The Theme And Aesthetics Of Nostalgia In The Remains Of The Day

Kazuo Ishiguro is one of the celebrated contemporary novelists in Britain,whose literary works have been translated into more than twenty foreign languages and have great influence in the world.This study chooses The Remains of the Day,one of Ishiguro’s masterpieces,for analysis.The study tends to analyze nostalgia in the novel based on two nostalgic concepts developed by Boym: restorative nostalgia and reflective nostalgia.Besides,it analyzes the aesthetics of nostalgia under the guidance of previous works on aesthetics.The study focuses on analyzing two nostalgic tendencies,furtherly revealing the themes embodied in nostalgia and understanding the problem or significance of nostalgia.Different from the previous studies,it pays much attention to the theme of nostalgia and its aesthetics,conducting a detailed and systematic analysis upon it.The body of the dissertation consists of three chapters,analyzing the theme and aesthetics of nostalgia in The Remains of the Day based on Boym’s nostalgia concepts and previous scholars’ aesthetic theories.Chapter one discusses how the restorative tendency of nostalgia in the novel formed and analyzes the content of restorative nostalgia – restoration of English tradition in detail.It also reveals the realistic significance and problem of restorative nostalgia,as reflected by the novel.In the novel,restorative nostalgia exists in two levels: one is the recovery of the past and the other is the embellishment of what happened.Chapter one reveals its significance – providing comfort for the present.The study probes in to the escapism behind restorative nostalgia from two aspects: truth-concealing and self-deception.Chapter two focuses on the explicit and implicit reflections,discussing meditation upon butler’s dignity and its significance for the present – reflection upon cultural identity.Reflective tendency emerges from both textual level and extra-textual level,and this chapter mainly discussed reflective nostalgia on the latter level.Furthermore,it figures out the meditation upon the butler’s dignity and finally to the reflection upon cultural identity,considering the significance of nostalgia for reality.Chapter three intends to analyze the aesthetics of nostalgia generated from two nostalgic tendencies.In the novel,nostalgia well restored a flawless past while aroused meditations upon it,contributing to the sensuous idealization of nostalgia and thematic harmony of nostalgia.Besides,based on the nature of nostalgia,the aesthetics of distance is discussed.The inconsistency and unreliability of Stevens’ s narration indirectly reveals the theme of the novel,presenting sublimity of nostalgia.Through the analysis of nostalgia and its aesthetics,it is concluded that the nostalgia in the novel has both restorative and reflective tendencies.The restorative nostalgia provides comfort for the present but indulges people’s escaping from the unsatisfying facts.Besides,reflective nostalgia bears reflections upon butler culture,English culture,nature of nostalgia,cultural identity and so on.The unique aesthetics of nostalgia is the result of nostalgic tendencies and the ideologies underlying it.