The Remains of the Day

Jul 20, 2012 Louize rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Louize by: The Filipino Group

Shelves: tfg-f2f

THE REMAINS OF THE DAY – AN OPEN LETTER

Dearest James,

I know that introduction is a must, polite even, but on this one I do suggest that we skip that. It is you who matters, and no one else.

Foremost, how was the end of your motoring trip? Was it pleasant on your return? I do hope that none of the inconveniences you encountered on leaving crossed your path on the way home. It was a good thing Mr. Farraday suggested this motoring trip. You’ve been cooked up in that hall for a very long time. Differ...more

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May 01, 2011 Esteban del Mal rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, novel

Kazuo Ishiguro writes the anti-haiku: instead of consciousness awakening to the immediacy of the immutable natural world, subjective memory is peeled back layer by layer to expose consciousness; instead of the joyous eruption of awareness, tension of the gradual decompression of ignorance; instead of a humility that acknowledges the unknowable on its own terms, rambling that tries to fill the chasm of existential angst that has suddenly opened up like a sinkhole in being. Yet what his writing sh...more

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Jun 19, 2009 Siria rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 20th-century, british-fiction, historical-fiction, by-poc

This is one of the most beautifully mannered, subtle books I've read in a long, long time. Ishiguro's command of prose is perfect; there was never a point where I felt that this book wasn't written by a consummate English gentleman's gentleman. Remains of the Day is also one of the best examples of first person POV that I've read. Stevens' voice is always clear and distinct, and always used to frame the narrative in such a way that the reader is able to see things and guess things which the prot...more

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Jul 18, 2012 Angus rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: man-booker-prize, reviewed-and-blogged, book-of-the-month, 5-stars

Original post at Book Rhapsody.

***

Of Greatness and Dignity

March 2012. The attendees of our book club’s book discussion voted for the book that we’ll be discussing on July 2012. The nominees were The Color Purple by Alice Walker, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. These three novels have a common denominator: they are winners of literary awards. I’ve been associated with such books by my friends; hence, I was selected to lead the discussion for the...more

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Jul 03, 2012 Monique rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: award-winners, bestsellers, fiction, historical-fiction, tv-film-adaptation, 2011

I hereby officially declare that I am a fan of Kazuo Ishiguro.

"The Remains of the Day" is disputably Ishiguro's most popular work, having been awarded the Man Booker Prize for Fiction in 1989.

Stevens is an “old-fashioned English Butler” who used to work for Lord Darlington, managing his household, Darlington Hall. During his lifetime, Lord Darlington was a prominent figure, having hobnobbed with rich and famous personalities in and outside Britain; he was even known to have connections and/or...more
I hereby officially declare that I am a fan of Kazuo Ishiguro.

"The Remains of the Day" is disputably Ishiguro's most popular work, having been awarded the Man Booker Prize for Fiction in 1989.

Stevens is an “old-fashioned English Butler” who used to work for Lord Darlington, managing his household, Darlington Hall. During his lifetime, Lord Darlington was a prominent figure, having hobnobbed with rich and famous personalities in and outside Britain; he was even known to have connections and/or sympathies with Nazi Germany. Stevens highly regarded Lord Darlington and trusted his judgment completely.

Although the story begins in the present time, with Stevens’ current employer, the American Mr. Farraday, encouraging him to take a “motoring trip” in the country for a few days, much of the narrative was introspective, consisting of Stevens’ recollections of years past. While Stevens drives through the country, he takes the opportunity to visit his erstwhile acquaintance, the former Ms. Kenton, who also spent years in the employ of Lord Darlington. In her last letter, Ms. Kenton seemingly expressed her desire to return to her former post, as Stevens interpreted her words to mean that her marriage was an unhappy one.

Much like Never Let Me Go, this book was told in the first person point of view. Patience on the part of the reader is required in order to truly appreciate the beauty of this book. The first few chapters would appear to be uninteresting or boring, even bordering on dull or wearisome, but the book will pick up just when you least expect it. I noticed that Ishiguro is fond of this style: near-dreary, winding narratives, only to have some kind of twist spring up on you just when you’re least expecting it. Of course, having read just two of his works, I cannot be absolutely sure nor would I claim to be an expert.

Although the mood of the story was melancholic, there were some funny parts, too, to which I even chuckled out loud. Reading about Stevens’ career and life as a butler, and how he worked so hard to have that “dignity becoming of the profession,” just like his father had, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. In his fervent desire to be worthy of that “dignity,” there were important relationships that he chose to forgo or set aside, and it was only in hindsight – so much later in his life – when he learned of their significance. I say he “chose” to forgo them, because he was fully aware that the opportunities to do otherwise were already there, ready for the taking, but he decided to let them pass, anyway. These choices, when properly contemplated, play a significant role on why the novel was entitled, “The Remains of the Day.” At least, from my perspective.

Highly recommended, for some serious reading. :)(less)

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May 31, 2008 Lorraine rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: essentialformymentalhealth

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Some novels are ostensibly intelligent, but highly unenjoyable. On the other hand, some novels are highly enjoyable but ostensibly unintelligent.

Most "post-modern" (and I use this term with some degree of trepidation, of course) novels are guilty of being too intelligent without providing a modicum of readerly enjoyment. The result is usually something resembling a rather bizzare and esoteric porn movie, which turns no one on but the author himself and/or critics who applaud such intellectual wa...more Some novels are ostensibly intelligent, but highly unenjoyable. On the other hand, some novels are highly enjoyable but ostensibly unintelligent.

Most "post-modern" (and I use this term with some degree of trepidation, of course) novels are guilty of being too intelligent without providing a modicum of readerly enjoyment. The result is usually something resembling a rather bizzare and esoteric porn movie, which turns no one on but the author himself and/or critics who applaud such intellectual wankery.

The problem with criticism is that its very existence relies on the "hidden depths" of a novel or poem. As such, as the industry gets more divorced from the texts it is reading and more entangled with the actual novelty of the ideas that the critic is pulling out of the book, texts become increasingly difficult and complex. Given that critics have the institutional authority to "correctly" judge a book it is no wonder that the writer who wants artistic recognition often gets too obtuse and narcisstic in producing something completely absurd. The critic, however, is not in the best of positions either. The dialectical nature of the relationship between the two industries ensures that critics, regardless of whether they like the intellectual wankery or think it's successful, can never get away with plain slagging off one of these pieces. The best a critic can hope to do with one of these books is to recognise the complicated strategies of the author in achieving X and Y aims, and argue that s/he ultimately fails because s/he is too annoying for his/her readership: this entails of course an admittance that the author has put X and Y strategies to produce Z, and one is never given the full satisfaction of saying "it's just shit".

