Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck's The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Teachers

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
ABSTRACT
Janiati. (2007) The Influence of O-lan’s Character on Resolving Her Personal

Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Teachers
Training and Education Faculty, Department of Language and Arts Education,
English Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.
This study discusses personal conflicts which are felt by O-lan, a wife of a
farmer who later becomes a landowner. This study focuses on three issues, which
are used as the research factors in this thesis. The first issue is about the character
of O-lan. The second one is about O-lan’s personal conflicts, both intrapersonal
and interpersonal conflicts. The last issue discusses the influence of O-lan’s
character in resolving her personal conflicts.
By employing library research study, this thesis was finished. This thesis
applied psychological approach to comprehend the patterns of human personality
and behavior. Besides using this approach, this thesis also applied theory of
characterization, theory of conflict and women in Chinese culture. Theory of
characterization was used to analyze O-lan’s character. To understand more about
O-lan’s personal conflicts, theory of conflict was applied. Women in Chinese
culture was discussed to help the writer to understand more about women status in
the earlier twentieth century.
The first result of the study was about O-lan’s characters. She was a major
character which was round and protagonist. She was seen as a person who is
obedient, diligent and hardworking, silent, smart, and economical and industrious.
O-lan’s characters were also influenced by the culture at that time.
The second and the third results are combined since it related one another.
This study found out that O-lan has two intrapersonal and two interpersonal
conflicts. O-lan’s intrapersonal conflicts are her decision to deliver her first baby
by herself and to kill her second daughter. The intrapersonal conflicts O-lan faced
are double approach – avoidance conflicts. O-lan’s character as a smart person
helped her to deliver he first baby safely. O-lan’s character as a tough person
made her dare to kill her second daughter after the baby was born.
O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts were her relationship with Wang Lung and
her relationship with Cuckoo. O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts were categorized as
ego conflict. The conflict between O-lan and Wang Lung was named
accommodation style. It was resolved with integrative negotiation. The conflict
between O-lan and Cuckoo was classified as avoiding style. It was solved with
win-lose solution.
Finally, the writer would like to propose two suggestions to complete this
thesis. One suggestion is for the next researcher(s) on The Good Earth in coming
years. Another suggestion is to implement The Good Earth as a material in
teaching English, especially for teaching Public Speaking I.
xi
ABSTRAK

Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Fakultas
Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan, Jurusan Bahasa dan Seni, Program Pendidikan
Bahasa Inggris Universitas Sanata Dharma.
Skripsi ini membahas konflik pribadi yang dialami oleh O-lan, istri dari
seorang petani yang akhirnya menjadi tuan tanah. Skripsi ini terfokus pada tiga
aspek, yang digunakan sebagai faktor penelitian. Aspek pertama menjelaskan
mengenai karakter O-lan. Aspek kedua berhubungan dengan konflik pribadi O-
lan, baik konflik dari dalam maupun luar diri O-lan. Aspek terakhir menjelaskan
pengaruh karakter O-lan dalam menyelesaikan konflik probadinya.
Dengan menggunakan metode studi pustaka, skripsi ini diselesaikan.
Skripsi ini menggunakan teori psikologi untuk mengartikan bentuk kepribadian
dan perilaku manusia. Selain teori psikologi, skripsi ini juga menggunakan teori
karakterisasi, teori konflik dan wanita dalam kebudayaan China. Teori
karakteristik digunakan untuk menganalisa karakter O-lan. Teori konfilk berfungsi
untuk mengenal lebih lanjut mengenai konflik pribadi O-lan. Wanita dalam
kebudayaan China digunakan untuk membantu penulis memahami kedudukan
wanita pada awal abad dua puluh.
Hasil pertama dari skripsi ini mengenai karakter O-lan. Dia merupakan
karakter utama yang rumit dan protagonis. Dia dilihat sebagai seorang yang patuh,
rajin dan perkerja keras, pendiam, cerdas, serta hemat dan tekun dan tabah.
Karakter O-lan juga dipengaruhi oleh kebudayaan pada saat itu.
Penjelasan hasil kedua dan ketiga disatukan karena berhubungan satu sama
lain. Skripsi ini menemukan dua konflik dari dalam diri dan dua konflik dari luar
diri O-lan. Konflik dari dalam diri O-lan adalah keputusannya melahirkan anak
pertamanya sendirian dan keputusannya membunuh anak perempuan keduanya.
Konflik yang dihadapi oleh O-lan disebut konflik pendekatan-penghindaran
ganda. Karakter O-lan yang pintar membuat dia mampu melahirkan bayinya
dengan selamat. Karakter O-lan sebagai wanita yang tabah membuat dia mampu
membunuh anak perempuan keduanya setelah melahirkannya.
Konflik dari luar diri O-lan adalah hubungannya dengan Wang Lung dan
hubungannya dengan Cuckoo. Konflik dari luar diri O-lan dikategorikan sebagai
ego konflik. Tipe konflik antara O-lan dan Wang Lung disebut dengan
akomodasi. Konflik ini terselesaikan dengan negosiasi intergratif. Tipe konflik
antara O-lan dan Cuckoo dinamakan penghindaran. Konflik ini terselesaikan
dengan solusi win-lose.
Akhirnya, penulis mengajukan dua saran untuk melengkapi skripsi ini.
Satu saran untuk peneliti novel The Good Earth selanjutnya. Saran lainnya untuk
penerapan novel The Good Earth sebagai materi dalam mengajar bahasa Inggris,
terutama untuk mengajar Public speaking I.
xii
THE INFLUENCE OF O-LAN’S CHARACTER ON
RESOLVING HER PERSONAL CONFLICT FOUND IN
PEARL S. BUCK’S THE GOOD EARTH
A Thesis
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree
in English Language Education
By
Janiati
Student Number: 03 1214 053
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA
2007
THE INFLUENCE OF O-LAN’S CHARACTER ON
RESOLVING HER PERSONAL CONFLICT FOUND IN
PEARL S. BUCK’S THE GOOD EARTH
A Thesis
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree
in English Language Education
By
Janiati
Student Number: 03 1214 053
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA
2007
i
ii
iii
iv
DEDICATION PAGE
If you do not want to enter the tiger’s stall

How can you catch the little tiger?
Dynasty Han’s Proverb, 202 BC – 220 C
“No Efforts No Result”
g{|á à{xá|á |á ÑtÜà|vâÄtÜÄç wxw|vtàxw àÉM

`ç `Éà{xÜ tÇw Ytà{xÜ
Wxã| f{|Çàt câÜÇtÅt? `x|Ä|tàç
`ç Ätàx uÜÉà{xÜ Tzâá _xÉÇtÜw|
`ç áãxxàç [xÜ| ^âÜÇ|tãtÇ
TÇw àÉ tÄÄ Åç yÜ|xÇwá‹‹A
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) said, “All human problems is caused by his

unknown on how to sit quietly.”
Ajahn Brahm adds,”…. and his unknown on the time to sit quietly.”
A problem is not a problem when there isn’t any solution.
How many times in our lives that we waste for something, which is at
that time, has no solution, and it is because it is not a problem?
v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express my gratitude to everybody that has helped me in
accomplishing this thesis. First and foremost, my deepest gratitude and honor go
to the Three Precious Jewels for their blessing, and the power of perfect
emptiness and the unfailing law of cause and effect, under the generous protection
of my Honored Masters.
My dedication goes to my parents, Mr. Lai Tjhie Jie & Mrs. Jap Lin
Eng, who have given their support along the way. May they be free from all great
obstacles and attain the wishes, to lead comfort and happy lives for the rest of
their lives. My dedication also goes to my older sisters, Dewi Shinta Purnama &
Meiliaty, my late younger brother, Agus Leonardi, my brother in law, Eng Wie,
and my nephew and niece, Joseph & Jessica, of whom I care very much. In the
end, as time goes by and each part of their life finds her/his own ways, all I could
wish for is their true and genuine happiness.
Next, I would like to thank my major sponsor Dra. Wigati Yektiningtyas,
M.Hum. and my co-sponsor Fidelis Chosa Kastuhandani, S.Pd. Of all lectures
in Sanata Dharma University, these two are the ones that I worked with. May they
continue the dedication and guidance toward the other students for the sake of
good improvements for better education in this country.
I would also like to thank the staffs at the library and the library itself
(with all the valuable books). They have been very helpful and supportive, and I
enjoyed my university study years very much, thank to the staffs. Therefore, I
might as well thank the university as whole. I hope this university can contribute
much more to the education in Indonesia, to all the people who deserve better
vi
education for the better lives.
The dedication goes to my best friends at PBI’03 (Moniq, X-tin, Seevi,
Dudy, Yessi, Vendi, Ajenk and the rest whom I can not mention one by one). I
hope you all achieve great success. To all my friends in GMCBP (Ko Chun Yen,
Ko Amran, Edy, Nana, Diana, Dewi kecil, Robin, Ko Albert, Heryno, Moon and
the rest) and the organization itself, also to all my friends in kamadhis Dharma
Jaya (Tryshia, Vera, Hansen, Ade, Hertanto, Andry, Ajo, Stephen), thank them
very much for the lesson, opportunities and inputs that they have given to me. It is
completely a pleasure to work with you all. The same credit goes to my ex-
sutomo 2 friends (Min, Ucox, Jimz, Alex, Benny): ‘Stay together, keep in touch
and let’s still be friends until the end of our life’. I also do not forget to share my
deepest thank with Pondok Unyil (Lili, Wuri, Ani, Atik).
My sincere gratitude goes to “Heri Kurniawan-Yen”, for all his
motivation, support, care, understanding, and attention that I sometimes recklessly
take them for granted. He shares a lot of matters which always remind me that I
have a very blessed life. My world will not be completed without his presence. He
is the best Karma I own.
Sabbe Satta Bhavantu Sukkhitatta…. Sadhu, Sadhu, Sadhu….
JANIATI
vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
TITLE PAGE ................................................................................................... i
PAGES OF APPROVAL ................................................................................. ii
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORGINALITY ............................................... iv
PAGE OF DEDICATION ............................................................................... v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................. vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................. viii
ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................... xi
ABSTRAK .......................................................................................................... xii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study .............................................................................. 1
B. Problem Formulation ................................................................................... 3
C. Objectives of the study ................................................................................. 4
D. Benefits of the Study .................................................................................... 4
E. Definition of Terms ...................................................................................... 5
CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
A. Review of Related Theory ........................................................................... 7
1. Critical Approaches ................................................................................ 7
2. Character and Characterization .............................................................. 8
a. Definition ......................................................................................... 8
b. Methods of Characterization ............................................................ 9
viii
3. Psychology ............................................................................................. 11
4. Conflict ................................................................................................... 11
a. Definition ......................................................................................... 11
b. Types of Conflict ............................................................................. 12
c. Causes of Conflict ............................................................................ 13
d. Styles of Conflict ............................................................................. 14
e. Conflict Resolutions ......................................................................... 16
B. Women in Chinese Culture .......................................................................... 19
C. Theoretical Framework ................................................................................ 22
D. Criticism ....................................................................................................... 23
CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY
A. Subject Matter .............................................................................................. 25
B. Approach of the Study ................................................................................. 26
C. Method of the Study ..................................................................................... 27
CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS
A. The Character of O-lan in Buck’s The Good Earth ..................................... 29
1. Obedient ................................................................................................. 30
2. Diligent and Hardworking ...................................................................... 32
3. Silent ...................................................................................................... 35
4. Smart ...................................................................................................... 37
5. Economical and Industrious ................................................................... 41
6. Tough ..................................................................................................... 42
ix
B. The Personal Conflicts Faced by O-lan ....................................................... 42
1. The Intrapersonal Conflicts .................................................................... 43
a) O-lan’s decision to deliver her first son by herself .......................... 44
b) O-lan’s decision to kill her second daughter .................................... 45
2. The Interpersonal Conflicts .................................................................... 47
a) O-lan and Wang Lung ...................................................................... 49
b) O-lan and Cuckoo ............................................................................ 51
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
A. Conclusions .................................................................................................. 54
B. Suggestions .................................................................................................. 56
C. The Implementation in Teaching Speaking ................................................. 57
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................ 59
LIST OF APPENDICES
Appendix 1: Summary of The Good Earth ........................................................ 61
Appendix 2: Biography of Pearl S. Buck ........................................................... 69
Appendix 3: Lesson Plan for Teaching Speaking .............................................. 73
x
ABSTRACT

Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Teachers
Training and Education Faculty, Department of Language and Arts Education,
English Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.
This study discusses personal conflicts which are felt by O-lan, a wife of a
farmer who later becomes a landowner. This study focuses on three issues, which
are used as the research factors in this thesis. The first issue is about the character
of O-lan. The second one is about O-lan’s personal conflicts, both intrapersonal
and interpersonal conflicts. The last issue discusses the influence of O-lan’s
character in resolving her personal conflicts.
By employing library research study, this thesis was finished. This thesis
applied psychological approach to comprehend the patterns of human personality
and behavior. Besides using this approach, this thesis also applied theory of
characterization, theory of conflict and women in Chinese culture. Theory of
characterization was used to analyze O-lan’s character. To understand more about
O-lan’s personal conflicts, theory of conflict was applied. Women in Chinese
culture was discussed to help the writer to understand more about women status in
the earlier twentieth century.
The first result of the study was about O-lan’s characters. She was a major
character which was round and protagonist. She was seen as a person who is
obedient, diligent and hardworking, silent, smart, and economical and industrious.
O-lan’s characters were also influenced by the culture at that time.
The second and the third results are combined since it related one another.
This study found out that O-lan has two intrapersonal and two interpersonal
conflicts. O-lan’s intrapersonal conflicts are her decision to deliver her first baby
by herself and to kill her second daughter. The intrapersonal conflicts O-lan faced
are double approach – avoidance conflicts. O-lan’s character as a smart person
helped her to deliver he first baby safely. O-lan’s character as a tough person
made her dare to kill her second daughter after the baby was born.
O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts were her relationship with Wang Lung and
her relationship with Cuckoo. O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts were categorized as
ego conflict. The conflict between O-lan and Wang Lung was named
accommodation style. It was resolved with integrative negotiation. The conflict
between O-lan and Cuckoo was classified as avoiding style. It was solved with
win-lose solution.
Finally, the writer would like to propose two suggestions to complete this
thesis. One suggestion is for the next researcher(s) on The Good Earth in coming
years. Another suggestion is to implement The Good Earth as a material in
teaching English, especially for teaching Public Speaking I.
xi
ABSTRAK

