clare s struggle for a better life as seen ugly a thesis

CLARE’S STRUGGLE FOR A BETTER LIFE AS SEEN

IN CONSTANCE BRISCOE’S UGLY

A THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain Sarjana Pendidikan Degree

in English Language Education

By

Theresia Rita Fibrianingsih

Student Number: 041214076

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA

2010

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI

i



A THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain Sarjana Pendidikan Degree

in English Language Education

By


Student Number: 041214076

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA

2010


ii


iii


iv

STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY

I honestly declare that this thesis, which I have written, does not contain the work

or parts of the work of other people, except those cited in the quotations and the

references, as a scientific paper should.

Yogyakarta, June 15, 2010

The Writer


041214076


v

LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN

PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS

Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma:

Nama : Theresia Rita Fibrianingsih

Nomor Mahasiswa : 041214076

Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan

Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul:



beserta perangkat yang diperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian saya memberikan

kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma hak untuk menyimpan,

mengalihkan dalam bentuk media lain, mengelola dalam bentuk pangkalan data,

mendistribusikan secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di internet atau di

media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya

maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya

sebagai penulis.

Demikian pernyataan ini saya buat dengan sebenarnya.

Dibuat di Yogyakarta

Pada tanggal: 15 Juni 2010

Yang menyatakan,



vi

Nothing in the world is ever completely wrong,

even a stopped clock is right twice a day

(Paulo Coelho)

This thesis is dedicated to my family


vii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

First of all, I would like to devote my gratitude to Almighty God whose

blessing, guidance, and mercy have strengthen me along the hard path of my life. I

would also like to thank Him for the precious lessons I gained through the events

I encountered in life. I also realized that it was all His miracles through people

around me in mysterious ways so that I am able to finish this thesis.

My deepest gratitude goes to my major sponsor Drs. L. Bambang

Hendarto Y., M.Hum. for his patience, guidance, assistance, and useful

feedbacks during the completion of this thesis. I would also like to thank him for

teaching me to regain my courage in fighting this hard life. My sincere gratitude

also goes to all PBI lectures and staffs, who have devoted their work, valuable

knowledge, lessons and experiences during my study in Sanata Dharma

University.

My next thankfulness goes to Mas Joe, who kindly offered me to

proofread this thesis. I thank him for his corrections and suggestions for each

single page of my thesis. My great thanks also go to my cousin Adit, who has

keenly become the link between Mas Joe and me.

I also owe my deepest gratitude to my parents Tarcisius Sunarta and

Maria Marcellina Sutinem, whose endless love and support ask nothing in

returns. I am sincerely grateful to them for teaching me how this life is worth

living. I would also like to thank my sister Yuni, my brother Pelo, and my little

niece Dinda for cheering up every single moment of my life.


viii

Further, I would like to express my appreciation to all my PBI friends,

specifically Anix, Dyand, Rini, Hana, Sari, Pius, Ahmet, and Albert, who have

been very supportive to me. It was great to spend the years with them. My special

thanks go to Yuni for being a good friend. I thank her for her advice and support,

which have encouraged me to be brave in facing reality. My great thankfulness

also goes to Bekti, whose midnight short messages had burnt my spirit to

complete this thesis. I also thank her for the significant ideas shared to me.

I would like to present a bunch of thanks to my boarding house friends for

always encouraging me. I thank Jelly for drawing smiles on my face with her

fresh jokes especially when she noticed that I suffered from this thesis completion.

I thank Tin-Tin for being my loyal company during my midnight hard works. I

also thank Lia for some stuff lent to me. My special thanks go to my cousin

Andin, who has taught me to love reading. I also thank Putri, Tica, Lusy, Mbak

Sofie, Mbak Nigrum, and Mbak Intan, who kept asking me my thesis progress.

My deepest love goes to my partner, Tito Purno Basworo, whose never-

ending support and prayers have kept me going. I thank him for granting me a

space in his heart and letting me be a part of his life. I also thank him for being by

my side in my ups and downs and for being there when I needed at the most.

There are many other people whom I cannot mention here one by one, but

surely, I cannot complete this thesis without their helps and support. God bless

them all.

Rita


ix

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE .................................................................................................. i

APPROVAL PAGES ...................................................................................... ii

STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY ............................................... iv

LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI ............................... v

DEDICATION PAGE ..................................................................................... vi

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .............................................................................. vii

TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................ ix

ABSTRACT .................................................................................................... xii

ABSTRAK ........................................................................................................ xiii

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ................................................................ 1

A. Background of the Study ..................................................................... 1

B. Problem Formulation .......................................................................... 4

C. Objectives of the Study ........................................................................ 4

D. Benefits of the Study ........................................................................... 5

E. Definition of Terms ............................................................................. 5

CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ........................ 7

A. Review of Related Theories ................................................................ 7

1. Character ....................................................................................... 7

a. Definition of Character ........................................................... 8


x

b. Kinds of Character .................................................................. 8

2. Characterization ............................................................................ 10

a. Definition of Characterization ................................................. 10

b. Methods of Characterization ................................................... 11

3. Critical Approach .......................................................................... 13

4. Motivation ..................................................................................... 15

5. Hierarchy of Needs ....................................................................... 17

6. Struggle for Life ............................................................................ 21

B. Theoretical Framework ....................................................................... 22

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ............................................................ 24

A. Object of Study ................................................................................... 24

B. Approach ............................................................................................. 25

C. Procedures ........................................................................................... 26

CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS ......................................................................... 28

A. The Description of Clare ..................................................................... 28

1. Brave ............................................................................................. 29

2. Smart ............................................................................................. 33

3. Confident ....................................................................................... 36

4. Tough ............................................................................................ 40

5. Hardworking ................................................................................. 43

6. Idealistic ........................................................................................ 45


xi

B. Clare’s Struggle for a Better Life ........................................................ 47

1. Causes of Clare’s Struggle ............................................................ 48

a. Her Family Life ....................................................................... 49

b. Her Dreams ............................................................................. 57

2. Clare’s Struggle ............................................................................. 59

a. Working as a Shop Assistant .................................................. 60

b. Working as a Cleaning Service ............................................... 66

c. Working as a Nurse ................................................................. 69

d. Going to University ................................................................. 71

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS .......................... 77

A. Conclusions ......................................................................................... 77

B. Suggestions ......................................................................................... 80

1. Suggestions for Future Researchers .............................................. 80

2. Suggestion for Teaching Learning Activities ............................... 81

REFERENCES .............................................................................................. 84

APPENDICES ............................................................................................... 87

A. Summary of the Novel ........................................................................ 88

B. Biography of the Author ..................................................................... 91

C. Lesson Plan for Teaching Intensive Reading II .................................. 93

D. Materials .............................................................................................. 96


xii

ABSTRACT Fibrianingsih, Theresia Rita. 2010. Clare’s Struggle for a Better Life as seen in Constance Briscoe’s Ugly. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program, Department of Language and Arts Education, Faculty of Teachers Training and Education, Sanata Dharma University.

This study analyzes a novel written by Constance Briscoe entitled Ugly, which pictures the author’s childhood memoir. This novel is worth analyzing since it tells about a human being’s life journey as reflected through the eyes of a girl struggling to cope with the problems she encounters throughout her life and to gain a better life by pursuing her dreams.

The analysis focuses on how Clare, the main character of the novel, manages to struggle in changing her life into a better one. In order to achieve the aim, two problems are discussed in this study. Firstly, it deals with Clare’s portrayal as revealed in the novel. Secondly, it deals with her struggle for a better life, which is divided into two sections namely causes of her struggle and how she struggles to gain a better life.

Library study was employed in this study, in which the primary source was obtained from the novel itself. While the secondary sources were taken from books on psychology and literary theories, and internet sources providing supportive data for this analysis. Theories of character and characterization were applied to answer the first problem. Theories of motivation, struggle for life, and human basic needs were used to discuss the second problem. The psychological approach was employed in this study since it concerned the study of the mind and how it influenced one’s behavior pattern.

Based on the analysis, Clare is portrayed as a brave, smart, confident, tough, idealistic, and hardworking person. Those characteristics are revealed through her personal description, character as seen by others, her speeches, her reactions, direct comments, her thoughts, and mannerisms. Further, the analysis shows that there are two reasons that cause Clare to struggle. Firstly, it deals with her terrible family life caused by her father’s abandonment and her mother’s abuse. Secondly, it deals with her dreams. Therefore, Clare carries out some ways to achieve a better life. The first is working as a shop assistant. The second is working as a cleaning service. The third is working as a nurse. The last is going to university. In her struggles, Clare is able to satisfy some of her basic needs.

It is suggested for future researcher(s) to conduct analysis on the influence of childhood abuse on Clare’s self-esteem. It is also possible to analyze the impact of the absence of love towards Clare’s behavior. The use of this novel as the source for teaching writing is also proposed in this study.


xiii

ABSTRAK Fibrianingsih, Theresia Rita. 2010. Clare’s Struggle for a Better Life as seen in Constance Briscoe’s Ugly. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Bahasa Inggris, Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa dan Seni, Fakultas Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan, Universitas Sanata Dharma.

Skripsi ini menganalisa sebuah novel karya Constance Briscoe yang berjudul Ugly, yang mengambarkan riwayat hidup masa kecil sang pengarang. Novel ini bermanfaat untuk dianalisa karena ini bercerita tentang perjuangan hidup seorang manusia, yang tercermin melalui sudut pandang seorang gadis yang berjuang untuk mengatasi permasalahan yang dihadapi sepanjang hidupnya dan untuk memperoleh hidup yang lebih baik dengan meraih mimpinya.

Analisa berfokus pada bagaimana Clare, tokoh utama dalam novel, berhasil berjuang dalam mengubah hidupnya menjadi lebih baik. Untuk mencapai tujuannya, dua permasalahan dibahas dalam skripsi ini. Pertama, dalam hubungannya dengan gambaran Clare seperti dipaparkan dalam novel. Kedua, dalam hubungannya dengan perjuangan Clare untuk hidup yang lebih baik, yang dibagi menjadi dua bagian yaitu penyebab perjuangannya dan bagaimana dia berjuang untuk memperoleh hidup yang lebih baik.

Penelitian perpustakaan diterapkan dalam skripsi ini, dimana sumber utama diperoleh dari novel itu sendiri. Sedangkan sumber tambahan diambil dari buku-buku tentang teori psikologi dan literatur, serta sumber dari internet yang menyediakan data yang mendukung untuk analisa ini. Teori tokoh dan penokohan digunakan untuk menjawab permasalahan pertama. Teori motivasi, perjuangan hidup, dan kebutuhan dasar manusia digunakan untuk membahas permasalahan kedua. Pendekatan psikologi diterapkan dalam skripsi ini karena ini menyangkut tentang pikiran dan bagaimana hal tersebut mempengaruhi pola tingkah laku seseorang.

Berdasarkan analisa, Clare digambarkan sebagai seorang yang berani, pintar, percaya diri, tegar, idealistis, dan pekerja keras. Karakteristik tersebut ditunjukkan melalui deskripsi personalnya, karakteristik sebagaimana dilihat oleh orang lain, ucapannya, komentar langsung, reaksinya, pemikirannya, dan kebiasaannya. Selanjutnya, analisa juga menunjukkan bahwa ada dua alasan yang menyebabkan Clare berjuang. Pertama, kehidupan keluarganya yang buruk yang diakibatkan oleh penghianatan ayahnya dan penyiksaan ibunya. Kedua, mimpi-mimpinya. Dengan demikian, Clare melakukan beberapa cara untuk memperoleh hidup yang lebih baik. Tindakan pertama adalah bekerja sebagai asisten toko. Tindakan kedua adalah bekerja sebagai pekerja kebersihan. Tindakan ketiga adalah bekerja sebagai perawat. Tindakan terakhir adalah masuk universitas. Dalam perjuangannya, Clare dapat memenuhi beberapa kebutuhan dasarnya.

Disarankan kepada para peneliti yang akan datang untuk mengadakan analisa mengenai pengaruh kekerasan masa kecil terhadap rasa penghargaan diri Clare. Ini juga memungkinkan untuk menganalisa akibat dari ketiadaan cinta terhadap tingkah laku Clare. Penggunaan novel ini sebagai materi untuk mengajar keahlian menulis juga diusulkan dalam skripsi ini.


1

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

This chapter presents background of the study, problem formulation,

objectives of the study, benefits of the study, and the definition of terms. The

background of the study provides the information of the topic and the reason that

becomes the basis of writing this thesis. The problem formulation states the

problems or questions of the study. The objectives of the study aim to answer the

questions stated in the problem formulation. The benefits of the study explain the

advantages and importance of the study. Finally, the definition of terms provides

explanation of some important terms used in the study.

A. Background of the Study

It is doubtless that everyone in this world always wishes for happiness in

life. However, reality is not always the same as what we want. Life is not only

about happiness, as we will face various problems and difficulties, which may

concern family, jobs, friends, financial burden and so on. Although we have

already had great plans throughout our lives, something can always go wrong and

consequently problems will occur whether in predictable or surprising ways.

We cannot avoid the problems emerging in our life since we have no

control of our destiny. Ready or not, problems will come into our life. However,

we must not be fragile or even give up. Although it might be very hard, we still

have to continue our path in life, as we cannot stay in the same place. We must


2

move on and always try to have dreams to hold on since they will strengthen our

efforts to struggle. We must have faith that there is always a bunch of joy behind

sorrow and we must seek for that joy since in fact sorrow exists to show us how

sweet happiness is. All we have to do is struggling to cope with the difficulties

and trying to put our dreams into reality. People have to struggle and survive to

win the battle of their lives. According to McKechnie (367), struggle is a task or

goal requiring much effort to accomplish or achieve. People will keep their

struggle even in their difficult and painful condition to reach their dreams.

Unlike animals, human beings are considered as special since they have

mind to think. When they face problems, they will carry out some efforts to cope

with the problems. Braun, Linder, and Asimov (478-480), state that there are

many life events happening in life forcing people to struggle. These life events

can be death of spouse, divorce, personal injury or illness, gaining a new family

member, family members leaving home, etc. People will react differently toward

life events that occur in their lives. Considering that human beings have

intelligence, they will do anything to overcome the problems emerging in their

lives. They will seek for ideas and ways to solve the problems.

A work of literature can portray human life experiences as such since it is

a reflection of human life. Hudson states that literature is the expression of life

through the medium of language. It can be regarded as something essential since it

portrays real life, experiences, people, thoughts, and people’s feeling about life

(10). An author of literary work observes human life or shares his own

experiences in his work. In addition, novel is the most common medium used to


3

express human life experiences. Van De Laar and Schoonderwoerd (163) say, “A

novel is a work of art in so far as it introduces us into a living word; in some

respects resembling in the world we live in, but with an individuality of its own”.

One of the novelists who presents her life experience in her work is

Constance Briscoe. Her novel entitled Ugly tells us a story of a girl who struggles

for life in a difficult and painful condition. Clare, as she is known, is beaten,

abused, and bullied by her own mother in her early teens. Everything in her life

grows worse since her father, George, abandons his family after winning

Littlewoods Pools. He leaves his wife and his growing brood of children, and only

returns at Christmas time with food and presents in his hands.

Her mother’s treatments toward Clare are getting worse and worse after

her mother finds a new husband. Her mother systematically abuses Clare both

physically and emotionally. Besides, Clare is also never given enough food and

decent clothes. The treatments result on Clare’s anxiety, which makes her piss on

the bed at midnight. Moreover, it just worsens her mother’s treatments on her.

Being told as “ugly” and “germ”, she ever tries to commit suicide.

Her struggle for life begins when she has to earn money working as a shop

assistant at Roses for her Saturday job. At the age of thirteen, her mother simply

moves out from the house, leaving her daughter to fend for herself. There is no

food, no gas, even electricity. Life is getting harder since she has to pay the rent

by living in her mother’s house. Working as a cleaning service too, Clare keeps

struggling in her painful life. In reaching her dream of becoming a barrister, she


4

faces so many obstacles including financial burden. Clare then has to work as a

nurse first before finally she is able to go to university.

Clare’s struggle in her terrible condition makes me amazed. I can see how

she reacts toward different problems occurring in her life. She keeps her efforts to

reach her dreams no matter how hard they are. This story provides me a valuable

lesson that life is hard and full of obstacles. So many problems will certainly

happen in life, and some of them might be very difficult. However, Clare’s spirit

of life teaches me to keep struggling, even in the most terrible situations I have to

deal with. That is why this story is interesting to discuss.

B. Problem Formulation

In analyzing the novel, there are two problems related to the topic of the

study. They can be formulated as follows:

1. How is Clare, the main character, described in the novel?

2. How does Clare struggle for her better life?

C. Objectives of the Study

The objective of the study is to analyze and to find out Clare’s struggle for

a better life as seen in Constance Briscoe’s Ugly. Therefore, there are two

problems need to answer in this study. The first is to find out the characteristics of

Clare, the major character, as revealed in the novel. The second is to find out the

reasons that cause Clare to struggle for life and how Clare manages to survive.


