shopping behavior as the reflection of the hierarchy of human needs

SHOPPING BEHAVIOR AS THE REFLECTION OF THE HIERARCHY
OF HUMAN NEEDS ON THE MAIN CHARACTER IN THE FILM
CONFESSIONS OF A SHOPAHOLIC
A Thesis
Submitted to Faculty of Adab and Humanities
In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for
The Degree of Strata 1 (S1)
By:
ERLINA PRANISTIASARI
205026000539
ENGLISH LETTERS DEPARTEMENT
FACULTY OF ADAB AND HUMANITIES
STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH
JAKARTA
2011
ABSTRACT
Erlina Pranistiasari, “Shopping Behavior as the Reflection of the Hierarchy of
Human Needs on the Main Character in the Film Confessions of A Shopaholic”.
Thesis: English Letters Departement. Faculty of Adab and Humanities, State
Islamic University Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, 2011.
This research that uses descriptive qualitative method is aimed to find
how the character of Rebecca Bloomwood as the main character and her shopping
behavior in the film Confessions of A Shopaholic reflects the needs based on The
Hierarchy of Human Needs of Abraham Maslow’s theory. The writer identifies
the character’s characteristics and her shopping behavior because they influence
the main character’s attitude in fulfilling her needs. The needs of the main
character is analyzed based on Maslow’s theory from the lowest to the highest
stage of Maslow’s theory to identify the stage of needs related to shopping
behavior of the main character.
The writer reveals the needs of the main character based on the
Abraham Maslow’s theory which is classified into five levels, they are;
Psychological Needs, Safety Needs, Love and Belongingness needs, Esteem
Needs, and Self Actualization Needs. The writer then finds that the main character
can fulfill all of the five level of needs and the shopping behavior on the main
character reflects the needs of Esteem and Self actualization needs.
i
vii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
All praise be to Allah SWT, the almighty and the lord af the universe, who
has given the writer guidence and strength to achieve and make this thesis
possible. May peace and blessings of Allah be upon our beloved Prophet
Muhammad SAW, and his families, relatives, and all of his followers. Ameen
This thesis would not have been possible without the guidance and the
help of several individuals who in one way or another contributed and extended
their valuable assistance in the preparation and completion of this study.
On this very special occasion, The writer would like to express the very
best gratitude to her family especially to my beloved parents, Mr. Yasaruddin BE
and Mrs. Endang Rusmiati, who always give the me their prayer, love, affection,
support, and advices all the times. This thesis will not accomplish without their
contribution in the writer’s life.
The writer also wishes to express her warm and sincere thanks to her thesis
advisor Moh. Supardi, SS.,M.Hum, who has supported and given many useful
suggestions and inputs throughout my thesis with his patience and knowledge.
May Allah SWT, always bless him and his family.
The writer would like to express my sincere gratitude to the following
people for their remarkable contribution:
1.
Dr. H Abdul Wahid Hasyim, M. Ag, the Dean of Adab and Humanities
Faculty.
v
vii
2.
Dr. H. Muhammad Farkhan, M.Pd, the vice of the dean of Adab and
Humanities Faculty.
3.
Drs. Asep Saefuddin, M. Pd, the head of English Letters Departement.
4.
Elve Oktafiyani, M.Hum, the secretary of the English Letters Departement.
5.
Inayatul Chusna, M.Hum and Maria Ulfa, MA., M.Hum as the thesis
examiners.
6.
All lecturers in English Letters Departement who have been sincerely
transferred their knowledge to the writer during her study.
7.
The officials of main library of State Islamic University of Syarif
Hidayatullah Jakarta and the staffs of the office and library of Adab and
Humanities Faculty who have been kind of helping the writer to collect the
data required.
8.
My beloved brother and sister: Evi Ratnasari, Yanto Kusdiantono, Meilani
Trianasari, Muhammad Rizky Adinugraha, who give their best motivation to
the writer.
9.
My beloved sweetheart, Muhammad Ikbal, S.Sos who always accompanies
me in any condition and gives his love, affection, supports, and spirits. He
contributes in many ways to make this thesis possible.
10. My classmates of English Letters Departement, the year of 2005: Febry Indah
Sari, Haenudin, Deny Effendy, Munazaruddin, Milawati, Famela, Fitri,
Suzanti Laima, Robiatul Adawiah, Dedy Effendy, Laila Fadhilah, Firdaus
Ismakhun, Qaid Zulhilmi, Andhina Noor Ichsani and everyone who has great
contribution that the writer cannot mention them one after another.
vi
vii
Last but not least, the writer also hopes that this paper will be useful for some
literary study in advance and give a lot of benefits to the students of English
Letters Departement particularly who wants to have a further research. Therefore,
it is really a pleasure for her to have any constructive suggestions and critics. May
Allah SWT bless us. Ameen.
Ciputat, December 2011
Erlina Pranistiasari
vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................ i
APPROVEMENT ............................................................................................... ii
LEGALIZATION ............................................................................................... iii
DECLARATION ................................................................................................. iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .................................................................................. v
TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................... viii
CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION....................................................................... 1
A. Background of the study ..................................................................... 1
B. Focus of the study ............................................................................... 4
C. Research question................................................................................ 4
D. Objective of the study ......................................................................... 4
E. Significance of the study ..................................................................... 5
F. Research methodology. ....................................................................... 5
1. Method of Research ...................................................................... 5
2. Data Analysis ................................................................................ 6
3. Unit of analysis ............................................................................. 6
4. Instruments of Research ................................................................ 6
G. TIME AND PLACE .......................................................................... 7
CHAPTER II. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK .......................................... 7
A. The Hierarchy of Human Needs by Abraham
Maslow ............................................................................................... 8
viii
1. Psychological needs ..................................................................... 11
2. Safety needs ................................................................................. 12
3. Love and belongingness needs ..................................................... 13
4. Esteem needs ................................................................................ 13
5. Self actualization needs ................................................................ 14
B. Consumer behavior ............................................................................ 16
C. Character and characterization ........................................................... 17
1. Character ...................................................................................... 17
2. Characterization ........................................................................... 19
CHAPTER III. RESEARCH FINDINGS ......................................................... 23
A. Data description.................................................................................. 23
B. Data analysis ...................................................................................... 37
1. Character analysis of Rebecca Bloomwood as the main
character in the film Confession of A Shopaholic ..................... 37
2. The Hierarchy of Needs on Rebecca Bloomwood as the main
character in the film Confession of A Shopaholic ..................... 43
CHAPTER IV. CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION ................................... 74
A. Conclusion .......................................................................................... 74
B. Suggestion ........................................................................................... 76
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................... 77
APPENDIXES ..................................................................................................... 79
ix
1
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
The rapid development of technology today provides many options for
many people to be able to choose their way to entertain themselves, such as
reading books, listening music, or watching movies. Among those types of
entertainments, many of them choose to watch films, because it offers a
combination of sounds (audio) and pictures (visual) simultaneously. In its
development, the film itself has made a lot of progress both in terms of sounds
and visuals of the display.
Film is a work result of a number professionals from various field (such as
writer of scenario, film maker, actress, lighting/electric expert, etc). Generally,
every film workers are considered to have contribution in the film that they
made.1Films are cultural artifacts created by specific cultures, which reflect those
cultures, and, in turn, affect them. Film is considered to be an important art form,
a source of popular entertainment and a powerful method for educating - or
indoctrinating - citizens. The visual elements of cinema give motion pictures a
universal power of communication. Some films have become popular worldwide
attractions by using dubbing or subtitles that translate the dialogue.2
Films are made up of a series of individual images called frames. When
these images are shown rapidly in succession, a viewer has the illusion that
1
Anggadewi Moesono, Psikoanalisis dan Sastra (Depok: Pusat Penelitian Kemasyarakatan dan
Budaya Lembaga Penelitian Universitas Indonesia, 2003), p. 61.
2
http://www.eicar-international.com/definition-film.html. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
1
2
motion is occurring. The viewer cannot see the flickering between frames due to
an effect known as persistence of vision, whereby the eye retains a visual image
for a fraction of a second after the source has been removed. Viewers perceive
motion due to a psychological effect called beta movement.3
Film does not only become something that can entertains, but it can also
inspire viewers if it is presented attractively. There are many things that can be
summed up in a film, such as the problems of life, love, friendship, or the
psychological motivation of the characters in the film, about what and why they
do things and what makes them encourage to do so.
In film, the roles of character are very important. Without character, the
story can be very difficult to be built. With character, audiences can understand
the plot of the story better.
Based on the explanation above, the writer would like to analyze a film
with the title Confessions of A Shopaholic (This is a 2009 American film
adaptation of the Shopaholic series of novels written by Sophie Kinsella. The film
is Directed by P. J. Hogan, with the star Isla Fisher as the shopaholic journalist
and Hugh Dancy as her boss.)4 by Sophie Kinsella (Madeleine Wickham was born
in London on December 12th 1969. She wrote The Secret Dreamworld of a
Shopaholic, Shopaholic & Baby, Chick Lit and Twenties Girl. Wickham
graduated from New College, Oxford. She has worked as an author.)5. The film
tells about a young woman named Rebecca Bloomwood (Isla Fisher). She is
3
http://www.pooler-georgia-homepage.com/movie-focused-sites.html. Accessed on August 10th,
2011
4
http://www.worldofkj.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=49241. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
5
http://www.trueknowledge.com/q/biography_of_madeleine_wickham. Accessed on August 10th,
2011
3
a shopping addict who has a problem due to his debts and she lives with her best
friend Suze (Krysten Ritter). She works as a journalist for a gardening magazine
but dreams to join the fashion magazine Alette, because she thinks that she can get
high salary and continually fill her desire in shopping if she can work in Alette,
then she tries to get a job there. In the way to realize her dream to work in Alette,
she first works in the money magazine Successfull Savings. She becomes a
financial advisor though she doesn’t really love this job, and gradually she
becomes very famous with her financial article in that magazine with her author
name “The girl in the green scarf”.
In her popularity, she slowly falls in love with her boss, Luke Brandon
(Hugh Dancy). But she still has her personal problem about her debts due to her
impulsive shopping habbits she spends more than $.900 for shopping, and it
makes her to be pursued by her debt collector Dereck Smith (Robert Stanton). She
keeps her secret about her debts and lies to her boss that her debt collector is her
ex-boyfriend who stalks her over. Her carrier in Successful Savings gradually
makes her popular and it makes her to be invited in one of a financial TV
program, but unfortunately her debt collector Dereck Smith proves all secret about
her debts in front of her boss and the viewers of the live TV program. She then
loses her friend and the love from her boss.
Finally she realizes that all of her problems comes from her impulsive
shopping habbits and she decides to sell all her items she bought to pay all her
debts. She also refuses the offer to work in Allete, though it was her dream to
work there. She then realizes that all she needs are the love and the supports from
4
all people that she loves. From the summary of the movie above, the writer is
interested in analyzing about the hierarchy needs of the main character that is
reflected from her consumer behaviour in her impulsive shopping habbits.
According to the writer, the consumer behavior of the main character is the way
to satisfy her desire in shopping to reveal her needs that she must fulfill and it
can be analyzed by using the concept Hierarchy of Human Needs of Abraham H.
Maslow’s theory.
B. Focus of the Study
According to the background of studies above, this research will be
concentrated only on how to understand the needs that must be fulfilled by
Rebecca Bloomwood from the consumer behavior that she has in satisfying her
shopping desire by using Hierarchy of Human Needs Theory of Abraham
H.Maslow.
