This thesis draws on the notion that identity - our sense of self - and the ways in which we remember ourselves are strongly interrelated to discuss two novels of an author who is well accustomed to writing what he himself has, in a 1989 interview with Gregory Mason, called “the texture of memory”: Kazuo Ishiguro.
In discussing two of Ishiguro’s novels, The Remains of the Day and When We Were Orphans, this thesis will address the ambivalent forces of memory in more detail and examine how personal memory and personal identity are, in the two chosen texts, conceptualised interdependently. In doing so, this thesis furthermore analyses the specific literary functionalisation of the concepts of memory, which the two chosen texts provide us with. However, the theme of memory and identity must not be dealt with as a stand-alone subject in the two chosen texts; it rather has to be examined in the context of other discourses that are related to it. In both novels, identity is built on certain ideals which are, over the course of the two novels, subverted along with the respective identities themselves. Consequently, this thesis will relate its main research interest, the interdependence between memory and identity, to such other discourses which, in the two selected texts, are crucial to acquiring an understanding of the exact nature of the interdependence in question: discourses on individuality, trauma, self-deception, selfdelusion, self-reflection, nostalgia, and idealism.
Having awarded Kazuo Ishiguro with the 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature, the Nobel Committee explained its choice in a press release, stating that Ishiguro, “in novels of great emotional force, has uncovered the abyss beneath our illusory sense of connection with the world.” In his novels, Ishiguro explores this illusory sense of connectedness through the eyes of characters that are confronted with the fragile forces of their very own memories. It is these characters, caught between remembrance and oblivion, between trauma and nostalgia for an irretrievable past, through which Ishiguro unmasks the illusory essence not only of our sense of connection with the world, but also of our sense of self. In an opening remark on the British Council’s official profile of Kazuo Ishiguro, James Procter fittingly states that “Ishiguro's novels are preoccupied by memories, their potential to digress and distort, to forget and to silence, and, above all, to haunt.”
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: Kazuo Ishiguro and the “texture of memory”
2. Theoretical Framework: Autobiographical Memory and our Sense of Self
2.1 “Memory’s fragile power” and the Self: Psychological Perspectives on Identity and Memory
2.2 Fictions of Memory: Memory and Identity in Literary Discourse
3. Memory and Identity in The Remains of the Day
3.1 Setting Up Liminal Spaces – Dual Focalization and the Butler Stevens as a Nostalgic Anachronism in a Time of Change
3.2 Defining the (Interdependent) Self: Between ‘Great’ Idealism, Dignity, and Professional Identity
3.3 The Ambivalent Forces of Stevens’s Memory: Between Self-Deception and Self-Reflection
3.3.1 A Macabre Triumph: Self-Deception, ‘Sins of Bias’, and the Greater Cause
3.3.2 “What dignity is there in that?” – Insight, Self-Reflection, and the Deconstruction of Stevens’s Self-Narrative
4. Memory and Identity in When We Were Orphans
4.1 Setting Up Liminal Spaces – Dual Focalization and Cultural Hybridity in the Case of Christopher Banks
4.2 The Orphan Self and a Mummified Childhood: Trauma, Restorative Nostalgia, and Idealist Detective Identity
4.3 Tracing Leads: The Fragile Force of Christopher Banks’s Memory
4.3.1 Encountering Dead Ends: Christopher’s Traumatic Memory and its ‘Sins’
4.3.2 A Detective Lead Astray: A Past Irretrievable, Frustration of Memory, and the Subversion of Identity
5. Conclusion: Of Trauma and Regret
Objective and Research Focus
This thesis examines the interdependent relationship between personal memory and individual identity in Kazuo Ishiguro’s novels The Remains of the Day and When We Were Orphans, specifically analyzing how the narrator-protagonists utilize memory to construct, destabilize, and reconstruct their sense of self through narratives influenced by regret and childhood trauma.
- The role of autobiographical memory in shaping personal identity.
