Psycholinguistics analysis on the Expressive Language disorder produced by an Autistic character in Snow Cake movie

ABSTRACT

This study focuses on analyzing expressive language disorder of autistic character in Snow Cake movie. Expressive language disorder is the difficulties of expressing the language which is often a component in developmental language delay. Recently, it has been reported that the prevalence of autism increases significantly. In fact, one of the characteristics of autism is language problem or language disorder. This disorder can be detected easily by identifying several difficulties of the autistic sufferers when they are producing some utterances.

This study aimed to identify and describe the kinds of expressive language disorder of autism represented in Snow Cake movie and to get description of the contexts affecting the autistic characters produce those utterances. Then, this study applies qualitative descriptive method since it attempts to obtain deeper understanding on the expressive language disorder in autism and based on Carroll’s theory (1985), the writer applies data source triangulation by comparing, completing and rechecking the data in the movie with the given text from the internet and also from another expert to ensure the trustworthiness of the data.

The result of this study shows that Linda as the main character as autism with high-functioning has difficulties in all kinds of expressive language disorder covering phonology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. She faces phonological language disorder in the case of inappropriate stress, flat and singsong intonation and expressionless speech. She also faces syntactical language disorder in the case of echolalia, semantic language disorder involving the disability in using semantic bias. And the last is pragmatics language disorder in the case of politeness strategy, misuse pronoun and tendency to use a question to gain respond from listener. Concerning the context, the autistic character produce her expressive language disorder when she is posing a question to someone, answering and responding questions, expressing her ambition and something she dislikes.

The writer hopes that this study can give a new contribution to the readers, especially the students who are interested in the same field. Moreover, this study is expected to give empirical data on the expressive language disorder in autism because the result shows that the autistic character mostly suffers phonological language disorder.