1

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

This chapter consists of background of the study, identification of the

study, formulation of the study, significance of the study, definition of key

terms, and thesis organization. Those are in below;

1.1. Background of the study

A person's intelligence is reflected to how they can speak well and

deliver what they are thinking with correct manner, the audience or listeners

will understand and very happy with content if the delivery is correct to the

audience or listener. In current modern technology era how to speech well is

very important to be understood since “One Word” with wrong interpreter or

delivery will be potential caused of the conflict each other or might each

country.

Pragmatics can be categorized as a branch of linguistic that learns

language used to communication a certain situation as in education, society,

and business.Study pragmatics make us understand how we use language in

communication and really understand the nature of language. According

toYule (1996: 1), Pragmatics is concerned with the study of meaning as

communicated by a speaker (or writer) and interpreted by a listener (or

reader).Levinson (1983:7) adds that a pragmatic

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definition as the study of language from a functional perspective, that is, that

it attempts to explain facets of linguistic structure by reference to non-

linguistic pressures and causes.

Further, Keifer and Bierwisch (1980) suggest that pragmatics isone of

those words (societal and cognitive are others) that give the impression that

something quite specific and technical is being talked about when often in

fact it has no clear meaning.So,Pragmatics is a study of language from a

functional perspective, that is to say, pragmatics seeks to explain aspects of

linguistic structure with reference to influences and non-linguistic

phenomena. It is concerned with analyzing what speakers mean with their

utterances and involves the interpretation of what people said in a particular

context so they can decide the appropriate way and language to convey

messages. Therefore, politeness is used in communication. On the other hand,

Yule (1996: 60), politeness is defined as a way to show awareness of another

person’s public self-image.

Brown and Levinson (1987) state politeness strategies are developed to

save the hearers' "face" Face refers to the respect that an individual has for

himself, and maintains that "dignity" in public or in private situations.

Usually you try to avoid embarrassing the other person, or make them feel

uncomfortable. Faces Threatening Acts (FTAs) are acts that violate the

listeners' needs to keep his / her dignity, and respect. Politeness strategies are

developed for the primary purpose of dealing with the FTA. Therefore,

politeness strategies are used to

 3

formulate messages in order to save the hearer’s face when face-threatening

acts are inevitable or desire. Brown and Levinson outline four main types of

politeness strategies: bald on-record, negative politeness, positive politeness,

and off-record (indirect).

The politeness was not only for one group society, but also it was for

everyone in all conditions that using language as their tools in daily

conversation in order to make a good social interaction with other people in

their life. Thomas (1995: 150) stated that “politeness was a real-world goal

(politeness interpreted as a real desire to be pleasant to others or as the

underlying motivation for an individual’s linguistic behavior)”. Using

politeness made listeners could give a good response to speaker’s question or

request. According to Yule (1996: 60), politeness was showing awareness of

another person’s face; it was related to social distance or closeness. Politeness

referred to the emotional and social sense of self that everyone else to

recognize. In this case, politeness was really needed to build a good

relationship and to have a good social interaction with other people. In other

word, politeness was the expression of the speakers‟ intention to mitigate

face threats carried by certain face threatening acts toward another”.

Off record is one of type of politeness. Off record strategy is a strategy

delivered by a speaker indirectly to a listener as quoted from the book of

politeness, Brown and Levinson (1983: 211) states that: "A communicative

act is done off record if it is done in such a way that it is not possible to

attribute only one clear communicative intention to the act. In other words,
 4

the actor leaves himself an "out" by providing himself with a number of

defensible interpretations. "

"Off record utterances are essentially indirect uses of language: to

construct an off record utterance one says something that is more general

(contains less information in the sense that it rules out for possible states of

affair) or actually different from what one means (intends to be understood)."

Brown and Levinson's add state the off record strategy is a

communicative action off record that is done with various purposes.

Therefore when someone chooses off record is not possible if give only one

information, because basically when doing the act of off-record a person has

some purpose of delivering beyond meaning in fact. Also the language used

in the off record is indirect language use by a speaker. When one the listener

using off record he will only give clue so a listener must interpret it on his

own.

Off record can be found in many ways, one of which is short story. Short

story emerges as a more or less independent type of text at the end of the

eighteen century, parallel to development of the novel. While the novel has

always attracted the interest of literary theorists, the short story has never

actually achieved the status held by length fiction.

“A crucial feature commonly identified with the short story is its

impression of unity since it can be read-in contrast to the novel-in one sitting

without interruption. Due to restriction of length, the plot of the short story
 5

has to be highly selective, entailing an idiosyncratic temporal dimension that

usually focuses on one central moment of action.” (Klarer, 1998:14)

As being above, short story is a part of literary genres, which is

fiction. Short story can be categorized as a fiction since most of it relies on

fantasy stories, such as fairy tale. It is further explained by Klarer (1998:13)

the roots of short story lie on antiquity and the Middle Ages story, myth and

fairy tale relate to the oldest types of textual manifestations, “texts” which

were primarily orally transmitted. Short story as a part of literary works is

interesting to be analyzed. Although it has a quite short plot, small number of

characters and a few places and time as setting, the story can be fully

developed. There are many short stories that have been analyzed. Typically,

the analysis is related to intrinsic elements of the story.

Therefore, the writer entitles this study is Off Record Analysis of the

Rocking Horse Winner.

1.2. Identification of the Study

Based on the explanation above, the writer is able to identify this

study as follows:

a. The short story mostly expresses how off record that used in the Rocking

Horse Winner.

b. The most dominant off record strategies used in the Rocking Horse

Winner.
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1.3. Limitation of the study

It Is based on the previous statement above that This study will be limit

in some aspects as follows:

a. This study will take data from the Rocking Horse Winner.

b. This study will be analyzed in linguistic field, particularly pragmatic

study of the politeness, especially politeness strategies theory of Brown

and Levinson (1987).

c. The frequency of the off record strategies of Brown and Levinson (1987)

only will be used in analyzing data.

d. The types of the off record strategies of Brown and Levinson (1987)

only will be used in analyzing the data.

1.4. Formulation of the Study

It is based on the identification and limitation of the study, therefore, this

study formulated as follow:

a. What kinds of off record strategies used in the Rocking Horse Winner?

b. What are the most frequency of the used strategies?

1.5. Objective of the Study

The objectives of this study are as follow:

a. To identify kinds of the off record strategies used in the Rocking Horse

Winner.

b. To identify the reason of the use of the Rocking Horse Winner.

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1.6. Significance of the Study

Although five types of politeness speaking always be used by all the

people. But specific/typically “ Off Record “ used will be analyzed with

detail through this thesis.

1.7. Definition of the Key Terms

To make more easily for the readers to understand the definition of

important terms or commonly mention as the key terms. Hence the writer

will explain those above as follows:

a. Pragmatics: is the study of language from a functional perspective, that

is, that it attempts to explain facets of linguistic structure by reference

to non-linguistic pressures and causes (Levinson (1983:7)).

b. Politeness strategies: are developed to save the hearers' "face" Face

refers to the respect that an individual has for himself, and maintains

that "dignity" in public or in private situations (Brown and Levinson

(1987)).

c. Off Record:A communicative act is done off record if it is done in such

a way that it is not possible to attribute only one clear communicative

intention to the act (Brown and Levinson (1983: 211)).

d. Short Story: “A crucial feature commonly identified with the short story

is its impression of unity since it can be read-in contrast to the novel-in

one sitting without interruption. Due to restriction of length, the plot of

 8

the short story has to be highly selective, entailing an idiosyncratic

temporal dimension that usually focuses on one central moment of

action.”(Klarer).

1.8. Thesis Organization

Chapter I is Introduction covering : background of the study,

identification of the study, limitation of the study, formulation of the study,

objective of the study, significance of the study, definition of the key terms,

thesis organization.

Chapter II presents: the underlying theory, pragmatics, the concept of

face, politeness theory, off record strategies, the short story of the Rocking

Horse Winner.

Chapter III presents: design of the research, data Sources, procedures of

the Data collection, and procedures of the Data Analysis.

Chapter IV Presents: Data findings and Data analysis.

Chapter V Presents: Conclusion and Suggestion.

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CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter consists of underlying theory, this consist of definition

pragmatics, the concept of face, politeness strategies, and off record strategies.