Conflict Found in Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. Yogyakarta: Fakultas
Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan, Jurusan Bahasa dan Seni, Program Pendidikan
Bahasa Inggris Universitas Sanata Dharma.
Skripsi ini membahas konflik pribadi yang dialami oleh O-lan, istri dari
seorang petani yang akhirnya menjadi tuan tanah. Skripsi ini terfokus pada tiga
aspek, yang digunakan sebagai faktor penelitian. Aspek pertama menjelaskan
mengenai karakter O-lan. Aspek kedua berhubungan dengan konflik pribadi O-
lan, baik konflik dari dalam maupun luar diri O-lan. Aspek terakhir menjelaskan
pengaruh karakter O-lan dalam menyelesaikan konflik probadinya.
Dengan menggunakan metode studi pustaka, skripsi ini diselesaikan.
Skripsi ini menggunakan teori psikologi untuk mengartikan bentuk kepribadian
dan perilaku manusia. Selain teori psikologi, skripsi ini juga menggunakan teori
karakterisasi, teori konflik dan wanita dalam kebudayaan China. Teori
karakteristik digunakan untuk menganalisa karakter O-lan. Teori konfilk berfungsi
untuk mengenal lebih lanjut mengenai konflik pribadi O-lan. Wanita dalam
kebudayaan China digunakan untuk membantu penulis memahami kedudukan
wanita pada awal abad dua puluh.
Hasil pertama dari skripsi ini mengenai karakter O-lan. Dia merupakan
karakter utama yang rumit dan protagonis. Dia dilihat sebagai seorang yang patuh,
rajin dan perkerja keras, pendiam, cerdas, serta hemat dan tekun dan tabah.
Karakter O-lan juga dipengaruhi oleh kebudayaan pada saat itu.
Penjelasan hasil kedua dan ketiga disatukan karena berhubungan satu sama
lain. Skripsi ini menemukan dua konflik dari dalam diri dan dua konflik dari luar
diri O-lan. Konflik dari dalam diri O-lan adalah keputusannya melahirkan anak
pertamanya sendirian dan keputusannya membunuh anak perempuan keduanya.
Konflik yang dihadapi oleh O-lan disebut konflik pendekatan-penghindaran
ganda. Karakter O-lan yang pintar membuat dia mampu melahirkan bayinya
dengan selamat. Karakter O-lan sebagai wanita yang tabah membuat dia mampu
membunuh anak perempuan keduanya setelah melahirkannya.
Konflik dari luar diri O-lan adalah hubungannya dengan Wang Lung dan
hubungannya dengan Cuckoo. Konflik dari luar diri O-lan dikategorikan sebagai
ego konflik. Tipe konflik antara O-lan dan Wang Lung disebut dengan
akomodasi. Konflik ini terselesaikan dengan negosiasi intergratif. Tipe konflik
antara O-lan dan Cuckoo dinamakan penghindaran. Konflik ini terselesaikan
dengan solusi win-lose.
Akhirnya, penulis mengajukan dua saran untuk melengkapi skripsi ini.
Satu saran untuk peneliti novel The Good Earth selanjutnya. Saran lainnya untuk
penerapan novel The Good Earth sebagai materi dalam mengajar bahasa Inggris,
terutama untuk mengajar Public speaking I.
xii
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
This chapter is divided into five parts. The first part is the background of
the study. This part contains the explanation about the reasons on deciding the
novel to be analyzed. The second part is problem formulation which deals with
the problems analyzed in this study. The third part, the objectives of the study,
points out the purposes of conducting the study. The fourth part shows the
benefits of the study which explain the significance of this study for the readers
and me as a thesis writer. The last part discusses the definition of the important
terms in the title to avoid misunderstanding or misinterpreting.
A. Background of the Study
In a life of a person, he or she always deals with problems or conflicts.
Most of the problems or conflicts may direct him or her to unhappiness or
happiness. Conflicts also may cause crisis in someone’s relation with other. In a
family, conflicts may cause crisis in the relationship between husband and wife,
parent and child, or brother and sister. A conflict, regardless the occasion and how
apparently the minor issues, constitutes a crisis in a relationship (Denham 1984:
43). The crisis in the relationship without a clear resolution might cause damage.
Everything has cause and effect. Similar to that statement before, crisis
arises because of conflict. Usually conflict occurs in a family when the family
members disagree about the events and situation in their lives (Noiler and
Fitzpatrict 1999: 99). Each person has his or her own opinion, idea, or thought.
1
Because of the differences, conflict develops even in the small group like family.
People with their ego try to defend their opinions, ideas or thoughts. This ego
influences the changes of someone’s behavior towards others.
People are considered unconscious when they defend their opinions, ideas
or thoughts. According to Isenhart and Spangle, our daily life problems are often
caused by an internal-unconscious state such as anxiety, ego, fear, aggressiveness
or guilt (2000: 7). Based on the statement, it can be stated that someone’s internal-
unconscious indirectly influences his or her behavior or judgment in his or her
relationship with others in their life.
From the description above, conflict plays a big role in someone’s life.
The reason is because a conflict causes a problem that influences the behavior of
someone to others. Conflict also affects the human relationship. Conflict appears
first in the smallest group of society which is family. Because of that, it is
essential to learn about the conflicts and the resolution especially in a family. By
knowing more about the conflict and the resolution, people might be familiar in
solving the conflict.
Conflict can be found not only in the real life but also in the literary work,
like a poem or a novel. In this study, the writer chooses a novel to analyze.
Hudson states that literature is the expression of life through the medium of
language (1960: 10). Agreeing with Hudson statement, novel considers critical to
be analyzed since it may describe life, experiences, thought of people, and their
feeling about life. A novel with its content enriches the knowledge of people who
read it by reflecting the human experience through language.
Wellek and Warren say that a literary work of art is not simple object but
rather a highly complex organization of stratified characters with multiple
meaning and relationship (1977: 27). Wellek and Warren show that a literary
work is not just about language but also about the human experiences in a
complex situation which is created by the novelist. The novelist tries to create a
character in a situation with his or her conflict and way of solving the conflict. In
other words, a character of human with his or her responsibility, belief, image,
thought, feeling, problems or conflicts can be found in the novel.
In this study, the writer will use a novel called The Good Earth by Pearl S.
Buck. This novel was published in 1931 and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932 and
William Dean Howells Medal in 1935. The Good Earth describes a daily life of a
farmer who lately became a landowner name Wang Lung. In this study, the writer
chooses to describe the conflict felt by O-lan, Wang Lung’s first wife. O-lan was a
slave before she married to Wang Lung. Having an experience from becoming a
slave, a farmer’s wife to a landowner’s wife, a mother, a daughter in law and an
experience of concubine, O-lan has a personal conflict that is interesting to be
analyzed. It seems like O-lan is hiding her conflict secretly. Besides, O-lan also
has her own way to solve her conflict. This study tries to analyze the character of
O-lan and how the characteristics influence the way of O-lan in resolving her
conflict in her life.
This study focused on O-lan’s character and her personal conflict and the
resolution of O-lan’s personal conflicts.
A. Problem Formulation
Based on the background of the problem above, this study builds three
questions as the problem formulation. They are:
1. How is O-lan’s character described in this novel?
2. What are the personal conflicts faced by O-lan?
3. How does O-lan’s character influence her in resolving her personal
conflicts?
B. Objectives of the Study
The aims of this study are to answer the problem stated in the problem
formulation. To be more specific, this study aims to describe the characteristics of
O-lan found in The Good Earth. After explaining about the characteristics of O-
lan, the study reveals the personal conflicts felt by O-lan. The personal conflicts
contains of both intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts. This study continues to
analyze the influence of O-lan’s character in resolving her personal conflicts.
C. Benefits of the Study
In analyzing Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth, the writer aimed at some
advantages that hopefully could be attained. The study is to make the readers of
this thesis familiar with Buck’s work. By reading this thesis, the readers in general
and the students of Sanata Dharma University may understand how someone’s
character can influence his or her way of resolving the conflict in his or her life.
Moreover, the writer hopes that in the future the readers can make some addition
or correction in order to get a better interpretation. This study also probably brings
up usefulness for readers in understanding the story of The Good Earth.

D. Definition of Terms
In order to gain better understanding and to avoid misunderstanding and
misinterpretation, the writer defines some important terms that are used in the
study.
1. Influence
The word “influence” according to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary
is the power to affect somebody’s actions, character or beliefs (Hornby, 1995:
611). In this study, the influence refers to the power of somebody’s character to
affect his or her way in resolving his or her personal conflict.
2. Character
Abrams in A Glossary of Literary Terms states that characters are the
person presented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the
reader as being endowed with moral, dispositional, and emotional qualities that
are expressed in what they say – the dialogue – and by what they do – the action
(1981: 23). In An Introduction to a Literature (Stanton, 1965: 17), “character” is
commonly used in two ways; it designates the individuals who appear in the story
and it refers to the mixtures of interest, desires, emotions and moral principle that
make up each of the individuals. Another opinion comes from Barnet (1986: 113)
is character is a figure that acts out in a story. Hence, character in this study means
not only a person who acts out but also the characteristics of the character.
3. Resolving
The word “resolve” in Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary means to
solve or settle problems, doubts, etc (Hornby, 1995: 998). In this study, the word
resolving refers to the meaning stated by Hornby.

4. Conflict
Jones and Gerard (as cited in Worchel and Cooper, 1979: 460) determine
conflict as a state that requires the person when he is motivated to make two or
more mutual incompatible actions. This means a person will face a conflict when
he can not complete two or more mutual actions together. Another definition of
conflict comes from Hocker and Willmot. According to them (as cited in Isenhart
and Spangle 2000: 3), conflict is an expressed struggle between at least two
interdependent parties who perceive incompatible goals, scare resources and
interference from the other party in achieving their goal. Worchel and Cooper
(1979: 460) also classify conflict into two types; they are intrapersonal and
interpersonal conflict.
Intrapersonal conflict is a conflict that an individual experiences when he
or she makes a decision between two or more alternatives which will lead to a
situation in which other people do not behave as the individual expects them to.
The interpersonal conflict is a conflict which happens between two or more
people when they are involved in achieving the incompatible goal. In this study,
the conflicts discussed are both the intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts.
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This chapter consists of four parts. They are review of related theories,
review of Chinese culture, theoretical framework and criticism. The first part is a
review of related theories which consists of critical approaches, character and
characterization, psychological approach and conflict. The second part is a review
of Chinese culture describes about women in Chinese culture. The third part is
about the theoretical framework which describes the contribution of the theories in
solving the problems of the study. The criticism about the novel and the author is
the last part.
A. Review of Related Theory
1. Critical Approaches
When analyzing a novel, a writer must avoid the subjectivity on his or her study.
In order to avoid the subjectivity, critical approaches are needed. According to
Rohrberger and Woods (1971: 6-15), there are five approaches that can be used to
analyze a novel. They are the formalist approach– concentrating on the total
integrity of the literary work, the biographical approach – focusing on the
importance of the author’s ideas and personal life, the sociocultural – historical
approach – focusing on the social, cultural and historical background as the
reference, the mythopoeic approach – attempting to discover particular patterns of
human thought that shared a same universal belief to certain community mind, the
psychological approach–involving theories of psychology as the references to
7
analyze the characters in the story. This approach also has a purpose to
comprehend the patterns of human personality and behavior. Through this
approach, the characters’ thought, personality and behavior can be analyzed
deeply.
1. Character and Characterization
Theory of character is needed to analyze the character. Foster divides
character into two kinds; they are flat and round character (1974: 51). A flat
character is static and does not develop, whereas a round character is complex and
represents many traits and qualities. Henkle (1977: 87-100) divides characters
based on the prominence and function. They are major and secondary characters.
Major characters are the ones who deserve the attention from the readers and other
characters. Secondary characters, on the other hand, are the ones who perform
more limited functions. Characters also can be determined by analyzing the role of
the characters. Characters can be protagonist and antagonist. The antagonist is the
one who directly opposes the protagonist (Holman and Harmon, 1986: 27).
According to Holman and Harmon (1986: 400), the protagonist is the leading
figure both in terms of importance in the play and of ability to enlist the readers’
interest and sympathy.
The theory of characterization is needed in analyzing the characters, how
they are presented, in the novel. The theory can help in representing the discovery
the characteristics of the characters presented in the story.
a. Definition
Characterization is the process by which an author creates the character,

the particular type of person he is (Rohrberger and Woods, 1971: 180).
Characterization helps the author to communicate and guide the readers to
interpret and understand more about the character in the story. Murphy (1972:
161) determines characterization as the way an author conveys the characters and
the personalities naturally so that the reader get to know and understand the
characters. In addition, Holman and Harmon (1986: 81-82) state that
characterization is the process of creating an unreal person. Though the characters
are unreal in the story; they appear to be real in the mind of the readers.
b. Methods of Characterization
According to Murphy (1972: 161-172), there are nine ways in which the
author uses to make his or her characters understandable and come alive for his or
her readers. They are:
1) Personal description
In personal description, the author can describe a person’s appearance and
clothes. The author may draw details about the character’s appearance, such as his
or her build, his or her skin color, his or her hair, his or her hand and so on.
Besides the appearance the author also may explain the clothes worn by the
character.
2) Character as seen by another
Instead of describing a character directly, the author can describe him
through the eyes and opinions of another character. This means that the readers
notice the different opinion and judgment on the character. Therefore, the readers
get a reflected image.

