Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 21 VERONIKA`S PERSONALITY DETERMINANT AND EGO-STATE IN VERONIKA DECIDE TO DIE IN PAULO COELHO Tawali (1) (k_school49@yahoo.com (1) ) Faculty of Education for Language and Art (FPBS) Institute of Teacher Training and Education (IKIP) Mataram ABSTRACT This research is aimed to revel the personality determinant and Veronika`s ego- state. The theory that applied in this research is personality determinant by Elizabeth Hurlock and transactional analysis proposed by Eric Berne. The method used in this research is qualitative descriptive method. The condition that Veronika experiences is that her mother in determining her future pressures Veronika`s life. Everything that she wants to do, it must be controlled by her mother. Finally, she feels tired living with that condition therefore she prefers to end up her life through suicide. Unlikely, she is failure in doing it. It is found out aspiration and achievement, education, social, emotion, family, sex, physical, and intellectual factor determinant her personality. However, her personality is dominant by family factor. Her view in relationship toward a life and death are she feels happy living when she was to child. However, she feels empty when she is adult women and has everything. She gets bored with her routine activity such as go for working in the morning and gets back in the afternoon. She has not any purpose of life anymore. Since living the mental hospital, her life rise back. She understands the meaning of life through motivation from her friends and love from young man. There are three aspects of her ego-state within her such as parents, adult, and child aspects. However, the adult ego state determinates from them all. Keywords: Personality and Ego-State Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 22 INTRODUCTION Studying literary works has many significant in understanding the life and all phenomena, and availability of many theories and its development in the literature study enable us to see one literary work from many aspects and factors. This study will employ the transactional analysis as the device to measure the individuals’ psychological features and its background by rending one’s personality based on the dialogues occurred in any literary work. This analysis device splits one’s personality into three aspects, i.e. parent, adult and children. A literary work can be a useful device to reveal the truth hidden beneath what we call as a fact. Literalists, consciously or unconsciously, put the hidden clues by using metaphors or other linguistic features to describe his or her intention. Veronika Decides to die explores the major character, Veronika, as an absurd young woman who was seeing the life as an absence of meaning. This novel has strong effect in every conversation and narration. Considering the powerful of this novel and the writer’s reputation, researcher is interested to study this novel scientifically. Coelho must be good in describing physical and mental setting of the story as he had personal experiences living in a mental asylum. He got ‘imprisoned’ in the mental hospital for three times, sent by his parents’ dread of his writing ambition. To get the personality description of the main character, researcher prefers to apply two devices, 1) transactional study which can show us the deflections and tendencies in her utterances to other characters or to herself. By this approach, researcher be able to see the three separated parts in human psychology, i.e. parent, adult, and child; and 2) personality analysis to reveal the determinants of her personality, which are categorized in eight aspects, i.e.: physical determinants, intellectual determinants, emotional determinants, social determinants, aspirations determinants, sex determinants, educational determinants, and family determinants. Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 23 Phenomena and Focus of the Study The four main phenomena to which the study foucused are (1) The life-journey of Veronika (2) Veronika’s personality determinants (3) Veronika’s views of life and death (4) The ego-states of Veronika: Parent, Adult, and Child systems. Objectives of the Study The objectives in conducting this study are (1) Describing Veronika’s life-journey (2) Identifying Veronika’s personality determinants (3) Revealing Veronika’s views about life and death, and (4) Identifying the ego-states of Veronika by applying transactional analysis. Significance of the Study The theoretical significance of this study is: Providing the concept of life- journey, describing the personality determinants, Exploring and identifying the ego states of Veronika in the novel, which consist of parent, adult, and child systems.The practical significance: The results of this study are expected to be useful as one of references for further studies that is dealing with personality determinants and ego-state of the main character in a novel. Definitions of Key Term Personality is everything involved about itself, who is he/she exactly in infracting with itself, or around environment. Ego-State is how we are made up, and how we are relate to others in certain condition and situation. