CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.1. Background and Reason of Choosing the Title

           Literature is the work of human who uses his/her language as a means of

their understanding both oral and written to express what their feeling which beautiful

and also soulful readers. Some form of literary works there are such as poems,

drama, novels and films or movie. And literature is not only divided into two genres,

but it is also divided into three groups: oral literature, literary writing and electronic

literature, and film is the once of many samples of electronic literature.

Electronic literature is a creation which made from a digital process, because

film or movie is an association of many pictures that can make many motions or

sounds to express some feeling of the story and also to send a message what they

want mean to the people who watch that film. Film also can be the one of many kinds

of cultural tools which created by the specific culture and reflect those cultures, in

turn, affect who watch it. Film is considered to be an important art form, a source of

popular entertainment which has a big powerful method for educating and also for

indoctrinating for human.

There are many instances can be a background for making a film, it used to

express a history which related with the real condition of human life in modern era, it

was called a historical film, and America is the biggest state in the world which

produced many films and the films is created by its film industrial named Hollywood.

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But lately, there is a film which made to remember the biggest conspiracy that

changed the future of America, it based on the truth story about the shocking

assassination of the first American president Abraham Lincoln, under the title

“Killing Lincoln”.

Film “Killing Lincoln” is taken from the best seller book of Billy O’relly and

Martin Dougards which the authors want to recount the most dramatic tragedy about

how can one gun can changed American history forever. This film tells about the

journey of John Wilkes Booths, the killer of president to escape from the military

hunting and intelligence staff, and this film also tells about his reason why must the

president killed by his own gun.

The tragedy of Lincoln’s assassination is located at Ford’s theater in

Washington in 14 April 1865, John Wilkes Booths is decide to kill Lincoln at that

place but what he want is not only a killing but also to decapitate the government, to

carry out his action he calls the confederate agent Lewis Powell and David Herold to

kill the secretary of the state who name is William Seward in other location, and

George Azterodt ordered by him to meet the vice president.

1.2. Statement of the Problem

Through this paper, this film has a big value for a history of America, that was

a reason why the writers choose this movie to be a material of this scientific writing,

the big result is the first president of America was killed by a person, his name is

John Wilkes Booths who has against the president’s idealism to make America is a

liberty state, and consider the enslavement law of black man (negro).

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Abraham Lincoln is the first president in United States of America, he is the

unifier of the union, he was come from Illinois as a farmer, but he has a strong desire

to learn the law, and afterwards he become a lawyer and also a the first president of

America.

1.3. Scope of the Problem

This paper limits its discussion on analysing about the history of the shocking

assassination of the first president of America, and the journey of the killer John

Wilkes Booths to escape the military manhunt.

1.4. Method and Procedures of the Analysis

This paper uses descriptive qualitative method. The technique of collecting

the necessary data and ground theory are through library research. The analyst starts

from indentifying the history of Abraham Lincoln before dying by watching a film,

and the reason of the killer by analysis the character by using the ground theory of

character and history.

CHAPTER II

THEORETICAL REVIEW

2.1. Character Definition

Character is one of many part from a drama or novel, it can be the most

important thing that used for some authors to explain their story and also describe

their mean in some story. The character is also the part of intrinsic element in the

novel that is firstly explored by the writer because it takes essential role to display

any behavior of each character in the novel. Referring to their degrees of playing role

in the novel or movie, they can be grouped into two parts such as main and peripheral

character.

A character is a person depicted in a narrative or drama. Characters may be

flat, minor characters; or round, and major. The main character in a story is generally

known as the protagonist; the character who opposes him or her is the antagonist.

Character is revealed by how a character responds to conflict, by his or her dialogue,

and through descriptions. So, there are many characters that used with the authors to

create a sphere between the peripheral character and the main character which is

conduct to send a main message to the reader or movie viewer.

A character occupies a strategic position to bring and convey message, moral

or something that is purposely conveyed to the readers and movie viewer. As Abrams

(1981:20) says that character is people presented in narrative work, or drama

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interpreted by the readers having moral quality and certain tendency as being

expressed in what they say, and what they do.

Describing as a representation of human being, characters of course have all

the good traits and the bad traits of being human. A trait is a meaning of quality of

mind or habitual mode of behavior. It is considered important to start the studying of

characters by determining their traits first, for each character may have different

traits. Sometimes, of course, the traits we encounter are minor and therefore

negligible. But often a trait is a person’s primary characteristic (not only in fiction but

also in life). Thus, characters may be ambitious or lazy, serene or anxious, aggressive

or fearful, thoughtful or inconsiderate, open or secretive, confident or self-doubting,

kind or cruel, quite of noisy, visionary or practical, careful or careless, impartial or

biased, straightforward or underhanded, ‘winners’ or ‘losers’, and so on.

Characters also can be defined as “story doer” or characterization. It is a

whole unity or correlation between a character and his/her characterization, because

it is not rare when mentioning a name of a certain character directly signal us to

his/her characterization. Stanton (1965:17) states that the use of character term itself

in any English literature suggests two different definition, firstly as the characters of

the story presented, and secondly as a behavior, attraction, willing, emotion, and

moral principal that possessed by the characters.

On the other hand, Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs (1195:135) explain

other opinion on how author present their characters. Author use five ways to present

their characters, such as :

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1. Actions

What characters do is our best way to understand what they are. As with ordinary

human being, fictional characters do not necessarily understand how they may be

changing or why they do the things they do. Nevertheless, their actions express their

characters. Actions may also signal qualities such as naïve, weakness, deceit, by

scheming personality traits , and strong inner conflicts, or a realization or growth of

some sort.