Those are in below:

2.1. Pragmatics

Pragmatics can be considered as a treatment of a feature of the use of a

language would explain the feature in terms of general principles governing

appropriate utterance, rather than in terms of a semantic rule. For example, the

difference between ‘she had a baby and got married’ and ‘she got married and

had a baby’ would be treated semantically if it were put down to the meaning

of the term ‘and’, but pragmatically if it were put down to a general regularity

that people relate events in the order in which they suppose them to have

happened.

According to Levinson (1983:9) pragmatics covers both context

dependent aspect of language structure and principles of language usage and

understanding that have nothing or little to do with linguistic structure. It is

about how context contribute to meaning. The context that contributes to

meaning means the way people understand the meaning of the language that is
 10

used in a particular context. It is not about how the meaning lays within the

language itself. Pragmatics investigates beyond the literal of an utterance.

Whereas, Leech (1983: 6) adds that pragmatics as a study to analyzes

the meaning in connection with speech situation. Meaning in pragmatics is

defined in connection with speaker or user of language. Pragmatics concerns

focus on how language is used by people to communicate in a certain situation

or context. As an example, a person who wants the air conditioner to be

switched on may say “it is hot here” instead of saying“ turn the air conditioner

on”. In this case the speaker does not communicate his or her will literally. If

the hearer does not understand the context, the hearer probably will end up

doing nothing.

2.2 The Concept of ‘Face’

The concept of face primarily introduced by Goffman’s original

work (1967) on ‘social interaction’ which focused specifically on

explaining someone’s behaviour during talk in action where the conduct of

the individual behaviour is reflective of the society or social order. Face is

an image of self delineated in terms of approved social attributes. Brown

and Levinson (1987; 61) adds that Face is something that is emotionally

invested, and that can be lost, maintained, or enhanced, and must be

constantly attended to in interaction. In general, people cooperate (and

assume each other's cooperation) in maintaining face in interaction, such

cooperation being based on the mutual vulnerability of face.

 11

It is based on the explanation of the “face”. Hence, the concept of

politeness can be viewed from various aspects. In terms of everyday context,

‘politeness’ refers to proper social conduct and tactful consideration of others.

According to Reiter (2000:1) states that etymologically, the term ‘polite’ in

English was derived from late-medieval Latin word politus which means

smooth, or accomplish. Hence being polite can be taken to mean being

‘polished’ or ‘refined’. in the seventeenth century, a polite person as one of

‘refined courteous manners’. According to Reiter (2000:1) it is commonly

agreed that politeness is not an innate ability; it is a skill that is acquired

through the process of socialization. Thus, politeness is considered process

occurred in society to save the other face in order to maintain a communication

among human being in a society.

Grice (1975) explains that a conversation can be taken to be rational or

irrational. Hence his cooperative principle and Maxims of Conversation were

designed for effective and rational exchange of information. In constructing her

rules of politeness, Lakoff (1973) reworked and adapted some of the

cooperative principles and maxims of conversation proposed by Grice (1975).

From her extensive work on how conversations are constructed, Lakoff

(1973:298) proposes that during an interaction, interlocutors use politeness

strategies to achieve a behavior whereby an addressee (hearer) is made to feel

comfortable or “to think well of one” and consequently, “to impart a favorable

feeling about” the content of the communication. Based on this basic concept,
 12

Lakoff (1975) provides two taxonomies of politeness: ‘be clear’ and ‘be

polite’.

2.3 Politeness Theory

2.3.1 Politeness Theory of Leech

It is insights from which were later in cooperated into his classic

Principles of pragmatics (Leech 1983). Already in this early text, the see ds of

his maxim-based view of politeness are evident: the mapping between

(semantic)sense and (pragmatic) for indirectness, and politeness as a scalar

notion are all discussed. For Levinson, politeness (or rat her, tact) is about

strategic conflict avoidance and showing regard for others. But it also serves a

deeper purpose: it ensures the trust and goodwill necessary for enabling the

spirit of cooperation that underlies Gr ice’s cooperative principle (CP) to take

effect.

Therefore, this is quite are evolutionary view ,since, unlike Lakoff

(1973),he did not see politeness and cooperation as competing principles

alternatingly taking precedence depending on the exigencies of the context ;nor

did he, like Brown and Levinson (1987:5), think of Gr ice’s CP as a

‘presumptive framework for communication’ grounded in reality through a set

of politeness strategies. Rather, he vie wed politeness as primary, as setting the

scene for the CP to operate on. As he famously put it, ‘unless you are polite to

your neighbor, the channel of communication between you will breakdown and

you will no longer be able to borrow his mower Grice’s Conversational

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Principle and Conversational Maxims are models of politeness which drive

Leech to adopt within a pragmatic framework in which politeness is seen as a

regulative factor interaction. Grice (1975:45-47) proposes that to carry out

cooperative principle, each speaker must follow conversational maxim.

Interpersonal role of the Cooperative Principle (CP)

There are four in CP maxims as follows:

a. Maxim of Quantity: The speaker should give contribution as much as

the hearer wants.

b. Maxim of Quality: The speaker should give information of a truth

value, thus speaker give information as the hearer wants in order to

avoid saying untruth. Based on both maxim of Quantity–Quality

Harnish (1976: 362) propose combination to make the strongest

relevant claim justifiable by your evidence.

c. Maxim of Relevance: this maxim request each speaker gives relevant

information of a topic.

d. Maxim of Manner: Each speaker tells directly not indirectly.

Leech (1983) attempts to explain why people speak directly to convey

his/her meaning. Reiter (2000:8) elaborates Leech’s theory of politeness into a

pragmatic framework which consists of two main parts; textual rhetoric and

interpersonal rhetoric, each of which is constituted by a set of principles.

Leech (1983) then states politeness can be described in the personal

rhetoric, after he concentrates into three sets of politeness: cooperative

 14

principle (CP), which adopts with its four maxims, his own ‘politeness

principle’ (PP) Leech proposes six maxims of the principle politeness. And the

last principle is ‘irony principle.

The amount of politeness is determined by six politeness is determined by

six politeness maxims and their associated set of scales. Leech (1983:84)

“Relative politeness”, on the other hand, is relative to the norms of “a

particular culture or language community” and varies according to context or

speech situation. This relatively can be attributed to “the difference in the

application of the PP by language communities”.

Leech (1983:132) briefly explains returning to “absolute politeness”, based

Leech the maxims which form the PP are:

a. Tact maxim (in directives [or impositives] and commissives): minimize

cost to other; [maximize benefit to other]

b. Generosity maxim (in directives and commissives): minimize benefit to

self; [maximize cost to self]

c. Approbation maxim (in expressives and representatives [assertives]):

minimize dispraise of other; [maximize praise of other]

d. Modesty maxim (in expressives and representatives): minimize praise of

self; [maximize dispraise of self]

e. Agreement maxim (in representatives): minimize disagreement between

self and other; [maximize agreement between self and other]

 15

f. Sympathy maxim (in representatives): minimize antipathy between self

and other; [maximize sympathy between self and other

2.3.2 Politeness Theory Brown and Levinson

Brown and Levinson (1987: 68) states that politeness strategies are

developed to save the hearers " face " Face refers to the respect that an

individual has for himself, and maintains that "dignity" in public or in private

situations. Usually you try to avoid embarrassing the other person, or make

them feel uncomfortable. Faces Threatening Acts (FTAs) are acts that violate

the listeners' needs to keep his / her dignity, and respect. Politeness strategies

are developed for the primary purpose of dealing with the FTA.

Brown and Levinson (1987:91) classify four main strategies of the

politeness strategies namely bald on record, positive politeness, negative

politeness, and off record. Bald on record as applied when the speaker does not

minimize the threat to hear face. Positive politeness is strategies the concern on

how fulfill hearer’s negative face. Negative politeness is a strategy that concern

on fulfilling hearer’s negative face. Off record is strategy that lets the speaker’s

utterance ambiguous and therefore leaves the speaker with no responsibility to

the act he does.

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2.4 Off Records Strategies

Brown and Levinson (1987:211) were states that a communicative

act are done off record. If it was done in such a way that it is not possible to

attribute only on clear communicative intention to the act. In other words,

the actor leaves himself an “out” by providing himself with a number of

defensible interpretations, he cannot be held to have committed himself to

just one particular interpretation of his fact.

Such off-record utterances are essentially indirect uses of language:

to construct an off-record utterance one says something that is either more

general (contain less information in the sense that it rules out fewer

possible states of affair) or actually different from what one means (intends

to be understood). In either case, H must make some inference to recover

what was in fact intended.