5

D. Benefits of the Study

This study deals with Clare’s struggle for life as seen in Constance

Briscoe’s Ugly. Firstly, this study is hoped to give benefits for the readers

especially the students of English Education study program of Sanata Dharma

University. Hopefully, this study will deepen their understanding and broaden

their knowledge about life through literary work. Moreover, the readers can grasp

and implement important values revealed in this novel into their own life.

Secondly, for future researchers who intend to conduct researches on the

same novel, I hope that this study will provide important information on

Constance Briscoe’s Ugly and also offer some beneficial information about the

main character, the causes of her struggle for life, and how she struggles to gain a

better life.

Finally, for me the writer, I can learn some important values through this

novel since it is a reflection of human life experience. This story teaches me to

struggle and not to surrender even in the most difficult situation I have to face. It

encourages me to reach my dreams although some problems, including the terrible

one may arise in my life. It inspires me not only to hold on my dreams, but also to

make them happen.

E. Definition of Terms

It is important to clarify the meanings of some significant terms used in

this study to avoid misunderstanding and to give clearer explanation to the readers


6

in reading this study. For that purpose, some related terms are defined and

presented as follows:

1. Struggle

According to McKechnie (367), struggle is a task or goal requiring much

effort to accomplish or achieve. While Abate says that struggle means “make

violent or determined efforts under difficulties” (1514). In this study, struggle

refers to a person’s effort to survive in dealing with difficult condition in her

life in order to reach her dreams and gain a better life.

2. Better life

Hornby states that life refers to a way in which somebody lives or condition of

an individual existence (1120). While according to Webster, better means in a

more acceptable, appropriate or effective way (133). Thus, in this study better

life means a condition in which a person feels more comfortable in dealing

with her problems.

3. Character

Abrams defines character as the person in a dramatic or narrative work, who is

interpreted by the reader as being endowed with moral, disposition, and

emotional qualities expressed in what they say through dialogue and what they

do (23). In this study, character is the person presented by the author to build

story through his action and expression.


7

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter discusses theories that support the analysis of the thesis. In

order to understand the theories that underlie this thesis, this chapter is divided

into two parts. The first part is review of related theories. It contains the theory of

character and characterization, theory of critical approach, theory of motivation,

hierarchy of needs, and struggle for life. The second part is theoretical framework.

A. Review of Related Theories

This section presents relevant theories that are used as the basis in

analyzing the novel. They are theory of character and characterization, which

help me to find out the description of the main character. Theory of critical

approach is an important element in this section to make a better understanding on

the work of literature. Theory of struggle for life, motivation, and hierarchy of

needs help me to find out the struggle dealing with the main character.

1. Character

Characters play an important role in a work of literature, especially a

novel. Van De Laar and Schoonderwoerd say that characters in a novel must be

like actual human beings in order to present the story lively. A novelist observes

human beings in real life, and then he re-fashions and re-creates them

imaginatively to construct likely human being characters (165-166). Therefore,

the existence of characters in a story is considered significant.


8

a. Definition of Character

A character conveys a significant role in a story. Besides wondering what

will happen next, we will also ask to whom it may happen while reading a story. It

means that character is one of the most important aspects of a story. Abrams (23-

24), states that characters are the persons presented in a dramatic or narrative

work who are later on interpreted by the readers from their say and actions. What

they say and do show their “moral, dispositional, and emotional qualities”. Their

dispositional and moral qualities may remain stable from the beginning to the end

of the story, or may have some changes either through a gradual process or in a

shocking way.

Stanton (17) in An Introduction to Fiction defines character into two

meanings. Firstly, it refers to any individuals who present in the story. Secondly, it

is described as “the mixture of interests, desires, emotions, and moral principles

that makes up each of these individuals”. Therefore, character here can be defined

as any individuals who present in a story that bring the mixture of interests,

desires, emotions, and moral principles as their personality.

b. Kinds of Character

According to Forster (46-54), there are two kinds of character. They are

flat characters and round characters. Flat characters are usually created around a

single idea or trait. These kinds of character are often called as caricatures and

they can usually be summed up in a single phrase. These characters are relatively

simple and can be observed through a certain angle. One great advantage of flat

characters is that they are easily noticed whenever they present in a story. Another


9

advantage is that the readers can easily remember these flat characters. They are

static and remain stable in the story. The readers will exactly understand what will

happen to these characters and their reaction toward a certain situation can be

easily predicted. Nevertheless, flat characters have an important function in

creating a certain circumstance or situation in a story.

While round characters are complex and many-sided. They are built

around several or even many traits of human nature that form them become

complex personalities. Round characters are varied in temperament and

motivation. Different from flat characters, they are able to surprise the readers in

convincing ways. They always have the incalculability of actual life and they may

in many cases act differently from what the readers expect. Furthermore, these

round characters cannot be only described in a single phrase.

Henkle (88-97) divides character into two namely major character and

secondary character. A major character is the center of a story. It is the most

important and complex character in the story. Usually, this kind of character can

be recognized through its complexity of characterization and attention given to by

the other characters and the readers. Therefore, major character deserves the

fullest attention as it performs a key structural function: upon her/him, the readers

build expectations and desires.

On the other side, a secondary character performs functions that are more

limited. Generally, this kind of character is used to construct a composite picture

of the human condition that is at issue in the novel. In other words, it functions to

inhabit the world in the novel and establish the context of the time and the society.


10

These characters only appear in certain scenes of the story. They may be less

sophisticated and less intense, so that their responses to the experience are less

complex and interesting.

Holman and Harmon (83) propose two kinds of character namely static

and dynamic. A static character is one that changes a little or does not change at

all in his outlooks or personalities during the course of the story because there is

nothing happening within. It can be said that at the end of the story the character

pretty much what he was at the start. In contrast, a dynamic character is modified

by actions and experiences as the story progresses, which influence the character

to undergo changes. The changes can be for better or for worse, a little or a big

one. However, it is something important and basic, and more than minor changes

in opinion.

2. Characterization

Understanding the theory of characterization is considered essential in

analyzing the characters that appear in the novel. This part is divided into two.

The first is the definition of characterization, while the second concerns on the

ways of characterization.

a. Definition of Characterization

Rohrberger and Woods, Jr. (20), state that characterization is the processes

or procedures employed by an author to create character. This creation of the

character includes particular personalities and physical attributes. Moreover,

Holman and Harmon (81) define characterization as the creation of an imaginary

person in the story. The aim that lies beneath this creation is to make the


11

imaginary person exists for the readers as lifelike or seen as real. In sum up,

characterization can be defined as the process of creating an imaginary person in a

novel that is lifelike for the readers.

b. Methods of Characterization

In relation to the ways of characterization, Murphy in Understanding

Unseens (161-173) mentions nine elements to make the characters understandable

and come alive for his readers. They are personal description, character as seen by

another, speech, past life, conversation of others, reactions, direct comment,

thoughts, and mannerisms.

Each element will be explained as follows:

1) Personal Description

Here, an author attempts to describe a person in the story through his

appearance and the way he wears clothes.

2) Character as Seen by Another

Instead of describing a person directly, the author can describe him through

the eyes and opinions of another person. The reader can get the description of

the person through another person’s judgment.

3) Speech

The author tries to give description of the person through what he says.

Whenever a person speaks, whenever he is in conversation with another,

whenever he puts forward an opinion, the author is giving us some clues to his

character. In brief, it can be said that the reader can get the description of the

person trough his daily speech in the novel.


12

4) Past Life

The author can give the readers clues to events that have helped to shape a

person’s character by letting the readers learn something about a person’s past

life. The readers will be able to notice the clues by paying attention to the

direct comments by the author, through the person’s thoughts, through his

conversations or through the medium of another person.

5) Conversation of Others

The author gives the readers clues to a person’s character through the

conversation of other people and the things they say about him. What people

say about a person gives us clues to the character of the person spoken.

6) Reactions

By letting the readers know how a person reacts to various situations and

events, the author gives the readers a clue to the person’s character.

7) Direct Comment

Here, the author can describe or comment on a person’s character directly.

8) Thoughts

The author gives the readers direct knowledge what a person is thinking about.

In other words, the readers can understand the person’s character by simply

knowing what he is thinking.

9) Mannerisms

The author describes a person’s mannerisms, habits, or idiosyncrasies.

Moreover, by knowing how the person behaves and acts in the novel, the

reader will be able to understand the person’s character.


13

Barnet, Burto, and Chain (229) propose other ways of characterization.

They propose four aspects that can be used to determine a person’s character. The

first is from what the character (the person) says. It means that the words

expressed in opinions and dialogues by the character in the story are clues for the

readers to know his characteristics. However, we as the readers consider that what

he says need not to be taken at a face value; the character may be hypocritical, of

self-deceived, or biased. The second way is from what the character does. Here,

the reader will be able to notice the characteristics though the character’s actions,

including his movements, gestures, and body languages. The third is from other

characters say about the character. It also includes other characters’ comment and

opinion about him. The last is from what others do. It includes the description of

other characters’ action toward this character whether they like him or not and

how they behave toward him.

3. Critical Approach

According to Rohrberger and Woods, Jr. (3), every literary work has an

aesthetic value. After reading a literary work, the readers will be able to response

to its aesthetic value. In addition, the response itself is called as aesthetic

response. In order to be able to response to the aesthetic value of literary work,

knowing and understanding critical approaches is extremely required. Rohrberger

and Woods, Jr. (6-15) propose five kinds of critical approaches. They are:

a. The Formalist Approach

This approach totally focuses on the aesthetic value and the integrity of the

literary piece. The harmonious involvement of all the parts to the whole is


14

regarded as important, including the derivation of the meaning from its

structure and consideration of the techniques toward the structure.

b. The Biographical Approach

An appreciation of the author’s idea and personality is emphasized by this

approach. Moreover, proponents of biographical approach employ the

biography of the author as the basis of analysis. They attempt to learn as much

as possible about the life and the development of the author. Then apply this

knowledge in understanding and analyzing his work.

c. The Socio Cultural-Historical Approach

The main concern of this approach is to take into account the civilization in

which a work was created as the reference in analyzing the work itself. The

proponents of this approach believe that the social and culture condition

including the attitudes and the actions of people will have great influences to

the author in producing the work. Therefore, they point out that it is necessary

to investigate the social condition where a work was created.

d. The Mythopoeic Approach

In understanding a literary work, this approach emphasizes on finding

particular recurrent pattern of human thoughts. These patterns are considered

sharing the same universal belief to certain community mind. They often

concern death and rebirth, guilt and sacrifices, primitive rites, and theological

aspects of Christian doctrine, which are commonly found in ancient myths and

folk terms. Therefore, the mystical relationship in a story can be explained by

this approach.


15

e. The Psychological Approach

The focus of this approach is to identify any aspects of psychology underlying

a certain element of a literary work. The theory of human psychology is used

in this approach to analyze the character’s behavior, motivation, and

personality pattern that can be interrelated to the psychology of human being.

This psychology approach involves efforts to locate and demonstrate a

recurrent pattern. Therefore, this approach gives a deeper understanding in

analyzing character’s thought and how it influences the behavior pattern.

One thing that should always be our consideration is that every approach

has its own characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses. Not all approaches can be

applied to a certain literary work. In contrast, no single approach will suit to all

kinds of literary work. Therefore, this is our responsibility to determine what kind

of approach that will lead us to have a better understanding and comprehension of

a literary work. We must be able to choose the most appropriate approach that will

be the best suit to our analysis.

4. Motivation

People may think that motivation and emotion are the same terms since

they both direct us to conduct actions. However, they cannot be interpreted as the

same. They are so closely related, but they are different. Morris (408) defines

motive as an inner directing force, a need, or a want that arouses the organism and

directs behavior toward a goal. While emotion refers to the experience of such

feelings as fear, joy, surprise, or anger. Like motives, emotions also activate and

affect behavior. However, it is more difficult to predict what kind of behavior will


16

result from emotion. In contrast, it is clearly seen that a motive will result a goal-

directed behavior.

Kalish (30) states that motivation is a concept, not a thing. It cannot be

seen, heard, or even touched. However, it is able to direct us to a certain behavior.

He explains that motivated behavior is a behavior set into motion by a need. A

need indicates that some type of satisfaction is lacking and implies that the

organism is activated to reduce the dissatisfaction. All human behavior is

motivated, even if the person is not necessarily aware of his motives at the time of

behavior. This motivation is strong enough to activate goal-seeking behavior,

which begin with agitated feelings and end with behavior that satisfied person’s

need. In addition, the more motivated a person is, the harder he will work to

satisfy his need.

According to Bootzin, Loftus, Zajonc, Blake, Lo Piccolo, Holahan, and

Scarr (367) human behavior is organized and guided by some purposes and it

leads to some end state, which may be a goal or the satisfaction of some needs.

The dynamic behavior that gives its organization over time and that defines its end

state is called a motive, and the corresponding process is called motivation.

Another definition of motivation is proposed by Jung. Jung (4) states that

motivation refers to such diverse states as desires, wishes, plans, goals, intents,

impulses, and purposes. Here, motives are referred to the causes or reasons that

underlie a given behavior. Jung also points out that motivation involves the

persistence of behavior over time so that sustained efforts can occur even if

obstacles or setbacks occur. In addition, Worchel and Shebilske categorize motive


17

into two groups. The first is primary motives. They concern biological needs that

are considered as vital and for survival. They include hunger, thirst, the need for

air, rest, and sexual desire. The second group consists of social motives. These

motives come from learning and social interaction. They include the needs for

affiliation, aggression, and achievement.

In summary, motivation can be defined as a specific need, desire, or want

that arouse and direct behavior toward a goal. This need, desire, or want will make

people keep their efforts to achieve their goals. When a person has already set his

motivation up, efforts can occur even if obstacles and difficulties also occur in his

life. Motivation is also able to lead people behave in certain actions that support

them in achieving their goals. Therefore, by being motivated, it will keep people

struggling in accomplishing their goal.

5. Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow in Goble’s The Third Force, says that people conduct actions to

fulfill their needs (38). He states, “The human being is motivated by a number of

basic needs which are species-wide, apparently unchanging, and genetic or

instinctual in origin”. It can be said that motivation is shaped from human basic

needs. When people need and want something, then it will be their motivation to

achieve it in many ways.

Maslow as quoted in Goble (38-42) proposes seven human basic needs,

but only five needs, which are discussed in this study. They are physiological

needs, the safety needs, the belongingness and love needs, the esteem needs, and

the self-actualization needs. These five basic needs are also known as the


18

hierarchy of needs. Maslow also points out that these needs are interrelated and

they cannot be treated as separate. It means that a person who thinks he is hungry

may actually be feeling lack of love and security or some other needs.

Furthermore, he argues that the lowest needs have to be satisfied first before the

higher-level needs of the hierarchy are satisfied. When people have sufficiently

fulfilled the lowest needs, they will move forward to the higher needs (qtd. in

Goble 39).

The explanation of each need is as follows:

a. Physiological Needs

The most powerful and important of all basic needs are the needs for physical

survival. They include the needs for food, liquid, shelter, sex, sleep, and

oxygen. Maslow in Goble (38) points out “For the man who is extremely

hungry, no other interests exist but food. He dreams food, he remembers food

… and he wants only food.” It means that this physiological need must be

fulfilled first before fulfilling the next higher needs.

b. Safety Needs

According to Maslow, once the physiological needs are sufficiently satisfied,

the safety needs emerge. Needs for security, stability, protection, order, and

freedom from fear, anxiety, and physical violence are included in the safety

needs. In fulfilling safety needs, people in general will seek for consistency,

fairness, and certain amount of routine in life. When his life is in danger, a

man will consider other higher needs as unimportant. He will seek for security

and protection from the things that are considered as harmful. The preference


19

of a job with tenure and financial protection, the establishment of saving

account and insurance may be regarded as motivated by safety seeking (qtd. in

Goble 39-40).

c. Belongingness and Love Needs

These needs of belongingness and love emerge primarily when the

physiological and safety needs have been met. People satisfy their love needs

by establishing an intimate and caring relationship with another person or with

people in general. Moreover, this relationship is just as important to give love

as to receive it. Maslow also adds that love involves a healthy and loving

relationship between two people, which include mutual trust. Everybody needs

love. Therefore, lack of love can stop the individual growth and his potential

development (qtd. in Goble 40-41).

d. Esteem Needs

The needs for self-esteem can become dominant when the first three classes of

needs are sufficiently satisfied. Maslow as quoted in Goble (42) distinguishes

two types of esteem needs; self-respect and esteem from others. Self-esteem

includes such needs as desire for confidence, competence, mastery, adequacy,

achievement, independence, and freedom. While, externally derived esteem

can be based on recognition, acceptance, attention, reputation, appreciation,

admiration, status, fame, prestige, or social success, and all characteristics of

how others think of us and react to us. When we feel a sense of self-esteem,

we are confident and secure in ourselves; we feel worthy and adequate.