- The function of psychological “memory sins” such as self-deception and bias in narrative construction.
- Comparison of identity formation between Stevens’s professional restraint and Christopher Banks’s traumatic nostalgia.
- The literary categorization of these works within the "fictions of memory" genre.
- The process of identity deconstruction via self-reflection and the failure of memory-based ideals.
Excerpt from the Book
3.3.1 A Macabre Triumph: Self-Deception, ‘Sins of Bias’, and the Greater Cause
Even in narrative hindsight, Stevens recalls the evening of his father’s death “with a large sense of triumph” (RotD: 115) – a macabre triumph over his feelings, his humanity, over the private identity he pretends not to have. The way in which Stevens ‘triumphs’ over his private self has fittingly been described by Deborah Guth as “self-effacement” (135) and “self-denial” (136); Susie O’Brien even characterizes it as a form of “self-abnegation” (793). The particular way in which Stevens remembers instances of self-repression adds a whole new dynamic to them. Over the course of the novel, Stevens repeatedly seems to make excuses and to deny ‘real’ responsibility for his actions. Concerning his rejection(s) of Miss Kenton’s love he remains convinced that “there was surely nothing to indicate at the time that such evidently small incidents would render whole dreams forever irredeemable” (RotD: 188 f.). And also with regards to Lord Darlington, he clings on to his conviction of his late employer’s greatness for a long time – even though his recollections present the reader with more and more evidence that suggests otherwise. The mental mechanism in question here is the first of the two ambivalent forces of Stevens’s memory: self-deception.
As Bortolotti/Mameli emphasize, “self-deception involves beliefs that are acquired and maintained in the face of strong counter-evidence and that are motivated by desires or emotions” (204). Stevens’s desire is, as pointed out in the preceding chapters, manifested in his pursuit of the ideal of being a great and dignified butler to Lord Darlington and by that serving the cause of humanity. Stevens thus not only subordinates everything to pursuing this idealist desire of his, but he also spares no effort to retrospectively defend his actions against the evidence that reality provides him with. Hence, Stevens’s idealist self-concept is rooted in a form of memory-based self-deception which functions in two different ways: meaning making and exculpation.
Chapter Summaries
1. Introduction: Kazuo Ishiguro and the “texture of memory”: Introduces the research interest in the interplay between autobiographical memory and identity, referencing psychological perspectives on the self.
2. Theoretical Framework: Autobiographical Memory and our Sense of Self: Establishes foundations by discussing psychological theories of memory, including Daniel L. Schacter’s “seven sins of memory.”
2.1 “Memory’s fragile power” and the Self: Psychological Perspectives on Identity and Memory: Examines psychological components of the self-concept and the role of memory as the “data base of the self.”
2.2 Fictions of Memory: Memory and Identity in Literary Discourse: Discusses the literary genre of “fictions of memory” and Birgit Neumann’s typology of memory novels.
3. Memory and Identity in The Remains of the Day: Provides a contextual analysis of Stevens the butler, his road trip, and the narrative focus on his past service.
3.1 Setting Up Liminal Spaces – Dual Focalization and the Butler Stevens as a Nostalgic Anachronism in a Time of Change: Analyzes the narratological situation of dual focalization and Stevens’s position as a nostalgic anachronism.
3.2 Defining the (Interdependent) Self: Between ‘Great’ Idealism, Dignity, and Professional Identity: Explores the cornerstones of Stevens’s identity, including concepts of greatness, dignity, and professional idealism.
3.3 The Ambivalent Forces of Stevens’s Memory: Between Self-Deception and Self-Reflection: Discusses the opposing forces of memory that fluctuate between self-deception and realization.
3.3.1 A Macabre Triumph: Self-Deception, ‘Sins of Bias’, and the Greater Cause: Analyzes how Stevens uses self-deception to maintain his self-image of dignified greatness despite external reality.