The actual processes that lie behind the comprehension (and thus

the production) of indirection in language are not well understood. We have

already, in talking of indirect speech acts, illustrated the dificullities.

Essentially, though, what is involved is a two-stage process:

a. A trigger serves notice to the addressee that some inference must

be made.

b. Some mode of inference derives what is meant (intended) from

what isactually said, this last providing a sufficient clue for the

inference.
 17

Therefore, a very plausible candidate for the trigger is some violation of a

gricean Maxim. But what kind of inference is involved is a matter of

contention. Lakoff (1975) favours semantic entailment; Searle (1975)

favoursinductive reasoning; Atlas and Levinson (1973) favour practical

reasoning, as used in this paper. Part of what is involved is what premises are

actually made use of to make the inference. We believe tha a crucial premise

will be the reconstructed motive that led S to be indirect in the first place, and

amongst such motives face preservation is perhaps the most important.The

subject is too involved for discussion here, but is of prime importance; since

there are grammartical correlates of implicature, what is at stake is whether a

theory of language can ever be theoretically independent of a more general

theory of communication that includes non-semantic types of inference. In

addition, close inspection show that the majority of ties across conversational

turns are indirect and inferential, and this indicates that a full understanding of

conversational organizationwill have to await an adquate account of indirect

communication.

Leaving aside these issues, let us return to the notion ‘off record’. This

refers not simply to formal types of indirection but rather to such a linguistic

strategies in context. As will become clear, many of the classic off-record

strategies–methapor, irony, understatement, rhetorical quetions,etc. Are very

often actually on record when used, because the clues to their interpretation

(the mutual knowledge of S and H in the context; the intonational, prosodic and

kinesic clues to speaker’s attitude; the clues derived from conversational

 18

squencing) add up to only one reallty viable interpretation in the context. We

have discussed one kind of ‘on-record off recordness’ above in negative-

politeness strategis1: the use of conversationally indirect requests (and other

speech acts), made (inter alia) by questioning or asserting the fecility

conditions on the speech act ofrequesting. In english, and in some other

languages, these have become so conventionallized as forms of requesting that

they have even acquired (optional) syntatic markings of their indirect

illocutionary force.

Whether any given utterance in context is off record or not may be tested by

this question: Is there a viable reponse to a challenge of doing an FTA that

avoids responsibility for a serious FTA (or at least for the challenge one) The

degree of off-recordness varies in relation to the viability of another

interpretation (literal meaning or conveyed meaning) of the utterance, as

meeting the Maxims in the context equally well. Given the vulnerability of

mutual knowledge (the difficulty of ‘knowing’ what is inside anyone else’s

head), and the non-recoverability of intonational and kinesic clues, even fairly

blatant indirectnesses may be defensible as innocent–a speaker could protest

that he didn’t mean an irony in a sarcastic way, for example. S and H could

both go away from

Thus if a speaker who to do an FTA, but want to avoid the

responsibility for doing it, he can do it off record and leave it up to the

addresses to decide how to interpret it. Such off record utterances are

essentially indirect use of language: to construct off record utterance one sys
 19

something that is either more general or actually different from what one

means. In either case, H must make some inference to recover what wan in fact

intended. There are fifteen strategies of off record. Those can be seen in the

following.

1. Give Hints
Violate Relevance 2. Give association clues
Maxim 3. Presuppose

Invite
conversational
4.Under state
implicatures,
Violate Quantity 5.Overstete
via hints
Maxim 6. Use tautologies
triggered by
violation of
gricean maxims

7. Use Contradictions
Violate quality 8. Be Ironic
Maxim 9. Use Metaphors
OFF record
10. Use rhetorical
.Do FTA x,
question
but be
indirect

11. Be ambiguous
12. Be Vague
Be Vague or 13. Over- generalize
Violate Manner
ambiguous 14. Displace
Maxim
15. Be incomplete, use
ellipsis

Chart of strategies Off record by Brown and Levinson ( 1987: 214)

 20

It is based on the chart above that if a speaker want to do an FTA, and

chooses to do it indirectly, he must give H some hints and hope that H picks

upon them and thereby interprets what S really means (intends) to say. The

basic way to do this is to invite conversational implicatures by violating, in

some way, the Gricean Maxim of efficient communication. H is left to ask

himself ‘why did S say that way?’ and to hit upon an interpretation that

makes the violation that makes the violation understandable. For example, if

S says ‘Hmm, it’s pretty stuffy in here’, he may implicate a request that H

open the window. Such a conveyed intent is likely to be off record, and H

can ignore the request with impunity (while,say, agreeing with the

utterance).

2.4.1. Give hints

Brown and Levinson (1987: 213) states that If says something that

is not explicitly relevant, H to search for an interpretation of the

possible relevant. One of the off record strategies which is used to state

some desired act of the speaker to be done by the addressee. By giving

hints the speaker hopes that the addressee know what he mean and does

the act to fulfill what the speaker wants, examples:

a. It’ cold in here (shut the window)

b. The soup’s bit bland (pass the salt)

 21

Provide hint for a motive for lending money. Hints may also be done by

asserting or questioning the condition for a (as in indirect request),

examples:

a. The window isn’t open

b. You didn’t open the window when you come in

2.4.2. Give association, clues

According to Brown and Levinson (1987:215) The speaker

mentions something associated with either precedent addressee’s

experiences or mutual knowledge of other interpretation experiences.

Example:

“My house, it is not very far away” (“there is the path that leads to

my house”).

This context show that S wants to H know as an implicit manner to

come to S house. S shown the expression with a little chit chat.

2.4.3. Presuppose

Brown and Levinson (1987: 217) states that An utterance can be

almost wholly relevant in context and yet the relevance at the level

presupposition, if some one say “ I washed the car again “, he

presupposes that he has done it before (e.g. last week) and therefore

may implicate a criticism. The use again forces H to search for the

relevance the presupposed prior even: if it is relevance only on the

 22

assumption that S and H are counting the time each does the task, and

this turn is relevant because S and H have agreed to share the task, then

a criticism is implicated. Another way to presupposing is to use

contrastive stress, examples :

a. I don’t go around boasting about my achievements

b. It wasn’t me that did it

Here the contrastive stress presupposes that someone does or did.

2.4.4. Understate

Brown and Levinson (1987: 217) states that Understatement are

one way of generating implicatures by saying less than is required.

Typical ways of constructing understatement are to choose a point on a

scalar predicate (e.g. tall, good, nice) that is well below the point that

actually describes the state to affairs, or to hedge a higher point which

will implicate the (lower) actual the state of affair. Note that the

necessity for background knowledge in order to interpret such

informationalyinadequate utterance means that, if they are contextually

marked and therefore on record, they are essentially positive politeness

device, stressing shared knowledge and /or shared values. Examples:

a. what do you think of harry?

b. nothing wrong with him (c.i. I don’t particularly like it)

 23

In addition, by hedging on the amount of some (good) attribute one may

(without irony) implicate that one doesn’t think its’ so good at all.

Example: “That dress is quite nice”

2.4.5. Overstate

Brown and Levinson (1987: 219) states that Speaker exaggerating

or choosing a point on a scale which is higher thanthe real situation,

however, the implicat often lie for beyond what is said,examples :

a. There were a million people in the tonight

b. I tried to call a hundred times, but there was never any answer

The exaggrerating which is used the speaker is aimed in order to get

whole attention from his addresse.

2.4.6. Use tautologies

Brown and Levinson (1987: 220) states that is a very obvious

statement in which speakers encourages the hearer to look for an

informative interpretation of non-informative utterances, because the

speaker just utters patent and necessary truth, examples :

a. boys will be boys

b. war is war

Statement that are blatantly obvious and non–informative, example:

a. you’re men, why don’t you do something about it ?

 24

addressed to men, via an assumption that men are the kind of

creatures that do things, implicates that the addresses ought to do

something to live up to their masculinity.

2.4.10. Use rhetorical questions2.4.7. Use contradiction

Brown and Levinson (1987: 221) states that By stating two things

that contradict each other, speaker thus encourages hearer to look for an

interpretation that reconciles the two contradictory proposition, for

examples:

a. Are you upset about that

b. Well, I’m and I’m not

Such as contradiction may convey a complaint or a criticism, for

instance one might say of drunken friend to a telephone caller.

