ABSTRACT
Language use is a unique phenomenon because it is very contextdependent.
Different contexts of situations will likely produce different languages.
Language use has a social relevance, in the sense that it reflects a social process and a socially conditioned process. Exercising power is a social and a socially conditioned process. Participants involved in a conversation continuously exercise and negotiate power. How power is exercised and negotiated is an interesting topic to be explored.
This thesis is aimed at investigating power relation between the main characters of Dawson’s Creek “Dirty Dancing” by focusing on two main issues:(1) How are the power relation between the main characters involved in the conversation under study? And (2) How do the more powerful characters exercise power over the others?
This is a descriptive qualitative research aimed at describing the nature and exercises of the power, which occurred in the Dawson’s Creek conversations qualitatively. The data for the research are 3 scenes of conversations between the main characters taken from www.dawson’screek.com. The data then were labeled according to turn number and speakers, clause number, subject, mood, polarity, adjunct, modalization, modulation, clause category, speech function, and the complete clause. The data were analyzed by comparing the number of turns the characters managed, the subject choice, the mood and modality, and the speech function.
The result of the analysis shows that asymmetrical or unequal power relation existed in the conversations. Generally, Dawson was more powerful than others especially in scene 1 and 3, but in scene 2 Jen emerged to be more powerful than others. This power imbalance is proved by the following facts: (1) Dawson and Jen produced more turns than others; (2) The framing of subject “you-I” operated by Jen and Dawson; (3) Dawson produced more various mood choices in scene 1 and 3, while Jen produced more various mood choices in scene 2, in which one of the mood choices they produced is imperative mood; (4) Dawson produced modality indicating obligation, that means that Dawson assumed higher status, and (5) Most of the initiating moves produced by Dawson.
Dawson and Jen exercised power by controlling turn-taking system. Other characters took turns only when they were nominated or selected. Framing of subject choice of “you-I” was also applied by Dawson in scene 1 and 3 to exercise power, while Jen applied it in scene 2. It means that other characters could only contribute when they were required. Dawson also exercised power by assuming of holding higher status than others. This was proved in Dawson’s uses of modality of obligation addressed to other characters.