Furthermore, we will be capable to complete life’s demands. In contrast, when


20

we lack of self-esteem, we feel inferior, discouraged, and helpless in facing

this life. As an addition, Maslow also points out that the healthiest self-esteem

is based on deserved respect from others.

e. Self-Actualization Needs

According to Maslow, if we have satisfied all of these needs, we are then

driven by the highest need called the need for self-actualization. Self-

actualization can be regarded as the best development and use of all our

abilities, the fulfillment of all our qualities and capacities. We must become

what we have the potential to become. Briefly, it deals with the identification

of the psychological need for growth, development, and utilization of

potential. A self-actualizing person makes maximum use of his abilities,

develops his talents and potentials, and becomes the sort of person he really is

(qtd. in Goble 42).

All the basic needs mentioned above are important. However, it depends

on the ability of each individual to fulfill his needs. Every people will have

different process while fulfilling the needs and they may not appear as mentioned

above. Maslow as quoted in Goble (45-46) also cautions against viewing the

hierarchy of needs too precisely. We should not assume that security needs do not

emerge until the need for food is entirely satisfied, or that the need for love does

not emerge before the need for safety is fully satisfied. Most people have partially

satisfied most of their basic needs, but they still have some unsatisfied basic

needs. Therefore, these unsatisfied needs will have the greatest influence on

behavior.


21

6. Struggle for Life

Problems will always occur in our life. These problems are various. They

might be easy or even very difficult. When people face problems, they have to

struggle to overcome the problems. According to Abate (1514) struggle means

“make violent or determined efforts under difficulties”. People will make some

efforts and keep struggling in dealing with problems emerging in life.

Struggle may also be interpreted as person’s strategies to protect him from

problems in life. Bernard says, “Individuals also may consciously and rationally

implement strategies that enable them to cope with the stresses and problem of

life”. When people face problems, they will seek for ideas and strategies to cope

with the problems. Although it is sometimes painful and difficult, people will find

ways of resolving the problems in life by struggling.

Braun, Linder, and Asimov (479-480) in Psychology Today state that there

are many life events happening in life. These life events will force people to

struggle in their life. These life events can be death of spouse, divorce, personal

injury or illness, gaining a new family member, family members leaving home,

etc. While dealing with these problems and challenges of life, people will need to

adjust. Therefore, how people react to all these events is one aspect of the process

called adjustment.

Adjustment is a process of coping with events, challenges, problems, and

difficult situations that occur throughout our life. This adjustment is divided into

three major categories. The first category is problem solving. When dealing with

problems, people will seek for the solutions. By facing various problems in life,


22

our problem solving skill will automatically develop. The second category is

acceptance of the situation. It is sometimes better for us to accept the problems

and its consequences, as there is no solution for it. However, we have to be careful

with unconsidered acceptance. Sometimes we accept consequences that we could

have avoided. The third category is defense mechanisms such as repression and

denial. These defense mechanisms are very helpful in alleviating stress and

anxiety while dealing with difficult situations. Still, there is a danger too. Overuse

of these defenses can create severe disturbances (Braun, Linder, and Asimov 478).

According to McKechnie (367), struggle is a task or goal requiring much

effort to accomplish or achieve. People struggle because they have goal that

motivate them. They have dreams to achieve. Therefore, they will give the

greatest effort to accomplish the dreams. It keeps them struggling, even in the

most difficult situation. When people fail to reach their goal, they will struggle

from the unpleasant experience. They can learn positive things from their struggle.

Each person believes that he needs struggle since he realizes that all of his efforts

will satisfy him.

B. Theoretical Framework

The approach and theories I have discussed above are used to help to

analyze this novel. They will be applied to answer the problems of this study. In

this part, I would like to explain which approach and theories used and how they

are applied in the analysis.


23

The first aim of the study is to find out the description of Clare as the

major character in the novel. The theories of character by Forster and Henkle are

used to find out what types of character Clare is. I use the theory of character by

Forster to find out whether Clare is flat or round character. The theory of character

proposed by Henkle is used to determine what short of character Clare is, major or

secondary character. Furthermore, I apply the methods of characterization by

Murphy to dig out the complexity of Clare’s character. This theory helps me to

discover and obtain the description of Clare’s character revealed in the novel.

The second objective is to find out the causes of Clare’s struggle, her

motivation to struggle, and her struggle for a better life. The theories used are

theory of motivation, struggle for life and human basic needs. The theory of

motivation is used to analyze Clare’s motivation to struggle for life. While the

theory of struggle for life is used to find out the causes of Clare’s struggle and

how she reacts in dealing with the problems she encounters in life. I use Maslow’s

theory of human basic needs to analyze what basic needs that cause Clare to

struggle for a better life and how she struggles to fulfill those needs. Therefore,

those theories will be very helpful in analyzing this novel.


24

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents the methodology of the study, which can be divided

into three parts. The first part is object of study. It describes the novel Ugly and

the focus of the study. The second part is the approach. It states the approach that

is used in the study. The third part is the procedure. It explains the steps conducted

in analyzing the novel.

A. Object of Study

The novel analyzed in this study is entitled Ugly. It was written by

Constance Biscoe as a memoir of her childhood. Printed in paperback, this novel

consists of 433 pages, which is divided into 25 chapters. It was published in Great

Britain in 2006 by Hodder and Stoughton.

The novel Ugly by Constance Briscoe starts with the description of Clare’s

family members. Her mother, Carmen, is a Jamaican. George, her father, comes

from Portland. They meet in England, and then decide to get married. They have

six children. As the third daughter, Clare has three sisters and two brothers.

Her mother gives Clare treatments that are extremely different from the

treatments given to her other sisters and brothers. In her early teens, she is beaten

and abused by her own mother. The starting point of all problems is her father’s

abandonment. After winning Littlewoods Pools, he leaves his family and only

returns at Christmas time with food and presents in his hands. Her mother’s


25

treatments toward Clare grow worse after her mother gets a new husband named

Eastman. They both abuse Clare physically and emotionally. Being considered as

ugly, Clare is never given enough food and decent clothes. The treatments

increase the intense of her anxiety. It results her wetting on her bed while she is

sleeping. Moreover, it just worsens her mother’s treatment on her.

Although often finding difficult situations and terrible conditions, Clare

manages to struggle and survive to win the battle of her life. She starts to earn

money by working as a shop assistant at Roses for her Saturday job to fulfill her

needs. At the age of thirteen, she is left alone by her mother. She has to fend for

herself. Working as a cleaning service too, she keeps struggling in these difficult

situations. Handling up a number of different jobs at a time, Clare at last manages

to enter university and is qualified as a barrister.

Constance Briscoe as the author tries to share her experiences in facing

problems and terrible conditions in her life. She tries to point out that people must

survive and struggle in life. Moreover, in achieving their dreams, obstacles that

appear in life should be faced and overcame. This novel is hoped to inspire people

in general to not only hold their dreams, but also to make them come true.

B. Approach

In order to have a better understanding of a work of literature, applying

critical approach is required. Rohrberger and Woods, Jr. (6-15) propose five kinds

of critical approach. They are the formalist approach, the biographical approach,

the socio cultural–historical approach, the mythopeic approach, and the


26

psychological approach. While in this study, I apply the psychological approach

as the basis of the analysis. Since the psychological approach focuses to identify

any aspect of human psychology underlying a work of literature, I use it to dig out

the main character’s personality, thought, motivation, and behavior pattern.

Psychology is a study that deals with mind and how it influences behavior. That is

why I apply the psychological approach to find out how Clare’s personality is

revealed in the novel through her thoughts and actions.

Furthermore, the psychological approach is employed to analyze how

Clare, the major character of this novel, manages to survive and struggle in facing

problems and setbacks emerging in her life. It is used to discover what strategies

in psychology Clare carries out to cope with the problems. This psychology

approach is also applied to explore what aspects that motivate Clare to struggle

and how those aspects influence her behavior to struggle for a better life.

C. Procedures

This part explains the steps taken in conducting this study. This study was

conducted by applying library study. The main procedures done were reading and

taking important notes, which gave great benefits in analyzing the novel. In

applying this method, I read some resources as the reference to answer the

questions stated in the problem formulation. The primary source was taken from

the novel written by Constance Briscoe, Ugly. While the secondary sources were

books I collected to support the analysis, such as theory of character, motivation,

human basic needs, and other resources accessed from the internet.


27

In analyzing this novel, I conducted some steps. The first step was

choosing an interesting novel to discuss. My consideration came to a novel written

by Constance Briscoe entitled Ugly. This novel attracted me since it is a true story

of the author. As real life experiences of the author, this novel provides me with

some valuable insights. After reading the novel for several times, I found a great

topic to discuss. I was interested in Clare’s struggle in her terrible life. Although

she faces so many problems and painful condition, she keeps surviving and

struggling to have a better life. Then, I decided to analyze Clare’s struggle and to

have a deeper understanding on how she manages to survive in her life.

After deciding the topic, I formulated some problems to discuss. This

problem formulation led me to search as many as possible resources that would

help me in analyzing the novel. I read some books discussing theories that could

support my analysis. They were theory of character and characterization, theory of

motivation, theory of human basic needs, and theory of struggle for life. Besides, I

also read some articles from the internet related to the novel.

After having enough data as the basis of my study, I began to analyze the

novel. At first, I tried to dig out the description of Clare as the major character of

the novel. Then I analyzed what reasons that cause Clare to struggle in life and

how she manages to survive in dealing with her needs satisfaction.

The last step was drawing conclusions based on the analysis. I also stated

some suggestions for future researchers who intend to conduct study on the same

novel. Besides that, I tried to give the implementation for teaching learning

activities.


28

CHAPTER IV

DISCUSSION

This chapter is divided into two parts. The first part is the answer to the

description of Clare, the main character of the novel. The second part concerns the

struggle of Clare to have a better life.

A. The Description of Clare

Character plays an important role in a story. Readers will pay their

attention to the characters in the story. There are various types of character.

According to Henkle (88-97), there are two kinds of character namely major

character and secondary character. A major character is the center of the story. He

becomes the focus of the story and plays the most important role in the story. On

the other hand, a secondary character plays less function in the story. Therefore, it

helps to establish the context and situation of a story. Based on the theory

proposed by Henkle, Clare is considered as the major character in which the

readers put their fullest attention. Clare plays the most important role and becomes

the focus of the story.

Another theory of character is proposed by Forster, who divides it into two

namely flat and round characters (46-54). A flat character is usually created

around single idea or trait. In contrast, a round character is built around several or

even many traits that shape him become a complex personality. In line with

Forster’s theory, Clare is considered as a round character since she is built around


29

several ideas or traits of human nature. She has a complex personality. Moreover,

she is also varied in temperament and motivation.

To analyze the characteristics of Clare, the theory of characterization by

Murphy is applied. According to Murphy there are nine ways of characterization

(161-173). They are personal description, character as seen by another, speech,

past life, conversation of others, reactions, direct comment, thoughts, and

mannerism. However, there are only several ways that are used to describe and

analyze the characteristics of Clare. In this novel, Clare is described as brave,

smart, confident, tough, hardworking and idealistic.

1. Brave

In her childhood, Clare is abused by her own mother both physically and

emotionally. Never given enough and decent clothes, she keeps struggling for her

life. Although her mother often beats her, Clare is still brave to have contact with

her mother. Clare is brave to sue her mother to get what she deserves as her child.

Even when she knows exactly what will happen if she fights against her mother,

Clare never buries her courage. Besides, Clare also has the bravery to face

difficulties and to do what she thinks as right in her life.

Clare’s bravery can be seen through her thought. A few days before she

starts her school at Sacred Heart, Clare asks her mother to hand her some money

to buy a new pair of shoes. Instead of giving the money, her mother asks Clare to

try on and to choose one pair of the shoes collected from the ante-room. Although

her mother refuses to give her some money, Clare still has an intention to ask for

the money again later since the money is given by her father and it belongs to


30

Clare and her sisters. She is brave enough to fight against the injustice happening

in her life.

I had no opportunity to ask again for our money. Not to worry. I went upstairs to find my sisters. The shoes were a bit tight and pinched my feet. By the time I got to my sisters’ room I needed to take them off. I told Four Eyes and Precious Puss that our mother had not given the money, but I would try again later (Briscoe 95). Her speeches also show how brave Clare is. Although her mother decides

not to give the money, Clare still has the bravery to ask again. She keeps

struggling to get what she deserves. Even when she realizes that her state of

opinion will cause a problem, her bravery leads Clare to ask for the money again.

As a result, her mother slaps her face with wet shirt pulled out from the washing

machine.

‘Can we have our money, Mummy?’ I said. ‘We would like to go shopping,’ ‘What money?’ she said. ‘Our money that Dad gave us.’ ‘What money?’ ‘Our money to buy our shoes. We would like to go to the market.’ ‘What for?’ ‘What for what?’ I said. ‘Why do you need shoes?’ ‘I need because I don’t have any for school,’ I said (Briscoe 96). Her bravery can also be seen when Clare asks her mother the dress for her

First Communion. Her mother gives her a second-hand dress, which is not white

and has a stain down the back. When Clare shows the dress to her sisters, Patsy

and Pauline, they simply say that Clare should ask her mother for the dress that is

used for their First Communion. Since Clare has a big courage, she then decides

to ask her mother for the dress. She is not afraid that her action will put her

mother into anger. She does not like the dress given by her mother. However,


31

when Clare asks her mother for the dress used by Pauline and Patsy before, her

mother plainly says that it is not hers. At last, Clare has to use the dress given by

her mother for she has no other choices (Briscoe 125-126).

Clare is courageous to fight against her mother’s treatments toward her.

Once her mother asks Clare to give all the money she earns by working as a shop

assistant at Roses, a ladies’ dress shop, but she refuses. She is brave to fight in

defending what she owns.

‘Well, how much do you want?’ ‘By rights you should give it all to me.’ ‘Then there would be no point in working. I might as well to stop now.’ ‘That’s your business, no one forced you to get a job.’ ‘It’s my money and I worked for it.’ (Briscoe 224-225). Clare is brave enough to state what she is thinking. When Eastman mocks

and shouts at her, Clare has the courage to answer back. She is not afraid that

Eastman is going to hurt her. When Eastman calls her as a fucking shithouse,

Clare answers back. She mocks him back as a big stupid man since he cannot

read. Besides, Clare also points out if he cooks his name in the frying pan,

Eastman will eat it for he will not recognize it. Moreover, Clare also calls him as a

stupid fool (Briscoe 131). She is very brave in fighting against Eastman’s

mocking.

One occasion, her mother punches her in the back of her head and forces

Clare forward until she falls onto the stairs. Unconsciously Clare states her

opinion that later when she has her own children she will never hit them.

Although she is beaten by her mother, she is never afraid to say what is in her

mind (Briscoe 110). She never cares about her mother’s later beatings.


32

How she reacts to people also shows her bravery. When someone has an

attempt to beat her, Clare will fight back bravely. Clare struggles to fight the

injustice. She will never let anyone to hurt herself. Once she is in the school

playground, her friend, Mary, tries to push Clare out of her way. However, Clare

never lets someone beat her. She then gains the courage to fight back.

We had a fall-out in the school playground when she tried to push me out of her way. I pushed her back. She hit me and I hit her back. We had words and we were not speaking to each other. The truth was, we did not like each other (Briscoe 80). When she is twelve, her relationship with Eastman is getting worse. Every

time she has a quarrel with Eastman, Clare never lets him hurt her. Anytime

Eastman beats her, she will beat him back. Once when they have an argument,

Eastman punches her. Yet, Clare does not remain silent, she punches him back.

When Eastman grabs her, Clare hits him in the stomach and stamps on his giant

feet (Briscoe 130). Clare is a sort of person who has a big courage to struggle in a

fight.

One day, Eastman tries to beat Bem since he witnesses that Eastman

attacks Clare. While Bem is on his way downstairs, Eastman tries to pull him

down the stairs. Knowing that, Clare does an attempt to save Bem. She is brave to

attack Eastman, trying to save the old Bem.

Bem was having a fit on his bottom and Eastman, stupid Eastman, could not have cared less. I took a running jump and landed on Eastman’s back and started to punch him in the head and pull his eyelashes out as he tugged at Bem’s leg. ‘Quick, Bem,’ I said. ‘Go back upstairs.’ ‘Wait,’ said Eastman. ‘Who the body on my back?’ ‘Quick, Bem,’ I said. ‘Go.’ Eastman refused to release Bem’s leg and had managed to pull him down the stairs. I stuck my fingers in Eastman’s eyes and pulled his ears in order


33

to get him to let Bem go. I pressed my knees into his back then I grabbed him and punched him twice in the neck (Briscoe 308). Through her thought, speeches, and reactions, it is obvious that Clare is a

brave person. She has the courage to fight against the injustice in her life. She is

never afraid of the risks that will happen by fighting her mother back.

