Laura’s answer to “Anyone already finished & want to discuss the ending?” > Likes and Comments
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Ummm you just made me like the book way more!
@Courtney I haven't written up my Goodreads review of Klara yet, since I was pretty disappointed by it, actually. But maybe, if I believe my own theory, I'll give it a higher rating. I guess I should read a few Ishiguro interviews now to see if he ever hints at the replacement story twist I'm divining.
Interesting ideas. Makes me appreciate the end more. I wondered how such a brilliant book could end so flatly. Your thoughts make more sense. Thanks. I am hoping my three stars to a four and , who knows, may be five.
This is a succinct theory with *great* clues plucked out to support your theory. This makes me love this novel in the way I've loved all of Ishiguro's in the past. I believed that at one point there was a transition from old Josie to the new but was in disbelief that we as the readers were given none of that to go on! Like Michaela said, without this take this novel would be insanely deflated by the end.
Thanks for your contribution! <3
it's fascinating but i have one question. if Josie died and Klara went on to replace her, who is the Klara in the yard? Do you suggest Klara can be splitted in 2 parts, one made by data she collected about Josie which goes into Capaldì's doll and another part which is ... what? So it's like data about Josie are a kind of soul which can be separated from the AF?
@Michefax Yes, I guess I think there was the operating system of "Klara" and separately all the data she was supposed to collect on her person to help her person grow up. That data was uploaded into the Josie replacement avatar and Klara went on until her operating system was so out of date, fading, and glitchy that she was sent to recycling with all the other out-of-date AFs. Same thing that I did with my old beloved iPhone last year, except I hadn't given it a name (-:
Yes I think the data went into an upgraded AF and Klara just went on with her life. Amazing ending really
This theory was genuinely fascinating to read; and honestly, far more interesting than the book itself was.
Omg. At first when I saw your post I'm thinking TOO LONG, however I started to read it and it looks INTERESTING so def. coming back to read it. Thanks. I love his books, kept this one, so maybe I'll do an earlier than usual reread.
Good ideas - I think I am going to adopt them!
Brilliant! You should lead a book group.
I just saw an ad on Goodreads here stating that Klara and the Sun is soon to be a major motion picture. That makes me think that there is indeed the twist that Josie is replaced; or at the very least the movie will answer that question.
I don’t think that Josie can have been replaced as I cannot see how a robot can grow and mature into an adult. I did wonder if the worst had happened and Klara had ‘become Josie’ if she would have remained the same age indefinitely for her mother?
Woaaaaaah. I kinda rolled my eyes as I began reading this, but as I continued, I became more and more convinced. If you're right, then I like the book a LOT more.
I had assumed that the 'picture' was a 'skin' that would replace Klara's existing exterior, but the new Josie would otherwise be Klara's body and brain. If so, this would rule out your theory as there would be no other Klara to be consigned to the junkyard. ...Unless Klara/Josie malfunctioned due to the missing fluid and was junked? But I don't think we should have to invent things like this in order to make sense of the book.
Good, plausible analysis, insight, and theory, Laura. I too wish the author could have been a little more clear (claro/clarus/Klara?). I thought Klara was making up a religion and the Sun was her god, praying to it in the barn to heal Josie. I thought it was coincidence that it 'healed' Josie at the end. It hadn't occurred to me Josie might have been replaced and thus energized by the sun as a clone. The Father at one point was skeptical of being able to replicate Josie exactly, as he pondered whether there was a certain uniqueness in everyone that couldn't be duplicated (as there is in we humans). Were the Beggar Man and Dog also replicated, after they died, and thus rejuvenated by the sun? Way too many unexplained things in this book, despite my liking it. (I still have to find out what a Cootings Machine is!)
@Johnrh Thanks for the new idea about the Beggar Man possibly being rejuvenated by the sun. Would he be one of the defunct, cast-off AFs, or an earlier version of an AF? Or just some mistaken perception of Klara's? As you say way too many unexplained things--but those lacunae do make us think closely about the story, I suppose. I'm surprised they are making a film of it, and wonder whether that format will answer readers' Qs in a satisfying manner.
