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TRANSFERENCE OF MEANING EMPLOYED IN THE RAGE
AGAINST THE MACHINE ALBUM
A Thesis
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Attainment of
Sarjana Sastra Degree in English Language and Literature
By:
Leonardo Teopilus Adre Fransteladi
12211141048
ENGLISH LITERATURE STUDY PROGRAM
ENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF LANGUAGES AND ARTS
YOGYAKARTA STATE UNIVERSITY
2017
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MOTTOS
Berbuat salah itu sifat manusia, tapi belajar dari kesalahan juga sifat manusia.
(Gintama)
No man is a failure who has friends. (It’s a Wonderful Life)
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DEDICATIONS
I dedicate my thesis to:
MY MOTHER, MY FATHER AND MY BROTHER
MY EXTENDED FAMILY
MY COMPASSIONATE FRIENDS
and
MYSELF
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I want to thank God for His blessings and help. Also, I would
like to express my sincere thanks to:
1. my first supervisor, Titik Sudartinah, M.A., for guiding me with great
enthusiasm and tireless effort;
2. my second supervisor as well as my Academic Advisor, Rachmat
Nurcahyo, M.A., for the suggestions and advice during my study and the
process of thesis writing;
3. all lecturers at English Education Department of State University of
Yogyakarta for doing their best to give knowledge and teach me;
4. my mother, Nunuk Budiarsih, and my father, Usmanto Adi, for providing
me the chance to study at university and my brother, David, with whom I
spent my time at home;
5. all the members of my nuclear family, my grandmother, my aunts, my
uncles and my cousins for the support;
6. my compassionate friends, those who never take me for granted. They are
Ajix, Anang, Hanif, Hendra, Hovi, Nimas, Anggi, and Kikin;
7. the boys of class F of English Literature 2012, Anjar, Arif, Rendra, Taufiq,
Umam, for the memory we created and the girls, Sarah and Assa, for the
enjoyful conversations we had, and Anti and Ellis for lending me a hand;
8. all of my classmates of class F 2012 and Linguistics major; and
9. those who have helped during the process of writing the thesis.
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I notice that my research has many faults. However, I wish my
thesis would be useful for the readers.
Yogyakarta, 23 December 2016
Leonardo Teopilus Adre Fransteladi
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE................................................................................................................ i
APPROVAL SHEET ....................................................................................... ii
RATIFICATION.............................................................................................. iii
PERNYATAAN ................................................................................................. iv
MOTTOS .......................................................................................................... v
DEDICATIONS................................................................................................ vi
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................................. vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS................................................................................. ix
LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES............................................................... xii
ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................... xiii
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION.................................................................. 1
A. Background of the Research .................................................................. 1B. Research Focus....................................................................................... 2C. Research Objectives ............................................................................... 4D. Research Significance ............................................................................ 4
CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW AND CONCEPTUALFRAMEWORK ................................................................................................ 6
A. Literature Review................................................................................... 61. Stylistics............................................................................................. 62. Linguistic Deviation .......................................................................... 7
a. Lexical Deviation.......................................................................... 8b. Grammatical Deviation ................................................................. 9c. Phonological Deviation................................................................. 9d. Graphological Deviation ............................................................... 9e. Dialectal Deviation ....................................................................... 10f. Register Deviation......................................................................... 10g. Historical Period Deviation........................................................... 11h. Semantic Deviation ....................................................................... 11
1) Honest Deception ..................................................................... 12a) Hyperbole ............................................................................ 12b) Litotes .................................................................................. 12c) Irony..................................................................................... 12
2) Semantic Oddicity .................................................................... 12a) Pleonasm.............................................................................. 13b) Oxymoron............................................................................ 13
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c) Tautology............................................................................. 13d) Paradox ................................................................................ 13e) Periphrasis ........................................................................... 14
3) Transference of Meaning ......................................................... 14a) Metonymy............................................................................ 14b) Synecdoche.......................................................................... 15c) Simile................................................................................... 15d) Metaphor.............................................................................. 16e) Personification ..................................................................... 17
3. Figurative Language Functions ......................................................... 18a. To Afford Imaginative Pleasure.................................................... 18b. To Bring Additional Imagery........................................................ 18c. To Add Emotional Intensity.......................................................... 19d. To Say Much In Brief Compass.................................................... 19
4. Theme ................................................................................................ 205. Rage Against The Machine ............................................................... 206. Previous Studies................................................................................. 22
B. Conceptual Famework............................................................................ 23
CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHOD ..................................................... 26
A. Research Design ..................................................................................... 26B. Form, Source, and Context of Data........................................................ 27C. Research Instrument ............................................................................... 27D. Data Collection Techniques ................................................................... 28E. Data Analysis Techniques ...................................................................... 29F. Trustworthiness of Data ......................................................................... 30
CHAPTER IV FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ........................................ 31
A. Findings .................................................................................................. 31B. Discussion .............................................................................................. 33
1. Types of Transference of Meaning in Self-Title ................................ 33a. Metonymy ..................................................................................... 33b. Synecdoche ................................................................................... 36c. Simile ............................................................................................ 39d. Metaphor ....................................................................................... 41e. Personification .............................................................................. 44
2. Functions of Transference of Meaning in Self-Title .......................... 47a. To Afford Imaginative Pleasure.................................................... 47b. To Bring Additional Imagery........................................................ 50c. To Bring Emotional Intensity ....................................................... 52d. To Say Much in Brief Compass.................................................... 55
3. Themes Reflected through the Use of Transference of Meaning in Self-Title .................................................................................................... 58a. Capitalism ..................................................................................... 58b. Racism........................................................................................... 61
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c. Brainwashing ................................................................................ 63d. Rebellion ....................................................................................... 65
CHAPTER V CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS............................ 68
A. Conclusions ............................................................................................ 68B. Suggestions............................................................................................. 69
APPENDICES .................................................................................................. 73
A. Data Sheets ............................................................................................. 73B. Surat Pernyataan Triangulasi ................................................................ 80
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LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES
FIGURES
Figure 1. The Cover of Self-Title Album .................................................. 21
Figure 2. Analytical Construct .................................................................. 25
TABLES
Table 1. Transference of Meaning, the Functions and the Themes
Found in the Album Self-Title ................................................................... 27
Table 2. Types and Functions of Transference of Meaning and Themes
Found in the Album Self-Title................................................................... 28
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TRANSFERENCE OF MEANING EMPLOYED IN THE RAGEAGAINST THE MACHINE ALBUM
Leonardo Teopilus Adre Fransteladi
12211141048
ABSTRACT
Transference of meaning deals with understanding a thing in terms ofanother. The objectives of the study are to describe the types of transference ofmeaning employed in the album Self-Title by Rage Against The Machine, thefunctions of transference of meaning and the themes reflected through the use oftransference of meaning in the album.
To achieve the three objectives, this research employed qualitativeresearch. It was conducted by collecting any relevant data taken from the lyrics inthe form of words, phrases, clauses and sentences which are related to the topic ofthe research. To gain trustworthiness, the researcher applied member checking byasking his two supervisors and students of English Literature to check andvalidate the data.
This research reveals three findings. First, all of the types of transferenceof meaning are found. They are Metonymy, Synecdoche, Simile, Metaphor andPersonification. Second, all of the functions of figurative language are found.They are to afford imaginative pleasure, to bring additional imagery, to bringemotional intensity and to say much in brief compass. Moreover, a figure ofspeech may bring more than one function in which some of them probably are thesame as the functions brought by other figures of speech.Third, the employmentof transference of meaning reflects four themes. They are Capitalism, Racism,Brainwashing and Rebellion. Furthermore, all of the figures of speech reflectmore than one theme. In fact, some of them can reflect three themes.
Keywords: transference of meaning, Rage Against The Machine, Self-Title
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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
This chapter provides description of background of the research, research
focus, research objectives, and research significance.
A. Background of the Research
Music is a popular entertainment for people of different ages, having various
genres as well as themes. It is voice, musical instruments and lyrics that are
composed in perfect harmony. The three elements produce their own effects on
listeners. The sweet voice of a singer brings maximum pleasure. The pleasing sound
of piano soothes the hurt while energetic melody of guitar raises energy and
enthusiasm. Meanwhile, the language style of the lyrics leaves listeners amazed.
Unfortunately, people just take songs for granted. They do not take efforts to
understand what the songs actually want to say and what motivates the writer to write
the songs. They listen to music for getting pleasure instead of understanding. In fact,
through song, the singers have the chance to share their feelings, express opinion
about recent issues, protest unfair policy, or encourage people to give up war.
To make those happen, there are many means that songs writer can take. They
may employ unusual languages, ungrammatical structure, invent new words, or put
special vocabulary in wrong domain to create an artistic work and bring special
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effects. When a song is presented in this way then it becomes deviated. As a
consequence, people are attracted and willing to listen to their songs.
For that reason, language style of songs is worth to analyze. Rage Against The
Machine (RATM) debut album, Self-Title, is selectively chosen as the object of study
due to several reasons. First, in connection with the contents, the album is considered
provocative. It is well recognized by many people for featuring political and social
aspects. Second, the lyrics are composed of non-standard, imaginative and offensive
words. They are arranged in a creative way to create poetic effects and bring powerful
emotion to the listeners. Third, the debut album has won praise from popular
magazines. It was placed on number 368 of 500 greatest albums all of time by
Rolling Stone in 2012 and 30 of 100 best album ever by Q magazine in 2006.
B. Research Focus
A number of linguistic approaches can be applied to analyze lyrics of Rage
Against The Machine. The first one is systemic functional linguistics. The study
explores the language use for making meaning. A song depicts events and processes.
Therefore, the topics of the study can be process types of transitivity, the participants,
and circumstances involved in the lyrics. The second one is semantics. Semantics
aims to explain the meaning of a language. Songs are composed of words that have
relations with other words. The researcher may describe the types of lexical meaning
like synonym, antonym and hyponymy found in the lyrics and its positive and
negative connotations. The last one is stylistics. It concerns with the style of language
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to produce artistic effects. The song writers employ ungrammatical structure, and
words that do not conform to norm. For that reason, grammatical deviation can be
studied to explain syntactic deviation. Also, the figurative meaning in the songs
makes it possible to analyze a subfield of semantic deviation, which is transference of
meaning.
Related to the songs, there are several problems that can be researched. The
first one is the diction. The lyrics of RATM are made up of violent and imaginative
words related to politics, ideology, and crime. Due to this reason, the listeners may
misinterpret the meaning of the lyrics. Second, the imaginative words have other
functions beside for aesthetic purpose, making the songs creative and attractive. Last,
the songs portray crucial themes that are important to be explained.
Language is too broad to discuss. It has many subfields, including semantics,
sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, pragmatics, and stylistics. Since it is impossible to
analyze all of them, the researcher needs to limit on one subfield and he chooses
stylistics. He limits the analysis into three topics, which are transference of meaning,
the functions, and the themes. The object of this study is the debut album of Rage
Against The Machine that consists of ten songs.
Based on the explanation above, the researcher formulates the following
problems.
1. What types of transference of meaning are employed in the RATM’s Self-
Title?
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2. What are the functions of transference of meaning employed in the RATM’s
Self-Title?
3. What themes are reflected through the transference of meaning in the RATM’s
Self-Title?
C. Research Objectives
The objectives of the research are:
1. to describe the types of transference of meaning employed in the RATM’s
Self-Title,
2. to describe the functions of transference of meaning employed in the RATM’s
Self-Title, and
3. to explain the themes reflected through the transference of meaning in the
RATM’s Self-Title.
D. Research Significance
This study is expected to provide contributions for readers and researchers.
1. Readers
For common readers, this research can be used to enrich their knowledge
language style of a literary work. For English Department students, it can be
used as a guidance to analyze songs by employing stylistic approach and
motivate them to conduct similar research.
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2. Researchers
This research can be used as an additional reference in conducting similar
research. Indeed, the results of the researches can be compared.
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CHAPTER II
LITERATURE REVIEW AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
This chapter presents literature review and conceptual framework. Literature
review tells the theories dealing with stylistics, linguistics deviations, language
functions, the band Rage Against The Machine, and the previous studies. Conceptual
framework explains the concept employed as a guide to conduct the research.
A. Literature Review
1. Stylistics
In a simple way, stylistics can be defined as the study of language style. It
aims to explain the way in which language is employed in a certain situation, by
certain people and for certain purpose (Leech & Short, 2007). Simpson (2004:2)
proposes that stylistics is a method of textual interpretation in which primarily
focuses on language. He adds that linguistic structure, which is formed by various
forms, patterns and levels, plays significant role to interpretation. These features form
a text’s meaning and provide a stylistic interpretation and help explain why certain
types of meaning are possible.
