Civility In Kathy Carroll's Never Let Me Go

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When would be a considerable time to ask a young child to comprehend and accept death? When “denied agency” (Carroll 131), the mind is restricted to only being able to “… show the real difficulties involved in maintaining civility under domestic circumstances (Wong, 290)”. In Never Let Me Go, protagonist Kathy H. will never truly be able to express her feelings and emotions to those around her for her intimate death lays heavily on her shoulders but she insists on not breaking posture. Growing up in Hailsham, a private boarding school that houses clones from birth to adolesence, students are automatically displaced from the society that created them. It is vital that the students are kept maintained, in terms of health, as “…before [they are] even middle-aged, [they will] start to donate [their] vital organs… (81)”. If not donating, they are considered “carers” or delayed donors intended to look after current donors. Kathy, the main protagonist, is considered “fantastic” as …show more content…

In spite of the theory behind her defense, the mechanism of blocking out the truth in order to keep from being exposed to the brunt of painful realizations of death and injustice is, arguably, the best option for her. In a perfect world, humans would be able to live life as they please and not be “denied agency” (Carroll 131); but Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go gives reason to believe that the human race as a whole is a selfish being who cares more about the betterment of themselves rather than the neglected and dismay that their actions bring to others. In the past-tense novel, Kathy rekindles her memories prior to being slaughtered for her vital organs, in order to cure “normals”. Her attitude towards the system is extremely fatalistic as she feels no real need to run from the inevitable of being put down by the society that brought her up. In her mind, never letting anyone in is the only way to never let anyone