Notes

EPIGRAPH

Eliot had intended to use an epigraph with the words ‘The horror





PORTRAIT OF A LADY

“You have the scene arrange itself-as it will seem to do”. Unlike YMC she puts effort however it feels like a play- constricted- she’s playing the part of the women its an artificial life like Prufrock theres not this free flowing sense of love in Atonement. CONTEXT——> Eliot claimed the form of expression in this poem drew upon the style of later Elizabethan drama and the French symbolist Jules Laforgue- who’s influence can be seen in the poem-theres a sense of a lack of romance. Many critics argue It marks Eliots transition in style from a romantic to a post romantic- theres a sense of greater detachement and irony, a general sense of dilsillusionment,

TWL- THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD


“Winter kept us warm,covering” hibernating- you don’t have to do anything or think about anything- its better to be forgetful and oblivious to emotion, surviving on little fragments of joy as if they were ‘dried tubers’ from a potato. This mindset is embodied in Prufrock “ I should have been a pair of ragged claws scuttling across the floor of silent seas”- this crab like creature he wants to be ceases to move forward or backwards- theres a failure to progress. It also shows a desire not to be human, relieved of consciousness- not being on display and being vulnerable to shame or anxiety( Compare here to Robbie letting out his emotions-giving into them)



A GAME OF CHESS


“ A GAME OF CHESS”- Title stems from Thomas Middletons ‘Women Beware Women’, each move in the game of chess is matched by a move in the seduction of Bianca- a story of lust, manipulation and deceit. In this part of 'The Wasteland’ Eliot focuses on two modern episodes whilst incorporating a wide range of references to women who were victims of lust and deceit- its a massive contrast to the free flowing Love Robbie and Cecilia share.There are constant reminders of unpleasant image of male violence towards women.“The change of Philomel, by the barbarous king”- Teresiaslang raped P and cut out her tongue so she couldn’t tell her sister. She becomes voiceless- ‘if you are silent about your pain, they’ll kill you and say you enjoyed it”- theres a deprivation of the senses. The Gods transformed her into a nightingale- Critics argue it means she reaches a freedom beyond the reach of man


“Doubled the flames of seven branched candelabra”——> In Portrait of a Lady there are '4 wax candles’ she makes an effort by putting these on the table, even lower is the Typists table with Tins on it- each one is separated by class- reflects how this spiritual malaise- this lack of care that has lead to imbalance has reached all classes.

The first episode up to line 138 is given an elaborate, mock setting-the description of the room carries memorys of the meetings of famous lovers like Antony and Cleopatra- in atonement famous lovers like these are used to embody R+C hope and love but in THE WASTELAND, theres also a sense, though, that not everything is as glamorous as it seems”And drowned the sense in odours”- sounds lovely but “ drowned sharply reminds us of death. “which sad light a carved dolphin swam”- its a carving - not real- its the same way this is a beautiful setting but this is not reality - she’s sad and lonely- theres no one to be with( just her). The rape scene+ other fragments of a dark past ‘withered slump of time’ are carved on the walls- these things hold us back.

The sickly oppressiveness of the room leads into the claustrophobic hysteria of the women” what is that noise?’’yes, bad. Stay with me’- here theres a sense of loneliness and the fear of abandonment. In Atonement “ come back to me” is a similar phrase often repeated between the lovers its a symbol of hope- here however in TWL her fear of being left alone stems from a belief of there being no signs of hope or salvation. Her male companion seems resigned and playful, though in a macabre way- as if he has heard her frantic questions so often that he knows proper replies to be useless. He’s heard it all before- this man feels slightly detached and not helpful to her even though she’s clearly suffering ‘ what shall I do now’ ‘ what shall we eve do’ theres a huge sense of purposefulness- it builds on the idea of this spiritial malaise as these questions after the devastation of WW1 were on everyones mind with the mans lack of care representing a lack of answer and hope.

This devastation the war caused in both Atonement and TWL by the responses of the man ‘the hot water at ten’- theres a routine here- but the womens questions of what society should do is perhaps mocking this routine- what does routine and order of society matter when 6 milion people have been sent to slaughter.Its reminiscent of the devastation war caused R+C relationship.