C. Research Question
Based on the focus of the study, there are two questions in this study, as follows:
1. What are the characteristics of Rebecca Bloomwood as the main character
in Confessions of A Shopaholic’s movie?
2. How does this characteristics influence consumer behavior on Rebecca
Bloomwod?
3. In what stage does Rebecca Bloomwod’s consumer behavior fulfill the
hierarchy of human needs by Abraham Maslow?
D. Objective of The study
The objectives of this study are described as follows:
5
1. To describe the characteristics of Rebecca Bloomwood as the main
character in Confessions of A Shopaholic movie
2. To describe how the characteristics of Rebecca Bloomwood influence her
consumer behavior.
3. To reveal in what stage does consumer behavior take place as the needs
that reflects the hierarchy of needs that must be fulfilled by the main
character.
E. Significance of the Study
The benefits of this research are to increase the knowledge and the
comprehension about the hierarchy of needs that reflects from the main
character’s consumer behaviour. The writer also hopes that this research can also
be benefits for readers who want to understand more about hierarchy of needs
from the point of view Abraham H. Maslow’s theory.
F. Research Methodology
This research methodology comprises by many aspects, such as, method of
research, technique of data analysis, instruments of research, and unit of analysis.
1. Method of Research
Based on the research questions and the significance of the study above,
the writer applies descriptive qualitative method6, by analyzing the relation
among words or sentences that produce particular meaning.
6
Muhammad Farkhan, Penelitian Bahasa dan Sastra (Jakarta: Cella Jakarta, 2007), pp. 2 & 4
(Metode deskriptif kualitatif yaitu metode penelitian yang disunakan untuk mendeskripsikan
fenomena-fenomena alam yang terjadi dan kaitan antara satu peristiwa dengan peristiwa lainnya
dengan menggunakan data verbal dan non-numeric sebagai dasar analisis dan pemecahan masalah
yang sedang dikaji)
6
2. Data Analysis
The writer will explain the data qualitatively. The writer uses Hierarchy of
Human Needs of Abraham Maslow’s approach based on critical study
and sharp analysis to the qualitative data. First, the writer watches the
movie carefully for several times. This is aimed to learn the contents of the
movie intensively, so it can prevent misunderstanding in the analysis.
Then, the writer underlines the scripts of the movie, captures particular
scene from the film, and identifies Confessions of A Shopaholic’s film
carefully. Finally, the writer analyzes the related data collected according
to human needs theory and how consumer behaviour reveals those needs.
3. Unit of Analysis
The unit of analysis that is used in this research is the film Confessions of
A Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella which was released in February 13, 2009
and distributed by Touchstone Pictures.
4. Instruments of Research
The research instrument of this qualitative research is the writer herself.
The writer analyzes it by watching the film carefully. Then, the writer
marks the characteristics of the main character to find out the evidences of
the fulfillment hierarchy of needs from her consumer behavior viewed
from the theory of Abraham H. Maslow in Confessions of A Shopaholic
film.
7
H. Place and Time
This research is conducted in Jakarta, in the faculty of Adab and
Humanities UIN Jakarta from march 2009 to September 2011.
8
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
A.
The Hierarchy of Human Needs by Abraham Maslow
Abraham Maslow is a humanistic psychologist. Humanistic psychology
was instead focused on each individual's potential and stressed the importance of
growth and self-actualization. The fundamental belief of humanistic psychology is
that people are innately good and that mental and social problems result from
deviations from this natural tendency7. Humanistic Psychology is so named due to
its core belief in the basic goodness present in and respect for humanity. Its core is
founded upon existential psychology, or the realization and understanding of
one's existence and social responsibility8.
Abraham Maslow developed a theory of personality that has influenced a
number of different fields, including education. This theory accurately describes
many realities of personal experiences.
The cornerstone of Abraham Maslow’s understanding of motivation is the
proposition that human being posses urges or basic needs at organism level. These
basic needs, however, are weak needs, quiet biological urges that are often
confused and easy overlooked in day to day affairs.9 It means that the individual
seek to satisfy successively the higher needs that occupy a set of hierarchy.
7
http://psychology.about.com/od/historyofpsychology/a/hist_humanistic.htm. Accessed on
December 12th, 2011
8
http://www.abraham-maslow.com/m_motivation/Humanistic-Psychology.asp. Accessed on
December 12th, 2011
9
John Marshall Reeve, Understanding Motivation and Emotion (New York: Harcourt Brace
Collage Publisher, 2004), p. 311
8
9
Maslow had little interest in compiling a list of how many needs human
beings possess. Rather, Maslow side-stepped the numbers issue and proposed that
one master need, the tendency toward growth, governs and organizes all other
needs. The growth/actualizing need organizes all others into a hierarchy featuring
five clusters based needs. The arrangement of these needs, Maslow felt, was best
represented visually by a hierarchy. The first need in Maslow’s hierarchy contains
the set of physiological needs necessary for body homeostasis, quiescence, and
survival. All the other needs in the hierarchy (safety and security, love and
belongingness, esteem, and self-actualization) are psychological in nature of
human needs.10
Maslow argued that any comprehensive theory of Human motivation must
take into account the individual as a whole. One cannot hope to understand the
complexities of the human condition by reducing behavior to specific responses in
specific situations. The wholeness of behavior can also serve several motive states
at once.11 Thus for example, sexual behavior may serve physiological as well as
psychological needs of belonging and esteem.
Maslow argued that one must seek to understand the ultimate goals of
behavior rather than the superficial or apparent goals, because the apparent goal
for any observed behavior may be quite different from the ultimate goal. 12
Maslow argued that human motivation can best be studied by observing
human rather than animal behavior. His observations led him to the conclusion
10
Ibid
Herbert L. Petri, Motivation: Theory and Research (California: Wadsworth Publishing Company,
2003), p.289
12
Ibid
11
10
that human needs can be understood in terms of hierarchy of needs. Needs lower
on the hierarchy are propotent (i.e., stronger) and must be satisfied before needs
higher on the hierarchy will be triangle. Maslow did not, however, regard the
hierarchy as totally rigid: one can partially satisfy lower needs, thus allowing
higher needs to become partially active. Maslow regarded the satisfaction of needs
on the hierarchy in a probabilistic manner. If a lower need is being satisfied most
of the time (e.g., 85%), that need will have little influence on behavior.13 The
following diagram shows Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, represented as a pyramid
below:
Figure 1. Maslow’s Hierarchy Needs14
13
Ibid
14Brett
King, Bank 2.0: How Customer Behavior and Technology Will Change the Future of
Financial Services (Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Reference, 2010), p. 26
11
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is often described as a pyramid consisting
of five levels: the four lower levels are grouped together as being associated
with physiological needs, while the top level is termed growth needs, associated
with psychological needs. Deficiency needs must be met first, once these are met,
seeking to satisfy growth needs drives personal growths.15
According to Maslow, once an individual has moved upward to the next
level, needs in the lower level will no longer be prioritized. If a lower set of needs
is no longer being met, the individual will temporarily reprioritize those needs by
focusing attention on the unfulfilled needs, but will not permanently regress to the
lower level.16Maslow’s basic needs are as follow:
1.
Physiological Needs
The first level of the hierarchy consists of physiological needs. If needs
such as hunger or thirst are not adequately being met, the needs above them on the
hierarchy are pushed into the background in terms of controlling behavior. The
individual is in an emergency situation and his or her whole being is dominated by
need.17 Physiological needs consist of needs for oxygen, food, water, and a
relatively constant body temperature. Maslow felt that physiological needs are
adequately met for most people in our society. When these needs are met, the next
need on the hierarchy emerges as a dominant force in controlling and directing
behavior.18
15
Lawrence A. Tomei, Lexicon of Online and Distance Learning (United States of America:
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2009), p. 148
16
Lawrence A. Tomei (2009), op. cit. p. 148
17
Herbert L. Petri (2003), op.cit. p. 290
18
Ibid
12
2.
Safety Needs
When all physiological needs are satisfied and are no longer controlling
thoughts and behaviors, the needs for security can become active.19 These needs
represent a need for safety or security in our environment. Like the physiological
needs, safety needs are primarily triggered in emergency situations. Higher needs
become unimportant when one’s life is endangered, and our behavior reflects our
attempts to remain secure. An example of his recently occurred when the
remnants of a hurricane caused extensive flooding in my neighborhood. Some of
my neighbors sustained thousands of dollars of damage to their homes; yet, at the
time of the flood, their material loss was unimportant to them because escaping
the flood was all that mattered.20
Safety needs dominate our behavior primarily in times of emergency.
Maslow, however, felt that working of the safety needs can also be seen in
people’s preference for familiar surroundings, secure jobs, savings account, and
insurance. Safety needs are most evident in your children, as shown when an
infant cries if it is dropped suddenly, is startled by a loud sound, or a stranger
enters the room.21
Maslow believed that the safety needs of most adults in our society are
adequately met. One reason for the clearer appearance of the threat or danger
reaction in infants is that individuals do not inhibit this reaction at all, whereas
19
C. George Boree, Personality Theories. http://www.ship.edu/-cgboeree/maslow.html.
Accessed on August 10th, 2011
20
Herbert L. Petri (2003), loc.cit
21
Ibid
13
individuals in our society have been taught to inhibit it at all costs.22
3.
Love or Belonging Needs
If both the physiological and the safety needs are fairly well gratified,
there will emerge have love and affection and belongingness needs, and the whole
cycle already described will repeat itself with this new center. 23 Then, they
become unimportant in the direction of behavior, and the love or belongingness
needs emerge. These needs involve a hunger for affectionate relationship with
others, a need to feel part a group, or a feeling that one “belong”. The love needs
are not equivalent to sexual needs (which are physiological), though sexual
intimacy can serve to satisfy one’s need to belong. 24 Maslow argued that
individuals seek to overcome feelings of loneliness and alienation. This involves
both giving and receiving love, affection and the sense of belonging.
4.
Esteem Needs
If the love need have been adequately met, they too slip into the
background in relation to guiding behavior, and the esteem needs become
dominant. These are need for a positive, high evaluation of oneself. This
evaluation can be broken down into two subcategories – a need for self esteem
and a need for esteem from other.25
The need for self-esteem motivates the individual to strive for
achievement, strenght, confidence, independence, and freedom. The related need
of esteem from others involves a desire for reputation, status, recognition, appre-
22
http://www.xenodochy.org/ex/lists/maslow.html. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
C. Goerge Boeree (2006), loc.cit
24
Herbert L. Petri (2003), loc.cit
25
Ibid
23
14
ciation by others of one’s abilities, and a feeling of importance.26
5.
Self-Actualization Needs
When one has satisfied the first four level of need, the final level of
development, which Maslow termed self-actualization, can be reached. At the
self-actualization level, the person’s behavior is motivated by different conditions
than at the lower levels.27 It means, at this level, the individual differences are
greatest.
The self-actualized individual has satisfied all the deprivation needs of the
first four levels of the hierarchy. The behavior of the self-actualized person is, as a
result, motivated by new set of needs, which Maslow termed the being needs (Bmotivation, or metamotivation). These B-motives are values such as truth,
honesty, beauty, and goodness, and they provide meaning to the life of the selfactualized individual.28 The clear emergence of these needs usually rest upon
some prior satisfaction of the physiological, safety, love, and esteem needs.29
The picture Maslow gives us of the self-actualized person is a very
positive one. The self-actualized individual is no longer motivated by deficiencies
but is motivated to grow and become all that he or she is capable of becoming.
