A Study of Bradley Pearson's tragic life in Irish Murdoch's The Black Prince

Wibowo, Indah Setiawati (2003) A Study of Bradley Pearson's tragic life in Irish Murdoch's The Black Prince. Bachelor thesis, Petra Christian University.

Abstract

The Black Prince, written by Irish Murdoch, a British Postwar woman writer, is a story of an old man?s tragic life named Bradley Pearson whose life ends in a miserable way. The writer of this thesis, then, is curious to know the factors that influence Bradley Pearson to have a tragic life and the way those factors lead him to it. Hence, she analyzes his character and also his relationships with the surrounding society to find out both internal and external factors. The writer does literary approach by applying the theory of characterization and the theory of tragedy. As a result of the analysis, the writer finds out that there are some characters, namely, Rachel Baffin, Francis Marloe, Arnold Baffin, and Julian Baffin, who have influence in Pearson?s tragic life mainly by involving him in their problem. However, she finds out that actually Pearson?s own weaknesses have greater influence in leading him into a tragic life since they influence him in making any decision. Finally, the writer concludes that Bradley Pearson?s personal flaws that are his nerves, unsteadiness of mind, and carelessness, and also the surrounding society are the factors which lead him to his tragic life.

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