2.4.8. Irony

Brown and Levinson (1987: 221) states that by saying opposite of

what he meas. Speaker can indirectly convey his intended meaning.

Such as maybe prosodic (e.g. nasality) kinesis (e.g.a smirk) or simply

contextual. Examples:

a. jhonny a real geniuous (after john has just done twenty stupid thing

in a row).

b. Beautiful weather, isn’t it (to postman drenched in rainstorm)

 25

Irony may be combined with understate, examples:

a. This isn’t exactly my ideas of bliss

b. I think maybe john just might be a little bit of a genius

2.4.9. Use metaphors

Brown and Levinson (1987: 222) The speaker uses a word that

described a first subject as being equal to a second subject. Example:

a. Harry’s a real fish

In this context S expressing that Harry likes a fish since fish really

like water. The object between Harry and fish become similar since

both of them like water.

2.4.10. Use rhetorical questions

Brown and Levinson (1987: 223) states that information is

provide with an answer, question are normally put or asked using

interrogative sentence. However rhetorical question is kind of question

with no intention obtaining as answer from the addressee. Question that

their answer hanging in the air, implicated, may be used to do FTA,

examples:

a. How many time do I have to tell you (c.i. too many)

b. What can I say (c.i. nothing, it’s so bad)

 26

Sometime the rhetorical nature such question is evidenced only in

sequencing, examples:

a. I haven’t seen you all to see if you’re well

b. Just what would we go wanting there (c.i. nothing)

Words to help to force the rhetorical interpretation of question (to push

them on record) include just, even, ever, as in:

a. Did he ever come to visit me once while I was in hospital.

b. Just why would I have done that.

2.4.11. Be ambiguous

Brown and Levinson (1987: 225) states that the purpose ambiguity

may be achieved through metaphors, it is not always clear exactly

which of the connotation of a metaphor intended. Stretching the term

“ambiguity” to include the ambiguity between the literal meaning of an

utterance and any of possible implicatures, examples:

a. John a pretty sharp cookie

b. John’s pretty smooth cookie

Example above could be implied either as a compliment or an insult,

dependingon which of connotation of sharp or smooth are latched on it.

 27

2.4.12. Be vague

Brown and Levinson (1987: 226) states that Speaker may go off

record with an FTA being vague who about the object of the FTA

what the offence is “ in criticism “. Examples:

a. Perhaps some one did something naughty .

b. Looks like someone may have had too much to drink, (vague

understatement)

2.4.13. Over–generalization

Brown and Levinson (1987: 226) states that generalization strategy

the speaker did not give clear information by saying something general.

It may be have the object of the FTA vaguely off record. Addressee

than has the choice of deciding whether the general rule applies to him

in case, examples:

a. The lawn has got to be mown

b. If that door is shut completely, it sticks

Similarly for the use of proverbs, although they may be

conventionalized to the extent of being on record. Examples:

a. A stitch in time save nine

b. People who live in glass house shouldn’t throw stones

 28

2.4.14. Displaces hearer

Brown and Levinson (1987: 226) states that speaker may go off

record as to who the target for his FTA, or speaker may pretend to

address the FTA to someone whom it wouldn’t threaten and hope that

the real target will see that the FTA is aimed at him / her. Example:

 Jane, could you run to the stock-room and borrow a stapler for

me?

When was a secretary give an instruction to another secretary. Even

though there was an employee that was close relationship with her to

help her taking a stapler. But he is a professor. So she chooses to give

instruction to another secretary. It should be a professor to be a H but

replacing by the another secretary to be a H.

2.4.15. Be incomplete

Brown and Levinson (1987: 227) The speaker may be pretend to

addressee the FTA to somehow one who would not threaten and hope

the real target will see that the FTA is aimed at him/her. Examples:

“Oh sir, a headache…..”

This information was used by S when S doing some activity and S

feel real headache and taking enough rest.

 29

2.5 Synopsis of the Rocking-Horse Winner by D. H. Lawrence

A beautiful woman blessed with advantages marries a handsome man

for love. People say that she is wonderful mother but she does not fool the

children, however. They know she does not love them, likes anyone else. They

had a nice house with servants, baby sister and gardener, but the mother and

father never seem to have enough money to support their elegant lifestyle.

‘There must be more money’ the words that always whisper everyday

in the house. Paul’s mother told that they do not have enough money since

your father was not a lucky man. The words ‘Unlucky’ always reminding in his

mind and he did not want to be an unlucky man.

Paul the boy had a special talent. When he ride his rocking horse and

full concentrate on it, he can guess accurately the horse name that will be a

winner in the horse race championship. He joined together with the gardeners

and his uncle for gambling in horse championship and he got a lot of money

for his mom and family. Paul died due his final effort to guess the horse name

winner and he win huge money in his last gambling.

Michael J. Cummings (2008)

(http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides5/RockingHorse.html.Friday,
March 23,2018 At 8.05 am)
 30

CHAPTER III

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

In this chapter, the writer would like to explain about method that is

utilized. The chapter also deals with Research Design, Source of the Research

Data, Procedures of the Data Collection and Procedures of the Data

Analysis.

3.1 Research Design

In this research the writer will apply descriptive qualitative method for

the analyzing data. The writer uses qualitative method because the writer will

analyze the descriptive data based on the uses dialogue used in the short story

of The Rocking Horse Winner. This is aimed to qualitative research is not to

verify a causal relationship by falsifying a non relationship hypothesis.

According to Sugiyono (2006:9) qualitative is research method that is based on

the philosophy post positivism, used to examine the condition of natural object.

Creswell (2003:181) scrutinizes that qualitative is research takes places in the

natural setting, the qualitative researcher often goes to the site (home, office)of

the participant to conduct the research. While, According to Arikunto

(1998:291), a descriptive research is not used to test the hypothesis but only to

describe what is being seen, faced, observed and known.

It is based on the above, this research is qualitative, the writer has some

process of doing the research this is circular, having completed the next stage,
 31

it could come back to the first stage to change some aspect or make some

remedy.

3.2 Source of the Research Data

a. Primary Data

The primary data is taken from the short story of ‘The Rocking-Horse

Winner’.

b. Secondary Data

The secondary data consists of some books of pragmatics and Universal

Politeness as the underlying theory.

3.3 Procedures of the Data Collection

In this section, the writer has a technique in collecting the data of this

study. As stated by Sugiyono (2006: 225) that in qualitative research, for doing

technique data collection with natural setting. The fundamental methods relied

on by qualitative researcher for gathering information is participant in the

setting, direct observation, in–depth interviewing, document review.

The sequences process of data collection as follow:

a. The writer reads short story of famous short story‘The Rocking-Horse

Winner’ by D. H. Lawrence for many times in order to understand the

its story.

b. The writer then underlines utterance which content lexical choice.

c. The writer then matches utterance based on strategy of off record

politeness
 32

3.4 Procedures of the Data Analysis

In data analysis, the writer checks and analyzes the data obtained. The

technique of the data analysis will be explained as follows:

a. After the writer collect the data well. The writer then prepares to

classify the data obtained.

b. After classifying each utterances of conversation the roles in ‘The

Rocking-Horse Winner’.

c. The writer then analyzes of the data based on theory of the strategy

politeness by Brown and Levinson(1987) particularly off record

strategies.

d. The last, the writer concludes based on the whole –previous chapters.
 33

CHAPTER IV

DATA FINDINGS AND DATA ANALYSIS

In this Chapter the writer analyzes the data in the short story “The

Rocking Horse Winner” based on previous chapter explained. The writer

analyzes in linguistics, particularly pragmatic study of the politeness

strategies referring of the theory of Brown and Levinson (1987). Data

obtained data from ‘The Rocking Horse Winner’ short story to analyze

specifically to frequency and type of the off record strategies of Brown and

Levinson (1987) only will be used in analyzing data. Data finding and

analyzes will be explained as follow.

4.1 Data Findings

In this part the writer will find all the data that will be used as

resources of analysis. The data obtained from 'The Rocking Horse

Winner’short story. The data are the utterances found in ‘The Rocking

Horse Winner'’Short story. The data of this study use the script of ‘The

Rocking Horse Winner ‘Short story.

