The novel Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro effectively portrays the inevitability of loss and the mortality of humans, including human clones. The novel is written from the view of a clone who was created, along with countless others, to grow up healthy and then eventually have her organs removed and donated to a ‘normal’ person. The ‘students’ as the clones are referred to in the novel, tend to go about their lives without much consideration or care about how wrong their situations actually are. The large majority of students don’t attempt to go against the system they are restricted by and don’t try anything to get out of having to be donors, instead they simply accept the role given to them in society.
There are however, a few students who desire to break out of the system, if even for a short time. Students with this desire attempt to do so by getting a deferral, “you could ask for your donations to be put back by three, even four years” (153). The students who wish to defer are those who are in relationships and are looking to spend more time with their significant other before they have to separate and begin donating their organs.
For some students to wish for a deferral suggests that some of them are more than just a soulless clone devoid of human emotions. The desire to extend one’s life and continue loving another person as long as possible is extremely human. As people we are terrified of death and will do practically anything we can to avoid it for as long as we can. The students who displayed this desire proved Miss Emily’s belief that “if students are reared in humane, cultivated environments, it [is] possible for them to grow to be as sensitive and intelligent as any ordinary human being” (261). Kathy and Tommy, and even Ruth, prove to be great examples of students who are just like any ordinary person. They want to spend more time together and show various feelings throughout the novel. It is this quality that makes those students easier for readers to identify with. Normal people don’t usually just accept the fact that they are going to die, they do whatever it takes to prolong their life as long as possible. Kathy and Tommy do just that, and show they are very much human.
Never Let Me Goreally makes the reader ponder about mortality and the effect it has on the way they live life. We naturally fear death and seek to avoid it at all costs. If there is even the smallest hope that we can escape death for a short time, we put all our faith into it. Ishiguro does a great capturing this aspect of human nature with his characters Kathy and Tommy.
I would like to emphasize your statement that "if there is even the smallest hope that we can escape death for a short time, we put all our faith into it". The key point in this is that you can escape death, but only for a brief time. If we read into Ishiguro's novel as a tale about the inevitable and natural death of all humans, we can understand why the characters in the novel only wish for a few more years to live. The clones realize that no matter what, they will have to complete, and there is no escaping this. Asking for only a few more years by Deferral is their way of bargaining with death, and asking to be able to set things right before they go. This is something many humans go through after realizing they will die soon; asking the doctor how long they have left, what they can do to prolong their life further, so that they may have a few more years to make good on past mistakes, grow closer to their friends family, and love even greater their loved ones. The natural fear of death and attempt to bargain with it is seen in the form of the rumors of the Deferrals, which as Miss Emily says get “created from scratch over and over. You go to the source, stamp it out, you’ll not stop it starting again elsewhere…It’s something for them to dream about, a little fantasy” (Ishiguro 258). The clones, like all humans, want just a few more years, and thus, create a fantasy in the form of a rumor that it is possible to cheat death, if only for a brief time. Ishiguro writes this in hopes that readers will understand that death is indeed inevitable, and despite whether you have a few more years or not, there is no escaping it; thus, readers must live a good life and learn to forgive those that have wronged them, as Kathy does to Ruth, in order to pass peacefully into death.
ReplyDeleteIshiguro, K. (2005). Never Let Me Go. Vintage Books.
I like your comment on the fact that seeking deferral makes the clones seem more human. I agree in a sense because I think Kathy’s wanting to defer with Tommy makes her more relatable to the readers of Never Let Me Go. I also think Tommy’s idea that Madame’s gallery showcases the souls of the children connects to your idea. While Tommy thinks the art is taken away in case a student returns and asks for a deferral, Miss Emily tells Kathy and Tommy, “We took away your art because we thought it would reveal your souls. Or to put it more finely, we did it to prove you had souls at all” (260). Miss Emily’s and Madame’s goal has always been to change the donation program by proving the clones were human in many ways. I also think Kathy, as much as she wants to receive a deferral, understands Madame may not be able to provide one. She becomes afraid that her request is “ridiculous, reprehensible even” (242) now that she and Tommy are so much older. While this statement may go against your idea that Kathy believes it is possible to prolong her life, it demonstrates Kathy possesses another human ability: the capacity for critical thinking. Kathy is analyzing her chances at receiving a deferral, but she would not have been able to do so had she not possessed this sort of distinct human quality.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that you decided to write your post about the deferrals in Never Let Me Go because, to me, they are the most intriguing portion of the novel. This isn't because the topic itself is anymore interesting than anything else that happens throughout the story, but rather because I am fascinated as to why Kazuo Ishiguro decided to include them at all. He stated in the video that we watched in class, that this is not a story about fighting the system. This is not a story about escaping destiny. This is a story about love, friendship,and mortality. So, why then, did he include a possibility of a way out? Why would he spend the time focusing on this detail that seems in contrast of what the story is all about? Even though the whole deferring thing never comes to fruition, as Miss Emily states, "But this dream of yours, this dream of being able to defer. Such a thing would have always been beyond us to grant, even at the height of our influence" (Ishiguro 261), it still matters in the context of the story. Perhaps, it is possible, that Ishiguro wrote this in as a means of tying up all of the loose ends. The inclusion of the deferrals leads to many things towards the end of the novel. Firstly, it gives Ruth a final moment of redemption when she insists that Tommy and Kath should attempt a deferral. Next it answers the question of who Madame actually is and what purpose her gallery has. And finally, it answers the question of why the Hailsham kids are different than everyone else. I acknowledge that the deferrals do serve a purpose in the novel, but I can't help but wonder if there is a way to accomplish all of this another way. A way that more closely aligns itself with what the story is truly about.
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