@Laura, My head is spinning with new ways to interpret this book! That what we were being prepared for ALLLLL book would suddenly not happen never made any sense (in plot terms or in literature ones) and was why everyone has been feeling disappointed. Of course she wouldn't suddenly get completely better after sleeping off an almost death! I can't believe we let the narrator dupe us this time! The mom's reactions and garb are really helpful clues. And the way the whole plot suddenly decays is now a meaningful piece of the whole. Though it is laced with a familiar kids-grow-up (and forget their childhood dreams and friends) trope, what we are really seeing (from the closet) is how the connections Josie maintained fizzle away in the absence of her real life and also her real death--since everyone is denied the possibility to mourn or connect over their loss. What results in a slow drifting away of everyone from the center of Josie's story. And if we are how others love us, then this is the slow dispersal of Josie herself. It reminds me of the slow fade of Klara and makes me see a sort of symmetry there as I watch that final scene of Klara in the Yard and reinterpret her peace.
By the way, I don't think it is a plot hole that Klara never explains how the replacement happened. It could have happened without her knowledge, and probably would have. That way, Klara could remain and keep up the appearance that nothing had changed.
@J Your comments about such larger themes as "a slow drifting away of everyone from the center of Josie's story. And if we are how others love us, then this is the slow dispersal of Josie herself" give meaning and intention to my plot theories. Thanks for helping me appreciate the book more!
Thank YOU for helping me appreciate the book more. I am about to reread the end.
"And after that grey sky morning, she grew not only stronger, but from a child into an adult." ! Woah - so she really could have changed in appearance quite a LOT and maybe the technology didn't have to allow for growing robots if they made the replacement adult to being with.
And Melania Housekeeper furiously shutting the blinds, trying to keep the sun out--perhaps she was trying to delay the inevitable, the entrance of the replacement into their lives. Perhaps the adults had been briefed about the exchange that was to be made in the night. Perhaps Melania had even been told, Open the shades...
... Perhaps that is why everyone else rushed upstairs when Klara said the sun was coming out
At least the Mother. When Rick talks to Klara later, he sounds like he believes Josie got better. Which makes it more subtle that Rick became more distant.
Then again, Klara too became distant from Josie.
There is so much here at the end in the background about the relationship of humans to artificial life, the kindness mixed with indifference, as even Manager turns around as she walks away and looks past Klara rather than at her.
I also gather that people have become more and more suspicious of the AFs across the timespan covered by the book with AFs gone by the end, possibly made illegal. First, we find out the store closed, then Dr. Capaldi comes to seek evidence to convince the public of something, and finally Manager appears at the end to reminisce about the past. How many replacements would have happened during the "glory days" of AFs? Are they still happening underground?
Another bit of evidence: As Josie gets in the car to go to college, it is noted that her walk has maintained the exact hesitancy from being sick as when Klara first met her in the store. Earlier, Klara had been quizzed on her ability to recreate this walk, first in the store and later by the waterfall. A replacement Josie would remain programmed with this walk, where a real growing Josie might adopt stronger strides as she feels more well.
I also wonder if describing how Manager's walk had changed in the last scene was a pointer too: This is how humans age. This is how AFs age.
Which one is Josie?
It isn't just a hint to a puzzle, because even if we accept the solution that Josie got replaced, what is the fate of replacement Josie? Do we relate to her as we relate to Klara? In this same ambiguous way? What will happen to her at the end of her life?
@J I love this observation: "A replacement Josie would remain programmed with this walk, where a real growing Josie might adopt stronger strides as she feels more well."
@Laura: Just a friendly comment to ask you to please use spoiler tags in your comments in the future (e.g. (view spoiler)
I just finished the book and this was the best overall analysis I've seen. A few more points that feed into this:
1) While Klara is observant, she also has a fairly limited childlike naivete. Her ascribing agency to the sun in regards to the reuinited couple and the beggar early on is an example. The beggar could have just been cold, didn't sleep the night before, been drunk / high, etc so wasn't moving much and the dog was napping. It could have also just been a really cold day and they were staying bundled up for warmth.