Self-actualization constantly stimulates people to test their abilities and expand
their horizons.30
26
Ibid, p. 291
Ibid
28
Ibid
29
C. George Boeree(2006), loc cit
30
Ibid
27
15
5.1 Characteristics of Self-Actualized People
In addition to describing what is meant by self-actualization in histheory,
Maslow also identified some of the key characteristics of self-actualized people:
Acceptance and Realism: Self-actualized people have realistic perceptions of
themselves, others and the world around them. Problem-centering: Selfactualized individuals are concerned with solving problems outside of themselves,
including helping others and finding solutions to problems in the external world.
These people are often motivated by a sense of personal responsibility and ethics.
Spontaneity: Self-actualized people are spontaneous in their internal thoughts
and outward behavior. While they can conform to rules and social expectations,
they also tend to be open and unconventional. Autonomy and Solitude: Another
characteristics of self-actualized people is the need for independence and privacy.
While they enjoy the company of others, these individuals need time to focus on
developing
their
own
individual
potential.
Continued
Freshness
of
Appreciation: Self-actualized people tend to view the world with a continual
sense of appreciation, wonder and awe. Even simple experiences continue to be a
source of inspiration and pleasure. Peak Experiences: Individuals who are selfactualized often have what Maslow termedpeak experiences, or moments of
intense joy, wonder, awe and ecstasy. After these experiences, people feel
inspired, strengthened, renewed or transformed.31
Based on the theory above, the significance of this research are to
increase the knowledge and the comprehension about the hierarchy of needs ref31
Kendra Cherry, Characteristics of Self-Actualized People
http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/tp/self-actualized-characteristic.htm.
Accessed on August 10th, 2011
16
lects from the main character’s consumer behaviour.
B.
Consumer Behavior
Consumer Behavior is defined as the acts of individuals directly involved
in obtaining and using economic goods and services, including the decision
processes that precede and determine those acts.32 Consumer behavior may be
defined as decision process and physical activity individuals engage in when
evaluating, acquiring, using or disposing of goods and services.33 Consumer
behavior are acts, process and social relationship exhibited by individuals, groups
and organizations in the obtainment, use of, and consequent experience with
products, services and other resources.34 Consumer behavior consists of the
actions that consumers take in regard to making decisions about purchasing
various goods and services. A study of this phenomenon will often focus on the
psychological and other factors that motivate people to either buy a product or
reject it in favor of some other option.35
In analyzing her thesis, it is important to know the psychological of the
main character in the film Confessions of A Shopaholic about what and why she
does the shopping. It reflects her consumer behavior and the theory about
consumer behavior can help the writer to analyze her research.
32
James F.Engel, David T. Kollat and Roger D. Blackwell, Consumer Behavior (New York: Holt,
Rinehart andWinston, 1968), p.5
33
David L. Louden and Albert J. Della Bitta, Consumer Behavior: Concept and Applications (The
United States of America: By McGraw Hill Inc, 1984), p. 22
34
Ibid
35
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-consumer-behavior.htm. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
17
C.
Character and Characterization
1. Character
In a film, character is an important element that will develop the story
because character is a person who carries out the events of film and then those
events become a story. A character, then, is presumably an imagined person who
inhabits a story-although that simple definition may admit to a few exceptions. A
character is any person, persona, identity, or entity that exists in a work of art.
Along with plot, setting, theme, and style, character is considered one of the
fundamental components of fiction.36
Character development is essential to a good story. Character should enter
the story as dimensional, non-stereotypical character, and become more
dimensional as the story and other characters act upon them. To say that someone
is a character suggests that he or she has a strange or eccentric personality. To say
something about a person’s character involves a discussion of his or her personal
values and behavior.37
For analyzing film characters utilizes three different types of pairing: stock
character and stereotypes, static versus dynamic character, and flat versus round
characters.
Stock character and stereotype. It is not essential or even desirable for
every character in a film to have a unique or memorable personality. Stock
characters are minor character whose actions are completely predictable or typical
or their job or profession. They are in the film simply because the situation
36
37
X.J. Kennedy, An Introduction to Fiction, (Boston: Little, Bown, 1983), p.4
http://www.writing-world.com/screen/film3.shtml. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
18
demands their presence. They serve as a natural part of the setting, much as stage
properties like a lamp or a chair might function in a play.38 A stereotyped
character represents a category of people. The word stereotype comes from
printing and refers to a metal mold used to mass produce duplicates of printing
type. Stereotypes, however, are characters of somewhat greater importance to the
film. They fit into preconceived patterns of behavior common to or representative
of a large number of people, at least a large number of fictional people.39
Static versus dynamic characters. It is often useful to determine whether
the most important characters in a film are static or dynamic characters. Dynamic
characters deeply affected by the action of the plot and undergo some important
change in personality, attitude, or outlook on life as a result of the action of the
story. The change they undergo is an important, permanent one, not just a
whimsical shift in attitude that will change back again tomorrow. The character
will somehow never be the same person he or she was when the action of the film
began.40
The change can be of any type but is significant to the total makeup of the
individual undergoing the change. Developing characters become sadder or wiser,
or happier and more self-confident. They might gain some new awareness of life,
become more nature or more responsible, or become more moral or less so. They
may become simply more aware and knowing and less innocent or naïve.41
38
Joseph M.Boggs and Dennis W.Petrie, The Art of Watching Film, 5th ed (London:Mayfield
Publishing Company, 2000), p.57
39
Jane Bachman Gordon and Karen Kuehner, Fiction, (California:McGraw Hill, 1999), p.97.
40
Joseph M. Boggs and Dennis W. Petrie (2000) loc.cit.p.58
41
Ibid.p.59
19
Static characters remain essentially the same throughout the film. The
action does not have an important effect on their lives. Or they are insensitive to
the meaning of the action and thus are not capable of growth or change. Statics
characters, however, remain unchanged; their character is the same at the end of
the story as at the beginning.42
Another important distinction is made between the characters and round
characters. Flat characters are two-dimensional, predictable characters who lack
the complexity and unique qualities associated with psychological depth. They
often tend to be representative character types rather than real flesh-and-blood
human beings. Unique, individualistic characters who have some degree of
complexity and ambiguity and who cannot easily be categorized are called round
characters.43
Round character is a three-dimensional character complex enough to be
able to surprise the reader without losing credibility. Round characters are not
inherently superior to static characters. The terms merely imply how different
characters function within the framework of a story. Round characters are
characters
who
are complex
and
realistic;
they
represent
a depth of
personality which is imitative of life.44
2. Characterization
The characterization means how the writer tells the reader about the
physical and non physical characteristics of the person told in the story. It might
be done by giving description in words or by being shown in actions or through
42
Jane Bachman Gordon and Karen Kuehner (1999) op.cit.p.97
Joseph M. Boggs and Dennis W. Petrie (2000) loc.cit.p.60
44
Jane Bachman Gordon and Karen Kuehner (1999) loc.cit.p.95
43
20
the comments given by other character. Character creation is the art of
characterization-what the author does to bring a character to life, to provide the
reader with a sense of that character’s personality, to make that character unique.45
Characterization can involve developing a variety of aspects of a character such as
appearance, dialogue, external action, internal action, or reactions of other
characters.
a)
Characterization through appearance
Because most of film actors project certain qualities of character the
minute they appear on the screen, characterization in film has a great deal to do
with casting a major aspect of film characterization is revealed visually and
instantaneously.46 The minute we see most actor on the screen, we make certain
assumptions about them because of their facial features, dress, physical build, and
mannerisms and the way they move. Our first visual impression may be proven
erroneous as the story progresses, but it is certainly an important means of
establishing character.47
b)
Characterization through dialogue
Characters in a fictional film naturally reveal a great deal about themselves
by what they say. But a great deal is also revealed by how they say it. Their true
thoughts, attitudes, and emotions can be revealed in subtle ways through word
choice and through the stress, pitch, and pause patterns of their speech. Actor use
of grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary, and particular dialects (if any) reveals
a great deal about their characters’ social and economic level, educational
45
Jane Bachman Gordon and Karen Kuehner (1999) op.cit.p.98
Joseph M. Boggs and Dennis W. Petrie (2000) op.cit.p.50
47
Ibid
46
21
background and mental processes.48 Therefore, we must develop a keen ear,
attuned to the faintest and most subtle nuances of meaning revealed through the
human voice, listening carefully not only to what is said but also to how it is said.
c)
Characterization through external action
Although appearance is an important measure of a character’s personality,
appearances are often misleading. Perhaps the best reflections of character are a
person’s actions. Some actions are more important in revealing character than
others.49 Even the most ordinary choice can be revealing, for some kind of choice
is involved in almost everything we do. Sometimes the most effective
characterization is achieved not by the large actions in the film but by the small,
seemingly insignificant ones. For example, a fireman may demonstrate his
courage by saving a child from a burning building, yet such an act may be only a
performance of duty rather than a reflection of a choice.
d)
Characterization through internal action
Internal action is character’s minds and emotions which consist of secrets,
unspoken thoughts, daydreams, aspirations, memories, fears, and fantasies. People
hopes, dreams, and aspirations can be as important to an understanding of their
character as any real achievement, and their fears and insecurities can be more
terrible to them than any real catastrophic failure.
e)
Characterization through reaction of other characters
The way characters view a person often serves as an excellent means of
characterization. Sometimes a great deal of information about a character
48
49
Joseph M. Boggs and Dennis W. Petrie (2000) op.cit.p.52
Ibid.p.53
22
is already provided through such means before the character first appears
on the screen.50
50
Ibid.p.53
23
CHAPTER III
RESEARCH FINDINGS
In this chapter the writer discusses about the data description and analysis
about Rebecca Bloomwood in the film of Confession of A Shopaholic. The data
presented in this chapter are based on the scripts of the film combined with the
particular film’s scenes related to the research. The data are analyzed by the
theory of Abraham Maslow about the hierarchy of human needs as the main
theory to analyze this research. The general data description will be presented in
the data description while the analysis will be discussed in the data analysis as
mentioned below:
A.
Data Description
In this part, the writer describes the character’s characteristics of Rebecca
Bloomwood and her shopping behavior, then the writer describes the needs that
she tries to fullfill from the lower to the highest stage (phsycological needs, safety
needs, esteem needs, love and belongingness needs, and self actualization needs)
based on Abraham Maslow’s theory about hierarchy of human needs. Last, the
writer identifies in what stage of Abraham Maslow’s theory does consumer
behavior take place as a part of the needs that Rebecca Bloomwood tries to
fullfill. The data descriptions are showed from the table below:
23
24
Data description of character’s characteristics and shopping behavior of the
main character in the movie “Confessions of A Shopaholic”
No.
1.
CharacteCorpus
Time
ristic
Shopping “...But when I looked 00:00:55
addict
into shop windows, I saw
another world. A dreamy
world full of perfect
things. A world where
grown-up girls got what
they wanted. They were
beautiful. Like fairies or
princesses. They didn't
even need any money,
they had magic cards. I
wanted one.”
“...A store can awaken a 00:02:08
lust for things you never
even knew you needed.
And when your fingers
grasp those shiny, new
bags...Oh, yes! Oh, yes!”
Rebecca:”Because when 01:16:39
I shop, the world gets
better. The world is
better. And then it's not
anymore. And I need to
do it again.”
