INDIAN SOCIAL CONDITION AS REFLECTED THROUGH IRONY AND METAPHOR IN ARAVIND ADIGA’S THE WHITE TIGER

Hafidah. 10.05.111.000.67. Indian Social Condition as Reflected through Irony and Metaphor in Aravind Adiga The White Tiger Thesis. English Study Program of Faculty of Social and Cultural Sciences, University of Trunojoyo Madura. Advisor I: Erika Citra Sari Hartanto, S.S, M.Hum. Advisor II: Diva Wenanda, S.S, M.Pd.

This study, entitled The Reflection of Irony and Metaphor to Indian Social Condition in Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger, explains about the social condition of Indian society and their caste which is reflected in this novel. The social condition in this novel is analyzed by using New Criticism approach which focuses on figurative language as a part of it. This topic is chosen since the caste separates high class and low class people in India in many sides of life. Based on this caste system, the lower castes get a different treatment in education, politic, social, public services, etc. especially from the government. This fact also gives a big impact to the social condition of the society, especially who live as low class people.
Moreover, to get clear analysis, this study uses qualitative research design in analyzing the data. The writer is the key instrument and the data are described in the form of words. The data of this study are the utterances of the characters that refer to irony and metaphor that reflects to Indian social condition in The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga. Thus, the data collection is done simultaneously with the data analysis.
After analyzing the data, it can be concluded that there are three kinds of irony which are found in the novel, such as verbal irony, dramatic irony, and situational irony. These three kinds of irony reflect the differences of social condition between high class and low class people in India. Furthermore, the metaphors such as half baked, light and darkness, country mouse, greedy pig explain how the social condition of low class people in Laxmangarh that uneducated, unemployed, and unhealthy.