10
3) Speech
The author gives the readers a perception on the characteristics of the
character through what the characters says and states. The reader may know the
personality by the character’s opinion or statement.
4) Past life
Through a person’s past life, the author can give the readers a clue to have
helped to shape a person’s character. The author may give a direct or indirect
comment through the person’s thought, his or her conversation or through the
medium of another person.
5) Conversation of others
The author can also portray the character through conversation of others
and what they say about him or her. In other words, this means that the character
can be analyzed through what people think or say about him or her.
6) Reaction
The author shares a clue to a person’s character by letting the reader know
how that person reacts to various situations and events.
7) Direct comment
The author comments on a person’s character in the story directly. Here,
the author gives his or her personal comment or description of the character he or
she creates directly in the story.
8) Thoughts
The author expresses the character’s thought in the story. In other word,
the author helps the readers to know what the character is thinking in his or her
mind. By knowing the character’s thought, the readers can analyze what goes in
11
his or her mind.
9) Mannerisms
The author can illustrate a person’s mannerisms, habit, or modes of
behavior which may also tell the readers something about the character.
2. Theory of Psychology
C.G. Jung states, “The psychological mode works with material drawn
from man’s conscious life with crucial experiences, powerful emotions, suffering
passion, and the stuff of human fate in general” (1972: 89). From the statement
mentioned before, it can be said that the personality of men can be seen through
the experiences they had. One of the experiences that men have is facing conflict
and how to solve the conflict. Theory of psychology reflects that from the
psychological components and the experiences.
3. Theory of Conflict
Theory of conflict covers the explanations of definition of conflicts, kinds
of the conflict and conflict resolution.
a. Definition
Jones and Gerard (as cited in Worchel and Cooper, 1979: 460) determine
conflict as a state that requires the person when he is motivated to make two or
more mutual incompatible actions. This means a person will face a conflict when
he can not complete two or more mutual actions together. For that, a person has to
choose one action only as the consequence of the conflict.
Another definition of conflict comes from Hocker and Willmot. According

12
to them (as cited in Isenhart and Spangle 2000: 3), conflict is an expressed
struggle between at least two interdependent parties who perceive incompatible
goals, scare resources and interference from the other party in achieving their
goal. This implies that conflict may occur because of the involvement of at least
two parties or more. Because of the purpose to defend their goal, two or more
parties involve and produce a conflict.
Conflicts are felt by people in the real life. A person might feel a conflict
in his or her life when he or she finds an action in which he or she should decide
the options in order to reach a resolution.
b. Types of Conflicts
There are two types of conflict that people have experienced in the daily
life. They are intrapersonal and interpersonal conflict.
Worchel and Cooper (1979: 460-464) describe intrapersonal conflict as a
conflict that an individual experiences when he or she makes a decision between
two or more alternatives which will lead to a situation in which other people do
not behave as the individual expects them to.
Based on the dilemmas in responding the situation, there are four kinds of
conflict. Those are approach – approach, avoidance – avoidance, approach –
avoidance and double approach – avoidance conflicts.
In approach – approach conflict, an individual can only choose one actions
toward two positive goals. The individual has to make a decision between two
attractive alternatives. This is the simplest conflict.
An avoidance – avoidance conflict occurs when an individual must choose

13
one between two equally unattractive goals. An individual, engages in this
conflict, usually avoid choosing between two unattractive alternatives.
When an individual has to choose one goal which has both attractive and
unattractive qualities is called an approach – avoidance conflict. An individual
involves in the conflict because of his or her fear or doubt in choosing the goal.
The most common conflict situation is double approach – avoidance
conflict. This conflict contains two goals which both have the positive and
negative sides. There are some factors that influence the individual in choosing
the goal. The factors are how close the individual is to the goal, the amount of the
goal, the kind of the goal, and the attractiveness of the goal.
The second conflict, the interpersonal conflict, deals with two or more
people. The interpersonal conflict is a conflict which happens between two or
more people when they are involved in achieving the incompatible goal. This
conflict can also occur when the two people or parties agree with the goal but
disagree with the manner in achieving the goal.
According to Beebe, Beebe and Redmon (1996: 297-300), the
interpersonal conflict can be divided into three types. They are pseudo conflict,
simple conflict and ego conflict. Pseudo conflict is conflict caused by the lack of
understanding between the individuals or parties. Simple conflict happens because
of the differences on definition, goals, ideas, and perceptions. While ego conflict
appears when personal differences attached to each individual in a group.
c. Causes of Conflicts
Each person has his or her own definition, idea, goal, needs and attitude. A
14
conflict is believed to happen when the disagreement about the goals, behavior,
attitudes and needs appears (Verderber 1984: 97).
They may be many other causes or sources of the conflict. Isenhart and
Spangle (2000: 14-15) resume the most common sources of conflict into seven
sources. The first is data – people often have differences of opinion about the best
source, reliability, or interpretation of data. The second is interest – conflict
specifically happens when two or more parties have different interest. The third is
procedures – parties will not involve in a discussion if they do not agree with the
procedure in solving the problem. The fourth is values – the hardest conflict will
occur when the priority of values is different. The fifth is relationships – a conflict
exists when people can not trust each other or respect each other’s feeling. The
sixth is roles – a conflict appears because of the imbalance role of the people
among the rules towards their own roles. The last is communication – conflict
frequently results from how something is said and not interpreted among people.
d. Styles of Conflicts
According to Isenhart and Spangle, there are five styles which described
some of the most common ways how people approach conflict (2000: 26-27).
They are avoiding, accommodation, comprising, competitive, and collaborative.
In avoiding style, one party denies that there is a conflict. He or she insists
not to change the topic; he or she tries to avoid talking or discussing the conflict.
This style is the most effective because there is danger of physical violence. The
issue that the parties have is not important; there is no achievement of goals, or
the complexity of the situation which prevents the solution.

15
When one party sacrifices his or her own interests and concerns for other
as a result the parties can achieve the interests; this situation is called
accommodation style. This style is effective in situations in which one party feels
the impossibility in achieving his or her own so that the outcome is not important.
Furthermore, when a party thinks that satisfying his or her goal might alter or
damage the relationship with the other party, this style can be conducted.
Through recognitions by all parties, each party’s fulfillment of interest is
considered to be only partial. In other word, each party sacrifices part of his or her
interest to achieve a negotiation. This compromising style happens in situation
that requires a quick resolution of the issue, especially when other parties resist
collaboration, when complete achievement of goals is not important, or when
there will be no hard feelings for settling for less than expected.
Competitive style is characterized by aggressive, self-focused, forcing,
verbally assertive, and uncooperative behaviors that are done to satisfy one party’s
interests at the expense of the interests of others. This style is effectively used in
situations in which decisions must be made quickly, then the option of the
solution is restricted. For that, there is nothing to lose by pushing, other parties
resist cooperation, and there is no consequence of damaging the relationship.
Unlike the competitive style, collaborative style involves the active
listening, issues-focused and also emphatic communication. This style seeks to
satisfy the interests and concerns of all parties. The situation in which power is
reasonable balanced, the long term relation is valued, is suitable for the
collaborative style. This style requires the cooperative behavior of both parties
and enough time to create an integrative solution that will satisfy both parties.
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e. Conflict Resolutions
People have different opinion or ideas which could lead to a conflict. The
same ways happen when people try to solve the conflict. Experts have their
opinion in solving the conflict.
Worchel and Cooper suggest for those who have the intrapersonal conflict
to aware with the types of conflict they have. Worchel and Cooper (1974: 460-
464) propose several resolutions for the intrapersonal conflicts. In approach –
approach type, people can solve the conflict by defining the motivation to the goal
they want to achieve more. The most potential ways to solve the avoidance –
avoidance conflict is by leaving the conflict. This conflict is hard to solve because
the nearer the negative goal is, the higher the drives to avoid it. An approach –
avoidance conflict hardly has resolution because the person can not make any
decision to solve it. In double approach – avoidance, there are two sub-types of
resolution. The first sub-type is determining one goal and as a consequence giving
up the other option. The second sub-type depends on the value of each goal. When
the positive aspects of goal are higher than the negative, the goal can be reached
and the reverse.
Considering the ability of the individual in controlling the conflicts,
Beebe, Beebe and Redmon (1996: 314-326) propose four conflict management
skills. The first is managing emotions. The early signs of recognizing people
being in conflict are anger, fear, frustration, and sadness which flow rapidly.
However, individuals should manage their emotions since deciding an action in
such condition will lead them to difficulties of taking logical and rational
approach to solve the conflict. The second is managing information. Assuming

17
that most conflicts arise from uncertainty, misinformation, and misunderstanding,
the next step is to manage the conflict which concerns with how the individuals
manage the information. By managing the information, the individuals are closer
to the step of avoiding the conflict because of uncertainty, misinformation, and
misunderstanding. The third is managing goals. Conflict might happen because of
the different opinions among individuals. Therefore, it is important to understand
each goal and identify where they overlap. The last is managing the problems.
Managing the problems means defining the problem, analyzing it, then,
determining the goal, generating several solutions, and last selecting the most
applicable solution.
Besides the ability of controlling the emotions, individuals also should
determine their mind in ending the interpersonal conflict to achieve a better
condition. There are three manners of taking decision to do or not to do something
in facing the interpersonal conflicts (Alder and Towne 1990: 376-380). The first
one is win – lose. In win – lose problem solving, an individual reaches his or her
goal while the other does not. For that, there is only one side that feels satisfied
with the result of the conflict. The second one is lose – lose. Neither side is
satisfied with the decision made. Even though this manner is a discouraging
approach, many conflicts occurs in this manner. The last one is win – win. This
manner tries to find the result that satisfies both sides. In this manner, there is no
involvement of giving up something or finding the correct solution for everybody.
Instead, this manner succeeds when the individuals find the right answer, which is
the best for each side, to solve the problem.
The experts above define the resolution for different conflict. Worchel and
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Cooper give their suggestion only for those who have the intrapersonal conflict
and Alder and Towne give their opinion about the resolution for interpersonal
conflict. Isenhart and Spangle have their own approach to solve both intrapersonal
and interpersonal conflict. According to Isenhart and Spangle (2000: 45- 152),
there are five alternatives to achieve the resolution for the conflicts; they are
negotiation, mediation, facilitation, arbitration, and judicial process.
The first alternative is negotiation. Negotiation is as much about a state of
mind as it is a strategic choice for managing problem. In negotiation, the conflict
is resolved by the compromise between the parties peacefully to achieve the
mutual goal for both sides. In this conflict resolution, third party is not needed.
There are two types of negotiation; those are integrative and distributive.
Integrative negotiation is a constructive and problem solving process. Both parties
rarely use threats or demands in order to achieve a goal compatible with the goal
of others. Both parties exchange the information, then, they identify the problem
while protecting their relationship and interests. The distributive approach is also
known as a bargaining approach. In this negotiation style, both parties state their
goals and their advantages in achieving the goal. They force the other party
through demands and threats. Parties do not concern the relationship with other
parties or their interest.
The second alternative is mediation. This alternative is a problem solving
process in which the third party is needed. The participation of the third party is
only to guide the parties, which are in conflict, to discuss their problem together.
The third party appears as a neutral party who has no right to argue or influence in
the achievement of the decision.

19
The third alternative is facilitation. This alternative also needs third party’s
help in resolving the conflict. Here, the third party acts as a facilitator who creates
the collaborative discussion process. The process might use many techniques such
as brainstorming, opinion surveying or image building. Usually this alternative,
facilitation is applied in a conflict with a large size of groups and is a complex
conflict.
The fourth alternative is arbitration. It is applied when the parties can not
find the beneficial goal for both parties. Then in the process of resolution, the
third party is selected by the conflicting parties. The role of the third party
(arbitrator) is to make the decision. However, the norms and the rules of the
process itself still depend on the parties’ agreement.
The last alternative is judicial process. It combines legal and non legal
procedures, social norms and legal laws in the process of conflict resolution. The
third party in this conflict resolution is court. This alternative is chosen after all
the alternatives are failed to be applied.
B. Women in Chinese Culture
In Chinese culture, women status changes during time. In the early
twentieth century, women were subordinated to men. In this section, this study
discusses more about women status in the early twentieth century.
Since infant period, a girl baby was already treated differently. It was a
birth of a son that was celebrated. Besides, Chinese girl baby were more likely to
suffer from infanticide in poor family. Yet presumably they must have made up
about half of the population, or perhaps slightly less, for in hard times girl babies
20
were exposed by families to die (Robert, 1993: 361). Another reason of this
treatment is because a girl baby was a poor social investment, since after the years
of nature the majority of them would simply marry and become the part of other
household (Smith, 1994: 248).
The different gender did not stop at that age. In the childhood age, a
daughter faced the pain because of the custom. In order to keep the girl’s feet at a
tiny size, the girl feet were bound in the ages between five and ten (O’neill, 1987:
94). The process of foot binding was really painful. The girl was incapable to
walk normally because the feet were bound with cloth. The Chinese euphemism
for the bound foot was “golden lotus” (O’neill, 1987: 94). However, this custom
did not apply universal; the Hakkas, Manchus, non – Chinese tribes, the boat
population in the south, and some of the very poor did not conform to it. The very
poor did not conform to it for economical reason. Unbinding the foot in later years
also brought a pain. Latourette (1951: 680) in his book The Chinese Their History
and Culture states that a girl without small feet was regarded as disgraced and it
was impossible to get a desirable husband for her.
A girl not only suffered from the binding feet but also the relationship with
outside. In general, non family contacts became important for boys; whereas girls
were more and more confined to the home and had fewer outside contacts (Hu,
1960: 169). Because of that, a girl at that era had almost no friends.
After the childhood period is the youth generation. In this period, a girl
was suffered from the prostitution or slavery. Hard-pressed families might sell
their female children into slavery or prostitution, while a boy was considered
crucial for the continuation of the family line and the maintenance of ancestral
21
sacrifice (Smith, 1994: 248). In this age stage, usually a marriage took place.
Being a wife of a husband continued the pain of a woman. There was not
any equal position between a wife and a husband in a family. A wife had to
submit her husband as long as he lived. This means that a wife did not freely do
what she wanted to. She should obey her husband’s command. If a wife did
something wrong, a husband might beat his wife (Hu, 1960: 160). Nevertheless, a
wife could never strike him. In a peasant family, women and girls performed the
household tasks and made the family clothing, while the men and boys usually
cultivated the land (Hu, 1960: 162). Women and girls were banned to go and have
contact outside. Although a wife performed household tasks, a wife’s first duty
was to produce sons to continue the male line. A wife position in her husband’s
family was unenviable after her duty had been fulfilled (Hu, 1960: 160). A wife
was considered invaluable when she could not give a son in her family.
Without a son, a wife might suffer from concubine. In theory, the reason
for concubinage was to insure the all important continuation of the male line (Hu,
1960: 170). Yet, concubinage was done because of sexual desire and competitive
argons of man. Smith also agreed that concubinage is also done for a man
prestige, for example a rich man will take a concubine due to her beauty or talent
in singing or playing instrument (1994: 258).
Women were subordinate to men under most circumstances. A widowed
mother of a young son might considered the head of her family, but once the son
was grown any transactions made by the mother would be invalid unless her son
approved (Hu, 1960: 161). For that reason, a widowed actually had no power to
control the household.

