A a medium to communicate with others.
ACONVERSATION ANALYSIS OF PRE-SEQUENCES USED BY THE MAIN CHARACTERS IN HANCOCK’STHE BLIND SIDE MOVIE A Pragmatic Project AnapuspaAz-zahro 15211141011 ENGLISH LITERATURE STUDY PROGRAMENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENTFACULTY OF LANGUAGES AND ARTS STATEUNIVERSITY OF YOGYAKARTA2018A. IntroductionLanguage is one of the mostimportant thing in human’s social life. People have to use a certain languageas a medium to communicate with others.
In a verbal communication, at least it must involve a speaker and ahearer. By saying utterances, thespeaker sure has intention to deliver his or her certainmeanings. Sheor he expects the hearer to catch the speaker’s meaning likewhat the speaker has said to the hearer.Therefore, thehearer has to try to understandwhat the speaker wants.A good communication will happen when the same thought and understanding appear between the speakerand the hearer themselves.To study this, there is a field oflinguistic study called pragmatics. Pragmatics is the study of theinterpretation of speaker’s utterance in particular context.
In this case, bothof the speaker and the hearer have to be aware of the context that follows thespeaker’s utterance. Sometimes when people communicate, what they utter is notalways the same as what they mean. In other words, the speaker has anothermeaning behind what is said. Therefore, according to Yule (1996), one of the advantagesis that pragmatics allowshuman to discuss about the speakers’ implied meaning, their purposes, and the sortsof actions that they are showing when they speak. Then, by knowing the speaker’s intention, the hearer can place themselvesto respond in a certain way.There is a lot of interactions between human beings that take place in many occassions. Besides, each person has different characteristicsand temperaments, then people who need and want to take this interaction haveto deal with those different things with a certain treatment.
If someone want to interact with others in a proper way, she or he has to be polite.Hence, politeness helps people tocommunicate better. In the interaction to maintain relationships with others,especially speaking to a person, the person must have the right ethics bypaying attention to what he or she is saying. He or she must also be able to choose theright words without being something that can offend the listener.
In addition,being nice and not using harsh language can also prevent the emergence of a relationshipthat is not good with someone else.Yule (1996) states that within the everyday social interactions, people generallybehave as if their expectations concerning their public self image, or theirface wants, will be respected. In their interaction, whilesaying something people consciously or unconsciously threat faces of otherswhich is called as Face Threatening Act (FTA).
Alternatively, according to Yule(1996), they can lessen the possible threat by saving their face which iscalled as Face Saving Act (FSA).This concept of face saving may be helpful in understanding how participantsin an interaction inevitably understand more than is said. However, face istypically at risk when the self needs to accomplish something involving other.One way of avoiding risk is to provide an opportunity for the other to halt thepotentially risky act. Before making arequest, for instance, it often makes sensethat the speaker will first produce what can be describe as pre-requestto check whether the other person has the item or time to do one wants. In other words, it isoften necessary to use pre-sequences which can supply speaker’s useful hints to gettheir communication purposessuccessfully.
According to Levinson(1983), conversation may betaken to be that familiar predominant kind of talk in which two or moreparticipants freely alternate in speaking, which generally occurs outsidespecific institutional settings like religious services, law courts, classroomsand the like. Pre-sequencesseem to be an important aspect in people’s daily conversation, they are alsoused in the same way and frequency, therefore that is why they can be analyzedin a lot of dialogues as a source of the data.The other sample verbal communicationsource is data that taken from movie.Movie is amedium which provides space for literature.
The film is drawing to an event orstory that is poured into the visual media to make a literary work is morebeautiful and looks more real. Hence, watching movie whetherin cinema or home theatre is beingcommon activity used by some people,because movie and the real world have some similarities, which includeseveral kinds of expressions. It could become an object of the study about the type of pre-sequences. This study is expected to revealthe fact that there are some classification whichdescribed as pre-sequences in a social environment happened,especially in the main characters conversation.Theway language is used will be different from how it is used in other occasion.In this case, the language used by themain characters in Hancock’s The BlindSide movie becomes interesting to be analyzed, because the male maincharacter of this movie comes from the different social backgrounds andeducation levels from his new family as an adopted son. Therefore, there aremany things that can be brought into a study related to the language used by the main character of this movie.
