submaxim of quantity, ‘make your contribution as
informative as it required.’ This lack of information, then, induced the participant
to look for another meaning that could be implied in the utterance. The use of
tautology in the context above is perhaps intended to create terseness in statement.
METAPHOR
7/ CREON/ ME/ A/ 595
You too, Ismene, Snake in my ordered house, sucking my blood stealthily - ...
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene two. It is spoken by Creon and is
intended to Ismene. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
Creon had ordered his sentry to arrest Ismene and accused her equally
with Antigone. She was assumed had made a conspiracy with Antigone to defy
King Creon’s law. Ismene entered the palace and she was interrogated by the
King.
Data Interpretation
From the utterance above, it is known that Creon conveyed his message
in metaphorical way. The expression as in You too, Ismene, snake in my ordered
house, sucking my blood stealthily - ... showed that two unlike notions ‘Ismene’
and ‘snake’ were implicitly related to suggest an identity between them. The
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speaker intended to say that Ismene was dangerous person. By using metaphorical
expression, the speaker actually inferred a critical opinion indirectly.
Referring to the Gricean maxim, there is flouting to the maxim of
manner for there is an obscure expression. The expression induced the addressee
to look for the deeper meaning that may be implied in the sentence. The use of
metaphorical expression in this context obviously intends to make the speaker’s
point more forcefully – that his life was in danger because there were people who
would intend to destroy his throne.
OXYMORON
9/ ANT/ OX/ A/ 596
It’s a joyless laughter, Ismene.
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in scene two. It is spoken by Antigone and
is intended to Ismene. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
In the conversation before, Ismene asked Antigone about what she cared
for life when she lost her. To the question, Antigone suggested her to ask Creon
for she was always hanging on Creon’s opinion.
Data Interpretation
In the utterance above, there is two contradictory expressions brought
together, i.e. ‘joyless’ and ‘laughter’. As ‘joyless’ doesn’t normally premodify
‘laughter’ (which refers to happy mood), it then produces an expression known as
66
oxymoron. Oxymoron always induces the addressee to look for the deeper
meaning that may be implied in the utterance because it forces non-literal
interpretation. The contextually implied meaning which could be inferred from the
utterance above is that Antigone was hurt by her own mockery when she mocked
Ismene.
Referring to Gricean maxims, there is flouting of the maxim, especially
maxim of quantity for the speaker choosing not to give informative contribution
as is required touching the reason for her laughing at Ismene. By choosing not to
be informative, the speaker might suggest that Antigone was not being happy for
that laughing; even she was hurt by her own mockery.
PERSONIFICATION
15/ CHO / PE/ A/ 606
Then do not pray any more: the sky is deaf.
Data Description
The datum is utterance found in exodos. It is spoken by Choragos and is
intended to Creon. The dialogue takes place in particular event as described as
follows:
A messenger found that Eurydice, the queen, was dead. She had killed
herself because of her great sorrow for Haimon. The messenger then told it to
King Creon. Creon was shocked; he couldn’t believe that his wife was dead. He
was so distress for he lost his son and his wife at once. At last, Creon confessed
his fault; he hoped for his own death to gods.
67
Data Interpretation
The expression the sky is deaf can’t be meant as it was literally said. The
sky is inanimate so that it will be improbable to say that it is deaf. In literal sense,
the expression is blatantly false, so it doesn’t seem conform to the maxim of
quality.
For maintaining the cooperative principle, the addressee perceives such
remark as rhetoric expression used to achieve a deeper sense to the meaning. In
this context, the speaker intended to say something like: your pray will mean
nothing.
68
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION, IMPLICATION, SUGGESTION, AND APPLICATION
A. CONCLUSION
Based on the data analysis, the research comes to the conclusion. The
conclusion is arranged in order to describe how the maxims of co-operative
principle and context help the addressee interpret the implicit meanings which are
inferred in the dialogues of Antigone, especially which are perceived as figures of
speech.
In general, the way how the maxims of cooperation help the addressee to
interpret the implied meaning is that when the conversation doesn’t seem to
conform to the cooperative principle. It is then assumed that there is a deeper
meaning that may be inferred. The implied meaning is derived from the
assumption that the speaker is, nevertheless cooperative. Finally, the addressee
look for the implicit message which is necessary based on the background
knowledge or context surround the utterances.
The description can be presented more specifically as follows:
a. The flouting to maxims of quality
The manipulating toward maxim of quality creates some figures of
speech, namely: irony, sarcasm, hyperbole, and personification. Here, the senders/
speakers often use an expression which is in literal sense is blatantly false or
improbable, as it is shown in the following data:
57 69
- 5/ ANT/ HY/A/ 595: But they keep their tongues in leash
- 13/ CRE/ HY/A/ 605: Surely a god has crushed me beneath the hugest weight
of heaven...