Table 1below will show about frequency off record strategy were

used and total percentage of used for each category off record strategy

and statistic graph also will show detail of which off record category

that was used mostly in ‘The Rocking Horse Winner’ short story.
 34

Table 1

The percentage of ‘Off Record Strategies’ used

No Strategies Frequency Percentage

1 Give Hints 0 0%

2 Give Association, clues 0 0%

3 Presuppose 0 0%

4 Under state 3 5%

5 Overstate 25 45%

6 Use Tautologies 0 0%

7 Use Contradictions 1 2%

8 Irony 4 7%

9 Use Metaphors 2 4%

10 Use Rhetorical Questions 6 11%

11 Be Ambiguous 2 4%

12 Be Vague 0 0%

13 Over-Generalization 13 23%

14 Displaces Hearer 0 0%

15 Be Incomplete 0 0%

Total frequency and percentage: 56 100%

 35

Percentage
50% 45%
45%
40%
35%
30%
23%
25%
20%
15% 11%
10% 5% 7%
4% 4% Percentage
5% 0% 0% 0% 0% 2% 0% 0% 0%
0%

4.2 Data Analysis

In this section, the writer would like to analyze some data that have

been founded. So the following data are the examples of off record

strategies used by short story of “The Rocking Horse Winner” starting

from the most frequently used to the most rarely used.

4.2.1 Overstate

This strategy used by the speaker for exaggerates

conversations, can also say like hyperbole. It can be seen in

following data.
 36

Data 1:

They read it in each other eyes.

It is based on the data 1 above that we can know that “They

read it in each other eyes” was not the real meaning of the sentence.

The word read in the sentence was explaining about two people that

were thinking for something needs to do in further. Both of them did

not talking anything and keep silent looking for something idea.

Data 2:

The failure made deep lines come into her face. Her children

were growing up, they would have to go to school.

It is based on the data 2 above that the words deep lines come

into her face is not the real meaning of the sentence. The words deep

lines come into her face is explaining about disappointed feel by her

since she has married with the unlucky man. She also thinking and

not believe it with children that need more money for everything

since they were growing up fast. She was thinking to get extra

money to fill up the sufficient money every month.

Data 3:

The boy watched her with unsure eyes.

It is based on the data 3 above that we know that “The boy

watched her with unsure eyes” was not the real meaning of the
 37

sentence. The words unsure eyes in the sentence are explaining

about the boy that was listening carefully for his mother talk but he

did not fully trust with what his mother talking about. He still

listening but actually he believe that his mother wrong about the

lucky man and he trust his self that he was not an unlucky man.

Data 4:

But he saw, by the lines of her mouth, that she was trying to

hide something from him.

It is based on the data 4 above that the words line of her

mouth was not the real meaning of the sentence. The words line of

her mouth was explaining about the boy that was listening carefully

for his mother speaking about his father that mentioned he was the

unlucky man. The boy trying to analyze what his mother talking

about by listening carefully but he knew that his mother hiding

something that was not told to him.

Data 5:

"God told me!" he said, continuing the lie.

It is based on the data 5 above that "God told me!" was not

the real meaning of the sentence. The words "God told me!" was

explaining about he got something idea or whispering by somebody

in other word that he do not know who was? He also expressing and
 38

describing that he is a lucky man. Lucky man that can guess

correctly the winner of future horse race by know the name of the

winner.

Data 6:

When the two girls were playing dolls in the play-room, he

would sit on his big rocking-horseand ride it madly with such energy

that worried the little girls.

It is based on the data 6 above that we know that “big

rocking-horse” was not real meaning sentence. The word big in the

sentence of big rocking-horsewasjust a hyperbole. In fact that is just

small Rocking-horse. It is also expression of the baby sister that was

worried with the boy behavior. He was riding out of the rocking

horse with crazy manner.

Data 7:

Wildly the horse rode on, the waving dark hair of the boy

going up and down, his eyes with a strange fire in them.

It is based on the data 7 above that we know that “his eyes

with a strange fire.” was not real meaning sentence. The word

strange fire in the sentence of his eyes with a strange fire was

explaining about he was very focus on what he was doing and did

not care about anybody. He just focus to finishing riding the his
 39

rocking horse until finish to let him know the winner of the future

horse race, if he can be finishing his rocking horse riding.

Data 8:

But Paul's fierce blue eyes, set rather close together, looked

straight ahead.

It is based on the data 8 above that we know that fierce blue

eyes, set rather close together was not real meaning sentence. The

word fierce blue eyes in the sentence was explaining about he was

focusing on his riding the rocking horse. He just focus to finishing

riding the his rocking horse until finish to let him know the winner of

the future horse race, if he can be finishing his rocking horse riding.

Data 9:

He lived for horse racing, and the small boy lived it with

him.

It is based on the data 9 above that we know that lived for

horse racing was not real meaning sentence. The words lived for

horse racing in the sentence was explaining about he was a lucky

man that can guess accurately the future winner of the horse racing.

He dedicated and sacrifices his life also to guess the winner of the

horse race championship.

 40

Data 10:

The child had never been to a race meeting before, and his

eyes were blue fire.

It is based on the data 10 above that we know that “his eyes

were blue fire.” was not real meaning sentence. The word blue fire

in the sentence of his eyes were blue fire was explaining about he

was absolutely know which horse that was going to be a winner in

the future horse racing. The word blue fire is also an expression of

the boy that has a strong and special talent to guess the horse race

championship winner by riding his special rocking horse.

Data 11:

He pursed his mouth tight, and watched.

It is based on the data 11 above that we know that mouth

tight was not real meaning sentence. The words mouth tight in the

sentence was explaining about he was quite and not telling or talking

for any words. It was done by him if he was riding the rocking horse.

He must ride until finish base on his imagination to get the name of

the winner. Mouth tight expressing that he was focusing on the

target and what he was doing and will do not care to everybody even

his little sister or other persons.

 41

Data 12:

The child, with red cheeks and with eyes shining, was

strangely calm.

It is based on the data 12 above that we know that eye

shinning was not real meaning sentence. The word eye shinning in

the sentence was explaining about he was focusing on something

that he trust. He did not want anybody know about his talent except

his gardener. He always less of talking with other people and will not

talk to anybody when he was riding his rocking horse until he got to

the finish line.

Data 13:

"It's Master Paul, sir," said Bassett in a secret, religious

voice.

It is based on the data 13 above that we know that religious

voice was not real meaning sentence. The word religious voice in the

sentence was explaining something polite and wise with strong

character since Bassett the gardener was talking to Paul’s uncle that

was rich and success. Basset must maintain the way of talking and

voice similar likes a Pastor in Church since he was respected fully

the Paul’s uncle.

 42

Data 14:

"It's as if he had it from heaven. Like Daffodil, now, for the

Lincoln.

It is based on the data 14 above that we know that from

heaven was not real meaning sentence. The words from heaven in

the sentence were explained that Lincoln the horse that he guesses

will win in the horse race become come true. He guesses correctly

for Daffodil and now he guesses again correctly for Lincoln and both

of the horse names were getting when he riding the rocking horse

until finish line. Finish line on the rocking horse will give him name

of the winner.

Data 15:

So I thought if I was lucky, it might stop whispering."

It is based on the data 15 above that we know that

whispering was not real meaning sentence. The word whispering in

the sentence was explaining about he was an unlucky boy and when

he wish and focusing during riding the rocking horse until finish, he

felt like somebody whispering to him the horse winner name. He

thinks that somebody whispering to him due to he was an unlucky

boy and he do not want to be a lucky boy as his mother always state

to him to be a lucky man.

 43

Data 16:

The boy watched him with big blue eyes, that had a strange

cold fire in them, and he said never a word.

It is based on the data 16 above that we know that a strange

cold fire was not real meaning sentence. The word a strange cold

fire in the sentence was explaining about he was focusing on his

riding the rocking horse. He just focus to finishing riding the his

rocking horse until finish to let him know the winner of the future

horse race, if he can be finishing his rocking horse riding. So,

nobody allowed talk to him and he also will not talking to anybody.

Data 17:

But the voices screamed and seemed to shake the house

among the flowers and the new furniture.

It is based on the data 17 above that we know that shake the

house was not real meaning sentence. The words shake the house in

the sentence was explaining about Paul’s riding the rocking horse

and come out with the angry loud voice that was screaming people.

That was a strength voice comes out to help him keep focusing

riding the rocking horse until finish line. He was looks like angry

man with his voice and the he will stop once he was on the finish

line and know the horse winner for future horse race championship.
 44

Data 18:

So the horse, now starting to look a little worn, stood in the

boy's bedroom.