2. Smart

Apart of her physical appearance, Clare has complex and dominating

traits. Besides her bravery, it is obvious that Clare is smart. From direct

description, others’ opinion, her thoughts, and her reactions, we can see Clare’s

smartness. She also knows exactly what to do in dealing with problems that occur

in her life.

In this novel, Clare is directly described as a smart person. She is good at

school and she really loves it.

School was cool. I got my homework back with two stars – A++ and could do better. I loved school and they thought I had potential. If I wanted to, I could make it. School was the only place I was guaranteed no to get a beating (Briscoe 152). It is also stated that Clare is very good at serving costumers while she is

working at Roses. Her boss, Eileen also notices it. Clare is always able to find

something nice to say in her costumers’ chosen outfit. As a result, she gets her

payment increased.

I was a dab hand at serving the costumers. No matter how fat or ridiculous they looked in their chosen outfit, I could always find something nice to say – some remark that would swing the sale. I was very good, and Eileen knew it. I got a pay rise. We were all pleased with the progress of Clare Briscoe (Briscoe 276).


34

In serving the costumers, Clare is also able to make any fat lady slim with

a few kind words that she says. Using her flattering noises, Clare can shave inches

off the hips, thighs, and stomachs of her costumers. Everyone is just right in her

eyes; no one is too fat or too thin. At last, they buy their desired outfit. It makes

the costumers love Clare (Briscoe 386). Clare is very smart in holding her

costumers’ heart.

Clare’s smartness is also seen by some minor characters. Approaching a

spring term, for example, her mother asks Clare to work in a cafeteria for

workmen in Vassall Road. She is supposed to help John, the cook of the cafeteria.

What she has to do is to help John in preparing the breakfast for the workmen.

Clare is very good at carrying out her job and John knows it. She is a quick

learner and she knows exactly what to do. “While John was taking the money, I

asked the next lad what he wanted and he said the same. I very quickly got the

hang of it” (Briscoe 158). What Clare does really impresses John. Moreover, John

comments directly on Clare’s smartness, “You were good, kid, and you got the

hang of things very quickly” (Briscoe 159).

Her teachers also admit how smart Clare is. Clare always passes the exams

with excellent marks. All of her teachers are pleased to see that.

Clare no longer makes excuses. Work is now on time and a great deal of thought goes into it. A truly excellent round of results – well done. A very able girl – will go far. Clare has been making steady progress. If it continues she should do well in the next set of results. A truly delightful and intelligent young lady with remarkable recall. Should do well in life (Briscoe 273).


35

Through the way she thinks, we can also see that Clare is smart. One time

Clare is in doubt whether asking for the job at Roses or not. She finally takes the

right decision. She eliminates the last choice; not going at all is not an option for

her. Clare then decides to go home and clean herself first since she had been

crying and does not look fashionable at all. It is clear in her vision that she will

not be able to get the job if she looks awful (Briscoe 218). Clare is good in

considering some options and in taking the right decision in her life.

Once her mother comes to see Clare and asks her to pay rent for Clare’s

stay in her house. When Clare is thinking about it, her mother suddenly looks for

her purse on the dressing table. She takes it and empties the contents into her

hand. Clare starts to think that it is her fault. She then realizes that next time she

should be careful and should not leave her purse out in full view. It shows her

smartness since she learns from the experience.

My mother had taken all my money and left me with just half a crown. I did not respond – I just ignored her. It was my fault entirely, because I should not have left my purse out in full view. The next time I would be more careful (Briscoe 363). From the way she reacts with people and situations is obvious that Clare is

smart. When she finds difficulties, Clare will seek for ideas to cope with them.

She knows the right one to do. One night after her mother cuts her hand with a

knife, Clare wets the bed as usual for her anxiety. In order to avoid her mother’s

beatings, Clare does some actions to hide it from her mother.

I wet the bed that night and some of it soaked into the carpet. Because the carpet was multi-coloured it was not easy to see exactly where the watermark was, but the stench was quite strong. I got up early – it must have been about 6 a.m. – opened the window and shock the curtain back and forth in order to get the smell out of the room. I then put the wet


36

clothes in the wardrobe, closed the door and made my bed again with a new pile of clothes, this time just under the window. My mother, if she came into the room, would walk towards me so she might not discover the wet carpet. The smell was the only giveaway (Briscoe 74). One day, Eastman and Clare have a real bad fight. They are both close to

the window on the ground floor and as they struggle, Eastman catches her chin,

pushing Clare’s head through the glass. However, at her age, twelve, Clare knows

how to deal with the situation. She knows the right actions to do. She then gets her

coat, and leaves the house to meet her father, George. That night Clare decides to

stay with him. Then, she goes to the court in the next morning to report for the

abuse done by her stepfather. She knows what steps to take in facing problems in

her life.

George took one look at me and went to the cellar to retrieve his axe. He put it in the car and asked me what happened. I told him that Eastman had had a fight with me and pushed my head through a window. I then said that I was going to deal with it in the morning and it was not necessary for him to get involved. That night I stayed with George. The next day, Monday, I asked Dad to drop me of at Camberwell Green Magistrates’ Court. I entered the building … ‘Hello,’ she said. ‘What can I do for you?’ ‘My stepfather keeps abusing me and I was just wondering whether I could take out some action against him’ (Briscoe 134). From the discussion above, it can be concluded that Clare is smart. It can

be observed through direct comments, character as seen by others, her thoughts,

and her reactions.

3. Confident

Clare is a confident person. She is very confident in stating her opinion

and her own ability. She is always certain about her own abilities. Besides, Clare

also has enough confidence in doing actions. In her personal description, it is


37

stated that Clare’s outside appearance shows her confidence. “Then there was me

– Clear, Clearie, Clare, born 18 May 1957. About five feet three … Completely

confident on the outside” (Briscoe 9).

On the day attending the court, Clare makes her own way there. She does

not ask anyone to accompany her. She is very confident that everything will be all

right. Even when her father asks whether she is all right, Clare answers

confidently and states that she does not want him to come. She knows exactly that

she does not need any helps. Clare believes that she will be able to get the hang of

it by herself. She believes in herself that she can handle all the things.

On the Wednesday I put on my school uniform and made my way to the court. My father was waiting outside. My sisters had told him what was going on. ‘You all right, Clearie?’ he said to me. ‘Yes, I am and I don’t want you to come in.’ I was about to get into trouble and if my mother thought that I had attached a plan with my dad, I would be in trouble big time. This was between me and Eastman (Briscoe 136). Once Clare works in the cafeteria in Vassall Road, the boss, Greasy Beard,

asks her the reasons for working there. Confidently she says that she gets a job

and to be paid. Clare explains that she will work in the kitchen to cook sausages

and make tea. Moreover, when Greasy Beard asks her whether Clare can cook,

once again in a very confident way she says yes. Clare states that cooking is very

easy. She is very certain about her ability to cook. Clare is very confident to say

and to show her ability.

Greasy Beard returned on his own. ‘Now,’ he said, ‘why do you think that you are here?’ ‘I’ve got a job,’ I said. ‘I’m going to get paid. I’m going to be working in the kitchen cooking sausages and making tea.’ ‘Do you know how to cook?’ ‘Yes,’ I said. ‘It’s easy-peasy’ (Briscoe 155).


38

On one occasion while she is away from school since she has very serious

infection on her face, Clare begins to watch a courtroom drama called Crown

Court at One. After watching this drama for several times, Clare then decides that

she will become a barrister just like the characters in the drama. She has an

intention to find out all about it when she goes back to school. Clare believes in

herself that she is destined to become a barrister (Briscoe 239).

When finally she goes back to school, Clare makes an appointment to see

the Career Advice tutor. She tells the tutor that she wants some advice about her

career after leaving the school. Her tutor offers Clare such jobs as a sales

promotion girl and a sales representative. She refuses those kinds of jobs.

Confidently Clare states that she wants to be a barrister just like the characters she

watches in the courtroom drama. She believes in herself that she can be a

barrister.

‘No,’ I said. ‘Miss, I want to be a barrister.’ ‘A barrister? Now who put the idea into your head?’ ‘I’ve seen on TV, miss. That’s what I want to be.’ ‘Well, it’s good to aim high, I’ll give you that. But this is Sacred Heart, pet. You failed the eleven-plus, that’s why you are here. You have to go to university to become barrister, and we don’t turn out university material here.’ ‘I didn’t fail the eleven-plus, miss,’ I said. I’m here because my sisters were here before me. I wanted to go to Notre Dame’ (Briscoe 240). Although the tutor doubts her, it does not change her mind. Clare finally

decides to find the qualifications needed to be a barrister in the library. She tells

the librarian that she wants to be a barrister when she grows up. Once again,

another person doubts her. However, she still sticks on her decision. No one can

change her mind. Fortunately, the librarian gives her a leaflet containing


39

qualifications needed of becoming a barrister. It is written in the leaflet that after

gaining a university degree and a year’s training at the Inns of Court School of

Law, she will need to have a pupilage with a pupil-master. Fortunately, Clare and

the whole class are due to go on a school visit to Knightsbridge Crown Court. She

then decides that she will find a pupil-master there (Briscoe 241).

After watching a case of boys stealing purses, Clare begins to realize that

she gets attracted by one of the barristers called Mr. Mansfield. When the students

and the barristers are having lunch in the canteen, Mr. Mansfield begins his chat

with the teacher and the students. In this occasion, Clare pips up and with full of

self-confidence she says that she will be a barrister. Furthermore, Clare also asks

Mr. Mansfield whether he wants to be her pupil-master when later she qualifies as

a barrister. Clare is very confident in stating what she thinks and wants.

‘I want to be a barrister,’ I piped up. ‘I’m going to university and I will study Law and then I am going to the School of Law, and when I have done that I am going to find a pupil-master in London.’ … ‘My name is Clare, Clare Briscoe. Mr Mansfield when I qualify as a barrister, do you think that you can be my pupil-master?’ ‘Sure, but you’ve got a long way to go. Stay in touch and when you qualify I’ll give you a pupilage.’ ‘I’ll hold you to that Mr Mansfield. A promise is a promise’ (Briscoe 243). Even though her teacher doubts Clare’s dream, she is still confident that

she will qualify as a barrister. Her teacher tells Clare that it is good to have

dreams, but they have to be realistic. Clare is supposed to dream of something that

she can achieve. However, all the things said by her teacher do not burry Clare’s

confidence. She still believes in herself that she can be a barrister one day.

I did not understand that, but then again it was not really necessary to as it sounded like a load of rubbish. I would qualify as barrister. Mary and I


40

knew that I would keep in touch with Mike Mansfield and he had promised to be my pupil-master. All I needed were my O-levels, A-levels and a degree. Easy-peasy (Briscoe 244) It can be seen from personal description, her speeches, reactions, and

thought that Clare is confident. She is confident enough to state what she thinks

and wants. Besides, she is also very confident in stating her ability and skills.

Clare believes in herself that she can be what she wants to be.

4. Tough

Clare has to face so many problems and difficulties in her life. However,

she is tough in dealing with those events. How she reacts with the situations really

show her toughness. Almost all of the difficulties that happen in her life are

caused by her own mother. Her mother often beats Clare. However, no problems

are able to make Clare surrender. She keeps struggling in her awful life.

One night, Clare is not allowed to eat and drink at all with an intention to

prevent her from wetting the bed. Her mother’s torment does not stop until that.

Besides not being allowed to eat, Clare is also not allowed to wear clothes while

sleeping for she will only make them wet. And the worst of all is that she gets

beatings before sleeping. Her mother starts to grab her minnie and squeezes it

tightly. She also digs her nails into Clare’s minnie. After that, her mother grabs

hold of both Clare’s nipples and squeezes it between her fingers. At last, she takes

the mattress in which Clare sleeps away with her. However, Clare does not

surrender in that terrible situation. She is very tough in facing the situation.

Peace at last. I found some clothes, covered myself up and started to make a bed in the floor, using a pile of old hand-me-downs which had been in my wardrobe quite some time. Once my bed was made, I got on it and turned the light off. My sister Pauline put her head around the door.


41

‘You all right, Clare?’ she whispered. ‘Yes, I’m fine.’ ‘You should not answer back, you know.’ My head was hurting, my nipples were on fire and the pain between my legs was intense, but I had survived” (Briscoe 52). The night after Christmas day, Clare is woken up by the sound of her

alarm as she wets the bed again. When she opens her eyes, her mother is already

in her room with a shoe on her right hand. After pulling Clare’s nightdress, she

then slaps Clare’s bare bottom, right hand and her right upper arm. Finally, she

leaves the room with the wet sheet of the bed, the blanket, and the nightdress in

her hand. Still, this situation does not make Clare give up. She never lets herself to

cry on something unimportant. At last, Clare manages to make her bed up with

some old clothes.

She removed my blanket and took it away with my sheet and nightdress. I found another nightdress on the wardrobe, put that on and made my bed up with some old clothes. Then I got back into bed and waited. I could hear my mother opening and closing the drawers in the kitchen. The best thing for me to do was stay where I was, and so I did (Briscoe 61-62). Although she has a hard fighting with Eastman, Clare does not give up

with the situation. She does not let herself end in crying. Instead, Clare then goes

to find her father and tells him not to get involved since she will deal with it by

herself in the next morning. She already has an intention to report Eastman’s

abuse to the court.

I was dazed and was busy brushing the glass out my hair when specks of blood bubbled up on my hand. Eastman panicked and was removed from the room; my mother pulled him upstairs. I got my coat and left the house and went to find my dad. Both my eyes were badly swollen and a bead of blood had formed at the top of my forehead. I walked from Sutherland Square to 215 Camberwell New Road. My father was not there, but one of his tenants drove me to 41 Offley Road. Blood streamed down my face. Broken glass glistened in my hair. George took one look at me and went to


42

the cellar to retrieve his axe. He put it in the car and asked me what happened. I told him that Eastman had had a fight with me and pushed my head through a window. I then said that I was going to deal with it in the morning and it was not necessary for him to get involved. That night I stayed with George (Briscoe 133-134). It is common for Clare to get her mother’s tortures if she puts her mother

into anger. One Friday Clare asks her mother’s permission to go to a church disco,

but her mother does not allowed her. Instead, she beats Clare using split-split

stick. Then Clare threats her mother to tell her torments when she goes back to

school next Monday. However, this just puts her mother into a further anger. Her

mother then scoops Clare’s left breast in her hand. She pinches to the left of the

breast and twists it in her hand. At last, she digs her nails into Clare’s nipple.

Although the pain is unbearable, Clare remains standing to show her toughness.

“The pain was unbearable and I was sinking fast to the floor. I had to remain

standing and did not want her to think she had won. I had to talk to her face to

face” (Briscoe 187).

After three weeks of her mother’s leaving home, Clare begins to realize

that the money she gets from Roses is no longer enough to pay for essential items.

Still, she struggles in this difficult situation. She then cuts back on quick meals

like Wimpy burgers, fish and chips. She keeps fighting in life, and then decides to

seek for another job.

Angela was a cleaning supervisor and she held the contract for a block of office buildings in the West End. About three weeks after Mummy left home I asked her whether it might be possible to get a job with her (Briscoe 324). Clare is a tough person. It can be seen through her reactions towards some

situations that happen in her life. She never gives up in her terrible situation of


43

life. Clare always tries to be tough in facing problems in her life, and then she

struggles to survive and to gain a better life.

5. Hardworking

There is no doubt that Clare is hardworking. She carries out all the jobs

she has professionally and punctually, no matter how hard they are. Her hard work

can be seen through her mannerisms and habits. It is stated that Clare has a regular

weekly routine at home. She has the duty to wash the kitchen, clean the gas stove,

sweep the floor, and tidy her bed. Besides, Clare also has a turn to wash and dry

the kitchen utensils every third day (Briscoe 149).

On a Saturday morning, although her back aches and her neck is sniff for

sleeping on the floor, as a hard worker Clare still has the willingness to do her

weekend work. After having a quick wash, Clare then continues to do the house

cleaning.

Then I set about my weekend work. I hoovered the stairs from top to bottom, cleaned the kitchen and the bathroom. Still no sign of my mother. The sitting room needed hoovering, but that could wait. The plates left over from the morning’s breakfast were in the sink. They did not take long to wash, dry and replace in the rightful position. The toilet … The ironing came next, after a spin in the twin-tub. Finished (Briscoe 206) After her mother leaves her alone at home, Clare finds herself run out of

money. Her money from Saturday job at Roses is no longer enough to fulfill the

daily needs. She then comes to a decision to find another job. Fortunately, Angela

Fuentes, an old friend of her mother is able to provide Clare a cleaning job at

Whitehall. She works there from Monday to Friday from 5 a.m. until 8 a.m.