The long-winded point of all this is, this book is one of the rare books I've read that seems to be as enjoyable as it is intelligent. It is readable in a way even the best modernist texts (which to me, ARE enjoyable, but often more intelligent than enjoyable, I have to say, eg Joyce) are not. I can easily say this is one of the cleverest books I've read, and one of the most enjoyable... there is no need for me to try to defend its obtuseness while explicating on its textual strategies, or something ridiculous like that.

SPOILER:
I am not sure, however, that the ending is wholly optimistic, as this guy: http://www.hewett.norfolk.sch.uk/CURR...
might suggest. It seems to me that this text, perhaps because of the narrator's historical position, has much of the tone of "these fragments shored against my ruins". But the irony (let us recall this was written in 1989) prevents me from wholly seeing it that way.

The last part of the novel talks about the willingness to learn "bantering". The irony of the tale seems to be that Stevens has failed in this precisely because the restraint peculiar to his (extremely English) character prevents him from ever doing so. He envies the warmth in the modern generation, but he cannot achieve this unless he opens himself up emotionally. To banter, then, requires this, and not an almost studious "committment" (in his words) to learn the skills of bantering. As long as Stevens retains his emotional distance from everyone in his life, under the strict rubric of professionalism he so religiously adheres to, he'd never be able to achieve the end-result of bantering. Even if he learns the appropriate things to say, that critical distance (of wanting to have the right "propriety" towards others) ensures that he would always be emotionally distanced from others, forever looking in on the crowd from a distance, and scrutinising them in order to give the right response to make them feel at ease. The warmth might very well be genuine on the other side, but as long as Stevens retains this academic attitude towards bantering, the best he can feel is a professional satisfaction akin to the kind he felt when he proved his ability to go on working while his father was dying in the very same house.

As such, it seems to me that the novel might be saying something about human character in general. Stevens is an unfortunate product of his time and class -- it seems to imply we can never quite escape these constraints. His mini-epiphany is coloured, or disturbed, by the irony at the end of the novel. His whole narrative is only too aware of the fictionality of his own narration, and the narrator's power to censor or bias the narrative, not only to the reader but to himself. The habit of restraint is, then, too strong... Stevens cannot seem to break out of it.

It is also a harsh critique of old-skool Englishness at the most fundamental level, and a harsher critique of modernity at another. While the text allows us to feel enough distance between Stevens and ourselves, in that we feel he's too unemotional, too restrained, there is enough in Stevens that is like us today which allows us to sympathise, or even empathise with him to a certain extent (this creates a rather Joycean effect as far as irony is concerned). How many times have we heard the advice -- well intentioned no doubt -- to carry on in spite or despite of our feelings, because we have to? This particularly applies to jobs... the world is no longer tiny, but rather, industrialism and connectivity has made us have a sense of proportion, and distanced as much as it connects. One's sorrows become insignificant in the face of the vastness of the world, one's private trials are precisely just that, and the machine rumbles on without stopping for you no matter how you feel. You can either continue or take a day off, but what is certain is that the machine does go on working without you, that all your trials are very insularly your own. Stevens takes this to the extreme, where all his natural feeling is sacrificed to his professionalism. Of course we are not like him in that we have family and friends, and some of us have lovers, all of whom care, and whom we are close to, but it is silly to deny we do not face the same pressures that he puts on himself (one might say his pride is the kind of pride one would feel if we could carry on working if struck by some traumatic event... professional pride.)

But it is this peculiar mix of the empathetic and the alien that Stevens represents that makes him the ideal mirror for ourselves. We find that which is admirable doubly so, and that which is pitable similarly intensified. As such Stevens serves as the warning to us not to become too extreme in rushing at the breakneck pace that society asks us to do. It is tempting, but the human cost is, perhaps, a bit too much.(less)

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Oct 23, 2007 Kecia rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: readers who appreciate subtly

Shelves: booker-prize, topshelf, 1001-books

It's not what happens in this story that's important, it's what doesn't happen. It's not what is said, but what is not said.

I almost feel like Stevens in a real person and not a fictional character. He may well be the most tragic figure I've had the honor to meet/read. He tried so hard to do what he thought to be the right thing and in the end it all turned out to the wrong thing...I cried for at least a half hour after I finished the final page. It was a bittersweet moment when he admitted to h...more

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Jul 10, 2012 Maria rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Maria by: Angus

Shelves: recommended, serious-stuff

I recommend Remains of the Day.

*****

I don't believe in Love At First Sight. Lust, maybe. But Love? Hardly. Now, why am I saying this? I picked up The Remains of the Day with little love. That's a fact. Because Ishiguro and me are not friends, due to my utter dislike for Never Let Me Go. And yet, i made an effort to read it. Perhaps it will be different this time? I give second chances to an author's works should I have a terrible reading experience the first time I read from that author. Take Jo...more

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Jul 23, 2012 AennA rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: love-love-love-it

Book Notes: My thoughts, inspired by the book.

There's something about wasted time for life opportunities,and missed chance in love that I find endearing. I hate the feeling of regrets and heart breaks caused by unexpressed sentiments, but books written in that theme interests me. And The Remains of the Day filled my thirst for such storyline.

This is just the second time I read an Ishiguro; the first one was Never Let Me Go. And despite the incomparable affection I felt for Never Let Me Go, I did...more

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Mar 01, 2013 Helen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: world-war-ll

If I could give this book ten stars, I would. I saw the movie years ago, so I already knew the bones of the plot. What the movie couldn't reproduce, however, was the device of the unreliable narrator.

And what a device it is. You don’t realize, as you’re reading a book, just how much you depend on your narrator. As your guide through the story, you automatically assume that he is telling you the truth.

It is 1956, and Stevens, butler extraordinaire at Darlington Hall, finds he needs to add someo...more If I could give this book ten stars, I would. I saw the movie years ago, so I already knew the bones of the plot. What the movie couldn't reproduce, however, was the device of the unreliable narrator.

And what a device it is. You don’t realize, as you’re reading a book, just how much you depend on your narrator. As your guide through the story, you automatically assume that he is telling you the truth.

It is 1956, and Stevens, butler extraordinaire at Darlington Hall, finds he needs to add someone to his staff. Precisely, he wants to add a certain Miss Kenton, who worked there as housekeeper twenty years earlier, before leaving to be married. Stevens has just received a letter from her, hinting that she may want to return to service. His new American employer, Mr. Farraday, is going away for a few weeks, and he offers Stevens the use of his car to visit her.

As Stevens journeys through the quaint little English towns that lie between Darlington House and Miss Kenton, his memories take him back to a different time. Before World War II, he worked for Lord Darlington, a man he revered, arranging dinners and secret conferences with politicians and diplomats.

