Assignment 1
English 2
The Remains of the Day
by Kazuo Ishiguro
Kazuo Ishiguro, in an interview about 'The Remains of the Day', said the following:'I quite like the idea of starting off with somebody who appears quite unsympathetic and then we actually see the
humanity beneath all of those things that make him rather unattractive. I think something has been gained if we
move in that direction from not liking somebody to actually understanding them.'
Do you feel that in creating the character of Stevens, Ishiguro has achieved the task he
set himself?
With this statement and question as an assignment for an essay, I tried to remember how I felt
about Mr Stevens after reading the book, but I just couldn’t put my finger on any special
sections in the book which gave me any opinion about Mr. Stevens. I just read the book
without thinking of any of the characters and found myself actually enjoying it even though I
usually wouldn’t read a book in this genre. In order to get a better understanding of the book
I decided to watch the movie, which had got good reviews, and in which Anthony Hopkins
got excellent reviews for his performance as Mr. Stevens. The film is fairly faithful to the
novel and after watching it I got a better overview and understanding of what I had been
reading, mainly because of Anthony Hopkins’ interpretation of Mr. Stevens.
The novel.
The book begins with Mr Stevens talking about making an expedition to the West Country, an
opportunity given to him by his new employer Mr Farraday, an American, who has bought
Darlington Hall after the death of Lord Darlington. Mr Farraday had told him to take a
vacation and tour the countryside while he was back in the United States. Mr Farraday would
even foot the bill for the gas. The notion of taking such a trip had got a hold of his thoughts
because he had received a letter from Mrs Benn, the former housekeeper, her first in almost
seven years, expect for the Christmas cards. The letter was filled with nostalgia for Darlington
Hall, and as he says he is quite sure of – distinct hints of her desire to return to Darlington
Hall. She tells him that her marriage is coming to an end and this makes him think she might
be interested in coming back to Darlington Hall to work there. In his answer to her, he is very
kind and says a lot of nice things about her and the way she handled her job.
In the beginning Mr Stevens is the perfect picture of a typical English butler but he seems
sympathetic enough in interaction with his new employer.
Essay
page 1 of 3
Mona Midtsund
Assignment 1
English 2
At this point both the book takes us back in time to the beginning of Mr Stevens and Mrs
Benn’s first meeting, a job interview. During this interview Mr Stevens seems very stiff and
very cold. He is also very abrupt and formal, and polite in the way he tells Mrs Benn, or Miss
Kenton, which is what she’s called at this time, how things are not supposed to be. One can
get the impression that he thinks she is too young and not experienced enough to run a big
house like Darlington Hall. In any case he recommends her along with his father to his
Lordship and he is told to hire them.
Miss Kenton tries to tell him about his father’s problems, he interrupts her and won’t listen to
what she has to say. She keeps on telling him and they run a sort of war between them over
his father’s ability to work and the workload he has been given, until he trembles and falls
carrying a full tray. Mr Stevens sr. gets ill and is put to bed at the same time as Lord
Darlington is hosting an important dinner. Mr Stevens feels that he has to attend this dinner,
and when Miss Kenton tells him that his father died a few minutes ago, he tells her that his
father would have wanted him to do his job. During the evening it is possible to see that
something is wrong, but when the lord asks him, he just says he’s tired and has had a long
day. He is keeping up appearances and the distance he feels is correct towards his employer.
When I read this part I felt very sorry for Mr Stevens that was so rapped up in etiquette that he
could not even allow himself to greave his father, or even leave his job for some time to sit at
his father’s sickbed.
We get a glimpse of humanity during a talk he has with Miss Kenton during an interview they
are having about a girl who is taking over for a Jewish girl that had been dismissed. Miss
Kenton had said that she would resign if Mr Stevens dismissed the two Jewish girls as his
Lordship has told him to do. Mr Stevens tells her how important she is to the house and that
he is glad she didn’t resign. She tells him it was because she had no family and nowhere to go,
that she was just a coward. He tells her they depend upon her, and that she is very important
to the house and if she wants to hire the girl, she is hired under her command and full
responsibility. In this scene I got the impression that Mr Stevens had feelings for Miss
Kenton, but again the etiquette prevents him from telling her.
Even though he seems cold and unfeeling towards his father and about the news of his death,
one has to be sympathetic towards him. Mainly because he is so preoccupied with his work
and not able to show his feelings or see the feelings from the people around him.
Essay
page 2 of 3
Mona Midtsund
Assignment 1
English 2
All the way through the book this impression of him being cold and unfeeling is a common
theme. But you get the feeling it is just an impression. I didn’t analyse the book when I read
it, I just enjoyed reading it. But after seeing the movie I knew in what sections I could find
something about Mr Stevens that would make me like him.
I feel the author has accomplished his task. In some of the scenes when Mr Stevens speaks
with Miss Kenton we get a glimpse of a sympathetic man, and we can only feel sorry for a
guy who is so rapped up in etiquette that he can not leave his place even to go to his ill father.
When I finished the book I had a sad feeling about Mr Stevens and his lost love and I felt
sorry for him. I think this feeling is a thread of the story. In the end when he has his meeting
with Miss Kenton and she tells him that she has grown to love her husband and wants to stay
because her daughter is having a baby and that her husband is retiring I feel sorry for him,
because he doesn’t tell her that he loves her, and she also keeps her feelings to herself. When
she is about to take the bus back to her husband he sees the tears in her eyes, and reassures her
that retirement many times is the best part for a married couple and that she must do all she
can to make these years happy for herself and her husband. He wants her to be happy, and I
get the feeling that he is trying to convince both her and himself that she is doing the right
thing.
The fact that he had set out on his trip to bring Mrs Benn back with him to Darlington Hall
because of a feeling he had after reading her letter made me believe that he loved her. I think
the novel ends sadly, because both Mr Stevens and Miss Kenton are products of the time and
their positions. He is too polite or too repressed to tell her that he loves her, and I get the
feeling that she is too shy to tell him what she feels. And since she has decided to go back to
her husband because her daughter is pregnant and she wants to keep her family together, they
depart as friends and he drives back to Darlington Hall the day after.
As I said earlier I feel the author has accomplished his task at least in my case. He makes me
understand Mr Stevens in the end, even though I did not like him at first. Mr Stevens is a
product of his time and he is just like I assumed an English butler would be, polite, motionless
and correct in any way of his behaviour.
Essay
page 3 of 3
Mona Midtsund