Question and Answer on Never Let Me Go

606 Words2 Pages

1. How is the theme of conformity important to the novel? How may this affect the characters? The characters in Never Let Me Go place a huge value on conformity––for example, Kathy repeatedly emphasizes how "typical" she is, and Ruth blatantly copies the gestures of older students at the Cottages. Kathy even notices this and confronts Ruth saying, “It’s not what people really do out there, in normal life, if that’s what you were thinking.” (122) Ruth wants to fit in with the others at the cottage, and will copy them and lie to them to win their approval. The organ donation system seems to run relatively smoothly because everyone is willing to accept docilely their fate as donors. What’s very interesting about these “clones” most of all is that they never try to rebel, or find a better future for them selves. In most novels where characters are stuck in a life that they can’t get out of, they will often run away or do something drastic to escape their fates. At times you almost wish they will do something drastic or exciting, because they are barely living at all, and they give up the...

Show More
Related

  • Brothel Mustang Ranch and its Women Written by Alexa Albert

    1106 Words  | 3 Pages

    Conformist is defined by an individual that follows the rules of society. They maintain the “right” way to succeed and work hard to reach those goals. Albert is the greatest example of a conformist from the book. Albert is dedicated to researching the condom usage among prostitutes but does so in the right manner. After being turned down a time or two, she finally got the opportunity to advance her knowledge. Instead of choosing deviant acts in order to obtain the information she was looking for, her patience, motivation, and hard work paid off in the end.

    Read More

  • Comparing Women in Lowell’s Patterns and Sorrell’s From a Correct Address

    1304 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...ther they express the realistic conflict there is between the two. Outwardly, the characters conform, but, inwardly, they long to be free. In real life, most people do not sway to a definite side or another on the issue of conformity and rebellion, but rather, as these characters do, experience a complex inward struggle and conflict with the ideas.

    Read More

  • All My Puny Sorrows By Miriam Towes

    1709 Words  | 4 Pages

    reflects upon the theme of the novel. As it highlights the fact that if people in the society

    Read More

  • Much Ado About Nothing Essay: An Exploration of Conformity

    939 Words  | 2 Pages

    Prouty, Charles A.  Conformity in Much Ado About Nothing. New York: Books for Libraries Press/Yale University Press, 1980.

    Read More

  • Montag 451 Dialectical Analysis

    634 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...e culture does not support free-thinking or expression, as seen by the banning of books and mindless entertainment. In the novel, people who express individuality and question life, they are seen as a threat. Clarisse McClellan, who was one of these people, eventually disappeared. In the novel, those go against conformity are in danger. Our society, while less drastic, processes in a similar way. Due to the spread of media, conformity is more widespread than ever before. Now with a touch of a button, everyone knows what is popular around the globe. We have encouraged ourselves to conform to certain ways in order to be favored by the masses. While we still express individuality, we express it in a narrow spectrum that will not cause others to ridicule or question us. In our society, conformists are normal, and those expressing individuality may be seen as outcasts.

    Read More

  • Social Traditions in Medea, The Piano, and The Age of Innocence

    2113 Words  | 5 Pages

    All societies have many traditions set up, and each of the characters in the books either plays the role of someone who helps to uphold these traditions by following them and imposing consequences on those who don't, or someone who disregards tradition and attempts to point out its pitfalls and shortcomings in modern society. The first role, the person who reinforces tradition, is generally someone who refuses to think outside the box, or does not like the product of going against the tide. This person is comfortable with the way that society has set itself up as far as social norms and expectations. Edith Wharton's character of Newland Archer describes May Welland's innocence as a "helpless and timorous girlhood...she dropped back into the usual, as a too adventurous child takes refuge in its mother's arms." (Wharton 123) May Welland and her family are quite content living within the boundaries that New York society has erected for them, and they fear the changes and consequences of acting otherwise. The adventurous spirit of Newland Archer is dangerous to their precious social norms and unwritten rules for how to conduct oneself in society. Howev...