Norgard et al (2010: 2) provide another definition of stylistics. Stylistics is a
linguistic approach to literature. It concentrates on studying how meaning is created
through language in literature as well as in other types of text such as advertisements,
news, or academic writing. The analysis of stylistics focuses not only on the text itself
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like phonological, lexical, grammatical level but also investigating the style of a
particular author and the role of readers in meaning construction.
According to Bennet and Nicholas (2004), language in a literary work is
sometimes defined in terms of its deviations from or distortions of ordinary language.
It suggests that literary texts are characterized by the use of figures of speech or
tropes. It defines figures and tropes in opposition to or as deviations from ordinary or
literal language. Simpsons (2004: 50) adds that deviation occurs when an aspect of
text does not follow linguistic norm. It is frequently found in literary work and done
to achieve poetic function in language. Indeed, it is normal to see the language of
poetry or song different from the usual.
To conclude, stylistics is the scientific study of language style. It seeks to
investigate the way language applied in fictional and non-fictional texts and in
various levels of linguistic structures. Specifically, it explores language that does not
conform to norm. It also enables readers to understand meaning of the texts carried by
certain style and the style of an author.
2. Linguistic Deviation
Deviation is property of expressions in a natural language which do not
conform to rules either explicitly or implicitly (Bussman, 1998). Language in literary
work may deviate from rules in either obvious or subtle ways and therefore is called
creative. To be creative, one of two conditions must be fulfilled. The first is making
special use of language possibilities which already exist. For example, the polar bears
of the Arctic of ice-cap have recently taken to wearing false eyelashes as a protection
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against snow-blindness. Even though the sentence is grammatically incorrect, it is
considered creative for the event that the sentence describes. The other is creating
new language possibilities which did not previously exist. For example, eins within a
space and a wearywide space it was ere wohned a Mookse. The creativeness lies in
the fact that the sentence is arranged ungrammatically, making it difficult to
understand (Leech, 1969).
To be specific, linguistic deviation may involve inventing new words or new
meaning of words, arranging words randomly, using words in wrong context or
forming words in wrong order. Leech divides linguistic deviations into eight types.
They are lexical, grammatical, phonological, graphological, dialectal, register,
historical period, and semantic deviation.
a. Lexical Deviation
Lexical deviation is an expression that is unusual from natural language in the
level of words. Leech (1969: 42) states that it is usually related to neologism: creating
words that have never been made before. It can be realized by adding affix to the
beginning or the end of words and combining two or more words into one. Still on
the same page, he provides some deviated words. The English rules of word
formation permits prefix of fore to a verb, in order to convey the meaning beforehand
as in foresee, foreknow, foretell and forewarn. Another is brainful. This word is not
listed by dictionary as dictionary only lists the word brainless. It is formed by adding
a suffix to root word and has the same meaning with smart or intelligent.
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b. Grammatical Deviation
Grammatical deviation is an expression that is unusual from natural language
in the level of morpheme, the smallest meaningful unit of words, and syntax, the
grammatical arrangement of words in a sentence. Beautifullest, profoundest,
pleasantest are morphological deviations found in Dickens’s Hard Times (Ouameur,
2013). In Standard English, the words should be preceded with more or most.
Syntactic deviation may involve using ungrammatical structure or arranging words
incorrectly as in sentence I doesn’t like him and He me saw (Leech, 1969). The
correct form is I don’t like him and He saw me.
c. Phonological Deviation
Phonological deviation is an expression that is unusual from natural language
in the level of sound. Leech (1969) divides it into two types: omission of a vowel,
consonant, or syllable within a word and special pronunciation. Omission is divided
into three types: Aphesis, Syncope and Apocope. Aphesis is the lost of initial part as
in ’gainst (against), ’twixt (betwixt), ’tis (it is). Syncope is the lost of middle part as
in o’er (over), e’er (ever) and ne’er (never). Apocope is the lost of final part as in oft’
(often) (Ufot, 2013). Special pronunciation happens as in the noun wind which is
pronounced like the verb wind. It is usually for the sake of rhyme.
d. Graphological Deviation
Graphological deviation is an expression that is unusual from natural language
in how writing letters and words. Leech and Short (2007) argue that it is
characterized by spelling, capitalization, hyphenation, italicization and
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paragraphing. Here is an excerpt taken from Cummings’ when life is quite through
with.
when love’s had his tears out,perhaps shall passa million years(while a bee dozes,on the poppies, the dears;when all’s done said and said,under the grasslies her headby oaks and rosesdeliberated.)
This excerpt shows deviation in the term of capitalization and punctuation.
The first word of the sentence is not capitalized where it is supposed to be. Related to
punctuation, the excerpt employs too much parenthesis (Li & Shi, 2015).
e. Dialectal Deviation
Dialectal deviation or dialectism is concerned with borrowing of features of
socially or regionally defined dialects. It happens when a writer does not write in the
understood dialect known as standard. Dialect itself may reveal the background
information of the writer such as education, origin, and social class. Spencer in The
Shepheardes Calendar employs some provincial words like heydeguyes (a type of
dance), rontes (young bullocks), and wimble (nimble) (Leech, 1969).
f. Register Deviation
Simpsons (2004:104) describes a register as the use of language for particular
situations. It tells what a speaker or writer is doing with language at a given
moment. Thus, register deviation can be defined as the use of register in incorrect
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context. An Analysis of Deviations of Register in T. S. Eliot’s Poem The Love Song
of J. Alfred Prufrock by Saleem (2012) provides an example of register deviation as
in the clause “I have measured out my life with coffee spoons”. The phrase ‘coffee
spoons’ refers to the register of kitchen. To measure out life is often used together
with evenings, mornings and afternoons, but to use it with ‘coffee spoon’ is a
deviant use. By applying a non-poetic expression into poetic discourse, the writer
wants to direct readers’ attention towards noisy, mechanical, disturbed and lifeless
mornings and afternoons of the persona.
g. Historical Period Deviation
Historical period deviation happens when archaism, a word or expression that
is not generally used any more, is used in today’s language. In Poe’s The Raven,
some archaic words are found. They are surcease which means to stop, thereat for
at that time or at that place, and some pronouns like thy, thou for your and you
respectively. The employment of archaic words in the poem fits well for it is about a
man spending most of his time with books of forgotten lore (Abood). The words thy
and thou are used in Shakespearean period.
h. Semantic Deviation
Semantic deviation is concerned with figurative meaning. Leech categorizes it
into three types. They are honest deception, semantic oddicity, and transference of
meaning.
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1) Honest Deception
Leech (1969, 166) states that Honest Deception is related to the idea that it
misrepresents truth. It is categorized into three types. They are hyperbole, litotes, and
irony.
a) Hyperbole
Hyperbole or overstatements refers the act of saying something seem larger,
better, bigger or more than it really is for the sake of truth (Perrine, 1969, 110). For
example, I will be waiting you for thousand years. The speaker does not want and
cannot wait for that long time. He/she just wants to mean what he says.
b) Litotes
Litotes refers to the act of understatement in which a speaker uses a negative
expression where as a positive one would be more forceful and direct (Leech,
1969:169). For example, saying it’s not bad means it is good.
c) Irony
Irony refers to the act of the opposite of what a speaker means. It may be used
to criticize someone in a humorous way in speech or writing or may not. If a teacher
says, “Some bad news for you: you all passed.” he is being ironical (Perrine, 1969,
113).
2) Semantic Oddicity
Leech (1969) proposes that Semantic Oddicity is concerned with the absurdity
of meaning. It is categorized into five types. They are pleonasm, oxymoron,
tautology, paradox and periphrasis.
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a) Pleonasm
Pleonasm refers to the act of using a word or more to repeat the meaning of
another word, leading to redundancy. It may occur in what precede or follow it
(Leech, 1969:132). The words male as in a male man and plays guitar as in a
guitarist who plays a guitar show the use of pleonasm.
b) Oxymoron
Oxymoron refers to the act of combining two words that have contrary
meaning. As a consequence, the combination is impossible to imagine and believe in
reality (Leech, 1969:132). Oxymoron occurs in expressions like female man and a
guitarist who plays drum.
c) Tautology
Tautology refers to the act of repeating an expression in a way that is
unnecessary (Leech, 1969:132). For example, my grandfather is old, nonsense is a
stupid idea and to err is to make mistake.
d) Paradox
Paradox refers to a statement which is absurd and contrary to reality (Leech,
1969:132). Perrine (1969, 110) adds that it aims to bring shock, drawing readers’
intention. For example, my grandfather is young, nonsense is a great idea and to err
is to make resolution.
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e) Periphrasis
Periphrasis refers to the use of longer form to an expression that is possible to
be written in shorter form (Leech, 1969:132). Example is the father of my father
(grandparent) and a silly idea (nonsense), and to make mistake (to err).
3) Transference of Meaning
Leech (1969, 144) suggests that transference of meaning is concerned with
deriving meaning of a word from another. It is categorized into five types. They are
synecdoche, metonymy, simile, metaphor and personification.
a) Metonymy
Drabble (2000) points out that metonymy is a figure of speech which
substitutes quality or attribute of something for the thing itself. In line with Drabble,
Jakobson (1956) via Norgard et al (2010) defines metonymy as a figure of speech, or
trope, in which a referent is substituted by something with which it is closely
associated, and is therefore based on a principle of association. Moreover, Simpsons
(2004:41) propose that it involves association between the part and the whole, known
as synecdoche, as in hired hand for worker, a producer and the produced as in ‘There
is a good Spielberg on tomorrow night, an institution and its location as in The
Pentagon for United States and so on.
He also points out that there is a great difficulty to distinguish metonymy and
metaphor. A way to tell whether it is metonymy or metaphor is converting them to
simile. Metonymy cannot be converted to simile whereas metaphor can. For example,
the metonymy hired hand cannot support the parallel simile a worker is like a hand,
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nor does a fresh pair of leg convert to a substitute is like a pair of legs. Meanwhile, a
politician is rat equals to a politician is like a rat.
b) Synecdoche
Synecdoche occurs when a part is used to represent a whole or a whole to
represent a part. Synecdoche in which a whole represent a part occurs when workers
are referred to as ‘hands’. Then a part represents the whole occurs when national
football team is signified by reference to the nation to which it belongs: ‘England beat
Sweden’ (Norgard et al, 2010: 109).
Since synecdoche is a subclass of metonymy, it is hard to distinguish them.
They provide an example to help to understand the two terminologies. The hand that
rocks the cradle rules the word. The hand is synecdoche that represents mother while
the cradle is metonymy that represents a baby by close association.
Synecdoche has a function that differs from other figures of speech. It is a
means of abbreviation, enabling writer to avoid verbosity. For instance, saying
'soldiers were equipped with steel’ is more concise than saying “the soldiers were
equipped with swords, knives, daggers, arrows and etc (Ustath, 2015).
c) Simile
Simile is a figure of speech which is closely related to metaphor and based on
similarity. It is characterized by direct comparison through the employment ‘as’ or
‘like’ (Norgard et al, 2010: 107). Drabble (2010) gives another definition by saying
simile is applied when an object, scene, or action introduced by way of comparison
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for explanatory, illustrative, or merely ornamental purpose as in as strong as an ox, or
more poetically as in Night Blake’s Songs of Innocence.
The moon, like a flowerIn heaven's high bowerWith silent delightSits and smiles on the night'
According to Fromilhague (1995:88-94) via Fadee (2011), simile has various
functions. First, they serve to communicate concisely and efficiently. They are one of
a set of linguistic devices which extend the linguistic resources available. Second, it
allows readers to think in alternative ways. Third, it provides more specific functions
depending on the textual genre in which they occur in discourse text. Last,
comparison and analogical reasoning play an important role in scientific text.
d) Metaphor
Metaphor is a figure of speech in which one thing is compared with
another by saying that one is the other (Kovecses, 2010). It aims to show that they
have something in common by drawing comparison indirectly. It may occur in the
form of single word or a collocation, an idiom, a sentence, a proverb, an allegory, a
complete imaginative text (Newmark, 1988:104). Phrase rage against the machine
draws a comparison indirectly between human and machine. It intends to convey
extreme anger at those who are cold and heartless.
Simpsons (2004:41) adds that it is a process of mapping between two different
conceptual domains: source domain and target domain. The source domain is the
concept drawn upon in order to create the metaphorical construction while the target
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domain is the topic or concept intended to describe by the employment of metaphor.
