Analysis of The Theme Through The Portrayal and Action of The Protagonist in Kazuo Ishiguro's 'When We Were Orphans'.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE ....................................................................................................
i
TABLE OF CONTENTS …………………………………………………
ii
ABSTRACT ……………………………………………………………….
iii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study ……………………………………………
Statement of the Problem …………………………………………..
Purpose of the Study ……………………………………………….
Methods of Research ……………………………………………….
Organization of the Thesis …………………………………………
1
3
3
3
3
CHAPTER TWO: ANALYSIS OF THE THEME THROUGH THE
PORTRAYAL AND ACTION OF THE PROTAGONIST IN
KAZUO ISHIGURO’S WHEN WE WERE ORPHANS ……..
4
CHAPTER THREE: CONCLUSION…………………………………….
14
BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………...
17
APPENDICES:
Synopsis of When We Were Orphans .…………………………….
Biography of Kazuo Ishiguro ...…………………………………….
ii
.
18
19
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
ABSTRACT
Dalam skripsi ini, saya ingin membahas tema When We Were Orphans,
sebuah novel karya Kazuo Ishiguro. Saya menggunakan pendekatan instrinsik
dalam pembahasan tema melalui penokohan dan tindakan tokoh utama. Tema
tersebut berhubungan erat dengan kesulitan-kesulitan yang dihadapi dapat
membentuk pribadi seseorang menjadi lebih tabah dan realistis.
Novel When We Were Orphans bercerita tentang seorang yang bernama
Christopher Banks, yang menemukan banyak kesulitan dalam hidupnya.
Kesulitan yang dihadapinya sebagian besar berhubungan erat dengan hilangnya
orang tuanya saat ia masih kecil, proses ia mencari orang tuanya, dan ketika ia
menemukan fakta-fakta tentang orang tuanya. Namun, kesulitan terbesar yang
dirasakannya adalah saat ia kehilangan orang tuanya ketika ia masih kecil dan
mengharuskan dia tinggal bersama bibinya. Kondisi tersebut memaksa
Chtistopher Banks untuk tidak bergantung kepada orang lain dan menjadi lebih
tegar hidup tanpa orang tuanya.
Dalam proses pencarian kedua orang tuanya, kesulitan-kesulitan yang
dihadapi Christopher Banks bisa membuatnya menjadi putus asa. Namun justru
sebaliknya, kesulitan-kesulitan tersebut dapat diselesaikan dengan sikap optimis
dan tekun. Kesulitan hidup yang dihadapi Christopher Banks berpengaruh pada
kehidupannya. Ia bisa menjadi seorang detektif yang hebat di Inggris
iii
dilatarbelakangi keadaan di mana ia kehilangan orang tuanya. Christopher Banks
menjadi termotivasi untuk menyelesaikan kasus teka-teki hilangnya orang tuanya.
Saat mencari orang tuanya, Christopher Banks menemukan fakta-fakta yang
dapat membuat dirinya kecewa. Namun, karena ditempa oleh banyaknya kesulitan
yang pernah dihadapinya membuat ia menjadi lebih tabah. Hal tersebut terjadi karena
pribadi Christopher Banks telah ditempa oleh banyaknya masalah yang membuatnya
menjadi pribadi yang lebih kuat dan lebih realistis dalam melihat kehidupan.
Setelah menganalisis karya Kazuo Ishiguro ini, saya menyimpulkan bahwa
permasalahan yang dihadapi seseorang, jika dihadapi dengan sikap positif, akan
membuat diri orang tersebut menjadi tidak mudah menyerah dan membentuknya
menjadi tegar. Dengan ketegaran yang dimilikinya, seseorang dapat menjadi realistis
dalam menjalani kehidupannya. Saya juga belajar agar dapat menghadapi setiap
persoalan dalam hidup dengan tidak mudah putus asa dan bersikap lebih tegar dan
juga realistis.
iv
APPENDICES
Synopsis of When We Were Orphans
Christopher Banks lives in the privileged haven of the International
settlement of Shanghai. His father works for the branch of a large English
company, Morganbrook and Byatt. His mother is a social activist of sorts, railing
against the opium trade in Shanghai.
When Christopher Banks was nine years old, his father suddenly
disappeared and everybody thought that he was kidnapped. Since his father
disappeared, Christopher Banks had guarded his mother very carefully. He was
afraid his mother would be kidnapped as his father was. But when he was out, his
mother also was missing and he was sure that his mother also had been
kidnapped.
Before his parents were found, in 1911 Christopher Banks had to go to
England to live with his aunt. There he grew up and was determined to become a
detective in his adult life. He was motivated by his failure in the past to guard his
parents which made him eager to clear up the mysterious disappearance of his
parents.
In 1937, Christopher Banks finally returned to Shanghai where at that time
was war happening. Banks tried hard to find his parents and collected information
about them. He thought that his parents would be found in his childhood house or
18
he would get information about his parents there. But actually the owner of the
house had never met his parents. Christopher Banks finally met Inspector Kung
and got the information about the house where his parents were supposed to be
imprisoned.
