Proceedings of the 2nd English Education International Conference (EEIC) in conjunction with the 9 th Annual International Conference

(AIC), Universitas Syiah Kuala, September 18-19, 2019, Banda Aceh, Indonesia ISSN: 2527-8037

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE IN TIKUS-TIKUS KANTOR SONG LYRICS BY IWAN FALS

Nadya Nurfadilah

Study Program of English Applied Linguistics, Postgraduate School, Universitas Negeri Medan, Medan,
Indonesia

Email: [email protected]

Abstract
This study concerns with Figurative Language in Tikus-Tikus Kantor Song Lyric by Iwan Fals. The objective
of this research is to identify the types of figurative language found in Tikus-Tikus Kantor song lyric by Iwan
Fals. This research was conducted by qualitative descriptive design. The data of this research were taken
from the internet about song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor by Iwan Fals. The data were the lyrics of the song
in Iwan Fals song. The most dominant type of study is personification with a total of 17 items or 54.83%, 6
items hyperbole or 19.35%, 2 items oxymoron or 6.45%, 2 items euphemism or 6.45%, allusion is 2 items or
6.45%, parallelism is 1 item or 3.22%, and simile is 1 item or 3.22%. The most dominant type is
personification because this type is used as a human substitute word, seen in the title alone has the meaning
of personification and the lyrics of the song as well as the repetition of the meaning of personification in
the song. The researcher wants to explain the figurative meaning contained in the song so that the listener
knows the figurative meaning is not just hearing the song.

Keywords: Figurative, meaning, song.

INTRODUCTION
Figurative language is part of the semantics. As we know that with semantics, we can know the true
meaning in a song. When listening to a song a person may not focus on the lyrics used in the song, especially
if the song contains a figurative element. Usually they just like because the music is good, or even because
they like the singer. Knowing the meaning of a lyric is important because we will know the meaning and
purpose in the song. One of the world-famous singers is Iwan Fals. The writer was interested to conduct
this research because generally the readers including the writer herself sometimes found some difficulties
in understanding the meaning from the song lyrics. The writer chooses songs by Iwan Fals because Iwan
Fals’ songs are meaningful and enjoyable to be heard. The lyrics of songs are typically of a poetic, rhyming
nature. It is because the song writer merely uses figure of speech in order to be more interesting
memorable, and aesthetic.
Iwan Fals was also famous with his song which contains the beauty of the word and using his sensitivity
to express his imagination feelings. The most famous song is Tikus-Tikus Kantor consists of beautiful diction,
sense and figurative language. Therefore, the writer becomes interested in analyzing the figurative
language in Iwan Fals’ song. There are some reasons why the researcher chooses figurative language for
analysis the semantic meaning in song lyric. First, because this song consists of figures of speech. So, it
makes the song interesting to be sung and accepted in society. Second, Iwan Fals’s song becomes popular
around the world society. As a singer he must know the meaning of any lyrics sung. So that when he would
bring the listener to sing the song he sings. Expression and appreciation are an important element when
someone sings a song. A music lover should understand the concepts in figurative language. The author
himself had to really master the theory in figurative language.
In general, someone listens to a song but he does not know the meaning contains there in, one of
which is a song from the legendary singer Iwan Fals whose song has a figurative meaning. So, the researcher
wants to explain the figurative meaning contains in the song so that the listener knows the figurative
meaning is not just hearing the song. The objective of this research is to identify the types of figurative
language found in Tikus-Tikus Kantor song lyric by Iwan Fals. This study expected for that the listener to
understand a song lyric that uses figurative language. The writer hopes the research can give significance
to the reader especially those who will enjoy, understand and appreciate Iwan Fals’s song.

