Never Let Me Go - Twenty

"'I keep thinking about this river somewhere, with the water moving really fast.  And these two people in the water, trying to hold onto each other, holding on as hard as they can, but in the end it's just too much.  The currents too strong.  They've got to let go, drift apart.  That's how I think it is with us.  It's a shame, Kath, because we've loved each other ll our lives.  But in the end, we can't stay together forever'" (pg 282).

Why must every book end with the main characters parting ways, dying or both?  This metaphor used by Tommy to explain Kathy and his departure really brought the friendship to a nice conclusion.  It really reminded me of the clown and balloon metaphor from when Ruth was ill.  I hate how the entire book had had such an upbeat mood, but in order to truly show the themes, Ishiguro decided to end the book with such a powerful statement.  The entire novel, I was dead set that the major theme was that wisdom comes with time and experience, but now I almost think that it could be more within the power of knowledge.

When Kathy and Tommy actually learned about their pasts, instead of being appreciatory about all that had been done for them, they seemed to just let it roll off their sleeves and almost seemed offended.  I really see this novel as a warning sign for the present way that the scientific community seems to be progressing.

I just read the questions at the end of the novel and one of them talked about the power of the group that was stressed at Hailsham.  I just realized how that differs from what I had previously thought.  It seems that throughout the novel, people were stronger when others were with them.  This seems to be a different take on Huxley's Brave New World where they wanted solitude by the end.

Now that I am done with my blogs, I feel like summer is over.  So sad.