Melodrama in George R. R. Martin’s a Clash of Kings: a Popular Formula

Abstract

This research analyzes the formulaic structure in a popular novel written by George Raymond Richard Martin entitled A Clash of Kings that was published in 1999. This novel received Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel in the same year. The formulaic pattern of the novel is analyzed through three elements of literary work to find out the standardization aspect which makes the novel popular. The story in the novel is constructed with melodrama pattern as the story contains all the other fantasies but the main focus of this novel is the conflict between good and evil. This research is categorized as qualitative research which uses the written words as data. There are two kinds of data in this research, they are the primary and secondary data. These data are taken from books, articles, journals, and the video interview of the author of the novel. Cawelti said that every work should have uniqueness to fulfill the reader’s need of escapism. The escapism aspect in the novel is the aspect which escapes the readers from the common story convention. Disabled characters are not very often included as the major characters in a novel, especially in fantasy stories. A Clash of Kings break this stereotypes with bringing two disabled major characters with human-like characteristics. With this novel, Martin wants to point out an issue in America regarding the treatment of disabled people. Even though a civil rights law for disabled people has been established in the 90s, in reality, the government has not been successful in fulfilling the rights of disabled peop