236
 FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE IN TIKUS-TIKUS KANTOR SONG LYRICS BY IWAN FALS by Nadya Nurfadilah

METHODS
The research design of this study was conducted by using descriptive qualitative method. The
researcher focuses on analyzing the song lyric of Iwan Fals that uses figurative language. The researcher
takes these lyrics as the data source that is taken from internet. The research instrument is researcher
herself because the researcher does not need a questionnaire. The researcher directly observed the data
from the song lyric in internet. And the researcher used laptop to search the journal or book. Or to
download lyric of the song.
The data of this research is collected from the lyrics of the song in Iwan Fals song. The process of data
collection itself is starting from reading the lyric. The researcher selected the song from the recommended
through the website. The researcher searched lyric of a popular song by Iwan Fals. The researcher chose
Tikus-Tikus Kantor song lyric as the data. And then the researcher read the theory about figurative language
and classified the figurative language to find the word, phrase, and sentence and also grasping the meaning
of each figurative language. After that the researcher made a note which is one of the used figurative
language. Finally, the researcher concluded the result.

FINDINGS
The data were taken from the internet song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor by Iwan Fals.
Peter (2002) who said that when we describe someone’s manner of writing, speaking, or performing,
we may say, “she writes s vigorous style” or” she started off in fine style.” In this chapter the researcher
uses Reaske’s (1996) theories. He said that there are many kinds of figurative language such as; allegory,
allusion, antithesis, hyperbola, irony, metaphor, metonymy, an oxymoron, paradox, parallelism,
personification, simile, symbol, synecdoche, and euphemism.
In song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor by Iwan Fals, we found 7 types of figurative from 15 types of
figurative. The researcher found personification, hyperbole, oxymoron, euphemism, allusion, parallelism
and simile.

Personification
Kennedy (1983, p. 487) stated that personification is the attribution of a personal nature or character
to inanimate objects or abstract notions, especially as a rhetorical figure. For example: The stars danced
around the night sky (Kennedy, 1983, p. 487).

In data 1, the first sentence in song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor refers to personification.

D1 Kisah usang Tikus-Tikus Kantor

In this sentence the office rats are referred to people who work in the office.

Hyperbole
Hyperbole is one kind of figure of speech which is very common and it is often found in
daily life. Freeborn (1996, p. 65) stated that hyperbole is a figure of speech that has statement containing
exaggeration. For example: Your luggage weighs a ton (Freeborn, 1996, p. 65).
In data 2, the second sentence in song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor refers to hyperbole.

D2 Yang suka berenang di sungai yang kotor

In this sentence the meaning is excessive in his writing even though it really happened.

Oxymoron
Oxymoron is kind of figures of speech in the form expression which has contrast meaning. It is
supported by Freeborn (1996, p. 66) who stated, oxymoron is the joining together of apparent
contradiction. For example: The higher and lower class usually has no similarity in many angels (Freeborn,
1996, p. 66).
In data 3, the sentence in song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor refers to oxymoron.

D3 Kucing datang tikus menghilang

237
Proceedings of the 2nd English Education International Conference (EEIC) in conjunction with the 9 th Annual International Conference
(AIC), Universitas Syiah Kuala, September 18-19, 2019, Banda Aceh, Indonesia ISSN: 2527-8037

Cats and mice describe humans in the lyric, whereas the meaning of oxymoron is because of the
difference between cats and mice, the level of comparison

Euphemism
Freeborn (2002) said that euphemism is figure of speech, which veils the obvious word with another,
less direct one. Euphemism is a word or phrase that stands in place of a different word or phrase that has
negative or derogatory connotations, or that is seen as taboo. For example, if we said “the sun blossomed
out the horizon”, we say it euphemistically that the sun “rose”.
In data 4, the sentence in song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor refers to euphemism.

D4 Yang suka ingkar janji lalu sembunyi

The meaning of taboo is replaced by a more subtle or precise word.

Allusion
Peter (2002), allusion is the process of refers to another thing and the particular figure, event, etc., as
named the poem are called allusion. For example: Don’t be lazy, or lost time is never found! (Peter, 2002,
p. 32).
In data 5, the sentence in song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor refers to allusion.

