She has a pessimistic outlook toward life that is cast into relief by her humanitarian work on behalf of the clones with whom she is so uncomfortable. On the thematic level, Kathy's role as a carer allows Ishiguro to explore the limits of empathy––Ruth and Tommy frequently confront her with the fact that despite her skill and experience, she cannot truly understand what they are going through as donors.Ĭompare and contrast Madame and Miss Emily.Īt the end of the novel, Madame is bitter and seems disgusted by the clones. Within the plot, the carer program seems to exist so the clones will get a sense of what donations will be like, and also to keep the "normals" segregated from the clones. What is the utility of the clone’s roles as "carers"? What thematic resonance does this have for the book as a whole?
Readers may be inclined to see Kathy's tragic life as an accident of history, but Ishiguro suggests that Kathy is actually more fortunate than those who will come after her because she at least had a happy childhood. Hailsham's closing underscores the novel's bleak ending.
The organ donations have only slightly improved life for the general population, and thus the clones' deaths are especially poignant. It also drives home the point that this alternate United Kingdom is no utopia. The images of material deprivation––the run-down Cottages the old items at the Sales––illustrate the difficult conditions that give rise to atrocities like the organ donation program. However, the title also refers to Madame's perception that the young clones have been left to cling to the "old, humane world." The novel's title, then, is also a call to action––never to forsake our empathy and humanity the way society has forsaken Kathy.ĭiscuss the images of material deprivation in the novel.
On the most superficial level, it refers to the (fictional) song that reminds Kathy of her childhood. The title of Never Let Me Go has multiple layers of meaning.
What is the significance of the novel’s title?
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