The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishguro - Essay Example

Analysis of Kazuo Ishıguros "The Remains of the Day" through the issues of Mr. Stevens’ roles, his persona, his repressive feelings, deception and self deceit. Introduction: In the novel The Remains of the Day written by Kazuo Ishiguro, the narrative is centered on the life and times of its male protagonist Mr. Stevens. But the novel explores much beyond interpersonal intricacies. From a series of every day occurrences and events, Ishiguro paints a larger picture of the political realities of Britain in the first half of the twentieth century, leading up to the Second World War. The rest of this essay will expand on Mr. Stevens’ role in the Darlington household, his repressive personality traits and their implications, and how he had deceived himself by way of presenting himself to the outside world. Mr. Steven’ Role: Firstly, the character of Mr. Stevens the Butler is depicted brilliantly in the novel by bringing out the subtleties and nuances of emotion and internal conflict. Mr. Stevens is quite reserved and introverted by natural disposition, whose manifestations take inhuman proportions when he adds qualities of orthodox professionalism to his work. Mr. Stevens’ work ethic is centered on a particular understanding of “dignity”, which requires him to focus exclusively on serving his master, in his case Lord Darlington and compels him to remain insulated from external circumstances of the lives of both. It is also made clear that Mr. Stevens is not unaware of the dangers of this pattern of behavior, as suggested by his sense of guilt. But it is not much later in the narrative, after the calamitous developments of the Second World War under the Nazi command that Mr. Stevens admits to his betrayal and guilt. The Butler’s code of conduct, which Mr. Stevens immaculately inculcates in him turns into an affliction, when he completely subordinates his personal feelings and aspects of his persona to the dictates of that code of conduct. In other words, his role as the Butler of the Darlington house blinds him from being critical of his employee and induces a sense of moral numbness, which is reflected in other aspects of his life, as discussed in the next paragraph. Mr. Stevens’ Personality: Mr. Stevens exhibits such extreme measures of restraint and reserve in his demeanor that it reflects in his speech as well. Not only does he ever indulge in small banter but his language and choice of words represent a Victorian sensibility and professionalism that borders on being mechanical and inhuman. Kazuo Ishiguro mildly suggests that such understanding of one’s professional role eliminates all qualities of humanness from the individual. Another feature of is personality is his tendency to hide unpleasant facts about himself so as to appear strong and in control of his circumstances. Mr. Stevens exercises the British virtue of dignity in such a manner that it appears eccentric to discerning observers. It is also a reflection of the times in which the story was set, when British colonialism was at its peak and the notion of servitude celebrated in the colonies as well as the British Isles. The British virtue of honoring the name of one’s father is also exercised by Mr. Stevens. For example, he employs the services of his old and ailing father, knowing fully well that he will not be able to function adequately. Such tendencies are also features of his personality. Thus, the historical developments at the level of nations and ideologies have trickled down even to the level of the individual, as is evident from their affect on Mr. Stevens’ persona. His Repression and Self-Deceit: Repression and self-deceit go hand in hand. It is also true of Mr. Stevens’ events in life. For example, he lies to Mrs. Wakefield that he does not have time for discussing “nonsense concerning his lordship”. In another occasion he justifies to himself that “I have chosen to tell white lies in both instances as the simplest means of avoiding unpleasantness” (Day Two – afternoon, Mortimers Pond, Dorset: Denies working for Darlington to chauffeur/mechanic, page 120). But deep inside, he knows better than this. His denials and “white lies” are an obvious way of evading from the unpleasant. Hence, author Kazuo Ishiguro presents the readers with a masterful account of the internal turmoil of the life of Mr. Stevens the Butler. The author brilliantly portrays the psyche of a man who has attempted throughout his life to bury his identity and emotion under the convenient cloak provided by his professional role. The other incident where Mr. Stevens’ repressive feelings manifest themselves is in that momentous few minutes he is found by Miss Kenton reading a romantic novel. He tries his utmost to pretend to Miss Kenton that she was mistaken in her belief. The self-deceit is also manifest in the obvious double standard of his statements. For example, he wants to underline his importance in the affairs of European politics while also evading responsibility for the decisions taken in Darlington Hall under his purview. Having pointed to his folly in completely trusting his master and his intentions, we have to acknowledge that there is no malice in Mr. Stevens’ actions. This is applicable to both his professional and personal roles. In the case of the latter, while he represses his feelings for Ms. Kenton, even while fully understanding her longing for his love, his inertness is a result of his sense of vulnerability. Not reciprocating Ms. Kenton’s romantic posturing is not due to any malice harbored against her, but due to his own feeling of insecurity and vulnerability at emotionally submitting himself to another person. The same is true in his role as a Butler as well. His complete trust in Lord Darlington’s motives is borne out of his naiveté and not out of a deliberate attempt to evade his moral obligations to the society at large. Conclusion: Kazuo Ishiguro has presented to the reader an empathetic portrayal of the emotional turmoil and conflict of the lead character Mr. Stevens. By elucidating Mr. Stevens’ personality, repressed feelings and self-deception in every sentence that he utters, the novel fulfils its role of informing, entertaining and querying the readers on the subject of morality in the realms of work and interpersonal relationships. Work Cited: Kazuo Ishiguro, The Remains of the Day, first published in 1989 by Faber & Faber, 245 pages, ISBN 0-571-15310-0 51043 Read More