It is based on the data 18 above that we know that horse was

not real meaning sentence. The word horse in the sentence was

explaining about a small rocking horse or toy that was standby

without jockey. The rocking horse also had looks worn and old.

This the fact that the rocking horse has been there for long time and

riding by Master Paul extremely to guess the winner of the horse

championship.

Data 19:

It was a soundless noise, yet rushing and powerful.

It is based on the data 19 above that we know that soundless

noise was not real meaning sentence. The word soundless noise in

the sentence was explaining about he was very focus on what he was

doing and did not care about anybody. He just focus to finishing

riding the his rocking horse until finish to let him know the winner of

the future horse race, if he can be finishing his rocking horse riding.
 45

Data 20:

Something huge, in violent, quiet motion.

It is based on the data 20 above that we know that something

huge was not real meaning sentence. The word something huge in

the sentence was explaining about he was having an imagination

when he was riding the horse until finish. He capture on a big horse,

in violent, and quite motion that will be a winner on the

championship. But he still does not know the horse name, since he

still riding the rocking horse and have not touch the finish line yet.

Data 21:

"It's Malabar!" He looked at her with shining eyes for one

strange and senseless second, as he stopped pushing his wooden

horse.

It is based on the data 21 above that we know that shinning

eyes was not real meaning sentence. The words shinning eyes in the

sentence was explaining about he was focusing on what he was

doing and did not care to anybody. He would not talk to anybody

until he stops ride the rocking horse and get name of the winner. He

has strange behavior and has big different behavior with similar age

another boy or kids. He listened from his mother about less of money

troubling his mind to get more money for the family.

 46

Data 22:

Only she herself knew that at the center of her heart was a

hard little place that could not feel love, no, not for anybody.

It is based on the data 22 above that we know that center of

her heart was a hard little place was not real meaning sentence. The

words center of her heart was a hard little place in the sentence was

explaining about unhappy of with her family since the family always

sort of money every month due to small income from her husband.

He looks like rich family in front of their neighbor but actually that

real condition was not likes look like.

Data 23:

There was a beautiful woman who started life with all the

advantages, but she had no luck.

It is based on the data 23 above that we know that No Luck

was not real meaning sentence. The words No Luck in the sentence

was explaining about she always sort of money every month. Her

husband monthly income was very small and could not cover their

lifestyle. She always thinks that married with lucky man was better

than married with rich man. She was also thinking that her family

was not the happy family. She can’t love all of her children fully like

other mothers can love their children.

 47

Data 24:

And so the house came to be filled with the unspoken words.

It is based on the data 24 above that we know that unspoken

words was not real meaning sentence. The words unspoken words in

the sentences were explaining about there was no love each other in

that family. All persons in the house were look like whispering about

“We need more money”, “We need more money” and continue like

that every day.

Data 25:

"Well. I suppose," she said slowly and bitterly, "it's because

your father has no luck."

It is based on the data 25 above that we know that No Luck

was not real meaning sentence. The words No Luck in the sentence

was explaining about she always sort of money every month. Her

husband monthly income was very small and could not cover their

lifestyle. She always thinks that married with lucky man was better

than married with rich man. She was also thinking that her family

was not the happy family. She can’t love all of her children fully like

other mothers can love their children.

 48

4.2.2 Over-Generalization

Brown and Levinson (1987:226) states that the generalization

strategy the speaker did not give clear information by saying

something in general. It can be seen in following data.

Data 1:

Behind the shining modern rocking-horse, behind the smart

doll's house, a voice would say quietly, "There must be more money!

There must be more money!"

It is based on the data 1 above that the sentence was

explaining about the little boy that was riding his rocking horse and

trying to guess the winner of the horse race with his believe.

Data 2:

It came whispering from the movement of the rocking-horse

and even the horse, bending his wooden head impatiently to go

faster, heard it.

It is based on the data 2 above that the sentence was

explaining about the little effort to hardly focusing on what he was

seeing in his imagination to guess the winner of the future horse

racing.
 49

Data 3:

The foolish puppy was looking even more foolish than usual,

for he heard the secret words all over the house.

It is based on the data 3 above that the sentence was

explaining about the little boy that was riding his rocking horse and

hope he was get some lucky and can create more money for his

mother.

Data 4:

When he had ridden to the end of his mad little journey, he

climbed down and stood for a long time in front of the rocking-horse,

looking into its face.

It is based on the data 4 above that the sentence was

explaining about the little boy that was believe if he ride the rocking

horse until finish referring to his imagination he can guess correctly

the winner of the future horse racing.

Data 5:

It looked wild with its red mouth slightly open and wide and

bright glass eyes.

It is based on the data 5 above that the sentence was

explaining about the little boy that was talking with his rocking

horse.
 50

Data 6:

He knew the horse could take him to where there was luck, if

only he forced it.

It is based on the data 6 above that the sentences explaining

about the little boy was following his believe and imagination about

the rocking horse will let him know about who is the winner of the

horse racing if he pushing hard on it when riding the rocking horse.

Data 7:

So he would get on again, and start on his wild ride, hoping

at last to get there.

It is based on the data 7 above that the sentence was

explaining about the little boy was riding the rocking horse and full

concentrate on what he believe.

Data 8:

The boy looked at his uncle from those big, hot, blue eyes, set

rather close together.

It is based on the data 8 above that the sentence was

explaining about the little boy was not trust to his uncle fully
 51

Data 9:

I keep it safely locked up, sir

It is based on the data 9 above that the sentence was

explaining about his gardener is trusted man.

Data 10:

I don't want mother to know I was lucky, said the boy

It is based on the data 10 above that the sentences was

explaining about the boy that had madden a lot of money with his

gardener and his uncle by gambling on horse race.

Data 11:

As his mother read it, her face hardened and became more

expressionless.

It is based on the data 11 above that the sentence was

explaining about expression of mother when the boy gave her some

surprise gift in her birthday.

Data 12:

Then a cold, determined look came on her mouth. She hid the

letter under the pile of others, and said not a word about it.

It is based on the data 12 above that the sentence was

explaining was about expression of mother when the boy give her

some surprise gift in her birthday.

 52

Data 13:

He looked even more worried and started to act strangely, as

if something was going to explode in him.

It is based on the data 13 above that the sentence was

explaining about expression of the little boy that was worried about

the gambling since he was lost his money in the previous race.

4.2.3 Used Rhetorical Questions

Brown and Levinson (1987:223) states that information is

provide with the answer, question are normally put or asked using

interrogative sentence. Rhetorical Question is kind of question with

no intention obtaining an answer from the addressee. It can be seen

in following data.

Data 1:

"Oh! Will you? And is father not lucky?"

It is based on the data 1 above that the sentence was

explaining about husband that has small monthly income or salary.

He did not find any jobs with bigger income and his wife consider

working as freelance to help their sufficient monthly income every

month. But the boy was not really sure about his father was the un-

lucky man.
 53

Data 2:

"Hello, you young jockey! Riding a winner?"

It is based on the data 2 above that the sentence was

explaining about uncle that mentioned the boy very busy with his

rocking horse. It was alsoexplaining about he was very focus on

what he was doing and did not care about anybody. He just focus to

finishing riding the his rocking horse until finish to let him know the

winner of the future horse race, if he can be finishing his rocking

horse riding.

Data 3:

"Aren't you growing too big for a rocking-horse?

It is based on the data 3 above that the sentence was

explaining about mother that was not happy with his boy that always

riding the rocking horse. It was It was alsoexplaining about he was

very focus on what he was doing and did not care about anybody. He

just focus to finishing riding the his rocking horse until finish to let

him know the winner of the future horse race, if he can be finishing

his rocking horse riding.

 54

Data 4:

"Gets on without one all right?"

It is based on the data 4 above that the sentence was

explaining about the uncle that was not trust to the little boy said and

he think that was a joke.

Data 5:

"What, pennies?"

It is based on the data 5 above that the sentence was

explaining about the uncle that was not trust to the little boy said and

he think that was a joke. It not about the real joke but it was

expressing about Paul’s uncle did not believe that a small kid can

guess the winner of the horse racing even though he know the rider

name and the horse name on the horse championship.

Data 6:

"What might stop whispering?"

It is based on the data 6 above that the sentence was

explaining about house that always talking about sort of money

every time.
 55

4.2.4 Irony

Brown and Levinson (1987:221) state that saying opposite of

what he means. It can be seen in following data.