Having learnt from her past experience of being almost unable to finish the

cleaning on time, Clare then works very hard to handle to job afterwards. Since


44

she is a hard worker, Clare is able to establish her cleaning job as a part of her life

after passing two weeks. “By the time a week or two had passed, my early

cleaning job was a well established part of my life. I could now be left at my own”

(Briscoe 349).

Working both as a cleaning service and a shop assistant, Clare still

concerns about her study. As her exams are approaching, Clare works very hard

on studying. Every day when she returns home, Clare will spend at least four

hours revising. This routine results extreme tiredness during the week, but at

weekend after her Saturday job Clare is happy to have enough time to concentrate

on her revision (Briscoe 356).

In order to be able to pay rent and weekly payment of the bed she orders,

Clare then applies for a night duty auxiliary nurse at King’s College Hospital.

Although Clare finds that period of time very exhausting since she has to handle

three different jobs at a time, at last Clare is able to manage them. She becomes

accustomed with the routine that repeat itself. She works hard and never

complains; just go on with it.

Although my shift started at 9 p.m. on Sunday and finished at 8 a.m. on Monday, if I refused to take a break during the night I could leave at 7 a.m., sometimes slightly earlier. On Monday mornings I would take the bus to Camberwell Green and then a bus from there to my cleaning job at Whitehall. Once that was finished, I caught a bus back to Camberwell Gate where I swapped my work clothes for my school clothes and went to school. Monday was always a difficult day for me, simply because I was totally exhausted. It was a routine that repeat itself, year in and year out. I never complained, just go on with it (Briscoe 387). It is obvious that Clare is hardworking. It can be analyzed from her

mannerisms and habits. Although sometimes she finds difficulties while dealing


45

with her jobs, Clare always works hard to manage them. Handling out several jobs

at a time, Clare always deals with them professionally and punctually.

6. Idealistic

Clare is idealistic. It can be seen from her thoughts. She has ideals of a

happy life and tries to achieve it no matter how hard it will be. She thinks if she

has a magic wand, she will make all the unhappy children in the world happy. It

shows how Clare really wishes happiness in life.

I thought how, if I could have a magic wand, I would make all the unhappy children in the world happy. All my life I had wanted someone to care for me. Children have the right to be happy… Children should have presents twice a year and new clothes once a month, I decided. An absolute necessity is that every child should have a dry bed, and parents who beat their children should get what’s coming to them. No parent has the right to abuse their children. I had always wanted to experience happiness. Not day-in-and-day-out happiness, but just every-now-and-then happiness (Briscoe 301). Since in her childhood Clare always sleeps in a wet bed for her pissing,

she dreams of having a nice bed. Clare wishes that one day when she is grown up

she will have a nice bed, a four poster with curtains, with a nice soft mattress that

will never get wet no matter what. She wishes that when she has an accident, the

wet would be magicked away and there is no sound of alarm. Then she also

dreams of having two supersoft pillows and a huge duvet to wrap around her

body. At last, a pink cotton duvet case and matching pillowcases with embroidery

round the edges, or possibly one pretty bow in each corner, she thinks (Briscoe

150). As her bed is awful, Clare puts her wish of having a nice one into a dream.

Clare has ideals of the bed she wants to posses.


46

When she is about seven, approaching eight, Clare loves to dream of nice

things. She thinks that it will be nice if someone buys her a new dress, a new pair

of shoes, a pink or silver hair clip, and a nice cardigan. She likes to dream all the

things she never gets from her mother. Her dreams are the ideals she wants to

achieve in life.

When I was about seven, approaching eight, I used to think how nice it would be if, once in a while, someone bought me a new dress. … A new pair of shoes would be lovely, too. If they had only been worn for a couple of weeks, I would not mind, but they had to be my size. Not tight. I fancied a smell heel, not too high – I didn’t want to fall and break my neck. Lace-ups were okay, but they had to be pretty with a black ribbon tied in a bow. To finish off, I pictured a hair clip, pink or silver, and a nice cardigan to protect my arms (Briscoe 47-48). When Clare is away from school since she has a face infection, she begins

to watch a courtroom drama called Crown Court at One to fill her spare time. She

then gets attracted to the characters in the drama. Clare makes her mind up that

she will become a barrister when she grows up. She holds on a dream of

becoming a barrister. She intends to pursue her dream and put her ideal into

reality.

I decided that I wanted to be a barrister in court in a wig and gown. Every day a new incident, a new defendant to represent, a new trial. It was so exciting. I wanted to dress up there and then. Both the men and the women wore white tabs round their necks. The women wore them over a beautiful white collarette with lace over the high neckband; the men wore them over high wing collars as if they were in a period drama. It was clear that I would become a barrister just like the characters. I’d find out all about it when I went back to school (Briscoe 239).

It can be said that Clare is idealistic. She has ideals of life she wishes to

realize. We can notice it from her thoughts. She has so many dreams in her life;

the things that Clare wants to get. Her dreams somehow keep her to survive in


47

life. The dreams she has motivate Clare to struggle in life, even in the most

dreadful situation she has to face.

In conclusion, Clare is a sort of person who is brave, smart, confident,

tough, hardworking and idealistic. Apart of her physical appearance, Clare is a

brave person. She has the courage to fight the injustice happening throughout her

life. Clare is smart in dealing with people and situations. She knows exactly how

to react and what to do towards terrible conditions that she has to face in life.

Clare is confident in stating her opinion and her ability. Besides, she also believes

in herself that she can do and reach what she dreams. She is a hard worker as well.

Although she faces difficulties in handling her jobs, she works hard to handle and

to cope with them. Clare is tough in facing difficulties in life. She never gives up

in living her life, even in the worst situation ever. Clare also has so many dreams

in life to hold on and to achieve. Her dreams somehow keep her struggling in her

awful life. Based on the analysis, it is obvious that Clare is a sort of person who

really wants to struggle for life, to reach her dreams, and to change her life into

better.

B. Clare’s Struggle for a Better Life

It is true that problems, easy or difficult, will always come into our life.

Therefore, all we have to do is struggling and trying to face and overcome them.

In this case, Clare also meets problems throughout her life. However, she keeps

struggling in her troubled world of life. According to Abate (1514) struggle means

“make violent or determined efforts under difficulties”. People will make some


48

efforts to cope with problems emerging in life. In this novel, Clare also carries out

some efforts in dealing with her terrible life and problems she has to face. She

struggles in her painful life to achieve her dreams and to get a better life.

1. Causes of Clare’s Struggle

Human basic needs can be regarded as the causes why people struggle.

Maslow in Goble’s The Third Force, says that people conduct actions to fulfill

their needs (38). He states, “The human being is motivated by a number of basic

needs which are species-wide, apparently unchanging, and genetic or instinctual

in origin”. They are physiological needs, the safety needs, the belongingness and

love needs, the esteem needs, and the self-actualization needs. It can be said that

motivation is shaped from human basic needs. When people need something, they

will get motivated and will struggle to fulfill it in many ways.

Kalish (30) explains that motivated behavior is a behavior set into motion

by a need. A need indicates that some type of satisfaction is lacking and implies

that the organism is activated to reduce the dissatisfaction. In line with those

theories, Clare’s struggle is caused by her human basic needs, which indicate her

lack. Her lack of human basic needs is mainly caused by her family condition.

Clare’s family life which is terrible becomes her reason to struggle. She wants to

change her life into a better one. Clare then in many ways struggles to fulfill and

satisfy her human basic needs.

Her dream of becoming a barrister also causes Clare to struggle. Her

dream somehow becomes her motivation to struggle and survive in living her

terrible life. Morris (408) defines motivation as an inner directing force, a need, or


49

a want that arouses and directs behavior toward a goal. Jung adds that when a

person is motivated, he will survive and struggle even if obstacles and difficulties

come into his life. He will perform the best efforts to achieve his goal of life (5).

This also happens to Clare; her motivation keeps her struggling, even in the most

terrible situations she has to deal with. Clare struggles to put her dream into reality

so that she can change her life into a better one.

The following are the explanations of the causes of Clare’s struggle:

a. Her Family Life

Life in Clare’s family changes since her father’s winning of the second

Littlewoods Pools. Clare’s father, George, becomes wealthy after that. He spends

his money wisely on buying a dozen houses in Camberwell and lives off the rent.

George then abandons the family by leaving them after Patsy is born, but from

time to time, he comes back. Since that, money always becomes the source of

tension in the family. One occasion, Clare’s mother tries to persuade George to

buy a house in her name, but he refuses. However, George allows her to collect

rent from some of the houses as his contribution to the financial needs of the

family. But, it is never enough for her.

My father left my mother after Patsy was born, but from time to time he came back. I have no recollection of him sleeping the night in our house or even having breakfast with us. My mother was always after his money. She tried to convince him to buy a house in her name. He refused, but he did let her collect the rent from some of the houses as his contribution to the upkeep of the family. It was never enough for her (Briscoe 11). George only returns to bring food for the family. One Saturday morning

George comes to the house and brings two chickens in his hand. But, his action

puts Carmen into a real anger. In Carmen’s view George does not give her enough


50

money. Two dead chickens are not enough. One way of her saving money is by

not giving her children enough food. Carmen always keeps the food cupboard

locked, with the key in her bra. When Clare and her sisters are hungry and ask

Carmen for some biscuits, she simply says that they have a father and they should

ask him for biscuits (Briscoe 20).

On a Saturday evening, the children are waiting for their food to be served.

But, Carmen removes Clare’s plate and puts it on the side. She is ignored, while

the other children get roast potatoes, chicken, carrots, sweet potatoes, onions, and

gravy. When Clare asks for her dinner, her mother says that she will wet the bed if

Clare eats it. Besides not being given food, Clare is also asked to clear the table

and to wash the dishes. However, her mother’s cruelty does not stop at that point.

She then insists Clare to sleep with no clothes since she will only make them wet

(Briscoe 49).

Not only Carmen neglects her daughter by not giving her enough food, but

she also never gives her daughter decent clothes. Different from her sisters who

are always bought new dresses, Clare only gets hand-me-downs or even third-

hand from Pauline and Pasty (Briscoe 12). And the worst of all happens when

Clare asks her mother for a dress used for her First Holly Communion. Carmen

does not give Clare the white dress previously used by her sisters for their First

Holly Communion. Instead, he buys Clare a dress from a second-hand shop. It is

miserable that the dress’ color is grayish and it has a large circle, which stains at

the back as if someone had wet the dress (Briscoe 125-126).


51

Her physiological needs mainly become the causes that force Clare to

struggle. Maslow states that the most powerful and important of all basic needs

are the needs for physical survival. They include the needs for food, liquid,

shelter, sex, sleep, and oxygen. He points out “For the man who is extremely

hungry, no other interests exist but food. He dreams food, he remembers food …

and he wants only food” (as qtd. in Goble 38). In this case, Clare’s needs of food

and decent clothes are her basic reasons of struggling and fighting her horrible

world of life to gain a better one.

Because of her bed-wetting, Clare is often punished. She is asked to sleep

in a bed with just a bare mattress without a single sheet, just a plastic cover. Her

mother says that it does not matter since Clare will only wet the bed anyway.

However, her bed-wetting gets worse and her mother takes Clare to some experts.

Clare is then given a bed-wetting alarm to be put in her bed. Instead of stopping

Clare’s bed-wetting, this alarm puts Clare into further anxiety. As her bed-wetting

becomes a real problem, her mother then insists Clare to sleep with no clothes.

Her mother also makes a new policy by giving Clare some beatings before

sleeping to remind her not to wet the bed (Briscoe 13-14).

One occasion when Clare is going to go to bed, Carmen enters into her

room and removes Clare’s clothes with a reason that Clare will only make them

wet. When Clare is naked, Carmen calls for her other children to see. She then

punches Clare in her stomach and on her upper thigh. As she is asking when Clare

is going to stop her bed-wetting, she slaps her and punches her on the right


52

shoulder. Carmen then grabs Clare’s minnie and squeezes it tightly. She also

scoops Clare’s breasts and squeezes the nipples.

Suddenly, she dug her nails into my minnie. I seized her hands with mine to control the pressure. She let go abruptly and grabbed hold of my right breast. I had been hoping that she wouldn’t do that. I was in sheer pain. As I moved my hands up to protect my buds, my mother grabbed hold of the other one and then she grabbed hold of both nipples and squeezed so that they were flattened between her fingers (Briscoe 51). Mistakes also lead punishments for Clare. While preparing for the food as

usual, Clare misses three soft hairs of a chicken. Although she is sure that the

chicken is clear already, there are still soft hairs left. When Carmen notices it, she

gets annoyed and punishes Clare by knocking her knuckles using the edge of an

empty milk bottle. Carmen brings the edge of it down across Clare’s knuckles for

several times. Since Carmen is not satisfied yet with her torments, she then takes a

knife and presses the point of the knife strongly into Clare’s wrist. Besides,

Carmen also pulls the knife across Clare’s arm (Briscoe 70-73). However, nothing

is able to make Clare surrender. Since she is a tough girl, Clare then goes down to

the toilet to wrap her arm around with some toilet roll. She then goes back to the

kitchen again and manages to finish the hairs’ plucking.

Another physical abuse is again done by Carmen. On Clare’s brother’s

birthday, Carmen buys him a plane that is remote controlled. They are playing

with the plane in the front room as Carmen shows him how to use it. When Clare

enters the room, her mother consciously flies the plane in Clare’s direction. The

plane slices Clare’s left check. Her mother does this action for several times.

As I entered the room, my mother deliberately flew it in my direction, it sliced my left cheek as it zoomed past. The plane turned, flying back towards my mother, then turned again in my direction. My mother lowered


53

it as it approached me. Again it sliced my left cheek. Blood poured from the wounds (Briscoe 86). Gaining a new father only brings further sorrow for Clare since Eastman,

her stepfather, is an abuser as well. It is usual for him to beat Clare by punching

and hitting Clare with his belt. They are accustomed to struggle in a fight. One

day, Eastman and Clare have a particularly bad fight. They are both close to the

window on the ground floor. As they struggle, he catches Clare’s chin and pushes

her head trough the glass. Clare is dazed and is busy brushing the glass out of her

hair when specks of blood bubble up on her hand (Briscoe 133).

It is doubtless that Carmen abuses her daughter both emotionally and

physically. Moreover, Eastman’s coming to the family just worsens the situation

since he also used to beat Clare. Maslow states that the needs for security,

stability, protection, order, and freedom from fear, anxiety and physical violence

are included in the safety needs. When his life is in danger, man will consider

other higher needs as unimportant. He will seek for security and protection from

the things that are considered as harmful (qtd. in Goble 39-40). In this case, her

needs of safety become Clare’s reason to struggle. Clare then struggles to seek for

freedom from fear, anxiety, and physical violence.

Clare really lacks of affection and love. Her father, George, never gives

enough affection to the family, even for his daughters and sons. He is so busy to

take care of his properties that he never provides time for his children. Most of the

time, George comes home only at Christmas with presents for his children. Those

are the only things he gives to his children. Unlike other families, they never

spend times together even on Christmas day. George is getting busy moving


54

around his houses. All he can do is just turning up at Christmas with presents in

his hand, and then leaves the house again. “Our dad threw the final presents into

the hall. ‘Merry Christmas, children’, he said as he turned to go back to his car”

(Briscoe 59).

Besides her father, Clare’s sisters also fail to provide affection and love for

her little daughter. Clare has two elder sisters who are supposed to look after her

or at least help her when Clare finds difficulties. In fact, her sisters, Pauline and

Patsy, never do. They choose to remain silent, pretending that nothing happens.

Sisters who should take care of and protect their little sister decide to be ignorant.

They tend to be hiding when Clare is beaten by her mother, like for example when

Clare asks her mother’s permission to go to a church disco. Instead of giving the

permission, Carmen asks Care to clean the house. Realizing that their mother is

getting angry, Pauline and Patsy creep to the top landing of the house. They are

always hiding there and listening to the conversation that happens between Clare

and their mother. They never become sisters that Clare wishes to have, sisters who

can do more than just hiding and listening to the conversation. They never try to

be good sisters who defend their younger sister when she is in danger. They never

give their true love to Clare.