“When Lils husband got demobbed, I said”- she reveals exactly what she thinks- she takes away Lils voice. Relates to Bianca in Middletons ‘Women beware Women’ a women turns on her fellow women. Here her voice has been taken away and this women is telling her story




The typist and The young man carbuncular( the fire sermon)

Eliot described the poem as “ the relief of a personal and wholly insignificant grouse against life…. just a piece of rhythmical grumbling”. Yet the poem seemed to his contemporaries to transcend Eliots personal situation and represent a general crisis in Western culture. This is no more evident in the encounter between the typist and the young man carbuncular- “lays out food tins” there seems to be a lack of care between the couple. This lack of care and emotion could transcend to be understood as the spiritual malaise in the C20 that proposed that “God is dead” by philosophers such as Nietzche-Eliot is not writing about a man and women- here he’s presenting a microcosm of a society which is emotionless. Its a stark contrast therefore that Lola and Pauls relationship still seems lively when B witness them as their love is born from an unholy act.



Theres also a breakdown of relationship between the narrator and reader in TWL- Tiresias as a character is someone who’s trapped- between being a man and women - being able to see all vs being blind and seeing nothing. Modernism stems from a belief that every story possible has been already told and here theres a sense of distrust between the reader and T because he’s seen all this before and therefore theres lack of care shown by him.


‘Her brain allows one half formed thought to pass’- she’s not in count
ROBBIE AND CECELIAS RELATIONSHIP (True love/ deeply felt/ romantic/mutual/sexually alive)



PART 2 PAGES 202-213
Context——> On page 204 Robbie gives a list of figures from literature to which he compares to himself and Cecilia “ Tristan and Isolde, The Duke Orsino and Olivia….” All couples for who love doesn’t go smoothly apart from Emma and George Knightly. They almost make a mythology of their love but it isn’t grounded on anything. It contrasts the actions of Prufrock as they act anyway. Furthermore, it brings in the idea of determinism that C could have argued to have studied at Cambridge- Determinism is the belief that our futures fixed and our destinys already worked out, The combination of mythical and literally epitome of the phrase “path of true love never did run smooth”- trying to relate their love to one of these legends of misfortune presents echoes of being parted and alludes to their youth and passion.

CONTEXT——> “in the nightmare of the dark, all the dogs of Europe Bark” page 203- from the poem “in memory of W.B Yeats by W.B Auden- the lines refer to the hostilities and preparations for war all around Europe- Emphasises this necessaty of R+c love- where in TWL theres also despair R+c love brings hope in an otherwise dystopian setting- Turner devotion to C shows that she’s more important to him than life itsef. Moreover, its yet another example of where Literature brigs hope and strength Literature draws them together( bring critic view of library.

The lovers literary code illustrates the liberating power of literature, whilst the fantasises it brings can be harmful like Bs, they need not always be. In prison they create their own language- the ability to communicate TS ELIOT——> Prufock- fear of being misunderstood”thats not what i meant- here they’ve created their own language to defy the dogs of war.


PART 2 PAGES 191-201

The flat, unemotional account of the childs severed leg lets the horror speak for itself. Comparison——> R without C in a war torn and baron land leads to a lack of hope with this severed leg being a symbol of this, similarly in TWL with the effects of WW1 being felt theres a dystopian feel and no real connections. The description of the plane tree first, and then the leg, makes it clear this is a common scene in a war torn landscape. The other men are able to disregard the sight as R vomits———> His partners don’t have love like he does- perhaps its what makes us human and able to still feel emotion even in such devastating times.



PART 2 PAGES 202-213

In r+c meet up in the cafe the gulf between the lovers illustrates the indelible damage Bs false testimony has inflicted on them both. Furthermore, the outside world continues to affect and constrain their relationship. C can no longer lounge about- she must now work as a result of her cutting herself from family. CONTEXT—> tells us about how war has destroyed relationships for years. LINK TO OVERARCHING METAPHOR IN TWL.


R actions in the cafe encounter are similar to prufrock. “lacked the confidence” “he had shrunk in every sense” (link to prufocks baldness-“with a bald spot in the middle of my hair”, “they will say “how his arms and legs are thin”). Its easy for Robbie to contemplate action like Prufock who sees himself as an “ attendant lord”-a servant not a leader who forges his own path. however R overcomes these insecurities to better himself”he kissed her lightly at first”.



