Comparative Study


a particular duty. This duty, of course, is to accept the fact that they can never have a normal life and must die to allow others to live. All the Hailsham students eventually come to terms with the path that has been set out for them. Ruth says that after five years as a carer, she was ready to become a donor: ‘After all, it’s what we’re supposed to be doing, isn’t it?’ The clones have no free will. They cannot choose how they want to live or die but they have been raised to believe that this is the only option and that by accepting their role as donors, they are fulfilling some sort of higher purpose.


Family


Although they never really discuss it, the clones are keenly aware of their parentless status. When they discuss the ‘possibles’ – the models from whom they might be cloned – they wonder if the models were likely to be ‘normal parent’ age. But at that point in the conversation, the clones sense they are ‘near territory [they] didn’t want to enter, and the arguments would fizzle out’. It is as if they know that if the conversation goes in that direction, it will be too painful for them to bear.


The guardians play a double role in that they are both teachers and, to a limited extent, parents. However, they are raising their charges to die willingly by donating their organs, so they have none of the selfless, unconditional love of real parents. Because they have no family, the students of Hailsham are forced to rely on each other. Their relationships, which may merely have been close in a real boarding school, become incredibly important to them as a result. Hailsham is their home and, like siblings who may squabble but remain connected, the students’ shared experiences in Hailsham keep their bond strong throughout their short lives.


Despite their closeness and the guardians’ care, the students are always destined to be denied the loving embrace of family. One of the most touching moments in the book occurs when Madame comes across the young Kathy cradling a pillow to her chest, swaying and singing along to ‘Never Let Me Go’ on her precious tape. Kathy imagines the line ‘Baby, baby, never let me go’ is about a woman who miraculously has a baby after being told she could never have children. Madame cries as she watches Kathy and it is only a couple of years later that Tommy tells Kathy he believes Madame reacted this way because she thought it was tragic that Kathy was destined to be childless. At the time of the conversation, neither Kathy, Tommy nor any of the other students are ‘particularly bothered’ at the prospect of not having children. Indeed, some of them view it as a positive in that they can ‘have sex without worrying about all of that’. The students are not encouraged to consider family life and lifelong relationships as an option for them. It is only later, when they are older, that some of the students hold out a vain hope that if they can prove they are truly in love they might be granted an exemption from donation and may be able to stay together. This hope never materialises, however, and the students end their lives as they began them, relying on one another for care, companionship and all that goes with family bonds.


Cultural context in Brooklyn


Setting and social class The two settings in the film Brooklyn present us with two different views on social class. Ireland of the 1950s is a place where there is little chance of any real social mobility, whereas America offers the opportunity for those who work hard to make a new life for themselves.


Life in Ireland in the 1950s offers limited opportunities for young people. Eilis is an intelligent, hard-working young woman but the best job she can get is part-time work in Miss Kelly’s grocery.


400 King Lear and Comparatives


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