The house made me sick. My mother made me sick. My sisters just made me hate them. But they were young; maybe they could do more, say more and be around more, but they wanted to remain on good terms with my mother. Who could blame them?(Briscoe 180). Clare’s asking for permission brings anger to her mother. She then starts to

torment Clare again. Carmen beats Clare’s left arm using split-spit stick. Besides,

she also scoops Clare’s breasts and digs her nails into Clare’s nipple. At that


55

moment, Pauline and Patsy are already hiding in their bedroom. When the torment

finishes and Carmen is gone already, Pauline shows up and then asks about

Clare’s condition. Unfortunately, Carmen comes to see Clare again and at once

her sister retreats into her bedroom. “We knew it was my mother on the first half

landing. As I turned round to face my sister, her head disappeared and her

bedroom door shut” (Briscoe 188). Once again, Clare’s sisters show their

ignorance. They prefer hiding and remaining silent to helping Clare.

It is obvious that Clare is never able to gain real affection and love from

her family. Her father, George, abandons the family after winning the second

Littlewoods Pools. He is so busy moving around his houses that he never be able

to provide enough time for his children. Moreover, Clare’s sisters who are

supposed to look after their little sister tend to be hiding and remaining silent

whenever Clare is beaten by her mother. These needs of love become other causes

of Clare’s struggle. Maslow in Goble (40-41) states that these needs of

belongingness and love emerge primarily when the physiological and safety needs

have been met. People satisfy their love needs by establishing an intimate and

caring relationship with another person, or with people in general. Moreover, this

relationship is just as important to give love as to receive it.

Carmen rejects Clare as her daughter since she is ugly. One occasion when

Carmen has a look at Clare’s photograph, she directly states how ugly Clare is.

Besides, Carmen also protests how she can give birth to such ugly girl.

‘Jesus Christ, me give birth to that?’ She stared from the photograph to me. ‘Lord, sweet Lord, how come she so ugly? Ugly. Ugly. If I hadn’t given birth to her, sweet Lord, I would have sworn she was a fraud. Heavenly Jesus, sweet and kind, why have You given me a swine? Look at


56

that nose, where did you get it from? Not from me,’ said my mother answering her own question. ‘If I had a nose like that I would cut off half and save the rest’ (Briscoe 67). Another occasion when Carmen visits Clare to ask for the rent, she points

out that the biggest regret in her life is to give birth to Clare. She also complains

on how a mother can take an ugly daughter who wets the bed and is bald as well.

‘Not only are you ugly and wet the bed, you’re bald as well. Just how much can a

mother take?’ (Briscoe 366). It shows that Carmen does not recognize and accept

Clare as her daughter.

Clare’s esteem needs, especially esteem from others cause Clare to fight

her horrible life. Maslow as quoted in Goble (42) distinguishes two types of

esteem needs; self-respect and esteem from others. Self-esteem includes such

needs as desire for confidence, competence, mastery, adequacy, achievement,

independence, and freedom. While, externally derived esteem can be based on

recognition, acceptance, attention, reputation, appreciation, admiration, status,

fame, prestige, or social success, all characteristics of how others think of us and

react to us. In this case, Clare wants to gain respect from others. She also wishes

to get recognition and acceptance from her mother. Those are the reasons why

Clare struggles in her life.

It is obvious that her family condition which is far from perfect and is full

of lack becomes Clare’s reason to struggle. Her home life which is terrible leads

Clare to the stage of human basic needs’ deficiency. However, she has a strong

desire to have a better life. That is why Clare wants to struggle and fulfill her

basic needs.


57

b. Her Dreams

In living her miserable life, Clare keeps struggling and surviving. It is

somehow caused by her dreams. As an idealist, Clare has so many dreams to

achieve in her life. She also has ideals of a happy life. She once dreams of having

a magic wand that can make all unhappy children in the world happy. Clare really

wants to feel happy in her life. She wishes to have someone who cares about her.

She also hopes that children will have presents twice a year and new clothes once

a month. At last, it is a must that children have a dry bed and have no parents who

abuse them (Briscoe 301).

Clare’s dreams are the things that she cannot get in her troubled life. All

her dreams are the reflections of what she wants to achieve in life. She wishes to

have a happy life like what others also wish. Clare's statement about getting

presents, new clothes, and dry bed shows that she has the desire to fulfill her

physiological needs as the most basic needs in Maslow's hierarchy of needs. It is

stated that the most powerful and important of all basic needs are the needs for

physical survival, which include the needs for food, liquid, sex, shelter, sleep, and

oxygen (Maslow in Goble 38). While her statement on having someone who cares

about her indicates that she wants to fulfill her needs of love and belongingness.

As it is stated by Maslow in Goble (40-41) in fulfilling the needs of love, people

will try to establish a caring relationship which includes mutual trust.

Although she realizes that her real life is far from happiness, still Clare has

a strong desire to reach happiness. It shows that Clare really wants to have a better

life. She has the willingness to change her life into better. Moreover, as a


58

confident girl, Clare is certain about her own ability that she can gain a happy life.

Her goal of having a happy and better life becomes her motivation to move on in

life. It is also obvious that Clare wants to satisfy her basic needs. According to

Bootzin, Loftus, Zajonc, Blake, Lo Picollo, Holahan, and Scarr (367) human

behavior is organized and guided by some purposes and that it leads to some end

state, which may be a goal or the satisfaction of some needs. Her goal of having a

happy life guides and directs Clare to behave in certain actions to achieve the

goal. It also keeps Clare struggling and surviving in difficult situations happening

throughout her life.

Clare also has a dream of becoming a barrister when she is grown up. She

is inspired by a courtroom drama she watches at noon while she is away from

school for a serious face infection. It is Crown Court at One which shapes Clare’s

dream to be a barrister. In that one-hour courtroom drama, Clare gets impressed

by the actors who are dressed up in black gowns and wigs. Clare finds it is so

exciting with a new incident, a new defendant to represent, and a new trial every

day. Then she decides that she wants to be a barrister like the characters. Since

Clare is idealistic, she then intends to find more about it when she goes back to

school later (Briscoe 239). She always seeks ways to make what she wants come

true.

Referring to Maslow’s theory, by becoming a barrister Clare wants to

fulfill her esteem needs, both her self-esteem and esteem from others. When she is

qualified as a barrister later on, Clare intends to show his mastery and competence

on law. Besides, she also wants to gain respect from others including reputation


59

and status as a barrister. Those are the reasons why Clare keeps struggling in her

awful life.

2. Clare’s Struggle

Clare’s life, especially her childhood is certainly far from happiness and

full of lack. In her early age, she is already forced to earn for money and to fend

for herself. Maslow in Goble (38) states, “The human being is motivated by a

number of basic needs which are species-wide, apparently unchanging, and

genetic or instinctual in origin”. These human basic needs, which include

physiological needs, safety needs, love needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization

needs primarily become Clare’s motivations for escaping from her troubled world

of life. Throughout her life, Clare always seeks for strategies to fulfill and satisfy

those needs in order to change her life into better.

As she struggles to put her basic needs into reality and change her life into

a better one, Clare encounters so many problems, which are mostly caused by her

own mother. None becomes the abuser of Clare, but her own mother, Carmen.

And this situation just complicates her ways of pursuing her dreams and changing

her life into better. However, she has a strong motivation to change her life and

make her dreams come true. Jung (4) points out that motivation involves the

persistence of behavior over time so that sustained effort can occur even if

obstacles or setbacks occur. This motivation, which refers to her needs and

dreams, is able to keep Clare struggling even in the worst situation she has to deal

with. This motivation is also doubtlessly strong enough to lead Clare to behave in

certain actions supporting her in pursuing her dreams.


60

Having set her motivation up, Clare then implements a strategy called

adjustment in dealing with the problems occurring throughout her life while trying

to put her dreams into reality and to have a better life. This adjustment strategy is

defined as a process of coping with events, difficulties, challenges, and problems

that occur throughout our lives. This adjustment is divided into three major

categories. The first category is problem solving. When dealing with problems,

people will seek for the solutions. The second category is acceptance of the

situation. It is sometimes better for us to accept the problems and its consequences

as there is no solution for it. The third category is defense mechanisms such as

repression and denial. These defense mechanisms are very helpful to alleviate

stress and anxiety while encountering problems (Braun, Linder, and Asimov 478).

In fulfilling her basic needs in order to change her life into better, Clare applies

those kinds of adjustment in her daily. Since she is a smart girl, Clare is able to

choose which sort of adjustment that is appropriate for certain situation or event

happening in her life.

Clare’s struggle to gain a better life can be analyzed as follows:

a. Working as a Shop Assistant

There is no doubt that Clare’s life, especially her childhood, is miserable.

Being ignored by her family, never given enough food and decent clothes, even

being abused by her own mother both mentally and physically, Clare always tries

to seek ways on struggling and changing her life into a better one. As a smart girl,

she is able to cope with the problems happening throughout her horrible life.

Nothing is given by her mother, but pain and sorrow. In her early age of


61

twelve, Clare is already forced by her mother to have a Saturday job in a cafeteria

where Eastman works. It is a pity to come to know that Carmen has a bad deed

behind her asking Clare to work. She, in fact, plans to make use of Clare to earn

money. As soon as Clare gets paid, the money is taken by Carmen. Carmen points

out that Clare must pay for her cost of living.

You cheeky little bitch. You want to live in my house, eat my food, drink my drink and not ask where it’s coming from? Where do you think it’s coming from? You think it grows on trees? You think I’m your meal-ticket? If you work you must pay and, by the way, you owe me for the shop powder I bought to clean your bedclothes (Briscoe 164).

At her highest point of depression, Clare decides that she must take an

immediate action. She is tired of the unfairness done by her mother. She is tired of

being given no enough food and no decent clothes. It happens at the most that

Clare steals biscuits from her mother’s room only to fill her belly. She is

extremely tired of keeping away from her mother’s way and getting hand-me-

downs clothes (Briscoe 209-210). The tiredness of facing terrible condition in her

home life leads Clare to the point of implementing her adjustment process.

Braun, Linder, and Asimov (478) define adjustment as a process of coping

with problems and difficulties that occur in life. One of the categories of

adjustment is called problem solving which is mostly used in daily life. It is said

that people will seek for the solutions while dealing with problems or difficulties.

In line with this case, Clare applies her problem solving by taking a decision to

find herself another Saturday job since her previous Saturday job with Eastman

has been a one-off. She plans to find a job that will help her to pay for some new

clothes (Briscoe 209-210).


62

Her physiological needs become Clare’s primary motivation to struggle in

her terrible condition of life. It is said that the most powerful and important of all

basic needs are the needs for physical survival, which include the needs for food,

liquid, shelter, sex and oxygen (Maslow in Goble 38). These physiological needs

of food and clothes become Clare’s main motive to look for another Saturday job.

At last, Clare puts her plan into practice while doing shopping. As she is a

brave one, Clare asks a trader of a shop where she buys family daily needs for a

Saturday job. Unfortunately, the trader has no vacancy on Saturday job. What a

fortune that the trader remembers of having seen a sign in the window for a

Saturday girl while passing a shop. He then tries to recall the name of the shop

and the location. At last, he takes a crumpled brown paper bag from Clare’s hand,

straightens it and writes the shop’s name and the location on it (Briscoe 217).

Without spending too much time to think, Clare then continues walking to

search for the shop told by the trader. As she passes Walworth Road, Clare

notices a ladies’ dress shop named Roses, the name which is exactly the same as it

is written on her brown paper bag. As she finds herself in mess of crying and

knows the possibility that she might be thrown out in such condition, Clare

decides to ask for the Saturday job in Roses after she brings her shopping back

home and cleans herself (Briscoe 218). Once again her smartness helps Clare to

apply the problem solving technique. Braun, Linder, and Asimov (478) state that

while dealing with problems or difficulties, people will seek for the solution. In

dealing with her problem of being messy, Clare then seeks for the solution by

going home to clean herself first and then going back to the shop again later to


63

apply for the Saturday job.

At the time she comes back to Roses, Clare bravely and confidently asks

the owner for the Saturday job. She is given some basic questions on her identity,

and then Eileen, the owner agrees to give Clare a trial period starting next week

from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Briscoe 219). Time passes quickly since Clare is very

excited about her new Saturday job. On Saturday morning she wakes up early, has

a shower and makes herself a cup of tea before she is ready to start her first day at

Roses. Clare finds her first day is fancy, exciting and funny. She really enjoys

working at Roses as she uses her smartness to find something nice to say on the

costumers’ chosen outfit (Briscoe 222).

The first day at Roses passes by in a flash and Clare has finished her

duties well. Before going home, Eileen hands Clare a brown envelope containing

£8 and a pay slip. On her way home Clare buys herself a cheeseburger and chips

with her own money (Briscoe 250). It shows that Clare is able to satisfy one of

her physiological needs that is food. Maslow in Goble (38) points out “For the

man who is extremely hungry, no other interests exist but food. He dreams food,

he remembers food … and he wants only food.” In this case, Clare’s need of food

also becomes her motive to work well at Roses.

As Carmen knows that Clare has a new Saturday job and gets paid from

the job, again she asks Clare to pay her for keeping the house including the use of

electricity. Clare argues that it is only a Saturday job, which in fact does not give

so much money, so she cannot pay for that. Since there is no one who can stop

what Carmen wants, Clare at last agrees to pay for £3.


64

‘It’s my money and I work for it.’ ‘Well, what do you say? You seem to think that you are the woman in this house, what do you think is the sum of your keep? ‘I think three pounds would be fair.’ ‘Well, that will pay for the electricity, but from now on you will buy your own food and clothes. If you’re old enough to look after yourself’ (Briscoe 224-225) In this case, Clare applies the second category of adjustment called

acceptance of the situation. Braun, Linder, and Asimov (478) point out that it is

sometimes better for us to accept the problems and its consequences, as there is

no solution for it. While facing this problem, Clare prefers to accept the situation

for there is nothing else to do since in fact Carmen is her mother who has the

biggest control of authority in the house. As a daughter, Clare cannot rebel against

her own mother.

As a smart and hardworking girl, Clare works very well at Roses and she

is always able to satisfy her costumers by finding nice things to say to them no

matter how ridiculous the costumers look like on their chosen outfit. Clare’s good

job is also noticed by the owner of the shop, Eileen. After a couple of years of

working at Roses, Clare is able to provide herself with a number of pretty dresses.

She again struggles to fulfill her physiological needs.

I now owned a number of pretty dresses, all thanks to Roses of the Walworth Road. I was a dab hand at serving the costumers. No matter how fat or ridiculous they looked in their chosen outfit, I could always find something nice to say – some remark that would swing the sale. I was very good, and Eileen knew it. I got a pay rise. We were all pleased with the progress of Clare Briscoe (Briscoe 276) Working as a shop assistant at Roses becomes the starting point of Clare’s

struggle. It becomes an important step in her life showing that she is ready to fight

against her terrible life and to change her life into better. As she struggles to work


65

at Roses, Clare tries to fulfill her physiological needs, which become the basis on

hierarchy of human basic needs. Maslow points out that these physiological needs

have first to be satisfied before fulfilling the higher-level of needs (qtd. in Goble

38). And based on the analysis, it can be concluded that Clare is able to satisfy

some of her physiological needs.

One occasion Clare has an opportunity to live with Miss K, one of her

teacher, since Clare does not want to go home after suffering from a terrible head

wound caused by her mother’s torment. Living with Miss K is like tasting the

paradise for Clare. Since Miss K is a very kind person, she provides Clare with

real affection and love she never gets from her mother. One chance Clare secretly

buys Miss K a box of Cadbury’s Milk Tray using the money she saves up from

Roses and puts it on Miss K’s pillow in her bedroom. When later on Miss K

notices the secret gift given by Clare, she starts crying hysterically, thanks Clare,

and tells her that it is the kindest thing she ever has since coming to England

(Briscoe 274).

As an exchange, Miss K buys Clare a book entitled “The Little Princess by

Frances Hodgson-Burnett” as her fourteenth-birthday present. The tears well up as

Clare hugs Miss K and kisses her. Miss K is the ideal mother Clare never has and

she really loves her (Briscoe 276). While living with Miss K, Clare struggles to

fulfill her belongingness and love needs. Maslow states that people satisfy their

love needs by establishing an intimate and caring relationship with another

person, or with people in general. Moreover, this relationship is just as important

to give love as to receive it (qtd. in Goble 40-41). In this case, Clare tries to


66

establish an intimate and caring relationship with Miss K. She loves Miss K as her

own mother.

Although problems always exist on the process of her struggle to gain a

better life, Clare is always able to respond to them using the most proper ways.

She tries to implement the right strategy in dealing with problems happening in

life while struggling to satisfy her basic needs.

b. Working as a Cleaning Service

One day all the family members move from 19 Sutherland Square to 5

Vaughan Road, but Clare. However, at last Pauline and Patsy go back to the

previous house together with Clare since there are not enough rooms yet in the

new house. Unlike her sisters who have standing invitations for dinner on

Saturday and Sunday in the new house, Clare has to fend for herself totally.

Moreover, she has to pay for the gas bill since she is the only one in the house

who has money. After couples of weeks, Clare finds out that her money from

Roses is no longer enough to pay for essential items since whenever she buys food

her sisters eat a lot of it (Briscoe 323).