D5 Masa bodoh hilang harga diri

It refers to events or events that he does not give priority to what will happen in the future and the
impact of what will happen.

Parallelism
Parallelism is principle advocating that ideas of equal importance or significance should be treated at
equal length within a poem. Parallelism requires equal treatment for equally importance aspects of the
matter under consideration (Kennedy, 1983). For example: If you want, I will come.
In data 6, the sentence in song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor refers to parallelism.

D6 Kasih roti jalan pun lancar

There are repetitions of expressions/words.

Simile
Simile is a comparison of one thing with another is always explicit because the words “like” or as are
used. (Freeborn, 1996, pp. 62-63). Macmillan (1984, p. 187) says simile is direct comparison between
things, which are not particularly similar in their essence. For example: Her beauty is like a rose.
In data 7, the sentence in song lyric of Tikus-Tikus Kantor refers to simile.

D7 Segera menjelma bagai tak tercela

The word like or like is one of the characteristics of simile which means to resemble something or
similar to another.

Table 1. Types of figurative language in Tikus-Tikus Kantor song lyrics.

Types of figurative Total Percentage (100%)
Personification 17 54,83
Hyperbole 6 19,35
oxymoron 2 6,45
euphemism 2 6,45
Allusion 2 6,45
Parallelism 1 3,22
Simile 1 3,22
31 100

238
 FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE IN TIKUS-TIKUS KANTOR SONG LYRICS BY IWAN FALS by Nadya Nurfadilah

From the data above it can be concluded that the most dominant type is personification with a total
of 17 items or 54.83%, hyperbole as many as 6 items or 19.35%, oxymoron as many as 2 items or 6.45%,
euphemism as much as 2 items or 6.45 %, Allusion is 2 items or 6.45%, Parallelism is 1 item or 3.22%, and
simile is 1 item or 3.22%. The most dominant type is personification because this type is used as a human
substitute word, seen in the title alone has the meaning of personification and the lyrics of the song as well
as the repetition of the meaning of personification in the song. The most dominant type is personification
because this type is used as a human substitute word, seen in the title alone has the meaning of
personification and the lyrics of the song as well as the repetition of the meaning of personification in the
song. because the lyrics of the Office Mice song describe a person in authority or authority with a picture
of office mice and cats, so it is more dominant in the personification type.

CONCLUSION
There are several types contained in the song lyrics of Tikus-Tikus Kantor by Iwan Fals namely
Personification, Hyperbole, oxymoron, euphemism, allusion, parallelism and Simile. The most dominant
type is personification with a total of 17 items or 54.83%, hyperbole as many as 6 items or 19.35%,
oxymoron as many as 2 items or 6.45%, euphemism as many as 2 items or 6.45%, allusion for 2 items or
6.45%, Parallelism is 1 item or 3.22%, and simile is 1 item or 3.22%. The most dominant type is
personification because this type is used as a human substitute word, seen in the title alone has the
meaning of personification and the lyrics of the song as well as the repetition of the meaning of
personification in the song.

REFERENCES
Freeborn, D. (1996). Style: Text analysis and linguistic criticism. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
French, P. A. (2002). Figurative language and semantics. Boston: Little Brown and Company.
Ishak, A. (2014, October 24). Tikus-Tikus Kantor selalu berkeliaran [Office mice are always hanging around].
Retrieved from
https://www.kompasiana.com/albertishak/54f410617455137e2b6c8780/tikustikus-kantor-selalu-
berkeliaran
Mwihaki, A. (2004). Associative meaning in semantics. New York: Oxford University Press.
Reaske, C. R. (1996). How to analyze poetry. New York: Monarch Press.
Sharndama, E. C., & Suleiman, A. B. (2013). An analysis of figurative language in two selected traditional
funeral songs of the Kilba people of Adama State. International Journal of English and Literature, 4(4),
166-173.

APPENDIX
Data

Data 1
Kisah usang Tikus-Tikus Kantor (Personification)
Because in this sentence the rat rat office is distributed as someone who works in the office.

