LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature XI/1 (October 2016) p-ISSN 1858-0165 Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id e-ISSN 2460-853X __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 79 THE REALIZATION OF TENOR IN THE CONVERSATION TEXTS FOUND IN GRADE X ENGLISH TEXTBOOKS “PATHWAY TO ENGLISH” AND “BAHASA INGGRIS KELAS X Mohamad Achsan achsankoedoes@gmail.com Graduate Program Universitas Negeri Semarang Indonesia Ahmad Sofwan sofwan1589@yahoo.com Graduate Program Universitas Negeri Semarang Indonesia Received: 7 January 2016. Revised: 30 January 2016. Accepted: 30 September 2016 Abstract This study aims at explaining the tenor of the interactants in the conversation texts found grade X English textbooks as well as the appropriacy of their realization in the given contexts. This study also explains the similarities and differences between conversation texts found in both English textbooks in realizing tenor. This study was a qualitative research employing a descriptive comparative method. The comparative method compares conversation texts found in two English textbooks entitled “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” to find their similarities and differences in realizing tenor. The result of lexicogrammatical analysis of conversation texts found in two English textbooks showed the texts of two textbooks were dominated by declarative. This meant that the mood in the models of the conversation texts tended giving information rather than demanding information or demanding goods and services. They were between teacher and student, student and student, and friend and friend. Furthermore, there were various statuses found in these texts. They were unequal and equal. At last, the social distances showed low contact and low affective involvement and high contact and high affective involvement. Key words: context of situation, tenor, appropriacy How to Cite: Achsan, M. & A. Sofwan. 2016. The Realization of Tenor in the Conversation Texts Found in Grade X English Textbooks “Pathway To English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, XI/1. ______________________________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION There have been textbooks for high school students abundantly available in the market. The English textbooks provide texts as models for students to engage in oral or written communication in various contexts of situation. Therefore, we should find out whether the provided texts are appropriate contextually for it‟s own sake and reflects the real life situation in which communication competence is rehearsed for purposeful social activities. In real life, the students will be engaged with dynamic use of language to create the text according to the particular terms of situational dimension. To understand the context of situation in a text, particularly spoken, students are exposed to conversation texts that mostly focus on the mailto:achsankoedoes@gmail.com mailto:sofwan1589@yahoo.com LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature XI/1 (October 2016) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 80 use of functional expressions. In textbooks, those functional expressions are listed and graded from more formal to less formal situations. In fact, those expressions would mean nothing without context. Consequently, the study on tenor as one of the elements of the context of situation becomes important. By analyzing tenor, the meanings constructed to build the relationships between the interactants in the conversation text can be interpreted. In my study, I am interested in exploring the close interpretation of tenor in the conversation texts found in Grade X English Textbooks “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X”. I want to explore the role relationship between interactants in conversation texts. That is why I want to analyze interpersonal relation (tenor) of conversation texts found in English textbook, which concern the social role relationship played by interactants. Text and Context The existence of text and context is always continuum. The meaning of text can be defined as an actual use of language, as distinct from a sentence which is an abstract unit of linguistic analysis (Widdowson, 2007: 4). This means that a text should be meaningful since a text is produced for a communicative purpose. People produce texts to get a message across, to express ideas and beliefs, to explain something, to get other people to do certain things or to think in a certain way, and so on. Language users can understand a text by making meanings with each other in the available context. Context as named by Halliday and Hasan (1985: 5), is text that is „with‟. Context is the situation in which texts unfold and in which they are to be interpreted. Hence, context must exist prior to texts. The actual use of language will make sense when it unfolds within a context. Focusing the attention on the language use in context makes it essential to describe the dimension of context that have an impact on language use. Actually, a text always occurs in two contexts, one within the other. Butt et al. (1996: 11) presents two different levels of abstraction: the outer and the inner of contexts. Figure 2.1 Text in Context The outer context is the context of culture and the inner context is the context of situation. Context of culture is sometimes described as the sum of all the meanings it is Context of culture Context of situation Text Mohamad Achsan & Ahmad Sofwan. 