PRESUPPOSITION IN THE UTTERANCES OF MAIN CHARACTER NORA SEED IN THE NOVEL THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY (2020)

Abstract

Presupposition is one of the pragmatic mechanisms that allows speakers to convey meaning indirectly through assumptions considered mutually known before an utterance is made. This study aims to analyze the types of presupposition found in the utterances of the main character, Nora Seed, in Matt Haig’s novel The Midnight Library (2020), and to examine the role of common ground between Nora Seed and her interlocutors in building comprehension of those implicit meanings. This research applies Yule’s (2018) presupposition theory, which encompasses six types; existential, lexical, structural, factive, non-factive, and counterfactual, alongside Stalnaker’s concept of shared knowledge (1978, as cited in Aini & Ariyanti, 2021). A qualitative descriptive method was employed, using note-taking technique for data collection and content analysis for data processing. From 44 utterance data collected, 56 presuppositions were identified, as several utterances contained more than one type simultaneously. All six types were found, with lexical presupposition being the most dominant at 24 instances, followed by factive at 14, structural at 10, counterfactual at 4, existential at 3, and non-factive at 1. Shared knowledge was found to operate in three patterns: knowledge established prior to the conversation, knowledge formed dynamically during the conversation, and knowledge imbalance that led Nora to use presupposition strategically. The findings demonstrate that presupposition and shared knowledge are interrelated in constructing implicit meaning in Nora Seed’s utterances, while also revealing how the character convey her feelings and experiences indirectly through language.