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE Exposing the concept of this study, the researcher provides the theoretical and some previous relevant studies from many sources, such as from textbooks, articles, research publications, web page, and some others. Transactional Analysis Transactional analysis is not exclusively used in literature study, indeed, it was born from psychology. In the psychology, scientists learn and try to understand individual behavior by relating their action, performance, problems, and presumptions the possibilities of one’s thought (Berne, 2009: 17) Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 24 By this method, Berne in his psycho-medical session was able to diagnose the hidden or comprehensive description of his patients’ personality situation, in which he could understand the best clinical measures applicable for his patients. He mentioned briefly that in every human develops three dynamic personalities. The action of each state, or ego-state, forms the current position of the personality (Berne, 2009: 25). Ego-State Ego is reflecting oneself, dynamically changing, as the result of surrounding situation and condition. The ego-state of every individual consists of those three mental elements, i.e. parent, adult, and child, or be abbreviated as PAC. Each of ego-state contains some particular characteristic that can be found and analyzed inside any individual. Parent Everyone has experienced the influence of parents or from other figures acted as parents, like grandparents or caretakers, in their childhood. The kind of influence then identified by Berne as the constructed mental entity namely Parent (first letter always be capitalized, also for Adult and Child) system. Child The last ego-state in an individual is the Child. This system viewed as one’s behavior, way of thinking, and feeling which re-performing and continuing her/his childhood. Even a decrepit granny can perform her Child system in her attitude, such as indulgent like a young girl. Personality Determinants Based on many sources, Hurlock (1974: 137), in the same book, emphasizes the determining components or aspects of personality. There are eight categories of personality determinant, i.e.: physical determinants, intellectual determinants, emotional determinants, social determinants, aspirations determinants, sex determinants, educational determinants, and family determinants. Physical Determinants Physique and body functioning are without question directly responsible for personality development, though, in modern research studies have been pointed that physical factors have an equal or even greater indirect effect. Intellectual Determinants Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 25 The intellectual determines one’s personality, which was succeeded to bring evidence that intellectual determinants are far too important to be ignored in understanding a personality. Emotional Determinants The emotional determining personality. In fact, research studies in this area have been reviewed to show how other emotions affect personal and social adjustments. Social Determinants A personality is also shaped by the social environment in which she or he engages. Studies of the influence of social expectations. early social experiences both within and outside the home, social deprivation, social acceptance. Aspirations and Achievements Determinants Both aspirations and achievements are really important aspect in personality development. If his aspirations are low, he may look with pride upon what others judge a failure. In other words, aspirations influence the person’s interpretation of his achievements as successes or failure. (Hurlock, 1974: 142). Sex Determinants Sex as a personality determinant and placed it in the spotlight of scientific attention. Later Mead emphasized that acceptance or rejection of the culturally approved sex role affects person’s personal and social adjustments. There are also some studies approve that sex determinants have substantiated the facts on which these theories were based(Hurlock,1974: 142). Educational Determinants In view of the amount of time young people spend in school and college and the emphasis placed on academic success or failure as a determinant of future life patterns since the school is secondary only to go home as an influence on how the person evaluates himself. Family Determinants A that family determinants are actually more important than the theories suggested and that many other areas of family life besides those stressed in the theories are crucial (Hurlock, 1974: 142). Previous Related Study Sugiyanto 2003 with the title Kajian Psikoanalisis Novel Naricissus and Goldmond, karya Herman Hesse, Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 26 from Surabaya state University. Here discuss about 1. What are the psychological aspect of the character Goldmond and Narcissus 2. What is significance of psychoanalysis aspect in Goldmond`s life 3. What is significance of the psychoanalysis aspect in Narcissus`s life 4. How both characters solve of their psychological problem. The other study is”Pencarian Jati Diri (self Discovery) Milkman dalam Song of Solomon Karya Toni Marrison.” This study is using characterization intrinsic theory. Its includes contemplation, journey, maturity, motivation, and self. Discovery that implemented to milkman`s self and how to find his true self. It is written by Lambang Erwanto Suryarjid, 2008, from Surabaya State University. RESEARCH DESIGN The research design used in this