2.
Impulsive “Oh, no... I spent $900.”
3.
Immature Rebecca:”Give me the 00.53.44
boots and no one gets
hurt”
00:02:50
Scene
25
Rebecca:”...Here! All I 00:53:49
have to do first is buy a
new dress.”
Suze:”Bex,no! Absolute
ly not. You've 10,000
dresses already.”
4.
Shallow
5.
Vivacious Luke:”Rebecca
Bloomwood was
most vivacious...”
6.
Has an
amazing
sense of
style
7.
Liar
01:19:07
the
“Rebecca Bloomwood. 00:01:31
Occupation: Journalist.
Jacket: Visa. Dress:
AMEX.
Belt:
MasterCard. It's vintage.
And I got one percent
cash back. Bag: Gucci!
And worth every penny.”
Derek Smeath:”Hello! 00:13:51
Hi! Ms. Bloomwood?”
Suze:”Hello. I'm sorry.
It's actually not..She's
still
recovering
from...You know... OK.
I'll have her call you as
soon as...”
Derek Smeath:”Yes?”
Suze:”As soon as she's
come
back
from...
From...”
Rebecca:”Finland!”
Suze:”Finland!”
Tarkie:”Why do so
many of your excuses
involve Finland?”
Rebecca:”Cause no one
checks up on Finland,
Tarkie.
Rebecca:”...I lied to the 01:28:12
man I love...”
26
Data description of the main character’s hierarchy of human needs in the
movie “Confessions of A Shopaholic”
Num Hierarchy
Corpus
Time
of Needs
1. Phsycologi
cal needs
a. Hunger Luke:” ”Drank a lot of 00.49.28
and
majitos, I drank a lot of
thirst majitos. It wasn’t always
work and no play”
Rebecca:”Gracias”
Luke:”Gracias”
Rebecca:”Cheers!”
Luke:”Mmm.”
Luke:”Right, uh, ladies 01.02.14
and gentlemen,tonight
we will be serving...the,
uh, brook trout and wild
smoked salmon.”
Rebecca:”Thanks.”
The
bartender:”Pleasure”
b. Sex
00.41.38
Rebecca:”I thought she 01.03.42
was your girlfriend.”
Luke:”No. She's not my
girlfriend. She's not you.
Luke:” It's a desperately
important scarf.”
01.38.53
Scene
27
2.
Safety
needs
a. Security Derek Smeath:”Hello! 00.13.51
Hi! Ms. Bloomwood?”
Suze:”Hello. I'm sorry.
It's actually not.”
Tarkie:”Why do so 00.14.13
many of your excuses
involve Finland?”
Rebecca:”'Cause no one
checks up on Finland,
Tarkie.”
Rebecca:”Derek
Smeath. Oh! No!”
00.35.52
Luke:”Exactly how long 00.35.59
has this ex-boyfriend
been stalking you?”
Rebbeca:”Ever since the
relationship ended. He's
been
following
me
around
pretending to be a debt
collector.”
Hayley:”I was once
stalked...by a dog.
Luke:”OK. Look, take
the rest of the day and
block all future calls
from Derek Smeath.”
Hayley:”Yes, sir.”
Rebecca:”You
are 00.45.15
getting
your
own
ringtone. Do not answer
this call, it's Derek
Smeath.”
28
Luke:”I've had enough 01.07.01
of this clown. I'll see
him.”
Rebecca:”Whoa! Luke!
No! I never want you to
meet him, ever.”
Hayley:”Don't
worry.
I've
already
called
security.”
Rebecca:”See?
She
called security.”
3.
Love and
belonging
ness needs
a. Friends Suze:”OK, Bex, the most 00.13.24
important thing is not to
panic.”
Suze:“How are you 00.15.50
going to pay off sixteen
thousand twelve hundred
and 62 dollars and 70
cents with no job?”
Rebecca:“I could win
the lottery”
Suze:”
Maybe
you
should have a backup
plan. Oh! Backup plan, I
got it, I got it, Back up
plan.”
Suze:”I just found a 00.23.44
perfect book for you”
00.17.29
b. Family Mom:”Doesn’t this just
cheer you up?”
Rebecca:”It’s
not
working, Mom.”
Mom:”Come on, you’ll
get another job”
29
Dad:”Spend it wisely, 00.36.36
huh?”
Dad:”Nothing
defines 01.22.30
me, except you and your
mother”
c. Lover Luke:”No. She's not my 01.03.30
girlfriend. She's not
you.”
Rebecca: The bidder on 01.38.39
the phone was you. But
you lost!
Luke:”Both
bidders
were me”
Luke:”It’s a desperately
important scarf”
01.38.40
Rebecca:”And instead of 01.39.52
a relationship with my
credit card, I have a
relationship
with
someone who loves me
back. And never declines
me.”
4.
Esteem
Needs
00.01.31
a. Self
Rebecca’s
Esteem mine:”Rebecca
Bloomwood.Occupation:
Journalist. Jacket: Visa.
30
Dress: AMEX. Belt:
MasterCard. It's vintage.
And I got one percent
cash back. Bag: Gucci!
And worth every penny.
Rebecca’s mine:”Cause 00.02.08
you know that thing,
when you see someone
cute and he smiles, and
your heart kind of goes
like warm butter sliding
down hot toast? Well,
that's what it's like when
I see a store. Only it's
better.”
Rebecca’s mine:” You
see, a man will never
love you or treat you as
well as a store. If a man
doesn't fit, you can't
exchange him seven days
later for a gorgeous
cashmere sweater. And a
store always smells
good. A store can
awaken a lust for things
you never even knew you
needed. And when your
fingers grasp those
shiny, new bags...Oh,
yes! Oh, yes!”
00.02.43
Rebecca:”Give me the 00.53.44
boots and no one gets
hurt”
Rebecca:”
Because 01.16.39
when I shop, the world
gets better. The world is
better. And then it's not
anymore. And I need to
do it again.”
31
b. Confidence
The
manequin:”The 00.05.50
point about this scarf is
that it would become
part of a definition of
your...Of your psyche.
Do you see what I mean?
Rebecca:”No, I do. Keep
talking.
The
manequin:”It
would make your eyes
look bigger.
Rebecca:”Mmm...It
would make my haircut
look more expensive.
The manequin:”You'd
wear it with everything.
Rebecca:”It would be an
investment.
The manequin;”You
would walk into that
interview confident.”
Rebecca:”Confident.”
The manequin:”And
poised.”
Rebecca:”Poised.”
The manequin:”The girl
in the green scarf.”
Shop assistant:”That'll
be $120. How would you
like to pay?”
Rebecca:”Here's $50 in
cash, can you put 30 on
this
card...Ten
on
that.Twenty on that.It's
so cute.”
Shop
assistant:”Declined.”
00.06.07
Rebecca:”Do you do 00.07.00
cash back?”
Hotdog’s
seller:”What?”
Rebecca:”If I give you a
check for $23, will you
give me one of your hot
32
dogs and $20 cash back,
please?”
Hotdog’s seller:”Do I
look like a bank?”
Rebecca:”I have an
interview. They don't
hold items. It's a
desperately
important
scarf.”
c. Esteem Receptionist:”Nice
scarf.”
from
others Rebecca:”Thanks. I
bought it for the
interview.”
00.08.30
Suze:”Bex, this is so 00.16.28
funny. You're so smart.
You're the best writer
ever!”
Rebecca:”Do you like
it?”
Suze:”You're fabulous!”
Rebecca:”What?
Luke:”This is good.
Rebecca:”Really?
Luke:”Mmm. Is it by
Rebecca Bloomwood?
Rebecca:”Yes! My friend
Suze saw me writing it.
Luke:”I mean, is that
how you want your name
to appear? "By Rebecca
Bloomwood"?
Rebecca:”Oh, right.”
00.33.27
Luke:” The Girl in the 00.34.08
Green Scarf. Thank
you.”
33
Woman:”We never get 00.34.32
this kind of response.”
Edgar West:” I've just 00.34.51
spent a few minutes
rather wrapped up in
your "Green Scarf." I
like it. Uh, she obviously
has a passion for
personal finance.”
Succesfull savings’
employer:”Oh, my God.
Guys! We’re
international!”
00.38.24
Mr.Lewis: ”She's like a
breath of fresh air.”
00.42.46
Jane
Virtayen:”Mr.Brandon”
Luke:”Yes.”
Jane Virtayen:”We
Scandinavians...like her.
A lot.”
00.44.31
Luke:”They want her on 01.00.46
the Morning Coffee
show. I think Rebecca
would be great on
television. She's... She's
hard to ignore.”
Alette Naylor:”You may
01.24.41
not know this, but your
appearance on that TV
show has struck a nerve
with many, many girls.
34
They identify with you.
Your column will be
Affordable Fashion. Five
hundred words once a
month.
Welcome to
Alette.”
5.
Self
actualization needs
a. Self
Rebecca:
“Did
I 00.04.02
actuali- mention I have an
zation
interview at Alette
magazine?”
Suze:”Only
about
billion times. Ok...it’s
kind of a leap, isn’t it?
Gardening to fashion? I
mean, not that I meant,
you couldn’t do it...”
Rebecca:” Suze... since
I was I wanted to work
at Alette magazine. If I
can just get this job I
will be happy forever.”
Suze:”Wow.”
Receptionist:“As
we 00.19.12
speak, interviews are
being held at Successful
Saving.”
Rebecca:”The money
magazine?”
Receptionist:”Snort
not, sweet child.” Alette
may be your Emerald
City,but
Successful
Saving could be your
yellow
-brick road. DantayWest is a family of
magazines that acts like
a
family.
Deeply
nepotistic. Ugh. So my
advice to you,dear
Dorothy, is thus...Once
you're in... you're in.”
35
Rebecca:”I'm in.”
Suze:”You took a job at 00.22.56
a savings magazine?
You?”
Rebecca:”I know it
sounds bad, but it is, in
fact, part of a very
structured plan.”
Rebecca:”I know I've 00.31.24
made some mistakes,but
I'm turning my life
around. I've got it
planned. I'm gonna go
to the ball. Impress
Alette Naylor. Here! All
I have to do first is buy
a new dress.”
Suze:” Bex, no!
Absolutely not. You've
10,000 dresses
already.”
Rebecca:” It's perfect. 00.54.53
All I have to do now is
buy a new bag.”
b. Problem Rebecca:” I just... I 01.27.04
solving have made so many
mistakes,and I feel like
taking this job would be
another one.”
Alette Naylor:”Before
you make your decision,
you should know this,
When I leave this
house, the opportunity
leave with me.”
Rebecca:”Well,
then
you should both go.”
36
Rebecca:”I'm Rebecca
Bloomwood and I'm a
shopaholic.”
Self-help shopping
group:”Hi, Rebecca.”
Rebecca:”I destroyed
my career on national
Television. I lied to the
man I love. I hurt my
best friend. I invented a
stalker, and I don't even
speak Finnish. But I
have a plan, and I need
your help. Who's with
me?”
Self-help shopping
group:” (All raise their
hands to Rebecca)
Dad:”One, two, three,
four.
Rebecca:”That's
another thousand.”
Dad:”Wow. $16,586,72
cents.
You are a winner,
babe!”
Rebecca:”Oh, my
God.”
01.28.05
01.33.01
Rebecca:”It is amazing 01.39.36
what you have time to
do when you're not
shopping. For example,
I
actually
learned
Finnish. And nstead of
a relationship with my
credit card, I have a
relationship
with
someone who loves me
back.