Her smile is medicine for me. The source domain is medicine and her smile is the
target domain. This expression brings the idea that her smile has the same qualities as
medicine: having the capability to soothe pain and cure sickness.
Metaphor basically has two purposes: referential purpose and pragmatic
purpose. Referential purpose is to describe a mental process or state, a concept, a
person, an object, a quality or an action more comprehensively and concisely than is
possible in literal language. Pragmatic purpose is to attract the senses, to interest, to
please, to delight, to surprise (Newmark, 1988: 104).
e) Personification
Personification refers to a figure of speech in which gives inanimate objects or
abstractions human qualities or represents them as possessing human form (Drabble,
2010). Lakoff and Johnson (1980) define personification as subclass metaphors in
which the physical object is further specified as being a person. This makes it
possible to comprehend a wide variety of experiences with nonhuman entities in
terms of human motivations, characteristics, and activities.
Still on the same page, they provide an example of personification. Inflation
has attacked the foundation of our economy, destroyed the dollar, and robbed my
savings. Here inflation is not only a person but an enemy. It not only gives a very
specific way of thinking about inflation but also a way of acting toward it.
Personification has an explanatory power to make most people understand inflation
and why suffering inflation is painful.
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3. Figurative Language Functions
To use figurative language is to say one thing to mean another. It may appear
absurd but it happens for a good reason. It allows people to say more vividly and
forcefully than does literal language. In other words, figurative language provides a
more effective means of saying something than direct statement does. It is employed
to achieve some functions. They are to afford imaginative pleasure, bring additional
imagery, add emotional intensity, and say much in brief compass (Perrine, 1969:71-
72).
a. To Afford Imaginative Pleasure
In this context, imagination is described as the ability of mind that draws a
picture from another. The mind gets delightful in seeing likenesses between unlike
things. For example, it is delightful to stare into a fire and see a castle, cities and
armies in it or look into the clouds and shape them into another form like animals or
faces. It also gives pleasure by naming plants or flowers by combining two unlike
things such as jack-in-the-pulpit, babies’s-breath, Queen Anne’s lace. Thus, figurative
language provides a source of pleasure in the exercise of imagination (Perrine, 1969:
71).
b. To Bring Additional Imagery
Figurative language gives additional imagery into literary works, makes
abstract concepts clear and certain, and enables poetry to give pleasure through
senses. When MacLeish personifies science in DR. Sigmund Freud Discovers The
Sea Shells, he treats an abstract concept as if it had body like human. As a
19
consequence, it leads reader to visualize science having the qualities of human
beings. Science can calculate the climate of each star; count the fish at sea and so on.
In other words, figurative language is a way of multiplying the sense appeal of poetry
(Perrine, 1969:71).
c. To Add Emotional Intensity
To say something by using figure of speech not only provides information but
also brings strong emotions on the statement. For example, my feet are killing me is
more emotional than my feet hurt. It is intended to convey that physical suffering
caused by injury is extremely painful. If nothing is done, the pain will get worse and
lead the speaker to be hospitalized. Another is when Wilfred Owen draws comparison
between a soldier caught in a gas attack and a man drowning under a green sea in
Dulce Et Decorum Est, he presents a feeling of despair and suffocation as well as
visual image (Perrine, 1969:71-72).
d. To Say Much In Brief Compass
Figurative language serves as a tool to say concepts by expressing them short
and clear, avoiding unnecessary words. For instance, Shakespeare compares life to
candle in a passage from Macbeth. Life is like a candle. It begins and ends in
darkness. While it burns, it produces light and energy. It gradually consumes itself,
getting shorter and shorter. It can be snuffed out at any moment. It burns only for a
short duration. This concise description of life as a brief candle suggests certain
truth about life that requires tons of words to express in literal language (Perrine,
1969: 72).
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4. Theme
Lukens (1999) defines theme in literature as the idea that holds the story
together such as a comment about society, human nature, or the human condition. It
is the main idea or central meaning of a piece of writing. It can be stated explicitly
or implicitly and a literary work may have one or multiple themes.
To illuminate theme, a novelist can employ literary elements such as
character, setting, plot and so on. However, song writers do not employ these
elements but figurative language like personification, metaphor, simile and etc. This
figure of speech makes his song more appeal, dramatic, vivid and at same time
conjures up theme. Bennet and Nicholas (2004) state that it is due to character of
language which is inescapably figurative: the meaning of a text cannot be separated
from its expression, its figures. For example, a black skin got shot by a police. The
word black skin indicates the use of synecdoche and shows issue of murder dealing
with racism. If the expression is altered to a man got shot by a police, the theme is
too general. Figurative language is not only an essential element to produce
aesthetic literary work but also to illuminate theme.
5. Rage Against The Machine
Formed in 1991 in Los Angeles, Rage Against The Machine is a band that
falls into metal rap genre. It consists of four members: Zack de la Rocha (vocalist),
Tom Morello (guitarist), Tim Commerford (bassist), and Brad Wilk (drummer).
They are well-known by many people for their angry lyrics criticizing political and
21
social aspect. During their working life, the band has released four albums, which
are Self-Title (1992), Evil Empire (1996), The Battle of Los Angeles (1999), and
Renegades (2000). Their debut album depicts a lot of rage: a rage against
capitalism, a rage against brainwashing, a rage against racism, and a rage against
unfairness. The lyrics are written by Zack while the music is composed by Tom.
Moreover, the cover itself portrays a monk burning himself in Vietnam for
protesting unfair treatment towards Vietnamese monks by the government. In 2000,
the band disbands but reunites again seven years later and has some concerts during
2007 and 2011. Unfortunately, after some concerts, they disband again.
Figure 1. The Cover Of Self-Title Album
22
6. Previous Studies
There are several studies related to stylistics and the songs of the band. The
first is Stylistics Analysis of the Poem Bereft by Robert Frost by Aslam et al (2014). It
explores graphological, grammatical, syntactical, and phonological patterns as well as
schemes and tropes. In graphological level, there is no division of stanzas, the poem
is written as a whole and there is usual capitalization and the use of punctuation. In
grammatical level, the use of punctuation, use of question mark and question mark
shows that the poet is confused. In phonological level, the sixteen-line-poem has
AAAAABBACCDDDEDE rhyme. Related to tropes and schemes, the poet employs
anaphora, antithesis, epistrophe, metaphor, personification, imagery and rhetorical
question.
The second is Grammatical Deviation Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot by
Akhter and Hayat (2012). As the name suggests, it seeks to analyze deviation in the
level of syntax. The results reveal that there are two kinds of grammatical deviation
employed in the play. They are ellipses and inversion of syntactic order. The sentence
parts that are left out are verb, subject, object and conjunction with verb being the
greatest in number. Inversion of syntactic order is the pattern in Standard English is
usually SVO but in the play the pattern is OSV.
The last is The Lyrics of Rage Against The Machine: A Study In Radical
Criminology by Laura L. Finley (2002). It is different from the previous two for a
reason that it investigates the content of work rather than its language style. To be
specific, it analyses some selected lyrics to discover the themes of criminology that
23
the lyrics have. The result is that they have three primary themes. The first is that
capitalism has a great impact on criminality and the ruling rich classes are even more
criminal than those labeled as such. The second is that the media makes it difficult for
people to see the exact truth about capitalist ideologies. The third is that revolution,
ranging from violent forms to revolution of knowledge, is needed to end capitalism.
This research has similarity and difference compared to the three researches
above. The similarity between this research and the first two lies in the approach
employed. They all aim to analyze the language style of literary works. They differ in
the objectives and object. Also, this research and Finley’s differ in the topic
discussed. The topic of this research is the language of the songs whereas Finley’s is
the content.
B. Conceptual Framework
Since this research analyses language style of literary work, the approach is
stylistics. To be specific, this research aims to describe the type of transference of
meaning, the functions, and themes reflected through transference of meaning in the
ten-song-album Rage Against The Machine. To conduct this research, two theories
were employed as the guide. To achieve the first objective, Leech’s theory was
employed. In his book A Linguistic Guide to English Poetry, he divides transference
of meaning into synecdoche, metonymy, simile, metaphor and personification. To
achieve second objective, Perrine’s theory was employed. In his book Sound and
Sense: An Introduction to Poetry, he proposes that figurative language has four
24
functions. They are to afford imaginative pleasure, bring additional imagery, add
emotional intensity, and say much in brief compass.
25
Figure 2. Analytical Construct Framework
Stylistics
Language Style Literary Work
Deviation Function
Lexical
Theme
Grammatical Phonological Semantic Dialectal Register HistoricalPeriod
SemanticOddicity
HonestDeception
Transferenceof Meaning
1. Hyperbole
2. Litotes
3. Irony
1. Metonymy
2. Synecdoche
3. Simile
4. Metaphor
5. Personification
1. To afford imaginativepleasure
2. To bring additionalimagery
3. To add emotional intensity
4. To say much in briefcompass
1. Pleonasm
2. Oxymoron
3. Tautology
4. Paradox
5. Periphrasis
RATM’s Album
Transference of Meaning Employed in the Rage Against The Machine Album
26
CHAPTER IIIRESEARCH METHOD
This chapter presents the method that the researcher employed to conduct the
research. It consists of several sub-chapters, which are research design, data, source
and context of data, research instrument, data collection and analysis techniques and
trustworthiness of data.
A. Research Design
This reseach deals with the style of language. Therefore, the suitable approach
is qualitative research. Strauss and Corbin (1998: 11) via Ritchie and Lewis (2003:
16) provide definition of qualitative research as any type of research that produces
findings not arrived at by statistical procedures or other means of quantification. It
produces narrative or textual descriptions of the phenomena under study
(Vanderstoep and Johnston, 2009). In line with Vanderstoep and Johnston, Wahyuni
(2012:5) proposes that qualitative research is more concerned with understanding a
phenomenon. Indeed, its aim is to describe meaning.
By employing qualitative research, this research intends to describe in detail
the phenomenon of language style in songs. To be specific, it aims to describe the
types of transference of meaning, the functions and themes found in the Rage Against
The Machine’s Self-Title. The explanations are presented in narrative way.
27
B. Form, Source, and Context of Data
The object of the research is Rage Against The Machine’s album entitled Self-
Title. The forms of the data are words, phrases, clauses and sentences containing
transference of meaning. Moreover, in the research, there are two data sources: the
primary and secondary one. The primary one is the songs and the lyrics. The
secondary one is books and journals related to transference of meaning. The context
of the data is the lyrics.
C. Research Instrument
Since the reseacrh is under qualitative approach, the main instrument of the
research is the researcher himself. He involved in all the process of conducting
research including gathering data, analysing them, presenting the explanations and
drawing conclusion. Besides main instrument, he employed secondary instrument,
which was data sheets. The data sheets can be seen as follows.
Table 1. Sample Data Sheets of Transference of Meaning, the Functions and
the Themes Found in the Album Self-Title
Note:
No : Datum Number 1: to afford imaginative pleasure Ca: CapitalismMy : Metonymy 2: to bring additional imagery Ra: RacismSy : Synecdoche 3: to add emotional intensity Br: BrainwashingSi : Simile 4: to say much in brief compass Re: RebellionMr : MetaphorPe : Personification
28
No DataTransference of Meaning Functions Theme
ExplanationMy Sy Si Mr Pe 1 2 3 4 Ca Ra Br ReBombtrack
1
Hey yo, it'sjust anotherbombtrack.
..ughh
The expressionshows the use ofmetaphor. Bycomparing his songand bom, the writerexpects that his songcan be like a bomb.It can explode, bringshock, and destroycapitalism intopieces. Thisexpression suggestthe concept of thesong using only fewwords. It makes afeeling of energeticinterest in endingcapitalism. Besides,seeing the likenessbetween two unlikethings producesimaginativepleasure.
D. Data Collection Techniques
The data of the research were collected from the lyrics of the songs. The
researcher collected the data by conducting several procedures that can be seen as
follows:
1. downloading the lyrics of the songs from www.ratm.com,
2. listening the songs comprehensively,
3. checking the accuracy of the lyrics while listening the songs,
29
4. Noting data in accordance with the objectives of the research and,
5. Putting the data into data sheets.
E. Data Analysis Techniques
The researcher analyzed the data by conducting several procedures that can be
seen as follows.