2016. The Realization of Tenor in the Conversation Texts Found in Grade X English Textbooks “Pathway To English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, XI/1. _________________________________________________________________________________________ 81 possible to mean in that particular culture, while within the context of culture, speakers and writers use language in many more specific contexts or situations. Each of these is an inner context, which is called as the context of situation (Butt et al. 1996: 11). A text occurs in these two contexts. The combination of the two results in the differences and similarities between a piece of language and another. In other words, context of culture and context of situation are the contexts that generate the meanings of a text regarding the appropriacy of the language use. Appropriacy is suitableness of language used for the particular context (Murcia and Olsen, 2000: 235). The appropriacy deals with the choice of words or linguistic choice. Texts of textbooks are expected to be made up by appropriate choice of words considering its contexts. Context of Situation Context of situation is defined as term to cover the things going on in the world outside the text which make the text what it is (Butt et al, 1996: 12). Context of situation can be specified into three variables: field, tenor, and mode. Field of discourse refers to what is going on, including activity focus (nature of social activity) and object focus (subject matters). Sometimes field can be glossed as the “topic” of the situation. Field predicts experiential meanings in the semantic level. Experiential meaning is realized by transitivity at the lexicogrammatical level. Tenor of discourse refers to the “players” or the actors or rather the interacting roles, which are involved in the creation of the text. It concerns with the social relationships between those taking parts. Butt et al. (1996: 130) specify tenor in terms of agentive or social roles, status and social distance. Agentive or social roles are roles of the speakers and the addressee. Status may be equal or hierarchic. It is realized by the mood chosen by the speakers. Social distance measures how the participants know each other, whether they speak familiarly or distantly. Social distance may be maximal or minimal for those on a familiar and frequent basis. By considering formality, politeness, Poynton (in Eggins, 1994: 64) breaks down tenor into three continua: power, affective involvement, and contact. Power is a matter of equal and unequal power of the roles of the interactants in communication. For instance, roles of equal power are those of friends; example of roles of unequal (non-reciprocal) power would be those of boss/employee. Contact deals with the frequency of communication between the interactants. It is whether they have frequent or infrequent contact. For example, contact between spouses tends to be frequent, but the contact between distant acquaintances maybe infrequent. Affective involvement describes the emotional relationship between the interactants in a particular situation. The affective involvement is either high or low. For example, friends of lovers are affectively involved, whereas work associates are typically not. Those two categories are identical in their principles. Status and power refer to the positions of the interactants, contact and social distance deal with the frequency of the interaction. While Butt specifies the roles of the speakers in terms of agentive of societal roles, Eggins specifies affective involvement as another element of tenor that concerns on the speakers‟ intimacy. Therefore, the application of these ideas will make it a more complete and detailed study of tenor. Mode of discourse refers to how language LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature XI/1 (October 2016) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 82 is being used whether the channel of communication or the “part” is spoken or written and whether the language being used is a mode of action or reflection. It predicts textual meanings. Martin (in Eggins, 1994: 53-54) pointed out mode involves two stimultaneous continua, which describe two different types of distance. Those are spatial/interpersonal distance and experiential distance. Tenor of Discourse Tenor as the realization of interpersonal meaning refers to the negotiation of social relationship among participants. Tenor is one aspect of register variables expressed through the interpersonal function (Martin, 1992: 523). The way of the speaker doing something to other participants will cause two semantic system of clause: proposition and proposal. Proposal clause refers to the thing that one exchange is about goods and services. Proposition clause refers to the information. Moreover, the system contributes two basic contrasts that are giving and demanding something. It can be seen through the table below. Table 1. Speech Roles and Commodities in Interaction COMODITY EXCHANGE SPEECH ROLE Information Good and Services Giving Statement Offer Demanding Question Command Source: Gerrot and Wignell (1994: 150) Gerrot and Wignell (1994: 11) also describe that tenor is the social relationships between those taking part. They cover tenor into three dimensions:1). Status or power, means agent roles, peer or hierarchic relation, 2). Affect, means degree of like, dislike or neutrality, 3). Contact, means frequency, duration and intimacy of social context. Furthermore, Eggins (1994: 63) states that tenor is the social role relationships played by interactants, for example roles such as between student and lecturer, between customer and salesperson, and between friend and friend. Tenor can be broken down into three continua: 1). Power, means a matter of equal and unequal power of the roles of the interactants in communication, 2). Contact, deals with the frequency of communication between the interactants. 