When they go into the city Klara points out that six similar looking buildings are painted different colors so the owners won't get confused, that a mural exists to balance out a larger building that doesn't match the one next to it, etc. Then there's the whole the sun goes to an underground palace in the barn, a bull being swallowed up into the ground, etc.
She's observant and matches patterns, but that doesn't mean that she always comes up with the proper attribution or casuality.
2) Josie's dad at one point mentions that he didn't know much about cars or their engines, yet somehow off of the top of his head knows enough about the workings of a construction machine to have an elaborate means of sabotaging it that required her to drain half of the fluid in her head? They were on a time schedule, but just go to a hardware store and get some drain cleaner or something.
As he pointed out, he wasn't trying to kill her, but trying to limit her functioning so that she couldn't act as a template for the new Josie seems to fit.
3) Klara's analysis is suspect, but due to her observational skills she isn't really an "unreliable" narrator until we're basically at the crux of the story! Losing half her brain fluid is causing some hallucinations in the barn, and perhaps she wanted Josie to be better so much that in her impaired state she didn't notice the differences. She'd also be looking for the kind of data that an AF could collect and analyze vs more ephemereal aspects of her personality.
4) The limp at the end was odd to me - either the manager is older, it's Josie pretending to be the manager (which seems really convoluted - if she really wished to know what Klara thought about things there would have been easier ways to do it), or it's Klara superimposing aspects of her life.
The entire scene was a bit odd. Why would the manager be searching for her for years, then just chat for a few minutes and stare at a crane? I was expecting her to cut off Klara's head and shove it in her bag at first and connect it to a new body, but even after explaining she can only keep small momentos she never seemed to cut off a lock of hair or anything.
It does seem AF's have gone out of fashion, judging by the store closing, the protestor outside the theatre, and the doctor's conversation at the end about opening up black boxes to explain them to people (which seems completely unnecessary, that info can come from the factories they were made).
Some related thoughts:
Being lifted is explained in the story as genetic modification that has to be done at a certain age and can have side effects (this is fleshed out a few times in the story including the kitchen scene).
The boxes around visual objects were an interesting touch - reminds me of AI/ML trying to identify objects in photos, and this is touched on with her having a hard time adapting to objects moving in the kitchen of the house in the beginning and how everything was kept in an orderly manner in the store.
Her little breakdown outside the theatre shows when her pattern recognition breaks down. There's also an inability for her to parse conflicting data holistically - someone showed mixed emotions has each emotional indicator parsed separately (literally) and then that is brought back together.
Some further thoughts since I can't edit:
re point 1, Klara's personal sun mythos (beggar, raincoat and coffee cup) was developed very early in her life-cycle when she was even more naive than some of her later attribution/causal mistakes. This makes sense given her naivete and personal reliance on sunshine, but to me clearly indicates it's not based in reality.
The beggar & dog just huddling for warmth hypothesis is bolstered by people having coats on in the beginning of the book iirc. They also could have made small movements when she was looking at something else.
re point 2 He worked at a refrigerator factory. While he obviously knows a lot about AFs, this is probably due to him being an engineer & having time on his hands and trying to delve into what was actually going on with the Sal doll and then the more advanced Josie replacement vs the specifics of the engine type of that specific type of construction equipment.
At multiple times in the story he corrects people about not knowing things outside of his field / hobbies, so he's not some omniscient savant.
I was intrigued by this theory and I believe there are certain parts of the novel that hints at this conclusion. I think the strongest evidence to support this theory is how the sun miraculously revived Josie and Josie just goes on to live as a regular person without sickness. Nevertheless, the "Klara perspective" continues to exist after the incident, and it seems like Klara is still acknowledged as Klara by her mother, Rick, and other characters. Can you perhaps elaborate a bit more on how Klara is still present as an AF but Josie is replaced? In addition, how would you explain the final scenes with the manager? Loved the interpretations though!
Really awesome theory! The only one so far that made reconsider that Josy is alive. But this one small detail keep bothering me. It's Klara and Rick's last conversation.
