Kazuo Ishiguro's sixth and perhaps most intriguing novel to date is constructed as if it were a dream. Characters’ memories, reliable and unreliable, often escape the reader’s understanding. More than by the original, disturbing story, which tackles themes like friendship, nostalgia and identity, we are tantalised by these enigmatic memories, and see how they help the main characters understand and accept their lives, and the terrible fate that awaits them. Ishiguro explores the ways in which the malleability of memory helps people get on with their lives. For instance, Kathy, the main character, says:
“What I really wanted, I suppose, was to get straight all the things that happened between me and Tommy and Ruth after we grew up and left Hailsham. But I realise now just how much of what occurred later came out of our time at Hailsham and that’s why I want first to get over these earlier memories quite carefully.”
“Ciò che desideravo veramente, immagino, era dare un senso a tutte le cose che erano successe tra me e Tommy e Ruth dopo che eravamo cresciuti e avevamo lasciato Hailsham. Adesso mi rendo conto quanto determinante sia stato il periodo trascorso a Hailsham per ciò che è avvenuto in seguito, ed è il motivo per cui voglio innanzitutto riandare con la memoria a questi primi accadimenti molto attentamente”.
A PARADOX
Never Let Me Go is, paradoxically, a sad story but a delight to read. Much of its appeal and tragic effect is based on empathy because Ishiguro succeeds in making the reader feel what the characters feel. Also, as we go on reading, we are overwhelmed by a compelling curiosity to know what happened earlier on and what’s going to happen next.
“We couldn’t understand how you could ever get like that. And I was just having this idea, just a thought really. I was thinking maybe the reason you used to get like that was because at some level you always knew.”
“Non riuscivamo a capire come facevi a ridurti a quel modo. E io avevo questa idea in testa, che a essere sinceri era soltanto un pensiero. Immaginavo che forse la ragione di questo tuo comportamento dipendeva dal fatto che, in un certo senso, l’avevi sempre saputo”.
three friends
The novel is the story of three genetically-engineered children. It follows in flashback the life story of Kathy, who is thirty-one at the beginning of the novel. Kathy and her friends Ruth and Tom spent their childhood sheltered from the outside world at Hailsham, a special boarding school in the English countryside. There, the children learnt that they were "different from any other children" and brought up to believe that their good health and happiness were supremely important for the society they would eventually enter. Their lessons involved only art and poetry. The children were encouraged to express themselves creatively.
“A lot of the time, how you were regarded at Hailsham, how much you were liked and respected, had to do with how good you were at creating.”
“La maggior parte delle volte, la considerazione in cui ognuno di noi veniva tenuto a Hailsham, quanto si veniva apprezzati e rispettati, era determinato dal proprio livello di «creativit໓.x
Eventually they find out about their non-human condition as well as their dark purpose in the world and why they had a different childhood.
THE MESSAGE
Never Let Me Go can be interpreted in many ways: as a warning against the misuse of science and the ethical issues surrounding genetic engineering, or as a challenge to the notion of friendship. Above all, though, it is a metaphor that explores what it means to be human.
“Tommy, just listen. You’re really lucky. Of all the people here, you’ve got Ruth fancying you. After we leave, if you’re with her, you won’t have to worry. She’s the best, you’ll be fine so long as you’re with her. She’s saying she wants a fresh start. So don’t blow it.”
““–Tommy, ascoltami. Sei davvero fortunato. Di tutti quelli che ci sono, Ruth ha scelto te. Dopo che ce ne andremo da qui, se tu starai con lei, non dovrai preoccuparti di nulla. Lei è la migliore: starai bene se sarai con lei. Dice che vuole cominciare da capo. Non buttare all’aria tutto”.
in film
Director Mark Romanek and writer Alex Garland brought Ishiguro's story to the screen in 2010. Never Let Me Go stars Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield and Keira Knightley. But despite the intelligent script, excellent performances by the actors and the stunning photography, the film didn’t connect with audiences. It seems that the scope of the novel was too great for a film.