- 14/ CRE/ HY/A/ 606: I have killed my son and my wife
- 15/ CHO / PE/A/ 606: Then do not pray any more: the sky is deaf
Another way how the maxim of quality is flouted is by saying the
opposite of its real meaning as it shown in the following datum:
- 1/ ANT/ IR/A/ 589: That is what they say, and our good Creon is coming here
to announce it publicly
While, there are also data where the speaker deliberately flouts the
maxim of quality for it suggest something in which it is believed the addressee
will take it to be false. They are as follows:
- 2/ ANT/ SA/A/ 590: Oh tell it! Tell everyone! Think how they’ll hate you when
it all comes out.
- 8/ ANT/ SA/ A/ 596: Ask Creon. You’re always hanging on his opinions.
b. The flouting to maxim of relevance
The flouting toward maxim of relevance creates some figures of speech,
namely: sarcasm and erothesis. The flouting is expressed by choosing not to give
yes/ no answer, but they imply the answer in indirect way. The data are as follows:
- 3/ CRE/ SA/A/ 593: Your very voice distresses me
- 4/ ANT/ ER/A/ 594: It was public. Could I help hearing it?
- 10/ CRE/ IR/A/ 596: You dazzle me
70
- 12/ CRE/ SA/A/ 602: As surely as bribes are baser than any baseness
c. The flouting to maxim of manner
The flouting toward maxim of manner is occurred for the speakers create
obscurity in meaning, as it is shown in the following data:
- 7/ CREON/ ME/A/ 595: You too, Ismene. Snake in my ordered house, sucking
my blood stealthily
- 11/ CRE/ ER/ A/ 598: You consider it right for a man of my years and
experience to go to school to a boy?
In the data above, the speaker uses expressions which are taken literally
don’t seem to be clear in meaning and the maxim of manner can explain them for
it suggest certain purpose of communication.
d. The flouting to maxim of quantity
The flouting to maxim of quantity is expressed by choosing to use
expression which seems to be meaningless. Such a repetition of words without
any further explanation, as it is expressed in following datum:
- 6/ CREON/ TA/A/ 595: An enemy is an enemy, even dead
The flouting to maxim of quantity also occurred when the sender/
speaker prefers to use a brief answer instead of long-winded sentence in
explaining a reason, as it is shown below:
- 9/ ANT/ OX/A/ 596: It’s a joyless laughter, Ismene
Through the using of oxymoron expression, the sender has already implied
sufficient information that is required.
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B. IMPLICATION
Based on the research findings, it is known that implicatures in Antigone
are mostly reflected through figures of speech. The effect that will be achieved is
generally to make certain point more forcefully. The goal won’t be succeeded
when the addressee is not able to work out the implicit meaning.
Related to teaching English, this research would help students to know
about figures of speech – how they are expressed in certain context of situation.
Referring to the theory of implicature, the students will know that conversation is
more than series of exchange; it consists of exchanges which are interpreted
according to norms of conversational cooperation, which can be manipulated to
create a wide range of meaning. This knowledge, then, can be transferred to other
situations where students need to make an interpretation.
This research would also give reference for teachers about how teaching
speaking through drama text, especially for SMA students. The teaching of
speaking through drama text is one useful way to expose students with motivating
themes and unexpected uses of language. By using of drama text, the teacher can
create activities that help the students to practice speaking, such as retelling
stories, recounting the plot, acting out the play, etc.
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C. SUGGESTION
After the presentation above, the writer is going to offer some
suggestions. The writer considers that this research might be useful for teacher of
English and other researcher who are also interested in analyzing literary work.
1. For the teachers
To be able to use play or drama as the source of English teaching, teacher
should do the following:
a. Teachers should provide him/ herself with literary competence in that they
will have understanding of certain conventions which help them to convert
the words on the page of a play or other literary work into literary
meaning.
b. Teachers should anticipate students’ problems before deciding what kind
of activities and tasks that are going to be used. For example:
- Is it needed to give students a summary of the plot leading up to the text?
- Are there any words/ phrases in the text which will be unfamiliar to the
students?
c. The text has to be adjusted to the students’ linguistic proficiency. One
appropriate way that teacher can do is by simplifying the text.
2. For the other researchers
The analysis of literary work so far is mostly conducted by using of structural
and psychological approach. While, the analysis of literary work pragmatically
is still limited. Here, the writer suggests the other researchers who are also
interested in literary work, especially drama, can analyze it by using pragmatic
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approach. They may conduct the analysis on the deixis, speech act or other
aspect of pragmatics.
