LSC The Novel Never Let Me Go Themes Discussion
Well folks, we’ve come to the end. Kathy’s tale is done and now we need to make sense of it all. To that end, this week’s discussion will be a two parter. First, I want you to post a question for your peers to consider by this Thursday, 4/20. Then, respond to a question of your choice by this Sunday, 4/23. Let me tell you what I’m looking for:Link for the book This book covers many themes from our relationship to art and what it means to be human to nature vs. nurture and childhood indoctrination just to name a few. What I’m looking for you to come up with is a question that helps us to unpack a theme of your choosing. For example, it should come as no surprise that as an English teacher, I’m fascinated by art and humanity’s relationship to it. Ms. Emily and Madame (Marie-Claude) both thought that they could prove the clones possessed “souls” through the clones’ artistic output – that if the clones could produce art and express themselves artistically, folks might begin to think of them as people and not just carriers of healthy organs. My question has a couple of parts: What is a soul and is creating art the only way to demonstrate that you have one? Do you think the clones possessed souls?So you’ll see in this example I’ve provided a brief set-up (what theme are you interested in and how does it appear in the book?) followed by a question intended to help us unpack this theme.What I’m looking for is an in-depth response to whatever question you choose (at least 300 words) that shows you’ve really given it some thought. If I were to respond to my own question for example:Since Im an atheist, how I think of the human soul may differ from how you think about it, for one thing, Im not entirely certain that it exists. That said, when I think of the soul, I think of it as the parts of me that make me who I am, my essence if you will. A combination of my thoughts, feelings, emotions, and experiences that I carry with me through life and may remain in some form after Im dead. Within the context of Never Let Me Gohowever, I think both the novel and the society in which it is set use the concept of the soul as a metric by which to judge ones humanness and the existence of clones and the cloning process really complicates this idea. We can tell through how Kathy and her ilk are treated that society does not view them as human, theyre raised for slaughter and most of them are dead before they turn 30. Yet I have a hard time thinking of Kathy, Tommy, and Ruth as anything less than human. They lead complex lives and have robust inner worlds, a fact we cannot escape as the entire story is told from Kathys perspective. I think that Ms. Emily and Madame sought to show others this through the art the students at Hailsham produced: doesnt all art begin within ones mind and is shaped by human experience? Therefore, if we consider the artistic merit of Never Let Me Go, the novel itself is the final proof that Kathy is human since it is written from her perspective. Kathy is unquestionably human, regardless of how she came into this world. So we can read this novel as an allegory of sorts, by pointing out how the clones lack of rights is dictated by the circumstances of their birth (clones dont have souls, therefore theyre not human, therefore they do not deserve the same rights according to humans) the novel is inviting us to consider instances of this in our daily lives. Throughout the history of the united states, those in power sought to maintain the status quo by controlling who gets to be considered a citizen and afforded equal rights. Ill wrap it up here but Id encourage you to think of how laws, traditions, definitions and such are used to include some and exclude many.