And
never
declines me.”
37
B.
Data Analysis
1.
Character analysis of Rebecca Bloomwood as the main character in
the film Confession of A Shopaholic.
Rebecca Bloomwood is a shopping addict (shopping addict/compulsive
buying disorder (CBD) is characterized by an obsession with shopping and buying
behavior that causes adverse consequences.)51 She can’t resist her habbit in
shopping. Rebecca’s habbit begins when she was young watched many women
around her could buy many dresses, shoes, and accessories with the credit cards.
She thought that a credit card is a magic card to buy anything she wants. This
childhood experience create nostalgia52 (Nostalgia is based on memories of the
past and produces a variety of emotions, generally centered around feeling of
warmth. The feelings that accompany create approach behaviors that may lead to
shopping value, but the feelings themselves also create value directly in the form
of hedonic shopping value) then motivates her to have credit cards and she
becomes a shopaholic when she is later an addult woman eventhough she lives
with her frugal parents. We can see this from the scene and her statement below:
Picture 1
51
http://www.enotes.com/topic/Compulsive_buying_disorder. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
Adam Lindgreen, Joëlle Vanhamme, Michael B. Beverland, Memorable Customer Experiences:
a Research Anthology (England: Gower Publishing Limited, 2009), p. 169.
52
38
“When I was a little girl, there were real prices and mom prices. Real
prices got you shiny, sparkly things that lasted three weeks, and mom
prices got you brown things...that lasted forever. But when I looked into
shop windows, I saw another world. A dreamy world full of perfect things.
A world where grown-up girls got what they wanted. They were beautiful.
Like fairies or princesses. They didn't even need any money, they had
magic cards. I wanted one.”(00:00:55)
Rebecca loves to shop and loves new clothes. Her wardrobe is massive.
Her room fills with racks and accessories all over the place. She has difficulty to
walk past a store window without going in and buying something. She chooses
shopping because for her, shopping is like a main activity that must be done to
cheer her up. She considers a shop as a place that can make her happier. She gets
satisfaction by shopping and she continually does her habbit. She describes her
feeling when she gets shopping excessively in her statement below:
Picture 2
“Cause you know that thing, when you see someone cute and he smiles,
and your heart kind of goes like warm butter sliding down hot toast? Well,
that's what it's like when I see a store. Only it's better. You see, a man will
never love you or treat you as well as a store. If a man doesn't fit, you
can't exchange him seven days later for a gorgeous cashmere sweater. And
a store always smells good. A store can awaken a lust for things you never
even knew you needed. And when your fingers grasp those shiny, new
bags...Oh, yes! Oh, yes!” (00:02:08)
Rebecca even admits her habbit in shopping that she is a shopping addict,
she says that the world is better with shopping and if she doesn’t do it again, then
she has to do it again.
39
Picture 3
Rebecca:”Because when I shop, the world gets better. The world is better.
And then it's not anymore. And I need to do it again.”( 01:16:39)
Rebecca is very impulsive that she does her habbit in shopping without
thinking about the consequences. She becomes a woman who only thinks of
shopping. Rebecca goes deeply into debt, but she can't help herself, she always
shops. Her habbits in shopping finally brings her to a very large amount of debts
through her credit cards, since she has more than one credit card and she can’t pay
all of her debts due to her lack of financial means. As the result, she gets many
notification letters from her debt collector.
Picture 4
“Oh, no... I spent $900.” (00:02:50)
Rebecca is an immature woman. When she wants to get a thing to buy,
then she has to get it. She even fights with another woman to get the items she
wants. This can be seen from the quotation and scene below:
40
Picture 5
Rebecca:”Give me the boots and no one gets hurt”(00:53:49)
From the the quotation and scene above, we can see that Rebecca tries to
get the boots and she doesn’t feel ashame to fight with another woman to
get it. She acts like a children and it can be concluded that she is immature
in her age.
She is also a shallow woman. she never thinks before she wants to do
things especially when it comes to shopping. It can be seen from the scene and
dialogue below where Rebecca wants to buy a new dress although she already has
many dresses in her wardrobe. She doesn’t think about her huge number of debts.
All she wants to do is buying a new dress.
Picture 6
Rebecca:”...Here! All I have to do first is buy a new dress.”
Suze:”Bex,no! Absolute
ly not. You've 10,000 dresses already.”(00:53:49)
Although Rebecca has bad behaviors, especially when it relates with her
shopping habbits, but she is also a vivacious woman. This can be seen from some
41
words from Luke Brandon. He says that Rebecca is the most vivacious, funny,
and inspiring woman he has ever met.
Picture 7
Luke:”Rebecca Bloomwood was the most vivacious, funny, inspiring
woman I have ever met”(01:19:15)
Rebecca knows many branded products from shoes, clothes, bags, to
cosmetics, etc. She has an amazing sense of style and she used to wear all the
items to show herself up. She thinks that buying those items can be an
investement eventhough in fact she doesn’t really need all of the items.
Picture 8
“Rebecca Bloomwood. Occupation: Journalist. Jacket: Visa. Dress:
AMEX. Belt: MasterCard. It's vintage. And I got one percent cash back.
Bag: Gucci! And worth every penny.”(00:01:31)
Rebecca is a liar. She’s doing great at shopping, but often bad at telling
the truth. Having a large number of debts makes her a liar to disguise the fact that
she has to pay all of her debts. She often tells lies to her debt collector by giving
many excuses for not paying her debts, because she doesn’t have money to pay it.
42
We can see from the dialogue below that with the help of her bestfriend
Suze, Rebecca lies to her debt collector by saying that she is in Finland at that
Picture 9
Derek Smeath:”Hello! Hi! Ms. Bloomwood?”
Suze:”Hello. I'm sorry. It's actually not..She's still recovering from...You
know... OK. I'll have her call you as soon as...”
Derek Smeath:”Yes?”
Suze:”As soon as she's come back from... From...”
Rebecca:”Finland!”
Suze:”Finland!”
Tarkie:”Why do so many of your excuses involve Finland?”
Rebecca:”Cause no one checks up on Finland, Tarkie.”(00:13:51)
time. She does this thing to avoid her debt collector, because she isn’t ready to tell
the truth that she doesn’t have enough money to pay all her debts.
She also lies to her boss and the man he loves, Luke Brandon. She admits
to him that she works in Successfull Savings only to get another opportunity to
work in a fashion magazine Alette. It can be seen from the dialogues and scenes
below:
Picture 10
Luke:”Just, for once in your life, tell me the truth.”
Rebecca:”Because when I shop, the world gets better. The world is better.
43
And then it's not anymore. And I need to do it again.”
Luke:”Well, what about honesty? What about credibility?”
Rebecca:”Well, I wanted to tell you, but I only took the job to get to
Alette.”
Luke:”Well, I wish you all the best with that.”
Rebecca:”Luke, I'm so sorry.”
Luke:”No, no. I understand. The whole thing was a lie.”( 01:16:39)
Picture 11
Rebecca:”...I lied to the man I love...”(01:28:12)
From the character analysis of Rebecca above, the writer then sums up her
characteristics as a shopping addict, impulsive, shallow, immature, has an
amazing sense of style, vivacious, and liar.
2.
The Hierarchy of Needs on Rebecca Bloomwood as the main character
in the film Confession of A Shopaholic.
As it is explained previously in Chapter II, Hierarchy of Human Needs
Theory is divided into five level of needs. From the lowest physicological needs,
safety needs, love and belongingness needs, self-Esteem needs, and the highest
self-Actualization needs.
a.
Physicological needs of the main character
Rebecca Bloomwood can fulfill the three of physicological needs,
such as, hunger, thirst and sex. Rebecca Bloomwood lives with her best friend
named Suze. They share apartement together which the apartement belongs to
suze’s parents. Rebecca also works in Successful Saving magazine and she
44
becomes very famous with her financial article that she is invited to several
prestigious financial events. This condition makes Rebecca doesn’t have any
dificulty to fulfill her needs in hunger and thirst as we can see in some of the
statements, dialogues, and scenes. The first scene that show Rebecca can fulfill
her need in hunger can be seen in the below picture and dialogue:
Picture 12
Rebecca:”Thanks.”
The bartender:”Pleasure”(00:41:38)
From the scene and the short dialogue above between Rebecca and the
bartender, we can see that Rebecca can drink anything she likes and she can ask
the bartender to get the beverage to be drank whenever she wants. On the scene
above, the beverage she drinks isn’t mineral water, it has a colour and it is served
with luxurious glass and with the garnish in the edge of the glass. Another scene
and dialogue can be seen as the writer states below. From the scene and dialogue
between Rebecca and Luke, we can see that both of them enjoy the beverage
called
majitos (Majitos is a traditional Cuban highball.
A
Mojito
is
traditionally made of five ingredients: white rum, sugar (traditionally sugar cane
juice, lime, sparkling water and mint. The original Cuban recipe uses spearmint
or yerbabuena, a mint variety very popular in the island. Its combination of
sweetness, refreshing citrus and mint flavors are intended to complement the po-
45
Picture 13
Luke:”Drank a lot of majitos? I drank a lot of majitos It wasn't always
work and no play.”
Rebecca:” Gracias.”
Luke:”Gracias.”
Rebecca:” Cheers!’
Luke:”Mmm.” (00:49:28)
tent kick of the rum, and have made this clear highball a popular summer drink.)53
As we can see the place that they both enjoy the beverage is crowd and full of
people. Again, majitos isn’t mineral water both flavor and taste. It also served
with the garnish to the edge of the glass. As we can see from both the scenes and
dialogues above that Rebecca can fulfill her needs in thirst, she even tastes
luxurious beverages.
Another psychological needs that can be fulfilled by the main character
is hunger. Rebecca dooesn’t have difficulties to fulfill her hunger needs. This
can bee seen from the scene and quotation below:
Picture 14
53
http://www.tasteofcuba.com/mojito.html Accessed on October 16th, 2011
46
Luke:”Right, uh, ladies and gentlemen,tonight we will be serving...the, uh,
brook trout and wild smoked salmon.”(01:02:14)
We can see from the scene above, Rebecca drinks
something in the
middle of dinner time around several people. We also can see the statement from
Luke Brandon that he’s serving some of the menus in the diner time. Although
Rebecca doesn’t say something about the situation, but the statement from Luke
implies that they are having dinner together. Rebecca also wears a formal dress
that implies she dinners in a luxurious and special occasion. It can also implies
that Rebecca doesn’t have any difficulties in fulfilling her hunger needs.
The next need is sex. Rebecca also gets her need of sex without having
many difficulties, as we can see from the scenes and dialogues below. From both
of the scenes and dialogues between Rebecca and Luke, Rebecca gets her sexual
need by kissing with luke. The first scene and dialogue below show that Rebecca
ask about Luke’s girlfriend and Luke’s answer implies that he likes Rebecca, then
they naturally kiss to show their interest to each other.
Picture 15
Rebecca:”I thought she was your girlfriend.”
Luke:”No. She's not my girlfriend. She's not you.”(01:03:42)
The second scene and dialogue also show that Rebecca gets her sexual
need by kissing with Luke. It shows that Luke tells to Rebecca about her scarf
47
Picture 16
Luke:” It's a desperately important scarf.” (01:38:53)
that it is a desperately important scarf and then they kiss each other.From several
scenes and dialogues that the writer explaines above, it can be concluded that
Rebecca Bloomwood can fulfill her physicological need such as: hunger, thirst,
and sex.
b.