Data 1:

She married for love

It is based on the data 1 above that the sentence was

explaining about women that feel unhappy with her married since

she did not get the lucky man. It is also an expression of

disappointed feel by her since she has married with the unlucky man.

She also thinking and not believe it with children that need more

money for everything since they were growing up fast. She was

thinking to get extra money to fill up the sufficient money every

month.

Data 2:

"The uncle thought it a good joke."

It is based on the data 2 above that the sentence was

explaining about the uncle that was not trust to what was the little

boy said. It not about the real joke as mentioned in the sentence but

Joke was expressing about Paul’s uncle did not believe that a small

kid can guess the winner of the horse racing even though he know

the rider name and the horse name on the horse championship.
 56

Data 3:

Paul was now too old to eat with the young children.

It is based on the data 3 above that the sentence was

explaining about Paul behavior since he was growing up but he looks

like a child or baby. He has different mentality comparing with

children with similar age with him. She always thinking on what his

mother say that your father was no luck and he did not want to be the

unlucky man.

Data 4:

"Surely, you're too big for a rocking-horse!" his mother had

said at the time.

It is based on the data 4 above that the sentence was

explaining about Paul behavior since he was growing up but he looks

like a child or baby. He has different mentality comparing with

children with similar age with him. She always thinking on what his

mother say that your father was no luck and he did not want to be the

unlucky man.
 57

4.2.5 Understate

Understatement is one way of generating implicates by

saying less than is required. It can be seen in following data.

Data 1:

That's why it's better to be born lucky than rich

It is based on the data 1 above, the words born lucky than

rich in the sentence was not the real meaning. It was explaining

about she was unhappy with her family since always sort of money.

Disappointed was felt by the wife since she always unhappy caused

by less of monthly income. She was assumed that she chose the

wrong guy for married. She always thinking that if she married with

the lucky man last time, this situation will not be happened.

Data 2:

Perhaps God. But He never tells

It is based on the data 2 above, the sentence was explaining

about she was unhappy with her choice to marries with her husband.

If we were referring to the real meaning actually God never tell

people directly but through God sign. It was an expression of her

disappointed feel. She just trying to looks happy in front of her kids,

husband and neighbor. Inside deep of her hurt she could not love her

kids much but she tried to do it.

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Data 3:

"Well... never mind! Perhaps I'm not really,"

It is based on the data 3 above the word Perhaps I'm not

reallywas not thereal meaning. It was an expression that she was

unhappy with her choice to married with her husband. She always

sort of money every month and did not have love in her family. She

expressed that she was not the unlucky girl but deep inside of her

heart she felt that she was the unlucky girl.

4.2.6 Used Metaphors

Metaphors is the speaker uses a word that described a first

subject as being equal to a second subject. It can be seen in

following data.

Data 1:

That was as sure as eggs.

It is based on the data 1 above that the sentence was

explaining about eggs that was describing about the round/circle

thing where there is no edge, so that was means he was absolutely

sure with what he said and that there was no doubt what he believes.
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Data 2:

I hate our house for whispering

It is based on the data 2 above the words house for

whispering in the sentence was describing about the situation of the

house that was no love and always talking about sort of money every

day. Paul can see and feel that there was no love in his house. He

was feel that every minutes people talking about money and un

luckyfor his father.

4.2.7 Be Ambiguous

Ambiguity means between the literal meaning of an utterance

and any of possible implicates. It can be seen in following data.

Data 1:

If you're rich, you may lose your money

It is based on the data 1 above that the sentence was

explaining about she was unhappy with her husband income, since

she always sort of money.

Data 2:

But if you're lucky, you will always get more money."

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It is based on the data 2 above that, the sentence was

explaining about she was unhappy with her husband income, since

she always sort of money.

4.2.8 Use Contradiction

Brown and Levinson (1987:221) states that by stating two

things that contradict each other speaker thus encourage hearers to

look for an interpretation that reconcile the two contradictory

proposition. It can be seen in following data.

Data 1:

Just as no one ever says, "We are breathing!" even though

breaths are coming and going all the time.

It is Based on the data 1 above, the sentence was explaining

about housing that look always talking about sort of money but the

words “Sort of Money” never been told by anybody. There was one

contradiction used in "We are breathing!" even though breaths are

coming and going all the time. The word “even though” show the

contradiction between one and other.

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CHAPTER V

CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION

This chapter will conclude the data analysis based on previous

chapter and give the suggestion. The conclusion is drawn after getting

research finding. Then the suggestion leads for further researchers who

are interesting in doing similar field (off record strategies, linguistics).

5.1 Conclusion

After conducting, analyzing and discussing the politeness theory of

Brown and Levinson (1987 with writer limitation is only analyze

related to the off record strategies used by the ‘Rocking Horse Winner’

short story. The fifteen strategies of the off record of the politeness

applied in analyzing the data found.

The writer found 56 items of off record strategies that are used in

‘The Rocking Horse Winner’ short story. This kinds of the categories to

identify the kinds of off record are understate, overstate, use

contradictions, irony, use metaphors, use rhetorical questions, be

ambiguous and the last strategy use is over- generalization.

The writer found8 types of off strategies are used mostly in‘The

Rocking Horse Winner’ short story and the detail numbers of strategies

are 3 understate
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sentences, 25 overstate sentences,1 use contradiction sentence. 4 Irony

sentences, 2 use metaphors sentences, 6 use rhetorical questions

sentences, 2 ambiguous sentences and 13 over-generalization sentences.

From the result of the data analysis it can be concluded that

Overstate is the mostly used in the short story or we take and

conclusion if the stories are fictive story (not real) overstate will be the

most commonly used comparing with the another off record categories.

5.2 Suggestion

The writer hopes to the next researcher that after reading this thesis,

the next researcher can see that the politeness especially off record

strategy is easy. And, the writer hopes the next researchers are able to

understand and study the off record strategy, because off record strategy

is important to in our life to get a good communication. Furthermore the

writer expects the next researchers are interested to analysis off record

in several short stories since in short story there are so many

conversation between two or more people to deliver their message. So

short story is very interesting to be analyzed and also analyzing the

short story is relative simple comparing with movies. The writer just

read the short story for many time to analyze the utterance in the short

story. So the writer suggested to the next researchers to study ‘The

Rocking Horse Winner’ short story with other perspectives or

 63

approaches such as psychological approaches, psycho-analytic and

implicative.
 64

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Brown, Penelope and Levinson, C. Stephen.1987. Politeness: Some Universals

in Language Usage. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.

Goffman, Erving.1967. Interactional Ritual. Chicago: Aldine Publishing

Company.

Goffman, Erving.1981. On Face-Work: An Analysis of Ritual Elements in

Social Interaction.Psychiatry,18: 213-31. In lever and Hutcheson (1972).

Grice, H.P. 1975. “Logic and Conversation”, Syntax and Semantics, Speech
Act, 3, New York: Academic Press.

Reiter, Rosina Marquez. 2000. Linguistic Politeness in Britain and Uruguay: A

Contrastive Study of Request and Apologies. Amsterdam: John Benjamins
Co.

Sugiono. 2011. MetodePenelitianPendidikan.Jakarta :Alfabeta.

Arikunto. Suharsimi 2010 Prosedur Penelitian: Suatu pendekatan praktik.

Jakarta Pt. Rhenika Cipta.

Cresswell, Jhon.(2009). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed

Methods Approaches.United Kingdom: Sage Publications.

Klarer, Mario. (1998). An Introduction to Literary Studies. London.

Leech, G. (1983). Principle of Pragmatic. Longman. London and New York

Thomas, Jenny. 1995. Meaning in Interaction: An Introduction to Pragmatics:

London: Longman.

Yule, George. 1996. Pragmatics. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Michael J. Cummings. 2008

(http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides5/RockingHorse.html.
Friday, March 23,2018. At 08.05 pm)
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APPENDIX

SYNOPSIS OF “THE ROCKING-HORSE WINNER”

BY D. H. LAWRENCE

Synopsis of the Rocking-Horse Winner by D. H. Lawrence

A beautiful woman blessed with advantages marries a handsome man

for love, but the love eventually runs dry. Feeling as if her three children a boy

and two girls had been thrust upon her, she resents them in her heart.

