Understanding Figurative Language in Christina Perri's Songs, Study notes of Literature

Download Understanding Figurative Language in Christina Perri's Songs and more Study notes Literature in PDF only on Docsity! CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE This chapter presents the result of reviewing of some theories that are relevant to the problem. The literature review consist of the concept of literature, song, lyric, figurative language, meaning, message, Christina Perri, and Previous Study. A. The Concept of Literature Literature is a term used to describe written or spoken material. The term is most commonly used to refer to works of the creative imagination, including works of poetry, drama, fiction, and nonfiction. According to Cambridge Dictionary Third Edition, literature is “written artistic works, especially those with a high and lasting artistic value”. Literature does not lead itself to a single definition because the making of it over the century has been as complex and natural as the life itself. Some expert have different opinion on their definitions of literature regarding time and social condition. According to Meyer (1988:1) literature is a term used to describe written texts marked by careful use of language, including features such as creative metaphors, well-turned phrases, elegant syntax, rhyme, alliteration, which are aesthetically read or intended by the author to be aesthetically read 9 and are deliberately somewhat open in interpretation. According to Oxford Learner’s Pocket Dictionary, “literature is writings valued as works of art, esp novels, plays and poems”. Jones (1968:1) states “literature is simply another way we can experience the words around us through our imagination”. By having some definition above, the researcher concludes that literature is a way that can be express creation, feeling, and emotion someone in real life through imagination. Literature, in its broadest sense, includes all written material. In the general classification fall history book, novels, poems, philosophical work, plays, scientific article, dictionaries, school text books and magazines. Literature has some benefit such as, when someone reading literature, they can know many knowledge and vocabulary. They can also know differences of British English style and American English style about pronunciation and word style of them. Based on the description above, literature is like art. It is play imagination, but in form text, song, novel or poem. An opinion and perspective about literature is different in every people. However, literature is not things, but a way to comprehend things. B. Song The definition of song is much, from the different source give the similar explanation. In Cambridge Dictionary Third edition, “song is a usually short piece of music with words which are sung”. Meanwhile in The focus of this study is to analyze figurative language that used in lyrics of song. In song, there is some figurative language. In order that, the researcher want to show what is the figurative language used in the song. In here, the researcher chooses research of Christina Perri. In almost all of her song lyrics, figurative language could be found. The songs of Christina Perri is interesting to be heard although the song of long time ago. The lyric of Christina Perri has a hidden meaning. But, if listening the music without know the meaning, it is useful. Listening English music also must know the meaning in order to it is interesting. Figurative language has many kinds, which include: 1. Simile Simile is a direct comparision between things which are not particularly similar in this essence. According to Keraf (2009:138) “simile is comparetion that have an explicit character. Explicit here mean that directly comparing thing that similar with other, Indicates by the word or phrase such as like, as, than, similar, resemble or seems. Reaske (1966:41) said “ a simile calls attention to be comparison through the use of the word “like” or “as”. Based on the theory, simile is comparing two things indirectly, and using the word like or as. In other words, simile is a direct comparision of two things, which are unlike in their sense. For example: ‘Your eyes like a star’ In the example use connective words like. The word ‘her eyes’ is compared with a star. The means is her eyes are brightness like a star in the sky with a glitter. 2. Metaphor According to Keraf (2009:139) “metaphor is a figure of speech which compares two things directly, but in a simple form”. Metaphor cannot use word ‘like’, ‘such as’, ‘as’, ‘similar to’, and ‘resemble’. Reaske (1966:36) said “metaphore is figure of speech which compares one thing to another directly”. Example: ‘She is a most beautiful ladies in my village’ The means is she is a most beautiful ladies compare with another ladies in their village. 3. Hyperbole Mentioned by Keraf (2009:135), “Hyperbole is figure of speech which contains a point statement of exaggeration as it is”. Hyperbole is an exaggeration more than the fact. The language can make attention to the reader and it is an exaggeration of object. According to Reaske, (1966:34), “Hyperbole is figure of speech which employs exaggeration”. Example: “I will waiting you for a thousand years” The means of example is the word ‘thousand years’ is an exaggeration. It is impossible to life until a thousand years because a people life not until a thousand years. 4. Personification Keraf (2009:140), said “Personification is the figurative language that describe a non-life things or non-human object abstraction or ideas able to act like human being”. Meanwhile according to Reaske (1966:88) personification is the process of assigning human characteristic to non- human objects, abstractions and ideas. Personification is a figure of speech in which a thing, an animal, or an abstract term (truth, natural) is made by human. Example : “The sunrise smiling with me” In the example ‘sunrise is an object’ and it is a non-human. So the sunrise cannot smile with the human. 5. Metonymy According to Keraf (2009:142), “Metonymy is a figure of speech that used word closely associated with another word”. Reaske (1966:36) said “metonymy is the subtitution of word closely associated with another word in place that other word”. Methonymy is a close relationship which uses the name of things, a person, or characteristic as a substitute or something itself. 10. Paradox Mentioned by Keraf (2009:136), “paradox is a figure speech that contains real contradiction with someting true”. Reaske (1966:38) said “paradox result when a poet present a pair of ideas, words, images or attitude which are, or appear to be self contradictiory”. In other word, paradox is a condition that not likes the fact. Example : “She feel alone in center of town” For the example, it is a paradox. Maybe she feels alone in her life, but it’s not in center of town. Because if in center of town sure busy. 11. Apostrophe Apostrophe defined as addressing someone absent or something non human as if it was a live and present and could replay to what is being said. Keraf (2009:131) also stated in apostrophe the speaker, instead of addressing directly his proper hearer, turn himself to some other person or thing, either really or only in imagination present. Example : “Actually cannot want to say, but your child very naughty” In the example, in the first she cannot want to say, but actually she also said the fact. 12. Rhetoric As it is mentioned by Prasetyono (2011:52) “rhetoric is a figure of speech by question, which actually does not need to be answered because the answer of the questioner is already contained in the question”. Example: “Did you know what I feel?” In the example, the writer cannot need answer from the listener because the answer contained in the question. 13. Litotes According to Keraf, (2009:132) “Litotes is figure of speech which used to declare something for the purpose degrading them”. A something can be declared less from fact condition. Example: “If there is time, please drop by to my shack” The example is a litotes because actually shack is a big house and luxurious. The writer used word “shack” because to degrading them. 14. Parallelism According to Keraf, (2009:126) “Parallelism is a figurative language to achieve consistency in the use of words or phrases that occupied the same function in the same grammatical form. Example: “The girls that has black or white skin both is beautiful because a beautiful cannot looked from the skin” In the example, it is to shows similarity position. So it includes parallelism. E. Meaning In Cambridge Dictionary Third edition, “the meaning of something is what it expresses or represents”. In linguistics, meaning is what the source or sender expresses, comunicates, or convey in their message to the observer or receiver, and what the receiver infers from the current context. Fedderick (1988:4) said “mastering language is a master of degree and knowing the meaning all of the words”. Understanding meaning is very important to know the message inside the lyric, so many people are necessarily the meaning. By knowing the meaning, a listener can understand about the message inside the lyric and understand what the message that conveyed the writer is. From the explanation above, meaning is a significant quality, especially implication of a hidden or special significance. The idea represented by a word or phrase. According to Al Farisi (2011:48), that reading is translation, and translation is translation for the second time. Second method to get meaning is change the source language to be a target language. However, know the meaning of something is necessarily especially in song.