study is qualitative descriptive design in which the data were provided in form of written text and concepts. According to Biklen (1992: 20) qualitative descriptive research, the data being collected are in form of words or picture rather than number. In qualitative researcher, the researcher tends to analysis the data inductively. They do not search out data or evident to prove or disprove hypothesis they use before entering study. Technique of Data Collection In this study, I use two types of collecting data techniques; they are close reading technique and documentation technique. Documentation is used especially for library documentation studies. Sunarto (2001: 155) states that there are many forms of documents/write notes, such as biography, autobiography, daily note, letter, picture, and literary works that have correlation to the topics which are studied. Data Reduction The only source of this study is the novel. Thus, other publications such as book, article, essay, or other only used as reference for this study. However, not all text in the novel taken as data, but only relevant parts to the focus of this study. By this Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 27 criterion, reseracher can limit the size of data in the novel. Data Analysis To display relevant data, researcher used codes to any occurrence of relevant data in the novel: Family determinant, Physical determinant, Intellectual determinant, Emotional determinan, Social determinant, Aspiration and Achievement determinant, Sex determinants, Educational determinant, Educational determinant, and Family determinana. ANALYSIS AND FINDING The Life Journey of Veronika Veronika is a young beautiful woman from Ljubljana, Slovenia, one of the five republics into which the former Yugoslavia had been divided. She was twenty-four years old, grew up when Slovenia was in conflict. She had talent to play the piano, and was fully supported by her teacher to become a professional pianist since twelve years old. She had won competition at school many times. Before her goal was reached, she gave up preceding her great talent to become a great pianist as her mom asked her to continue her study in college of law and not too far with piano. She followed whole commands of her mother, though she was not interested to study at law school. Finally she graduated from university and got a good degree, unfortunately she was not becoming a lawyer, but rather becoming librarian in convent. She had her life as normal as the other, beside her family loved her so much and men who could make her enjoy but not growing any serious relation. She did not live with her parents, but lived in a rented house with many nuns. She usually got up early in the morning then leaving for a job, having lunch on the same bench in the park opposite the theater, along with other people, then went home in the evening. On the way home, before arriving at home, she dropped for a while in the same bars, visited her boyfriend’s apartment then went home. Those routine activities made her soul becoming empty and hollow Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 28 to live any longer. The story began when she committed suicide by swallowing some sleeping pills. She had been trying to get hold of the pills for nearly six months, she was prepared to do all she could so that her death would cause as little upset as possible. In fact, death did not come when she wanted. She was still alive and lived in mental hospital. After swallowing the pills, she started to feel hatred for the person she loved most in the world. She also hated the library within the pile of books full of explanation about life. But mainly she hated the way she had lived her life. She was never bothering herself to discover the hundreds of other Veronika who lived inside her, finding other ‘Veronika’ who might be interesting, crazy, curious, brave, and bold. When she was living in mental hospital – called Villete, she rejected her mother to see her and felt pressured to wait the death. Her presence there affected all of the mental hospital`s patients. The other patients such as Zedka –who has clinical depression, the oldest madwoman – who always gave her spirit, attention, and suggestion, Mari – who suffered from panic attack, and Eduard – who has schizophrenia and with whom Veronika felt in love. She had given a lot of attention to Eduard gave everything he wanted, with their relationship they began to give trust, love, and understanding to each other. Those made them getting normal. They escaped from Villete without permission Dr Igor, the head doctor in the place. The Ego States of Veronika Veronika – Zedka Zeda was the first patient who Veronika met in Villete. She was not really insane like the other patient there. She suffered by the lack of particular chemical in her body. Zedka was the one who made contact between them, by asking interesting question about the meaning of being crazy. In the beginning of interaction, Veronika behaved as an adult that curious to her new place. (39) Veronika:”I don’t know what it means to be crazy” whispered Veronika. “But, I’m not. I’m just failed suicide.” Zedka:“Anyone who lives to her own world is crazy. Like schizophrenia, psychopath, maniac. I mean people who are different from others.” Veronika: “Like you.” Zedka: “On the other hand.” Zedka continued, pretending not to have hear the remark, “You have Einstein, saying that there was no time or space, just a combination of Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 29 the two. Or Columbus, insisting that on the other side of the world lay not an abyss but continent. Or Edmund Hillary, convinced that man could reach the top of Everest. Or the Beatles, who created an entirely different sort of music and dress like people from another time. Those people and thousands of others all lived on their own world.”