Literature & Language Essay: Never Let Me Go Critique Analysis

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Never Let Me Go Critique Analysis
Never Let Me Go is a fiction novel written by a British author, Kazuo Ishiguro. The novel was published in the year 2005. The author uses the historical context of a dystopian society where three characters struggle to put together their shattered past pieces. Tommy, Kathy, and Ruth's childhood events are brought into memory by reconstructing Hailsham, where normal people meet the strangest things (Ishiguro). Through Kathy’s narration, the reader gets to understand that Hailsham school consisted of orphans who used to donate their body parts and organs.
According to the narrators, they still seem to live in the same world that they used to live in during their childhood (Whitehead). The novel is an example of a dystopic society where the powerless has to obey what those in power request of them. In this case, the orphans represent the powerless. Those in power make them donate their organs, something they could not have done out of free will. This is the kind of society presented in the novel “just a backlash” where people have to put up with oppression for them to survive. Joseph Adams defines a dystopian society as one which acts as the antagonist, fighting the protagonist. In Never Let Go, the orphaned children have to fight the desires of those who want them to donate their organs. Hailsham’s headmistress attempts to give the students a normal education, but the project fails, leading to the closure of the school.
In his article, Nathan Snaza points out that Ishiguro criticizes western education. According to the author, Ishiguro proves that western education is not what makes humans be humans. Such is a traditional view of education, and the novel has shown a great level of dehumanizing education instead of humanizing it. Snaza further points out that education is portrayed as a tool of manipulating people into following a dystopian society's regulations. The students are not recognized as humans but rather as spare parts for older humans. Therefore, the education being offered is only an experiment to determine whether they can be real humans (Snaza).
The critic relies on a faulty assumption that the novel is a critique of western education. All that has been done in Hailsham school is to introduce western education to the students. The fact that the project failed does not mean that western education cannot be used in humanizing people. Every attempt made to stop the organ donation program is due to the knowledge obtained through education. Considering that the students are clones, it is clear that the education being offered is helpful and good enough to open their eyes to see the ethical mistakes behind organ donation. As a result, they use education to try to stop the program. These are important pieces of evidence that the critic has overlooked. However, the fact that education does facilitate stopping the organ donation exercise could indicate that it does not fully humanize people. Rather, it is used to manipulate them into following the rules of a dystopian society. If education is a tool for humanizing people, the reader might be tempted to question why they do not succeed in their missions. All they seem to do is waste time chasing clues instead of suing education to develop an exit plan. This shows they are being held captive by the education that should be guiding them to bring change in society.
My argument is that Ishiguro does not criticize western education but rather shows how it has been used to humanize people. I also agree with Snaza’s argument that western education, as presented in the novel, is a tool used to manipulate Hailsham’s’ students into becoming the perfect organ donors. This argument matters a lot in understanding how people analyze concepts in the contemporary world. The author introduces a type of education different from that which is being offered in similar schools. At the end of the novel, education does not seem to help any of the characters escape the oppression. Therefore, this raises questions regarding the real reason why the author chooses to introduce education. Such an act is an allegory to the modern dystopian society where people have the necessary tools to create change yet have not successfully done it. An example is the world of politics, where the masses complain of corrupt leaders but keep electing such leaders back to the office. Such is an indication of how people can create change but do not have the power to implement the changes. The novel is a presentation of society keeps on being oppressed by those in power, yet there is nothing much they can do to reject the oppression.