PAGES 226-34

CONTEXT———> “Each individual death is an explosion in itself, wrecking the lives of those nearest” —— McEwan wrote these words about about 9/11 terrorist attacks, but he demonstrates the same idea in atonement. He studied images from the conflict in Bosnia(1992-5) and drew on them in writing of the devastation in Northern France.- (LINK TO DEVESTATIONS THIS WAR HAS CAUSED R+C RELATIONSHIP+ THE DEVESTATING EFFECT WW1 SEEMED TO HAVE IN TWL).


CHAPTER 11

The line “nothing that can be….. hopes” is a quotation from Shakespeares Twelfth Night III.4.81-2. Malvolio says this when anticipating consumption of his desire for Olivia, but he’s thwarted. This use in Robbies thoughts here tells us that although the consumption of their desire looks inevitable, things can( and will) still go wrong.-They have these anxieties like in Prufrock but they push through them, they dare to take that step. “You do know what I’m talking about, tell me you do”- similarities with “what are you thinking of? What thinking- theres a lack of communication- a fear that even now their love being a misunderstanding.

Robbies lack of control as a result of his mix up with the letters here is different, lack of control here leads to a positive outcome- at least in the short term. Robbie’s indulgence in fantasy- and that fantasies intersection with reality is what allows the lovers to finally realise, communicate and consulate their held feelings for each other.


CHAPTER 8


We learn R has a deep relationship with literature- he has a type writer he frequently uses and is surrounded by books+ acted in a Shakespeare play. CONTEXT - the character he played, Molvolio from Twelfth Night, is a literary allusion made to illustrate his views towards life and love. Shakespeare's Molvolio was a character of strict and noble upbringing. He avoids to be involved in the pettiness of the world around him- but when he falls in love with Olivia, he forgets his ways and acts foolishly which leads to conflict. Similarly, in Atonement Robbie is about t write a letter in an uncharacteristic state that will lead to conflict with the rest of the Tallis family and change his life forever CONTEXT—— Mc Ewan shows a catastrophe precipitated by a seemingly insignificant decision in many of his works - “In The Childs in Time(1987) a fathers moment of inattention leads to his daughters permanent demise.
RELATIONSHIPS ALL TOGETHER

EPILOGUE

The glimpses of other characters histories- her fathers second marriage, Brionys own marriage to a Frenchman it all hints at other stories that could have been told. But just as we might be believing in this final, outer, fiction Briony/McEwan undermines it again with the suggestion that she could rewrite the epilogue and put R+C in the library watching the play. We end in the sense that we do not know what is real. We can can never know “what really happened”(pg.371). In stepping back, B prompts us to reflect that perhaps the whole story was all made up after all.Moreover, Perhaps it questions our understanding of what love is all together in the sense that Lola and Pauls marriage still seems to be vibrant and full of life shown by Lolas defiant energy at old age and joy even though it is perhaps born out of something evil and corrupt. but R+C love is gone, the memory of anyway in the sense that we aren’t entirely sure whether this is all true. However in the end it barely matters if whether they could have lived happily ever after. Their story has become a fiction, but also an atonement and a tribute. As Briony says, they would soon would soon all be forgotten anyway, without the book, and then what difference would it make “what really happened”? The novel- hers and McEwans- stands as a testament of love, and in that it deserves the ending which suits it enduring purpose. Context- Shakepeare sometimes allows an authority figure to step out of the fiction at the end of the play and draw attention to the fact that it was all play acting, all made up. This happens in The Tempest A Midsummers Night Dream. Here in Atonement it questions our perceived view of relationships and what love is.


CHAPTER 5

The threat of "The Parents”(pg 57) has been used before, hence its capitalisation- it has special meaning and resonance for the children. This meaning is now rendered obsolete by the threat of divorce, as their parents will no longer be a single unit of authority. Context——> Divorce was a rare occurrence in 1935 compared to modern days- Lolas reluctance to talk about divorce reflects the social stigma attached to it at the time. Breakdown of relationships here is unusual ———> however in TWL breakdown of relationships and failure to communicate is something usual.