As a tough girl, Clare does not give up to the situation but she keeps

struggling to survive. She then implements her problem solving strategy. While

dealing with difficulty, a person will seek for the solution of the problem (Braun,

Linder, and Asimov 478). Having recognized the problem, Clare then decides to

find another additional job that she can do before school. The situation leads her

to meet Angela Fuentes, an old friend of her mother as well as a cleaning

supervisor for a block of office buildings in the West End. At first, Angela refuses


67

to provide Clare with a job by considering that she is too young. But after Clare

explains the home life situation, Angela agrees to give Clare a job as a cleaning

service at Whitehall starting on Monday. She works there from Monday until

Friday at about 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. (Briscoe 342).

Although it is very hard for Clare to adjust with her new job, at last she

can manage it. She exhaustedly passes the first week and gets paid £14. And on

her way back home from school she spends the money she earns on buying some

jellybeans and a bag of apples. Clare starts to love her new-found independence

(Briscoe 348). In line with Maslow’s theory, it can be concluded that Clare is

struggling to satisfy her physiological needs when she works as a cleaning service.

Maslow as quoted in Goble (38) considers physiological needs as the most

powerful and important of all basic needs since they consist of the needs for

physical survival. Consequently, these basic needs have to be fulfilled first before

satisfying the higher level of human basic needs. In this case, Clare is intending to

satisfy her needs for survival by doing her cleaning job.

Having passed a couple of weeks, Clare becomes accustomed with the

jobs she has. As she is a smart one, she is able to make the best use of her time.

Often during her break time after cleaning the offices, Clare manages to finish her

homework.

I had got into routine with my jobs, cleaning during the week, selling clothes at the weekend and doing my own housework on a Sunday after church. My homework was always completed in good time. No piece of work has handed in late. In fact, there were a number of occasions when I finished off my homework after I cleaned the offices, sitting at a nice large polished desk until it was time to set off for school (Briscoe 349). After leaving her daughter, at last Carmen pops up and pays Clare a visit


68

only to ask money from Clare as her rent of using the electricity and gas. Carmen

asks for £14 from Clare but she protests that she does not have that sort of money.

Braun, Linder and Asimov (478) mention the third category of adjustment called

defense mechanisms such as repression and denial. They point out that these

defense mechanisms are very helpful in alleviating stress and anxiety while

dealing with difficult situations. While dealing with this event, Clare makes her

mind up to apply one of the defense mechanisms that is denial in order to reduce

her anxiety. She denies that her mother is asking for some money and decides to

ignore her.

I had no idea where to get that sort of money from. I did have a cleaning job and I did have a Saturday job, but they were for essentials. I couldn’t pay the electricity bill as well. I decided that I would ignore my mother from now on and adopt a wait-and-see strategy (Briscoe 354). Clare’s ignorance towards her mother’s request of money leads into a

further terrible situation. For her next turning up, Carmen takes Clare’s blanket

and pillow away with her. And the most terrible one is that she removes the

electricity fuses and leaves her daughter in the darkness. After facing such

condition, Clare comes to a decision that she will pay for the rent. At last they

agree on £3 per week. In this situation, Clare uses one of the adjustment strategies

called acceptance of the situation as there is nothing else to do except accepting

her mother’s demand. Sometimes it is better to accept problems and the

consequences when we are unable to look for the solutions (Braun, Linder, and

Asimov 478).

As her blanket and pillow are taken by her mother, Clare then intends to

buy the new ones. She is lucky to find a reduced price pillow in Woolworth’s, but


69

it is a pity that she cannot afford for the blanket as the price is too expensive

(Briscoe 361). Using the money she earns from her Saturday job and cleaning job,

again Clare manages to fulfill her physiological needs which are considered as the

most important among all human basic needs (Maslow in Goble 38).

Carmen always asks more from Clare. Every time Clare refuses to pay for

the rent Carmen will take serious actions. Her last visit costs Clare to lose her bed.

Coincidently, on the way to school from her early morning cleaning job Clare

notices a furniture shop called Thoroughgoods. Her attention comes across a

delightful four-poster bed. When she asks for the price, the shopkeeper mentions

that the bed costs £120. Clare tells that she does not have that much of money and

will never be able to afford it. Clare then bravely asks the man if it is possible to

pay for the bed over a period of time. At last the man agrees and Clare hands him

£5. After the man promises that he will not sell the bed to anyone, Clare leaves the

shop (Briscoe 382-383). Based on Maslow’s theory, once again Clare tries to

fulfill her physiological needs.

c. Working as a Nurse

As she realizes that she needs much more money to pay for the bed and to

give the rent to her mother, Clare then decides to seek for another job that can be

done at weekend. Clare implements the first category of adjustment which is

called problem solving (Braun, Linder, and Asimov 478). She seeks for the

solution of the problem she faces. At last she comes to the decision on applying

for a nursing auxiliary at King’s College Hospital. She gets the night duty on

Friday, Saturday, and Monday from 9 p.m. to 8 a.m. As a confident one, Clare


70

believes in herself that she can manage it though she might find the job hard later

on. “We all had to attend the hospital a few days in advance of our start date to be

shown how to carry out a bedbath, give a bedpan and change a bed. It really was

easy-peasy…” (Briscoe 382).

Although Clare only works as an auxiliary nurse, she carries out the job

professionally. She is always sympathetic to the patients in pain. As time passes,

she is then known as the youngest and most energetic auxiliary at King’s College

Hospital. Moreover, some nurses and doctors comment that Clare appears to have

brain and in fact she is. Her progress shows that she is capable of handling the job,

and as a result she is then able to pay towards her four-poster bed every week

(Briscoe 384-386). By working as an auxiliary nurse Clare struggles to fulfill her

physiological needs which become the primary needs among all human basic

needs (Maslow in Goble 38).

During her working days, Clare discovers that Monday always becomes a

difficult day for her as she always finds herself totally exhausted. Monday is

terrible because after she finishes her night duty at King’s College Hospital at

about 8 a.m., Clare then carries out her cleaning job at Whitehall and goes

straightly to school afterwards. However, it then becomes a routine that repeat

itself year by year and she never complains since Clare is a hard worker and a

tough person (Briscoe 387).

Two years of working as a nurse at King’s College Hospital passes in a

flash. As her A-levels approach, Angela suggests Clare to take two or more weeks

off the cleaning job and also to book all her holidays on one go so that she will


71

have plenty of time to revise. When the first day of her exam arrives Clare finds

herself calm. Though in fact she is totally exhausted, Clare works steadily through

the papers. She keeps on her mind that she still wants to enter university and

pursue her dream as a barrister until she ignores her tiredness.

Eventually the day arrived for the first exam. I got up early and found to my surprise that I did not feel at all nervous. I worked my way steadily through the papers. Some were easier than others. Inside I felt like a zombie. I still wanted to go to university and be a barrister, but I had grown so chronically tired that I almost did not care. The last exam came and went. I did not go out celebrating … (Briscoe 388). Since Clare has a great motivation to enter university and become a

barrister, she even does not care about her tiredness anymore. Morris (408)

defines motive as an inner directing force, a need, or a want that arouses the

organism and directs behavior toward a goal. Her dreams of going to university

and being a barrister become Clare’s motivation that direct her behavior and keep

her struggling through the exams. In order to pursue her dreams, Clare then

applies to a number of universities.

d. Going to University

One occasion Clare suffers from a serious face infection and she is sent

back home and does not attend school for a very long time. While she is away

from school, Clare begins to watch a daily courtroom drama called Crown Court

at One to alleviate her boredom. Clare finds the program exciting as every day a

new incident and a new defendant are represented. She then becomes impressed

by the characters who are dressed up in black gowns and wigs. Since that, Clare

makes her mind up that she will become a barrister just like the characters and she

will find information about it later when she is back at school (Briscoe 239). As


72

she is idealistic, Clare always tries to achieve her dream no matter how hard it is.

According to Jung (4), motivation refers to such diverse states as desires,

wishes, plans, goals, intents, impulses, and purposes. Here, motives are referred to

the causes or reasons that underlie a given behavior. In line with that theory,

Clare’s dream to be a barrister becomes her cause or reason to struggle in her

terrible world of life. Since she has a dream, Clare then behaves in certain actions

that support her in achieving the dream. She decides that she will search for

information about barrister when she goes back to school later on.

When finally she is back to school, Clare states her mind to some teachers

that she wants to be a barrister but they simply doubt her. However, nothing is

able to change Clare’s mind. She is stick to her mind that she will become a

barrister. Jung (4) points out that motivation involves the persistence of behavior

over time so that sustained effort can occur even if obstacles or setbacks occur. As

Clare has already set her motivation up, her efforts to reach her dream still occur

though some teachers doubt her. As a confident girl, Clare is certain about her

own ability that she will become a barrister. She then visits the library and finds

out that one of the qualifications of becoming barrister is having a pupilage with a

pupil-master (Briscoe 240-241).

Fortunately, her school is going to hold a school visit to Knightsbridge

Crown Court and she decides that she will find a pupil-master there. While

watching a case about boys stealing purses from handbags, Clare gets impressed

by one of the barristers named Mr Mansfield as he has different style in asking

questions. When finally she gets an opportunity to talk with Mr Mansfield, Clare


73

bravely and straightforwardly asks him to be her pupil master.

‘My name is Clare, Clare Briscoe. Mr Mansfield, when I qualify as a barrister, do you think that you can be my pupil-master?’ ‘Sure, but you’ve got a long way to go. Stay in touch and when you qualify I’ll give you pupilage.’ ‘I’ll hold you to that, Mr Mansfield. A promise is a promise.’ ‘Sure,’ he said and laughed. ‘Call me Mike. You’ll need to get in touch with me to arrange your pupilage. Here are my details’ (Briscoe 243). After a very long journey, facing a terrible life, working hard every day

from early in the morning until late at night and having a very limited time to

study, at last Clare finishes her A-level exams. As a smart and hardworking girl,

Clare is able to handle both her jobs and her study. She then applies to a number

of universities but Newcastle-upon-Tyne becomes her first choice and Clare finds

the place as impressive. After doing the interview, Clare is offered a place there if

she passes her A-levels with good grades. Besides, she also needs a grant from

Local Authority, which requires details of her mother’s income and expenses.

Clare then pays her mother a visit and asks her to fill the details of the form

provided by the Local Authority. Instead of filling the form, Carmen tears the

papers into pieces and throws them into the air (Briscoe 388-390).

When her A-level results come through, Clare’s grades are good enough to

get a place at Newcastle, but she still has problem with the grant. Having

telephoned ILEA (Inner London Education Authority) and discussed the problem,

Clare is informed that she can always apply for a grant on an independent basis

but she will need to establish that she has been self-sufficient for five years. She

then discusses the problem with a Sister where she works (Briscoe 390-391).

The Sister suggests that Clare should postpone her study for one year and


74

continue working since she has been working for four years so that later she will

be qualified for independent status. Facing this situation, Clare implements the

second category of adjustment named acceptance of the situation (Braun, Linder,

and Asimov 478). She accepts the situation since in many ways she has no choice

and fortunately, the university agrees to delay her course by one year.

Having finished her A-level with good grades and equipped with an

unconditional place at Newcastle University, Clare applies for a full-time job at

Guy’s Hospital in the X-ray Department. After three weeks working there, Clare

receives the delivery of her bed. A few days later, she goes to Woolworth’s and

buys a blue polyester duvet and a chocolate-brown duvet cover and matching

pillow case (Briscoe 393). Based on Maslow’s theory, Clare manages to fulfill her

physiological needs, which are considered as the most basic and important among

all human basic needs (qtd. in Goble 38). At last Clare is able to buy herself a nice

bed she has been dreaming for a long time. She now possesses her ideal bed.

One year passes by very quickly and now Clare is ready to enter

University. But before that, she visits her mother only to tell that she never likes

her anyway. Clare also promises that she will never ever speak to her mother as

long as she lives. After a very long journey of troubled life, Clare finally arrives at

Newcastle-upon-Tyne University to read law (Briscoe 395-399).

Finally, Clare is able to satisfy her esteem needs, both her self-esteem and

esteem from others. Maslow as quoted in Goble (42) distinguishes two types of

esteem needs; self-respect and esteem from others. Self-esteem includes such

needs as desire for confidence, competence, mastery, adequacy, achievement,


75

independence, and freedom. While, respect from others can be based on

recognition, acceptance, attention, reputation, appreciation, admiration, status,

fame, prestige, or social success, and all characteristics of how others think of us

and react to us. By going to university, Clare is able to show her competence and

mastery on law. Furthermore, she also acquires respect from others as she gains

status and reputation as a university student of law.

Between 1979 and 1982 Clare remains in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and only

returns to work. In 1982 she graduates with honors as a Bachelor of Law. In 1983

Clare is qualified as a barrister after completing one year at the Inns of Court

School of Law. She then writes a letter to Mr Mansfield asking when she can start

her pupilage. Clare receives the reply stating that she can come as soon as she

likes (Briscoe 399-400).

After a very long life journey which is full of difficulties and setbacks,

finally Clare is qualified as a barrister. She is at last able to fulfill her self-

actualization needs. According to Maslow, self-actualization can be regarded as

the best development and use of all our abilities, the fulfillment of all our qualities

and capacities. We must become what we have the potential to become (qtd. in

Goble 42). Being a barrister, Clare makes maximum use of her abilities, develops

her talents and potentials, and becomes the sort of person she really is. Clare now

is a barrister and a self-actualized person.

As a conclusion, by handling up several jobs, Clare is trying to satisfy her

physiological needs and at last she is able to do it. Although she has a very limited

time to study, Clare is able to finish her A-levels with good grades and gets a


76

place at Newcastle-upon-Tyne University. Being able to enter university, Clare

gains her esteem needs, both her self-esteem and esteem from others. The highest

point of her struggle is that she is at last qualified as a barrister, which means that

she is able to satisfy her self-actualization needs. After a very long journey

dealing with difficult even terrible situations, finally Clare manages to put her

dreams into reality. Clare is at last able to satisfy most of her basic needs and to

change her life into a better one.


77

CHAPTER V

CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS

This chapter is divided into two parts. The first part is the conclusion,

which outlines Clare’s characterization and Clare’s struggle to change her life into

a better one. The second part presents the suggestions for future researchers and

the implementation of literature in teaching learning activities.

A. Conclusions

This thesis deals with two problems. The first problem tries to figure out

how Clare’s personality is portrayed in the novel. Using the theory of character,

Clare can be classified into a major and round character. Based on the analysis

using the theory of characterization to dig out Clare’s personality traits, Clare is

described as brave, smart, confident, tough, hardworking and idealistic.

It is doubtless that Clare has to live a terrible life. Being treated differently

from her siblings, Clare has the bravery to sue her mother for what she deserves as

a child. She is also brave to face difficulties and to do what she thinks as right.

Although problems always come into her life, Clare never gives up. She is tough

in facing terrible conditions and difficult situations mostly caused by her mother.

Her smartness helps her a lot in coping with the problems she has to deal with.

She knows exactly what to do and what steps to take while encountering setbacks.

As an idealistic, Clare has so many dreams to pursue. She has her own ideals of a

happy life and always tries to achieve those ideals. Once she also dreams of


78

becoming a barristers and she is very confident that she can reach her dreams.

Clare believes in herself that nothing can deprive her way of pursuing dreams. She

then works hard to make her dreams come true. She is willing to handle up several

jobs at a time to keep her life up. From the portrayal of her personality traits,

Clare can be considered as a sort of person who wants to change her life into

better by reaching her dreams.

The second problem aims to analyze Clare’s struggle for a better life. Her

struggle can be noticed from her ways to fulfill her basic needs, which includes

physiological needs, safety needs, love and belongingness needs, esteem needs

and self-actualization needs. Being given no enough food and no decent clothes

leads Clare to the starting point of her struggle. Her terrible family life, which

results on lack of physiological needs, forces Clare to seek for a job. At last, she

works as a shop assistant at Roses for her Saturday job and she is able to buy

herself some foods. Clare manages to satisfy her physiological needs by working

at Roses.

However, it is devastating that her mother simply moves out from the

house and lets her daughter to fend for herself. After couples of weeks Clare finds

out that her money from Roses is no longer enough to pay for essentials.

Moreover, she needs much more money to pay for her mother’s request of rent as

she lives in the house of her mother. Clare then comes to a decision to get another

job that can be done before school. At last, she asks an old friend of her mother,

Angela Fuentes, to provide her a job as a cleaning service. Angela agrees to

provide Clare an early morning cleaning job at Whitehall.