KLARA: "Unfortunately...I don't dare to speak about this matter [the sun helping Josie], even today. It was such a special favor, and if I speak about it to anyone, even just to Rick, my fear is that the help Josie received will be taken back"
RICK: "Then stop there. Don't say anything. I don't want to open up even a tiny chance of her getting ill again.But the doctors always say once you get through the stage she did, you're safe"
If Josie really died and Rick was aware of that, why would he be afraid that Josie becomes ill again? I wish we had more answers.
@Amalia Good point! I didn't remember that part of the Rick/Klara conversation. Like you, I wish we had more answers.
Interesting theory. Although, what about the fact that Josie grew and when she said goodbye to Klara she was now taller than her and had to bend down to embrace her? This would not have been the case with an AF Josie?
@Beth It's a good question: Could a new model AF grow and mature? We assume not, of course, but is that what Ishiguro tells us in the book? This is what I wrote above as part of my "theory": "Key line: We learn about this Portrait from Capaldi: “It won’t be like Sal. The new Josie won’t be an imitation. She really will be Josie. A continuation of Josie.”
This indicates the replacement Josie can grow and change and mature, as we see her do at the end of the novel.
Great theory! This has made me appreciate the ending chapters, which is more than a sad and quiet ending. But I'm just wondering if Rick knows that Josie is replaced, he won't be commenting why he and Josie parted in such a natural way. His comments made it sound like that they grew apart naturally, instead of Josie being replaced AF...
@Nga Ting The ambiguities and elisions in this book are what open the door to "crazy" theories like mine--which is sort of fun. It's hard to know what Rick really knows or thinks, since we're learning his thoughts via the limited Klara. But his comments and actions suggest something IS really different about Josie, and that made me wonder 'what if... ?'
@Nga Ting I don't think Rick knew, and the natural drifting apart could be attributed to it not being the real Josie.
Thank you! I believe you are spot-on in your explanations. I was completely lost at the end, thinking Josie healed and Klara was put in the salvage yard. Your thinking is just brilliant! I think maybe the fluid removed from Klara was needed for the replacement Josie? So much to think about.
Also, did Melania Housekeeper leave when Josie died? Was that when the replacement happened?
Laura, your analysis is BRILLIANT and you made me appreciate this book when I was searching here because I was so disappointed. The replacement Josie is the only way the whole book makes sense. I was wondering why the author had even introduced that interesting possibility if he wasn't going to use it, and to just rely on shamanism or random coincidence. YOU. ARE. SO. SMART. And if you ever start a book club, please oh please invite me :-)
I really like your theory about the ending and it made me appreciate the book a little bit more because otherwise, I thought it was kinda crap.
I think it has some weak spots, e.g. the Mother would probably make sure the "new Josie" would have enough solar energy (while her room was blinded), I also think some of your points can be countered (the Father coming only once - he wasn't really coming over before either, that's how the family functioned after the divorce, it's more bizarre he never showed up when Josie was seriously ill, tho). It's still a really exciting view of the book.
Do you have a theory about the test Klara did at Mr- Capaldi's? After reading your comment, I thought maybe that could be when her mind got downloaded? But they could have done it 'off-screen" later I guess.
Finally, I think another weakness of the theory is that it is way to vague for Ishiguro. He is really good in creepy foreshadowing through the text but the twist is then served directly to the reader with zero subtlety (at least to my knowledge from Never Let Me Go, Buried Giant and Remains of the Day). But maybe he upped his game...
thank you Laura! I felt so dumb to not have even considered these things before reading your review, but then I see that I am not alone. Very interesting analysis!!
Just finished reading the book and your commentary here and I must say you have convinced me! The one thing that really stands out for me was the mother wearing the black dress!
I get notified when there is a new response to my 2022 post, and was startled to see that there seem to be only two comments here (as of Feb. 2024). A year ago, there were more than a hundred comments—many of them offering additional useful insights. Oh well (¯\_(ツ)_/¯).
Wow! What happened? Your post helped so many people!
I don't know what's going on with the info below my post that now says "2 Likes; 4 Comments." I just clicked on the "4 comments" link and ALL the 100+ comments showed up again. So I guess they are there, just hidden by GoodReads (?) If you can see them, too, they're worth a read...