But it’s what Stevens doesn’t tell you that makes you gasp; rather than attend his dying father’s bedside, he presides over one of Lord Darlington’s secret dinners, proud that his efforts made it run smoothly. Instead of stopping the woman he loves from leaving to marry another man, he positions himself outside the door of one of his Lordship’s secret conferences, just in case his services are needed. This is, by the way, a perfect metaphor for his existence; standing outside a door while life happens on the other side.

And about that secret conference. Lord Darlington is a German sympathizer, doggedly trying to make peace with the people he feels were given a bad deal at Versailles. An old-fashioned gentleman and a well-meaning amateur, Darlington is letting himself be manipulated by the Nazi regime.

The beauty of this book is that Stevens doesn’t tell you any of these things. Indeed, he may not know it himself. It is during casually recounted dialogue with other characters that you find out the real events of the story, and the tragic consequences that follow.

What an extraordinary book. It left me shattered. This is the best British novel I've read since Atonement. Recommended for anyone who loves great literature.
(less)

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Jan 10, 2012 Michela rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Quel che resta del giorno
Kazuo Ishiguro.

Apro il libro, leggo le prime pagine e lo richiudo per rileggere bene il nome dell’autore, Ishiguro? Giapponese? Nah non può essere.
Quello che ho tra le mani è un elegantissimo capolavoro inglese, non c’è dubbio. Leggo la biografia di Ishiguro e capisco, è nato a Nagasaki nel 1954 ma si è trasferito a soli 6 anni in Inghilterra, ecco perché c’era il tocco indistinguibile di un inglese.
Posso riprendere il mio libro, e continuare.

Che classe, gente, che clas...more

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Nov 17, 2007 Kelly rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: those who love character studies and don't mind a slow pace

Shelves: fiction, brit-lit, worlds-lost-dead-and-dying, owned, 20th-century-postwar-to-late, its-the-quiet-ones

This is a work of high skill. Done in the first person, it conveys exactly the tone, workings, and errors of the mind that it lives in. Though it's clear that the narrator is unreliable- and he calls himself out on that a few times by what the reader may be thinking of his train of thought- he uses that unreliable format to his advantage. It is used to make Mr. Stevens more sympathetic and relatable to the reader, who otherwise might have some difficulty finding much in common with a postwar but...more

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Jun 04, 2011 Nikki rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction-alternatehistory, classics

I didn't know much about Remains of the Day. I'd read Never Let Me Go, people had suggested I read more of Ishiguro's work, and I picked it up somewhat at random in, according to the remnants of a tenacious sticker, a PDSA charity shop. I'm glad I did. It's entirely different to Never Let Me Go. It's the story of a butler, who has devoted much of his life to being a perfect one, taking a few days off for the first time in his life and pursuing a personal matter -- not that he can even admit to h...more

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Apr 07, 2012 Tanu rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: all-time-favorite

I did not expect that anything written by Kazuo Ishiguro could ever surprise me again; especially after the profoundNever Let Me Go . Yet, this book caught me off guard and has by far been the best book I have read this year. It is indeed a great feat when an author can make an 18 year old relate to an extremely serious British butler reminiscing about his life. Steven, the aforementioned butler is such a mercilessly precise man, in his pursuit of “dignity”, he denies his innermost feeling and t...more

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Jul 22, 2012 Monique rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, absolute-favorite, award-winners, bestsellers, historical-fiction

The Remains of the Day: The Second Time Around
Original post here.

A few months ago, I wrote about how I don't do rereads. The reason is simple: I find it a waste of time and effort – time that could very well have been spent reading a new book. With the speed at which I accumulate books (for every one that I read, I acquire another two or three more – you do the math), I always find whittling down the TBR pile a perpetual problem. So many books, so little time. Right you are, Frank Zappa.

However...more

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Aug 20, 2012 Ranee rated it 4 of 5 stars

Evening is the best time of the day. This is the remains of the day.
Much to do with senility. The dwindling afterthought of an old chap whose eyes are lost in the horizon thinking of the what have been's and could have been's and realizing that 80 is never as good as 20 (both in vision and age).

Dignity
The book opens with a narrative by a butler named Mr. Stevens reliving his life and work in the Darlington Hall. His narration was straightforward, none of the flowery extras that thrives other b...more Evening is the best time of the day. This is the remains of the day.
Much to do with senility. The dwindling afterthought of an old chap whose eyes are lost in the horizon thinking of the what have been's and could have been's and realizing that 80 is never as good as 20 (both in vision and age).

Dignity
The book opens with a narrative by a butler named Mr. Stevens reliving his life and work in the Darlington Hall. His narration was straightforward, none of the flowery extras that thrives other books. His was a journal of details and elaborating the ideas he firmly believes makes up his dignity. A butler after all could be a source of dignity but only as far as the grounds of his lordship can make him, as long as he pleases him, as long as the job is done, perfectly. His horizon was as far as the walls of the Darlington Hall could be seen. Beyond that, he is just an ordinary man with an extremely good taste for the best silverware and enough musing to clean it. If only if life was only about removing the tarnish in good silver, maybe his life would be shining with it. He is a professional but an outright workaholic hence his idea of dignity is equated to his capacity to do a job well done. He lives for work. He is not Mr. Stevens, kind man, friend, son and a gentleman. He is Mr. Stevens, the butler, great job, great silver.

Professionalism
To put into amount the immensity of his work and carve it down in his spine, even if it hurts, could still stand up, do the job right and say "as long as you are fine" is what makes a professional butler stand above the mere butlers. I guess, this is the same as picturing robots as the perfect futuristic butler, they are programmed to be summoned according to your needs without the emotional attachments. He is not part of the family, he is a appliance, an extension to the vacuum machine. With this, I must say professionalism is present where emotions is absent. The detachment between the heart and mind, the ability to detect what is dirt from what is not, minus the sentimentalities brought by memories.

Stevens
By making a choice to conquer one's chosen profession and come out as the best has both merits and sacrifices. I for one has to forgo sentimentalities with my family so as to be close with a patient's needs. An overseas worker would also understand this sacrifice and albeit almost half (even more) agrees with me. A lawyer would stand by his client until he is proven guilty even if all arrows points that he is ; and a call center agent knows the value of sleep but dare not hug it until the shift is over. Mr. Stevens has every right to boast his dignity and deserves to crumble to his loneliness. I cannot blame him nor try to accuse him. His regrets are his alone, a choice he has made. It may deem romantic to sweep the woman off her feet and gallop away to the sunset, but then no one would remember that Darlington hall once stood for greatness if no one sees to it that it could.
The grandiosity of the banquet hall with all its food and guests will be forgotten if no one was there to switch on the gallant chandelier to commence the evening . It is the workers dedicated to do sense with their jobs daily that turns the industry.
Evening is the best time of the day because it makes us look at what we have done today and keeps a promise that we can do better tomorrow. It contains all our regrets, hopes and aspirations that our lifetime is not futile afterall.
(less)

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Mar 23, 2012 Kua rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, b-1-2