Safety needs of the main character
Rebecca Bloomwood appears to have the needs of safety and security in
her personal and financial condition. Living as a shopaholic with a huge numbers
of debt makes Rebecca Bloomwood as the main character searching for her
personal and financial security. Since she retires from her job in the gardening
magazine due to the bankcrupt of her office, Rebecca starts to feel insecure with
her financial condition.
From the scene and dialogue below between Rebecca and her best friend
Suze, it can be seen that Rebecca doesn’t actually like her job in the gardening
magazine, but since she has much debts working on that magazine is the only
wayto get her income. When she retires from the job she doesn’t feel save about
her financial condition because she is jobless.
48
Picture 17
Suze:”Well, on the bright side, you hated working for that magazine.”
Rebecca:”It was my income, Suze. I need my income!”(00:13:20)
Besides her insecure feeling about her financial condition, Rebecca also
feels the same way with her personal security. But both of her financial and
personal security relate each other where she feels unsave from her debt collector;
Derek Smeath. Since she has much debts, she starts to have a personal contact
from her debt collector who asks her time to pay all her debts. Rebecca feels
horrifies with this condition and she also feels unsave. Then, she tries to hide the
fact about her condition that she doesn’t have enough money to pay all her debts
and makes many reasons to cover them.
Picture 18
Derek Smeath:”Hello! Hi! Ms. Bloomwood?”
Suze:”Hello. I'm sorry. It's actually not. She's still recovering from...You
know... OK. I'll have her call you as soon as...”
Derek Smeath:”Yes?”
Suze:”As soon as she's come back from... From...”
Rebecca:”Finland! Finland!”(00:13:51)
49
Picture 19
Trakie:”Why do so many of your excuses involve Finland?”
Rebecca:”'Cause no one checks up on Finland, Tarkie.” (00:13:47)
From the scenes and dialogues above, we can see that Rebecca doesn’t
feel save from her debt collector. The first scene and dialogue show that her best
friend Suze talks with Rebecca’s debt collector and lies about Rebecca’s presence.
In the second scene and dialogue Rebecca used to give the reason to her debt
collector that she’s in Finland because she thinks that no one could check her up
in there including her debt collector. Rebecca always stalks by her debt collector
due to her debts. When she is accepted in the financial magazine; Succesfull
Savings she stillbeing stalked by her debt collector to pay her debts and Rebecca
always avoid him until one day her debt collector calls her office when she is in
middle of the meeting and her boss picks up the phone.
From the scene and dialogue below, we can see that Rebecca knows that
her debt collector calls her from her office in the middle of the meeting.
Picture 20
50
Rebecca:”Derek Smeath. Oh! No!”(00:35:52)
She spontaneously jumps from her desk and screams to her boss to warn
her boss for not picking up the phone. Rebecca does this embarassing attitude to
cover the fact from the employers and her boss that she is in a mountain of debts.
Rebecca finally lies to her boss that the man who calls her in the middle of the
meeting was her ex-boyfriend who stalked her since her their relationship ended.
This can be seen from the scene and dialogue below:
Picture 21
Luke:”Exactly how long has this ex-boyfriend been stalking you?”
Rebbeca:”Ever since the relationship ended. He's been following me
around pretending to be a debt collector.”
Hayley:”I was once stalked...by a dog.
Luke:”OK. Look, take the rest of the day and block all future calls from
Derek Smeath.”
Hayley:”Yes, sir.”(00:35:59)
From the dialogue above, Rebecca lies to her boss about her debt collector and finally she gets her personal safety by her boss by giving the instruction
to his employer to block all future calls from Derek Smeath who exactly in fact is
Rebecca’s debt collector. Another scene and dialogue which shows that Rebecca
needs her personal safety can be seen below when her debt collector finally comes
to her office to meet him. Rebecca then meets Luke and says a lie to him about
51
Picture 22
Luke:”I've had enough of this clown. I'll see him.”
Rebecca:”Whoa! Luke! No! I never want you to meet him, ever.”
Hayley:”Don't worry. I've already called security.”
Rebecca:”See? She called security.”(01:07:01)
her debt collector.It can be seen from the scene and dialogue above, that Rebecca
tries to ask Luke for not seeing her debt collector, because if Luke finally meet her
debt collector he will know that Rebecca has lied. Rebecca does this way, because
she doesn’t feel safe that she uses Luke as her protector in avoiding her debt
collector. As a result she gets her safety needs from Luke.
From the explanations above, we can see that Rebecca doesn’t feel save
about her financial and personal condition especially from her debt collector that
she tries to search her protector to cover them. In the way of fulfilling her safety
needs, Rebecca gets her safety needs from her best friend Suze and her boss Luke
Brandon. It can be conlude that Rebecca can fulfill her safety needs.
c.
Love and Belongingness needs
Rebecca Bloomwood gets her sense of love and belongingness needs from
people around her such as from her best friend, family, and lover. Although
Rebecca has many problems about her debts, but she always gets many supports
from people around her.
52
Rebecca lives with her best friend Suze in Suze’s flat. When Rebecca gets
Her trouble from her mountain of debts, the first person she talks and shares is
Picture 23
Suze:”OK, Bex, the most important thing is not to panic.”(00:13:24)
Suze. As her best friend Suze always supports Rebecca to face her problem.
Based on the scene and the quotation above, we can see that Suze tries to cheer
Rebecca by saying to her not to be panic to solve her problems. Another dialogue
that show s Suze’s love and belongingness as a friend to Rebecca can be seen
below:
Picture 24
Suze:“How are you going to pay off sixteen thousand twelve hundred and
62 dollars and 70 cents with no job?”
Rebecca:“I could win the lottery”
Suze:” Maybe you should have a backup plan. Oh! Backup plan, I got it, I
got it, Back up plan.” (00:15:50)
Based on the first dialogue above, Suze as Rebecca’s best friend gets a
back up plan for Rebecca to solve her financial problem. When Rebecca can’t
53
even think about the way to solve her problem, Suze then gets the idea
for Rebecca. She helps Rebecca, because she cares of her as her best friend.
Picture 25
Suze:”I just found a perfect book for you”(00:23:44)
In the second quotation and scene above, Suze also finds another way to
help Rebecca to handle her financial condition by giving her a book about how to
manage her financial things. In this point Rebecca gets her love and affection
from her best friend Suze, because she always cares and tries to help Rebecca.
Rebecca also gets her sense of love and belongingness from her family, they are
her father and mother. Both of them always care and love Rebecca.
Picture 26
Mom:”Doesn’t this just cheer you up?”
Rebecca:”It’s not working, Mom.”
Mom:”Come on, you’ll get another job”(00:17:29)
When Rebecca retired from her previous job in gardening magazine, she
comes back home for a while to meet her parents. Knowing that Rebecca has a
54
problems in her carier, her parents try to cheer her up and supporther that we
can see from the dialogue and scene above. Rebecca also gets advice from her
father to spend her money wisely based on the quotation and scene below:
Picture 27
Dad:”Spend it wisely, huh?”(00:36:36)
Her parents actually do not know about her debts. However her parents
finally know about them, but they still support and love her as their daughter. It
can be seen from the quotation and scene below when her father expresses his
love to Rebecca and her mother.
Picture 28
Dad:”Nothing defines me, except you and your mother”(01:22:30)
Besides from her best friend and family, Rebecca also receives love and
belongingness from Luke Brandon, her boss at Successful Saving’s magazine.
Rebecca and Luke finally fall in love each other. Luke also expresses his feeling
to Rebecca in some ways. We can see this from certain dialogues below:
55
Picture 29
Luke:”No. She's not my girlfriend. She's not you.” (01:03:30)
From the quotation above Luke expresses his interest and love to Rebecca.
Picture 30
Rebecca: The bidder on the phone was you. But you lost!
Luke:”Both bidders were me”(01:38:39)
Picture 31
Luke:”It’s a desperately important scarf”(01:38:40)
Both dialogue and quotation above also show that Luke really love Rebecca. When Rebecca decides to sell and make auctions of all her fashion items
to pay all her debts, Luke hires two woman to pretend to be a bidder to buy Rebe-
56
cca’s green scarf. We can see in the first dialogue and scene above that Luke tells
to Rebecca that both the bidders were him, and finally he gives back the green
scarf to Rebecca because he knows that the green scarf is really important to her.
He pretends to be both the bidders only to help Rebecca to collect the money to
pay all her debts, because he loves Rebecca.
Picture 32
Rebecca:”And instead of a relationship with my credit card, I have a
relationship with someone who loves me back. And never declines
me.”(00:39:52)
As we can see from the quotation above, Rebecca gets her intimate
love and belongingness from her lover Luke Brandon that he never declines her.
From all the explanations above about the needs of love and belongingness, it can
be concluded that Rebecca Bloomwood can fulfill both needs, because she gets
love and affection from people around her such as: her friend, parents, and lover.
The main character here doesn’t have an obstacle to fulfill the needs of love and
belongingness.
d.
Self-Esteem needs
Rebecca gets her esteem need in some ways in order to get her self esteem,
self confidence, self achievement, and respect from others. She mostly gets her
self esteem by her shopping activity where she feels the satisfaction in it.
57
a.
Self Esteem
Picture 33
Rebecca:”Rebecca Bloomwood. Occupation: Journalist. Jacket: Visa.
Dress: AMEX. Belt: MasterCard. It's vintage. And I got one percent cash
back. Bag: Gucci! And worth every penny.” (00:01:31)
From the quotation above, it can be concluded that Rebecca feels proud
about her shopping items. She has jacket, dress, and bag from famous brands. She
feels satisfy about what she can buy and she also feels good to wear those items.
Picture 34
Rebecca:”Cause you know that thing, when you see someone cute and he
smiles, and your heart kind of goes like warm butter sliding down hot
toast? Well, that's what it's like when I see a store. Only it's
better.”(00:02:08)
Picture 35
Rebecca:” You see, a man will never love you or treat you as well as a
store. If a man doesn't fit, you can't exchange him seven days later for a
gorgeous cashmere sweater. And a store always smells good. A store can
58
awaken a lust for things you never even knew you needed. And when your
fingers grasp those shiny, new bags...Oh, yes! Oh, yes!”(00:02:43)
We can also see from both of the quotations above that Rebecca describes
her feeling about store and and shopping. She describes her feeling about them
excessively that she feels shopping and all activities about it can give the best
feeling more than the feeling of falling in love with a man that she associates it
better than when her heart kind of goes like butter sliding down hot toast. In the
second quotation, she also describes her feeling the same way. She gets
satisfaction from coming to the store and buy things around there eventhough in
fact she doesn’t really need what she buys that she considers having a new bags
with new items from store can give her self esteem need.
Another quotation that shows Rebecca has a very strong interest in
shopping can be seen below. It states that Rebecca fights with another customer
only to get the boots that actually she doesn’t really need. She thinks that she is
the first person who see the boots and she thinks that she deserves to get the boots
despite she has to fight to get it.
Picture 36
Rebecca:”Give me the boots and no one gets hurt”(00:53:44)
From the quotation below, we can also see that Rebecca admit her
feeling about shopping where she gets shopping her world becomes better, but she
59
doesn’t do it anymore and she has to do it again in order to keep the feeling of
satisfaction that she gets from it. When she shops, she feels happy and proud of
herself. She thinks that shopping can give all she needs to make her life better.
