seminar on literature

OPPRESSION AGAINST THE POOR IN DANNY BOYLE’S SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE (2008) : A MARXIST CRITICISM

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Submitted as a Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement

for Getting Bachelor Degree of Education

in English Department

by:

BERNA DETA KURNIASARI

A 320070138

SCHOOL OF TEACHER TRAINING AND EDUCATION

MUHAMMADIYAH UNIVERSITY OF SURAKARTA

2011

OPPRESSION AGAINST THE POOR IN DANNY BOYLE’S SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE (2008) : A MARXIST CRITICISM

A.    Background of the Study

Slumdog Millionaire is a 2008 British romantic drama film directed by Danny Boyle, written by Simon Beaufoy, and co-directed in India by Loveleen Tandan. It is an adaptation of the novel Q & A (2005) by Indian author and diplomat Vikas Swarup. Set and filmed in India, the film tells the story of Jamal Malik, a young man from the Juhu slums of Mumbai who appears on the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (Kaun Banega Crorepati in the Hindi version) and exceeds people's expectations, thereby arousing the suspicions of the game show host and of law enforcement officials. After its world premiere at Telluride Film Festival and later screenings at the Toronto International Film Festival and the London Film Festival, Slumdog Millionaire initially had a limited North American release on 12 November 2008, to critical acclaim. It later had a nationwide grand release in the United Kingdom on 9 January 2009 and in the United States on 23 January 2009.  It premiered in Mumbai on 22 January 2009.

The film opens with a police inspector (Irrfan Khan) in Mumbai, India, interrogating and torturing Jamal Malik (Dev Patel), a former street child from the Dharavi slums. At the opening scene four options are written as possible answers on how Jamal Malik won 20 million rupees: A) He cheated, B) He's lucky, C) He's a genius, D) It is written. In 2006 Mumbai, eighteen-year-old Jamal Malik (Dev Patel), a former street child from the Juhu slum, is a contestant on KBC (the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?), and is one question away from the grand prize. However, before the Rs. 20,000,000 question, he is detained and interrogated by the police, who suspect him of cheating because of the unlikelihood that a simple "slumdog" could possibly know the answers. Jamal recounts, through flashbacks, the incidents in his life which provided him with each answer. These flashbacks tell the story of Jamal, his brother Salim (Madhur Mittal), and Latika (Freida Pinto). The story of Jamal's life includes his managing, at age five, to obtain the autograph of Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan, which his brother then sells, followed immediately by the death of his mother during the Bombay Riots. Soon after, Salim and Jamal meet Latika, another child from their slum. Salim is reluctant to take her in, but Jamal suggests that she could be the third musketeer, a character from the Alexandre Dumas novel, whose name they do not know. The three are found by Maman (Ankur Vikal), a gangster who tricks and then trains street children into becoming beggars. When Jamal, Salim, and Latika learn Maman is blinding children in order to make them more profitable as singing beggars, they flee by jumping onto a departing train. Latika catches up and takes Salim's hand, but Salim purposely lets go, and she is recaptured by the gangsters. Over the next few years, Salim and Jamal make a living travelling on top of trains, selling goods, picking pockets, working as dishwashers, and pretending to be tour guides at the Taj Mahal. At Jamal's insistence, they return to Mumbai to find Latika, discovering that she has been raised by Maman to become a prostitute whose virginity is expected to fetch a high price. The brothers rescue her, and Salim draws a gun and kills Maman. Salim then manages to get a job with Javed (Mahesh Manjrekar), Maman's rival crime lord. Arriving at their hotel room, he orders Jamal to leave him and Latika alone. When Jamal refuses, Salim draws a gun on him, and Jamal leaves after Latika persuades him to go away.