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Courtney
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Jul 29, 2021 05:16AM
Ummm you just made me like the book way more!
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@Courtney I haven't written up my Goodreads review of Klara yet, since I was pretty disappointed by it, actually. But maybe, if I believe my own theory, I'll give it a higher rating. I guess I should read a few Ishiguro interviews now to see if he ever hints at the replacement story twist I'm divining.
Interesting ideas. Makes me appreciate the end more. I wondered how such a brilliant book could end so flatly. Your thoughts make more sense. Thanks. I am hoping my three stars to a four and , who knows, may be five.
This is a succinct theory with *great* clues plucked out to support your theory. This makes me love this novel in the way I've loved all of Ishiguro's in the past. I believed that at one point there was a transition from old Josie to the new but was in disbelief that we as the readers were given none of that to go on! Like Michaela said, without this take this novel would be insanely deflated by the end. Thanks for your contribution! <3
it's fascinating but i have one question. if Josie died and Klara went on to replace her, who is the Klara in the yard? Do you suggest Klara can be splitted in 2 parts, one made by data she collected about Josie which goes into Capaldì's doll and another part which is ... what? So it's like data about Josie are a kind of soul which can be separated from the AF?
@Michefax Yes, I guess I think there was the operating system of "Klara" and separately all the data she was supposed to collect on her person to help her person grow up. That data was uploaded into the Josie replacement avatar and Klara went on until her operating system was so out of date, fading, and glitchy that she was sent to recycling with all the other out-of-date AFs. Same thing that I did with my old beloved iPhone last year, except I hadn't given it a name (-:
Yes I think the data went into an upgraded AF and Klara just went on with her life. Amazing ending really
This theory was genuinely fascinating to read; and honestly, far more interesting than the book itself was.
Omg. At first when I saw your post I'm thinking TOO LONG, however I started to read it and it looks INTERESTING so def. coming back to read it. Thanks. I love his books, kept this one, so maybe I'll do an earlier than usual reread.
Good ideas - I think I am going to adopt them!
Brilliant! You should lead a book group.
I just saw an ad on Goodreads here stating that Klara and the Sun is soon to be a major motion picture. That makes me think that there is indeed the twist that Josie is replaced; or at the very least the movie will answer that question.
I don’t think that Josie can have been replaced as I cannot see how a robot can grow and mature into an adult. I did wonder if the worst had happened and Klara had ‘become Josie’ if she would have remained the same age indefinitely for her mother?
Woaaaaaah. I kinda rolled my eyes as I began reading this, but as I continued, I became more and more convinced. If you're right, then I like the book a LOT more.
I had assumed that the 'picture' was a 'skin' that would replace Klara's existing exterior, but the new Josie would otherwise be Klara's body and brain. If so, this would rule out your theory as there would be no other Klara to be consigned to the junkyard. ...Unless Klara/Josie malfunctioned due to the missing fluid and was junked? But I don't think we should have to invent things like this in order to make sense of the book.
Good, plausible analysis, insight, and theory, Laura. I too wish the author could have been a little more clear (claro/clarus/Klara?). I thought Klara was making up a religion and the Sun was her god, praying to it in the barn to heal Josie. I thought it was coincidence that it 'healed' Josie at the end. It hadn't occurred to me Josie might have been replaced and thus energized by the sun as a clone. The Father at one point was skeptical of being able to replicate Josie exactly, as he pondered whether there was a certain uniqueness in everyone that couldn't be duplicated (as there is in we humans). Were the Beggar Man and Dog also replicated, after they died, and thus rejuvenated by the sun? Way too many unexplained things in this book, despite my liking it. (I still have to find out what a Cootings Machine is!)
@Johnrh Thanks for the new idea about the Beggar Man possibly being rejuvenated by the sun. Would he be one of the defunct, cast-off AFs, or an earlier version of an AF? Or just some mistaken perception of Klara's? As you say way too many unexplained things--but those lacunae do make us think closely about the story, I suppose. I'm surprised they are making a film of it, and wonder whether that format will answer readers' Qs in a satisfying manner.
