CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Research

There are many ways to study about language. One of the ways is

via literature. Literature is anybody of written works. The concept has

changed meaning over time to include texts that are spoken or sung (oral

literature), and non-written verbal art forms (retrieved from wikipedia:

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/literature). In many researches that discuss

about figurative language, the researcher interesting to analyze about

literature and focus to discuss figurative language, because of this research

can increase the reader’s knowledge about literary particularly in poetry and

to provide accurate information especially to understand the meaning about

figurative language.

Before the researcher focuses to analyze poem or poetry and

understand the meaning or at least the idea of the poem, people should have

basic knowledge about figurative language. Figurative language refers to

words, and groups of words, that exaggerate or alter the usual meaning in

figures of speeches which is from usual words that has literal meaning.

According to Tarigan (1985:p.4) figurative language can be an

important mean in backing up writing skill, reading skill, speaking skill,

listening skill, using and understanding of literary work. So we can use

figurative language in understanding the poem becuase there are many

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vocabularies that difficult to understand in literal meaning and only

understand in figurative language. As Kennedy (1983:p.479) also states that

a figure of speech may be said to occur whenever a speaker or writer, from

the sake of freshness or emphasis, departs from the usual denotations of

words. From explanation of experts above, the researcher’s opinion that

figurative language is a way to express thoughts, heart’s feeling or

something like that through language in a unique way which is many people

rarely do it. For example, language that uses metaphor in every sentence

which is can not be undrestand in literal meaning and in this case we need to

apply and involve figurative language.

Figurative language is the use of words that go beyond their ordinary

meaning. It requires using the imagination to figure out the poet's meaning

(Syafitri D, and Melisa M., 2018:p.46). There are some kinds of figurative

language: metaphor: is a kind of figurative language that made comparison

between two things that different to identify one with another,

personification: consists of giving human characteristics to an object,

hyperbole: is the term used that overstatement., simile: the figure that make

comparison between two different things, just like metaphor but in simile

usually using the word as, than, like, seem, so, appear, more than,

metonymy: a word or complex expression that basically stands for one

thing, or it also use for one lexical thing which connected with other through

experience, synecdoche: a figure of speech that a part refers the to specify

whole, irony: irony statement are untrue, based reasoning that interpreted by

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the hearer from the speaker‟s meaning, if irony not praise but usually

criticism, antithesis: figure speech that combine two things which different

or contradiction in one sentence or negation., symbolism: a kind of figure

speech that using symbol of animal, plants, or things for substitute

something., and paradox: a figure speech that deliver two things which

contradictory but this figure reveal the real fact that make sense even the

speaker or the writer use a word that absurd.

In the researcher’s mind, the researcher assumes that figurative

language is a way to express thoughts, heart’s feeling or something like that

through language in a unique way which is many people rarely do it. For

example, language that uses metaphor in every sentence which is can not be

undrestand in literal meaning, and it can be founded in many literary works.

Literature is one of way to understand many literary works, For

example: poem, short story, drama and many more. According to Beard,

(2003: 2) “Literature is created through the use of word, it is not enough to

analyze texts at the level of words only”. Literature is classified according to

whether it is fiction or non-fiction, and whether it is poetry or prose. As an

explanation above, in the researcher’s opinion that literature is a written

works about the author's intentions for aesthetic purposes.It could be poem,

novel, short story, and drama. In analyzing literary works, it analyzes a

work of literature which uses various literary techniques.

Literature has many types, as we know that for example prose,

poetry, drama and there are many more, but in this research the researcher

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interested to discuss about poem. Poem is an expression that is overflowing

from the heart's feelings of a poet in a stanza for stanza of words that

sometimes comes from admiration, complaints about something, and

sadness experienced by a poet. As Jhon Peck (1993:p.12) states that Poetry

is the imaginative expression of strong feeling, usually rhythmical and the

spontaneous over flow of powerful feelings recollected in tranquility.

Based on the explanation above we know that poem is an expression

that is overflowing from the heart's feelings of a poet in a stanza for stanza

of words that sometimes comes from admiration, complaints about

something, and sadness that really happened in poet’s life. In addition, we

know that figurative language is a language that language that is delivered

in a different way that sometimes sounds a bit exaggerating and uses words

that is rarely used in daily conversation and also cannot be understand in

literal meaning, which is that words often found and needed in poems or

other literary works . Therefore, the researcher assumes that poetry and

figurative language have a very close relationship in creating a good literary

work. because figurative language is one of the important elements in

poetry, it can be said that a poem would not have been created without

figurative language.

Figurative language will more often be found in poetry which one is

it vocabularies that we did not know before, so that when we read a poem

we will definitely find words that we have never or rarely found in daily

conversation. Indirectly, we will find out what the meaning of the word that

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 word which is very helpful for adding vocabulary. Hence, the researcher

becomes interested in analyzing the figurative language of Plath’s poems.

So the researcher conducted the study by the title: “An Analysis of

Figurative Language on Three Sylvia Plath’s poems”.

1.2 Identification of the Problem

Based on the background of researech, the identification of the

problem are as follow:

1) What kinds of figurative languages found in Sylvia Plath’s selected

poems (Morning Song, Metaphors and Mirror)?

2) What are the function of the figurative languages found in Sylvia

Plath’s selected poems (Morning Song, Metaphors and Mirror)?

1.3 Problem of the Research

Based on the background of the research and identification of the

research, the problem of the research: what are the kinds and the function of

the figurative languages found in Sylvia Plath’s selected poems (Morning

Song, Metaphors and Mirror)?

1.4 Objective of the Research

Based on the research question presented above, this thesis is

expected to give adequate description of the application of figurative

language. The general objective of the study is to take comprehensive

understanding regarding the use of figurative language of three Sylvia Plath

poems “Morning Song, Metaphors and Mirror”. The specific objective of

the research is: to find out the kinds and the function of figurative languages

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 found in Sylvia Plath’s selected poems (Morning Song, Metaphors and

Mirror).

1.5 Significant of the Research

This research is aimed to give both theoritical and practical

contributions. Theoritically, this study is expected to broaden figurative

language in literary work, especially in poems.

Practically, this study is expected to increase significance

information and knowledge for the readers and the next researcher who

wants to do a deeper analysis about figurative language in poems..

1.6 Definition of Keyterms

To avoid misunderstanding and misinterpretation between the

researcher and the readers, the researcher intends to classify the key terms

used in this research as the following:

1) Figurative language is language that uses words or expressions with a

meaning that is different from the literal interpretation. Figurative

language is rarely used in our daily conversation. Figurative language is

often found in literary works, such as: articles in newspaper,

advertisements, novels, poems, etc

2) Poetry is one creative literature and the imaginative expression of

strong which is written and overflow spontaneous in beautiful stanza

from an expressive with style and motion suitable with the content that

it is performed and listened poetic and beautifully.

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3) Poem is the fusion of sound and sense or a melting together of sound

and sense. Poem might be defined as a kind of language that says it

more intensely than does ordinary language.