3). Affective involvement, is either high or low. Butt et al. (1996: 130) defines that tenor is the relationship between the speaker and hearer (or, of course, writer and reader). He specifies tenor in terms of agentive or social roles, status and social distance. Agentive or social roles are roles of the speakers and the addressee. Status may be equal or hierarchic. It is realized by the mood chosen by the speakers. Social distance measures how the participants know each other, whether they speak familiarly or distantly. Social distance maybe maximal or minimal for those on familiar and frequent bases. From some definitions of tenor above, it can be concluded that tenor is the social role relationship between the interactants. It has Mohamad Achsan & Ahmad Sofwan. 2016. The Realization of Tenor in the Conversation Texts Found in Grade X English Textbooks “Pathway To English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, XI/1. _________________________________________________________________________________________ 83 three dimensions in terms of status or power refers to the positions of the interactants, contact and social distance deal with the frequency of the interaction. METHODOLOGY This study is qualitative employing a descriptive method. It is called qualitative since it is a type of research, which does not include any numeration. Meanwhile, it is called descriptive since it describes phenomena in which a research conclusion can be drawn. Arikunto (2006: 111) states that descriptive research does not need any hypothesis in its research stage. The descriptive research is commonly used to describe certain phenomena, based on the data collected to get conclusion. The study also employs comparative method. According to Miles and Huberman (1992: 237), comparative method is implemented by making comparison between two sets of things, persons and roles of activities. The comparative method compares conversation texts found in two English textbooks entitled “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” to find their similarities and differences in realizing tenor. The data of this research are conversation texts found in two English textbooks. These English textbooks have one to two model conversations. These conversation texts are written in various topics. Four texts of each English textbook are selected from the whole texts that have same topics based on the basic competence of curriculum 2013. These conversation texts of each textbook are as follows. Table 1. Textbooks Covering the Data No. Topics The Texts A B 1 Expressing personal identification in interpersonal dialogue 1 1 2 Expressing various compliments in interpersonal conversation 1 1 3 Expressing various compliments that show attention and the responses 1 1 4 Congratulating in various contexts 1 1 4 4 Total 8 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS The study deals with the result and discussion of tenor of the conversation texts found in grade X English textbooks “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X”. Lexicogrammatical Analysis In term of MOOD system (table 4.2 and table 4.3) the conversation texts of both English textbooks were dominated by declarative. The conversation texts of English textbook “Pathway to English” were mostly declaratives. Then, followed by interrogative, LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature XI/1 (October 2016) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 84 imperative, and exclamative mood. It was proven through the Text A1 until the Text A4 which were dominated by declarative. On the contrary, imperative and exclamative were less found in the texts of this English textbook. They just appeared in particular texts. This meant that the mood in the models of the conversation texts tended giving information rather than demanding information or demanding good or services. The conversation texts of English textbook “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” were also mostly declarative. Then, it was followed by interrogative, imperative, and exclamative mood. It was proven through the Text B1 until the Text B4 which was dominated by declarative. On the contrary, imperative and exclamative were less found in the texts of this English textbook. They just appeared in particular texts. Imperative just appeared in text B1 and B3, and exclamative appeared in text B2. This meant that the mood in the models of the conversation texts tended giving information rather than demanding information or demanding good or services. From the description above, it can be seen that declarative clauses were dominant found in the conversation texts of both English textbooks. It indicated that almost all conversation texts focused on giving information rather than demanding information. Then, followed by interrogative; it meant that conversation texts focused on demanding information. Furthermore, followed by imperative and exclamative that just appeared in particular texts. Viewed from the modality, the conversation texts of English textbook “Pathway to English” employed dominant modulation of capability. It can be seen through Text A2, Text A3, and Text A4. Then, followed by modulation of inclination as shown by Text A3 and Text A4. Moreover, modulation of obligation only shown by Text A3. Then, modalization of probability is also shown in Text A2. On the contrary, modulation and modalization were not found in Text A1. Meanwhile, the conversation texts of English textbook “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” employed dominant modulation of capability as shown in Text B2, Text B3, the Text B4. Then, it was followed by modulation of obligation as shown in Text B2 and also modulation of inclination and modalization of probability as shown in Text B3. On the contrary, modulation