Years later, while working as a tea server at an Indian call centre, Jamal searches the centre's database for Salim and Latika. He fails in finding Latika but succeeds in finding Salim, who is now a high-ranking lieutenant in Javed's organization, and they reunite. Salim is regretful for his past actions and only pleads for forgiveness when Jamal physically attacks him. Jamal then bluffs his way into Javed's residence and reunites with Latika. While Jamal professes his love for her, Latika asks him to forget about her. Jamal promises to wait for her every day at 5 o'clock at the CST station. Latika attempts to rendezvous with him, but she is recaptured by Javed's men, led by Salim. Jamal loses contact with Latika when Javed moves to another house, outside of Mumbai. Knowing that Latika watches it regularly, Jamal attempts to make contact with her again by becoming a contestant on the show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. He makes it to the final question, despite the hostile attitude of the show's host, Prem Kumar (Anil Kapoor), and becomes a wonder across India. Kumar feeds Jamal the incorrect response to the penultimate question, and when Jamal still gets it right, turns him into the police on suspicion of cheating. Back in the interrogation room, the police inspector (Irrfan Khan) calls Jamal's explanation "bizarrely plausible" and allows him to return to the show. At Javed's safehouse, Latika watches the news coverage of Jamal's miraculous run on the show. Salim, in an effort to make amends for his past behaviour, quietly gives Latika his mobile phone and car keys, and asks her to forgive him and to go to Jamal. Latika, though initially reluctant out of fear of Javed, agrees and escapes. Salim fills a bathtub with cash and sits in it, waiting for the death he knows will come when Javed discovers what he has done. Jamal's final question is, by coincidence, the name of the third musketeer in The Three Musketeers, a fact he never learned. Jamal uses his Phone-A-Friend lifeline to call Salim's cell. Latika succeeds in answering the phone just in the nick of time, and, while she does not know the answer, tells Jamal that she is safe. Relieved, Jamal randomly picks Aramis, the right answer, and wins the grand prize. Simultaneously, Javed discovers that Salim has helped Latika escape. He and his men break down the bathroom door, and Salim kills Javed, followed by Salim's death at the hand of Javed's men. With his dying breath, Salim gasps that God is great. Later that night, Jamal and Latika meet at the railway station and kiss. The movie ends with a dance scene on the platform to "Jai Ho." It is then revealed that the correct answer to the opening question is: D) it is written.

A few critics outright panned it. Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle states that, "Slumdog Millionaire has a problem in its storytelling. The movie unfolds in a start-and-stop way that kills suspense, leans heavily on flashbacks and robs the movie of most of its velocity. The  whole construction is tied to a gimmicky narrative strategy that keeps Slumdog Millionaire from really hitting its stride until the last 30 minutes. Slumdog Millionaire has been a subject of discussion among a variety of people in India and the Indian diaspora. Some film critics have responded positively to the film. At the same time, others objected to issues such as Jamal's use of British English or the fact that similar films by Indian filmmakers have not received equal recognition. Slumdog Millionaire has stirred controversy on a few issues including the welfare of its child actors and its portrayals of Indians and Hinduism.

Slumdog Millionaire was nominated for 10 Academy Awards in 2009 and won eight, the most for any film of 2008, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It also won seven BAFTA Awards (including Best Film), five Critics' Choice Awards, and four Golden Globes. The film was dubbed in Hindi for Indian release as "Slumdog Crorepati". Following the film's success at the 81st Academy Awards, the film topped the worldwide box office (barring North America), grossing $16 million from 34 markets in the week following the Academy Awards. Worldwide, the film has currently grossed over $377 million.  Release and box office performance. In the Australia, North America, Europe, India and Asia – Pacific.

 There are four points that make the writer interested in analyzing this movie. Firstly, from the characters in the film Slumdog Millionaire. There are many interesting characters in the film Slumdog Millionaire.
Jamal has characters who never gave up. He willingly and struggling to get their love of his childhood. Salim has a bad character, the heart to hurt Jamal, with Latika seized from him. He is also cunning, always making trouble with Jamal. here is an interesting character Salim. From children to adults he was always evil, but when Jamal follow the quiz Who Wants To Be Millionaire and get to the last question, Salim changed his mind, he sent Latika meet Jamal, because Salim realize they both love each other. But after that Salim suicide in the bathtub.