Ishiguro ha reso in modo magistrale e minuzioso la figura di Mr. Stevens, irreprensibile maggiordomo inglese degli anni '30. Completamente cieco nei confronti di quello che lo circonda (tra cui una donna innamorata di lui!!), sprovvisto anche del minimo sense of humor che normalmente Dio concede nella dotazione di base anche agli inglesi più sfigati, Mr. Stevens, dopo aver scelto di seguire le orme paterne nella professione di maggiordomo, consacra la sua vita a perfezionarne la figura, per adeg...more Ishiguro ha reso in modo magistrale e minuzioso la figura di Mr. Stevens, irreprensibile maggiordomo inglese degli anni '30. Completamente cieco nei confronti di quello che lo circonda (tra cui una donna innamorata di lui!!), sprovvisto anche del minimo sense of humor che normalmente Dio concede nella dotazione di base anche agli inglesi più sfigati, Mr. Stevens, dopo aver scelto di seguire le orme paterne nella professione di maggiordomo, consacra la sua vita a perfezionarne la figura, per adeguarla sempre di più agli standard dei "grandi" maggiordomi dell'epoca. Tra le qualità più coltivate da Mr. Stevens c'è l'impassibilità di fronte ad ogni genere di situazioni e il self-control verso ogni esternazione del mondo creato, nonché la totale e indiscutibile fedeltà al suo padrone. Il continuo analizzarsi e rapportarsi solo con la superficie delle cose, senza mai entrare veramente in contatto con nulla di quanto accade attorno a lui, che non sia il perfetto e impareggiabile governo della casa, fa si che la vita gli scivoli tra le mani in una penosa solitudine. Il susseguirsi delle pagine, piene di riferimenti minuziosi di fatti apparentemente banali, come l'organizzazione di una grande casa di quell'epoca, potrebbe sembrare logorroica e ripetitiva, ma Ishiguro usa sapientemente la scrittura per far emergere i reali contorni di Mr. Stevens direttamente dalle sue stesse parole. Il cambio di abitudini, dovuto al fatto di essere stato "acquistato" insieme alla dimora, da un nuovo padrone - l'americano Mr. Faraday - scatenerà l'inizio di una dolente nostalgia per i "bei tempi andati". E l'autocontrollo conquistato in anni di allenamento si sgretolerà rapidamente nel momento in cui, forse per la prima volta nella sua vita, smetterà di concentrarsi solo sulle apparenze e questo mutamento lo porterà a un doloroso bilancio esistenziale. Un libro elegante, affascinante, ma tremendamente triste. Mr. Stevens mi ha fatto pena, ho provato compassione per lui quando cominciava a rendersi conto che non poteva neanche accusarsi di aver fatto scelte sbagliate, perché di fatto egli non aveva scelto nulla, neanche i propri errori. “Lord Darlington non era una cattiva persona. Non lo era affatto. E almeno ha avuto il privilegio di poter dire, alla fine della propria vita, di aver commesso i propri errori. Sua signoria è stato un uomo coraggioso. Ha scelto un certo percorso, nella sua vita, che si è rivelato un percorso sbagliato; ma era quello che aveva scelto, così almeno può dire. Perché io, invece, non posso nemmeno asserire questo. Vedete, io mi sono fidato. Mi sono fidato della saggezza di sua signoria. Tutti gli anni nei quali sono stato al suo servizio, ho creduto davvero di fare qualcosa di utile. Non posso nemmeno affermare di aver commesso i miei propri errori. E davvero – uno deve chiedersi – quale dignità vi è mai in questo?" (Oddiochetristezza...)(less)

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Dec 27, 2011 Chiara Pagliochini rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: narrativa-contemporanea, letteratura-inglese

“Sono ormai venti minuti da quando l’uomo se n’è andato, ma io sono rimasto qui, seduto su questa panchina, ad aspettare l’evento che sta giusto per verificarsi – vale a dire l’accensione delle luci del molo. Come ho già detto, la felicità di questi cercatori di piacere che si raccolgono qui sul molo ad aspettare il piccolo evento sembra confermare le parole del mio accompagnatore, e cioè che per molte persone la sera è la parte più dolce della giornata. Forse allora c’è qualcosa di giusto in qu...more “Sono ormai venti minuti da quando l’uomo se n’è andato, ma io sono rimasto qui, seduto su questa panchina, ad aspettare l’evento che sta giusto per verificarsi – vale a dire l’accensione delle luci del molo. Come ho già detto, la felicità di questi cercatori di piacere che si raccolgono qui sul molo ad aspettare il piccolo evento sembra confermare le parole del mio accompagnatore, e cioè che per molte persone la sera è la parte più dolce della giornata. Forse allora c’è qualcosa di giusto in quel suo consiglio, che dovrei smettere di guardare indietro così a lungo, adottare una prospettiva più positiva e cercare di fare del mio meglio con quel che resta del giorno. Dopotutto, cosa ci si guadagna a guardarsi sempre indietro, cosa ci si guadagna ad incolparsi se le nostre vite non sono andate proprio come avremmo voluto?”

È curioso come una cosa così piccola come questo romanzo possa essere delicata, intima e toccante. È un po’ come sfiorare con le dita i fili di una ragnatela, senza conoscere quale sia la pressione sufficiente a reciderli. Si ha paura di fare del male a qualcosa di bello. Si ha paura che qualcosa di bello ci faccia del male.
Ed Ishiguro, con questa sola prova, si inserisce nel numero dei narratori inglesi per i quali porto rispetto. Quel fortunato numero di narratori contemporanei (nei quali iscrivo McEwan e Byatt) che non hanno paura di documentarsi prima di scrivere un buon romanzo, che non hanno paura di annoiare e di essere onesti. Quei pochi narratori che sanno che una frase ad effetto ogni tre pagine non fa la fortuna di un romanzo, bensì il suo essere commercializzabile come una prostituta della narrazione. Quei pochi scrittori che una frase la scrivono solo e soltanto se serve, solo e soltanto se è adeguata al contesto e al narratore. Quei pochi scrittori che rispettano il narratore come se fosse una cosa sacra e pur di dargli corpo sono disposti ad annullare quella vocina nella testa che ogni tanto dice, “ma dai, mettici una bella frase che suoni bene per fare le citazioni su Facebook!”. O forse è la mia opinione traviata che oggi si pensi così, poi guardo a Baricco e dico, ah no. Signor Ishiguro, lei è un vero gentleman ed io la rispetto.