22
Women in the early twentieth century were treated differently from men.
Being inferior from men, women gained pain during their lives. From infant,
child, youth until old, women became less important than men.
C. Theoretical Framework
There are some theories applied in order to answer the problem formulated
in this study. First is the theory of critical approach. This theory is used to analyze
the problem in the novel, there are five approaches and this study is emphasized
on the psychological approach.
Theory of character is needed to analyze the character. The theory of
characterization is used to analyze the character in the novel, especially the
character of O-Lan. By understanding the definition of the character and the
characterization, the writer hopes that the reader will attain a better understanding
of the character’s personality, way of thinking, and also her development in the
story.
Other theory used for this study is theory of conflict. The writer used the
theory of conflict proposed by Worchel and Cooper in analyzing the types of
conflict felt by the character of O-Lan. After analyzing the types of the conflict,
the study moved to the source of the conflict, then the conflict resolution. In
analyzing the conflict resolution, the writer preferred to use the theory proposed
by Isenhart and Spangle.
Women status in Chinese culture also helps this study to reveal the
influence of culture through O-lan character and O-lan way of thinking in
resolving her personal conflict.

23
D. Criticism
This part talks about the critics about Pearl S. Buck and her work, The
Good Earth. Buck is one of the most famous novelists of the twentieth century
and her work, The Good Earth is probably Buck’s the most popular and widely
read novel. In 1932, the Good Earth earned the Pulitzer Prize. It is because of
some reasons. First, Buck rarely wrote about a simple Chinese life in her former
novels. In The Good Earth, Buck paid a very detailed attention about the
description of everyday life of the Chinese in the novel. Second, the theme in this
novel is not complex. People like to read novel with a simple a literary techniques
and theme so they can understand it well. Third, this novel gives a universal
appeal of a man who struggles to survive, succeed and gain happiness. Magill in
Masterpiece of World Literature says:
Buck’s feeling for the fundamental truths of life transcended any

preconceived notion that the reading public may have had about China,
and portrayed her people as understandable human being who struggled
from happiness and success like anyone else (1989: 336).
The writer shares the same opinion with what Magill says. In this novel,
Buck is very intelligent in describing the Chinese character; though she is not a
Chinese. This statement is also supported by Stuckey in his book The Pulitzer
Price Novels: The Critical Backward Look. Stuckey states:
The Good Earth is a childishly simple book in which good and evil are
neat labeled. Mrs. Buck always stays outside her characters, judging them
sympathetically, but at the same time from a superior and somewhat
patronizing altitude (1966: 92-93).
The writer agrees what Stuckey stated is not that simple. Most characters
in The Good Earth show different attitudes, both good and bad. Sometimes a
character plays a role as a good person might behave like a bad person “evil”.
24
Then the other character which supposed to be a bad person behaves correctly.
The different behavior also shows the real character of a person in the real life.
Buck also gives a brief explanation about the land of China. Even though,
Buck is not a Chinese. Magill says, “She wrote about what she knew best; these
were the people whom came to love during her years in the interior of China”
(1989: 337).
CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
This chapter will cover three main parts. The first part is subject matter
which is about the subject of the study, the novel The Good Earth itself. The
second part is approach of the study which explains the use of the approaches in
analyzing the novel. In this study, the writer uses the psychological approach. The
last part is method of the study which contains the steps taken in doing the
analysis.
A. Subject Matter
Pearl S. Buck began her carrier by publishing her first novel in 1930, East
Wind: West Wind. Then, in 1931 she wrote The Good Earth which is considered
to be Buck’s most famous novel. The Good Earth, a story of a peasant farmer
made her won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932 and William Dean Howells Medal in
1935. Besides writing novels, Buck also published collections of stories,
biography and autobiography, poetry, drama, children's literature, and translations
from the Chinese.
This study analyzed the novel, The Good Earth. This novel was written by
Pearl S. Buck and published in 1959. This study used the cardinal edition novel
published by Pocket Books, Inc. This novel contains of thirty four chapters and
344 pages.
In this study, the writer attempts to analyze the conflict faced by O-Lan,
who is Wang Lung’s wife. O-Lan is one of the strong characters found in The
25
26
Good Earth. In order to analyze the conflict, the writer started by analyzing the
character of O-Lan. Then, by knowing the characteristic, the writer investigates
the conflict felt by O-Lan and how she solved the conflict.
Buck created O-Lan as a slave who marries to a farmer and lately in her
old age she became a wife of landowner. Buck created an atmosphere of conflict
felt by the poor people as a farmer and the rich as a landowner. Buck gave a sense
of irony in her novel, The Good Earth.
A. Approach of the Study
In order to analyze a novel deeper, in this study, the writer preferred to use
the psychological approach to get a better understanding of the character in the
novel. In analyzing someone’s characters, the approach can also show his or her
personality and his or her relationship with others. By using the psychological
approach, the character’s mind, behavior, and appearance can be noticed well.
Besides the character’s behavior, mind and appearance, psychological
approach also leads to the analysis of the character’s relationship with others.
When having a relation with other, the character may face conflicts. For that, the
psychological approach is suitable to be applied.
C.G. Jung states, “The psychological mode works with material drawn
from man’s conscious life with crucial experiences, powerful emotions, suffering
passion, and the stuff of human fate in general” (1972: 89). From the statement
mentioned before, it can be said that the personality of men can be seen through
the experiences they have had. Because of that reason, the psychological approach
is appropriate to be applied to analyze the conflict and the resolution of the

27
conflict.
B. Method of the Study
The writer in this study used library research which means that the data is
gathered by taking important notes, reading books and doing research in analyzing
the novel. The writer collected the primary source from the deep analysis of the
novel The Good Earth itself. The secondary sources are some references related to
theory of psychological approach, theory of character and characterization, and
theory of conflict and conflict resolution.
There were some steps taken in completing this study. First, the writer
read the novel The Good Earth many times in order to get a better understanding
and comprehension of the story. The initial reading process was to read without
pauses for several times and the last reading process was to reread the novel
thoroughly and underline the important things which reflect the problem
formulated in the problem formulation of the study. Second, the writer formulated
the problem of the study. The writer is interested in O-Lan character, the first wife
of the main character Wang Lung. O-Lan faced many conflicts during her life. In
order to analyze the conflict faced by O-Lan, the writer needed to analyze the
character of O-Lan in this novel. After that, the writer began to analyze the
conflict. So in order to generate the problem formulation about the conflict, the
writer first began to formulate the first question about the character of O-Lan then
the second question about the conflict. The method used in the analysis was the
psychological approach. The approach used was from Rohnberger and Wood’s in
Reading and Writing about Literature. Fourth, the writer analyzed the character of
28
O-Lan and the conflicts faced by her based on the novel. The writer also gathered
the data needed in answering the questions formulated in the problem formulation.
Noticing the information needed could not be found in the library, the writer used
the internet browsing to enrich the information needed. Last, the writer drew
conclusions as a result of the analysis which answered the problems formulated in
problem formulation.
CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS
This chapter is aimed to answer the problem formulated in the problem
formulation. It can be divided into three parts. The first part is the description of
the characterization of O-lan found in The Good Earth. The second part discusses
the personal conflicts faced by O-lan and how she deals with her conflict in her
life. The last part explains about the influence of O-lan’s character in resolving the
conflict.
A. The Character of O-lan in Buck’s The Good Earth
O-lan is also a major character in this novel since she plays a big role
from the beginning of the story. O-lan is also a complex character. She represents
many traits which are discussed in the next page. O-lan plays as a protagonist
character which leads the readers to have sympathy on her character. She is drawn
as a common Chinese wife.
Characterization is the process by which an author creates the character,
the particular type of person he or she is (Rohrberger and Woods, 1971: 180). In
this novel, O-lan is described as a wife of a poor farmer who later becomes a land
owner. She is twenty years old and a virgin the first time she meets Wang Lung.
She has a strong body and square cheeks. She is not a beautiful woman or in her
face nor the whole body. Wang Lung’s first impression to O-lan is a
disappointment because her feet were not bound. For that, O-lan is considered to
be an ugly woman with big feet.
29
30
He saw with an instant’s disappointment that her feet were not bound.
(p. 19)
“This woman came into our house when she was a child of ten and here
she has lived until now, when she is twenty years old…. You see she has
the strong body and square cheeks of her kind. She will work well for
you in the field and drawing water and all else that you wish. She is not
beautiful but that you do not need. Neither is she clever. But she does
well what she is told to do and she has a good temper. So far as I know
she is virgin…” (pp. 19-20)
Then Wang Lung turned to the woman and looked at her for the first
time. She had a square, honest face, a short, broad nose with large black
nostrils, and her mouth was wide as a gash in her face. Her eyes were
small and of a dull black in color, and were filled with some sadness that
was not clearly expressed…. He saw that it was true there was not
beauty of any kind in her face. (pp. 20-21)
Another way to analyze a character is purposed by Murphy. According
to Murphy (1972: 161-172), there are nine ways in which the author uses to make
his or her characters understandable, and come alive for his or her readers. They
are personal description, character seen by other, speech, past life, conversation
with others, reaction, direct common, thoughts and mannerism. This study
includes all the ways proposed by Murphy in analyzing the character of O-lan.
Here are O-lan’s characteristics:
1. Obedient
Though Wang Lung’s first impression is not a satisfaction, Wang Lung,
then, marries O-lan and takes her to his house. When the Mistress of the great
House of Hwang gives her a command, she does the command.
And to the woman she said,

“Obey him and bear him sons and yet more sons. Bring the first child to
me to see.”
“Yes, Ancient Mistress,” said the woman submissively. (p. 20)
Since she meets Wang Lung, she obeys whatever Wang Lung tells her.
31
As being stated also by the mistress of the Hwang, O-lan always does well what
she is told to do. O-lan is an obedient wife; she rarely confronts what Wang Lung
tells her to.
“Here is this box and this basket,” he said gruffly.

Without a word she bent over and picking up one end of the box she
placed it upon her shoulder and, staggering under its weight, tried to rise.
(p. 21)
Reaction is one of the characterization ways purposed by Murphy (1972: 168).
The author, Buck shares the clue in various situations and events. By Wang
Lung’s command, Buck shares O-lan’s obedience by trying to lift the box and
basket though she has not enough power to do it. O-lan knows that she is not
strong enough to carry both the box and the basket given by her husband.
However, she obeys her husband by trying to get a position in which she can lift
both box and basket. O-lan does the command from her husband, Wang Lung.
The next morning after O-lan was taken to Wang Lung house; she does the house
hold work. Wang Lung asks O-lan to take a bowl of hot water for his father. O-lan
does as what Wang Lung asks her to.
The old man’s cough rose querulously out of the dusky and he said to her,
“Take to my father first a bowl of hot water for his lungs.”
She asked her voice exactly as it had been yesterday when she spoke, “Are
there to be tea leaves in it?” ….
“Tea? No–no–it makes his cough worse.” (pp. 26-27)
O-lan’s obedience is shown through Wang Lung’s way of looking after she does
his command. O-lan, an obedient wife, does exactly what her husband tells her to
but she still feels afraid that what she does was wrong. This is another
characterization ways purposed by Murphy (1972: 162-163). By Wang Lung’s

