The Pursuit Of Happiness Under The Inescapable Fate:A Thematic Study Of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go

Japanese-British writer Kazuo Ishiguro is one of the representatives in contemporary British literary arena.He cracks himself as an “Internationalism Writer” and tries his best to create a kind of universal work which surpasses nationality and sex with fate and responsibility as the ever-lasting theme.Never Let Me Go has got many nominations since its publication in 2005.It demonstrates the predicament of clones and their ways to fix the problems under the oppression of human beings.The thesis studies the theme of fate in Never Let Me Go.The thesis is divided into five parts.Introduction involves the fundamental information about Kazuo Ishiguro and his writing style,the introduction to Never Let Me Go,literature review and the framework of the thesis.The first chapter illustrates the predetermined life of clones.The lack of the family tie and social status leads to the rootlessness of their lives and state of mind.They are trapped both in body and thought.Their bodies are trapped in Hailsham during childhood,in Cottage as teenagers and in care centers during adulthood.They are confined in the routine rules.They are not allowed to smoke and are commanded to have regular physical examination.They get the brainwashing education in the boarding school and are blindfolded from truth,so they know little about their tragic fate and accept the fate with the cramming education of the guardians.The second chapter deals with the painful struggle of donors after they gradually realize their tragic fate.They try to seek self-identity through finding their “possibles”(originals)and imitating the behaviors of human beings.They indulge themselves in sex and apply for deferral of organs so as to obtain salvation.Tommy and Ruth apply for deferral,however,they find that deferral is only a humor.All the efforts of clones are fruitless.The third chapter discusses the peaceful resignation of clones: they find the beauty of life and create the value of their existence when they are faced with the inescapable fate.Kathy and Tommy obtain true love finally.Kathy gets the sense of satisfaction while working as a conscientious carer.At the end of the novel,Tommy and Ruth learn to show care for others,meanwhile they are looking forward to undertaking their duties and becoming excellent donors.Through the analysis of the life of clones,the thesis draws the conclusion: Kazuo Ishiguro thinks that facing the inescapable fate,human beings should undertake their responsibilities to the best of their abilities and welcome lives with positive attitudes.