hi i REALLY loved this book so here’s a big massive rant about it!!!!! spoiler warning obviously but anywho.. enjoy!! oh ya some important notes if u havnt read it.. stevens constantly talks about his weird meaning of dignity. like a lot. and also he sees bantering with employers as dumb. ok ty enjoy lol Th Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro follows Stevens, the ageing butler of Darlington Hall, on his road trip sightseeing England. Throughout this trip he reminisces upon his life as a butler, and we slowly learn what he thinks it means to be a ‘great’ one. As a whole, it is a heartbreaking, beautiful, at times comedic portrait of a human life. I found this book while looking through books in my school library that the librarian was giving out for free – supposedly because for the long time that they had stayed there, nobody had actually read them. I saw the pretty cover. I read the blurb. I found it undoubtedly heartwarming. Next thing I know, I'm reading it in an English lesson after finishing my work. I heavily value the pacing of a book. No matter how high quality the writing is, I will lose interest if it slows down sporadically. Fortunately, the pacing is perfect, with each day you spend with Stevens, you gather newfound evidence regarding how absurd his personal beliefs are. Additionally, Ishiguro's prose fits really well with when the book is set. Along with his lush descriptions of places and events, I was wholly transported into the world of this book. It was honestly really hard to put down! A recurring theme in ‘The Remains of the Day’ is the lost love between Stevens and his colleague Mrs Kenton. Early on in the book you realise that throughout his life, in a pitiful attempt to be seen as dignified, Stevens doesn’t let himself feel his own emotions. But he loves her. He unfortunately just doesn’t deem this unrelenting love fitting for what he believes is ‘dignity’, and harshly compresses his love for her until he realises it's too late. Mrs Kenton ends up having a loving family and children while he isolates himself into his occupation. The worst part is that she undoubtedly loves him back, and sees him for much more than his absurd relationship with his wellbeing. But she chooses HERSELF in the end. “And you get to thinking about a different life, a better life you might have had. For instance, I get to thinking about a life I might have had with you.” {OOOOHHHHHHH MMMYYYYYYY GGGOOOOOOODD} Kazuo's use of ‘show not tell’ in regards to Steven’s love for Mrs Kenton is incredibly effective, because he doesn't actually admit to loving her once. I could go on and on and on about the plethora of implications but I don't want to make myself cry lmaoooo! But despite everything, Mrs Kenton and her family still adore and look up to him. And he cannot compress it like he always does because they’re not his own feelings. I adore unreliable narrators!! Another theme I love about this book is Steven’s relationship with his father; and the inherently filial parallels between them. Whenever Stevens explains what he thinks a butlers’ ‘dignity’ is, he frequently uses his father’s experiences as an example. He believes his father to be the absolute epitome of ‘dignity’. And in a frail attempt to be just like him, he mistakenly disregards his fathers flaws. “I hope I've been a good father to you. I suppose I haven't." - are his fathers last words. His father may have also spent all of his life focused on becoming a great butler at the expense of a fulfilling life, just like his son. The difference between them is his father realises way too late. And completely disregarding what his father has said, he walks out in distress and continues the inevitable cycle of harshly suppressing his emotions without thinking of how it affects his mental wellbeing. Additionally, I boldly remember how they share distinct moments realising they are nearing the end of their life. His father's staring intently at his own aged hands, and Steven’s being the newfound mistakes he makes while working. And at the end, Stevens finally allows himself to feel his own emotions. Breaking the filial pattern of completely wasting his life trying to become ‘great’. Stevens repeatedly fails his own criteria for being ‘dignified’. His employer Lord Darlington was a N*zi sympathiser. And ironically, one of Steven's rules for being a ‘dignified’ butler is to be a part of a house that makes good change in the world. In the face of Lord Darlington he deludes himself into thinking he is still dignified; that the years of his life lost upon serving him, perhaps he has contributed to some good. But in reality he has set himself unrealistic expectations and can't be dignified even by his own made up standards. So the few times he actually does live up to his made up standards he feels nothing short of genuine pleasure. This is the only means of pleasure he has. He’s ruined his chances of human connection for it. I think these ironic parts are supposed to make the story funny but I just feel so bad for him. His path throughout the book attempting to define ‘dignity’ is just a lamentation of his miserable life. He doesn't have the capability to let himself feel emotions, so he doesn't understand other people's emotions and loses the plot morally. Forgiveness is such an underrated theme in this book. Stevens again suppresses his emotions when learning about Mrs Kenton’s marriage and wonderful life without him. And even by successfully compressing his emotions until she leaves, he finally realises how he's wasted his life. One of my favourite, if not my favourite scene in this book is Steven's insightful conversation with the old man at the end. The pain that comes with realising he’s wasted his life hits profoundly hard on him and he pours it all out onto this stranger. “All those years I served him, I trusted I was doing something worthwhile. I can’t even say I made my own mistakes. Really, one has to ask oneself, what dignity is there in that?” But after experiencing a genuine connection with this old man, he realises that perhaps letting himself feel emotions might not be so bad. Planning to surprise his new employer back at the house with ‘banter’, he takes the old man’s advice and sets out to fulfil the life he has left. And in other words, he forgives himself. This doesn’t undo what he has done. It doesn't take away from the fact he spent most of his life serving a N*zi sympathiser. And it definitely doesn’t give him the life he’s longed for with Mrs Kenton. But he no longer views ‘banter’ as something performative and by doing so accepts bittersweet change into the remainder of his life. (I think it's quite important to note that people have different interpretations of the ending. Personally, I found it to be bittersweet, showing how Stevens accepts what he has done and will therefore try his best to make the most of the time he has left. Even though I didn’t get what I rooted for, I'm ultimately happy for Stevens. Other people interpret his decision to start bantering more often as one that represents how he hasn’t given up becoming ‘great’ (he wants to impress his employer after all). And he will continue to strive for his made up unrealistic expectations until he dies. Both are valid and show how much of a GENIUS Ishiguro is.) Honestly the only thing I don't like (and this is practically nitpicking) is how simplistic the plot is. Not much effort has to be put in to understand what Ishiguro is trying to convey. If this novel had an ounce more complexity it would allow much more freedom for the reader to interpret as they like. Although, this is not to disregard how impressed I am regarding how much you can gather/interpret from a plot as simplistic as ‘The Remains of the Day'’’s . It still stands as a truly meaningful work. Additionally, I was initially going to angrily complain about missed angst opportunities (LMAO); particularly when Mrs Kenton and Stevens finally meet. But looking back I love how this doesn't happen. The scene puts more life into what is truly important to convey: despite his actions Mrs Kenton and her family genuinely love him. To conclude, Ishiguro, you are a genius. I am really excited to watch the film adaptation! PS: One of my English teachers actually has this book as a teeny poster on her wall??? Is it fate or is it fate??

Profoundly subtle sadness. Sadness for Stevens, his life. Took me a while to really get how to read the book but that only ends up making you sadder. Probably will read again, now that I get the perspective much better.