Structure, Figure of Speech, and Society’s Perception on Mantras in the Kenagarian Talang Sub-district, Gunung Talang District, Solok Municipality, West Sumatra

Abstrak

A mantra is one form of traditions that lives and develops in the Malay ethnic and is believed to contain supernatural powers. Besides having supernatural powers, as seen from the structure and style of the language, the mantra is also of literary value. The objectives of this study are to describe (1) the structure of mantras, (2) the figure of speech of mantras, and (3) the society’s perception on mantras in the Kenagarian Talang Sub-district, Gunung Talang District, Solok Municipality, West Sumatra.

The author applies several theories in this study. Enzir and Rohman (2015: 242) state that poetry has two elements, namely the outer structure and inner structure.  According to Keraf (2009: 112), the figure of speech consists of two styles: the rhetorical style and figurative style. Slameto (2010: 102) views perception as a process that involves inputting the messages or information into the human brain.

This study uses a qualitative approach and a descriptive method. Data collection is performed through interviews and filling-out questionnaires, then the data is recorded and transcribed into the written form. Data analysis techniques in this study are as follows: (1) describing data into form of written language, (2) translating data into the Bahasa Indonesia, (3) grouping data that related to the studied mantras, (4) analyze the structure of mantras, (5) analyzing the figure of speech of mantras, (6) analyzing society’s perceptions on mantras, and (7) concluding the results of interpretations and compiling reports.

The findings of this study are as follows. First, the structure of mantras consists of word choice (diction), namely denotative diction and connotative diction, with the connotative diction a more dominant diction, and the mantra has rhymes in each stanza, including rhyme of assonance, alliteration, initial rhyme and final rhyme. Second, the figure of speech in the mantras consists of repetition, hyperbole, equation, and personification, with repetition as the dominant figure of speech. Third, the society’s perceptions on the mantras reveal that mantras are still found among the society and are still used in everyday life in Kenagarian Talang Sub-district, Gunung Talang District, Solok Municipality, West Sumatra.

Keywords: structure, figure of speech, society’s perception