1. Classifying the data,
2. Interpreting them,
3. Applying triangulation to achieve trustworthiness,
4. Presenting the explanation of the findings and
5. Drawing the conclusion.
F. Trustworthiness of Data
In qualitative research, a researcher plays important roles. He involves in all
of process of conducting research including gathering data, interpreting them and
drawing conclusion. For that reason, it may give rise to subjective interpretations and
failure at ensuring trustworthiness. To prevent bias and achieve trustworthiness,
triangulation was employed. According to Flick (2009), triangulation is a strategy for
promoting the quality of qualitative research. In line with Flick, Vanderstoep and
Johnston (2009) argue that triangulation refers to using more than one methodology
to address the same question to establish the validity and reliability of the data. To
gain trusworthiness of data, the researcher applied member checking. Lincoln and
30
Guba (1985) via Flick (2009: 392) state that member checking involves using
members of the fields under study to validate and interpret data. The researcher
consulted with his two supervisors, namely Titik Sudartinah and Rachmat Nurcahyo.
He also asked two students of English Literature, namely Assari Wulan and Rendra
Novian, to ensure the validity of the data.
31
CHAPTER IV
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
This chapter is divided into two parts: findings and discussion. The
findings section presents the types of transference of meaning, functions and
themes found in the Rage Against The Machine’s Self-Title in a table. The
discussion section provides the explanations of transference of meaning, functions
and themes found in the album in detail.
A. Findings
The findings of the types of transference of meaning, functions and themes
found in the album are presented in the following table.
Table 2. Types and Functions of Transference of Meaning and Themes
Found in the Album
No Transference ofMeaning Function Theme
1. Metonymy to bring emotional intensity,to say much in brief compass
Brainwashing,Rebellion
2. Synecdoche to bring emotional intensity,to say much in brief compass
Capitalism,Racism, Rebellion
3. Simile
to afford imaginativepleasure, to bring emotional
intensity, to say much in briefcompass
Capitalism,Brainwashing,
Rebellion
4. Metaphor
to afford imaginativepleasure, to bring emotional
intensity, to say much in briefcompass
Capitalism,Racism, Rebellion
5. Personification to bring additional imageryCapitalism,
Brainwashing,Rebellion
32
Based on the table, five types of transference of meaning are found in the
album. They are Metonymy, Synecdoche, Simile, Metaphor and Personification.
Each type has its own functions and reflects different themes. Metonymy
functions to bring emotional intensity and to say much in brief compass. It reflects
Brainwashing and Rebellion theme. Synecdoche functions to bring emotional
intensity and to say much in brief compass. It reflects Capitalism, Racism, and
Rebellion theme. Simile functions to afford imaginative pleasure, to bring
emotional intensity and to say much in brief compass. It reflects Capitalism,
Brainwashing and Rebellion theme. Similar to Simile, Metaphor functions to
afford imaginative pleasure, to bring emotional intensity and to say much in brief
compass. It reflects Capitalism, Racism, and Rebellion theme. Personification
functions to bring additional imagery. It reflects Capitalism, Brainwashing and
Rebellion theme.
Based on the explanations above, two points can be stated. First, a figure
of speech may have more than one function in which some of them probably are
the same as the functions brought by other figures of speech. This case happens to
a figure of speech which basically has same characteristics with another like
Metonymy and Synecdoche, Simile and Metaphor. Second, all of the figures of
speech reflect more than one theme. In fact, some of them can reflect three
themes.
33
B. Discussion
This section provides the analysis of five types of transference of meaning,
the functions, and the themes found in the album Self-Title. To provide deep
explanations, the researcher took some data to answer the three objectives.
1. Types of Transference of Meaning Found in the Album Self-Title
Leech (1969: 144) states that transference of meaning is particular
mechanisms for deriving one meaning of a word from another. Based on his book,
transference of meaning is divided into five types. They are Metonymy,
Synecdoche, Simile, Metaphor and Personification. All of them are found in the
album.
a. Metonymy
Metonymy occurs when an attribute or quality of something is used to
refer another which is related to it (Drabble, 2000). Jakobson (1956) via Norgard
et al (2010) adds that it is a way of referring something based on association. Not
only does this figure of speech make songs more colorful but it also allows a
writer to refer a thing in a creative way.
Metonymy can provide understanding, making it easier to comprehend a
concept or an idea. This can be seen in the following datum.
Bam! Here's the planMotherfuck Uncle Sam (datum 11)
Metonymy in the datum above is characterized by the word Uncle Sam. Uncle
Sam is an imaginary tall thin man with white beard and a tall hat which is
represented in political cartoon. This figure is associated with the US government.
Furthermore, metonymy in this expression happens for a reason. It makes easier to
34
comprehend the idea that the frustration and anger are directed towards the
government. If Uncle Sam is altered to America, then it is unclear towards whom
the expression is directed, whether it is directed towards the people, the
government or both.
The line occurs in a song entitled Take the Power Back. The song itself is
the embodiment of the writer’s disappointment to education in America. Teachers
do not give their students knowledge or train them to be skillful. Instead, students
only sit as silent as grave and listen to nonsense and lies teachers tell. It is
suggested by the repetion of the expression No more lies in the end of the song.
As a consequence, they become dull and ignorant about current situation. Indeed,
people must join as group to seize the power to restore condition as the song title
suggests.
Metonymy provides not only understanding of ideas but also situation
which can be seen in datum 18, “A yellow ribbon instead of a swastika.” At a
glance, the line may not be considered metonymic if information about yellow
ribbon and swastika is insufficient. Yellow ribbon is associated with a situation
where a family is waiting for the return of their relatives which are usually soldier
deployed to go war. Meanwhile, Swastika is an old symbol in the form of a cross
with its ends bents at right angles all in the same direction. It is an important
symbol in Buddha and Hinduism which is associated with peace.
The line occurs in a track entitled Bullet in the Head. This song was made
to criticize some involvement of America in war. In the beginning of 1950’s, the
country, which controlled the south territory of Korea, took a part in Korean War
35
fighting against Soviet Union that controlled the north territory of Korea. Several
years later, it got involved in Vietnam War. It allied with South Vietnamese to
fight against North Vietnamese supported by Soviet Union. Two decades after
Vietnam War, a year before the album Self-Title was released, America involved
in another war called Gulf Persian War in a mission to stop Saddam Hussein, Iraqi
dictator, trying to invade Kuwait. This series of involvement in war left America
with enormous impacts: thousand deaths of soldier and massive losses money.
Therefore, the writer advocates stopping war and focusing on raising the quality
lives of Americans by asking government to spend the budget more in other
aspects like health and education.
Still in the same song, the writer applies metonymy by suggesting the fact
that an attribute is stated to refer something which is connected with the attribute
as in datum 20, “They load the clip in omnicolor.” Omnicolor means color is
everywhere. It is associated with television since the device is dominated by
multiple colors when it is working. By saying omnicolor instead of television, this
figure of speech raises listener’s attention, making them wonder what is actually
meant by the writer. It also emphasizes the point that the essential element of
television exploited to brainwash people is the color.
Based on the context, Bullet in the Head tells how media is exploited to
brainwash people. In this case, the media that is exploited is television.
Capitalists, who have the access and money to pay media, spread information,
ideas and opinions with the intention of influencing people’s mind by playing
videos in televisions. This is strengthened by some expressions in the song like
36
believin' all the lies that they're tellin' ya and buyin' all the products that they're
sellin' ya. Television is preferred as it is the most popular media for many to get
entertainment and information. Besides, it is an irony that television, which is
supposed to provide right information, can be bought to make people believe that
information and ideas broadcasted are truth.
b. Synecdoche
Synecdoche occurs when a part is used to represent a whole or a whole to
represent a part (Norgard et al, 2010: 109). Synecdoche in which a whole
represent a part occurs when cars are referred to as ‘wheels’. Then a part
represents the whole occurs when the Bible is referred to as the Book. Lakoff and
Johnson (1980) propose that synecdoche is not only a way of referring something
but also providing understanding. They also provide an example of synecdoche.
We need a new brain to fix this problem. The word a brain refers to a smart
person. By referring the person as a brain instead of hand, the speaker has the
intention to look a certain quality of the person, intelligence, which is associated
with brain. This figure of speech occurs several times in the Self-Title album.
A synecdoche in which a part is used to refer the whole can be seen in the
following datum.
Dispute the suits I igniteAnd then watch 'em burn (datum 5)
Synecdoche in the expression above is characterized by the word suits. A suit is a
set of clothes made from the same material and having the same color. It is mostly
worn by businessmen and politicians while doing a particular activity to show
formality. By employing this figure of speech, the writer wishes to express his
37
anger at businessmen and politicians. Businessmen are selfish; they prefer making
profits as much as possible to sharing the profits for helping the have-nots
struggling to live a life. Meanwhile, politicians, the representative of people, take
no action to change the situation.
Based on the story background, the line occurs in a song entitled
Bombtrack. The song itself was heavily influenced by America’s economic
system, namely capitalism. Capitalism is an economic system based on private or
corporate ownership of property, business and industry rather than by the
government. The production, distribution and price of the goods are determined
by competition in a free market. The main purpose is to make the greatest possible
profits. Capitalism is considered as a ruthless system since it is only beneficial for
those who own factory and industry. It only makes the wealthy wealthier and the
poor poorer. It is due to the fact that profits belong to the landlords not the
employees. The greater the profits are, the richer the landlords are.
Still, synecdoche in which a part is used to refer the whole is employed in
the following datum,
Something must be doneAbout vengeance, a badge and a gun (datum 22)
Synecdoche in the datum is a part to stand for the whole. It is suggested by the
words a badge and a gun. A badge and a gun belong to police. When working,
police officers are equipped with the two things. A badge is to show if one is a
police and a gun is for self-protection. By referring a badge and a gun as police,
the writer intends to stress two points. First, a badge signifies the one who
38
commits a crime, namely police. Second, a gun signifies the crime that police
commit, namely gun shooting.
An aspect the song criticizes is how American police deal with black
people. American police are infamous for shooting blacks with gun. They are
more likely to shoot black suspects rather than the white ones. When facing
unarmed black suspects posing no threat, white police keep perceiving blacks to
be dangerous. Due to this, they fire bullets to paralyze them. In fact, police
sometimes perceive innocent blacks as suspect and therefore shoot dead blacks.
The worst is that they are justified because they are police. They get no
punishment for this. If everyone is equal before the law, then they should be
brought to trial as criminals and sentenced.
Like in the two previous data, synecdoche in which a part is used to stand
for the whole occurs in the third example taken from a song entitled Settle for
Nothing. Datum 16, “Having never seen the color of my father's eyes.”,
suggests the occurence of synecdoche. The color of my father’s eyes refers to the
whole persona’s father. Eyes are believed crucial body part in social relationship.
By maintaining eye contact, a strong feeling of love and connection can be
formed. The line implies the horrible life that the persona endures. The persona
has no good time and warm relationship with his father and gets no love as well.
In this datum, synecdoche serves as a tool of referring and providing
understanding.
The line itslef is the reflection of the writer’s childhood life. Zack de la Rocha
was born into a family of multi-races in 1970. His father is a Mexican-American
39
father named Robert de la Rocha and his mother is a German-Irish decent named
Olivia Lorryne Carter. When he was a year old, his parents divorced. Then he
moved to Irvine from Los Angeles and lived with his mother but he still split his
time to meet his father. It is this nasty experience that he wants to express through
the use of synecdoche.
c. Simile
Simile occurs when an object, scene, or action are compared directly
through the employment of words such as as or like. It is a figure of speech based
on similarity. It is employed for explanatory, illustrative, or merely ornamental
purpose (Drabble, 2010). By comparing two unlike things, song writers have the
chance to provide explanation about something concisely and efficiently, draw
listeners’ attention and produce artistic works. Simile is employed in several
songs of Self-Title.
The occurence of simile is suggested by the word as in the datum below
taken from a song entitled Bombtrack.
Another funky radical bombtrackStarted as a sketch in my notebook (datum 6)
The line compares two unlike things directly: a song entitled Bombtrack and a
sketch. By employing simile in the line, the song writer has an intention to explain
the song in a clear way. The level explosion of the song is low in the beginning. It
is like a process of drawing a picture which is started by a simple and quickly-
made drawing that has no many details. As the time goes by, the song is expected
to be in its perfect form, having high explosion, like a sketch finished off into a
perfect drawing.
40
Through the song, the band transmits resistance of economic injustice,
namely capitalism. The song portrays some shocking facts of capitalism,
including labors abuse by landlords. It also expresses extreme anger at politicians
and businessman who are responsible for capitalism. Moreover, the song brings
the hope that capitalism can be reduced and destroyed. If people have the same
ideas and opinions about capitalism: ruthless and destructive, then they must join
as a group to end capitalism.
