To Suffer or Not to Suffer As human beings, we try to eschew from the suffering and adversities that plague human morality. Nonetheless, society remains drawn to the surplus of tragedies in plays, movies, and literary works. Not only do these works provide an escape from our own hardships, but suffering and tragedy is a significant aspect to the development of human society. Personally, I have experienced my own share of sorrow, trauma, and difficulties in life. While they may not be as severe as those faced by the characters in A Doll’s House and Never Let Me Go, a pervasive theme still manifests in the presence of suffering. In A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen and Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, the prevalent motif of suffering illustrates …show more content…
Tragedy manifests while Kathy is a young child; she listens to a song and clutches her pillow, pretending she’s holding an “imaginary baby”, until a normal human, Madame, observes her and begins “crying” (Ishiguro 71). Kathy is unaware that clones cannot have children, as Madame is aware of. Therefore, Kathy’s innocuous act of pretending to hold a baby is a distressing sight to Madame. Ultimately, the suffering Kathy obliviously experiences is what prompts Madame to fight for the rights of clones. Therefore, suffering links human society together; empathy for others leads growth of a society as a whole. In addition, Ishiguro utilizes the clones as a reflection to human morality. All humans face adversities in life that are inexorable, death being one certain source of trauma. When Tommy, Kathy’s boyfriend, must donate his vital organs and face death, he compares life to a “river” where “the current is too strong” and they will inevitably “drift apart” (Ishiguro 282). By comparing life to a fast-moving river, Tommy realizes that tragedies like death is unavoidable. Therefore, Tommy and Kathy cherish the time they have left together rather than anguishing. When Tommy does fulfill his societal obligations and dies Kathy does suffer some despair. However it is short lived as she grows from her suffering; Kathy learns to accept the tragic fate rather than try to fight against “the current” of life. Therefore, the inexorable adversities both clones and humans experience illustrate that suffering is a key component to growth of the individual being and society