The Analysis of Sexist Language in Movie’s script ‘The Vow’ by Michael Sucsy
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The Analysis of Sexist Language in Movie’s script ‘The Vow’ by Michael Sucsy
Ni Komang Ayu Widayanti
Extension Program Faculty of Letters and Culture Udayana University
Abstrak
Study tentang sexist ini bertujuan untuk menemukan dan menganalisa karakteristik bahasa dan hubungannya dengan gender, persamaan dan perbedaan karakteristik bahasa laki-laki dan perempuan, gaya bahasa laki-laki dan perempuan serta faktor yang yang mempengaruhi persamaan dan perbedaan karakteristik bahasa laki-laki dan perempuan. Data dalam penelitian diambil dari naskah film ‘The Vow’ yang disutradarai oleh Michael Sucsy, juga menonton film sembari membaca naskah. Dianalisa secara kualitatif dengan penyajian yang deskriptif, bertujuan untuk memberikan penjelasan dan analisa yang jelas. Jurnal ini menggunakan teori karakteristik bahasa perempuan beserta fungsinya yang dikemukakan oleh Lakoff (1975) dan teori yang dibuat oleh Coates (1986) tentang gaya bahasa laki-laki dan perempuan. Sebagai teori pendukung digunakan teori gender performativity yang dikemukakan oleh Butler (1990). Analisa jurnal ini menunjukan karakteristik bahasa laki-laki dalam naskah film ‘The Vow’ bahwa bahasa laki-laki lebih tegas, matang, dan laki-laki suka berbicara terang-terangan dengan kosakata yang tepat. Namun, bahasa yang digunakan oleh perempuan tidak tegas, tidak secara terang-terangan (menggunakan kata-kata kiasan), dan berhati-hati ketika mengungkapkan sesuatu, serta kerap menggunakan kata yang lebih halus dan sopan atau melalui isyarat.
Kata kunci : karakteristik bahasa perempuan, karakteristik bahasa laki-laki, gaya bahasa laki-laki dan perempuan.
Advances in technology make western movies now being expanded entertainment industry in our country. Many western movies consist of various types such as: action, drama, colossal, and mystery. Especially the western movie which is present the goal of entertaining, science and reality of life. Western moviegoers are various circles, adults, teens, even kids,
they love the comedy from European countries. Cartoons and animations are also very popular.
Language also has a relationship with gender, as a means of communication of two or more persons, means of communication between male and female, male and male, and also female and female. As well as in the movie which tells the story like in the real life where there are many roles of male and female and their communication with each other.
Xiaolan Lei (2006) in her article entitled Sexism in language shows that sexist language is language that expresses bias in favor of one sex and thus treats the other sex in a discriminatory manner. The existence of sexist language is due to sexism in society. As a social phenomenon, language is closely related to social attitudes.
The problems of this study are:
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1. What are the linguistic features in terms of gender found in The Vow movie’s script?
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2. What are the similarities and differences between male and female linguistic style found in The Vow movie’s script?
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3. What factors influence the difference of language styles on males’ and females’ conversation in this movie?
The aims of this study are:
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1. To identify the linguistic features which differentiate males’ from females’ speech in The Vow movie’s script.
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2. To investigate what kind of linguistic features that usually occur in the conversation in The Vow movie’s script.
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3. To analyze the factors that influence the difference in language styles on males’ and females’ conversation in The Vow movie’s script.
The data were taken from the movie script of ‘The Vow’ by Michael Sucsy. The Vow is a 2012 romantic drama film directed by Michael Sucsy, stared by Rachel McAdams and
Channing Tatum. The data were collected by means of documentation method. In this method the data were collected in order to find the linguistic features found in The Vow movie’s script. The data were analyzed qualitatively and descriptively in order to give a clear description through some theories and perspective proposed by Lakoff (1975) combined with theory by Holmes (1992) and Coates (1986).
The males and females’s linguistic features analyzed from the conversation taken directly from the utterance of the main and supporting characters in the movie’s script. It is also supported by watching the movie in order to get clear description about the setting and pronounciation.