Simile is characterized not only by the word as but also by the word like
which can be seen in the following datum.
Some speak the soundsBut speak in silent voicesLike radio is silent (datum 23)
Simile in the expression above compares two different things: the voice of people
and radio. The line suggests that the level sound produced by people is very low.
It is almost like they speak nothing. As a consequence, the utterance cannot be
heard and the messages the utterance carries cannot be delivered. Since the level
sound is very low, it is like a radio in idle position. This cannot be separated from
the context of the song.
Based on the context of the song, Fistful of Steel talks about the anger of
the vocalist at the condition of America. He delivers his frustration through a
fistful of steel, namely microphone. He believes that vocal is not to calm and relax
but to trigger to change the status quo. Besides, he criticizes people who want to
state opinions and ideas but do not state in a firm way. If the opinions and ideas
41
want to be considered and understood, people must convey them in louder voice
and confidence.
Similar to previous datum, the word like characterizes simile in the
following datum taken from a song called Bullet in the Head.
Sleeping gas, every home was like AlcatrazAnd mutha fuckas lost their minds (datum 21)
Alcatraz was a prison located in a small island belonging to San Francisco Bay of
California. It was well-known for maximum security that handled dangerous
criminals like alcohol dealer, Al Capone. The expression suggests that there is a
similarity between Americans and Alcatraz’s prisoners. Americans are described
as puppet, having no control of themselves. They are controlled by capitalists. In
fact, sleeping gas is needed to make them calm down. It is due to the impact of
brainwashing.
Bullet in the Head tells a story about how capitalists use their resources to
exploit media for their own advantages. They play attractive videos at prime time,
causing pleasure and drawing someone’s attention so he/she cannot think of
anything else. At the same time, they spread propaganda to believe the lies they
tell are truth and buy the products they sell. As a result, people stop questioning
and just follow what the commands say. This is how they get bullet blasted
through their heads; that is they lost their minds.
d. Metaphor
Metaphor occurs when a thing is compared to another thing to suggest
similar qualities in literary way. Perrine (1969) argues that the comparison is
implied; the figurative term is substituted for or identified with the literal term.
42
Characteristics of something are transferred into another that is being described.
Lakoff and Johnson add that its essence is to understand an experience one kind of
thing in terms of another. Metaphor is a figure of speech frequently found in many
literary works. Self-Title is no exception
Metaphor is suggested by direct comparison between two unlike things.
The writer compares his song and a bomb as in datum 1, “Hey yo, it's just another
bombtrack...ughh!”, a line belonging to the song Bombtrack. It may seem absurd
but the song writer has poetic license to do so to achieve a certain purpose. By
comparing his song and bomb, Zack, the song writer, expects that his song can
have the same qualities that a bomb has. It can explode, bring shock, hurt
capitalists, and destroy capitalism into pieces. At the same time, the song brings
the hopes to people that there is still a chance to end capitalism.
Metaphor is not only applied in the songs but also in the name of the band.
The line clearly reflects what the band is made for. The name Rage Against The
Machine draws a comparison indirectly between human and machine to suggest
that the two things have something in common. It is made for delivering extreme
anger at those who have no kindness, feelings and emotions. The aim is to oppose
and fight against people who have such qualities. They can be in the form of
politicians, police and capitalists.
Metaphor exists not only in the form of word but also sentence. This can
be seen from the datum 1 taken from the first line of the song Killing in the Name,
“Some of those that work forces are the same that burn crosses.” Those that
work forces refer to police while those that burn crosses represent Ku Klux Klan.
43
The metaphorical expression suggests that those two have something in common.
It intends to express the idea that police are the new Ku Klux Klan. Police glorify
white supremacy and consider black people having no equal rights with white
people. They hurt and shoot blacks but get no punishment for doing these since
they are police.
To get a clear understanding, the context of the song is provided.
According to the context, Ku Klux Klan was a secret US organization based on
the south of the country where slavery of black people was once legalized. Its
members were Southern white Protestant Americans who rejected the idea of
giving blacks the same rights that the whites had. They threatened, hurt and
stopped blacks from claiming racial equality. With a body covered by white robe,
they travelled along on a horse at night through the southern countryside,
terrorized and killedany blacks who struggle to improve the situation. After
killing, they made a sign of burning wooden cross which they placed outside of
the houses of their victims (O’Callaghan, 1990:56).
Metaphor may suggest the comparison between two different things by
only mentioning one thing from the two different things. This phenomenon occurs
in the following datum.
Yes, I dwell in hell, but it's a hell that I can gripI tried to grip my familyBut I slipped (datum 27)
If one gives a short look at the datum above, chances are he/she does not
regard the datum as a metaphorical expression; yet it is. The datum is considered
as implied metaphor since it compares a thing to another indirectly. It draws a
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comparison between the persona’s home and hell. The persona’s home is
presented as having the similar characteristics as the hell has. It is an extremely
unpleasant and nasty place where never-ending sorrow exists. It causes trouble,
physical and mental pain. Indeed, this unique comparison brings strong emotion
to the listeners. This unique comparison seems exaggerating but it is intended to
emphasize what the writer means.
The line of a song entitled Settle for Nothing was inspired by the writer’s
childhood. When Zack was a boy, he was having hard times. He had to split his
time with his father and mother who decided to separate. In his thirteenth, he got
his father suffered from a serious mental illness that caused his father to be more
religious. For this reason, he was forced by his father to live the same life that he
lived: abandoning physical pleasure for religious reasons. Besides, he found out
that Irvine, his environment, was a home of racists. He got some unfair treatments
for his half-Mexican identity.
e. Personification
Personification occurs when inanimate objects, concepts or animals are
treated as if they had qualities or attributes that human had or possed human form
(Drabble, 2010). This treatment may lead people to imagine the objects or
concepts exist in a form like human. They can be seen, touchedand felt.
Furthermore, personification provides a large amount of knowledge about non-
human entities in terms of human qualities and activities (Lakoff and Johnson
(1980). This kind of figurative language is found several times in the album Self-
Title.
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In the first example of personification taken from a line of Take the Power
Back, the system is presented as a human that can act.
Yeah, we need to check the interiorOf the system that cares about only one culture (datum 12)
The system is capable of protecting and defending certain people. This reflects an
idea that laws do not fit to their ideal image: they do not treat people equally. In
fact, the existence of laws is to order the way in which society behaves, prevent
crime and bring those who commit crime to trial and punish them. Indeed, it
seems ironic to see that laws, which are supposed to be applied to all, are made to
keep certain people immune to prosecution.
The line is found in a song entitled Take the Power Back. The song itself is
not only the embodiment of anger at education but also government. The line
considers that laws and rules are not merely human. It is much more specific,
namely laws and rules are enemy. They have the ability to oppose, harm and hurt
people. If they are not stopped, they may give rise to sorrow and suffer. As a
consequence, protests against government to change law policies into what it is
supposed to be can be justified.
In personification, a concept is often given qualities to act like human; it
performs a particular activity. Yet, this does not happen in the datum below.
To expose and close the doors on those who tryTo strangle and mangle the truth (datum 14)
The datum is a little bit different from the previous one. Truth, a non-living entity,
is represented as a human for having the characteristics of living entity. Even
though it cannot act, it has a life. It exists in a form that can be seen, touched, and
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felt. Indeed, these treatments make it possible to kill truth by pressing the throat
and tear truth into pieces. Personification in this datum makes it clear that the aim
of brainwashing is to kill truth.
Based on the background of the story, the writer describes the government
as oppressor. The government treats people in an unfair and cruel way and stop
people from having freedom and opportunities. They silence people through
power, brainwash through school and the mass media. As a result, people behave
according to the status quo and take no actions to counteract the government.
Because in democratic country, power lies in the hand of people, then people
should not be afraid of their government. Instead, government should be afraid of
their people.
Like in the first example, the last example of personification that appears
in a line belonging to the song Bullet in the Head describes non-human entity as a
human entity.
Corporations coldTurn ya to stone before ya realize (datum 19)
It is impossible for corporations to be magician, having a power to change people
into stone. Therefore, the expression should not be understood literally since it has
figurative meaning. It only wants to reflect the idea that in capitalistic society,
corporations do not show kindness and love. Their ultimate concern is to make
profits, not to improve the quality of society. They can use various ways to
persuade people in the hope that people are willing to buy their products. When
this happens, people get their minds locked.
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Capitalism is criticized by many as an evil system. Its ultimate aim is to
earn profits as great as possible. These profits are used to expand another factory.
The new factory is also established to earn profits. Furthermore, capitalists exploit
employees to earn profits. Employees are seen as machines to work hard until
their last breath and they get no standard salary for their tireless efforts. They have
to do this because they have families to feed on. If they are no longer capable of
working, landlords just find other employees to replace them. There is a great
chance that this vicious system exists for a long time if people are not united to
counteract capitalism.
2. Functions of Transference of Meaning Found in the Album Self-Title
The core of figurative language is to say something in imaginative
meaning. Figurative language enables people to convey ideas and opinion in a
clear and firm way than the literal one does. It has four functions. The functions
are to afford imaginative pleasure, to bring additional imagery, to bring emotional
intensity and to say much in brief compass (Perrine, 1969). All of them are found
in the album.
a. To Afford Imaginative Pleasure
Figures of speech provide a great delight in imagination. Imagination is
the ability to relate a thing with another. The mind gets a source of pleasure,
satisfaction and happiness in seeing similarities between two different things. For
example, starring clouds in the sky and shaping them into another shape can bring
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imaginative pleasure (Perrine, 1969). This function is found several times in the
album.
A way of achieving creativity is relating a thing to another which is
completely different from it. This happens in the first example of affording
imaginative pleasure function brought by metaphor as in datum 1, “Hey yo, it's
just another bombtrack...ughh!” The writer considers that his song has
similarities with a bomb. His song is a device designed to explode and destroy
something into pieces in order to bring shock, extreme fear and deep hurt. It aims
to attack on capitalism and those who get involved in capitalism. Creating
resemblance between different things provides a source of pleasure in the exercise
of imagination.
Music is a powerful device to influence people because almost every
people in the world love music. This is clearly what Rage Against The Machine
has done. Through music, they want to spread their ideas and opinions about
crucial issues. In this song, they bring awareness to people that capitalism is a
cruel system. They enlighten people that businessmen and politician have control
and authority over capitalism. They act as a catalyst for change in economy
system.
Imaginative pleasure can be gained by stating the similarity between two
unsimilar things as in a line of Township Rebellion.
'Cause our people still dwell in hellLocked in a cellYes,the structure's a cell (datum 25)
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Through metaphor, the expression indicates that two unlike things, structure and
cell, have something in common. The cell is the source domain used to describe
the structure, the target domain. The way the government runs the country is like
a cell of prison. The government offers no freedom and limits the movement of
people, which are basic human rights. It rules people in an unfair and cruel way
and prevent them from having opportunities and improvement. Suggesting
likeness between unlike things provide imaginative pleasure.
The essence of government is to bring benefits to society since
government consists of politicians voted directly to be representatives of people.
Government should act as a catalyst for improvement. Nevertheless, they do not
work as they are supposed to be. Instead, they oppress the people. They give no
freedom of speech and try to silence people by making them live like in a jail in
the hope that the people do not gain the power.
Similar to previous datum, in the last example of affording imaginative
pleasure function, imaginative pleasure can be gained by stating the similarity
between two unsimilar things as in datum 27, “Anger is a gift.”, a line of a song
called Freedom. A fixed idea about anger is that it is a bad emotion. It is a feeling
that needs to be stopped. Nevertheless, the writer believes otherwise; anger is a
present. Anger is a blessing that triggers people to take actions against something
wrong and hurtful. This implies that people are still aware about what is
happening around. Still, anger can motivate people to think creatively in resolving
problems. Through seeing likeness between two unlike things, imaginative
pleasure can be produced.
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Anger indicates that people still have heart human and understanding.
People often get angry as the response to unfairness or something wrong which is
happening around. They believe that this unfairness or the wrong things should
not happen. For this reason, anger can be like fuel. It gives energy and trigger
people to find the right way to counteract the unfairness. Based on this
description, anger should not be longer considered as a negative emotion. Instead,
it fills human with enthusiasm and spirit.
b. To Bring Additional Imagery
Figurative language is a means of adding more imagery into literary
works. Words are arranged in a creative way to describe ideas or situations. This
unique use of words brings pleasure and surprise to readers and catches their
attention. Figurative language also serves as a tool provides understanding. It
makes ideas clear so it is easy to comprehend. Furthermore, it can lead people to
imagine something unreal as if it was real (Perrine, 1969). Some examples of this
function can be seen as follows.
