V for Vendetta: An Ecranisation Study

ABSTRAK Rochmadi, Pasmardedi A. 2017. V for Vendetta: An Ecranisation Study. Thesis, English Department, Faculty of Letters, State University of Malang. Thesis Advisors: (I) Drs. Kukuh Prayitno S., M.A, (II) Inayatul Fariha S.S., M.A. Keywords: graphic novel, movie, ecranisation, adaptation, film Ecranisation is a process of literary adaptation where an adapted novel or graphic novel undergoes a development process that employs specific selection of a part or an essence of the story to appear in the cinematic version. V for Vendetta is a graphic novel that undergoes such ecranisation process which results in a movie adaptation whose storyline, context, and characters are different from those of the original version. In certain points, the original storyline which revolves around moral ambiguity changes into a story of revolutionary heroism, and several parts of the plot and character traits change to further support the idea of the heroic story. Based on the above explanation, this research is conducted to see what reasons underlying the difference. To help the research, McFarlane's“Novel to Film: An Introduction to the Theory of Adaptation” (1996) is used as references to study some factors in adaptation. In addition, Moore’s (2003) and McCloud’s (1993) respective points of view toward graphic novel or comic is used to illustrate a point that the adaptation of the graphic media into cinematic media is quite possible without substituting or reducing the fidelity of original source, due to the characteristics of movies and graphic novels are not much apart. There are three points discussed in this study: the political setting, the four major characters, and the plot of the story. From the research finding, it can be concluded that the difference of the context and political settings that underlies the making of V for Vendetta are present. The cinematic adaptation chooses to use the political situation in the U.S. over the course of Bush’s administration that last from 2001 to 2009, which is more recent and acceptable to viewers at the time (viewers that were dominated by American audience). The theme of moral ambiguity in the original work is also altered by the film maker in order to strengthen the story of a hero who emerged amid the oppression. Therefore, the emphasized element in the adaptation is the moral value of the hero versus the villain, in which respectively made the character of V and Adam as well as other element become different in the process.