CHAPTER 2

CONTEXT——> When C identifies her room with “stews” she may just mean that the room is a slovenly mess, but she may be aware of Shakespaears use of the word to mean a brothel* could relationships be revolved around sex?
PAUL MARSHALL AND LOLAS RELATIONSHIP


PAGES 315-27

The revelation that Paul Marshall assaulted Lola is shocking. Also disturbing is the imagery Briony uses of the secret,walled up alive in their marriage. It is an inauspicious start to married life but, as the first instalment of the novel reveals, the secret gives the Marshalls’ relationship strength against the outside world. In fact, the are no positive depictions of marriage in the novel. Emily and Jack share a hollow partnership, he having a long term affair and she denying knowledge of it. Emily’s sister Hermoine is on the verge of divorcing her husband in part one. This marriage between Paul and Lola, barely celebrated with a small audience of just direct family, hides dark secrets and binds them together as partners in crime. There is no suggestion that the only two lovers in the novel R+C may marry. Context- Bowen was a novelist and short story writer. Her style is finely wrought ad her stories tell of difficult relationships amongst the English Upper-Middle Classes- she could easily be a model for Brionys writing.



CHAPTER 5



Mix of adult and child and adult in Lola is apparantly interesting to Paul Marshall- after dreaming that his younger sisters touch his body, he wakes sexually aroused- disturbed image does nothing to improve poor impression of him. As he watches L curl her tongue around the Amo bar, the account is sensual and the effect on the reader is unnervingly sexual. “ He took a deep breath” “bite it” he said softly “you’ve got to bite it”(pg62)- Uncomfortably Lola reminds him of his favourite parents. CONTEXT ——> The pre- Raphaelite Brotherhood, formed in 1848 featured paintings that were romantic, beautiful and intricate. A favourite model of the group was Lizzie Sidal, who had long, flame coloured hair. I t is therefore to paintings of Lizzie that Pauls thoughts may be turning- he sees the girl as a Pre-Raphaelite princess.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NARRATOR AND READER



CHAPTER 3

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE NARRATOR AND READER?- By the older B writing about the younger B imagining writing the scene that the older B has just written it plays with the narrational point of view and conceit of composition engages us intellectually, disturbing the emotional engagement we are building with the young B. Early instances of undermining our voluntary belief in the fiction, lay the foundations for the whole scale demolition of the litarary edifice at the end of the novel- we may feel frustrated+ cheated by this- we feel like we have entered a contract with the author who is now reneging on the bargain by stepping back from a fiction that we have been led to believe in. CONTEXT——> Poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote in Biographia Literary of the “willing suspension of belief” that allows us to belief in a fiction or poem. We know that a story is not “literary true” but agree to believe in it- to enjoy it and receive its message. McEwan abuses the readers trust by exploiting the suspension of disbelief- encouraging us to believe in the fiction and then underlining that its a fiction.


Witnessing this encounter gives B a powerful introduction to the independent inner life of others. However, her “self-mythologising” instinct prompts her to treat it as a writing excercise rather than as a intimate, significant event in the life of R+C. Their individual perspectives merely represent a challenge to master through writing. Critics-“This ability to describe, to fashion the world in words, is both Bs gift and her curse”. Paroles with Tiresias?- he’s seen it all before so he can’t quite picture the emotion involved.

CHAPTER 14

B tries to convince herslef, as well as the police and family, of what she saw. Her motive for doing so is not malice against R, but a desire for a neat story, to see things work as she feels they should to create a narrative with integrity. She doesn’t pause, at this age to reflect that life is not a balanced narrative and in trying to impose one she wrecks the lives of people she uses as characters. CONTEXT——> Psychological studies have found that people often build up false memories. The psychologist Jean Piaget described an example of this, explaining how our minds may store accounts we hear of events out later recall them though they were ral memories. B has previously said that she thinks she recalls her own retelling of events rather than original experiences(pg 41) “like the art of story telling itsel, the more she repeats the words, the more it becomes true in her head”.

CHAPTER 3


Narrator introduces ideas of hope during R march. Her atonement is building. In pt 1 she admits guilt- now she employs hope. PG 192- B relates R+C To romantic couples who have overcome great odds for their love. Neither R as a character in her story, nor B as a narrator, are willing to let go of their dependence of literature (it was in a library where B observes R+c consummating their love.