Personification in datum 2, “And the business that burned us all.”, a line
belonging to a song called Bombtrack, brings additional imagery function through
giving human qualities to the business. Based on the background, Bombtrack is an
anti-capitalistic song. The writer wants to depict some horrible truths of
capitalism. Through personification, he describes business as an antagonist
fighting against the protagonist, namely society. Business has capability of
making many suffer and preventing them from improving lives. Personification in
this datum suggests these certain truths of capitalism in a very clear way.
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In capitalism system, factors of production such as land, transportation, oil
and employees can be owned by individuals. They are organized to gain
maximum profits with no consideration of negative effect in social and
environmental aspects. In social aspect, the belief that work hard can give
achievement opportunity does not apply to labors. Labors work in day and night
to earn low salary with no compensation and promotion. Meanwhile in
environmental aspect, the pollution of factories causes damage to earth, resulting
in global warming.
Still in the same song, the second example of bringing additional
imaginary presents news and views as human by the employment of
personification as in datum 3, “See through the news and the views that twist
reality.” News and views are personified as human, specifically as soldier of
fortune. They can be bought to fight for capitalists. By broadcasting programs,
television and radio alter truth in a dishonest way based on what capitalists want.
They make people believe something by repeatedly telling them that it is true.
They also hypnotize people to buy products of capitalism by showing attractive
but deceiving advertisements. Figurative language provides a clear and certain
description of the two concepts.
Capitalists are devil in the form of human. Their great concern is to get
most money and avoid helping those who are in poverty and starvation. Since they
own factory, they can offer people jobs with minimum salary. In order to get
customers mesmerized, they constantly advertize their products on the mass
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media, resulting in massive selling. Capitalists can do all of these things due to
unlimited resources and money.
Again, in the last example of bringing additional imagery function,
personification treats a concept as if it was a human as in datum 26, “When
ignorance reigns, life is lost.” The line belongs to a song called Township
Rebellion. The writer employs personification to give some knowledge of
ignorance. In the expression, ignorance is imagined as human. Due to this
treatment, it is real, existing in a form that can be seen and felt. Ignorance is a
ruler and society is the people. This implies that people live their lives according
to the status quo and preserve it. They become dull and unaware about what is
happening around them. They may seem alive outside but dead inside. This
condition can bring no room for development.
If ignorance takes over, life is meaningless. This is because society
conforms to the status quo and acceptscurrent situation. They have no great desire
and hope to improve the condition because the way things are now does not seem
wrong. They think uncritically and take everything for granted. They seem to live
without any purpose in life. In fact, life becomes meaningful when people know if
there is something wrong around them and take actions to resolve it.
c. To Bring Emotional Intensity
Figures of speech are a means of adding emotional intensity into songs.
They can deliver feelings like love, anger, disappointment or sadness in a strong
way (Perrine, 1969). Due to this matter, listeners may feel and understand the way
the song writers feel and think about something and they are more likely to be
53
attached to the songs. In fact, they can cry, get the mood boosted or have the hurt
heart healed after listening to the songs. This function occurs several times in the
album.
In the first example taken from the opening line of Killing in the name.,
the function of adding emotional intensity is brought by metaphor which can be
seen in datum 7, “Some of those that work forces are the same that burn
crosses.” By employing metaphor, the writer wants to emphasize the idea that
there is no difference between police and Ku Klux Klan. Police do not believe in
racial equality between whites and blacks. They may beat, shoot and kill blacks
with showing no mercy. In fact, they are excused from trial for killing because
they are police. This implies that police are still protected by other whites like
their commander and judges. The idea that police can be as cruel as Ku Klux Klan
brings strong feelings of anger, disappointment and despondency. Police are
supposed to protect people, not to hurt them.
Ku Klux Klan was a terrorist group organizing violence in the southern of
America shortly after Civil War ended and advocating white supremacy. The
members rampaged and killed countless blacks and raped black women. Some
were dead with a rope tied around their neck. They targeted not only human but
also buildings. Houses, schools and churches were burnt. They also killed those
who fought for claiming racial equality, no matter they were white or black. Their
aim was only to bring whites again as master and reduce blacks to slave (Zinn,
1980:198-200).
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Similar to previous datum, the function of adding emotional intensity
existing in a line of Settle for Nothing is brought by metaphor which can be seen
in datum 15, “A jail cell is freedom from the pain in my home.” A stereotype of
jail cell is that jail cell is a place where criminals feel great suffering forgetting
limited movement and controlled. However, the line presents jail cell as the
otherwise. Jail cell is described to have a good opinion; it is the exit of pain. This
indicates that living in home can bring suffering. Home is the last place to find
peace and happiness. Since it badly hurts, it would be much better to live in a jail
than in a home. These descriptions give rise to intense feelings of bitterness and
unpleasantness.
This song was written based on the writer’s past life. Zack underwent a
cruel experience when he was studying in a high school full of white people.
When teaching, the teacher made a reference of an area between San Diego and
Oceanside as a wetback station. In an instant, students around Zack looked and
laughed at him. Wetback is a disapproving term used to describe Mexicans who
enter America illegally by swimming Rio Grande River.
Still in the same song, to bring emotional intensity function can be
achieved not only by metaphor but also by synecdoche as in datum 16, “Having
never seen the color of my father's eyes”. Synecdoche is not only a special
device for referring something in a unique way, but also multiplying emotions.
The color of my father’s eyes stands for the whole persona’s father, namely the
writer’s father. The writer chose eyes rather than other parts since a strong feeling
of connection are created and maintained through eyes. This indicates that the he
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does not spend his time and make any memorable memories with his father.
Indeed, synecdoche brings deep feelings of sadness and harshness.
In a song, emtional intensity can be added not only by the lyrics but also
by the music. The song is considered pretty different compared to others in the
album. It is started with plucking of bass strings, a howl of guitar and weak sound
of drum. Along with this arrangement, Zack sings every verse quietly but screams
in the chorus. This composition of music and vocal along with the lyrics shows
clearly the song mood: depressed, frustrated and angry.
d. To Say Much in Brief Compass
Figurative language is seen as a way to achieve brevity. It enables writers
to say and describe something using only few words and to avoid unnecessary
words (Perrine, 1969). This function is crucial to songs as they are only made up
of few verses. By employing this function, song writers are able to state their
opinions and ideas that would require a mountain of words concisely and
forcefully. This function can be brought by several figures of speech. Here are
several examples occur in the album.
In the first example of saying much in brief compass function, the figure
of speech that brings the function is synecdoche, which exists in the lines of
Bombtrack.
Dispute the suits I igniteAnd then watch 'em burn (datum 5)
The biggest mistake in interpreting figurative language is to take the literal
meaning of words. In fact, the essence of figurative language is to understand its
imaginative meaning and interpret based on the context. The word suits in the
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expression should not be interpreted as a set of clothes. Yet, they refer to the ones
who wear suits: businessmen and politicians. The writer delivers his anger at
busniessman and politicians since they are responsible for the existence of
capitalism. Through employing synecdoche, he can make two references and
explain why he is angry at these two using only few words.
Businessmen and politicians greatly influence on capitalism existence.
Their relationship is based on mutual agreement. As proposed by Adam Smith,
the father of modern economy, government plays as invisible hands to make sure
corporate earning profits without external disruption. Government, which consists
of politicians, issues rules and laws and offers large companies prevention through
police and punishment through trial. If somebody breaks the laws, there will be a
trial in court to decide the punishment. As the return, capitalists fund politicians’
campaign so that the politicians can maintain their position.
In the second example of saying much in brief compass function, the
figure of speech that brings the function is metaphor, which appears in a song
called Settle for Nothing.
Yes, I dwell in hell, but it's a hell that I can gripI tried to grip my familyBut I slipped (datum 17)
The core of metaphor is to understand a thing in the term of another. In this
datum, metaphor transfers some characteristics of hell to persona’s home.
Persona’s home is like a hell. It is extremely unpleasant, cruel and harsh. It causes
unbearable problems and difficulties. It is a place where pain continues for all
57
time and there is no way to leave the pain. These descriptions can be suggested
using only few words through metaphor.
The song talks about the writer unpleasant experiences about family and
social life. His parents separated when he was still a baby. He lived with
hismother at one time and father at another time. In his teenager, he found his
father suffered great mental illness which made his father a strict Christian. He
was forced to live according to religious laws. In social life, he considered himself
as an outcast. He had no place in high school because his classmates refused to
accept him for he is a half Mexican.
In the third example of saying much in brief compass function taken from
a line of a song called Bullet in the Head, the figure of speech that brings the
function is metonymy, which occurs in datum 18, “A yellow ribbon instead of a
swastika.” Yellow ribbons are associated with a condition in which soldiers are
deployed to go war. The family of solders ties yellow ribbon on house to
remember soldiers and wait for the return. Swastika is a symbol connected with
peace. The song was written to express disapproval of America’s involvement in a
series of war including Korean War, Vietnam War, and East Middle War. Instead
of focusing taking care of the people, the government’s concern was to go war. If
this information is expressed in literal language than figurative one, it will require
a great number of words.
There is a reasonable judgment about the involvement of America in war.
Defense industry has been driving significantly the economic growth in every part
of the country. This can be traced back in 1930’s, the time when Great Depression
58
happened. Great Depression reduced the economy of US. It collapsed stock
market, raised unemployment rate massively and led some to commit suicide.
However, things changed radically when World War II happened. Factories began
producing gun, and bullet and unemployment dropped gradually. As a result, US
economy returned to be in good condition.
3. Themes Reflected Through Transference of Meaning in the Album Self-
Title
Theme is the main subject described in a piece of literary work. It can be
stated directly or indirectly and a story may have one or multiple theme.
Furthermore, theme can be reflected through many elements like character,
setting or plot (Lukens, 1999). In a song, an element that can reflect theme is
figurative language. Figurative language employed in the Self-Title reflects four
themes. They are Capitalism, Racism, Brainwashing and Rebellion.
a. Capitalism
The fact that the writer lives in a country that applies capitalism as the
economy system motivates him to addres capitalism. The album was written to
criticize capitalism in which capitalism brings no improvement to society. Instead,
the system causes problems and difficulties. Some figures of speech reflect this
theme in several songs.
Some horrible truths of capitalism are suggested by personification as in
datum 2, “And the business that burned us all.” Based on the context, the song
criticizes problems raised by capitalism. In capitalism, the main idea is to earn
profits as great as possible. This can be achieved by reducing costs of production.
59
Companies establish factories in countries which provide cheap labor like China,
Vietnam and Indonesia. Labors are required to work more than the time expected
in the job and get no compensation for this. The overtime working may raise
depression and lead some to commit suicide. In fact, company may hire children
to work in factory. Therefore, it is no surprise that business can hurt countless
people.
In capitalistic society, labors seem to be powerless. They have no strong
position in bargaining with landlords for better wages and working conditions.
This is all influenced by the fact that the landlords own the factory and may offer
wage as whatever they please. If labors disagree with the wage and working
conditions agreement, they just find other labors. Inevitably, labors say yes since
they need money to carry on life. It is true that most of labors are uneducated but
it does not mean that labors deserve to be treated in an unfair way. After all, they
are still human.
The point that capitalism existentence is due to the involvement of
businessmen and politicians is brought by the employment of synecdoche. This
can be seen in the following datum.
Dispute the suits I igniteAnd then watch 'em burn (datum 5)
The suits stand for the wearer, namely businessmen and politicians. Businessmen
and politicians are the target that the writer aims at because they are responsible
for capitalism existing in America. The things get worse if the politician who is in
the power has a background as a busniessman. This case happens to a super power
country, namely America.
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The US president-elects, a truly embodiment of capitalism, named Donald
Trump background as a successful businessman strongly affects on his policy-
making. During his campaign, he promised to lower the taxes of rich people so
that they can expand business and make economy grow. This policy can raise the
gap between the haves and the haves-not. The haves may have another luxurious
house filled with super expensive cars while the haves-not struggle only to eat and
find shelter. In fact, he even ignores that environmental destruction is the impact
of capitalism. He believes that establishing factories with concerning environment
only makes it harder for businessmen to expand business. Certainly, he gets harsh
criticism from eco-warriors. The background of businessman clearly has
enormous influences on Trump’s policy.
The idea that corporations concern is to earn money as great as possible
and to use the profits to make another expansion is explained by personification
reflecting capitalism theme. It is expressed by a line of a song called Bullet in the
Head.