(Coelho.2006: 35)Adult to Child In conversation between Veronika and Zedka above, the researcher sees that while Veronika tried to act as an adult, by showing her curiosity, Zedka behaved also behaved in the same ego position. The conversation also shows us that Veronika was interested to know a story from Zedka who had whispered her one night in the ward with a question about whether she knows meant to be crazy. When they met again, Veronika started conversation, since she was still curious to the question. She wanted to know what came to be the answer for the question. To be curious is one the characteristics of being adult in ego- state analysis. Veronika Mari Mari was the other woman who Veronika met in Villete. She was suffered from panic depression that made her lost her family. Before getting treated in Villete, Mari had a great job as a lawyer and happy family that she loved so much. Mari played important role toward Veronika during her treatment, as she always gave Veronika many opinions to consider. She acted as a mom for Veronika and Eduard, and socialized with many patients in the mental asylum. She had weekly permit to walk out to city, for having a nuance of normal environment. She was the one who Eduard talked to in Villete, before the coming of Veronika. Next lines were transactions between Veronika and Mari and a session with other member of fraternity, a group of patient who always assembled to discuss many things. (41) The member of the group stood up, Veronika didn’t know what to do. Mari: “You got up too.” Said Mari, grabbing her hand. “We’ve go a five minutes break.” Veronika: “I will leave. I don’t want to be in the way.” Mari led her to one corner. Mari: “Haven’t you learnt anything, not even with the approach of death. Stop thinking all the time that you are in the way, that you are bothering the person next to you. If people don’t like it, they can complain. And if they don’t have the courage to complain, that’s their problem.” Veronika: “That day, when I came over to you. I was doing something I’d never dare to do before.” Mari: “And you allow yourself to be cowed by a joke made by lunatics. Why didn’t you just stick to your guns? What did you have to lose?” Veronika: “My dignity, by being I won’t welcome.”(Coelho, 2006: 98- 99). Child to Parent Based on the lines above, the researcher concludes that Mari Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 30 appeared to show her as a parent by showing her control over Veronika and told Veronika what she must think and must not to think or react. On the other hand Veronika behaved like a little girl who was showing her obedience to her parent. When she met a woman who could control her, Veronika reacted just like she was facing her mother who always gave and treated her like a little girl. By this sense, we can see Veronika still missed the figure of mother who worked hard just to make her happy and got a better life. Mari reacted just the way Veronika wanted to see her, a mother to share with and to care her. Veronika – Dr. Igor Dr. Igor was the major of Villete and was an expert of psychotherapy for those who needed help. He had high awareness of developing a cure of mental sickness. He was the one who knew the condition of Veronika and designed a special treatment to prove his thesis of curing people with too much Vetriol in their body. Vetriol encourages people becoming unstable and wanting to die. Since Veronika came to Villete, Dr. Igor rarely made contact with Veronika but always monitored Veronika’s status through nurses. He decided to conduct experiment to Veronika, by making her believed that she was going to die soon, just the way she wished before. Dr. Igor believed that by putting someone, who had committed suicide, in situation where she/he thinks death is getting closer in days, people will resetting their views of life and death. People will be afraid of dead and unmanageable to attempt another suicide. Since treated as someone who had mental depression in the asylum, Veronika became suspicious to anyone who she believed as functionary in Villete. Once Dr. Igor came to visit her for the first time she directly indicted Dr. Igor to answer her question, impressing insistent. (43) Veronika: “How long I’ve been here?” She asked, noticing that she spoke with some difficulty, slurring her words slightly. Dr. Igor: “You’ve been in this ward for two weeks, after five days spent in the Intensive Care Unit,” replied the older man. “And just be grateful that you’re still here”(Coelho, 2006: 26). Based on the conversation, Veronika expressed her adult ego-state by questioning something that she deserved to know. She wanted anyone that really in charged to situation that she had to face to give her explanation, and she considered the man who she talked to at that time, though she was still unable to see clearly on the face or any