Ishiguro's Writing Style in Never Let Me Go

Never Let Me Go is narrated by the protagonist, Kathy H. The book is divided into three parts, and within those parts there are chapter containing several different flashbacks; overall, this story is very busy. Part One consists of Kathy’s flashbacks from her childhood at Hailsham boarding school. This is where we are first introduced to the idea that the students at Hailsham are different than “normal people.” Part Two progresses to Kathy’s flashbacks from the Cabins, where Hailsham graduates reside.

Between the flashbacks in Parts One and Two, Kathy slips into present tense when she prefaces her next flashbacks with things like, “this was all a long time ago so I might have some of it wrong…” (13). This implies that Kathy’s recounting of events may not be entirely accurate or chronological, and since we are limited to her perspective, we must continually ask ourselves, does Kathy have a reason to distort? (The “R” in PROP ;) hehe). Thus, selection of detail of what she actually remembers is important. So far the content Kathy has shared about the past is pretty explicit, so I don’t think she’d intentionally distort the past. This aspect of not entirely knowing the truth slightly bothers me.

One stylistic aspect that I really enjoy is how Kathy’s narration is conversational. The breaks in her flashbacks that add detail or her present perspective give the story a more personal feel. If these stories were simply reported like the news, they would certainly not be as interesting. Rather, the constant connections she makes between the present and past keeps the reader paying close attention. Along with Kathy’s jumpiness in the middle of her stories, she also jumps from story to story using another character or an item as a loose transition.

Finally, one stylistic element that I find interesting is which terms Kathy chooses to explain. Terms such as “Sales,” “Exchanges,” and “guardians” are clarified through flashbacks, while other words like “carers,” “donors,”  and what seems to be the equivalent to grades at Hailsham (such as “Senior 3”) are left to the reader to piece together as the plot unravels. This may be linked to the fact that sometimes Kathy begins speaking in second person when she says things like, “I don’t know how it was where you were, but at Hailsham…” (96). This implies that we’re living in the story with her, so we are expected to already know some of the terms in her society. It’s a bit strange whenever this happens.