    Read More

  • Conformity In Cool Hand Luke

    1126 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cool Hand Luke is a film that starts off with the main character Luke. Luke has done crimes and has to go to prison while there he tries to escape three times before he dies. During this film, there are signs of the three social psychological themes which are conformity, non-conformity, and obedience to authority. In this essay, I will be explaining all these three themes with their examples from the film. To understand these themes in the film, it is essential to understand what each team really means. Conformity is when a person changes their behavior or beliefs in order to be accepted by a group (McLeod, S.A., 2016). Nonconformity is the opposite in which one doesn 't conform (Collins English Dictionary). Finally, obedience to authority

    Read More

  • Social Conformity: A Study Through Literature

    1663 Words  | 4 Pages

    Imagine living in a world where almost everyone lived the same lifestyle. Same cars, styles, and personalities, almost everything was the same. There was a set social norm and if you were different, you might have been judged for the way you lived. You feel the need to change your lifestyle in order to fit in with the world’s “social norm”. There is a pressure from the people around you or the town/city that you live in. Now it is highly encouraged to be different amongst the rest of the people to stand out. However, before being “different”, many people felt the need to conform to society’s norm. In the books The Sun Also Rises and Babbitt, social conformity plays a huge role in their storylines. The term social conformity is a society or

    Read More

  • Dehumanization in Never Let Me Go vs. Gattaca

    828 Words  | 2 Pages

    Living in a world where they have successfully created human clones for organ donations, is not a great achievement to mankind in any way, shape, or form.  It makes you wonder, where exactly do you draw the line between the advancement of technology and the dehumanization that occurs because of it?"  Never Let Me Go is a Novel based in the main character Kathy’s memories of her experience in Hailsham and after she left. Hailsham is a boarding school for children who have been cloned from people considered as low life’s or unsuccessful, the only purpose given too these children are for them to develop into adults and donate as many of their mature organs as they can till they die, or as the students and guardians refer to it “complete”. The author focuses on the sick ways of our current society and warns us about the possible future that may be introduced and excepted, Kazuo Ishiguro writes with the intent of teaching and affecting the reader on an emotional level at the same time.

    Read More

  • Never Let Me Go Conformity Analysis

    1148 Words  | 3 Pages

    One of the first example of conformity that is in the book, is a scene when Kathy, the narrator, is recalling a time when Tommy was constantly being pranked and bullied by other students just to see his reactions. “ I thought sooner or later someone would start saying it had gone too far, but it just kept on, and no one said anything”( Ishiguro 15). This statement by Kathy is ironic and out of place because she is the only person who feels

    Read More

  • The Theme Of Conformity And Rebellion In 'A Raisin In The Sun'

    748 Words  | 2 Pages

    Conformity and rebellion are two characteristics that cannot exist without each other. If no one were to conform then there would be no set standard for anyone to rebel against. Without rebellion conformity would not be challenged. Madness comes into play when describing those that rebel against the norm. Dickinson describes anyone with a rebellious attitude as “demur you’re straightway dangerous and handled with a chain” society treats people like this because the idea of change can scare a lot of people. Many of these themes are seen throughout literature.

    Read More

  • Conformity In Never Let Me Go

    1486 Words  | 3 Pages

    If conformity means to “conform to a social role… brought about by a desire to ‘fit in’ or be liked,” then the characters of Never Let Me Go are a wonderful example (McLeod). In Hailsham, the school where the Ruth, Tommy, and Kathy grow up, the Guardians expect all of the students to be extremely creative;

    Read More

  • Comparison of Film and Book 1984

    516 Words  | 2 Pages

    The film and book 1984 focused on the theme conformity to explain how society was controlled by mentioning the enforcement of authority.

    Read More

  • Literary Analysis: We Should All Be Feminist

    1238 Words  | 3 Pages

    Portraying the characters rejection to conformity, American literature illustrates the distinctive following of one's own standards. From what has been analyzed previously, the authors are trying to display a message of change through the characters words and actions. Many times it is apparent that the characters are in there times of most comfort when they are acting in such that makes them their own being, stepping aside from the standards of the rest of society. Writers try to express the importance of stepping outside of that comfort zone in order to grow and develop as a human being. How will one ever know who they are if they conform to be what everyone is told to be? The biggest advocate of rejecting the norms of America is Chris McCandless.

    Read More

  • Non-conformity in The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With the Sea, Medea, and The Stranger

    1788 Words  | 4 Pages

    We are constantly being affected our surroundings. As a result, our attitudes and personalities are a product of our experiences and the various environments in which they occurred . Furthermore, the society we live in presents to us a set of standards, values, and givens that we may or may not agree with. In literature, the society plays a major role in affecting the characters' thoughts and actions. In The Sailor who Fell From Grace with the Sea, The Stranger, and "Medea", the characters are affected by their society, and their actions reflect their conformity (or non-conformity) to it. Ultimately, non-conformity in these works create the conflicts that make the plots interesting.

    Read More

More about Question and Answer on Never Let Me Go

Open Document