Quel che resta del giorno è la suntuosa rievocazione di un mondo che non c’è più, un mondo di eleganza e di dedizione, di grandi case e grandi ricevimenti. Un po’ come una puntata di Downton Abbey, per chi sa di cosa sto parlando. Siamo in Inghilterra, dopo la seconda guerra mondiale. Mr Stevens è da molti anni il maggiordomo di Darlington Hall, un tempo dimora di Lord Darlington, manovratore della politica europea fra le due guerre, ed ora finita nelle mani di un ricco americano.
Mr Stevens ha visto molto poco del mondo. Tutta la sua vita non è stata che servizio, consacrazione a un ideale in cui crede fermamente, e cioè la sua missione di maggiordomo. Perché essere maggiordomo è a tutti gli effetti una missione, ma soprattutto è uno stile di vita, che significa portare lealtà giorno dopo giorno al proprio datore di lavoro, votarsi allo splendore della dimora di cui si è custodi, fare di tutto (nel nostro piccolo) per far girare quella ruota molto oliata che è la Storia. È così, si può essere servitori della Storia, si può essere manovratori di grandi eventi anche solo tenendo puliti i candelabri. Ma un vero maggiordomo, un grande maggiordomo, sa anche che il suo essere maggiordomo non è soltanto il suo costume. Non può concedersi delle falle, mai il privato può fare capolino nel suo pubblico. Quindi, che si tratti di piangere la morte di un padre, che si tratti di inseguire l’amore della vita, un maggiordomo deve sempre ricordare il senso della propria missione. In questo senso, nel conflitto tra pubblico e privato vince sicuramente il pubblico. E questo è il motivo, secondo me, per cui questo libro può iscriversi nel genere della tragedia.

Ma arriva un momento nella vita di ciascuno (e per qualcuno questo momento è tutti i giorni) in cui si comincia a ripensare alla propria vita, al passato, a quei crocicchi, a quegli incroci che il destino sembra aver disposto casualmente, e noi abbiamo imboccato una strada anziché un’altra. Questo momento arriva anche per Mr Stevens, in occasione di un viaggio in auto di qualche giorno. Un viaggio che non ha mai fatto prima e che lo porterà non solo a scoprire luoghi inaspettati, ma soprattutto regioni inaspettate del sé e che lo costringerà a riconsiderare una buona parte del percorso fatto.
Il viaggio di Mr Stevens ha una direzione e questa direzione si chiama Miss Kenton, ex governante di Darlington Hall, che ha lasciato la casa molti anni prima. È soprattutto nei confronti di Miss Kenton che le considerazioni di Mr Stevens si fanno più sofferte, i crocicchi più insidiosi. Perché se è vero che Mr Stevens fa di tutto per farci credere che le sue intenzioni nel far visita a Miss Kenton sono strettamente professionali, noi capiamo invece che c’è molto di personale.

Mr Stevens è un bugiardo coi fiocchi, fa veramente di tutto per ingannarci, per darci a credere che lui è un bravo maggiordomo eccetera eccetera. Riuscirebbe persino a negare di essere un uomo fatto di carne e sangue, se si sentisse messo alle strette. Ma voi capite quando la sua corazza cede, quando sotto tutta quella freddezza, quell’insensibilità, quella professionalità, si vedono dei piccoli graffietti. Ogni tanto gli capita di camminare troppo a lungo davanti a porte chiuse, gli capita di giustificarsi a sproposito, ogni tanto i personaggi del libro si accorgono che sta piangendo, anche se lui – il bastardo – non ci dice mica, mi sentivo triste e piangevo!
Mr Stevens fa di tutto per starci antipatico. Ma noi gli vogliamo sempre più bene.

E così, mentre nel viaggio si snodano le sue memorie, noi capiamo quali sentimenti abbia nutrito in tutti questi anni, quanta repressione abbia messo in atto per mantenere questa faccia dignitosa. È stata una sofferenza? Non lo sappiamo. Ne conosciamo soltanto i risultati, e cioè una vita non vissuta, una vita che poteva essere e non è stata, una vita che non sappiamo più che farci perché non sembrano esserci più incroci, una vita che corre incontro alla sera precipitosa come una marea.
E così alla fine del giorno non restano che memorie un po’ troppo consunte, ma che fanno male ancora. E tuttavia non si può tornare indietro. Le occasioni non colte restano dove sono. Quel che resta è una domanda che fece Miss Kenton tanto tempo fa, “Perché Mr Stevens, perché, perché, perché deve sempre fingere così?” Quel che resta è il ricordo di tanti pomeriggi in cui la luce si affievoliva alle finestre e ogni sagoma stagliata contro il vetro sembrava una figurina e le tazze profumavano di cioccolata calda. Quel che resta è che l’importante è aver capito. Perché a un certo punto si capisce. È per tutti così. Si capisce che, se anche c’è rimasta solo la sera, non è mai troppo tardi per accorgersi di aver sbagliato. E, se non si può tornare indietro, si può applicare quel che s’è imparato a quel che resta.
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Jan 25, 2011 Tatiana rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 1001, booker, 2011

Well, this novel definitely adds a whole new meaning to the definition of what a servant's loyalty is. The main character here, the old-school butler Stevens, is dedicated to his master and to his position to the extent which is quite shocking. Literally everything in Stevens' life - his family, the possibility of love, even his identity - is repressed and is secondary to being a good employee, a devoted employee who worships his master and follows him blindly down any path, regardless of how mi...more

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May 19, 2008 Trevor rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: literature

This is a book, at least in part, about the reliability of memory – and so, in keeping with that theme, I’m going to start by talking about what I remember of the film.

God knows when I saw this film – I assume I would have been still married and I think I might have even gone to see it with the estranged wife when it first came out, but it is hard to say now. I see the film was made in 1993 – so, if I saw it at the cinema when it first came out that would have been 15 years ago.

There are only t...more

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Aug 08, 2007 Jenny rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone who can hang in there for 50 pages of bore

Shelves: fiction, historical_fiction

Wow. After about 50 pages of what I first took to be boring nonsense, this book turned out to be a beautifully sad, poignantly impassive novel that I enjoyed very much. Although there is little, indeed, almost no, action in the novel, it somehow transports you to a place where you, and the protagonist butler Stevens, realize that you can't live in the past, and that no matter the mistakes of yesterday, you should still look before you, and enjoy what remains of your day.

I hate spoilers, so I wo...more

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Aug 13, 2012 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Remains of the Day constitutes just that, the assessment of one man's life—an old school English butler, named Stevens, who has passed the major part of his existence within the cloistered confines of Darlington Hall in Oxfordshire—undertaken during a six day motoring trip to England's West Country, a break from decades of ritual and routine that has now entered into the twilight hours. Stevens is a man obsessed with the attainment and maintenance of dignity as the ne plus ultra of the quali...more The Remains of the Day constitutes just that, the assessment of one man's life—an old school English butler, named Stevens, who has passed the major part of his existence within the cloistered confines of Darlington Hall in Oxfordshire—undertaken during a six day motoring trip to England's West Country, a break from decades of ritual and routine that has now entered into the twilight hours. Stevens is a man obsessed with the attainment and maintenance of dignity as the ne plus ultra of the qualities that make for a great manservant and, hence, a successful life of service centered around an occupation that identifies itself so markedly with the personality by which it is performed. It is determining what, exactly, constitutes this dignity that serves both to justify the enclosed life Stevens has lived and to reveal to him how much of the personal and moral within it he has squandered in the pursuit of what proves itself an ultimately evanescent, even poisonous ideal.

