A SOCIOLINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF SWEARING UTTERED BY THE MAIN CHARACTERS IN QUENTIN TARANTINO’S PULP FICTION MOVIE

Abstract

This research aims to (1) find out the type of swearing uttered by the main characters in Pulp Fiction movie, and to (2) observe the reasons for swearing uttered by the main characters in Pulp Fiction movie. In order to analyze swearwords which emerge within the movie, the researcher employed sociolinguistic approach. This research used the descriptive qualitative method in order to describe each scene of the movie. Moreover, the quantitative method is also employed to support the interpretation of the data by displaying fixed percentages in the numerical form. The sources of data were the transcripts of each scene which involve the main characters in it. The data were collected and analyzed by categorizing the utterances which contain swearwords based on the objectives of the research and matching the transcripts within the movie carefully. The results of this research are as follows. Firstly, five types of swearing are uttered by the main characters in Pulp Fiction are dysphemistic, abusive, idiomatic, emphatic, and cathartic swearing. From sixty three data found in the movie, the emphatic swearing becomes the most frequently used type of swearing. The least frequently used type of swearing is abusive swearing. Secondly, three reasons for swearing are found in the movie, in which they are triggered by psychological motives, social motives, and linguistic motives. Social motives become the most frequently used reason for swearing. Psychological motives become the least motives used by the main characters.

Keywords: Pulp Fiction movie, sociolinguistics, swearing.