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A review by mediaevalmuse
Atonement by Ian McEwan
5.0
I can't sing the praises of this book enough. It's heartbreaking, infuriating, and enrapturing all at once, combining the romantic setting of WWII-era England and the coming-of-age story of Briony Tallis, whose imagination and misunderstanding of the world leads her down a path of error and redemption.
Things I Liked
1. Briony: McEwan is strikingly good at crafting a character who is torn between the age of childhood and adulthood. Briony is intelligent and passionate, but doesn't quite have the foresight to predict or understand the consequences of her actions. As a result, her character is frustrating to an audience, but in a way that puts the center of attention on her gravest mistake and how one person's actions can irrevocably influence the lives of other people. Her growth into a young woman who tries to atone for that mistake is thus one of great interest, and readers will undoubtedly have much to think about regarding issues of guilt, redemption, responsibility, and forgiveness.
2. Questions About Authorship/Fiction/Atonement: At the end of the novel, an aging Briony Tallis says, “The problem these fifty-nine years is this: how can a novelist achieve atonement when, with her absolute power of deciding outcomes, she is also God? There is no one, no entity or higher form that she can appeal to, or be reconciled with, or that can forgive her. There is nothing outside her. In her imagination she has set the limits and the terms. No atonement for God, or novelists, even if they are atheists. It was always an impossible task, and that was precisely the point. The attempt was all” (350-51). This quote is particularly resonant considering Briony dictated the fate of Robbie and Cecelia “in reality” as well as in her novel. But Briony also presents readers with a view of authorship. Authors DO have absolute power. So how can they be forgiven for something when they themselves determine what happens? At this point in the novel, we know that. Is atonement therefore an impossible task? But Briony seems to resolve this issue by citing the “attempt” as all that matters. The attempt to gain forgiveness itself atones for her wrongdoings. I must admit, I’m a bit conflicted about this claim. On one hand, I agree with Briony. The attempt to atone for oneself, even if atonement is impossible, speaks volumes. The original self, the “sinning” self or one who does the wrong, is transformed into a repentant self. This transformation initiates a sort of rebirth and causes readers to sympathize with the character’s efforts. After all, don’t we say “It’s the thought that counts?” But thoughts are all well and good over trivial things - disastrous birthday gifts, for example - but what good do they do when your actions have irreversibly destroyed the lives of others? What role does fiction play in atoning for one’s wrongs? We can see a similar scenario in Stieg Larsson’s novels in The Millenium Trilogy. Larsson created Lisbeth Salander after failing to intervene in the rape of an acquaintance of his, also named Lisbeth, as a teenager. In The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Salander is also raped, but exacts revenge upon her rapist. Arguably, Salander’s revenge is Larsson’s method of atoning for his inaction at age 15. But fiction ultimately did nothing to “fix” the damage. Just as the real-life Lisbeth never granted forgiveness to Larsson, Cecelia and Robbie . These are fascinating questions that Atonement raises and ones that I still struggle with when considering the role of fiction as a whole.
3. Prose: McEwan's prose style is gorgeous and literary. It's extremely elegant, yet also controlled so nothing is set down without the author absolutely meaning for it to be there. At times, it borders on the meticulous, but such a style, I think, is more indicative of McEwan's skill than of his lack of understanding of literary craft. Readers are made more aware of the prose as something deliberately made for a book, which plays along perfectly with my point above.
Things I Didn't Like
1. Pace: I must admit, as much as I loved this novel, there were moments when the narrative seemed to lag (especially in the first part). It's not a book that's packed with action, but rather, it's more of a portrait of character psychology, despite there being a World War. While good, such a pace is not always suitable for all readers or even all moods.
Recommendations: Definitely read this book if you're interested in WWII. You might also like this book if you liked Never Let Me Go.
Things I Liked
1. Briony: McEwan is strikingly good at crafting a character who is torn between the age of childhood and adulthood. Briony is intelligent and passionate, but doesn't quite have the foresight to predict or understand the consequences of her actions. As a result, her character is frustrating to an audience, but in a way that puts the center of attention on her gravest mistake and how one person's actions can irrevocably influence the lives of other people. Her growth into a young woman who tries to atone for that mistake is thus one of great interest, and readers will undoubtedly have much to think about regarding issues of guilt, redemption, responsibility, and forgiveness.
2. Questions About Authorship/Fiction/Atonement: At the end of the novel, an aging Briony Tallis says, “The problem these fifty-nine years is this: how can a novelist achieve atonement when, with her absolute power of deciding outcomes, she is also God? There is no one, no entity or higher form that she can appeal to, or be reconciled with, or that can forgive her. There is nothing outside her. In her imagination she has set the limits and the terms. No atonement for God, or novelists, even if they are atheists. It was always an impossible task, and that was precisely the point. The attempt was all” (350-51). This quote is particularly resonant considering Briony dictated the fate of Robbie and Cecelia “in reality” as well as in her novel. But Briony also presents readers with a view of authorship. Authors DO have absolute power. So how can they be forgiven for something when they themselves determine what happens? At this point in the novel, we know that
Spoiler
both Robbie and Cecelia have died and never granted her forgivenessSpoiler
never forgave Briony3. Prose: McEwan's prose style is gorgeous and literary. It's extremely elegant, yet also controlled so nothing is set down without the author absolutely meaning for it to be there. At times, it borders on the meticulous, but such a style, I think, is more indicative of McEwan's skill than of his lack of understanding of literary craft. Readers are made more aware of the prose as something deliberately made for a book, which plays along perfectly with my point above.
Things I Didn't Like
1. Pace: I must admit, as much as I loved this novel, there were moments when the narrative seemed to lag (especially in the first part). It's not a book that's packed with action, but rather, it's more of a portrait of character psychology, despite there being a World War. While good, such a pace is not always suitable for all readers or even all moods.
Recommendations: Definitely read this book if you're interested in WWII. You might also like this book if you liked Never Let Me Go.