79

Working as a cleaning service, Clare is able to satisfy some of her

physiological needs and to pay for the rent. Still, another problem appears since

her mother takes her bed away from the house. Being tired and sick of sleeping on

the floor, Clare intends to buy herself a new bed. She then decides to find another

additional job she can do at weekend and at last she applies as an auxiliary nurse

at King’s College Hospital. Clare carries out her night duty at King’s College

Hospital professionally and she is able to pay toward weekly expense of the bed.

Although she handles several jobs at a time, Clare still concerns with her

study since she wants to pursue her dream as a barrister. After passing her A-level

exams, Clare applies to a number of universities but she finds Newcastle-upon-

Tyne as an exciting one. After doing the interview at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Clare

is offered a place there if she passes her A-level with good grades. Besides, Clare

is also required to have a grant from Local Authority, which includes details of

her mother’s income and expenses.

Again, Carmen complicates Clare’s life and tries to block Clare’s way of

pursuing her dream. Instead of filling the forms provided, Carmen tears the papers

up into small pieces and throws them into the air. After Clare recognizes that her

A-level results are good enough to get a place at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, she deals

with the grant problem by applying for independent basis. Recognizing that she

has to be self-sufficient for five years, Clare then applies for a full-time job at

Guy’s Hospital in the X-ray department.

Fortunately, the university agrees to delay her study for one year since

Clare has been self-sufficient for four years. When at last she enters university and


80

reads law, Clare is able to satisfy her esteem needs both her self-esteem and

respect from others. By going to university, Clare manages to show her

competence and mastery of law. Furthermore, people also respect her as she gains

status and reputation as a student of law.

After a very long life journey which is full of difficulties and setbacks,

finally Clare is qualified as a barrister after she completes one year at the Inns of

Court School of Law. She is at last able to fulfill her self-actualization needs. As a

barrister, Clare is a self-actualized person who makes maximum use of her

abilities, develops her talents and potentials, and becomes the sort of person she

really is.

B. Suggestions

There are two points in this part. In the first point, I propose suggestions

for future researchers. While in the second point, I present the implementation of

using literary works for teaching learning activities.

1. Suggestions for Future Researchers

Constance Briscoe’s Ugly is an interesting novel to discuss since it is

based on real life story of the author. We, as the reader can grasp some life’s

values from the main character of the novel. Clare as the major character teaches

us how to deal with obstacles occurring in life. Although she encounters so many

problems and setbacks in the course of changing her life into a better one, Clare’s

dream of becoming a barrister somehow becomes her greatest motivation to

struggle. This novel provides us an insight that we must not give up even in the


81

worst condition we have to deal with in life. We have to be optimistic that there is

always a bunch of joy behind sorrow. Besides, we are supposed to keep holding

on our dreams and to put them into reality.

This study focuses on Clare’s struggle to gain a better life. By the means

of the psychological approach, this study explores how Clare as the main

character of the novel copes with the problems coming into her life and how she

struggles to change her life into a better one. Still, there are some interesting

aspects to discuss from this novel when we have a look at the novel from different

angles. For future researches who intend to conduct study on this novel, they may

use the psychological approach to analyze the influence of childhood abuse on

Clare’s self-esteem. It is also possible to conduct an analysis on the impact of the

absence of love towards Clare’s behavior. The psychological approach is

considered the most appropriate one since it deals with the study of the mind and

how it influences behavior.

2. Suggestion for Teaching Learning Activities Using Literary Works

As portrayals of real life experiences, literary works such as novels can be

used as sources of teaching learning activities as they provide so many insights

and life’s values. Besides broadening their knowledge, students can also explore

the style of writing, strengthen their mastery of language structures, and enrich

their vocabularies. Apart of those advantages, novels may also become good

models of writing. They can be used as the sources of inspiration in students’

writing, which help them to write creatively.


82

Considering the advantages of using novels as the sources of teaching

learning activities, I propose parts of Constance Briscoe’s Ugly to teach Paragraph

Writing. Chapter 1 entitled “My Family” which consists of 4 pages is taken as the

material. The consideration that lies beneath the decision is that this chapter can

be regarded as a good model of descriptive writing. Providing models of writing

will help the students to recognize the genre of the writing easily and later on they

are able to compose kinds of writing genre. Since this material is a model of

descriptive writing, it is supposed that it helps the students to recognize and

analyze descriptive writing. Furthermore, this model is also hoped to be the source

of inspiration for the students so that they can compose their own descriptive

writing creatively. The materials and lesson plan are attached in the appendices.

Below are the procedures in conducting teaching Paragraph Writing:

1) The teacher selects a reading passage from the novel as the model of

descriptive writing. It is taken from Chapter 1 of the novel entitled “My

Family” consisting of 4 pages (p.7-10).

2) The teacher presents a picture of a person and asks some questions related to

the person’s description to activate the students’ background knowledge.

3) The teacher distributes the copy of the materials including the reading

passage, the handouts, and the worksheets.

4) The teacher gives explanation about descriptive writing.

5) The teacher asks the students to read the passage individually.

6) The teacher discusses the passage and analyzes the sentences used in

describing people together with the students.


83

7) The teacher asks the students to do the worksheets.

8) The teacher discusses the answers of the exercises together with the students.

9) The teacher asks the students to work in pairs and to write a good paragraph

describing their own partners.

10) The teacher asks the students to submit their works.


84

REFERENCES

Abate, Frank. The Oxford Dictionary and Thesaurus. New York: Oxford University Press., 1996

Abrams, M. H. A Glossary of Literary Terms. 6th Edition. New York: Holt,

Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1993 Barnet, Sylvan, William Burto, and William E. Cain. Literature for Composition:

Essays, Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 7th Edition. New York: Longman University Press., 2005

Bernard, W. Human Motivation. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc.,

1980 Bootzin, Richard R, Elizabeth Loftus, and Robert B. Zajonc. Psychology Today:

An Introduction. 5th Edition. New York: Random House, Inc., 1983 Braun, Jay, Darwin E. Linder, and Isaac Asimov. Psychology Today: An

Introduction. New York: Random House, Inc., 1979 Briscoe, Constance. Ugly. London: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd., 2006 Forster, E. M. Aspects of the Novel and Related Writings. London: Edward Arnold

Ltd., 1974 Goble, Frank G. The Third Force: The Psychology of Abraham Maslow. New

York: Pocket Books, Inc., 1971 Henkle, Roger B. Reading the Novel: An Introduction to the Techniques of

Interpreting Fiction. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc., 1977 Holman, C. Hugh and William Harmon. A Handbook of Literature Terms. New

York: Macmillan Publishing Company, Inc., 1986 Hornby, A. S. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. 5th Edition. New York:

Oxford University Press., 1955 Hudson, William Henry. An Introduction to the Study of Literature. London:

George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd., 1958 Jung, John. Understanding Human Motivation. New York: Macmillan Publishing

Co., Inc., 1978


85

Kalish, Richard A. The Psychology of Human Behavior. 3rd Edition. California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, Inc., 1973

Laar, Van Dee and Schoonderwoerd. An Approach to English Literature. 6th

Edition. Rotterdam: L. C. G. Malmberg, 1969 McKechnie, Jean L. A Webster’s Dictionary. New York: Prentice Hall Press.,

1989 Morris, Charles G. Psychology: An introduction. 7th Edition. New Jersey:

Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1990 Murphy, M. J. Understanding Unseens: An Introduction to English Poetry and the

English Novel for Overseas Students. London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd., 1972

Rohrberger, Mary and Samuel H. Woods, Jr. Reading and Writing About

Literature. New York: Random House, Inc., 1971 Schultz, Duane. Growth Psychology: Models of the Healthy Personality. New

York: D. Van Nostrand Company, 1977 Stanton, Robert. An Introduction to Fiction. New York: Holt, Rinehart and

Winston, Inc., 1965 Worchel, Stephen and Wayne Shebilske. Psychology: Principles and

Applications. 3rd Edition. New Jersey: Prentice-hall, Inc., 1989 Online Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constance_Briscoe accessed on Thursday, May 6,

2010 at 04.00 p.m. http://www.booknutsreadingclub.com/descriptivewriting.html accessed on

Sunday, May 6, 2010 at 08.05 p.m. http://www.bookrags.com/printfriendly/?p=wiki&u=Constance_Briscoe accessed

on Sunday, May 16, 2010 at 08.00 p.m. http://www.constancebriscoe.com/main.asp?page=3 accessed on Thursday, May

6, 2010 at 04.30 p.m. http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/jan/12/biography.features accessed on

Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 04.15 p.m.


86

http://www.helium.com/items/237314-book-reviews-ugly-by-constance-briscoe

accessed on Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 04.25 p.m. http://www.lawreports.co.uk/Newsletter/OnlineArticles/UglyReview06.html

accessed on Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 04.20 p.m. http://www.thewritingsite.org/resources/genre/descriptive.asp accessed on

Sunday, May 16, 2010 at 08.10 p.m.


87

APPENDICES


88

Appendix A

Summary of the Novel

In Ugly, Briscoe alleges that her mother turns against

her while her sisters and brothers stand by and watch.

It is classic misery memoir territory.

Carmen Briscoe has seven children with her husband and Constance's father,

George. She then has another four children with Constance's stepfather, Garfield

Eastman. In Ugly, Constance says that none of the other children is abused as she

is. She has a cigarette burn on her hand as the courtesy of Eastman and a scar on

her arm where she says her mother slashes her with a knife after she fails to pluck

a chicken to her satisfaction. At 12, she says, she has to go into hospital to have

lumps in her breasts removed - she claims they are the result of her mother's

abuse.

Briscoe's mother comes to England from Portland, Jamaica, as a teenager. In

London, she hooks up with George, whom she has known back home in Portland.


89

Briscoe has no doubt that her mother treats her differently from her siblings.

Briscoe does not think her mother likes her because she wets the bed. Moreover,

she doesn't like her because she thinks she is ugly, and that offends her because

she is really rather attractive. Carmen thinks she is too black. She has a big, broad

nose.

One of the most powerful moments in Ugly comes when Briscoe describes trying

to get herself taken into care and is told to go home. She decides to kill herself by

overdosing on bleach. She says she dilutes the bleach, blisters her throat and

makes herself sick, but fails in her ultimate mission.

As a child, she watches Crown Court on television and sees the barristers at work

in their fancy wigs. When she is 13, she meets Michael Mansfield on a school trip

to Knightsbridge crown court, tells him she is destined to be a barrister and asks if

he will help. He tells her to get in touch when she is ready.

When she is 14, she says, her mother moves with the younger children to another

house a few blocks away, leaving Constance and her two elder sisters to fend for

themselves. That is when life starts to look up. She stops wetting the bed, supports

herself with a number of part-time jobs, works her socks off at school, and saves

enough money to buy herself a four-poster to replace the bed that, she says, her

mother has dismantled in anger and removes from her room bit by bit. It takes her

two years to pay for the bed, a symbol of her new-found freedom. She also

manages to pass ten O-levels.


90

After passing A-levels, she wins a place to read law at Newcastle University.

When asked to sign a local authority grant application, her mother refuses; tearing

it up and allegedly stating, “Only clever people go to university.” She has to work

for one more year to show that she is self sufficient before at 19 she goes up to

university.

Adapted from:

http://www.bookrags.com/printfriendly/?p=wiki&u=Constance_Briscoe

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/jan/12/biography.features


91

Appendix B

About the Author

Constance Briscoe LL.B, MA (born 18 May 1957) is a

barrister and one of Britain's first black female Recorders.

Born to two Jamaicans who settled in the United Kingdom in the 1950s, she was

one of six children. Briscoe studied Law at the University of Newcastle upon

Tyne, financing her studies by having several jobs at weekends and during the

holidays, including working with the terminally ill in a hospice. She took an MA

at the University of Warwick. She was called to the Bar in 1983, and in 1996

became a Recorder, a part time judge - one of the first black women to sit as a

judge in the UK. Briscoe’s legal practice focuses on criminal law and fraud,

principally defending. She also undertakes tribunal work, public inquiries,

inquests and acts as President of Mental Health Tribunals.

In the late 1990s, Briscoe was unsuccessfully nominated for a peerage. In 2007

she applied to be made a QC but was turned down.


92

She lives in Clapham with her two children, Martin and Francesca Carmen. Her

partner is Tony Arlidge QC. She has admitted to having facial and other cosmetic

surgery due to her self perception of being ugly

She is known for her books Ugly and Beyond Ugly in which she claims she was

abused as a child and she often talks about her experiences publicly. Her mother,

Carmen Briscoe-Mitchell, sued her daughter along with publishers Hodder &

Stoughton for libel. The case was concluded in Constance Briscoe's favour, when

a civil jury in the High Court unanimously found that the books were not

libellous.

Adapted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constance_Briscoe


93

Appendix C

LESSON PLAN

Subject : Paragraph Writing

Level of Students : 2nd Semester of English Education Study Program

Time Allocation : 2 x 50’

Material : Chapter 1 of Briscoe’s Ugly entitled “My Family”

(p.7-10)

Teaching Methods : Lecture, Discussion, Individual Work, and Pair Work

I. Competence Standard:

On completing the course, the students are able to write well using

different types of writing genre.

II. Basic Competence:

The students are able to write well using descriptive genre.

III. Learning Indicators:

The students are able to recognize sentences describing people.

The students are able to identify the words used to describe people.

The students are able to name the words used to describe people.

The students are able to compose good descriptive paragraphs.


94

IV. Materials:

Chapter I of Constance Briscoe’s Ugly (p.7-10)

Handouts and Worksheets

V. Learning Activities:

A. Pre-Activity:

• The students greet the teacher and do the ice-breaking.

• The students answer some questions and state their opinions related

to the picture shown by the teacher.

B. Whilst-Activity:

• The students listen to the teacher’s explanation about descriptive

writing.

• The students read the passage individually.

• The students discuss the reading passage together with the teacher

to analyze sentences used in describing people.

• The students do the exercises on the worksheets.

• The students discuss the answers together with the teacher

• The students work in pairs and compose a paragraph describing

their own partners.

C. Post-Activity:

• The students submit their works.

• The students listen to the teacher’s wrap up on today’s topic.


95

VI. Teaching Media:

Handouts and Worksheets

Viewer

Dictionary

VII. Evaluation

The students’ competence are assessed based on their worksheets and

writing production


96

Appendix D

DESCRIBING PEOPLE

Pre-Activity

Do you know who she is?

Is she beautiful? How does she look like?


97

DESCRIBING PEOPLE

Handout

Do you know what descriptive writing is?

Purpose:

Descriptive writing vividly portrays a person, place, or a thing in such a

way that the reader can visualize the topic and enter the writer’s

experience

The general characteristics:

Elaborate use of sensory language (tastes, smell, touch, hearing,

and sight)

Rich, vivid, and lively detail

Figurative language as simile, hyperbole, metaphor, symbolism,

and personification

Showing, rather than telling through the use of active verbs and

precise modifier

Uses:

Descriptive writing appears almost everywhere and is often included in

other genres (Expository, Narrative, and Persuasive)

For example: it is used in descriptive introduction of a character in a

narrative

Adapted from http://www.thewritingsite.org/resources/genre/descriptive.asp


98

DESCRIBING PEOPLE (VOCABULARIES)

Build: thin, fat, slim, medium, well-built, light, heavy, overweight, obese,

skinny, plump, chubby Height: short, medium, tall Hair: long, short, shoulder length, wavy, curly, straight, bald, ponytail,

frizzy Hair colors: black, grey, white, red, ginger, auburn, blonde Face: round, oval, square, heart-shaped, mean, large/narrow forehead Eyes: blue, green, grey, brown, small, big, slanted eyes, deep-set eyes,

protruding eyes Nose: small, big, pointed nose, flat nose

Lips: thin, full, pout, pursed

Teeth: straight, crooked, buck teeth, gap teeth Skin: fair, white, olive, brown, black, dark complexion General Appearance: pretty, beautiful, handsome, good-looking, ugly,

unattractive, plain Age: young, teen, old, 12 years old Personality: kind, calm, cheerful, shy Clothing: T-shirt, shirt, shorts, jeans, trousers, skirt, dress, glasses, hat,

sneakers, sandals


99


100


101

DESCRIBING PEOPLE

Worksheets

EXERCISES!

1. Read the passage (Ugly page 7-10)!

2. Fill in the tables based on the information provided in the reading passage!

Names

Aspects Carmen Pauline Patsy Clare Christine Denise Cynthia Norma

BUILD

HEIGHT

HAIR

FACE

EYES

NOSE

LIPS

TEETH

SKIN

APPEARANCE

PERSONALITY

*put a dash (–) when you find no information


102

3. Fill in the blanks based on the pictures!

She’s … She’s … She has … hair Her hair is … She has … hair Her hair is …

He is … He is … His head is … He has … hair His hair is …

She has … hair Her hair is …

She has a …

4. Work in pairs! Each person composes a paragraph describing his/her own

partner!

☺☺☺Happy Working☺☺


clare s struggle for a better life as seen ugly a thesis

Documents