32
sight, O-lan’s obedience character is reflected.
There were tea leaves floating upon the surface of the water. He looked up
at her quickly. She was at once afraid and she said,
“I took no tea to the Old One – I did as you said – but to you I …”
Wang Lung saw that she was afraid of him and he was pleased and he
answered before she finished, “I liked it – I liked it.” (p. 28)
One day Wang Lung demands that O-lan gives him the pearls that she had
stolen from the rich man’s house, which he allowed her to save. Wang Lung asks
the pearls because he gives them to Lotus as a gift.
And he muttered, not looking at her wrinkled, wet hands, “There is no use
in keeping pearls for nothing.”
Then she said slowly, “I thought one day I might have them set in
earrings,” and fearing his laughter she said again, “I could have them for
the younger girl when she is wed.”
And he answered her loudly, hardening his heart, “Why should that one
wear pearls with her skin as black as earth? Pearls are for fair women!”
And then after an instant’s silence he cried out suddenly, “Give them to
me – I have need of them!”
Then slowly she thrust her wet wrinkled hand into her bosom and drew
forth the small package and she gave it to him…. (p. 178)
O-lan has forced to keep the pearls, however her husband wants them so much.
With depressed feeling, she hands in the pearls to him. O-lan likes the pearls so
much that she is not willing to make use of them.
O-lan becomes an obedient person because of the Chinese culture. A
woman is supposed to listen to her husband, her father in law or her son. In this
case, O-lan obeys her husband. As Chang Tu Hu states that a husband may strike
his wife if his wife does not do his command (1960: 60). Buck shows facts that
described O-lan as a typical Chinese wife who obeys his husband’s command in
any situation.
2. Diligent and Hardworking
O-lan is not only an obedient wife but she is also a diligent one. After
33
O-lan marries to Wang Lung, the next day in the morning she gets up earlier
and prepares the boiled water for her father in law and her husband.
He felt as though the night must have changed him; yet here was this
woman rising from his bed as though she had risen everyday of her life.
(p.26)
And then he lay in his bed warm and satisfied while in the kitchen the
woman fed the fire and boiled the water. (p. 27)
O-lan not only does the households that used to be done by her husband, she also
cleans the house. By cleaning the house, the disease that is suffered by her father-
in-law rapidly gets better. Her father-in-law also looks happy with O-lan’s work.
And she took their ragged clothes and with thread she herself spun on a
bamboo spindle from a wad of cotton she mended and contrived to cover
the rents in their winter clothes. Their bedding she took into sun on the
threshold and ripped the coverings from the quilts and washed them and
hung them upon bamboo to dry, and the cotton picked over, killing the
vermin that had flourished in the hidden fold and sunning it all. Day after
day she did one thing after another, until the three rooms seemed clean and
almost prosperous. The old man’s cough grew better and he sat in the sun
by the southern wall of the house, always half-asleep and warm and
content. (pp. 29-30)
Diligent is not enough for O-lan, she is also hardworking. She does the
households work and the field work. She helps her husband who works in the
field. In the morning after preparing the boiled water, she does the household
work. Then she, with lunch she has prepared before, goes to the field to help her
husband.
One day when Wang Lung was hard pressed with the swelling wheat and
was cultivating it with his hoe, day after day, until his back throbbed with
weariness, her shadow fell across the furrow over which he bent himself,
and there she stood, with a hoe across her shoulder.
“There is nothing in the house until nightfall,” she said briefly, and
without speech she took the furrow to the left of him and fell into steady
hoeing. (p. 30)
34
O-lan does not have any excuse to stop working. She still works the households
and fields work when she is pregnant. When the time for her to deliver the baby,
she just goes home to do it, later after that she continues working. This happens
when she has the first, second and third children. She brings her children to the
field so she could both take care of her babies and help her husband.
She smoothed a last furrow slowly. Then in her usual plain way she said,
straight out, her voice flat and more than usually plain in the silent evening
air, “I am with a child.” (p. 31)
The next day after the child was born the woman rose as usual and
prepared food for them…. (p. 39)
She worked all day now and the child lay on an old torn quilt on the
ground, asleep. When it cried the woman stopped and uncovered her
bosom to the child’s mouth, sitting flat upon the ground… (p. 41)
Beyond this nothing was said of the second child from the time he noticed
its growth swelling her body until the day came in autumn when she laid
down her hoe one morning and crept into the house. (pp. 54-55)
Later before the sun set she was back beside him, her body flattened,
spent, but her face silent and undaunted. (p. 55)
Buck describes that O-lan is a diligent and hardworking woman. O-lan usually
gets up early, does the entire household work and also helps Wang Lung the work
in the field. O-lan seeks for work though she has finished the household work. O-
lan’s character as a diligent and hardworking woman is illustrated as a usual habit
which is done by O-lan. According to Murphy (1972: 173), this characterization
step is called mannerism. In mannerism, the author can describe a person’s
mannerism, habits or idiosyncrasies.
A wife has to do all the household works (Hu 1960: 162). O-lan not only
does all the works well but also helps his husband with his work in the field. It is
35
also interesting to know that Buck draws the positive side of unbinding feet. If a
woman have her feet bound, she was unable to walk properly and unable to work
in field. O-lan with her unbound feet can help his husband with the field tasks.
3. Silent
Wang Lung’s first impression through O-lan besides her appearance that is
not beautiful is the silent face of O-lan. She seems to be silent and unspeaking.
Then Wang Lung turned to the woman and looked at her for the first
time…. It was a face that seemed habitually silent and unspeaking, as
tough it could not speak if it would. (pp. 20-21)
O-lan always does everything in silence, she is a silent woman. She almost
never speaks except there is something important.
But she never talked, this woman, except for the brief necessities of life….
But in the day her clothes, her plain blue cotton coat and trousers, covered
all that he knew, and she was like a faithful, speechless serving maid, who
is only serving maid and nothing more. (p. 30)
O-lan’s character as a silent person, drawn above, is not only by Wang
Lung’s view but also the direct comment by the author. In the first description, the
readers are brought to Wang Lung’s spectacle. O-lan’s character as a silent person
is observed through other character, Wang Lung. In this point, Murphy (1972:
162) explained that character as seen by another is applied to make the reader
gets, as it were, a reflected image.
In direct comment, the author describes or comments on a person’s
character directly (Murphy 1972: 170). In the second description, Buck
comments on O-lan’s character as a silent woman. The readers are explained in no
doubt about the silence of O-lan.
O-lan hardly shares her feeling with others. In the house of Hwang, she
36
has no friends to share the feeling.
It was the first time he had mentioned the house from which she came. She
turned on him as he had never seen her, her narrow eyed widened, her face
stirred with dull anger.
“None in that house!” she cried out at him.
He dropped his pipe which he was filling and stared at her. But her face
was suddenly as usual and she was collecting the chopsticks as though she
had not spoken. (p. 33)
Wang Lung feels like O-lan has a lot matters in her mind, but she does not
know how to express them. He seldom hears O-lan says so many words, but when
he hears O-lan talks a lot, he feels amazed of the matter that is in O-lan’s mind.
“When I return to that house it will be with my son in my arms. I shall

have a red coat on him and red-flowered trousers and on his head a hat
with a small gilded Buddha sewn on the front and on his feet tiger-faced
shoes. And I will wear new shoes and new coat of black sateen and I will
go into the kitchen where I spent my days and I will go into the great hall
where the Old One sits with her opium,, and I will sho myself and my son
to all of them.”
He had never heard so many words from her before. They came both forth
steadily and without break, albeit slowly, and he realized that she had
planned this whole thing out for herself. When she had been working in
the fields beside him she had been planning all this out! How astonished
she was! (p. 34)
She never gives a brief explanation about what she felt, what she thought when
she works in the House of Hwang. Wang Lung never knows what kind of
experiences felt by O-lan when she works with Hwang or when she was a child.
She is a very silent and introvert person who keeps her inner pain along with her.
Once when Wang Lung forces O-lan to give him the two pearls, O-lan
with very hard feeling gives the pearls to him. Inside herself, O-lan feels very sad.
Then slowly she thrust her wet wrinkled hand into her bosom and she drew
forth the small package and she gave it to him and watched him as he
unwrapped it; and the pearls lay in his hand and they caught softly and
fully the light of the sun , and he laughed.
But O-lan returned to the beating of his clothes and when tears dropped
slowly and heavily from her eyes she did not put up her hand to wipe when
37
away; only she beat the more steadily with her wooden stick upon the
clothes spread over the stone. (pp. 178-179)
Though O-lan is hurt because of Wang Lung, she does not show her
feeling by shouting out loud her pain. She only has herself cried while doing the
household. She with her silent face keeps her pain for herself. This act is called
reactions. O-lan might cry out loud to let people knows but she prefers to let her
tears down without any voice of sadness of disappointment. In this stage, the
readers are confirmed through the reaction of sadness.
4. Smart
Even though O-lan is a silent woman, she is a smart woman. She is a good
slave that is enough for the kitchen. She practices the knowledge she got when she
was a slave.
He took the food piece by piece from the basket and laid it upon the ledge
of the sold stove and he said to her,
“Here is pork and here beef and fish. There are seven to eat. Can you
prepare food?”
He did not look at the woman as he spoke. It would not have been seemly.
The woman answers in her plain voice,
“I have been kitchen since I went into the House of Hwang. There were
meats at every meal.” (p. 24)
O-lan also shows how good she is in cooking. She can make the moon cake from
a little ingredient.
And Wang Lung went again into the town and he bought pork fat and
white sugar and the woman rendered the fat smooth and white and she
took rice flour, which they had ground from their own rice between their
millstones to which they could yoke ox when they needed to do so, and
she took the fat and the sugar and she mixed and kneaded rich New Year’s
cakes, called moon cakes, such as were eaten in the House of Hwang.
When the cakes were laid out upon the table in strips, ready for heating,
Wang Lung felt his heart fit burst with pride. There was no other woman
in the village able to do what his had done, to make cakes such as only the
rich ate at the feast. (p. 46)
38
O-lan thinks everything further than Wang Lung might know. When Wang
Lung earns more silver than usual, she suggests Wang Lung to save the money in
the wall. This is for the future, when suddenly one day they might need silver they
can use it.
They plotted where to keep the silver and at last the woman cleverly dug a
small hole in the inner wall of their room behind the bed and into this
Wang Lung thrust the silver and with a clod of earth she covered the hole
and it was as though there was nothing there. But both Wang and O-lan it
gave a sense of secret richness and reserved. (pp. 44-45)
The description above is all about O-lan’s past life that brings good effects to her
life. By letting the reader learns something about a person’s past life the author
can give a clue to events that have helped to shape a person’s character (Murphy
1972: 166). O-lan is described as a person who can make use of her experiences
as a slave in the Great house of Hwang.
When the dry season comes, the village is having famine time. Wang
Lung’s uncle provokes the villagers to rob Wang Lung’s house. Wang Lung’s
uncle says that there is some food in the house. The villagers go into the house
and try to find the food. Going into the house, food is not the only that is taken
villagers also try to take the furniture in Wang Lung’s house. Then, O-lan shows
up and gets rid of the villagers who try to take their furniture.
Then O-lan came forward and spoke, and her plain, slow voice rose above
the men,
“Not that – not that yet,” she called out. “It is not yet time to take out our
table and the benches and the bed from our house. You have all your food.
But out of your own houses you have not sold yet your table and your
benches. Leave us ours. We are even. We have not a bean or a grain of
corn more than you – no, you have more than we, now, for you have all of
ours. Heaven will strike you if you take more. Now, we will go out
together and hunt for grass to eat and bark from the trees, you for your
children, and we for our three children, and for this fourth who is to be in
such times.” She pressed her hand to her belly as she spoke and the men
39
were ashamed before her band went out one by one, for they were not evil
men except when they starved. (p. 71)
The way of O-lan talks to the villagers shows her smart way of persuading. Buck
draws O-lan’s character as a smart woman by her speech. Murphy in his book
Understanding Unseen describes that by using speech, the author can give an
insight into the character of one of the persons in the book through what that
person says (1972: 164). O-lan is portrayed as a smart person when she knows
how to make the villagers ashamed on what they have done to O-lan’s family.
There is another fact that shows how bright O-lan is. When O-lan’s family
moves to south, the family needs a shelter to live on. Wang Lung as a husband has
tried before but he is not able to construct the mats into a shelter. O-lan without
any difficulties can build the shelter from mats. She is able to do that because she
had ever done it when she was a child.
Wang Lung observed the huts and he began to shape his own mats this
way and that, but they were stiff and clumsy things at best, being made of
split reeds, and he despaired, when suddenly O-lan said, “That I can do, I
remember it in my childhood.” (p. 92)
When in the south, O-lan teaches her children how to beg for food. She
teaches the same as she did when she was a child and asked for food.
And she called the two boys to her, for, like children, they had forgotten
everything except that they had food again and were in a strange place,,
and they ran to the street and stood staring at all passed and she said to
them, “Each of you take your bowls and hold them thus and cry out thus-”
And she took her empty bowl in her hand and held it out and called
piteously, “A heart, good sir – a heart, good lady! Have a kind heart - a
good deed for your life in heaven! The small cash – the copper coin you
throw away – fees a starving child!” (p. 96)
Besides begging, O-lan also makes a plan about robbing the rich house. In the
south, when there is an attack of enemy n the rich house as rumor, O-lan takes the
40
advantages by making up a plan. The plan O-lan made is successfully done.
Then suddenly as he sat there came a noise like the cracking of heaven and
every one of them fell unthinking on the ground and hid their faces, for
seemed as tough the hideous roar would catch them all up and crush them.
And Wang Lung covered the girl’s face with his hand, not knowing what
horror might appear to them out of this dreadful din, and the old man
called out into Wang Lung’s ear, “Now this I have never heard before in
all my years,” and the two boys yelled with fear.
But O-lan, when silence had fallen as suddenly as it had gone, lifted her
head and said, “Now that which I have heard of has come to pass. The
enemy has broken the gates of the city,”
….
“Now do you still sit here? The hour has come – the gates of the rich man
are open to us!” and as if by magic of some kind O-lan was gone, creeping
out under the man’s arm as he spoke. (p. 129)
This is one of the bright thought of O-lan. Buck illustrates that O-lan in her mind
has planned to take the advantage of the rumors. In thought, the author helps the
readers to know what the character is thinking in his or her mind (Murphy, 1972:
171). The readers are taken to perceive O-lan’s plan in robbing the rich. It is
planned that O-lan has made up her mind far beyond the attack.
When the poor rush in the rich house in south, O-lan is the one who knows
where the rich hide their jewels. O-lan is able to steal the jewelry because of her
experience working with the rich. This is also one of the good effects that O-lan
gets as a slave in the Great house of Hwang. She seems to understand a lot about
the rich. Her past life is drawn not only as a slave but also as a smart person who
knows what happened in the house.
“Where– Where –”
And she whispered back softly,
“In the rich man’s house. It must have been a favorite’s treasure. I saw a
brick loosened in the wall and slipped there carelessly so no other soul
could see and demand a share. I pulled the brick away, caught the shining,
and put them into my sleeve.”
“Now how did you know?” he whispered again, filled with admiration,
and she answered with the smile on her lips that was never in her eyes,
41
“Do you think I have never lived in a rich man’s house? The rich are
always afraid. I saw robbers in a bad day year once rush into the gate of
the great house and the slaves and the concubines and even the Old
Mistress herself ran hither and thither and each had a treasure that she
thrust into some secret place already planned. Therefore I knew the
meaning of a loosened brick.” (pp. 139-140)
5. Economical and Industrious
The intelligence of O-lan is supported with her character as an economical
and industrious woman. She can manage the silver given by Wang Lung. When
she asks her husband for silver, she already plans where the money will be spent.
“I suppose you will need some money,” he said at last with apparent
gruffness.
“If you will give me three silver pieces…” she said fearfully. “It is a great
deal, but I have counted carefully and I will no waste no penny of it. I shall
make the cloth dealer give me the last inch to the foot.” (pp. 34-35)
Another direct comment from Buck is revealed here. Buck draws what O-lan can
transform a broken stuff into a useful stuff. Not only transforming stuff, she also
knows how to cut down some bamboo rakes that can be use as fuel. With this
explanation, the readers are directed to the economical and industrious character.
The woman, when he had gone in the morning, took the bamboo rake and
a length of rope and with these she roamed the countryside, reaping here a
bit of grass and there a twig or a handful of leaves, returning at noon with
enough to cook dinner. It pleased the man that they no need buy no more
fuel.
In the afternoon she took a hoe and a basket and with these upon her
shoulder she went to the main road leading into the city where mules and
donkeys carried burdens to ad from and there she picked the dropping
from the animals and carried it home and piled the manure in the dooryard
for fertilizer for the fields. (p. 29)
And what he did for the farm implements, his wife, O-lan, did for the
house implements. If an earthen jar leaked she did not, as other woman,
cast it aside and talk of a new one. Instead she mixed earth and clay and
welded the crack and heated it slowly and it was as good as new. (p. 44)
She also knows how to make use of cobs. The cobs, which used to be the
42
fuel for her stove, are turned into food in the famine time.
When he would have put the cobs away for fuel, his wife spoke out,
“No – do not waste them in burning. I remember when I was a child in
Shantung when years like this came, even the cobs we groud and ate. It is
better than grass.” (p. 67)
6. Tough
O-lan never shares her childhood; still O-lan’s action amazes Wang Lung.
The experiences she had in her childhood teach her how hard life is. In order to
survive, O-lan used to beg to ask for food. She learnt how to make a shelter from
mats, how to make use of cobs when she was a child. Nevertheless the difficult
time taught O-lan about the hard life. With the experiences, she can survive from
her childhood. Her experiences build O-lan into a tough person. Not only the
experiences in her childhood but also the experiences as a slave of a great house
of Hwang show the hard time of a life.
“Tell me, and were you beaten in the great house?”