His language will be different from his daily-used language when talking withnew people. The way he chooses the word, the tone, the diction, and the way hespeaks is different from what he usually does outside his new family. Thus,this is why the object which are related together with the study can be aninteresting thing to be analyzed.Basedon the introduction of the research and the research focus, the objectives are formulated by the writer. The first objectives of theresearch can be stated to identify the types of presequences used by the maincharacters in Hancock’s The Blind Sidemovie, the second is to describe the purpose of using the each types ofpresequences in conversation by the main characters in Hancock’s The Blind Side movie and the last is todetermine the tendency of using pre-sequences by the main characters inHancock’s The Blind Side movie. B. Research MethodThis research employed descriptive qualitative approach.
According to Bodgan and Biklen (2007), aqualitative approach is a research bringing aboutthe descriptive data in the written and oral form data from the subjects of theresearch being investigated. It is concerned with providing the description ofthe phenomena which occur naturally without any intervention of an experimenttreatment. This research describesphenomena in words.
Therefore, the data and analysis in this research were inthe descriptive forms. The collecteddata are also in the form of words and the conclusion was made without making generalization.The data of this research were dialogues among the maincharacters and the others in which utterances containing the types of pre-sequencesused by the main characters in the movie that were found. Meanwhile, the sourceof the data was the script of The BlindSide movie and the movie itself. The script which was retrieved from www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/b/the-blind-side-script-transcript.html.
As this research was qualitative research, and as Bogdan andBiklen (1982) states that only human instrument that is flexible to capture thecomplexity of the human experience,therefore the primary instrument of this study was the researcher herself. Therefore,in this research, the researcher was the main instrument of the research sinceshe was the one who could lead the process from the data collected to theconclusion made. And as the secondary instrument, the researcher used datasheets to note the data which were related to the objectives of the study. Thedata sheets were used to help the researcher in the process of identificationand analysis of the data.There are some data collecting techniques in qualitativeresearch, they are interviewing, ethnographic observation, analysis ofdocuments and material culture, and visual analysis (Vanderstoep and Johnston,2009: 189). In order to collect thedata, the researcher used the script of TheBlind Side movie as the source of the research. The technique which wasused by the researcher was note-taking.
Note-taking is known as the practice ofrecording information that enables the researcher to write the data on a datacard. Note-taking was used to record the linguistic phenomena which were foundin the movie. C. TheoriesIn order to answer the researchquestions, some major theories are elaborated as guidance and references ofthis research. The firstis related to pragmatic studies, it is a branch of linguistics which concerns the connection between the forms of linguistics and the people who applying those forms (Yule, 1996). The language phenomena which are discussed in pragmatics mostly deal with the use of language by its user.
As stated by Yule (1996), pragmatics isconcerned with four areas. Firstly, pragmatics is the study of speaker’sutterances and the effort of the hearer to interpret those utterances.Secondly, pragmatics is the study of the interpretation of `speaker’s utterancein particular context. In this case, both of the speaker and the hearer have tobe aware of the context that follows the speaker’s utterance. Thirdly,pragmatics is the study of how to recognize the implied meaning of thespeaker’s utterances. The last, pragmatics is the study which focuses on theexpression of the closeness between the speaker and the hearer. Pragmatics is astudy that focuses on deliberate human acts.
It means that pragmatics requires the interpretation of acts to get thecorrect meaning of utterances. Thus, itis important to pay attention to the context of utterances to get the correct interpretation.It is in line with Yule’s statement(1996) that the context will give details and help the speaker to understandthe utterances well. Furthermore, Yule (1996) adds that context is thesituation in which a word or a sentence is uttered.
An example of word “ball”to understand the context in different sentences were also given by Yule. Theword “ball” in “He kicked the ball into the net,” may be visualized as a soccerball. However, in a sentence “She dribbled the ball down the court and shot abasket,” the word “ball” would be visualized as a basketball. In theseexamples, the word “ball” is interpreted in different ways according to whatkind of action is related with it. Thus, the context is an important aspect inpragmatics.In studying language through pragmatics,there are some advantages and disadvantages. According to Yule (1996), one of the advantagesis that pragmatics allows human to discuss about the speakers’ implied meaning,their purposes, and the sorts of actions that they are showing when they speak.