@Laura, My head is spinning with new ways to interpret this book! That what we were being prepared for ALLLLL book would suddenly not happen never made any sense (in plot terms or in literature ones) and was why everyone has been feeling disappointed. Of course she wouldn't suddenly get completely better after sleeping off an almost death! I can't believe we let the narrator dupe us this time! The mom's reactions and garb are really helpful clues. And the way the whole plot suddenly decays is now a meaningful piece of the whole. Though it is laced with a familiar kids-grow-up (and forget their childhood dreams and friends) trope, what we are really seeing (from the closet) is how the connections Josie maintained fizzle away in the absence of her real life and also her real death--since everyone is denied the possibility to mourn or connect over their loss. What results in a slow drifting away of everyone from the center of Josie's story. And if we are how others love us, then this is the slow dispersal of Josie herself. It reminds me of the slow fade of Klara and makes me see a sort of symmetry there as I watch that final scene of Klara in the Yard and reinterpret her peace.By the way, I don't think it is a plot hole that Klara never explains how the replacement happened. It could have happened without her knowledge, and probably would have. That way, Klara could remain and keep up the appearance that nothing had changed.
@J Your comments about such larger themes as "a slow drifting away of everyone from the center of Josie's story. And if we are how others love us, then this is the slow dispersal of Josie herself" give meaning and intention to my plot theories. Thanks for helping me appreciate the book more!
Thank YOU for helping me appreciate the book more. I am about to reread the end.
"And after that grey sky morning, she grew not only stronger, but from a child into an adult." ! Woah - so she really could have changed in appearance quite a LOT and maybe the technology didn't have to allow for growing robots if they made the replacement adult to being with.
And Melania Housekeeper furiously shutting the blinds, trying to keep the sun out--perhaps she was trying to delay the inevitable, the entrance of the replacement into their lives. Perhaps the adults had been briefed about the exchange that was to be made in the night. Perhaps Melania had even been told, Open the shades...
... Perhaps that is why everyone else rushed upstairs when Klara said the sun was coming out
At least the Mother. When Rick talks to Klara later, he sounds like he believes Josie got better. Which makes it more subtle that Rick became more distant.
Then again, Klara too became distant from Josie.There is so much here at the end in the background about the relationship of humans to artificial life, the kindness mixed with indifference, as even Manager turns around as she walks away and looks past Klara rather than at her.
I also gather that people have become more and more suspicious of the AFs across the timespan covered by the book with AFs gone by the end, possibly made illegal. First, we find out the store closed, then Dr. Capaldi comes to seek evidence to convince the public of something, and finally Manager appears at the end to reminisce about the past. How many replacements would have happened during the "glory days" of AFs? Are they still happening underground?
Another bit of evidence: As Josie gets in the car to go to college, it is noted that her walk has maintained the exact hesitancy from being sick as when Klara first met her in the store. Earlier, Klara had been quizzed on her ability to recreate this walk, first in the store and later by the waterfall. A replacement Josie would remain programmed with this walk, where a real growing Josie might adopt stronger strides as she feels more well.
I also wonder if describing how Manager's walk had changed in the last scene was a pointer too: This is how humans age. This is how AFs age.Which one is Josie?
It isn't just a hint to a puzzle, because even if we accept the solution that Josie got replaced, what is the fate of replacement Josie? Do we relate to her as we relate to Klara? In this same ambiguous way? What will happen to her at the end of her life?
@J I love this observation: "A replacement Josie would remain programmed with this walk, where a real growing Josie might adopt stronger strides as she feels more well."
@Laura: Just a friendly comment to ask you to please use spoiler tags in your comments in the future (e.g. (view spoiler)
I just finished the book and this was the best overall analysis I've seen. A few more points that feed into this:1) While Klara is observant, she also has a fairly limited childlike naivete. Her ascribing agency to the sun in regards to the reuinited couple and the beggar early on is an example. The beggar could have just been cold, didn't sleep the night before, been drunk / high, etc so wasn't moving much and the dog was napping. It could have also just been a really cold day and they were staying bundled up for warmth.