Picture 37
Rebecca:” Because when I shop, the world gets better. The world is better.
And then it's not anymore. And I need to do it again.”(01:16:39)
Shopping activities that Rebecca does to get her self esteem show the
excessive consumer behavior. Rebecca continually satisfies her self by shopping
in massive way. Her shopping is done merely to get the satisfaction of her
personal feeling.
b.
Self Confidence
Rebecca also does the activity of shopping to get her self confidence.
According to her, buying shopping items especially fashion items can give a
better appearance that leads her to be more confident. Again, she shows her
consumer behavior in buying goods and consuming them. She always tries to get
the reason to justify her habit in shopping. Thus, she never stops her shopping
habits even though she has a lot of debts.
Picture 38
60
The manequin:”The point about this scarf is that it would become part of
a definition of your...Of your psyche. Do you see what I mean?
Rebecca:”No,I do.Keep talking.
The manequin:”It would make your eyes look bigger.
Rebecca:”Mmm...It would make my haircut look more expensive.
The manequin:”You'd wear it with everything.
Rebecca:”It would be an investment.
The manequin;”You would walk into that interview confident.”
Rebecca:”Confident.”
The manequin:”And poised.”
Rebecca:”Poised.”
The manequin:”The girl in the green scarf.”(00:05:50)
From the the dialogue above,the writer concludes that Rebecca has made a
fantasy as if the manequin talks to her, but in fact she talks to herself to justify and
make sure that she has to buy those green scarf in order to give her the sense of
confidence by wearing it. As the result she gets attention by people around
her and then it leads to the esteem feeling that she feels satisfy in wearing
the green scarf.
Picture 39
Shop assistant:”That'll be $120. How would you like to pay?”
Rebecca:”Here's $50 in cash, can you put 30 on this card...Ten on
that.Twenty on that.It's so cute.”
Shop assistant:”Declined.” (00:06:07)
From the dialogue and scene above we can see that Rebecca finally buys
the green scarf to satisfy her desire in shopping, though she knows that she still
have a huge number of debts in her credit accounts. Rebecca doesn’t have enough
money in her credit card. Therefore, she pays the scarf by combining another
61
credit card, but all of her credit cards are declined. She even goes to the hotdog
seller to get another $20 of cash to get the green scarf and she describes the
condition excessively by saying the scarf is a very desperately important scarf as
we can see from the scene and dialogue below:
Picture 40
Rebecca:”Do you do cash back?”
Hotdog’s seller:”What?”
Rebecca:”If I give you a check for $23, will you give me one of your hot
dogs and $20 cash back, please?”
Hotdog’s seller:”Do I look like a bank?”
Rebecca:”I have an interview. They don't hold items. It's a desperately
important scarf.”(00:04:02)
c.
Esteem from others
Rebecca also gets esteem from others by receiving many appreciation
from people around her. When Rebecca buys her new scarf to the interview
at Alette, the receptionist compliments her as we can see from the scene and
dialogue below:
Picture 41
Receptionist:”Nice scarf.”
Rebecca:”Thanks. I bought it for the interview.”(00:08:30)
62
Rebecca also gets a compliment from her best friend Suze when she writes
a letter to Successfull Savings and Alette magazine. Suze likes her letter and
compliment her as a funny, smart, fabolous, an the best writer ever and Rebecca
feels so happy to hear that. This can be seen from the dialogue and scene above:
Picture 42
Suze:”Bex, this is so funny. You're so smart. You're the best writer ever!”
Rebecca:”Do you like it?”
Suze:”You're fabulous!”( 00:16:28)
Rebecca also gets many compliments and appreciations from her boss
Luke Brandon when she’s already worked at Successful Savings. She makes a
financial column and accidently her column makes her famous and makes
the high rating for many readers to read Successful Savings. This can be seen from
several dialogues and scenes below:
Picture 43
Rebecca:”What?
Luke:”This is good.
Rebecca:”Really?
63
Luke:”Mmm. Is it by Rebecca Bloomwood?
Rebecca:”Yes! My friend Suze saw me writing it.
Luke:”I mean, is that how you want your name to appear? "By Rebecca
Bloomwood"?
Rebecca:”Oh, right.”( 00:33:27)
Picture 44
Luke:” The Girl in the Green Scarf. Thank you.”( 00:34:08)
Picture 45
Luke:”They want her on the Morning Coffee show. I think Rebecca would
be great on television. She's... She's hard to ignore.”( 01:00:46)
From the dialogue and scene above, Rebecca gets many appreciation from
her column work, but she doesn’t want her name appears on the column. Then she
uses another writer name as “The girl in the green scarf”. She even gets the
opportunity to appear on the Morning Coffee show on television program.
Rebecca also gets many appreciation from her collegues at Successfull
savings due to her financial column. The column makes the magazine goes
international. This can be seen from the several scenes and dialogues below. The
64
first scene below between the woman and Rebecca shows that Rebecca’s financial
column gets high response from the readers that the magazine never get it before.
Picture 46
Woman:”We never get this kind of response.”(00:34:32)
Picture 47
Edgar West:” I've just spent a few minutes rather wrapped up in your "Green
Scarf." I like it. Uh, she obviously has a passion for personal finance.”
(00:34:51)
Picture 48
Succesfull savings’ employer:”Oh, my God. Guys! We’re international!”
( 00:38:24)
65
Picture 49
Mr.Lewis: ”She's like a breath of fresh air.”( 00:42:46)
Picture 50
Jane Virtayen:”Mr.Brandon”
Luke:”Yes.”
Jane Virtayen:”We Scandinavians...like her. A lot.”( 00:44:31)
Rebecca finally gets the appreciation and compliment from Alette Naylor
due to her appearance on the television and she offers to work in Alette, this can
be seen from the scene and quotation below:
Picture 51
Alette Naylor:”You may not know this, but your appearance on that TV
show has struck a nerve with many, many girls. They identify with you.
66
Your column will be Affordable Fashion. Five hundred words once a
month. Welcome to Alette.”( 01:24:41)
e.
Self-Actualization needs
"What a man can be, he must be.54This forms the basis of the perceived
need for self-actualization. This level of need pertains to what a person's full
potential is and realizing that potential. Maslow describes this desire as the desire
to become more and more what one is, to become everything that one is capable
of becoming.55This is a broad definition of the need for self-actualization, but
when applied to individuals the need is specific. For example, on individual may
have a strong desire to become an ideal parent, in another it may be expressed
athletically, and in another it may be expressed in painting, pictures, or
inventions.56As mentioned before, in order to reach a clear understanding of this
level of need one must first not only achieve the previous needs, physiological,
safely, love, and esteem, but master these needs.
Rebecca as the main character meets the four of Maslow’s needs as stated
and explained in the above discussion. Rebecca tries to actualize herself by trying
to achieve to work in Alette magazine. As the dialogue states below mentions that
Rebecca will be very happy forever if she can work in Alette. According to the
writer, this statement still has the relationship with the main character’s shopping
behaviour. For the main character, working in Alette can give her the opportunity
to actualize her self. But more than that she desperately wants to work in there to
get high salary so that she can continue her habbit in shopping.
54
AbrahamMaslow, Motivation and personality (New York: Harper and Row New York, 1954), p.
92
55
Abraham Maslow. (1954). op.cit.p.93
56
Ibid
67
Picture 52
Rebecca: “Did I mention I have an interview at Alette magazine?”
Suze:”Only about billion times. Ok...it’s kind of a leap, isn’t it? Gardening
to fashion? I mean, not that I meant, you couldn’t do it...”
Rebecca:” Suze... since I was fourteen I wanted to work at Alette
magazine. If I can just get this job I will be happy forever.”
Suze:”Wow.”(00:04:02)
When Rebecca comes to interview in Alette magazine, she doesn’t get the
opportunity to work in there, because the position has filled. She feels so sad but
when the receptionist says that there will be interview in Successful Savings,
Rebecca feels challenged to follow the interview though at first she
underestimates it. But she accepts to get the interview in there, because both of the
magazines are family magazine, and Rebecca hopes she will get another
opportunity to work in Alette by working at Successful Savings.
Picture 53
Receptionist:”As we speak, interviews are being held at Successful
Saving.”
Rebecca:”The money magazine?”
Receptionist:”Snort not, sweet child.” Alette may be your Emerald City,
68
but Successful Saving could be your yellow brick road. Dantay-West is a
family of magazines that acts like a family. Deeply nepotistic. Ugh. So my
advice to you,dear Dorothy, is thus...Once you’re in... you’re in.”
Rebecca:”I’m in.”(00:19:12)
From the dialogue and scene above, we can see that Rebecca feels
challenged. This challenged feeling leads her to get the achievement to work in
Alette though before that she has to work in the financial magazine; Successful
Savings. And this feeling also leads her to acvhieve her dreams as the
implementation of
the actualization of
herself. This can be proved in the
dialogue between Rebecca and her best friend Suze below, where Rebecca says to
Suze that it is her very structured plan to work in financial magazine that can lead
her to get work in Alette.
Picture 54
Suze:”You took a job at a savings magazine? You?”
Rebecca:”I know it sounds bad, but it is, in fact, part of a very structured
plan.” (00:22:56)
In realizing her plan to work in Alette, Rebecca makes her plan to impress
the owner of Alette magazine named Alette Naylor. She does this plan by buying
new dress and bag to support her appearance. We can see this from the dialogue
between Rebecca and Suze below where Rebecca plans to impress Alette Naylor
and she plans to do it by buying a new dress. She doesn’t think about her debts,
69
but she wants to buy a new dress in the hope she can give a good impression to
Alette Naylor and get her attention, although she has many dresses in her war-
Picture 55
Rebecca:”I know I've made some mistakes,but I'm turning my life around.
I've got it planned. I'm gonna go to the ball. Impress Alette Naylor. Here!
All I have to do first is buy a new dress.”
Suze:”Bex,no! Absolutely not. You've 10,000 dresses already.”(00:53:49)
drobe. Suze tries to stop her to buy a new dress by saying that Rebecca has 10.000
dresses already. Again, Rebecca couldn’t stop her habbit in shopping. Suze finally
can convince Rebecca not to buy a new dress, but it doesn’t stop Rebecca to buy
another stuff to support her appearance to impress Alette Naylor, because she
wants to buy new shoes to match the dress. This can be seen from the quotation
and scene below:
Picture 56
Rebecca:” It's perfect. All I have to do now is buy a new bag.”( 00:54:53)
From the several scenes and dialogues above, Rebecca tries to achieve her
dream to work in fashion magazine at Alette by working in financial magazine at
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Successfull Savings, because both of the magazines are family magazines.
Therefore, working in money magazine can be a yellow brick for Rebecca to
achieve her dream. She tries so hard to impress Alette Naylor in the hope she can
get her attention to be accepted to work in Alette Magazine. She continulally do
the shopping activity as the reason to support her appearance.
But, in the end of the story, Rebecca finally realizes that she does the
wrong ways to get her dreams. As the results, she loses the love of her friend and
lover. Then, Rebecca finally decides to sell all her clothes, bags, shoes, and all
shopping items she has by making an auction sale of those items to get enough
money to pay all her debts. She also refuses the offer to work in Alette as stated in
the below dialogue, quotation and scene:
Picture 57
Rebecca:” I just... I have made so many mistakes,and I feel like taking this
job would be another one.”