In his fidelity and dedication to Lord Darlington, an aristocratic diletante whose anti-semitic and fascistic leanings drove him to effect an alliance between Nazi Germany and Great Britain, Stevens has closed himself off to his feelings and emotions regarding Miss Kenton, the housekeeper at Darlington Hall, and his father, a fellow butler and man whose example exemplifies for Stevens all that dignity pertains to; it has also served to convince him of the wisdom of suborning himself to his employer's anti-democratic turning. A sequence of event-laden and difficult tests upon his butler's craft that were seen through successfully under the aegis of this dignity are what Stevens recalls during his memorial journey—and each and every one carried with it a cost, remorselessly tallied and paid-out, to his relationships with his father and Miss Kenton; indeed, to his humanity. It is an expertly-crafted narrative progression, one which allows the author to call into question what comprises a free man's democratic responsibilities; what price is demanded of blind service; how to measure professional success achieved at the cost of personal happiness; and, most importantly, the terrible toll exacted upon the self by the suppression, and repression, of human emotion and connection—the foundational undermining that comes with the burgeoning awareness that one has wasted life's opportunities and possibilities, and that one's memory, when denuded of the illusory and dissembling, is housed within chambers of loss and regret.

Once again, I found myself really liking a novel by Ishiguro without loving it. The quality level is consistently high; the writing immaculately constructed and pitch-perfect in tone and style as the expressive voice of the narrator; the emotion mostly subdued but still highly poignant and explosive in its sudden, electric revelations; the humor wry and gently ridiculous, vital to the peeling away of self-justifications and -delusions from the narrative reminiscences on display and yet comfortably garbed within the mannerisms of that selfsame voice; and the melancholy requisite to the author's principal themes palpable and lingering throughout the course of the tale, though never overpowering to the degree that this barbed sadness drags the entire affair unto the threnodic. In other words, a measured, wistful, and magnificent piece of literary craftsmanship from the British author that nonetheless kept me at just enough of an arm's length to avoid being elevated to the top rank of fictive experience.

It's a curious thing why this is so, one that is difficult to put my finger on—could it be that the burgeoning relationship between Stevens and Miss Kenton, though of necessity meant to be disguised within a memorial garb of professionalism, still lacked a believability as to the depths it took root in both people, particularly with Miss Kenton in that her eventual husband appeared superficially more of a match to her revealed personality than Stevens ever did? Perhaps that in this, my fourth Ishiguro novel, I'm finding that his writing voice, notwithstanding that it is deftly mapped to the character uttering it, maintains too much conformity between what are a disparate spread of personalities? That the sequencing is so precisely paced and disciplined in what it unveils that it robs the whole of some of the spontaneity requisite for a complete and piercing emotional connection with the reader? I might even venture the opinion that a further one hundred pages or so, the better to encroach upon the mnemonically-misdirected world that Stevens has forged and has now commenced with recovering, might have been enough to pump this one into the realm of the perfect. It's hard to say for sure—but what the hell. I'll still happily read the man's corpus, knowing that while he may not yet have enraptured, neither has he served to disappoint.(less)

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Kelly That the sequencing is so precisely paced and disciplined in what it unveils that it robs the whole of some of the spontaneity requisite for a complet...more
Sep 16, 2012 08:36am

Chris You're welcome!

Never Let Me Go is one of his novels I've yet to read—in fact, it will be my next Ishiguro fix. For this book, it's a very fine line t...more
updated Sep 16, 2012 03:55pm

Jul 25, 2012 Josephine rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I initially didn't think that I would enjoy this book but the moment I read about Mr. Steven's dilemma [that is, he had given himself too much to do], I was hooked.

What I like the most about this book are the things that it doesn’t say but are there in the surface. We are shown with a butler—Mr. Stevens—who is very much a hardworking person. He takes his job professionally, seriously, and with great dignity—values that are very much lacking in so many in this generation. But this book also show...more I initially didn't think that I would enjoy this book but the moment I read about Mr. Steven's dilemma [that is, he had given himself too much to do], I was hooked.

What I like the most about this book are the things that it doesn’t say but are there in the surface. We are shown with a butler—Mr. Stevens—who is very much a hardworking person. He takes his job professionally, seriously, and with great dignity—values that are very much lacking in so many in this generation. But this book also shows us that while we are ‘working people’ trying to do ‘great things,’ we must also not forget that we also have lives outside of our work.

And then we are also shown with a strong woman—Miss Kenton—who is equally loyal and is as hardworking as Mr. Stevens. She showed us that being loyal didn’t mean just going with the flow and not question your employer’s decisions [Although she didn’t directly take her concerns up to her employer, she taught us that it is fine to speak up and question unreasonable decisions].

And of course there’s also the young Mr. Cardinal who had taught us that it always pay to do research, that sometimes good intentions like Lord Darlington’s aren’t enough: one must also be well-informed. That you can’t make decisions based on feelings and what you think is right alone—there has to be facts—and to always remember that one’s reality is not the only reality in this life.

This book also taught us that it is wrong to literally give our ‘everything’ to our jobs: as I said, we also have lives outside of our career. We are sons and daughters, we are parents as well, grandparents, a friend, we are citizens too, etc. To just ride everything in your life into a single something or goal to the point that you forget the other things that also matter—even if this something is for the idea of a greater good—is plain wrong.

But that lastly, even when everything had crumbled already—everything that we stood for, everything that we believed in has been destroyed—that all is not lost. It will only be lost when one has lost his hope.

The Remains of the Day is a book about love, regrets, professionalism, and dignity... topics that everyone will be able to easily relate to. ^_^(less)

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Nov 12, 2012 Maria Ella rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: add-on-knowledge, favorites, classic, most-loved, 2012-reading-challenge

"Perhaps then, there is something to his advice that I should cease looking back so much, that I should adopt a more postive outlook and try to make the best of what remains of my day."

I felt betrayed. I trusted Ishiguro for him to give me an entertaining read. Now what's left me is life questions that I believe I should know the answers by now. Why Ishiguro, WHY BOMBARD ME WITH SELF-REFLECTIONS?

IT ALL STARTED on a book discussion. We are to read this great work that won the Booker Prize. Since...more

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Oct 10, 2009 K.D. Oliveros rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 1001-core, 501, drama, british, war, booker

Before I started reading this book, I thought that it would be boring as the writer is British and it was about a butler in an England county sometime in between 1940-1956. However, I need to have a break from reading THE RISE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE by Edward Gibbons. The names of the many emperors in their different eras are starting to confused me.