2. Description, both personal and environmental Appearance and environment reveal

There are many cases about a character’s social and economic status, but they also

tell us more about character traits.

3. Dramatic statements and thoughts

Although the speechless of most characters are functional –essential to keep the story

moving along- they provide material from which you can draw conclusions. Often,

characters use speech to hide their motives, though we as readers should see through

such a ploy.

4. Statements by other characters

By studying what characters say about each other, you can enhance your

understanding of the character being discussed. Ironically, the characters doing the

talking often indicate something other than what they intend, perhaps because of

prejudice, stupidity, or foolishness.

5. Statements by the author speaking as storyteller or observer

What the author, speaking with the authorial voice, says about a character is usually

accurate, and the authorial voice can be accepted actually. However, when the

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authorial voice interprets actions and characteristics, the author himself or herself

assumes the role of a reader or critic, and any options may be questioned. For this

reason, authors frequently avoid.

2.2. Division of Characters

According to Burhan Nurgiyantoro in his book Theory of fiction Assessment

(1998: 176-191) based on some criteria, the difference of point of view, and

observation, characters can be categorized as below :

2.2.1 Main Character and Peripheral Character

Main character is classified important and kept on performing that it feels

dominating the whole story. The narration of this character is considered as the most

important in a novel concern. He is the most narrated character, whether as the hero

or the one who is affected in the action. Even in certain novels, a main character

always presents in every event and can be found in every page of the novel concern.

Though his superiority values are not always the same, main character in a novel can

be more than one.

There are some characters that are presented only once or a couple of times in

a story, and it may be in a relative short narration. These characters are called

peripheral character. The appearance of peripheral in the whole story is less, not

important, and he appears only if there is connection with the main character, directly

or indirectly.

2.2.2. Protagonist Character and Antagonist Character

Reading a novel, readers often identified themselves with certain characters,

giving sympathy and empathy, involving themselves emotionally on those characters.

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Those characters are called protagonist. Therefore, a protagonist is a character that we

adore which one of its kinds is popularly called hero a character that is norms

manifestation, values, that is ideal for us.

A fiction must consist of conflict and tension, especially conflict and tension

experienced by protagonist character. Antagonist character can possibly be stated to

be the opposite of protagonist character, directly or indirectly, either physically or

physiologically. In other words, the antagonist is the character, force, or collection of

forces that stands directly opposed the protagonist and gives rise to the conflict of the

story.

2.2.3. Simple Character and Complex Character

Simple character, in its origin form, is a character that only has certain

individual quality, one certain character. As a human being character, any possibility

of his life side is not revealed. He does not have any characteristic or behavior that

can give any surprising effect to the readers. A simple character’s behavior and

characteristic is flat, monotone, and reflects only one certain character.

Different with simple character, complex character is a character who has

every possibility of life side and personality is revealed. He could have had a certain

characteristic than can be formulated, but he can also present various characteristic

and behavior, even can be in contradiction and hard to be guessed. Therefore, it is

difficult his characterization precisely in general. Compared with simple character,

complex character is more likely as a real human being, because besides having any

possibility of behavior and action, he also gives surprise. So, complex character is

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more complicated to understand, less familiar because the character presented is not

really known before.

2.2.4. Static Character and Developing Character

Static character is a story character that essentially does not experience any

challenging or developing characterization as the result of events happened. This

character apparently less involved and not affected by any environment changing

happened because of relationship among human being. He is similar to coral stone

that is unshakeable though is rammed by the waves everyday. His behavior and

characteristic are relative consonant, undeveloping, from the beginning to the end of

the story.

On the other side, developing character is a character that experienced

changing and developing characterization in compliance with developing events and

plot narrated. The changing that outside him, and the relationship among human

being which are affected each other can possibly touch his soul and can cause the

changing of his developing character and behavior. Thus, this character and behavior

will change and develop from the beginning, middle, and the end of the story suitable

with the whole coherence on the story.

2.2.5 Typical Character and Neutral Character

Typical character is a character whose individually situation is less presented,

but his nationality or works are more presented, or some other things that possibly

more represent. It is a description and reflection of people, or a group as a part of one

institute, which exist in real life.

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While neutral character is a character that only exists for the story itself. He is

an imaginary character who lives and exists only in fiction. He presents or is

presented only for the story; he could even be the storyteller, or the main character.

His existence does not have any pretensions to represent or to describe something

outside him, someone outside from real life. Or at least, readers experience difficulty

to interpret it, due to the lack of evidences reflected from real life.

2.3. Definition of Characterization

Every character have different traits in their own life’s story, it called

characterization. Characterization is one of the elements of character’s personality

that used to define who the character is. So, characterization is refers to character’s

personality or the method by, which the writer reveals the personality of the

character. Characterization is divided into two parts such as below :

2.3.1. Direct Characterization

Direct characterization is the traits that used by a writer when the writer want

to tells the reader of novel or movie viewer directly about the character’s personality.

Example: “Novy was a kind, caring individual.” It means the writer or author wan to

tell us what the character is like.

2.3.2. Indirect Characterization

Direct characterization is the traits that used by a writer when the writer try to

reveals a character’s personality through his/her actions or dialogue. Example: “Novy

felt so sad when she saw the hurt little hamster that she began to cry. She immediately

approached it to help it get better. “ It means the author or writer want to show us

what the character like.

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2.4. Historical Perspective Definition

Historical Perspective is the way for someone to look at something that taking

into consideration all of the things that have happened with that thing in the past time.

Historical is taken from the basic word history. Meanwhile historical perspective is

belonging to the past, and perspective is the way for someone of thinking about

something.