Entrapment In Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Remains Of The Day

Kazuo Ishiguro is one of the most celebrated contemporary writers in the Western world. With his distinctive writing style and unique personal concerns, Kazuo Ishiguro enjoys great attention around the world. The Remains of Day is the most distinguished and famous of Kazuo Ishiguro’s novels. Based on a close reading of the text and research on The Remains of the Day, this thesis applies theories of identity, elitism and post-colonialism to the exploration of the theme of entrapment in The Remains of Day from three levels: professional entrapment, political entrapment and national entrapment.The thesis starts with a definition of “entrapment”, and points out that entrapment theorists explore the relation between people and society. Then the thesis explores the professional entrapment, political entrapment and national entrapment in the novel. It proposes that Stevens’ s profession as a butler not only helps him form a rigid identity, but also traps him in such identity and results in his vulnerability. The elite with Lord Darlington as the representative is trapped in political entrapment. With the bankruptcy of elitism, Lord Darlington is doomed to death in regret and shame. The decline of the nation has constituted an entrapment for its people. Its people are in the fantasy of the greatness of British landscape, but with the decline of the nation and the rise of the United States, they are resigned to the situation.Based on the above analysis of the text, the thesis points out that the entrapments people are facing result in the loss and confusion of numerous individuals, and further contribute to their tragic life. Without the ability to change the environment, people are resigned to it. Through a narration of entrapment in The Remains of the Day Kazuo Ishiguro expresses his understanding of the relation between people and society, and shows his concerns over people’s being in today’s world.