Corporations coldTurn ya to stone before ya realize (datum 19)
The use of personification indicates the notion that in capitalistic society,
corporations do not have sympathy and compassion quality. They can use various
ways to trap people into buying their products. They may create persuasive and
tricky advertisements or buy off newspapers and tabloids to provide good reviews
about the products. These dishonest ways lead consumers to get hypnotized and
buy the products that they actually do not need without control.
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Consumption plays significant roles in capitalism since capitalism is
characterized by the mass production of goods. Thus, corporations try so much to
put the idea consumerism into people’s mind. They make massive promotion and
big sale to attract people to come to store to buy products as many as possible. As
a consequence, the consumers do not have good consideration to buy the products.
In fact, they may buy products that they actually do not need.
b. Racism
In his childhood, the writer got open hostility by his classmates for his
Mexican descent. He turned uncomfortable and felt that he did not get welcome
and thought his classmates were not his friends. However, he did not speak a
single word to express his feeling. Due to the pain of being alienated, he
convinced himself that he refused to silence anymore. He had the heart to fight
against unfair treatment of race. He delivered his frustration and disappointment
to racism by songs composed of angry lyrics. In the Self-Title, only two figures of
speech reflect racism theme.
In the Self-Title, the writer focuses only on racism committed by police. In
the first example taken from a line belonging to Killing in the Name, metaphor
shows unkindness of police as in datum7, “Some of those that work forces are
the same that burn crosses.” Some of those that work forces stand for police
while the same that burn crosses Ku Klux Klan. Ku Klux Klan was a terrorist
group advocating white supremacy and opposing black people. Nowadays, it does
not exist anymore but their beliefs are still well-preserved. This is exactly what
the writer wants to emphasize by describing police as Ku Klux Klan through
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metaphor. Police are racist. They may behave towards black people in an immoral
way. They believe that blacks have no equal rights with whites because blacks
were once slave.
Those who died are justified, for wearing the badge, they're the chosen
whites. The first line of refrain belonging to Killing in the Name suggests that
police have privilege. Police may treat in a cruel way or even kill blacks for the
fact that they are police. The worst is that the act of killing does not put police into
trial because after all and again, police are considered innocent since they are
police.
In the second example, synecdoche describes how the police commit
racism which can be seen in the datum below.
Something must be doneAbout vengeance, a badge and a gun (datum 22)
The words a badge and a gun in the expression stand for the owner which is
police. By employing synecdoche to refer a badge and a gun as police, the writer
wishes to emphasize two crucial points. A badge characterizes the ones who
commit a crime which are police. A gun signifies the crime that police commit
which is gun shooting at blacks.
As can be seen in the expression, the writer advocates taking actions in
dealing with gun shooting committed by police. America is notorious for a series
of gun shooting triggered by the difference of color skin. Police have bigger
chance to shoot black suspects rather than the white ones because there is a
stereotype that crime is mostly associated with blacks. In fact, when dealing with
unarmed black suspects posing no threat, white police perceive the blacks to be
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dangerous. They shoot dead blacks and get no consequence for their brutal
actions. If laws treat everyone equally, police should be put into trial.
c. Brainwashing
The mass media like newspaper, radio and television has become double-
edged sword. On the one hand, they can report important events, deliver
information in a quick way and entertain people. On the other hand, they can be
exploited by certain people. They can be bought to brainwash people and prevent
people from reaching right information. This issue is highlighted in several songs
of the album.
A way of brainwashing people is through the mass media. This is reflected
by the employment of personification existing in datum 5, “See through the news
and the views that twist reality.” Brainwashing is committed by broadcasting
programs; television and radio alter truth in a dishonest way based on what
capitalists want. It is realized by making people believe something by repeatedly
telling them that it is true with the intention of influencing people’s opinions.
Brainwashing can happen around the word, including Indonesia. In 2014,
Indonesia was having election fought by two candidates. The election was tinged
with a controversy. A television station owned by the supporter of candidates’
number 1 broadcasted survey stating that the candidates number 1 would win the
election. This was contrary to other surveys stating that candidates’ number 2
would be the winner. This propaganda aimed to alter truth in a dishonest way with
the intention of political agenda. Indeed, people should be critical about
information spread through the mass media.
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Another way of brainwashing is through laws and rules. This notion is
reflected by the employment of personification appearing in the following datum.
But the system that dissed usTeaches us to read and right (datum 8)
In the expression, the system is described as a human. It is capable of opposing
and hurting society. The expression indicates that the government persuades
society to fully accept their ideas, opinions and beliefs so that society does not
consider others’. The indoctrination is spread through school in order to maintain
the status quo. Teacher tells students lies and nonsense instead of knowledge and
students only sit and listen. For this reason, a movement is needed to take the
power back.
In the right light, study becomes insight. The opening line belonging to the
song entitled Take the Power Back clearly explains how important education is.
Education is a way of elevating life. It provides knowledge that can be used to
resolve problems. It also can get people proper jobs and prosperous life.
Moreover, education people with high education can make careful judgment about
something and therefore they are not brainwashed easily.
Again, the idea that television is used to brainwash people is suggested by
the use of metonymy, which can be seen in datum 20, “They load the clip in
omnicolor.” The word omnicolor stands for television. Thus, the expression
conveys that by using unlimited resources, capitalists capitalize on television to
brainwash people by playing a video. This immoral way is committed to make
people buy products the capitalists sell.
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In the beginning of 90’s, television was the ultimate choice for many to get
entertainment as internet was notyetpopular. At night after working, many people
sit on couch and watch television. However, capitalists use this moment for their
own advantage. They play an eye-catching but deceiving clip and rewind it at
prime time to lock people’s mind. As a consequence, people may lose their
common sense and follow what capitalists say. It is what the writer calls as the
mass mind rape.
d. Rebellion
Zack and Morello are the two main figures of the band. Zack writes the
lyrics while Morello arranges the music. Their background has great influences on
how the band composes songs. Zack is a son of a muralist dedicated the paintings
for Mexican-American people. Meanwhile, Morello is a son of Kenyan diplomat
father and an activist mother. He graduated from Harvard University with
Bachelor Degree in Social Studies. Indeed, they are concerned with politics. They
believe that music is to trigger people to take actions against government if the
government treats the people in an unfair way.
The writer advocates in seizing the power through several songs. The song
Take the Power Back in which personification exists is no exception,
Ignorance has taken overYo, we gotta take the power back! (datum 9).
The expression treats ignorance as if it was a human. It is real, existing in a form
that can be seen and felt. To be specific, ignorance is presented as the leader and it
rules people. This description indicates that people conform to the status quo,
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obeying what the ruler commands. They become unconscious of problems
happening around and take no actions to resolve the problems.
If ignorance takes over, life means nothing. It is due to the fact that society
conforms to the status quo and accepts current situation. They have no strong will
to make things much better because they think nothing is wrong with their life.
They accept the things without having good consideration. They seem to give up
on life. In fact, life becomes meaningful when people know if there is something
wrong around them and take actions to resolve it.
The writer also describes how rebellion should be done. This is expressed
through the employment of simile which exists a song called Fistful of Steel in
which simile appears.
Some speak the soundsBut speak in silent voicesLike radio is silent (datum 23)
The line suggests that the voice produced by people is very low in sound. It is
almost like they speak nothing. As a consequence, the utterance cannot be heard
and the messages the utterance carries cannot be delivered. Since the voice is very
low, it is like a radio in idle position.
Actions against government should be done without compromise. People
need to show no fear of conveying opinions and ideas. They should join as a
group to strengthen force and make the voice louder. When these things are done,
there is a great chance that the opinions and protests can be delivered to and
considered by the government. For this reason, the datum belongs to rebellion
theme.
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In a song called Freedom, the writer correlates rebellion with anger which
can be seen thorugh metaphor existing in datum 27, “Anger is a gift.” He presents
anger as something good, contrary to popular idea considering anger as something
bad. Anger is a present that triggers people to take actions against something
wrong and hurtful. It can lead people to find the best solution of problems. Indeed,
anger can show compassion and empathy quality of one.
Anger indicates that people still notice what is happening around. People
often get angry as the response to unfairness happening around. When they are
angry, they show a strong feeling of sympathy and sadness for the suffering others
and a wish to help them. This feeling of anger makes them think that this
unfairness should not happen. For this reason, anger can be like fuel. It gives
people the energy to take actions against the unfairness.
From the explanations that have been presented, there are some points that
can be drwan. First, the five types of transference of meaning are employed in the
album Self-Title. This suggests that the writer is a creative person. Second, a
figure of speech may carry more than one function in which some of them
probably are the same as the functions of other figures of speech. Third, the
themes reflected by the use of figurative language are concerned with American
government and the people.
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CHAPTER V
CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
A. Conclusions
As stated in Chapter I, the aims of this research are to describe the type of
transference of meaning, the functions and the themes found in the Rage Against
The Machine’s Self-Title. After the analysis has been done, some conclusions are
drawn based on the findings and discussion in Chapter IV. The researcher draws
some conclusions as follows.
1. All of the five types of transference of meaning proposed by Leech are found
in the album Self-Title. They are Metonymy, Synecdoche, Simile, Metaphor
and Personification. This implies that the writer is a creative person. He can
combine rhymes and figurative language to produce artistic works.
2. All of the four functions of figurative language proposed by Perrine are found
in the album Self-Title. The functions are to afford imaginative pleasure, to
bring additional imagery, to bring emotional intensity, and to say much in
brief compass. To be specific, Metonymy functions to bring emotional
intensity and to say much in brief compass. Synecdoche functions to bring
emotional intensity and to say much in brief compass. Simile functions to
afford imaginative pleasure, to bring emotional intensity, and to say much in
brief compass. Similar to Simile, Metaphor functions to afford imaginative
pleasure, to bring emotional intensity, and to say much in brief compass.
Personification functions to bring additional imagery.
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Based on this explanation, it can be said that one figure of speech may have
the same functions as other figures of speech. For example, simile and
metaphore bring the same functions since they are based on comparison.
Another is Metonymy and Synecdoche since Synecdoche is a subclass of
Metonymy. Meanwhile, personification is the only figure that brings
additional imagery since when a non-human entity is personified, it is
imagined as if it were real.
3. The use of transference of meaning reflects the themes of the album. The
researcher took only several data to explore and obtain clear descriptions of
the themes the band brought. The album addresses some crucial issues which
are mainly concerned with the American government and the society. Based
on the findings and discussions in Chapter IV, transference of the meaning
applied in the album reflects four themes. They are Capitalism, Racism,
Brainwashing, and Rebellion. Self-Title deals with the ruthlessness of
capitalism, racism committed by the police, the mass media brainwashing and
advocates taking actions against the government.
B. Suggestions
Based on the conclusions, some suggestions can be drawn as follows.
1. To the Readers
The readers should be open to the idea that figurative language is not only
for aesthetic purpose, making literary works more creative and pleasing. It
also has other functions and can illuminate the themes the works have.
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2. To Future Researchers
This research is limited to analyze only some types of figurative language
whereas there are still other types of figurative language. For this reason,
future researchers can use other theories or different approaches to explore
the same subject. Moreover, it is also possible to use the same theory to
analyze other literary works like novels or movies.
3. To English Literature Students
The researcher suggests that English Literature students study Stylistics
and students of Linguistics major conduct stylistics research because there are
many interesting literary woks worth to analyze.
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REFERENCES
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and Theory. (Third Ed.). Harlow: Longman.Bussmann, Hadumod. 1998. Routledge Dictionary of Language and Linguistics.
London: Taylor & Francis e-Library.Drabble, Margaret. 2000. The Oxford Companion to English Literature. (Sixth Ed.).
New York: Oxford University Press Inc.Flick, Uwe. 2009. An Introduction to Qualitative Research. London: SAGE
Publications.Kovecses, Zoltan. 2010. Metaphor. New York: Oxford University Press.Lakoff, George & Johnson, Mark. 1980. Metaphor We Live By. Chicago: The
University of Chicago.Leech, Geoffrey. 1969. A Linguistic Guide to English Poetry. London: Longman.Leech, Geoffrey & Short, Mick. 2007. Style in Fiction. (Second Ed.). Harlow: Pearson
Education Limited.Lukens, Rebecca J. 1999. A Critical Handbook of Children’s Literature. (Sixth Ed.).
New York: Longman.Newmark, Peter. 1988. A Textbook of Translation. New York: Prentice Hall.Norgaard, Nina, Busse, Beatrix, Montoro, Rocio. 2010. Key Terms in Stylistics.
