A STUDY ON AMBITION REPRESENTED BY THE TWO CHARACTERS IN THE ABC MURDERS

Fitri Nofianti

 

Abstract

Literary works are the reflection of real life. Novel is a literary work that tells a story in detail. The character in a novel usually describes the human attitude and behavior. Ambition is one of human attitude. This research discusses about the ambition of the two characters in The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie. This novel tells about the ambitious detective and the ambitious murderer. They have ambition to fulfill their psychogenic needs. The fulfillment of psychogenic needs that is experieneed by the detective and the murderer is analyzed in Henry Murray’s The Need Theory of Personality. The purpose of this study is to know the causes and the effects of the ambition of the detective and the murderer. The research is conducted by using the qualitative method. This research uses psychological approach to analyze the fictitious characters and the creative process of the author. The result from this study is that the ambition has the causes and the effects. The lesson taken from this research if the ambition is in control, it can change one’s personality into good deeds.

Keyword: Personality,  Psychogenic Need, Ambition.