And she answered him flatly and somberly,
“Everyday was I beaten.”
And he cried again,
“But was it just with a girdle of cloth or was it with bamboo or rope?”
And she answered in the same dead way,
“I was beaten with a leather thong which had been halter for one of the
mules, and t hung upon the kitchen wall.” (pp. 127-128)
All the past life of O-lan indicates of the hard life that had been face thoroughly
by O-lan. Buck points out that O-lan can survive her past life by being a tough
person.
B. The Personal Conflicts Faced by O-lan
This novel starts the description of O-lan from the first time she leaves the
great house of Hwang as a slave. She is married to a poor farmer, Wang Lung
43
who later becomes a land owner. O-lan has conflicts during her life. When she is a
slave in the great House of Hwang, she has a conflict with one of the slaves there,
Cuckoo. After marrying to Wang Lung, the conflict does not stop because later
Cuckoo also becomes a slave of the Wang Lung’s second wife. O-lan faces the
problem not only with Cuckoo but also with her own husband. Wang Lung. Since
her husband can not accept her appearance, Wang Lung keeps complaining about
O-lan’s feet. Wang Lung looks for other woman in the tea house and takes one of
the women, Lotus, home. Besides conflicts from outside her, O-lan also faces
conflicts inside her. O-lan decides to deliver her first child by herself. It is not as
simple as it is. However without the help of another woman, she herself can
deliver the baby safely. O-lan also faces the conflict inside her when she kills her
second daughter.
From the explanation above, this study discuss the e two kinds of conflicts
faced by O-lan, they are intrapersonal (internal) and interpersonal (external)
conflicts.
1. The Intrapersonal Conflicts
Worchel and Cooper (1979: 460-464) describe intrapersonal conflict as a
conflict that an individual experiences when he or she makes a decision between
two or more alternatives which will lead to a situation in which other people do
not behave as the individual expects them to. The intrapersonal conflicts faced by
O-lan are influenced not only from the present life as a wife of Wang Lung but
also the past life. She has the conflict within herself when she is pregnant for the
44
first time. O-lan’s other personal conflict is her decision to kill her second
daughter who is born during the famine time.
In dealing with her conflicts, O-lan does not get help from others. When
having the intrapersonal conflicts, O-lan prefers to face rather to avoid them. The
conflicts O-lan faces are double approach – avoidance conflicts. She has a hard
childhood which makes her tough in making decision for her conflicts. Her
intrapersonal conflicts are as the following:
a) O-lan’s decision to deliver her first son by herself
When knowing that the birth of the first child is near, Wang Lung expects
O-lan to contact her friend or family to help her to deliver the baby. Wang Lung
accepts some women to help O-lan to deliver the baby safely. Because O-lan is a
silent person, she has neither family nor friend. It makes Wang Lung panic and
ask O-lan to think what she should do to deliver the baby safely.
“No woman?” he asked in consternation….. “But it will be odd only two

men in the house!” he continued. “My mother had a woman from the
village. I know nothing of these affairs. Is there none in the great house, no
old slave with whom you were friends, who could come?”
“None of that house!” she cried out at him. (p. 33)
Without the relation with other women, O-lan has to find the way to deliver her
first baby. There might be other options in delivering the baby by asking the
neighbor’s help, but O-lan decides to deliver the baby by herself. O-lan prefers
deliver the baby by her own with the experience she has rather than asks a person
to help her. When a woman delivers her first baby, she might not know what is
needed in order to cut the baby’s placenta. This situation does not happen to O-lan
because she is smart. She knows that a new peeled reed is needed to cut the baby’s
45
placenta. Because of her personality, silent, she rarely has a friend to ask for help.
For that reason, O-lan, who is smart and silent, delivers the baby by herself.
“It is come,” she said. “I will go into the house. Do not come into the room
until I call. Only bring me a newly peeled reed, and slit it, that I may cut
the child’s life from mine.” (p. 36)
In this first conflict, O-lan’s conflict is double approach-avoiding conflicts.
In this conflict, O-lan has two options in delivering the baby. She might choose to
deliver the baby herself or ask the neighbor to help her doing it. These both
options have the positive and negative sides. In resolving her conflict, there are
two sub-type resolutions (Worchel and Cooper (1974: 460). O-lan decides to use
the first sub-type which is determining one goal and as a consequence giving up
the other option. She is giving up her second option which the option of asking the
neighbor’s help. She chooses the other option because she is a silent person and
has no contact outside. Then O-lan decides that she is smart enough to know how
to deliver the baby and what is needed in order to cut the baby’s placenta.
b) O-lan’s decision to kill her second daughter
The most shocking decision made by O-lan is her decision to kill her
second daughter who is born in the famine time. O-lan has tasted the difficulties
of famine when she was a child. She knows that having a baby at the famine time
is not a good decision. Besides the baby will eat nothing, there is not any food to
be eaten. As a mother who has been pregnant for nine months, O-lan dares to kill
her child who has just been born. The baby is alive when she is born. Wang Lung
hears the sound of a crying child but at instant it is disappeared. O-lan kills the
baby because it was a girl. The birth of a daughter is considered not expected. Yet
46
presumably they must have made up about half of the population, or perhaps
slightly less, for in hard times girl babies were exposed by families to die (Robert,
1993: 361). At the time, a daughter means a bad luck. Another reason of this
treatment is because a girl baby is a poor social investment, since after the years
of nature the majority of them would simply marry to become of other household
(Smith 1994: 248).
When the first daughter is born, O-lan herself called the daughter as a
slave and unworthy mentioning. Wang Lung himself feels disappointed with the
birth.
The voice of his wife answered from the bed more feebly than he had ever
heard her speak.
“It is over once more. It is only a slave this time – not worth mentioning.”
Wang Lung stood still. A sense of evil struck him. A girl! A girl was
causing all this trouble in his uncle’s house. Now a girl had been born into
his house as well. (p. 62)
The tough life time teaches O-lan that having the baby will give no good at that
time. Although there is not any person who asks O-lan to kill the girl baby, O-lan
is supposed to know that she should kill the baby. O-lan might feel sad but she
was tough enough to hide her feeling. The other reason is also because O-lan is a
silent one.
“Where is the child?” he asked.

She made a slight movement of her hand upon the bed and he saw upon
the floor the child’s body.
“Dead!” he exclaimed.
“Dead,” she whispered. (p. 78)
He said nothing, but he took the dead child into the other room and laid it
upon the earthen floor and searched until he found a bit of broken mat and
this he wrapped about it. The round head dropped this way and that and
upon the neck he saw two dark, bruise spots, but he finished what he had
to do. (p. 79)
47
O-lan’s second intrapersonal conflict is also double approach-avoiding conflict. In
this conflict she chooses the second sub-type conflict resolution purposed by
Worchel and Cooper. The second sub-type depends on the value of each goal.
When the positive aspects of goal are higher than the negative, the goal can be
reached and the reverse (Worchel and Cooper, 1974: 461). She considers the
value of having the baby alive in famine time or killing the baby. She decides to
kill her baby after having the value of each options.
2. The Interpersonal Conflicts
The interpersonal conflict is a conflict which happens between two or
more people when they are involved in achieving the incompatible goal. This
conflict can also occur when the two people or parties agree with the goal but
disagree with the manner in achieving the goal.
According to Beebe, Beebe and Redmon (1996: 297-300 ), the
interpersonal conflict can be divided into three types. They are pseudo conflict,
simple conflict and ego conflict. O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts happen because of
the ego conflict. Ego conflict appears when personal differences attached to each
individual in a group.
Isenhart and Spangle (2000: 14-15) resume the most common sources of
conflict into seven sources; they are data, interest, procedures, values,
relationships, roles and communication. O-lan’s interpersonal conflicts are caused
by her relationships with others, in this case were Wang Lung and Cuckoo.
O-lan knows that her husband, Wang Lung, does not like her appearance.
Wang Lung tries to avoid the reality that O-lan’s feet are big because they were
48
not bound. For that, Wang Lung searches for other woman and finally decides to
take Lotus, a beautiful lady from a tea house as his second wife. O-lan tries to face
the conflict with Wang Lung, but Wang Lung always tries to find the excuses to
avoid her. O-lan tries to find way to make Wang Lung like her. The conflict
between O-lan and Wang Lung is named accommodation style. This style is
effective in situations in which one party feels the impossibility in achieving his or
her own that the outcome is not important (Isenhart and Spangle, 2000: 26). In
resolving their conflict, O-lan tries to use the integrative negotiation purposed by
Isenhart and Spangle. Integrative negotiation is a constructive and problem
solving process (Isenhart and Spangle, 2000: 45).
Besides her conflict with Wang Lung, O-lan also has a conflict with
Cuckoo. Cuckoo used to be the most loved slave in the great House of Hwang.
Cuckoo was loved by the Ancient Lord. Cuckoo also liked to complain all the
works that O-lan had done in the kitchen. O-lan already has the conflict when she
was a slave in the House of Hwang. The conflict arises when Cuckoo together
with Lotus are taken home by Wang Lung. Cuckoo is a maid of Lotus. The
conflict between these two women does not end because O-lan tries to face
Cuckoo until she dies but Wang Lung tries to find way to avoid the conflict
between these two women. The conflict between O-lan and Cuckoo can be
classified as avoiding style. In avoiding style, one party denies that there is a
conflict (Isenhart and Spangle, 2000: 26). In resolving the conflict, O-lan prefers
to use win-lose problem solving purposed by Alder and Towne. In win–lose
problem solving, an individual reaches his or her goal while the other does not.
For that, there is only one side that feels satisfied with the result of the conflict.
49
Here are the interpersonal conflicts felt by O-lan:
a) O-lan Versus Wang Lung
The conflict between O-lan and Wang Lung appears because of Wang
Lung’s disappointment about O-lan’s appearance. Wang Lung does not like O-
lan’s feet because they were not bound.
It was a good enough voice, not loud, not soft, plain and not ill-tempered,
the woman’s hair was neat and smooth and her coat clean. He saw an
instant’s disappointment that her feet were not bound. (p. 19)
However because Wang Lung is only a poor farmer and O-lan is a gift from the
rich (Hwang), he can not complain too much. For Wang Lung, a poor farmer,
having a wife means much rather than having no wife.
Later when Wang Lung gets prosperous and becomes a landowner, he
needs not work at the field anymore. He already has enough money to hire worker
and to let other people rent his land. People call him Wang from the Wang village
to praise. Because he does not work at the field anymore, Wang Lung usually
goes to town to have a tea. Wang Lung goes to the tea shop to enjoy his time. He
feels that his life will be completed unless his embarrassment of his wife, who is
ugly.
And it seemed to Wang Lung that he looked at O-lan for the first time that
she was a woman whom no man could call other than she was a dull and
common creature, who plodded in silence without thought of how she
appeared to others. He saw for the first time that her hair was rough and
brown and unsoiled and that her face was large and flat and coarse-
skinned, and her features too large altogether and without any sort of
beauty or light. Her eyebrows were scattered and the hair too few, and her
lips were too wide, and her hands and feet were large and spreading. (pp.
160-161)
Then, although in his heart he was ashamed that reproached this creature
who through all these years had followed him faithfully as a dog, and
although he remembered that when e was poor and labored in the fields
50
himself she left her bed even after a child born and came to help him in the
harvest fields, yet he could not stem the irritation in his breast and he went
on ruthlessly, although against his inner will,
“I have labored and have grown rich and I would have my wife look less
like a hind. And those feet of yours-.” (p. 162)
O-lan knows how Wang Lung feels about her feet. O-lan as a mother of
her daughter binds her daughters’ feet. There is a reason of doing this. O-lan
thinks that because of her appearance, Wang Lung seeks for other woman. She is
smart enough to know that Wang Lung does not love her because of her
appearance. She tells her younger daughter about this.
And at last she said in a whisper,