London: Continuum International Publishing Group.O’Callaghan, Bryn. 1990. An Illustrated History of the USA. Harlow: Pearson
Education Limited.Perrine, Laurence. 1969. Sound and Sense: An Introduction to Poetry. (Third Ed.).
New York: Harcourt, Brace, & World, Inc.Ritchie, Jane & Lewis, Jane. 2003. Qualitative Research Practice. London: SAGE
Publications.Simpson, Paul. 2004. Stylistics. London: Routledge.Vanderstoep, Scott & Johnston, Deirdre. 2009. Research Methods for Everyday Life.
San Fransisco: Jossey-Bass.Wahyuni, Sari. 2012. Qualitative Research Method: Theory and Practice. Jakarta:
Salemba Empat.Zinn, Howard. 1980. A People’s History of the United States: 1492-Present. Harlow:
Longman Group UK Limited.
B. Electronic SourcesAbood, Balsam Saleh. Archaism as a Stylistic Marker in Selected Poems by Edgar
Allan Poe. http://www.iasj.net/iasj?func=fulltext&aId=13552. Accessed on 24July 2016.
Akhter, Saira & Hayat, Mazhar. 2012. Grammatical Deviations in Samuel Beckett’sWaiting for Godot.http://www.languageinindia.com/sep2012/sairawaitingforgodot.pdf. Accessedon 15 July 2016.
Aslam, Saima, et al. 2014. Stylistic Analysis of the Poem Bereft by Robert Frost.http://www.idpublications.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/STYLISTICS-ANALYSIS-OF-THE-POEM-%E2%80%9CBEREFT%E2%80%9D-BY-ROBERT-FROST.pdf. Accessed on 13 June 2016.
Fadaee, Elaheh. 2011. Symbols, Metaphors and Similes in Literature: A Case Study ofAnimal Farm.
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http://www.academicjournals.org/article/article1379412793_Fadaee.pdf.Accessed on 21 September 2016.
Finley, Laura. 2002. The Lyrics of Rage Against The Machine: A Study in RadicalCriminology. http://www.albany.edu/scj/jcjpc/vol9is3/finley.html. Accessed on29 September 2015
Li, Xin & Shi, Mengchen. 2015. A Stylistic Study on the Linguistic Deviations in E.E.Cummings’ Poetry. http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1092438.pdf. Accessed on24 July 2016.
Ouameur, Daddi. 2013. Linguistic Deviation in Dicken’s Hard Time. http://bu.univ-ouargla.dz/master/pdf/Daddi_Mustapha_ouameur.pdf?idmemoire=251.Accessed on 28 May 2015.
Saleem, Muhammad. 2012. An Analysis of Deviations of Register in T. S. Eliot’sPoem The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.http://www.languageinindia.com/jan2012/saleemeliotalfredfinal.pdf. Accessedon 28 May 2015.
Ufot, Bassey Garvey. 2013. Phonology and Stylistics: A Phonaesthetic Study ofGray’s ‘Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard’.http://www.sciedu.ca/journal/index.php/elr/article/download/3845/2284.Accessed on 24 July 2016
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Appendix A. Table of Types of Transference of Meaning, the Functions and the Themes Found in the Rage Against The Album
Note:
No: Datum Number 1: to afford imaginative pleasure Ca: Capitalism
My: Metonymy 2: to bring additional imagery Ra: Racism
Sy: Synecdoche 3: to bring emotional intensity Br: Brainwashing
Si: Simile 4: to say much in brief compass Re: Rebellion
Mr: Metaphor
Pe: Personification
No DataTransference of
Meaning Functions ThemeExplanation
My Sy Si Mr Pe 1 2 3 4 Ca Ra Br ReBombtrack
1Hey yo, it's just
anotherbombtrack...ughh!
The expression shows the use of metaphor. Bycomparing his song and bomb, the writer expects thathis song can be like a bomb. It can explode, bringshock, and destroy capitalism into pieces. Thisexpression suggests the concept of the song usingonly few words. It makes a feeling of energeticinterest in ending capitalism. Besides, seeing thelikeness between two unlike things producesimaginative pleasure.
2 And the business Personification is indicated by giving business, a
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No DataTransference of
Meaning Functions ThemeExplanation
My Sy Si Mr Pe 1 2 3 4 Ca Ra Br Rethat burned us all concept, human qualities. It treats business, as if it had
capability of making people suffer. It also rises topicture business as having human body form. Itportrays the horrible truth of capitalism in whichbusiness is only beneficial for wealthy people.
3See through the
news and the viewsthat twist reality
News and views are personified. They are able to altertruth in a way that is dishonest. News and views arepictured as enemy. Then by exploiting media,capitalists can make people believe anything theysaid.
4
Landlords andpower whores
On my people theytook turns
The line portrays power as a human. Power is aharmful person that fights against society and thenmust be stopped. The line also presents the notion ofcapitalism that landlords exploit the proletarians.
5
Dispute the suits Iignite
And then watch 'emburn
Synecdoche is characterized by the word suits. A suitis a set of clothes that is usually worn by politicianand businessman while doing a particular activity.Indeed, the writer is able to say much in few words bysimply saying suits. Besides, this line is themanifestation of persona’s frustration at capitalism.Since he is greatly frustrated, he even has an idea ofkilling politician and businessman.
6
Another funkyradical bombtrackStarted as a sketch
in my notebook
The use of simile is indicated by the word as. Thelevel explosion of the song is low in the beginning. Itis like a process of drawing a picture which is startedby a simple and quickly-made drawing that has nomany details. Indeed, simile describes the concept ofsong in few words. Also, suggesting two differentthings to have something in common brings pleasure
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No DataTransference of
Meaning Functions ThemeExplanation
My Sy Si Mr Pe 1 2 3 4 Ca Ra Br Rein imagination.
Killing in the Name
7
Some of those thatwork forces, are
the same that burncrosses
This expression is metaphorical, expressing the ideathat police and Ku Klux Klan have something incommon. It intends to express that police glorifywhite supremacy and consider black people having noequal rights with white people. They are even justifiedkilling as long as the victim is black. It also bringsstrong emotion to listener that police is as cruel asKKK. Metaphor in this datum is a tool to achievebrevity and produce imaginative pleasure bysuggesting likeness between two unlike things.
Take the Power Back
8
But the system thatdissed us
Teaches us to readand right
The expression implies that laws and rules do not treatpeople in a right way. They are also imagined asteacher, telling the students, people, what to do. Toimprove situation, actions must be taken.
9
Ignorance hastaken over
Yo, we gotta takethe power back!
The line brings an idea that ignorance exists in a formas a ruler and human is the people. It explains asituation in which people conform to the status quo.As the title suggests, they must take the power back.
10
So called facts arefraud
They want us toallege and pledgeAnd bow down to
their God
Another personification is found. Facts are depicted ashuman, having ability to do something. They are ableto deceive people to follow whatever is said. If peopletake no action, the will suffer a lot. For that reason,the datum belongs to rebellion theme.
11 Bam! Here's the Uncle Sam is an imaginary tall thin man with white
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No DataTransference of
Meaning Functions ThemeExplanation
My Sy Si Mr Pe 1 2 3 4 Ca Ra Br Replan
Motherfuck UncleSam
beard and a tall hat that represents US government.The expression is the embodiment of disappointmentand anger against the government’s policy whichoffers no benefit. Therefore, people must go onprotest.
12
Yeah, we need tocheck the interior
Of the system thatcares about only
one culture
Personification is found again in which the system isgiven a quality to take an action. It draws an ideaabout laws that do not fit to their ideal image: they donot treat people equally. To make things better, peoplemust do something.
13
With lecture Ipuncture the
structure of liesInstalled in our
minds andattempting
To hold us back
Personification is suggested by giving a humanquality to the way lies is arranged. It is described ashuman, trying much to prevent people improve theirlives. To tell lies and to convince people to believethat lies are truth is to brainwash.
14
To expose and closethe doors on those
who tryTo strangle andmangle the truth
Truth, non-living object, is treated as if it had a humanbody, existing in a form that can be seen or felt. It hasa life and therefore could be killed. To manipulatetruth is the aim of brainwashing.
Settle for Nothing
15A jail cell is
freedom from thepain in my home
The expression intends to convey that living in homeis badly hurt. Since it badly hurts, it would be muchbetter to live in a jail. The expression delivers thiscondition in a small number of word and showsharshness that the persona endures. Moreover, itproduces imaginative pleasure by seeing similarities
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No DataTransference of
Meaning Functions ThemeExplanation
My Sy Si Mr Pe 1 2 3 4 Ca Ra Br Rebetween two unlike things. To prevent other peopleexperience such thing, actions against governmentshould be taken to end this.
16Having never seenthe colour of my
father's eyes
The colour of my father’s eyes refers to the whole thepersona’s father. It indicates that the persona neverspends his time to have a good time with his fatherand get no love from him as well. Like in the previousdatum, it draws a picture of unhappiness feeling. Toend this, actions against government should be taken.
17
Yes, I dwell in hell,but it's a hell that I
can gripI tried to grip my
familyBut I slipped
In this expression, the persona’s home is consideredsimilar to hell. It is an extremely unpleasant and nastyplace to live in. It causes trouble and suffering.Metaphor in the expression describes these conceptsonly in few words and a strong feeling of bitternessand provides imaginative pleasure. To end this,actions must be taken.
Bullet in the Head
18A yellow ribbon
instead of aswastika
Yellow ribbon is associated with a situation where afamily is waiting for the return of their relatives whichare usually soldier deployed to go war. Swastika is anold symbol connected with peace. The expressionilluminates that government concern is to go to warand presents despondency atmosphere. Thus, peoplemust go protest this issue.
19Corporations coldTurn ya to stonebefore ya realize
The expression personifies corporations not only ashuman but also enemy. They make people freeze,unable to make things better. Besides, the lineconsiders that in capitalistic society, corporations onlybring benefit to the owners not the employees.
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No DataTransference of
Meaning Functions ThemeExplanation
My Sy Si Mr Pe 1 2 3 4 Ca Ra Br Re
20 They load the clip inomnicolor
Omnicolor means color is everywhere and refers totelevision as the device can produce many colors. Theexpression explains clearly that brainwashing can berealized by playing a video in television. It shows apathetic feeling in which television should get peopleentertained and informed instead of brainwashed.
21
Sleeping gas, everyhome was like
AlcatrazAnd mutha fuckas
lost their minds
Alcatraz was a prison with maximum security thathandled dangerous criminals. The datum indicates thatAmericans have a similarity with Alcatraz’s prisoners.Americans are as a puppet, being controlled bycapitalists. Simile in this datum has the function tosuggest the similarities in few words and bringssorrowful atmosphere.
Know Your Enemy
22
Something must bedone
About vengeance, abadge and a gun
A badge and a gun suggest that the line is synecdoche.The two things belong to police. The line is intendedto advocate putting police on a court trial for shootingblack people. It also produces an ironic feeling for thereason that police, supposed to protect people’s lives,take away theirs.
Fistful of Steel
23
Some speak thesounds
But speak in silentvoices
Like radio is silent
The word like characterizes simile. The expressionimplies that the voice of protest is very low andalmost cannot be heard like a radio in idle position.This suggestion produces imaginative pleasure andindicates that people are still afraid to express theiropinion.
24 It's time to flow like The next datum shows another simile. The line
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No DataTransference of
Meaning Functions ThemeExplanation
My Sy Si Mr Pe 1 2 3 4 Ca Ra Br Rethe fluid in ya veins conveys the idea that rebellion should be done like the
blood flowing in veins. It should be done in quick andgreat enthusiasm without compromise. In this line,simile is a tool say the concept concisely to bringpleasure in imagination.
Township Rebellion
25
'Cause our peoplestill dwell in hellLocked in a cell
Yes, the structure'sa cell
Metaphor is indicated by comparing two unlikethings, resulting in imaginative pleasure. The way thegovernment runs the country offers no freedom,which is a basic human right and this brings sorrowfulatmosphere. To get things better, people should go onstrike.
26 When ignorancereigns, life is lost
Ignorance, a concept, is treated as it had human bodyand could become ruler, existing in a form, and takecontrol of society. Personification has the function todescribe a condition in which people conform to thestatus quo. To make things better, actions must betaken.
Freedom
27 Anger is a gift
The expression is metaphorical. It suggests that angeris not something bad but it is a blessing. Anger is atrigger to encourage people to protest againstsomething unfair or hurtful that has happened.Metaphor reflects this notion in few words, adds moreemotion intensity and imaginative pleasure.