Secondly, in this movie there are wonderful experience about struggle and love. He tried to change his life with follow the quiz “Who wants to be a Millionaire, and he hope to find her  love.  This movie also shows the flashback of Jamal’s life.

Thirdly, based on the movie Slumdog Millionaire, we can see conflict, it tells about discrimination in social class. The plot was jumping up and down, the police interrogated Jamal and Jamal tells the story of the past when they met Amitabachan, yet but the flow remains attractive until finally Jamal can find love Latika. With a fight following the quiz Who Wants To Be A Millionaire in order for Latika watch the event, and they can be together like before as a child.

Fourth, the message the author is, that the gloomy side of experience which bring a fortune. The movie has an interesting setting. Slumdog Millionaire movie is a Hollywood movie, but the setting of the movie in the India. It is a good setting because to join some different movie cultures in a movie. From the setting, we can find the other side of Mumbai’s life.

Based on the background above the writer chooses the title of this research “ Oppression Against the Poor in Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire (2008) : A Marxist Criticism”.

B.     Literature Review

The first study about Slumdog Millionaire movie conducted by Najjahul Immtihan entitled “Representations of Brotherhood and Equal Opportunity in Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire movie (2008): A Semiotic Approach” assumed that the writer finds the kinds of representation of brotherhood and equal opportunity in Slumdog Millionaire movie. The study belongs to the qualitative study. There are many representations of brotherhood and equal opportunity in Slumdog Millionaire movie.

The second study written by Budiasih Wulan Nugroho entitled “Globalization of Pop culture in Danny Boyle’s  Slumdog Millionaire movie (2008): Sociological Approach” assumed that writer find example of Pop Culture in entertainment that is “Who Wants to be Millionaire”. It seems that Pop Culture especially who wants to be a millionaire quiz gives influence for Indian people surrounding, because this program became famous. The writer sees this movie in social condition of the influence pop culture in social behavior occurred in India during twenty century.

Based on literature studies, the writer who analyzed Oppression Against the Poor in Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire movie by using Marxist Criticism.

C.    Problem Statement

Knowing that the problem is the important part of research, the writer proposes, “How is Oppression Against the Poor  in Danny Boyle’s in Slumdog Millionaire Movie?

D.    Limitation of the Study

The writer focuses this research in analyzing the Oppression Against the Poor  in Danny Boyle’s in Slumdog Millionaire Movie based on Marxist Criticism.

E.     Objectives of the Study

Based on the problem that has stated above, the writer formulates the objective of the study as follow:

1.      To analyze Danny Boyle’s in Slumdog Millionaire movie based on the structural element of the movie.

2.      To describe the Oppression Against the Poor in Danny Boyle’s in Slumdog Millionaire Movie based on Marxist Criticism.

F.     Benefits of the Study

1.      Theoretical Benefit

This study is purposed to give additional information to literature research especially those dealing with Danny Boyle’s in Slumdog Millionaire Movie.

2.      Practical Benefit

This study can develop the writer‘s skill and ability in applying the Marxist Criticism in Danny Boyle’s in Slumdog Millionaire Movie.

G.    Research Method

The writer will describe the methods that use on research. There are five elements to support in research method, there are:

1.      Type of the Research

The type of this research is a qualitative research in which the writer does not need statistic to collect, to analyze, and to interpret.

2.      Type of the Data and the Data Sources

The types of data of this study are the images and the text which forms such like words, phrases, and sentences in a dialogues or monologues.

The writer takes two kinds of data:

a.       Primary data source

Primary data is the main data obtained from all the worlds, dialogues, phrases, and sentences occurring in the movie related to the topic.

b.      Secondary data source

Secondary data is the supporting data taken from the literary books, criticism, and sentences occurring in the movie related to the topic.