“My mother did not bind them, since I was sold so young. But the girl’s
feet I will bind – the younger girl’s feet I will bind.” (p. 162)
And he looked at his young daughter when he came home and she was a
pretty child and her mother had bound her feet well, so that she moved
about with small graceful steps.
But Wang Lung looked at her thus closely he swathe marks of tears on her
cheeks, and her face was a shade too pale and grave for her years, and he
drew her to him by her little hand and he said,
“Now why have you wept?”
Then she hung her head and toyed with a button on her coat and said, shy
and half-murmuring,
“Because my mother binds a cloth about my feet more tightly everyday
and I cannot sleep at night.”
“Now I have no heard you weep,” he said, wondering.
“No,” she said simply, “and my mother said I was not to weep aloud
because you are too kind and weak for pain and you might say to leave me
as I am, and then my husband would not love me even as you do not love
her.” (pp. 238-239)
In order to keep the girl feet at a tiny size, the girl feet were bound in the ages
between five and ten (O’neill 1987: 94). O-lan’s daughter can only cry without
telling anyone about the pain. The most shocking reason O-lan gives to her
daughter is about her daughter future husband. Latourette (1951: 680) in his book
The Chinese Their History and Culture states that a girl without small feet was
51
regarded as disgraced and it was impossible to get a desirable husband for her. For
that reason, O-lan’s daughter keeps the pain to get her husband love in the future.
Even knowing Wang Lung does not love her, O-lan is still a diligent and
hard worker wife. She still does the household work, takes care of Wang Lung’s
father and their children properly. After Wang Lung knows the feeling of being
unloved, Wang Lung gradually realizes the kindness of O-lan as a wife. Wang
Lung notices that O-lan is sick. Day by day he cares more about O-lan until her
death. O-lan knows that even if she stops doing the household work, Wang Lung
will not suddenly love her. For that, O-lan with her tough personality, she faces
the fact that her husband does not love her.
O-lan conflict with Wang Lung is cause from their relation. This conflict is
ego conflict since Wang Lung can not respect O-lan’s feeling as a woman. In
resolving this conflict O-lan applies the integrative negotiation. O-lan tries to
make Wang Lung touch by her efforts explained above. She keeps trying until she
becomes sick and is noticed by Wang Lung.
b) O-lan Versus Cuckoo
The conflict between O-lan and Cuckoo has begun since O-lan was in the
great House of Hwang. O-lan is Wang Lung’s first wife. When Wang Lung takes
Lotus home, she was not alone. She takes her maid, Cuckoo together with her. O-
lan is surprised that Wang Lung does not stop that. O-lan seems to have a conflict
with Cuckoo since both were slaves in the great House of Hwang. Cuckoo used to
be a slave whom the lord loved the most. With the position as the most loved
slave, Cuckoo liked to keep O-lan busy in the kitchen. Cuckoo liked to complain
on O-lan’s work.
52
But O-lan stood there solidly on her big feet and waited and when he said
nothing she asked again plainly in the same words,
“What is this slave woman doing in our house?”
Then Wang Lung, seeing she would have a answer, said feebly,
“And what is it you?”
And O-lan said,
“I bore her haughty look during my youth in the great house and her
running in the kitchen a score of times a day and crying out ‘now tea for
the lord’-‘now food for the lord’- and it was always this is too hot and that
is too cold and that is badly cooked, and I was too ugly and too slow and
too this and too that ….” (p. 194)
O-lan once has a talk with Cuckoo when cuckoo asks her to cook more water for
Lotus. O-lan refuses to do that. O-lan knows that she is no more a slave. To avoid
more fight, Wang Lung builds another stove in his house.
Then there was nothing but that Cuckoo must herself boil water for her
mistress if she would have it. But then it was the time to stir the morning
gruel and there was not space in the cauldron for more water and O-lan
would steadily to her cooking, answering nothing to Cuckoo’s loud crying,
“And is my delicate lady to lie thirsting and gasping in her bed for a
swallow of water in the morning?”
…. Then Cuckoo went complaining loudly to Wang Lung and he was
angry that his love must be marred by such things and he went to O-lan to
reproach her and he shouted at her,
“And cannot you add a dipperful of water to cauldron in the mornings?”
But she answered with a sullenness deeper than ever upon her face,
“I am not slave of slaves in this house at least.”
Then he was angry beyond bearing and he seized O-lan’s shoulder and he
shook her soundly and he said,
“Do not be yet more of a fool. It is not for the servant but for the mistress.”
…..
Then his hand dropped and he was speechless and his anger was gone and
he went away ashamed and he said to Cuckoo,
“We will build another stove and I will make another kitchen. The first
wife knows nothing of the delicacies which the other one needs for her
flower-like body and which you also enjoy. You shall cook what you
please in it.” (p. 196)
When O-lan gets sick, there are times when she calls for Cuckoo for a talk. O-lan
shows her pride as a wife of a man, she can bear sons for her husband while
Cuckoo still becomes a slave. After showing up her pride, O-lan speaks up her last
53
wish to Wang Lung. She wishes that neither Cuckoo nor her mistress is allowed to
enter her room or touch her things although O-lan dies.
There were times when O-lan woke to herself and to what was about her
and once she called for Cuckoo, and when in great astonishment Wang
Lung summoned the woman, O-lan raised herself trembling upon her arm,
and she said plainly enough,
“Well, and you may lived in the courts of the Old Lord, and you were
accounted beautiful, but I have been a man’s wife and I have borne him
sons, and you are still a slave.”
When Cuckoo would have answered angrily to this Wang Lung besought
her and led her out, saying,
“That one does not know what words mean, now.”
When he went back into the room, O-lan still leaned her head upon her
arms and she said to him,
“After I am dead that one nor her mistress neither is to come into my room
or tough my things, and if they do, I will send my spirit back for a curse.”
(pp. 247-248)
O-lan conflict with Cuckoo is also caused by her relation and categorized as ego
conflict. This interpersonal conflict is avoiding style since both thinks it is not
important. However, O-lan decides to solve this conflict using win-lose solution.
O-lan dares to face the conflict with Cuckoo, she knows she shall die but she want
none of Cuckoo goes into her room. She feels that her pride as a wife of a man
shows that she is more worthy than Cuckoo, who is still a slave. Cuckoo knows
what O-lan says is correct, for that Cuckoo can not confront O-lan. O-lan gives no
options to Cuckoo; O-lan tastes the victory. However the conflict between O-lan
and Cuckoo never really ends because O-lan dies.

CHAPTER V
CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
The last chapter of this study presents two main parts. The first part states
the conclusions. They concern the answer of the questions stated in the problem
formulation. The conclusions are drawn from the discussion in the previous
chapter. The second part is suggestions for future researchers and for English
teaching learning using literary work. The suggestions provide the implementation
of a literary work in teaching reading and writing.
A. Conclusions
Based on the analysis in the previous chapter, there are two main points
that can be concluded. The first point is about the character description of O-lan
which is based on the characterization purposed by Murphy. The second point is
about O-lan’s personal conflicts. O-lan is also a major character in this novel since
she plays a big role from the beginning of the story. O-lan is also a complex
character. O-lan plays as a protagonist character which leads the readers to have
sympathy on her character In analyzing O-lan’s characteristic, this study uses six
of the nine method characterization purposed by Murphy. They are reaction,
mannerism, character seen by others, direct comment, speech and past life.
Besides using Murphy’s theory, this study also analyzes the influences of culture
in O-lan’s character.
The study shows that O-lan is an obedient person. She obeys whatever her
husband tells her to do. O-lan is not only an obedient wife but she is also a
54
55
diligent and hardworking one. O-lan does all the household work and also helps
her husband in the field. O-lan is also drawn as a person who does everything in
silence. She never gives a brief explanation about what she felt or thought.
Even though O-lan is a silent woman, she is smart. She gives a solution to
her husband the save place to save the money. Her intelligence is supported with
her economical and industrious character. She transforms a broken stuff into a
useful stuff. O-lan’s past life gives her the experience to face the hard time. In
order to survive, she has ever begged for living. With her experience, O-lan is
shaped into a tough person.
This study describes two intrapersonal conflicts experienced by O-lan.
They are O-lan’s decision to deliver her first son by herself and O-lan’s decision
to kill her second daughter. The conflicts O-lan experienced are double approach
– avoidance conflicts. O-lan’s decisions are also influenced by the Chinese
culture.
When knowing that the birth of the first child is near, O-lan has no
contacts outside help her to deliver the baby safely. For that, O-lan decides to
deliver her baby by herself. She uses a new peeled reed to deliver the baby safely.
In her second intrapersonal conflict, O-lan decides to kill her second daughter in
famine time. Although there is not any person who asks O-lan to kill the girl baby,
O-lan is supposed to know that she should kill the baby.
The analysis found out two interpersonal conflicts faced by O-lan. Both
interpersonal conflicts are caused by O-lan’s relationship in this case Wang Lung
and Cuckoo. O-lan interpersonal conflicts are categorized as ego conflict.
O-lan’s interpersonal conflict with Wang Lung is caused by the

56
disappointment of Wang Lung about O-lan’s appearance. O-lan with her unbound
foot embarrasses Wang Lung. The conflict between O-lan and Wang Lung is
named accommodation style. It is resolved with integrative negotiation. When
Wang Lung realizes O-lan’s efforts, O-lan already has an illness. Nevertheless, it
is not too late to give his care to O-lan until her last breath.
While O-lan interpersonal conflict with Wang Lung finishes; O-lan
conflict with Cuckoo does not finish. It is because O-lan decides to use win-lose
solution in resolving the conflict. This conflict also classifies as avoiding style. In
this conflict, O-lan gives no way for Cuckoo to get near her. She feels that her
pride as a wife of a man shows that she is more worthy than Cuckoo, who is still a
slave. This conflict does not end directly because O-lan died.
A. Suggestions
For readers, the novel The Good Earth is a valuable novel talk about a
culture of a country in the early twentieth century. This novel describes a life of a
Chinese family. It shows a life of one person who is a peasant family later
becomes a land owner. The additional plus of this novel is the Chinese culture that
influences the character daily life.
The suggestions also belongs to the researchers who are going to conduct
other researches using Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth. This study analyzes the
influence of O-lan’s character in resolving her personal conflicts. Nevertheless
others may have different point of view in analyzing the novel, such as the
personal conflicts of Wang Lung who is O-lan’s husband. Wang Lung is a peasant
farmer who later becomes a land owner.

57
B. The Implementation in Teaching Speaking
The novel The Good Earth contains some interesting issues which are
challenging to discuss, like concubinage, female discrimination, and infanticide.
Therefore, it is appropriate to be used in a speaking class, especially debate.
Through debate, the students might express and defend their arguments or
opinions. This study would like to argue about crime is replied with crime.
This issue about infanticide will also stimulate the students to think
critically. Furthermore, it gives the chances to students to use the target language,
English. With the opportunity given, the students can improve their speaking skill.
Some activities for the debate are:
1. The teacher distributes the literary text and the motion for the debate a week
before the class.
2. Then, she asks the students to read and find more information about the
literary text given and tell them to be ready for next week debate.
3. The teacher tells the students that they are going to debate the issue about
infanticide on the next meeting.
4. On the next meeting, the teacher divides the class into two big groups. The
first group agrees O-lan kills her daughter, the second group does not agree
with it. Then, each group is divided again into several small groups. Each
small group consists of at least three students. The teacher asks the student
to discuss the topic and prepare their arguments and opinions. The teacher
may also use a more general motion for the debate. For example the first
group is against the topic, while the second group is agreed with the topic.
5. The teacher starts the debate by choosing a group from the affirmative group
58
to present their arguments or opinions in three minutes.
6. After that, the teacher chooses a group from the negative group to draw their
arguments or opinions in three minutes and to refute the previous affirmative
group.
7. The affirmative group refutes the negative group’s arguments by giving
logical reasons and defends their opinions.
8. The negative group also defends their opinions by countering back the
affirmative’s opinions.
9. The teacher stops the debate after each group from the two big groups gets
the same opportunity in the debate. The teacher asks the students to
conclude their own ideas.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
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61
Appendix 1
Summary of The Good Earth
The story begins on the day of Wang Lung’s wedding. Wang Lung is a
poor young farmer who lives with his father. It is his wedding day but he still has
to do the house works. He prepares the boiled water and breakfast for his father.
Because Wang Lung is the only son, he should take care of his father.
Wang Lung is nervous, since he never meets his bride before. His father
has arranged Wang Lung’s marriage with a slave girl name O-lan from the great
family of the House of Hwang. In China, a poor man who is unable to pay dowry
can only marry a slave offered by generosity of her mistress. On this day, Wang
Lung dresses up neatly so he does not feel embarrassed going to the great family
of the House of Hwang. Arriving at the House of Hwang, the mistress introduces
Wang Lung to O-lan. O-lan was sold to the great house when she was ten years
old. Her parents came from Shantung. O-lan is twenty one years old. She is still
virgin considering that there are plenty of pretty slaves running in the house. O-
lan has a strong body and square cheeks. She is neither beautiful nor clever, but
she is obedient and has a good tempered. Wang Lung and O-lan are asked to
shown their first child to the mistress.
After Wang Lungs brings his silent but diligent wife home, she works side
by side with him in the fields and also takes care of the household works. One
problem that Wang Lung feels unsatisfied is that O-lan does not do the foot
binding. At that time, women are supposed to do the foot binding for the sake of
beauty. O-lan is very good at the culinary work. She used to take part at the
kitchen when she was a slave at the House of Hwang. O-lan does the cooking,
62
sewing, and mending the broken household. She hardly speaks and complains.
A year later the first child is born. They are delighted with their son, since
a son means a good luck. At that year, the harvest is good. Wang Lung has a
handful of silver dollars from the sale of his wheat and rice. Wang Lung together
with O-lan agrees to hide their silver in the small hole in the inner wall of their
bedroom. Wang Lung is able to buy new cloth for themselves and the baby. At the
New Year, O-lan dresses her son up and proudly takes him to the House of
Hwang. O-lan discovers that the Hwang household has wasted their fortune and
now is poor enough to be willing to sell off their land.
After buying the land that belongs to the Hwang, Wang Lung continues to
work harder in his land with the help of his wife. The second son is born in the
following year. It is again a good luck hat brings the good harvest. Wang Lung
and his wife have lived happily until his uncle and his family interrupts it. Wang
Lung’s uncle is a lazy man who knows only gambling and does not earn enough
money to support the family living. The uncle asks money from Wang Lung.
Wang Lung cannot refuse his uncle’s wishes since his uncle is his father’s brother.
Wang Lung hates to give the money because he knows that the money will be
spent on the gambling table. Wang Lung also feels more desperate knowing that
his third baby is a girl who is feebleminded.
The summer is longer this year and dry. Wang Lung’s wealth is ruined
because of this dry season. For month there is not any rainfall. The harvest is
poor. Famine attacked Wang Lung’s village. The harvest has been eaten and the
ox is killed for food, there is nothing left for food. Wang Lung and his family
decide to go south to find work and food in other province rather than staying at
63
the village waiting to be killed. O-lan has born their fourth child, who then killed
the baby because of the economy. Wang Lung and his family together with a
crowd of refugees go to south with a fire wagon.
Wang Lung arrives at Kiangsu with a great wonder. This is the first time
they have traveled away from their land. Everything is new for them. They stay in
a hut clinging on the wall of a rich man. O-lan makes the hut from mats. They
survive by O-lan, the grandfather, and the children begging for food and Wang
Lung pulling a rickshaw for the rich, or pulling wagonloads of cargo at night. In
the winter they line up for their meal in public kitchen. Each day they earn enough
to buy rice for the next.
In the southern city, Wang Lung perceives the extraordinary wealth of
westerners and Chinese aristocrats and capitalists. One day an exciting thing
happens. There is a battle between soldiers in town and the enemy who is
approaching from other town. The town is panic. He gets his chance when the
enemy invades the city and the rich people flee; Wang Lung and O-lan join the
crowd of poor people who rob the nearby rich man's house and get enough gold
and jewels to enable them to return north.
With the money Wang Lung repair their house and plough the fields, buy
seeds, an ox and new farm tools. With the jewel which stole by O-lan, Wang Lung
is able to buy more land from the bankrupt House of Hwang. Wang Lung also
allows O-lan to keep two pearls she liked most. After having more land, Wang
Lung hires Ching, one of his neighbors, as an overseer. O-lan bears twin, a boy
and a girl. She is no longer works at the fields because Wang Lung does not want
her to do so. She just keeps staying the new house and takes care of the children.
64
The following seven years is prosperity. Wang Lung starts to sell his
harvest in the town. Wang Lung feels ashamed when the merchant in town knows
Wang Lung’s inability in reading and writing. Wang Lung, then, decides to have
the first and second sons begin school. The new teacher gives them names: Nung
En for the older and Nung Wen for the younger.
When the great river overflows because of the excessive rains and snow, it
cause a flood in region. It takes no worries to Wang Lung. Tough the flood causes
a general famine; Wang Lung is rich enough not to worry about survival yet. The
grain markets still owe him money, besides his rice-barn is full with harvest.
Finding nothing to do, Wang Lung becomes restless in his idleness. He goes to
town, has tea in a tea shop and hears anything news. He realizes that he is a rich
man now, people in town call him the Wang now. Bored with his plain and coarse
wife, he ventures into a tea shop in town operated by a man from the south where
the rich and idle spend their time drinking, gambling, and visiting prostitutes.
There he begins to have an affair with Lotus, a delicately beautiful whore whom
he desires obsessively. Every night Wang Lung visits her and many silvers have
taken from him. One day, Wang Lung also forces O-lan to give him the two pearls
she is keeping, so he could give it to Lotus. Finally using up much of his savings,
Wang Lung purchases Lotus and builds an adjacent courtyard for her to live as the
second wife.
The discord arises immediately. O-lan is deeply hurt and angry, which
makes Wang Lung defensively guilty and cold with her; there are conflicts
between O-lan and Lotus' maid Cuckoo who had mistreated O-lan when she was a
concubine of the old master in the House of Hwang. Wang Lung's old father
65
protests the decadence of catering to a "harlot" in the house. Finally, Lotus is
intolerant of Wang Lung's children, especially his favorite daughter who had
become retarded due to malnutrition during the famine. As a result, Wang Lung's
passion for Lotus eventually cools, and when the flood recedes and he returns to
his farming work, he is no longer obsessed with love.
Wang Lung experiences a succession of joys and sorrows in his family
relationships and in his farming. Seasons of good harvests are punctuated by
occasional bad years, due to a heavy flood, a severe winter freeze, and a scourge
of locusts. Yet on the whole Wang Lung continues to prosper. His wealth,
however, also brings a series of discontents. His first son is idle and interested
only in women; Wang Lung is furious when he finds the son has visited first a
local whore and then his own Lotus, so he arranges a marriage for him. Wang
Lung arranges the eldest marriage to the daughter of a grain merchant in town.
Because of the girl’s young age, the wedding is postponed. Meanwhile, Wang
Lung’s son is sent to South to continue his study. Wang Lung's good-for-nothing
uncle, with his wife and son, force themselves on the family with their demands
for money and their morally corrupting influence; Wang Lung must be kind to
them because the uncle is a leader of a band of robbers, from which Wang Lung's
prosperous household is protected for as long as he provides for the uncle. He
eventually provides the uncle and his wife harmless by making them addicted to
opium.
O-lan is sick. She tells Wang Lung that her stomach is painful. When
Wang Lung calls a doctor, the doctor says that O-lan’s illness is a difficult case.
Wang Lung needs to spend a lot of many for the medicine. O-lan refuses to take
66
the doctor’s suggestion. She only asks Wang Lung to fulfill her last two hopes.
The first hope is not allowing Cuckoo or Lotus to come or touch the room of hers.
The second hope is to see their eldest son gets married, so she can accept a
grandson. Soon after the first son is back home, the wedding takes place shortly
before O-lan dies. Wang Lung's father dies immediately after O-lan. They are
buried at the same day near one another on a good piece of his land. For the first
time Wang Lung cries of O-lan’s death.
The wedding of Wang Lung’s second son is held in modesty. He is so
economical that every expense is calculated thoroughly. He lives differently with
his elder brother. This different way of life often brings to quarrels.
After Wang lung’s overseer, Ching, dies, he does not do his farming
himself. He rents out his farm land to tenants. His eldest son persuades him to buy
the old estate of the House of Hwang in town, both as a means of moving out
from the place where the disgraceful uncle and his wife live, and as a symbol of
Wang Lung's elevated social position. Wang Lung is gratified that now he can
take the place of the Old Master of Hwang who once intimidated him so much.
But although Wang Lung is head of a three generation extended family who live
in luxury with numerous servants, he cannot find peace. The two older brothers
and their wives quarrel; the youngest son refuses to become a farmer as Wang
Lung had intended and instead joins the army. And Wang Lung, long tired of the
aging Lotus, finds some comfort in taking the young slave Pear Blossom as his
concubine.
Wang Lung grows older. He wants to spend his time in a solitary place. So
he decides to go back to his village because his uncle and aunt already die. He
67
asks Pear Blossom and his feeble minded daughter with him. Wang Lung hopes
his sons want to continue his work. But until he becomes older and older, none of
his sons inherit his work as farmer. They sometimes visit him in village. They also
buy him a good coffin.
Before Wang Lung dies, he accidentally overhears his sons‘conversation
about selling his lands and divides the money they get. Tough they keeps lie to
Wang lung, he knows that they will sell the land as soon as he dies.
Adapted from: http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/china/lit/good.htm