The females’ utterances analyzed in this study were taken from the utterances of the main character, Paige, and some of the supporting characters, such as Gwen, Lily and Paige’s mother. Females’s linguistic features were analyzed based on the features proposed by Lakoff (1975) and the features found in this movie were lexical hedges or fillers, tag questions, ‘empty’ adjectives, intensifier (just and so), ‘hypercorrect grammar (standard verb forms), ‘superpolite forms, and avoidance of strong swear words.
Example: Tag Questions (female)
LEO: I’m done. It’s over. I give up.
LILY: No, you never give up, don’t you?
LEO: No, if were meant to be together, we would be together.
Analysis:
A tag question, then, might be thought of as a declarative statement without the assumsption that the statement is to be believed by the addressee: one has an out, as with a question. A tag gives the adressee leeway, not forcing him to go along with the views of the speaker (Lakoff, 1975:16).
A tag in its usage as well as syntactic shape (in English) is midway between an outright statement and yes-no question; it is less assertive than the former, but more confident than the latter. Therefore it usable under certain contextual situations; not those in which a statement would be appropriate, nor those in which a yes-no question is generally used, but in situations intermediate between this. A tag question may be functioned to express uncertainty
or to ask for agreement. Female is uncertain about something, and indicates this with a tag which signals doubt about what she is asserting.
Here, the tag question used by Lily to express her uncertainty. Actually Lily was certain that there was not over between Leo and Paige. She asked Leo to agree with what she said, she know that Leo and Paige will be together again.
Example: Tag Question (male)
LEO: I know a lot about your family, Paige.
PAIGE: Right, yeah.
LEO: We’re married. You know?
Analysis:
If we compare the tag question of males and females in this movie, it can be said that the tag question from both sides are have the same function and meaning. Both tag question used by females and males can be categorized as speaker-oriented tag since they were used to ask for addressee’s confirmation about speaker’s proporsition. As we could see in the analysis above, we find that Lakoff’s point of view which states that females use more tag question than males is proven in this movie.
Male’s linguistic features analyzed from the utterances spoken by the main character, Leo Collin, and also the supporting characters. There were some male’s linguistic features found in this movie such as the use of multiple negation, in terms of pronounciation they also use – in form rather than –ing form, the use of ungrammatical form, and the use of impolite form like swearing taboo language.
Males and females particularly employed different linguistic style. According to Coates, the differences between male and female language style is shown by verbosity, tag question, questions, command and directives, and swearing and taboo language (Coates, 1986:103). Based on the analysis of linguistic style on males and females, the differences between male and female linguistic style in The Vow movie’s script can be seen in the form of the use of Tag question, question from female to male, question from male to female, the use of verbosity, command and directives, the use of impolite form like swearing and taboo language.
The participants of the conversation are one of the crucial factors which influenced the differences in the use of the swear words between males and females. Swear word is a common feature of speech in conversation of males and females.
Context of situation is the factor which influences the difference between male and female in using the swearing and taboo words. In terms of command and directives, context of situation also influenced the male and female in using the command and directives.
There are some points that can be presented as conclusions of the research. There are some linguistic features of males and females found in the movie’s script: lexical hedges or fillers, tag question, the use of rising or question intonation on declaratives, the use of ‘empty’ adjectives, intensifier (just and so), hypercorrect grammar, superpolite forms, and avoidance of strong swear words. The features emphatic stress are not found in this movie. The linguistic features of male found in this movie are: the use of lexical hedges, the use of ungrammatical form, the use of impolite form like swearing and taboo language. Most of the linguistic features propose by Lakoff and Holmes are showed in this movie. However, there are no features in females’ linguistic features use only by females, because males also use lexical hedges, tag question, and intensifier. In terms of linguistic styles there are found some areas of differences between males and females in this movie. The linguistic styles covered verbosity, tag questions, questions, command and directives, and also swearing and taboo language. In the area of tag questions, Lakoff’s view point that females used more tag questions than males are showed in this movie.
There are some components of context of situation which influenced males and females use different linguistic styles. In terms of tag question, females were used tag questions more than males, this is because females are lack of confidence. In the area of questions, the topic, purpose and participants are the factor which influences the difference between males and females in asking question. In the area of verbosity, the topic is the most crucial factor which influences females to speak in verbose. The speaker and the situation are the factors which influences the difference between males and females in using swearing and taboo words. In terms of commands and directives, the speakers and the situation also influences the males and females in using commands and directives. The males use more forceful directives or direct order to the males rather than to the females.
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