Alette Naylor:”Before you make your decision, you should know this,
When I leave this house, the oppor-tunity leave with me.”
Rebecca:”Well, then you should both go.”(01:27:04)
From the dialogue above, it can be seen that Rebecca refuses to work in
Alette magazine, although it is her deam to work in there. She realizes that she
has many mistakes and if she takes the job to work in Alette, she would risk
herself and she would make another mistakes. She then misses the oportunity to
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work in Alette.T he first dialogue and scene show that Rebecca tries to be
honest about all her mistakes that destroy her life. She then asks for help from her
friends in her self help shopping group community to help her to make the sale
Picture 58
Rebecca:”I'm Rebecca Bloomwood and I'm a shopaholic.”
Self-help shopping group:”Hi, Rebecca.”
Rebecca:”I destroyed my career on national Television. I lied to the man I
love. I hurt my best friend. I invented a stalker, and I don't even speak
Finnish. But I have a plan, and I need your help. Who's with me?”
Self-help shopping group:” (All raise their hands to Rebecca) (01:28:05)
auction of all her shopping items. In the second scene and quotation, we can
see that from the help of her friends and family, Rebecca can collect more
money to pay all her debts and she finally can pay all her debts although she
has to lose all her lovelyshopping items.
Picture 59
Dad:”One, two, three, four.
Rebecca:”That's another thousand.”
Dad:”Wow. $16,586,72 cents. You are a winner, babe!”
Rebecca:”Oh, my God.”(01:33:01)
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At this point, Rebecca solves her financial problems. By all bad things that
happens to her from her impulsive shopping behaviour, she then contemplates her
self and finds a way to solve her problems wisely. As stated from the previous
chapter in theoretical framework, that problem solving is one of the characteristic
of self actualization. Thus, the main character in this film finally can fit her self
actualization need.
In the end of the story Rebecca realizes all her mistakes and she feels
happier with her decision by not being a shopaholic again. At first, she thinks that
she can get happiness by shopping, but finally she realizes that what she really
needs is the love and acceptance, and how she can be benefits for people around
her and it describes how she can actualize herself. It can clearly be seen on the
below quotation and scene below:
Picture 60
Rebecca:”It is amazing what you have time to do when you're not
shopping. For example, I actually learned Finnish. And nstead of a
relationship with my credit card, I have a relationship with someone who
loves me back. And never declines me.”(01:39:36)
From all the descriptions and explanations above about self actualizatioin
needs on the main character, it can be concluded that at first the main character
has a very strong needs to actualize herself by chasing her dreams to work in
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Alette magazine, but finally she realizes that she does many wrong ways in
chasing her dreams that causes her of losing the love of her best friend and lover.
She then tries to find a solution to all her problems by refusing to work in Alette
and selling all her shopping items to pay all her debts. The main character here
finally can fulfill her self actualization need by making the decision to solve her
problems.
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CHAPTER IV
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
A.
Conclusion
Confessions of A Shopaholic’sfilm tells about a woman who likes
shopping very much. The main character in this movie is Rebecca Bloomwood
who works as a journalist in gardening magazine, but she has a dream to work in a
fashion magazine Alette. In realizing her dreams, she first has to work in a
financial magazine called Successful Savings. The writer identifies the needs that
appears from her shopping habbits. The writer here uses the theory of Abraham
Maslow about Hierarchy of human needs. In those film, the writer analyzes the
characteristics of Rebecca Bloomwood and the hierarchy of needs that appear on
her as the main character.
From the analysis about the characteristics of Rebecca Bloomwood, the
characteristics of Rebecca Bloomwood are shopping addict, impulsive, shallow,
immature, has an amazing sense of style, vivacious and liar.
The writer also analyzes about the hierarchy of needs from Rebecca
Bloomwood’s behaviour. And the writer identifies the needs of Rebecca
Bloomwood from the lowest stage psychological needs, safety needs, love and
belongingness needs, esteem needs to the highest stage self actualization needs.
From psychological needs, Rebecca gets her psychological needs such as
hunger, thirst, and sex. She doesn’t get any obstacle to fulfill those needs. From
safety needs, Rebecca gets her personal and financial safety needs from her best
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friend suze and the way she avoid her debt collector. Thus, she doesn’t get any
obstacle to fulfill her safety needs. From love and belongingness needs, Rebecca
gets her love and belongingness needs from her friend, family, and lover. From
esteem needs, Rebecca gets her esteem needs by her shopping habits to get her
self esteem, confidence, and esteem from others. And the last from self
actualization needs.
Rebecca Bloomwood gets her self actualization by her
experience about her shopping habits. She then contemplates her self about the
consequences she gets from her shopping habits that leads her to the fact that she
loses the love from people she loves around her including her friends and lover. In
this point, she gets her peak experience and finally she tries to solve her problem
by making an auction of all her shopping items and she’s no longer being a
shopaholic. Thus, Rebecca can fulfill her self actualization needs.
The writer here tries to identify and describes those of the needs to find the
relationship between the main character’s shopping behavior and the stage
of needs viewed from maslow’s theory. The writer finds the relationship between
shopping behavior of Rebecca Bloomwood and the needs that she tries to fulfill
according to Maslow’s theory.
Rebecca Bloomwood likes to shopping in order to satisfy her desire
especially in having fashion items like clothes, shoes, accesories, etc. By having
those things she can get her self esteem that leads her to the feeling of confidence
and comfort, especially with her self. She also does the shopping to get her self
actualization. From the analysis above, the main character does shopping to
achieve her dream to work in Alette. It can be conluded that shopping behavior
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on Rebecca Bloomwood reflects the needs of esteem and self actualization that
she tries to fulfill. And the fulfillment of both of this needs finally change her
excessive shopping behavior.
B.
Suggestion
In this research, the writer uses the theory of Abraham Maslow about the
hierarchy of needs to analyse the main character’s consumer behavior in shopping
in the movie Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. The theory of
Abraham Maslow can clearly reveal and describe about the main character’s
behavior on how she tries to fufill her needs from her consumer behavior.
The writer suggests to the readers to have another different point of view
by doing a further reading about psychologycal theory in order to get more
comprehensive and deeper understanding about this film.The writer also hopes
that this research will be useful as the reference for other researchers whowantto
dosimilar researchonthe maincharacterinthe filmand for future improvement of
literary studies, particularly to the Adab and Humanities Faculty of Syarif
Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books:
Boggs, Joseph M. and Dennis W.Petrie, The Art of Watching Film, 5th ed.
London: Mayfield Publishing Company, 2000.
Engel, James F., David T. Kollat and Roger D. Blackwell. Consumer Behavior.
New York: Holt, Reinhart and Winston, 1968
Farkhan, Muhammad. Penelitian Bahasa & Sastra. Jakarta: Cella, 2006.
Farkhan, Muhammad. Penulisan Karya Ilmiah. Jakarta: Cella, 2006.
Gordon, Jane Bachman. and Karen Kuehner. Fiction. California: McGraw Hill,
1999.
Kennedy, X. J. Introduction to Fiction. Boston: Little Bown, 1983.
King, Brett. Bank 2.0: How Customer Behavior and Technology Will Change the
Future of Financial Services. Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Reference,
2010.
Lindgreen, Adam., Joëlle Vanhamme and Michael B. Beverland. Memorable
Customer Experiences: A Research Anthology. England: Gower
Publishing Limited, 2009
Louden, David L. and Albert J. Della Bitta. Consumer Behavior: Concept and
Applications. The United States of America: McGraw Hill Inc, 1984.
Maslow, Abraham. Motivation and Personality. New York: Harper and Row New
York, 1954.
Moesono, Angga dewi. Psikoanalisis dan Sastra. Depok: Pusat Penelitian
Kemasyarakatan dan Budaya Lembaga Penelitian Universitas Indonesia,
2003.
Petri, Herbert L. Motivation: Theory and Research. California: Wadsworth
Publishing Company, 2003.
Reeve, John marshall. Understanding Motivation and Emotion. New York:
Harcourt Brace Collage Publisher, 2004.
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Tomei, Lawrence A. Lexicon of Online and Distance Learning. United States of
America: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2009.
Websites:
C. George Boree, Personality Theories.
http://www.ship.edu/-cgboeree/maslow.html. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
Kendra Cherry, Characteristics of Self-Actualized People
http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/tp/self-actualizedcharacteristic.htm. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
http://www.pooler-georgia-homepage.com/movie-focused-sites.html. Accessed on
August 10th, 2011
http://www.worldofkj.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=49241. Accessed on August
10th, 2011
http://www.trueknowledge.com/q/biography_of_madeleine_wickham.
on August 10th, 2011
Accessed
http://www.xenodochy.org/ex/lists/maslow.html. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-consumer-behavior.htm. Accessed on August
10th, 2011
http://www.writing-world.com/screen/film3.shtml. Accessed on August 10th, 2011
http://psychology.about.com/od/historyofpsychology/a/hist_humanistic.htm.
Accessed on December 12th, 2011
http://www.abraham-maslow.com/m_motivation/Humanistic-Psychology.asp.
Accessed on December 12th, 2011
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APPENDIX
A.
Summary of Confessions of A Shopaholic’s film
Rebecca Bloomwood (Isla Fisher) is a shopping addict who lives with her
best friend Suze (Krysten Ritter). She works as a journalist for a gardening
magazine but dreams to join the fashion magazine Alette. On the way to an
interview with Alette, she buys a green scarf. Her credit card is declined, so
Rebecca goes to a hot dog stand and offers to buy all the hot dogs if the seller
gives her back change in cash, saying the scarf is to be a gift for her sick aunt. The
hot dog vendor refuses but a man offers her $20.
When Rebecca arrives at the interview, she's told that the position has
been filled. However, the receptionist tells her there is an open position with the
magazine Successful Saving. Rebecca interviews with Luke Brandon (Hugh
Dancy), the editor of Successful Savings and the man who just gave her the $20.
She hides her scarf outside his office, but Luke's assistant comes into the office
and gives it back to her. Rebecca knows the game is up and leaves.
That evening, drunk, she and Suze write letters to Alette and Successful
Saving, but she mails each to the wrong magazine. Luke likes the letter she meant
to send to Alette and hires her. Rather than completing a work assignment for a
new column, Rebecca goes to a clothing sale. While inspecting a coat, she realizes
it is not 100% cashmere, which gives her an idea for the column, which is an
instant success.
Rebecca returns home to renewed confrontations with debt collector Derek
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Smeath, so Suze makes her join Shopaholics Anonymous. The class leader, Miss
Korch (Wendie Malick), forces Rebecca to donate all the clothes she just bought,
including a bridesmaid's dress for Suze's wedding and a dress for a TV interview.
Rebecca can't afford to buy back both and buys back the interview dress. During
the interview, Rebecca is accused of not paying her debts and loses her job. Suze
is angry when she finds out that Rebecca sold the bridesmaid dress. Alette offers
Rebecca a position at the magazine, but Rebecca declines. She sells most of her
clothes to pay her debts. Meanwhile, Luke starts a new company, Brandon
Communications.
Rebecca's clothes sale makes it possible for her to pay her debts. Rebecca
attends Suze's wedding after reclaiming her bridesmaid dress. Suze forgives her.
Rebecca and Luke meet, and Luke returns the green scarf after revealing
that the person who bought it at an auction was acting as his agent. Rebecca
becomes romantically involved with Luke and starts work at his new company.
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B.
Movie cover of Confessions of A Shopaholic
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