When they go into the city Klara points out that six similar looking buildings are painted different colors so the owners won't get confused, that a mural exists to balance out a larger building that doesn't match the one next to it, etc. Then there's the whole the sun goes to an underground palace in the barn, a bull being swallowed up into the ground, etc.
She's observant and matches patterns, but that doesn't mean that she always comes up with the proper attribution or casuality.
2) Josie's dad at one point mentions that he didn't know much about cars or their engines, yet somehow off of the top of his head knows enough about the workings of a construction machine to have an elaborate means of sabotaging it that required her to drain half of the fluid in her head? They were on a time schedule, but just go to a hardware store and get some drain cleaner or something.
As he pointed out, he wasn't trying to kill her, but trying to limit her functioning so that she couldn't act as a template for the new Josie seems to fit.
3) Klara's analysis is suspect, but due to her observational skills she isn't really an "unreliable" narrator until we're basically at the crux of the story! Losing half her brain fluid is causing some hallucinations in the barn, and perhaps she wanted Josie to be better so much that in her impaired state she didn't notice the differences. She'd also be looking for the kind of data that an AF could collect and analyze vs more ephemereal aspects of her personality.
4) The limp at the end was odd to me - either the manager is older, it's Josie pretending to be the manager (which seems really convoluted - if she really wished to know what Klara thought about things there would have been easier ways to do it), or it's Klara superimposing aspects of her life.
The entire scene was a bit odd. Why would the manager be searching for her for years, then just chat for a few minutes and stare at a crane? I was expecting her to cut off Klara's head and shove it in her bag at first and connect it to a new body, but even after explaining she can only keep small momentos she never seemed to cut off a lock of hair or anything.
It does seem AF's have gone out of fashion, judging by the store closing, the protestor outside the theatre, and the doctor's conversation at the end about opening up black boxes to explain them to people (which seems completely unnecessary, that info can come from the factories they were made).
Some related thoughts:
Being lifted is explained in the story as genetic modification that has to be done at a certain age and can have side effects (this is fleshed out a few times in the story including the kitchen scene).
The boxes around visual objects were an interesting touch - reminds me of AI/ML trying to identify objects in photos, and this is touched on with her having a hard time adapting to objects moving in the kitchen of the house in the beginning and how everything was kept in an orderly manner in the store.
Her little breakdown outside the theatre shows when her pattern recognition breaks down. There's also an inability for her to parse conflicting data holistically - someone showed mixed emotions has each emotional indicator parsed separately (literally) and then that is brought back together.
Some further thoughts since I can't edit:re point 1, Klara's personal sun mythos (beggar, raincoat and coffee cup) was developed very early in her life-cycle when she was even more naive than some of her later attribution/causal mistakes. This makes sense given her naivete and personal reliance on sunshine, but to me clearly indicates it's not based in reality.
The beggar & dog just huddling for warmth hypothesis is bolstered by people having coats on in the beginning of the book iirc. They also could have made small movements when she was looking at something else.
re point 2 He worked at a refrigerator factory. While he obviously knows a lot about AFs, this is probably due to him being an engineer & having time on his hands and trying to delve into what was actually going on with the Sal doll and then the more advanced Josie replacement vs the specifics of the engine type of that specific type of construction equipment.
At multiple times in the story he corrects people about not knowing things outside of his field / hobbies, so he's not some omniscient savant.
I was intrigued by this theory and I believe there are certain parts of the novel that hints at this conclusion. I think the strongest evidence to support this theory is how the sun miraculously revived Josie and Josie just goes on to live as a regular person without sickness. Nevertheless, the "Klara perspective" continues to exist after the incident, and it seems like Klara is still acknowledged as Klara by her mother, Rick, and other characters. Can you perhaps elaborate a bit more on how Klara is still present as an AF but Josie is replaced? In addition, how would you explain the final scenes with the manager? Loved the interpretations though!