3.       Research Object

The object of this research is the movie Slumdog Millionaire directed by Danny Boyle and Written by Simon Beaufoy.

4.      Technique of Collection

The technique of collecting data in this study is note taking, image, and capturing. The steps of collecting data are as follows:

a.    Watching the movie for the several times.

b.   Searching the script of the movie from internet.

c.    Reading the script repeatedly.

d.   Marking the point in the script to make easy analyzing it.

e.    Taking notes of important in both primary and secondary data.

f.    Classifying and determining the relevant data.

g.   Taking notes from the material and some other resources related to the movie and the analysis.

5.      Technique of Data Analysis

              The technique used in analyzing the data is descriptive analysis. It concerns with the structural analysis of the movie and Marxist Criticism.

H.    Underlying Theory

        In order to know the Oppression Against the Poor in Danny Boyle’s in Slumdog Millionaire Movie, the writer uses Marxist Criticism. This approach  is appropriate because it is closely related to oppression and class social. To make this study easy to be understood, the writer divides this into two parts, namely Marxist of criticism and the major principles of Marxist Criticism. They are as follows:

A.    Nature of Marxism

According to Suseno, “Marxism is the term for ideology about the relation between economic, social and political concept”(Suseno, 2001:5).    “Of the criticism contained in this guide, Marxist has a long history. In 1850an Karl Mark makes an important statement about the culture and society. The basic principle of Marxism is not easy to summarize the essential Christian doctrines”( Raman Selden, 2005:82). Two well-known statement from Mark provide sufficient starting point :

It is not the consciousness of men that determines their being, but, on the contrary, their social being that determines their consciousness. The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it.

“Both reports are deliberately provakatif. Mark berusuaha reversing people's minds. First time was involved with the real world. Both Hegal and his followers believe that the world is governed by the mind. People are required to believe that the ideas, life, culture, legal system and their religion is a creation of human and divine, which is considered as the guide of human life. Mark believes that all systems of ideology is the real result of social and economic existence. Material interests of the dominant social class determines how people see existence, individual and collective human” (Raman Selden, 2005:82).

“Marxism is scientific system of proletarian thought. From different angles we could give different answers on what is Marxism. From its creators, understanding results of inheritors, Marxism is founded by Marx and Engels, it is the system of ideas and doctrines which are enriched and developed by various ethnic groups of Marxists at later ages” (www.textetc.com/theory/marxist-views.html).

From several definition above, Marxism is scientific world view and methodology of proletarian, it is about the universal law of the natural, social and development of thought, relates to capitalist development and transition to socialism as well as the universal law about development of socialism and communism. Marxism is scientific system composed of a series of basic theory, opinion and basic methods, it’s a complete whole. Among them, the Marxist philosophy, Marxist political economy and scientific socialism are three inseparable main components in Marxist theory system.

Marxism began with Karl Marx, the nineteenth-century German philosopher best known for Das Kapital (1867; Capital), the seminal work of the communist movement. Marx was also the first Marxist literary critic, writing critical essays in the 1830s on such writers as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and William Shakespeare. Even after Marx met Friedrich Engels in 1843 and began collaborating on overtly political works such as The German Ideology (1846) and The Communist Manifesto (1848), he maintained a keen interest in literature. In The German Ideology, Marx and Engels discuss the relationship between the arts, politics, and basic economic reality in terms of a general social theory. Economics, they argue, provides the base, or infrastructure, of society, from which a superstructure consisting of law, politics, philosophy, religion, and art emerges.

Karl Marx (1818 - 1883) and Friedrich Engels (1820 - 1895) were both born in the same area in Germany, the Rhine Province.  The importance of their upbringing in the Rhineland during this time period speaks for itself: Marx and Engels were heavily influenced by the French Revolution (1789 - 1793).  In fact, citizens of the Rhine Province sympathized with, and actually took part in Napoleon's initial victories in Germany.  Marx and Engels were also heavily influenced by the Industrial Revolution in England (commonly seen as beginning in 1760 and ending around 1830). 