and modalization were not found in Text B1. Tenor of Conversation Texts of Both English Textbooks Tenor realization of conversation texts found in two textbooks can be described as follows. Agentive or Societal Roles Based on the data description above, it can be seen that both of English textbooks have various kinds of societal roles. The societal roles were between teacher and student, between student and student, and between friend and friend. Status Based on the data description above, it was found that the conversation texts both of English textbooks have equal and unequal status or powers. The text which have unequal power was text A2, while others were equal powers. Social Distance Based on the data description, it can be seen that both of English textbooks have various kinds of social distances. The social distances found in both English textbooks were high/frequent contact and high affective Mohamad Achsan & Ahmad Sofwan. 2016. The Realization of Tenor in the Conversation Texts Found in Grade X English Textbooks “Pathway To English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, XI/1. _________________________________________________________________________________________ 85 involvement. There was only a text which has low contact and low affective involvement (text A2). The Similarities and Differences between Conversation Texts Found in English Textbook “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” in Realizing Tenor There were some similarities and differences between conversation texts found in two English textbooks entitled “Pathway To English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” in realizing tenor. Table 4.4 was presented based on the realization of tenor in each conversation text of English textbook “Pathway To English “was symbolized as textbook A which was divided into text A1 until A4 and English textbook “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” was symbolized as textbook B which was divided into text B1 until B4. The similarities and differences between them can be explained in detail below. Table 2.The Similarities and Differences between Conversation Texts Found in English Textbook “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” in Realizing Tenor Tenor First Topic Second Topic Third Topic Fourth Topic A1 B1 A2 B2 A3 B3 A4 B4 Agentive/S ocietal Roles Friend and Friend Friend and Friend Teacher and Student Friend and Friend Friend and Friend Friend and Friend Friend and Friend Friend and Friend Status Equal Equal Unequal Equal Equal Equal Equal Equal Social Distance High contact, high aff. inv. High contact, high aff. inv. Low contact, low aff. inv. High contact, High aff. inv. High contact, high aff. inv. High contact, high aff. inv. High contact, high aff. inv. High contact, high aff. inv. As depicted by the table 4.4 above, it can be summarized that the similarities were found in almost all conversation texts between conversation texts in English textbook “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X”. The similarities were found between text A1 and B1, A3 and B3, and A4 and B4. Those texts have similarities in terms societal roles, status, and social distance. Meanwhile, the differences were only found between text A2 and B2. Those two texts have differences in terms of societal roles, status, and social distance. Based on the findings of the similarities and differences texts between conversation texts in English textbook “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X” in realizing tenor, it could be seen that although there were similarities in texts, they tended to be different in realizing tenor. The Tenor Realization of Conversation Texts Found in Two English Textbooks and LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature XI/1 (October 2016) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 86 the Texts’ Inapppropriacy The table 2 showed eight texts which have been analyzed have various dimensions of tenor. Tenor analysis of conversation texts of each English textbook yielded various kinds of societal roles, statuses, and social distances. The analysis showed the appropriacy of the conversation texts of two English textbooks in realizing tenor. From the result of tenor analysis in both textbooks showed that the relationship between the speakers which have equal and unequal status were considered appropriate. CONCLUSIONS The result of tenor analysis of conversation texts found in both English textbooks showed that there were societal roles of conversation texts found in this textbook. They were between teacher and student, student and student, and friend and friend. Furthermore, there were various statuses found in these texts. They were unequal and equal. At last, the social distances showed low contact and low affective involvement and high contact and high affective involvement. The result of lexicogrammatical analysis of conversation texts found in two English textbooks showed the texts of two textbooks were dominated by declarative. This meant that the mood in the models of the conversation texts tended giving information rather than demanding information or demanding goods and services. Meanwhile, the result of modality analysis showed the conversation texts of the textbook were dominated by modulation of capability. The similarities were found in almost all conversation texts between conversation texts in English textbook “Pathway to English” and “Bahasa Inggris Kelas X”. The similarities were found between text A1 and B1, A3 and B3, and A4 and B4. Those texts have similarities in terms societal roles, status, and social distance. Meanwhile, the differences were only found between text A2 and B2. 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