Meanwhile, the disadvantage is that it is hard for human to be consistent andobjective when he or she has to analyze those concepts. Therefore, pragmaticsis an interesting study to be learnt because it is about how someone tries tounderstand other people linguistically. However, it is also a complicated studysince it is about a deep understanding of what people have in their mind.
Pragmaticscan be best described as one of linguistics’ branches which studies how peopleuse language in their conversation. As one of linguistics branches, pragmatics coversseveral scopes such as politeness.The speakers have to know the ways howthey are speaking. Wardhaugh (1998) states that people have to make a choice ofmany different kinds: what they want to say, how they want to say it, and thespecific sentence types, words, and sounds. Politeness is one of the ways toemploy the expression. To see how to use the politeness in their expression,the speakers can see the face of the hearer. Goffman (1967) states that theremay be several reasons why people want to save their face.
They may have becomeattached to the value on which this face has been built, they may be enjoyingthe results and the power that their face has created, or they may be nursinghigher social aspirations for which they will need this face. However, face isalso called as self-image which face means the public self-image of person(Yule, 1996).Brown and Levinson (1987) states thatface is something that is emotionally invested, and that can be lost,maintained, or enhanced and must be constantly attended to in interaction.
Intheir interaction, as alreadydescribed in introduction of this paper, whilesaying something people consciously or unconsciously threat faces of otherswhich is called as Face Threatening Act (FTA). Alternatively, according to Yule(1996), they can lessen the possible threat by saving their face which iscalled as Face Saving Act (FSA).Goffman (1967) defines face as “apositive value a person effectively claims for himself by the line othersassume he has taken during a particular contact”. Brown and Levinson (in Goody,1978) add that the term face can be defined as something invested within humanbeing which can be lost and maintained during the interaction. In maintainingthis face, it needs cooperation from the two parties, the addresses and the onewho is addressed. Goffman (1967) explains further that actually face or theself-image is closely attached to the feeling.
Sometimes they feel good whentheir images are sustained or they feel bad or hurt when their images areimposed.According to Levinson (1983), he devidesthe sub-classes of pre-sequences, including pre-invitations, pre-announcements,pre-requests, and the like. Thefirst that the mostrecognizable pre-sequence could also be the pre-invitation, since it isactually a demand for a meeting with someone at some place. That means apre-invitation occurs before a request is given to someone to do something.For example: A: Hi, John.B: Say, what’re you doing? A: Well we’re going out.
Why?B: Oh, I was just going to say come over here this evening. It can be seen in line 2, it is a perfect example of apre-invitation. Pre-invitations have to be followed up by a request to dosomething as in line 4. (Emanuel, 2007).The secondmain type of pre-sequences is the pre-announcement. Unlike the pre-invitation,the pre-announcement is not often followed by a question, but rather it is thequestion itself and mostly followed by stories or news for the recipient.Therefore a pre-announcement attends the preference not to re-tell known news.
Forexample by Teresaki (1976):A: I forgot to tell you the two best things that happen’ to metoday.B: Oh super. What were they?A: I got a B+ on my math test … and I got an athletic award.
The next pre-sequence is about the pre-request. Pre-request sequences havea four-position sttucture. For example by Merritt (1976):A: Hi. Do you have uh size C flashlightbatteries? ((PRE-REQUEST))B:Yes sir ((GOAHEAD))A:I’ll have four please ((REQUEST))B:(turns to get) ((RESPONSE))Themain reason for utilizing a pre-request is that it allows the speaker to checkout whether a request is likely to succeed or not. Beside that, it is used inorder to avoid its subsequent dispreferred response, which is commonly referredto as a rejection. In fact, on its application, when the speaker in cases ofdoubt, pre-requests are to be preferred rather than in requests way. D.
Findings and DiscussionThefindings were collected and analyzed from the dialogues among the main characters and theothers in which utterances containing the types of pre-sequences used by themain characters in The Blind Sidemovie that were found. This section identifies thefindings of the types ofpresequences used by the main characters in Hancock’s The Blind Side movie, describes the purpose of using the each typesof presequences in conversation by the main characters in Hancock’s The Blind Side movie and determines thetendency of using pre-sequences by the main characters in Hancock’s The Blind Side movie. From the object of the research, there are some data found bythe researcher.