In narrow sense, Marxism is system of basic theory, basic ideas and doctrines founded by Marx and Engels. In broad sense, Marxism is not only refers to system of basic theory, basic ideas and doctrines founded by Marx and Engels but also includes successor to the development of it that is developing Marxism in practice. “Karl Mark remains one of Palin controversial figure in the Western world, although his death was more than a century. critique of capitalism kept coming and as promised future, apparently with the Bolshevik revolution in Russia and the spread of communism throughout Eastern Europe-the dream of Marxist and firmly taken root in the first half of the twentieth century” ( David L. Prychitko 2004: 416).

B.     Major principles of Marxist Criticism

1.      Dialectical Materialism

Dialectical is a process that builds reality that presence nonexistence and has steps to understand movement. It is started by the appearance of thesis that will formulate anti-thesis to encounter thesis. Finally, synthesis integrates thesis and anti-thesis to find out the absolute correctness (Markonina and Abadi, 2001:6).While, materialism means belief that only money, possessions, et cetera are important. Thus, dialectical materialism can also means a process that builds reality of materialism and understand of its movement.

Schopenhauer and Kierkegaard both derived their philosophical impetus from a reaction against the system of Hegal. But the most violent and most influential rejection of Hegelianism was that of Karl Mark, who described his own philosophical mission as ‘turning Hegel upside down’. The dialectical idealism of Hegel was in his vision to be replaced by a dialectical materialism.

2.      Historical Materialism

Historical in historical materialism here concern with the description of past event or experiences. While, materialism means that only materials are important. From both definitions, historical materialism in Marxist theory is a system of thought that emphasizes on the change of economic and the societies associated with them.

Generally, belief that all that matters is material welfare, as opposed to spiritual or other ideals. Specifically Mark and Engels developed what they called ‘historical materialism’. Materialism developed, possibly independently, in several geographically separated regions of Eurasia during the Axial Age. In ancient Indian philosophy, materialism developed around 600 BCE with the works of Ajita Kesakambi, Payasi, Kanada, and the proponents of the Carvaka school of philosophy.

3.      Alienation

Alienation means isolated or separated from the environment. While Karl Marx in Fromm:Based on 2001, argues:

Alienation means the existence of world is strange for human being. The world stands in above and against human as an object, although the world can be the creation of human’s object. So, basically alienation happens both in world and human in passive and receptive as subject which is separated from the object.

Based on the  assumption, it can be known that alienation has specific meaning. There is more to Marxism, however, than the labor theory of value and Marx’s criticism of profit seeking. Mark wove economics and philosophy together to construct a grand theory of human history and social change. His concept of alienation, for example, first articulated in his Economic and Philosophic Manuscript of 1844, plays a key role in his criticism of capitalism.

Mark believed that people, by nature, are free, creative beings who have the potential to totally transform the world. But he observed that the modern, technologically developed world is apparently beyond our full control. Mark condemned the free market, for instance as being “anarchic,” or ungoverned. He maintained that the way the market economy is coordinated-through the spontaneous purchase and sale of private property dictated by the laws of SUPPLY and DEMAND- blocks our ability to take control of our individual and collective destinies.

4.      Class Struggle

As a part of Marxist theory, class struggle is focuses on the struggle of the oppressed class against the oppressor. Mark believe that the identity of a social class is derived from its relationship to the means of production (as opposed to the notion that class is determined by wealth alone, that is, lower class, middle class, upper class).

Mark describes several social classes in capitalist societies, including primarily;

·         The proletariat : “those individuals who sell their labour power, (and therefore add value to the products), and who, in the capitalist mode of production, do not own the means of production.” According to Mark, the capitalist mode of production establishes the conditions that the worker’s labour power generates an added value greater than the worker’s salary.

·         The bourgeoisie : those who “own the means of production” and buy labour power from the proletariat, who are recompensed by a salary, thus exploiting the proletariat.