Really awesome theory! The only one so far that made reconsider that Josy is alive. But this one small detail keep bothering me. It's Klara and Rick's last conversation.KLARA: "Unfortunately...I don't dare to speak about this matter [the sun helping Josie], even today. It was such a special favor, and if I speak about it to anyone, even just to Rick, my fear is that the help Josie received will be taken back"
RICK: "Then stop there. Don't say anything. I don't want to open up even a tiny chance of her getting ill again.But the doctors always say once you get through the stage she did, you're safe"
If Josie really died and Rick was aware of that, why would he be afraid that Josie becomes ill again? I wish we had more answers.
@Amalia Good point! I didn't remember that part of the Rick/Klara conversation. Like you, I wish we had more answers.
Interesting theory. Although, what about the fact that Josie grew and when she said goodbye to Klara she was now taller than her and had to bend down to embrace her? This would not have been the case with an AF Josie?
@Beth It's a good question: Could a new model AF grow and mature? We assume not, of course, but is that what Ishiguro tells us in the book? This is what I wrote above as part of my "theory": "Key line: We learn about this Portrait from Capaldi: “It won’t be like Sal. The new Josie won’t be an imitation. She really will be Josie. A continuation of Josie.”This indicates the replacement Josie can grow and change and mature, as we see her do at the end of the novel.
Great theory! This has made me appreciate the ending chapters, which is more than a sad and quiet ending. But I'm just wondering if Rick knows that Josie is replaced, he won't be commenting why he and Josie parted in such a natural way. His comments made it sound like that they grew apart naturally, instead of Josie being replaced AF...
@Nga Ting The ambiguities and elisions in this book are what open the door to "crazy" theories like mine--which is sort of fun. It's hard to know what Rick really knows or thinks, since we're learning his thoughts via the limited Klara. But his comments and actions suggest something IS really different about Josie, and that made me wonder 'what if... ?'
@Nga Ting I don't think Rick knew, and the natural drifting apart could be attributed to it not being the real Josie.
Thank you! I believe you are spot-on in your explanations. I was completely lost at the end, thinking Josie healed and Klara was put in the salvage yard. Your thinking is just brilliant! I think maybe the fluid removed from Klara was needed for the replacement Josie? So much to think about.
Also, did Melania Housekeeper leave when Josie died? Was that when the replacement happened?
Laura, your analysis is BRILLIANT and you made me appreciate this book when I was searching here because I was so disappointed. The replacement Josie is the only way the whole book makes sense. I was wondering why the author had even introduced that interesting possibility if he wasn't going to use it, and to just rely on shamanism or random coincidence. YOU. ARE. SO. SMART. And if you ever start a book club, please oh please invite me :-)
I really like your theory about the ending and it made me appreciate the book a little bit more because otherwise, I thought it was kinda crap. I think it has some weak spots, e.g. the Mother would probably make sure the "new Josie" would have enough solar energy (while her room was blinded), I also think some of your points can be countered (the Father coming only once - he wasn't really coming over before either, that's how the family functioned after the divorce, it's more bizarre he never showed up when Josie was seriously ill, tho). It's still a really exciting view of the book.
Do you have a theory about the test Klara did at Mr- Capaldi's? After reading your comment, I thought maybe that could be when her mind got downloaded? But they could have done it 'off-screen" later I guess.
Finally, I think another weakness of the theory is that it is way to vague for Ishiguro. He is really good in creepy foreshadowing through the text but the twist is then served directly to the reader with zero subtlety (at least to my knowledge from Never Let Me Go, Buried Giant and Remains of the Day). But maybe he upped his game...
thank you Laura! I felt so dumb to not have even considered these things before reading your review, but then I see that I am not alone. Very interesting analysis!!
Just finished reading the book and your commentary here and I must say you have convinced me! The one thing that really stands out for me was the mother wearing the black dress!
I get notified when there is a new response to my 2022 post, and was startled to see that there seem to be only two comments here (as of Feb. 2024). A year ago, there were more than a hundred comments—many of them offering additional useful insights. Oh well (¯\_(ツ)_/¯).
Wow! What happened? Your post helped so many people!
I don't know what's going on with the info below my post that now says "2 Likes; 4 Comments." I just clicked on the "4 comments" link and ALL the 100+ comments showed up again. So I guess they are there, just hidden by GoodReads (?) If you can see them, too, they're worth a read...
