Prejudice Towards Black People As Reflected In The Novel The Hate U Give By Angie Thomas

Abstract

; "> Prejudice does not only occur in the real world, but it does occur in the literary works. One of the literary works which represent prejudice is the novel by Angie Thomas entitled The
Hate U Give. In this study, the writer aims to analyze prejudice that happens to black people in the novel. This novel tells about a sixteen-year-old black young girl, Starr Carter, who lost her childhood’s friend named Khalil who was killed by white police named Brian Cruise. The police officer reasoned that Khalil looked like a drug dealer. The shocking experience leads her to prejudice towards the black race by whites. The purposes of this study are: (1) to discuss the prejudices towards black people represented in The Hate U Give and (2) to discuss the black people struggle against the negative prejudice in The Hate U Give. So far, the writer found five scientific studies, including four theses and one journal article. The theses were done by Irawati (2018), Nurhayati (2019), Christianti (2019) , Yanti (2019) and the journal article by Yunitri, et al (2019). Then, in analyzing the data, the writer uses the theory of prejudice by Kite and Whiteley (2010). In their book entitled The Psychology of
Prejudice and Discrimination, they say that prejudice can be divided into two parts, which are: (1) Negative Prejudice and (2) Positive Prejudice. The method that the writer used in analyzing the novel is close reading. Close reading means a skill that literary students continue to develop across the full length of their studies (Greenham, 2019). The object of the research is a novel entitled The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas.While doing the data collection from the novel, writer does several techniques, they are: (1) reading the novel to find the data based on the formulation of the problem, (2) classifying the data based on the kind of prejudice and the struggle, (3) interpreting the data which is found, (4) processing the data based on the theory used, (5) concluding the data that is already analyzed. In this study, the writer finds two kinds of prejudices directed by white people and the struggle to protest the whites’ negative attitudes by blacks. Both negative and positive prejudice is experienced by black people based on the novel The Hate U Give especially the main character, Starr Carter and her friend whose named Khalil, the prejudices are (1) Indigent (3 data), (2) Drug Dealer (7 data), (3) Threat (4 data), and (4) Violence (1 data), these prejudices fall into the category of negative prejudice. However, there are also prejudices from white people towards black people that are positive, they are: (1) Fashionable (2 data), and (2) Cool (3 data). From the analysis of the data, the writer finds that dominant data of prejudice in the novel is negative attitudes. With the negative prejudices directed by white people, the blacks become angry and do not accept all the attitudes they get. So, they did several kinds of protests, including: (1) Legal Suing Through Police Department, (2) Legal Suing Through Grand Jury, and (3) Demonstration. In conclusion, Starr, Khalil and people from the black race in Garden Heights who initially lived in peace had to face various prejudices from the white races. The prejudice that almost everyone in the world understands in negative ways can lead to divisions and disparities between the black and white races. The writer can see from the role of white police officer who directed the negative perspective towards both Starr Carter and Khalil Haris, it caused by the mindset of the police officer himself. He thinks that every black people is deserve to be watched because they are come from the place that often happens crime. He believes that blacks are dangerous
Keywords: Black People, Prejudice, Struggle