The bourgeoisie may be further subdivided into the very wealthy bourgeoisie and the petit bourgeoisie. The petit bourgeoisie are those who employ labour, but may also work themselves. These may be small proprietors, land-holding peasants, or trade workers. Mark predicted that the petit bourgeoisie would eventually be destroyed by the constant reinvention of the means of production  and the result of this would be the forced movement of the vast majority of the petit bourgeoisie to the proletariat.

Mark also identified various other classes such as the ;

·         The lumpenproletariat : criminals, vagabonds, beggars, and so on. People that have no stake in the economic system and will sell themselves to the highest bidder.

·         The landloards : as a class of people that were historically important, of which several still retain some of their wealth and power.

·         The peasantry and farmers : this class he saw  as disorganized and incapable of carrying out change. He also believed that this class would disappear, with most becoming proletariat but some becoming landowners.

5.      Revolution

The result of class struggle is revolution. Marx states that “all societies nare progressing; believing progress is reactionary or revolutionary” (Bressler, 1999: 212). The revolution anticipated by Marx and Engels did not occur in their century, let alone in their lifetime. As Hornby (1995:108) defines that “revolution as a complete or dramatic change of method or condition”. According to Marx and Engels in the Class Struggle in Franc, 1848-1850 (1895:9) states that “a new revolution is possible only in the wake of crisis, however, just as certain as this crisis”. Revolution is the way for proletariat to sweep the class stratification, stop the exploitation and to make a new society, which in Marxist called a classless society. Revolution is the way to reach the equal prosperity in society

I.       Theoretical Application

   In this research, the writer uses Marxist Criticism to analyze the movie. The writer focuses on analyzing the Oppression Against the Poor in Danny Boyle’s in Slumdog Millionaire Movie. There are some steps in analyzing the film. Firstly, the researcher begins from the structural elements of the movie which consist of characters and characterization, casting, plot, technical elements, point of view, and theme. Secondly, the writers researchers the Marxist Criticism that appropriate to analyze the social background of literary works since it analyzes the social class condition. The previous technique will be applied in the next chapter to get the deeper understanding about social background of such literary work.

J.      Research Paper Organization

   This research paper consists of six chapters. The first chapter is introduction, which contains the background of the study, literary review, problem statement, objective of the study, limitation of the study, benefit of the study, research method, and the lat is research organization.  Second chapter is underlying theory. The third chapter deals with Social background of Slumdog Millionaire movie. Fourth chapter deals with the structural analysis of Slumdog Millionaire movie. Analysis and discussion of Slumdog Millionaire movie is presented in fifth chapter. Finally, the sixth chapter consist conclusion and suggestion.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bressler, Charles E. 1999. Literary Criticism: An Introduction to Theory and

Practices.USA: Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Bunnin, Nicholas. 2004. Background of Western Culture. Australia : Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Hornby, A.S. 1995. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English.

Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Immtihan, Najjahul. 2008. Representations of Brotherhood and Equal Opportunity in Danny   Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire movie^, A Semiotic Approach.  Unpublished Research Paper. Surakarta: Muhammadiyah University of Surakarta.

Knowles. Dudley. 2002. Hegel and the Philosophy of Right. New York. Routledge is an imprint   of the Tylor & Francis Group.

Murfin, Ross. 1988. The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms.   Bedford Books.

Selden, Raman.1985. A Reader’s Guide to Contamporary Literary Theories. Great Britain: The Harvester Press Limited.

Suseno, Franz Magnis.2001. Pemikiran Karl Marx: Dari Sosialis Utopis sampai ke Perselisihan Revisionism.Jakarta: PT. Gramedia Pustaka Utama.

Wulan. Budiasih. 2008. Globalization of Pop culture in Danny Boyle’s  Slumdog Millionaire movie A Sociological Approach. Unpublished Research Paper. Surakarta: Muhammadiyah University of Surakarta.

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