D. APPLICATION TO TEACHING SPEAKING
As it was stated before, to be able to use play or drama as the source of
English teaching, one of the important things that teacher should do is by
adjusting the text to the students’ linguistic proficiency. Lazar (1997: 51-52)
suggests questions that teacher must be considered in deciding whether or not to
use the text, some of them are as follows:
ü Are the students sufficiently familiar with the usual norms of language use
to recognize when these are subverted?
ü How much of the language in the text will students be able to infer?
ü Will students find it useful and enjoyable to study the text, or will they feel
demotivated by the difficulties of the language?
It is important for the teacher to have a strategy to make a text easy to
learn and handle. One of the ways is by simplifying text. But the simplified text
should be relevant to the original one. The purpose of it, as the Longman
Simplified English Series, is “to enable thousands of readers to enjoy without
great difficult, some of the best books written in English language, and in doing
so, to equip themselves in pleasantest possible way, to understand and appreciate
any work written in English”. The use of simplification of a text, according to
Carter and Long (1997: 149) “is not just a way of dealing with long sentences and
74
difficult words, but involves the creation of a whole new sub-text, the only
likeness with the original being the close correspondence of the plot”.
The lesson plan is presented in the next page.
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LESSON PLAN
Subject
Sub skill
Grade
Semester
Time
I
: English
: Speaking
: XI
:1
: 3 x 45 minutes
Standard of Competency:
Mengungkapkan
makna
dalam
percakapan
transaksional
dan
interpersonal dalam konteks kehidupan sehari-hari.
II
Basic Competency:
Mengungkapkan makna dalam percakapan transaksional (to get things
done) dan interpersonal (bersosialisasi) resmi dan tak resmi secara
akurat, lancar dan berterima dengan menggunakan ragam bahasa lisan
sederhana dalam konteks kehidupan sehari-hari dan melibatkan tindak
tutur; mengungkapkan perasaan bahagia, menunjukkan perhatian,
menunjukkan simpati, dan memberi instruksi.
III
Indicator:
·
Students are able to demonstrate dialogue with appropriate expression
and intonation.
·
Students are able to identify the expression of giving sympathy or
caring.
IV
Instructional Material:
The extract of drama entitled Antigone
Antigone: Ismene, dear sister. Have they told you of the new decree of our King
Creon?
Ismene:
No, I have not heard about it: I know that two sisters lost two
brothers; and I know that the Argive army fled in the night; but
beyond this, I don’t know anything.
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Antigone: I thought so. And that is why I wanted you to come out here with me.
There is something we must do.
Ismene:
Why do you speak so strangely?
Antigone: Listen, Ismene: Creon buried our brother Eteocles with honor, and it
was right; but Creon has sworn that no one shall bury Polyneices, no
one mourn for him, but his body must lie in the fields. And the penalty
for whoever breaks his law is stoning to death in the public square!
There it is, and now you can prove what you are: a true sister, or a
traitor to your family.
Ismene:
Antigone, you are mad! What could I possibly do?
Antigone: You must decide whether you will help me or not.
Ismene:
I do not understand you. Help you in what?
Antigone: Ismene, I am going to bury him. Will you come?
Ismene:
Bury him! You have just said the new law forbids it.
Antigone: He is my brother. And he is your brother, too.
Ismene:
But think of the danger! Think what Creon will do!
Antigone: Creon is not strong enough to stand in my way.
V
Innstructional Activities:
1. INTRODUCTION
a. Greeting
b. Checking the students’ presence
2. MAIN ACTIVITIES
a. In pairs, the students are asked to discuss these two questions:
Ø Do you have any brothers or sisters?
Ø What kinds of things can cause conflict between brothers
and sisters? What can bring them closer to each other?
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b. The teacher explains that those questions have relation to the
text they are going to discuss next.
c. Teacher hands out copies of the text and asks the students to
read silently. Then in pairs, they are asked to answer the
following questions:
Ø What is the relationship between Antigone and Ismene?
Ø What are they talking about?
Ø What is the instruction of Creon toward his people touching
Polyneices?
Ø Does Ismene accept Antigone’s invitation to bury
Polyneices? Why?
Ø Do you find any expression showing about Ismene’s care
toward her sister?
d. The teacher discusses the answer with the students. At the same
time, she explains the plot or situation leading up the text and
outlines the historical background of it.
e. In pairs, the students are asked to read the text aloud. In each
pair, there is one student taking the part of Antigone, and
another the part of Ismene.
f. When all pairs have finished reading out their text. The teacher
demonstrates the extract in front of the class by choosing one
student as her partner. Here, the teacher asks the students to pay
attention about the intonation, and facial expressions while she
is performing it.
g. The teacher asks the pairs to stand up and read the text once
more, but this time with more feeling and pay attention to the
intonation and facial expression.