I was wrong. I started reading this book on a Friday morning while waiting for my daughter to join me in the car and I finished the whole 200+...more Before I started reading this book, I thought that it would be boring as the writer is British and it was about a butler in an England county sometime in between 1940-1956. However, I need to have a break from reading THE RISE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE by Edward Gibbons. The names of the many emperors in their different eras are starting to confused me.

I was wrong. I started reading this book on a Friday morning while waiting for my daughter to join me in the car and I finished the whole 200+ pages in a little more than 24 hrs. I could not put it down. The narrative is compulsively moving and the English is clear and simple (unlike the narrative of another Booker winner, A.S.Byatt's POSSESSION which I read last month).

The character of Stevens, the butler, is nothing but respectable and endearing. This is a good book to emphasize the value of work and loyalty. Stevens values his work that much, so much that he did not even think of marrying (because butlers cannot have a family). I also like the way he idolizes his father who was also once a butler and died as a butler. That death scene was just harrowing. The butler-father, 79 y/o had a heart attack while pushing a cart full of wine and his butler-son could not attend to him because he had visitors to entertain.

The story is also about growing old. I like the phrase uttered by another aging butler towards the end of the book: "You've done your day's work. Now you can put your feet up and enjoy it. That's how I look at it. Ask anybody, they'll tell you. The evening's the best part of the day." How about that for people looking forward to their retirements? BTW, that where the title REMAINS OF THE DAY came from. It refers to what is left of the day - the evening.

The trip to the countryside shows the character of Stevens in detail. It is like the trip of THE LITTLE PRINCE (still by far my favorite novel) to the many planets.

More and more of the 501 MUST READ BOOKS are turning out great! I am grateful to Tata J for lending this reference to me. So far, I've read 46 of them already and I only got disappointed twice: THE SATANIC VERSES and THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA. However, someday I will read them again and hope to get a different perspective as I grow old and gray and try to enjoy them in my remains of the day.(less)

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Jan 20, 2009 Endah rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Remains of The Day adalah novel karya Kazuo Ishiguro yang berhasil memenangi penghargaan Booker Prize (1989), salah satu ajang penghargaan paling bergengsi untuk buku-buku sastra (fiksi) yang ditulis dalam bahasa Inggris. Kazuo memang keturunan Jepang. Ia lahir di Nagasaki, Jepang, pada 1954, tetapi sejak usia lima tahun, bersama orang tuanya ia pindah dan kemudian menetap di Inggris. Telah enam novel ia tulis sepanjang kariernya. Terakhir berjudul Never Let Me Go (2005) yang menjadi runner...more The Remains of The Day adalah novel karya Kazuo Ishiguro yang berhasil memenangi penghargaan Booker Prize (1989), salah satu ajang penghargaan paling bergengsi untuk buku-buku sastra (fiksi) yang ditulis dalam bahasa Inggris. Kazuo memang keturunan Jepang. Ia lahir di Nagasaki, Jepang, pada 1954, tetapi sejak usia lima tahun, bersama orang tuanya ia pindah dan kemudian menetap di Inggris. Telah enam novel ia tulis sepanjang kariernya. Terakhir berjudul Never Let Me Go (2005) yang menjadi runner up Man Booker Prize.

The Remains of The Day adalah novel ‘gelap’ yang bercerita tentang kehidupan–tepatnya kondisi psikologi–seorang kepala pelayan Inggris. Ia, kepala pelayan itu, dipanggil dengan nama Mr.Stevens (Ini nama keluarga sebetulnya. Nama kecilnya tak pernah disebut satu kalipun). Jabatan atau profesi kepala pelayan hanya ada di rumah tangga-rumah tangga kalangan ningrat Inggris tempo doeloe.

Mr. Stevens kita ini mengabdikan hampir seluruh hidupnya sebagai pelayan di Darlington Hall, sebuah kediaman mewah milik bangsawan Lord Darlington semasa perang dunia II sebelum akhirnya beralih ke tangan seorang berkebangsaan Amerika, Mr. Farraday.

Selama 30 tahun, Stevens menjalani profesinya dengan penuh kebanggaan, tanggungjawab, dan profresionalisme yang tinggi. Teladan terbaik baginya adalah sang ayah sendiri, mantan seorang kepala pelayan yang “bermartabat”.

Stevens kita demikian terobsesinya sehingga tanpa disadarinya ia kerap kali berlaku ‘kejam’ pada dirinya sendiri dan orang-orang di sekitarnya demi meraih impian sebagai kepala pelayan yang “bermartabat” itu. Sikapnya senantiasa formal, kaku, terlalu serius. Ia mengabaikan segala urusan pribadinya. Bagi Stevens, yang terpenting dan utama adalah tugas melayani majikannya. Stevens bahkan harus menanggalkan kesedihannya ketika ayahnya meninggal saat ia tengah melaksanakan sebuah tugas penting melayani jamuan makan malam bertaraf internasional di Darlington Hall.

Sikapnya yang terkesan kejam dan tak berperasaan itu sering membuat Miss Kenton, rekan kerjanya, merasa geregetan dan penasaran. Sebagai sesama pelayan, Miss Kenton kelihatan jauh lebih ‘manusiawi’. Tidak seperti Stevens kita, Miss Kenton masih sanggup bergurau dan menjalani hidup secara ‘normal’. Diam-diam, sesungguhnya ia memendam perasaan cintanya kepada Stevens. Namun, karena sifat tertutup Stevens yang ekstrem, kasih itu tak pernah sampai.

Kisahnya dipaparkan secara kilas balik oleh Stevens kita sebagai penuturnya. Ia membawa kita menelusuri seluk-beluk keluarga ningrat Inggris pada era 1920-an, masa 30 tahun ke belakang dari saat ia berkisah. Lantaran narasi dituturkan oleh orang pertama, maka kita bisa mengetahui secara mendalam kondisi batin dan psikologi Stevens selaku seorang butler. Melihat kedalamannya, novel ini tentulah hasil sebuah riset dan observasi yang cermat. Konon, dalam versi aslinya (Inggris), lebih terasa lagi kedalamannya dari bahasa Inggris ningrat–kalau dalam bahasa Jawa mungkin kromo inggilnya–yang dipergunakan Stevens.

Tentulah Stevens merupakan tokoh sentral novel ini. Karakternya yang unik mutlak menjadi ruh bagi keseluruhan cerita. Barangkali temponya tergolong lambat, akan tetapi ia memikat kita justru dengan ketidaktergesa-gesaannya itu. Stevens menguraikan masa-masa jayanya dengan sabar dan penuh percaya diri bahwa kisahnya yang memikat ini pasti akan dibaca tuntas.

