The Unreliable Narrator and "The Remains of the Day"

Paper Summary:

This essay argues that the protagonist, Stevens, in Kazuo Ishiguro's "The Remains of the Day", epitomizes the unreliable narrator. The paper examines the transparency of his first person testimony to an assumed reader and the restriction of his limited perspective and how they are crucial to the understanding of Stevens as this unreliable narrator. The paper also discusses the success and failure of Stevens as an unreliable narrator.

From the Paper:

"Lewis argues that Stevens' "circumlocutions form a 'linguistic mask'" (Lewis 2000: 95). His unreliability as a narrator is heightened because he is some one who fails to act or speak in accordance with the 'norm' for he must be more English than English, more butler than butler. His precise use of language is never allowed to depart from decorum and correctness, and is controlled in a narrative that is equally imprisoned by restriction, as other voices or idioms are never allowed to appear. It becomes apparent to the reader that Stevens' control of language is a substitute for control in his life; it is the mask that he hides behind."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Kazuo Ishiguro The Remains of the Day Faber and Faber: London 1990
• Barry Lewis Kazuo Ishiguro Manchester University Press: Manchester 2000
• Brian W Shaffer Understanding Kazuo Ishiguro University of South Carolina Press: Columbia 1998

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• Analytical Essay # 53931 : "The Unreliable Narrator"

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