Data 2
Yang suka berenang di sungai yang kotor (Hyperbole)
Because in this sentence the meaning is excessive in his writing even though it really happened.

Data 3
Kisah usang tikus-tikus berdasi (Personification)
Because in that sentence rats are likened to a worker who is in office and wears a tie while working.

Data 4
Yang suka ingkar janji lalu sembunyi (Euphemism)
Because the meaning of taboo is replaced by a more subtle or precise word

Data 5
Di balik meja teman sekerja (Personification)
Because the essence of the work is that humans are not animals.

239
Proceedings of the 2nd English Education International Conference (EEIC) in conjunction with the 9 th Annual International Conference
(AIC), Universitas Syiah Kuala, September 18-19, 2019, Banda Aceh, Indonesia ISSN: 2527-8037

Data 6
Di dalam lemari dari baja (Hyperbole)
Because the word steel describes cabinets including excessive meanings even though in reality they are
true.

Data 7
Kucing datang cepat ganti muka (Personification & Euphemism)
Because the word cat describes someone who works and advance pronouns describe more subtle and
precise meanings

Data 8
Segera menjelma bagai tak tercela (Simile)
Because the word like or like is one of the characteristics of simile which means to resemble something or
similar to another.

Data 9
Masa bodoh hilang harga diri (Allusion)
Because it refers to events or events that he does not give priority to what will happen in the
future and the impact of what will happen

Data 10
Asal tak terbukti ah tentu sikat lagi (Allusion)
Because it refers to events or events that he does not give priority to what will happen in the future and
the impact of what will happen

Data 11
Tikus-tikus tak kenal kenyang (Personification & Hyperbole)
Because in this sentence mice describe a person so that it is a personification meaning while not knowing
fullness describes hyperbole

Data 12
Rakus, rakus, bukan kepalang (Hyperbole)
Because describing the greedy or excessive too greedy

Data 13
Otak tikus memang bukan otak udang (Personification)
Because those who have the brain to think are humans not animals

Data 14
Kucing datang tikus menghilang (Personification & Oxymoron)
Meaning of personification Because cats and mice describe humans, whereas the meaning of oxymoron is
because of the difference between cats and mice, the level of comparison

Data 15
Kucing-kucing yang kerjanya molor (Personification)
Because cats are like humans

Data 16
Tak ingat tikus kantor datang menteror (Personification)
Because mice are like humans

Data 17
Cerdik, licik, tikus bertingkah tengik (Personification)
Because mice are like a mate, because the smart and cunning are just humans who have the mind to think
about humans

240
 FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE IN TIKUS-TIKUS KANTOR SONG LYRICS BY IWAN FALS by Nadya Nurfadilah

Data 18
Mungkin karena sang kucing pura-pura mendelik (Personification)
Cats are likened to humans

Data 19
Tikus tahu sang kucing lapar (Personification)
Because cats and mice are like humans

Data 20
Kasih roti jalan pun lancar (Parallelism)
Because there are repetitions of expressions / words

Data 21
Memang sial sang tikus teramat pintar (Personification)
Because mice describe someone and smart words describe someone not
An animal that has no sense.

Data 22
Atau mungkin si kucing yang kurang ditatar (Personification)
Cats draw a human

Data 23
Tikus-tikus tak kenal kenyang (Personification & Hyperbole)
Because in this sentence mice describe a person so that it is a personification meaning while not knowing
fullness describes hyperbole

Data 24
Rakus, rakus, bukan kepalang (Hyperbole)
Because describing the greedy or excessive too greedy

Data 25
Otak tikus memang bukan otak udang (Personification)
Because those who have the brain to think are humans not animals

Data 26
Kucing datang tikus menghilang (Personification & Oxymoron)
Meaning of personification Because cats and mice describe humans, whereas the meaning of oxymoron is
because of the difference between cats and mice, the level of comparison

241