Seandainya kita membaca novel ini tanpa lebih dulu mengetahui nama penulisnya, bukan mustahil jika kita mengira buku ini ditulis oleh orang Inggris asli dengan pengetahuan luas dan mendalam ihwal seorang butler.

Novel yang anggun (dan sopan), kendati agak sedikit kelam. Tak heran jika lalu menjadi buku laris dan dibaca banyak orang di seluruh dunia. Dalam versi Inggrisnya, terjual lebih dari sejuta eksemplar dan telah pula diterjemahkan ke dalam tiga puluh bahasa. Membacanya akan lebih asyik lagi apabila kita telah menonton filmnya, sebab bisa sembari membayangkan akting keren Sir Anthony Hopkins serta Emma Thompson sebagai Mr. Stevens dan Miss Kenton.
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Aug 30, 2007 Kristina A rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This lovely novel is short but not slight. Ishiguru's style is impeccable, delicate, and precise. He perfectly captures the voice of an unreliable narrator who would really rather not tell you anything at all. I adore the way Stevens talks around every topic, circling around it with apparent confusion before admitting -- even as he continues to deny it -- what he really feels about something.

One of my favorite things about the novel is how excruciating Stevens's inability to communicate and his...more

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Aug 26, 2012 Sir W. Gabriel Gapas rated it 4 of 5 stars

I think the overdue fine I paid at the library only to finish reading this book is worthy. I watched the movie version of "Never Let Me Go" by the same author; I found it very touching and actually moved me to read this book before moving on to the next.

In a nutshell, this novel allowed me to reflect in the midst of all the coursework I am currently preoccupied with. I believe Stevens' question, "What makes a good butler?" is tantamount to asking "What makes me a good creature?"

(I think the ans...more

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Nov 24, 2012 Samadrita rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: man-booker-prize, historical, european-literature, melancholia, human-drama, slice-of-life, tear-jerkers, cherished, philosophical, masterpieces, humour-of-the-dignified-kind, modern-classics, britain, awesomesauce, amazing-characterization, 1001-and-more

When I had merely read about 30 or so pages of this book, I must confess I was debating whether or not to continue with it, given the unbearably slow pacing of the plot.
And then when I had finally reached the end, I couldn't help but feel immensely thankful to my own better judgement against giving it up. Since by that time I had been reduced to a pathetic, blubbering mass of emotions and tears, teetering on the verge of a major breakdown and marvelling at the writer's remarkable achievement at...more

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Jan 21, 2013 amal rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

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كتابة راقية وإحترافية عالية تميّز بها كازو إيشجورو في رواية بقايا اليوم أو (بقايا النهار) ، مذكرات رئيس الخدم مستر ستيڤنس تتزامن مع مذكرات فترة حرجة من تاريخ أوروبا تدور بعض تفاصيلها في قصر دارلنجتون هول حيث يناقشون عيوب معاهدة فرساي ، ومسعى أخلاقي لتجنب الحرب من لورد دارلنجتون بعيدا عن دهاليز السياسة المخادعة ، قد تكون أخلاق اللورد هنا جناية على بلاده وسمعته دون علمه ، توقع مستر لويس ذلك في مشهد العشاء .
في ذات العشاء يُثبت مستر ستيڤنس حرفيته كرئيس للخدم ويكتسب معنى العظمة والكرامة،ي...more

كتابة راقية وإحترافية عالية تميّز بها كازو إيشجورو في رواية بقايا اليوم أو (بقايا النهار) ، مذكرات رئيس الخدم مستر ستيڤنس تتزامن مع مذكرات فترة حرجة من تاريخ أوروبا تدور بعض تفاصيلها في قصر دارلنجتون هول حيث يناقشون عيوب معاهدة فرساي ، ومسعى أخلاقي لتجنب الحرب من لورد دارلنجتون بعيدا عن دهاليز السياسة المخادعة ، قد تكون أخلاق اللورد هنا جناية على بلاده وسمعته دون علمه ، توقع مستر لويس ذلك في مشهد العشاء .
في ذات العشاء يُثبت مستر ستيڤنس حرفيته كرئيس للخدم ويكتسب معنى العظمة والكرامة،يكون احتضار والده المعبر لهذا الانجاز!
تتوالى الأحداث في قالب من (الثلج) الانجليزي الفاخر؛ يُجبرك أكثر على متابعة القراءة بنهم متزايد !

كثير من الأخلاقيات والاسماء الأنيقة للاشياء لاتعني بالضرورة مطابقتها للواقع ، بل قد تعني أحياناً النقيض تماما .
كم من الوقت نحتاج لمثل هذه الاكتشافات ؟ هل نخدع أنفسنا بالمسميات النبيلة أم هو فهمنا الخاطئ ؟

حديث اللورد عن الوفاء الأخرق والوفاء الممنوح بذكاء يصيب هوية ستيڤنس في مقتل ، كانت رحلته للريف رؤية محايدة لحياته من الخارج ، كان يعيد قراءة رسالة مس كنتون مرات عديدة كعاشق متخفيّ حتى عن ذاته ، هنا مشهد رائع لهما واكتشاف متأخر لقصة حب بدون اعتراف مباشر .

اقتباسات :

- اتساءل أحيانا ، ألم يكن من الأفضل لو أن الله خلقنا كلنا على هيئة نبات، نباتات مغروسة في التربة، ماكان شيء من ذلك العفن عن الحروب والحدود قد حدث ..

- القرارات الكبرى في العالم لايتم التوصل إليها في المجالس النيابية ، ولا في خلال أيام مكرسة لمؤتمر دولي يُعقد تحت بصر الجمهور والصحافة ، مايحدث تحت بصر العامة ومايصحبه من أبهة ؛ ماهو إلا تصديق لما حدث على مدى أسابيع وشهور خلف أسوار القصور.

- نكتشف ببطء شديد في هذا البلد أن الاشياء أصبحت قديمة ، في الدول العظمى الأخرى لكي تواجه التحديات الجديدة ؛ لابد لها من أن تنبذ القديم .

- الكرامة شيء قد يمتلكه الفرد أو لايمتلكه نتيجة مصادفة من الطبيعة ، وإذا كان لايمتلكها فإن السعي وراءها يكون بلا طائل ، مثل المرأة التي تحاول أن تجعل نفسها جميلة بينما هي ليست كذلك .

- في تشبيه أعجبني لأحد ضيوف اللورد دارلنجتون شبّه النظام البرلماني بنقابة الأمهات التي تحاول تنظيم حملة

الرواية مميزة جداً وتستحق القراءة ، هنا مقال جميل للكاتب سمير عطالله عن الرواية ، و هنا النسخة الالكترونية ، ويمكنك مشاهدة الفيلم المقتبس عن الرواية The Remains of the Day
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