"Did Everything Have to Be Her Fault?" : Guilt and Forgiveness Through Unreliable Narration in Ian McEwan’s Atonement
Leino, Anni (2025-03-11)
"Did Everything Have to Be Her Fault?" : Guilt and Forgiveness Through Unreliable Narration in Ian McEwan’s Atonement
(11.03.2025)
Julkaisu on tekijänoikeussäännösten alainen. Teosta voi lukea ja tulostaa henkilökohtaista käyttöä varten. Käyttö kaupallisiin tarkoituksiin on kielletty.
avoin
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on:
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2025031718182
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2025031718182
Tiivistelmä
Ian McEwan’s novel Atonement (2001) with its metafictional structure is open for various interpretations. I approach the novel and its different levels of narration from the concept of unreliable narrator, introduced by Wayne C. Booth. My aim is to investigate how the unreliable narration of the novel affects how the themes of guilt and forgiveness are explored.
I establish that both young and adult Briony fit into the category of an unreliable narrator and then move on to explore Briony’s character in more detail. More specifically, her character flaws, which explain her actions in part one of the novel. I explore her character from the perspective of how she is able to overcome these flaws. Furthermore, how she deals with guilt during the course of life and how she attempts to redeem herself and atone her crime. I carry the subject of her writing throughout the thesis and connect her character development to her development as an author.
My investigation on these themes leads me to the conclusion that young Briony’s actions can be attributed to her moral stupidity and inability to see other people as they are. In her job as a nurse, she is already showing signs of moral growth and an attempt to atone. However, her most significant and genuine attempt for an atonement is her writing; and hiding behind the false omniscient narrator was the only way she could establish reader’s trust. The writing of her story serves as a form of self-exploration that allows her to reconcile with her past and also to an extent atone what she did to Cecilia and Robbie by offering them a happy ending. She does not allow herself to be forgiven completely but as result of her writing process the guilt no longer consumes her.
I establish that both young and adult Briony fit into the category of an unreliable narrator and then move on to explore Briony’s character in more detail. More specifically, her character flaws, which explain her actions in part one of the novel. I explore her character from the perspective of how she is able to overcome these flaws. Furthermore, how she deals with guilt during the course of life and how she attempts to redeem herself and atone her crime. I carry the subject of her writing throughout the thesis and connect her character development to her development as an author.
My investigation on these themes leads me to the conclusion that young Briony’s actions can be attributed to her moral stupidity and inability to see other people as they are. In her job as a nurse, she is already showing signs of moral growth and an attempt to atone. However, her most significant and genuine attempt for an atonement is her writing; and hiding behind the false omniscient narrator was the only way she could establish reader’s trust. The writing of her story serves as a form of self-exploration that allows her to reconcile with her past and also to an extent atone what she did to Cecilia and Robbie by offering them a happy ending. She does not allow herself to be forgiven completely but as result of her writing process the guilt no longer consumes her.