English Literature - Atonement (Essay 2)

"Atonement offers us no heroes and no villains- only victims" How far, and in what ways, does your reading of Atonement lead you to agree with this view? Atonement conveys a dichotomous message. Ian McEwan - the reality, the tangible author - is supplemented by a deeper layer; his construct - the potentially unreliable narrator - Briony Tallis. Essentially, branding any of the enigmatic individuals offered to us in Atonement as 'heroes' and 'villains' is impossible - and indeed unjust - simply because of the sheer amount of ambiguity and subjectivity involved - "there is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so"1. The select tendencies these individuals relay on the other hand is another matter; the notion of 'victimhood' must imply some malicious behaviour beforehand. Taking 'villainy', the Concise Oxford Dictionary, necessarily - though feebly - lists it as a derivative of 'villain'; alluding to it as an individual's moral essence. The Collins Dictionary, on the other hand, defines it as a "vicious behaviour or action"2, supporting the notion that select 'behaviour' and themes are the 'heroes' and 'villains' of the novel. For example, on the surface Briony is a 'villain' whose actions merely generate destruction and deprivation. Yet, the Observer gives the view that "the personal story - especially Briony's childhood 'failure to grasp the simple truth that

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Consider the significances of innocence in Part One of Atonement.

Consider the significances of innocence in Part One of Atonement. Innocence can be defined as being pure and lacking corruption, having little knowledge of something's consequences, and is also used as a euphemism for virginity. McEwan explores innocence as key theme in Atonement throughout Part One, showing how the main characters' innocence, or lack of, forms the narrative plot. McEwan creates the nursery setting to represent Lola's innocence, having Paul Marshall's intrusion show her vulnerability. Despite 'the adult she considered herself at heart to be' McEwan has 'Lola had come to the nursery that morning' to show the irony of her desires. Although she is fifteen, McEwan places most of Lola's acts in the nursery, a room which has strong connotations of being cared for as a young child. This makes it clear to the reader she may not be ready for adult experiences, emphasising her innocence. McEwan creates Paul Marshall to be seemingly pure as he enters the nursery in his 'white suit', with Lola's vulnerability made clear as she thinks 'a game was being played' whilst they conversed. However, the trust surrounded with the nursery is broken as he sees 'that the girl was almost a young woman' whilst 'watching her closely'. The reader are led to believe by McEwan that Paul Marshall is caressing Lola, and the description of her 'unblemished incisors' highlights this

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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How does McEwan capture a sense of desperation in Part 2 of 'Atonement'?

How does McEwan capture a sense of desperation in Part 2 of 'Atonement'? The title 'Atonement' hints at a dark secret, a need for retribution and weighty themes, which McEwan duly delivers. The desperation in the narrative format of Robbie the soldier is paralleled by Briony's increasing desperation to obtain penance for her crime. It is a desire further complicated by her omnipotent narrative role; McEwan steps in and out of his characters' minds with unfettered confidence and in Part 2 he provides Briony with the same gift so that she might assume the mind of Robbie. This can therefore provide her with only a fabricated atonement, of which she is subconsciously aware will never fully purge her of her sin. Briony says that "it isn't weakness or evasion, but a final act of kindness, a stand against oblivion and despair, to let my lovers live and to unite them at the end." The second half of the story opens as Robbie, is released from jail only to land himself in the British Army retreating toward Dunkirk. Along with Robbie's terror and his desperation to return to the woman he loves Briony, now a nurse, has realised the true nature of her error, and she greatly wishes to reverse her actions and Part 2 follows her crime's repercussions through the chaos and carnage of World War II. The emotional trauma of the war and the wounded is developed in a manner that allows us to

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Analysis of the opening chapter of 'Atonement'

Atonement -The Opening Chapter As stated by Geoff Dyer the opening of Ian McEwan's Atonement "is almost perversely ungripping..." Set to inform rather than attract the reader, the first chapter of the novel is seemingly boring and pointless, on first inspection. However on deeper analysis the opening is found to be effective in setting up the rest of the novel, and foreshadowing the tragic events that occur as a result of the crime committed on that hot summers day. The focus of the opening chapter is to explore and describe the novels main character, Briony, and the aspects of her personality that lead to the novels conflict and heartbreak. This chapter also introduces many of the novels other main characters and relates them to the novels key concerns. The most important function of the opening chapter is to explore the character of Briony. From the opening sentence of the novel Briony is established as an imaginative and idealistic young girl, whose dedication to writing is lightly humoured by McEwan "the play was written in a two-day tempest of composition, causing her to miss a breakfast and a lunch." The seriousness Briony sees in missing a "breakfast and a lunch" highlights a girlish innocence and naivety, which evidently fades as the novel progresses, and Briony's views on life change. Up until this point Briony has lived a relatively protected life, away from the

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  • Word count: 1267
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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