Based on Levinson (1983), there are some the sub-classesof pre-sequences, i.e. pre-invitations, pre-announcements, pre-requests, andthe like.Then the findings of types and purpose of using the each types of presequences inconversation by the main characters in the movie are shown in the table below.
No. Pre-sequences Accept/success Rejection/no response Total 1. Pre-invitations 6 1 7 2.
Pre-announcements 5 2 7 3. Pre-requests 8 1 9 Total 19 4 23 1) Pre-invitationsThisis the example of pre-invitation used from the conversation by the maincharacters, Anne and Mike, in the TheBlind Side movie.Anne : Do you have any place to stay tonight?Mike : (silent)Anne : Don’t you dare lie to me.Mike : (shaking head)Anne :Come on. SJ, make room! Get inside, Mike.
Come on. (get in the car)Anneask him a question first, to know whether Mike has a place to stay that nightor not. This strategy also can be stated as a pre-invitation because thequestion occurs before arequest and is given to Mike to do something. In the line 5, thepre-invitation is followed upby a request to do something, in this case she ask him to go to her house to staythere for that night. 2) Pre-announcementsHere is the example of the pre-announcements used by Mike’s teachers at theschool in the movie.
They are afraid to know that Mike has no pretension tostudy and cannot learn the course easily. Teacher A : He knows it!Teacher B : Who knows it and whatdoes he know?Teacher A : Thematerial. Michael Oher. I gave him this test verbally.Teacher C : Isthat even allowed?Teacher D : A”C”? On how big a curve?Teacher A : He’sbeen listening all along. It’s amazing what he’s absorbed.
And, trust me, he’slistening to you too. Now, his reading level is low … and he’s gotno idea how to learn in a classroom .
.. I’m not saying he’s gonna pass, but Big Mike is notstupid.Asin line 1, the teacher A uses the pre-announcement to open the conversationbetween the teachers there. It is not a question, but more likely a hint thatmakes the other teacher asks her what is actually she talking about. Same as inthe theory that the researcher mentioned before, the pre-announcement is the question itself and mostly followed by storiesor news for the hearer. 3) Pre-requestsThisis one of the example of pre-requests used by the main characters in The Blind Side movie.Mike : Canyou help me get something?Anne : What?Mike : Driver’slicense.
Anne : Why do youneed a driver’s license when you don’t even have a car? Michael, why do you want a driver’s license?Mike : It’ssomething to carry with my name on it.Mikeuses this pre-requests strategy in order to check out first, whether hisrequest will be accepted by Anne or not, and in order to avoid a rejectionbecause if Anne says “No”, perhapsMike will stop asking his request. However, since Anne asks back about what hewants, then Mike can go ahead with his request.
E. ConclusionFor the conclusion, pre-sequences are indeed necessary elements in the human’s daily conversation. These sequences of naturalconversation are somehow important for their interaction with other humanbeings. The study of conversation analysis of pre-sequences is quite simple but very strict.
Therefore, it might be the reason why thisstudy is rarely to be a thesis or a research for a researcher in EnglishLiterature Study Program English Education Department Faculty of Languages andArts State University of Yogyakarta. This studytries to label and classify a language and its usage in order to deal with thefewest details of atopic.Even though, the use of suchterms carries advantages and disadvantages. On one hand, theyhave got a clear allpurposes system for almost all variations in their language.On the other hand, the fact that a language is in a constant state of fluctuation forces them to invent new rules andterms, and this causes confusion. REFERENCESBogdan, R.
and Biklen, S. K. 2007.
Qualitativeresearch for education : an introduction to theories and methods. Pearson A & B.Brown, P. and S, Levinson. 1987. Politeness: Some Universals in Language Use. Cambridge:Cambridge University Press.Emanuel A.
S. 2007. Sequence Organization in Interaction: A Primer in ConversationAnalysis. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Goffman, E. 1967. InteractionRitual: Essays in Face-to-Face Behavior. Chicago: Aldine.Levinson,S. C. 1983.
Pragmatics. Cambridge: University Press.VanderStoepS.W, and Johnson D. D. 2009.
Research Methods for Everyday Life:Blending Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches (Research Methods for theSocial Sciences).Jossey-BassWardhaugh, R. 1998. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. Oxford: Blackwell Publisher.