68
Appendix 2
Biography of Pearl S. Buck
Pearl Sydenstricker Buck, 1892 - 1973

Pearl Comfort Sydenstricker was born on June 26, 1892, in
Hillsboro, West Virginia. Her parents, Absalom and
Caroline Sydenstricker, were Southern Presbyterian
missionaries, stationed in China. Pearl was the fourth of
seven children (and one of only three who would survive to
adulthood). She was born when her parents were near the end of a furlough in the
United States; when she was three months old, she was taken back to China,
where she spent most of the first forty years of her life.
The Sydenstrickers lived in Chinkiang (Zhenjiang), in Kiangsu (Jiangsu)
province, then a small city lying at the junction of the Yangtze River and the
Grand Canal. Pearl's father spent months away from home, itinerating in the
Chinese countryside in search of Christian converts; Pearl's mother ministered to
Chinese women in a small dispensary she established.
From childhood, Pearl spoke both English and Chinese. She was taught
principally by her mother and by a Chinese tutor, Mr. Kung. In 1900, during the
Boxer Uprising, Caroline and the children evacuated to Shanghai, where they
spent several anxious months waiting for word of Absalom's fate. Later that year,
the family returned to the US for another home leave.
In 1910, Pearl enrolled in Randolph-Macon Woman's College, in Lynchburg,

69
Virginia, from which she graduated in 1914. Although she had intended to remain
in the US, she returned to China shortly after graduation when she received word
that her mother was gravely ill. In 1915, she met a young Cornell graduate, an
agricultural economist named John Lossing Buck. They married in 1917, and
immediately moved to Nanhsuchou (Nanxuzhou) in rural Anhwei (Anhui)
province. In this impoverished community, Pearl Buck gathered the material that
she would later use in The Good Earth and other stories of China.
The Bucks' first child, Carol, was born in 1921; a victim of PKU, she proved to be
profoundly retarded. Furthermore, because of a uterine tumor discovered during
the delivery, Pearl underwent a hysterectomy. In 1925, she and Lossing adopted a
baby girl, Janice. The Buck marriage was unhappy almost from the beginning, but
would last for eighteen years.
From 1920 to 1933, Pearl and Lossing made their home in Nanking (Nanjing), on
the campus of Nanking University, where both had teaching positions. In 1921,
Pearl's mother died and shortly afterwards her father moved in with the Bucks.
The tragedies and dislocations which Pearl suffered in the 1920s reached a climax
in March, 1927, in the violence known as the "Nanking Incident." In a confused
battle involving elements of Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist troops, Communist
forces, and assorted warlords, several Westerners were murdered. The Bucks
spent a terrified day in hiding, after which they were rescued by American
gunboats. After a trip downriver to Shanghai, the Buck family sailed to Unzen,
Japan, where they spent the following year. They then moved back to Nanking,
though conditions remained dangerously unsettled.

70
Pearl had begun to publish stories and essays in the 1920s, in magazines such as
Nation, The Chinese Recorder, Asia, and Atlantic Monthly. Her first novel, East
Wind, West Wind, was published by the John Day Company in 1930. John Day's
publisher, Richard Walsh, would eventually become Pearl's second husband, in
1935, after both received divorces.
In 1931, John Day published Pearl's second novel, The Good Earth. This became
the best-selling book of both 1931 and 1932, won the Pulitzer Prize and the
Howells Medal in 1935, and would be adapted as a major MGM film in 1937.
Other novels and books of non-fiction quickly followed. In 1938, less than a
decade after her first book had appeared, Pearl won the Nobel Prize in literature,
the first American woman to do so. By the time of her death in 1973, Pearl would
publish over seventy books: novels, collections of stories, biography and
autobiography, poetry, drama, children's literature, and translations from the
Chinese.
In 1934, because of conditions in China, and also to be closer to Richard Walsh
and her daughter Carol, whom she had placed in an institution in New Jersey,
Pearl moved permanently to the US. She bought an old farmhouse, Green Hills
Farm, in Bucks County, PA. She and Richard adopted six more children over the
following years. Green Hills Farm is now on the Registry of Historic Buildings;
fifteen thousand people visit each year.
From the day of her move to the US, Pearl was active in American civil rights and
women's rights activities. She published essays in both Crisis, the journal of the
71
NAACP, and Opportunity, the magazine of the Urban League; she was a trustee
of Howard University for twenty years, beginning in the early 1940s. In 1942,
Pearl and Richard founded the East and West Association, dedicated to cultural
exchange and understanding between Asia and the West. In 1949, outraged that
existing adoption services considered Asian and mixed-race children inadaptable,
Pearl established Welcome House, the first international, inter-racial adoption
agency; in the nearly five decades of its work, Welcome House has assisted in the
placement of over five thousand children. In 1964, to provide support for
Amerasian children who were not eligible for adoption, Pearl also established the
Pearl S. Buck Foundation, which provides sponsorship funding for thousands of
children in half-a-dozen Asian countries.
Pearl Buck died in March, 1973, just two months before her eighty-first birthday.
She is buried at Green Hills Farm.
The biography is taken from:
http://www.english.upenn.edu/Projects/Buck/biography.html
The picture is taken from:
http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/images:Pearl_Buck.jpg
72
Appendix 3:
Lesson Plan
Subject : English
Skill : Public Speaking I
Topic : Infanticide
Level : 4th semester of English Department Students
Material : Chapter 9 of the novel The Good Earth pages 72-84
(enclosed).
Time : 2 x 50’
Basic Achievement Learning Experiences Form of

Competencies Indicators Evaluation
Speaking • Expressing • The students read • Students’
• Performing a their ideas the story given a speaking
debate to orally in a week before the performance
achieve debate based debate.
speaking on a story or a
fluency and the motion given. • The students
ability to answer the
communicate • Defending questions from
actively. their opinions the teacher
orally by concerning the
refuting others’ story.
opinions
• The students
make a group
consist of three
students.
• The students
discuss the
motion given by
the teacher with
their friends.
• The students
debate by stating,
defending and
73
arguing their
opinions and
friends’ opinions.
• The students
conclude their
own opinions and
the debate.
Pre- Speaking Questions:
1. What do you think about infanticide?
2. In your opinion, why do some people infanticide?
Motions for the debate:
1. The affirmative group: You are the group who does not want O-lan to kill her
daughter. State and defend your arguments based on the story!
2. The negative group: You are the group who wants O-lan to kill her baby. State
and defend your arguments based on the story!
3. The teacher may also give a broad motion related to the theme of the story
like: “This house believes that infanticide should be allowed in this country.”
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PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI

Janiati. (2007) The Influence of O-lan’s Character on Resolving Her Personal

Janiati. (2007) The Influence of O-lan’s Character on Resolving Her Personal

THE INFLUENCE OF O-LAN’S CHARACTER ON

RESOLVING HER PERSONAL CONFLICT FOUND IN

PEARL S. BUCK’S THE GOOD EARTH

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

THE INFLUENCE OF O-LAN’S CHARACTER ON

RESOLVING HER PERSONAL CONFLICT FOUND IN

PEARL S. BUCK’S THE GOOD EARTH

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

If you do not want to enter the tiger’s stall

“No Efforts No Result”

g{|á à{xá|á |á ÑtÜà|vâÄtÜÄç wxw|vtàxw àÉM

Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) said, “All human problems is caused by his

I would like to express my gratitude to everybody that has helped me in

wish for is their true and genuine happiness.

Next, I would like to thank my major sponsor Dra. Wigati Yektiningtyas,

M.Hum. and my co-sponsor Fidelis Chosa Kastuhandani, S.Pd. Of all lectures

good improvements for better education in this country.

education for the better lives.

The dedication goes to my best friends at PBI’03 (Moniq, X-tin, Seevi,

deepest thank with Pondok Unyil (Lili, Wuri, Ani, Atik).

My sincere gratitude goes to “Heri Kurniawan-Yen”, for all his

motivation, support, care, understanding, and attention that I sometimes recklessly

is the best Karma I own.

Sabbe Satta Bhavantu Sukkhitatta…. Sadhu, Sadhu, Sadhu….

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

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

STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORGINALITY ............................................... iv

PAGE OF DEDICATION ............................................................................... v

TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................. viii

ABSTRAK .......................................................................................................... xii

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

B. Problem Formulation ................................................................................... 3

C. Objectives of the study ................................................................................. 4

D. Benefits of the Study .................................................................................... 4

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

CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

A. Review of Related Theory ........................................................................... 7

1. Critical Approaches ................................................................................ 7

2. Character and Characterization .............................................................. 8

b. Methods of Characterization ............................................................ 9

b. Types of Conflict ............................................................................. 12

c. Causes of Conflict ............................................................................ 13

d. Styles of Conflict ............................................................................. 14

e. Conflict Resolutions ......................................................................... 16

B. Women in Chinese Culture .......................................................................... 19

C. Theoretical Framework ................................................................................ 22

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY

A. Subject Matter .............................................................................................. 25

B. Approach of the Study ................................................................................. 26

C. Method of the Study ..................................................................................... 27

CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS

A. The Character of O-lan in Buck’s The Good Earth ..................................... 29

2. Diligent and Hardworking ...................................................................... 32

5. Economical and Industrious ................................................................... 41

B. The Personal Conflicts Faced by O-lan ....................................................... 42

1. The Intrapersonal Conflicts .................................................................... 43

a) O-lan’s decision to deliver her first son by herself .......................... 44