3. CLOSING ACTIVITY
The teacher asks the students to learn the text at home. In the next
meeting, they are asked to perform it by putting their text away.
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They do not have to reproduce the text perfectly, and can
improvise as they wish.
VI
Teaching Aids and Source:
1. Teaching Aids:
Hand out of the simplified text of Antigone
2. Source
Sophocles’ play, Antigone
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LESSON PLAN
Subject
Sub skill
Grade
Semester
Time
I
: English
: Speaking
: XI
:1
: 2 x 45 minutes
Standard of Competency:
Mengungkapkan makna dalam teks fungsional pendek dan monolog
berbentuk recount, narrative, dan procedure sederhana dalam konteks
kehidupan sehari-hari.
II
Basic Competency:
Mengungkapkan
makna
dalam
teks
monolog
sederhana
dengan
menggunakan ragam bahasa lisan secara akurat, lancar, dan berterima
dalam berbagai konteks kehidupan sehari-hari dalam teks berbentuk
recount.
III
Indicators:
In groups, students are expected to:
ü Be able to arrange the text into appropriate arrangement.
ü Be able to identify the using of past tense.
ü Be able to identify the connectives in the recount text
ü Be able to retell the story chronologically
IV
Instructional Material:
Recount is a kind of text to tell something that happened in the past or the
past activities. The social function/ communicative purpose is to give
information about past event. The structure and language features of
recount:
aThe generic structure:
1. Orientation: a topic of an activity/ event will be told.
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2. Events: the plot event/ activity that is told chronologically.
3. Reorientation: the conclusion of the activity.
aThe significant language features of recount text:
1. Focusing on individual participants were doing.
2. Recount can be written in the first/ third person.
3. Using of past tense.
4. Focusing on a temporal sequence of event.
5. The connectives in a recount are: next, then, after that, etc.
V
Instructional Activities:
1. INTRODUCTION
a. Greeting
b. Checking the students’ presence
2. MAIN ACTIVITIES
a. The teacher divides students into groups (each group consist of
four students).
b. The teacher hands out copies of the text.
c. The teacher explains the plot or situation leading up the text.
d. In groups, each student is given a task to put the blank spaces
of the text with the appropriate past tense.
e. In groups, the students are asked to arrange the texts into one
acceptable paragraph.
f. In groups, each student is asked to identify the connectives
showing the temporal sequence of events in the text.
g. In groups, the students are asked to act out the extract.
h. The teacher asks at least two groups to perform the extract in
front of the class.
3. CLOSING ACTIVITY
In groups, the teacher asks the students to make a summary of
news or story from newspaper or magazine. Then, they are asked
for retelling the story in front of the class.
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VI
Teaching Aids and Source:
1. Teaching Aids:
Hand out of task
2. Source:
Sophocles’ play, Antigone
82
THE COLUMN OF TASK
Eurydice:
I have heard something. I heard somebody telling a bad news.
Please, speak again: whatever it is, I can bear it.
Messenger: Dearest lady, I will tell you plainly what I have seen. I will say the
truth.
A
One of the servants (have gone) ahead, he (hear) a voice grieving
within the chamber. Then he (come) back and (tell) Creon. The King
Creon (go) closer, he (ask) us to check what (have happen) through the
crevice – to make sure if it (is) Haimon’s voice or some deception of the
gods.
B
I and Creon (go) to the place where Polyneices’ body was lying.
We (pray) to Hecate and Pluto, (bath) the corpse with holy water, and
(burn) it. When we were finished, we (run) to the vault where Antigone
was locked.
C
Haimon (doesn’t) say anything, he (stair) at his father, and
suddenly (draw) his sword and lunged. Creon (shrink) back, the blade
missed. Desperate against himself, Haimon (drive) it into his own body,
and (fall).
D
We (obey), then we (see) that Antigone (have hanged) herself and
Haimon lay beside her; crying out that his father (have stolen) Antigone
away from him. When Creon (see) Haimon, the tears (rush) to his eyes. He
(call) to him: “What have you done child? Speak to me. What are you
thinking that makes your eyes so strange? O my son, my son, I come to
you on my knees!
Choragos: She has left us without saying anything. What can this mean?
Messenger: It troubles me, too. She must have gone to her chamber – crying for
her dead son.
Choragos: Maybe: but I worry about her because I can’t hear her crying.
Messenger: I will go in to see what she is doing.
83
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