Outwardly, however, she behaves as if she loves them dearly, and people say
 66

she is wonderful mother. She does not fool the children, however. They know

she does not love them, nor anyone else.

They see it in her eyes. The children and their parents reside in a nice

house with “discreet” servants, but the mother and father never seem to have

enough money to support their elegant lifestyle even though they both have

incomes. At his office in town, the father has promising business prospects, but

that is all they are promising.

The parents try various schemes to increase their income, but financial

success eludes them. And so the house comes to be haunted by the unspoken

phrase: There must be more money! At Christmas, even the rocking horse, the

teddy bear, the big doll in its pram, and the puppy hear the phrase.

One day, Paul asks his mother, Hester, why the family always borrows

the car of her brother, Oscar Creswell, instead of getting one of its own. She

explains that they lack the money to buy one. When her husband tries to make

more money, he has no luck. If you're lucky, she tells Paul, you have money.

That is why it is better to be born lucky than rich. When asserts that he himself

is lucky, his mother does not seem to believe him. Peeved at her lack of faith in

him but wanting to prove himself to her, he goes off by himself wondering how

to generate luck. In the following days, he rides his rocking horse in the

nursery in a wild charge to nowhere while his sisters play with their dolls.

Getting off, he commands the horse “to take me where there is luck,” then
 67

remounts it and rides on, whipping the horse on the neck with a lash Uncle

Oscar bought for him.

Paul's nurse, Miss Wilmot, cautions him that his rough riding will break

the toy, and his sister Joan says, “I wish he’d leave off!” When Uncle Oscar

visits him one day with his mother, the boy is riding hard as usual. “Riding a

winner?” the uncle says.

His mother tells the boy that he is getting too big to be riding a rocking

horse. But Paul does not respond until he completes his ride. When he

dismounts, he says, “Well, I got there.” His mother asks where, and he says,

“Where I wanted to go.” When Uncle Oscar asks what he named the horse,

Paul says he has different names.

In the previous week, his name was Sansovino, after the name of a

horse that won the race at Ascot. His sister explains that the family’s gardener,

Bassett, keeps Paul up to date on racing news. Basset, who served as Creswell's

batman (military officer's assistant) in the war (the First World War, known in

author Lawrence's time as the Great War), loves horse racing and places bets

for Paul. Later, when Creswell takes Paul for a ride through the countryside to

his home in Hampshire, he asks the boy for advice on which horse to bet on in

the Lincoln race. Paul recommends Daffodil. “What about Mirza?” Paul says,

“I only know the winner”.

When he began gambling, Paul says, he lost five shillings Basset had

given him. Then he started winning with ten shillings from Uncle Oscar and
 68

concluded that his uncle had passed luck onto him. At all costs, though, he

wants his uncle to keep his betting a secret. After Creswell agrees to remain

mum on the subject, he asks the boy how much he plans to bet on Daffodil.

Paul’s answer—three hundred pounds stuns and amuses him. Sometime later,

he takes Paul to the Lincoln races, where Oscar bets on Mirza and gives Paul

money to place a bet.

“The child had never been to a race-meeting before," the narrator says,

"and his eyes were blue fire”. Daffodil wins and Mirza finishes third. Uncle

Oscar then asks Paul whether he is telling the truth about the amounts of

money that he bets. Paul affirms that he is and says his uncle can become

partners with him and Bassett if he is so inclined. But the boy again asks him to

keep everything a secret.

One afternoon, Creswell takes Paul and Basset to Richmond Park (a

recreation area in London). There, Bassett tells Creswell that he and Paul lose

only when they are in doubt about a horse. But they always win when Paul

regards a particular horse as a sure thing. It's as if he had it from heaven,”

Bassett says. Bassett keeps all of Paul’s winnings for him under lock and key

except for twenty pounds held in reserve in the deposit of the Turf

Commission.

In another race, Paul is sure about a horse named Lively Spark when

odds are ten to one against it. Paul wins ten thousand pounds, Basset five

thousand, and Uncle Oscar two thousand. When Creswell asks Paul about his
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plans for his winnings, the boy tells him he is reserving it for his mother, who

has no luck because his father has no luck. After his mother gets the money,

the house will stops whispering that the family is short of money, Paul says.

Paul gives his uncle five thousand pounds to deposit with the family lawyer.

The lawyer in turn is to give Paul’s mother a thousand pounds each year on her

birthday but is not to reveal the source of the money except to say that a

relative had reserved it for her.

His mother, meanwhile, had begun to earn extra money sketching

figures of women in the latest fashions. An artist friend for whom she works

sells the sketches to drapers for their newspaper ads. However, because her

wages are meager far less than her artist friend makes Hester remains unhappy.

On her birthday in November, she receives her first thousand of Paul's

winnings. However, she asks the lawyer to give her the rest of the money to

defray her mounting debts. That afternoon, Uncle Oscar informs Paul of his

mother’s request, leaving it up to him whether she should get the full amount.

“Oh, let her have it,” Paul decides, saying he can get more when he bets on the

Grand National, the Lincolnshire, or the Derby.

In the following months, Paul’s mother outfits the house with luxurious

furnishings and flowers, hires a tutor for Paul, and enrolls him in Eton

(prestigious secondary school in Berkshire) for autumn. But the house voices

do not stop. Instead, they become incessant: “There must be more money . . .

more than ever!” They scare Paul. Although he studies Latin and Greek with
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his tutor, he spends most of his time discussing horses with Bassett.

Unfortunately, he receives no flashes of inspiration, as before, and he loses a

hundred pounds at the Grand National and another hundred at Lincolnshire. He

becomes wild-eyed and strange,” the narrator says. Desperate, Paul says, “I’ve

got to know for the Derby!”

His mother tries to persuade him to take time off and go to the seaside

to calm his nerves, but Paul says he prefers to remain at home until after the

Derby. She assents to his wishes, but makes him promise not to preoccupy

himself with the races. You needn’t worry,” he says. The reason the boy does

not want to go away is his rocking horse, which is now in his bedroom. Two

days before the Derby, Paul’s mother attends an evening party. Suddenly, she

becomes terribly uneasy about the boy, as if something bad is happening to

him, so she calls home and asks Miss Wilmot whether Paul is all right. "He

went to bed as right as a trivet,” she tells Paul’s mother. “Shall I run up and

look at him?"

Paul’s mother, satisfied that the boy is in no danger, tells the nurse not to

bother. Besides, she says, she and her husband will return home soon.

When they arrive at about 1 o’clock, Paul’s father makes himself a

drink and his mother goes upstairs to check on the boy. Outside his room, she

hears a noise“ soundless, yet rushing and powerful” coming from inside. When

she enters the room and turns on the light, she sees Paul riding the rocking

horse in a frenzy.

“What are you doing?” In “a strange, powerful voice,” the narrator says, Paul
 71

cries out, “It’s Malabar!” He then falls from the horse and lies unconscious.

His mother runs to him. Afflicted with “some brain-fever,” the narrator says,

“he talked and tossed, and his mother sat stonily by his side." Paul shouts,

"Malabar! It's Malabar! Bassett, Bassett, I know! It's Malabar!" During the next

three days, Paul remains in a stupor. Neither his father nor mother knows what

Malabar means, but Oscar informs them that it is the name of a horse entered in

the Derby.

Oscar and Bassett later confer, and Oscar bets a thousand pounds on Malabar at

odds of fourteen to one. Bassett places a bet for Paul. On the evening of the

third day, Oscar does not return, but his mother allows Bassett to enter the

room in hopes that he might say something to revive Paul. “Master Paul,” he

says, “Malabar came in first all right, a clean win. I did as you told me. You've

made over seventy thousand pounds, you have; you've got over eighty

thousand.” Paul says, “I call that lucky, don't you, mother? Over eighty

thousand pounds! I knew, didn't I know I knew? Malabar came in all right. . . I

never told you, mother, that if I can ride my horse, and get there, then I'm

absolutely sure oh, absolutely! Mother, did I ever tell you? I am lucky!" "No,

you never did," said his mother.

During the night, Paul dies. As he lies before her, Hester hears the voice

of her brother: “My God, Hester, you're eighty-odd thousand to the good, and a

poor devil of a son to the bad. But, poor devil, poor devil, he's best gone out of

a life where he rides his rocking-horse to find a winner."

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Michael J. Cummings (2008)

(http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides5/RockingHorse.html.Friday,
march 23,2018 At 8.05 am)