3.3.2 “What dignity is there in that?” – Insight, Self-Reflection, and the Deconstruction of Stevens’s Self-Narrative: Examines Stevens’s eventual realization of his misguided life and the subsequent deconstruction of his identity.
4. Memory and Identity in When We Were Orphans: Introduces Christopher Banks and the novel's focus on childhood trauma as the primary driver for memory distortion.
4.1 Setting Up Liminal Spaces – Dual Focalization and Cultural Hybridity in the Case of Christopher Banks: Investigates the impact of cultural hybridity on Banks’s liminal position and identity.
4.2 The Orphan Self and a Mummified Childhood: Trauma, Restorative Nostalgia, and Idealist Detective Identity: Explores how childhood trauma leads to restorative nostalgia and an idealist detective persona.
4.3 Tracing Leads: The Fragile Force of Christopher Banks’s Memory: Analyzes the contrast between Stevens’s regulated memory and Banks’s dysfunctional, trauma-ridden recall.
4.3.1 Encountering Dead Ends: Christopher’s Traumatic Memory and its ‘Sins’: Examines the specific memory failures, such as blocking and transience, that render Banks’s narrations unreliable.
4.3.2 A Detective Lead Astray: A Past Irretrievable, Frustration of Memory, and the Subversion of Identity: Discusses the collapse of Banks’s detective narrative and the subversion of his identity upon confronting reality in Shanghai.
5. Conclusion: Of Trauma and Regret: Synthesizes findings, concluding that while both protagonists fail through memory, Stevens uses memory for survival, whereas Banks becomes its captive.
Keywords
Autobiographical Memory, Identity Construction, Kazuo Ishiguro, The Remains of the Day, When We Were Orphans, Self-Deception, Trauma, Restorative Nostalgia, Dual Focalization, Literary Discourse, Memory Sins, Daniel L. Schacter, Professionalism, Dignity, Deconstruction
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this thesis?
This thesis explores how Kazuo Ishiguro represents the complex, interdependent relationship between autobiographical memory and individual identity in his novels The Remains of the Day and When We Were Orphans.
What are the central thematic fields?
The work centers on the nature of memory as a reconstructive process, the concept of the self, identity construction in narrative, and the psychological impact of trauma and regret.
What is the primary research goal?
The aim is to analyze how the narrator-protagonists, Stevens and Christopher Banks, use their memories to construct and deconstruct their identities, and to compare their different memory “driving forces”: regret and childhood trauma.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The thesis utilizes literary analysis combined with cognitive psychological approaches, specifically leaning on Daniel L. Schacter’s typology of “memory sins” and Birgit Neumann’s “fictions of memory” genre theory.
What is discussed in the main body?
The main body creates a comparative framework, dissecting Stevens’s self-deceptive service to his employer and comparing it with Christopher Banks’s trauma-driven, ultimately dysfunctional detective narrative.
Which keywords characterize this work?
Key terms include Autobiographical Memory, Identity Construction, Self-Deception, Trauma, Restorative Nostalgia, and Dual Focalization.
How does Stevens’s memory differ from Christopher Banks’s memory?
While Stevens utilizes his memory as a self-deceptive tool to stabilize his professional self-image, Christopher Banks’s memory is rendered dysfunctional by his childhood trauma, leading him to live in a state of delusion.
What significant conclusion does the author reach regarding Stevens?
The thesis concludes that Stevens eventually gains insight into his wasted life, allowing him to use memory for future adaptation, making him ultimately the “master” of his own memory.
Why does Christopher Banks’s detective career fail?
His career fails because he is unable to distinguish between his nostalgic, imaginative reconstruction of the past and the reality of 1930s Shanghai, which leads to the collapse of his identity narrative.
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- Thorben Höppner (Autor:in), 2021, Identity and the Ambivalent Force of Memory in Kazuo Ishiguro’s "The Remains of the Day" and "When We Were Orphans", München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1354992