object in the ward. Meanwhile, Dr. Igor tried to give information more than what Veronika had questioned. She emphasized how Veronika almost died and had to stay for five days in special unit for one who have serious condition. In this part, Dr. Igor acted as professional or adult mental state. Veronika – Eduard When they ran out from Villete, one night that they believed as the last night Veronika would stay alive. They Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 31 went to a restaurant that not far from Villete to pass the time. Veronika and Eduard talked to each other as normal people usually did. They chatted and teased to each other, and people would not think they came from a mental hospital. They had wine in the restaurant and started to talk about Veronika’s grandmother. The interaction between them displayed close intimacy, as if they done this regularly. (50) Eduard: “I like that story about the snake”, he said, filling her glass for the time. “But your grandmother was too old to be able to interpret the story correctly.” Veronika: “Have a little respect for my grandmother, please!” roared Veronika drunkenly, making everyone in the restaurant turn around. Eduard: “A toast to this young woman’s grandmother!” said Eduard, jumping to his feet. “A toast to the grandmother of this madwoman sitting to here before me, who is doubtless some escapee from Villete!” People turned their attention back to their food, pretending that nothing was happening. Veronika: “A toast to my grandmother!” insisted Veronika. , (Coelho, 2006: 200). When we see the lines of transactions above, we can see how Veronika behaved like an indulgent young woman, or bit childish. She was so attached to Eduard. She showed that when she asked Eduard to be honor to her grandmother, while Eduard was teasing her. According to that situation, the researcher claims that Veronika removed her ego-state from adult to child. She wanted to be spoiled by Eduard, the man whom she felt in love to. In the last line, Veronika showed that she insisted only toasting to her grandmother, which was suited to child behavior. As they made too much noise in the restaurant, the owner of the restaurant pleased Veronika and Eduard to leave the restaurant, and they would not pay anything for the wine they had drunk. After leaving the restaurant, they went the city park and continued chatting, with more intimacy. In the place, Veronika came to asking a last request to Eduard after kissing him for quite long. The way she requested her wish to Eduard to picture her face in his mind convinces us Veronika was in her child ego-state. She asked Eduard to swear on her that one day she would do a painting about her face and would go on with his talent in painting. To see this, we can see from the following quotation: (51)Veronika: “Look at my face,” she said. “Remember it with the eyes of your soul, so that you can reproduce it one day. If you like that can be your starting point, but you must go back to painting. That is my last request. Do you believe in God?” Eduard: “I do.” Veronika: “Than you must swear by the God you believe in that you will paint me.” Eduard: “I swear.” Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 32 Veronika: “And that after painting me, you will go on painting.” Eduard: “I don’t know if I can swear that.” Veronika: “You can. And thank you for giving meaning to my life….” (Coelho, 2006: 203). CONCLUSION Based on the focus of the present study, the researcher concludes: Personality determinants of Veronika. There were eight factors that encouraged Veronika’s personality in her life; physical determinats, family determinats, sex determinants, Aspiration and achievement determinants, social determinats, educational determinats, emotional determinants, and intelectual determinants. The findings in this study emphasize that family determinats seems to be dominan, and the ego-state: parent, adult, and child. Every human has ego-state, ecah ego- state contains three ego positions, such as parent, adult, and child system. Those three are working inside the human body. Veronika`s ego sometime emerges as parent ego position, adult ego position, and also child ego position when was staying in mental hospital. Suggestion Based on the research findings of this study, the researcher recommends suggestions. To the lecture, teacher, and next researcher in order, this result of this expected to be able to help the reader or the next researcher take into consideration in applying this theory related to the title. Understanding the physiology ego-state, and personality determinant theory can encourage in applying this theory in his or her thesis as reference or additional know who take part in this title or in other literary works. Journal of English Language Teaching Volume 3 Nomor 1, Februari 2016 ISSN: 2548-5865 33 REFERENCES Atmazuki. (1990). Kajian sastra (Teori dan Terapan). Padang: Angkasa Raya Publisher. Bogdan, Robert., & Taylor, Steven J. (1975). Introduction of Qualitative Research Methode. New York, Brisbane Toronto, Singapore: John Wiley & Sons. Bogdan, C., & Biklen, Kznopp. (1982). Qualitative Research for Education: An Introductionto Theory and Method. Bosto: Allyn & Bacon. Bogdan. C., & Knopp. (1992). Qualitative Research for Education. Boston: Advisor of Sinn and Schuster. 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