Christopher Banks did not know the truth until he met his parents’ friend
Uncle Philip, who told him that his father ran off with his mistress, and lived with
her in Hong Kong for a year, but then he died from typhoid two years later in
Singapore. On the other hand, his mother offended an opium warlord who
arranged for her to be kidnapped and kept her. Christopher Banks’ mother agrees
to submit to him, provided that he gave Banks financial support until he grew up.
However, some 22 years later the warlord died and Christopher Banks’ mother
disappeared in war-torn China.
Finally, he found his mother in 1953 in a Hong Kong religious institution
for the mentally disturbed. Still, she did not recognize him. He wanted to be with
her in England but he thought she would prefer to spend the rest of her life in the
west. Finally, Christopher Banks return to England and spend the rest of his life
alone.
Biography of Kazuo Ishiguro
Kazuo Ishiguro was born on 8 November 1954 in Nagasaki, Japan. In
1960, he moved to England and studied in a grammar school for boys in Surrey.
Afterwards, he worked as a grouse-beater for the Queen Mother at Balmoral
before enrolling at the University of Kent, Canterbury, where he studied
Literature and Philosophy. In 1976, he works as a community worker in Glasgow.
19
And after graduating, he was employed as a residential social worker in London.
At the University of East Anglia, he studied creative writing to complete a
Creative Master program. While studying Ishiguro began to write fiction to put
down on papers his early memories of Japan.
Ishiguro has been a fulltime writer since 1982. No sooner had his first
novel been promoted than Ishiguro was nominated by Granta magazine as one of
the 20 ‘best of young British writers’. He was also included in the same
promotion when it was repeated in 1993. Besides writing novels, Ishiguro also
writes short stories published in Introductions 7:Stories by New Writers.
His first novel, A Pale View of Hills, won the Winifret Holtby Prize. His
second novel, An Artist of Floating World, which is the winner of the 1986
Whitbread Book of the year award, Premio Scanno, and was short listed for the
1986 booker prize. The Remains of the Day, won the 1989 Booker Prize, and his
next novel, Unconsoled, was awarded the Cheltenhan Prize in 1995. And When
We Were Orphans was short listed for the 2000 Booker Prize, and Whitbread
Novel of the Year.
Ishiguro has also written two original screenplays for Chanel 4 Television,
broadcast in 1984 A Profile of Arthur J. Manson, and The Gourmet, broadcast in
1986. He was awarded the OBE in 1995 for services to literature and is a fellow
of the Royal Society of Literature. He also was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre
des Arts et des Letters by the French government in 1998. Ishiguro works have
been translated into over 30 languages.
Now Ishiguro lives in London with his wife and daughter. His latest novel
is
Never
Let
Me
Go,
which
20
was
published
in
2005.
i
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Novel is a literary work which is long and complicated. Moreover, like
poetry or drama, novel has its own specialty in conveying a message. Even though
novel is the most complicated genre, it gives more details than the other literary
genres and can make the reader get a clear idea of what the story is about. Peck
and Coyle in Literary Terms And Criticism: A Student’s Guide state that novel is
“a long work with a great amount of detail on every page. They do present all the
complicating text that needs to be taken into account before we can reach any sort
of judgment”. (Peck and Coyle, 1984:103). Therefore, I am of the opinion that
novel is challenging and enjoyable to analyze.
I am interested in analyzing a novel about parents and children, because
I know that parents and children have a special relationship. The novel When We
Were Orphans by Kazuo Ishiguro clearly indicates that. Ishiguro writes a story
about a child who has been facing many difficulties in life since he lost his
parents. In addition, the difficulties shape him to be a tough and realistic person in
facing the world.
1
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
Kazuo Ishiguro is a British citizen of Japanese descent, a writer in the
twentieth century, who always writes “about the relationship between parents and
children. Kazuo Ishiguro uses language, genre and literary form that most
distinguish his work and account for its power and hold over his reader. He has
near perfect ear for rhythms of the English language, and a remarkably lucid prose
style
that
is
almost
unmatched
among
modern
writers”.
(www.
Geocities.com/SoHo/Nook/1082/ Kazuo Ishiguro page.html).
I notice that the theme of the novel is the most prominent element in
When We Were Orphans. According to Shaw in Dictionary of Literary Terms,
theme is “the central idea or dominating idea in literary work. “ (Shaw, 1972:
378). Revealing the theme through the portrayal and action of the protagonist is
very significant. According to Kenney in How to Analyze Fiction “As a major
element in fiction, character is obviously of major importance for the theme”
(Kenney, 1996: 94-95). This fact makes me interested to analyze the theme by
using intrinsic approach as the idea of the story is revealed through portrayal and
action of the character.
Statement of the Problem
In order to analyze the topic chosen, I state the problems as follows:
1.
What is the theme of When We Were Orphans?
2.
How does the portrayal and action of the protagonist help to reveal
the theme?
2
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
Purpose of the Study
The study is done:
1. To analyze the theme of When We Were Orphans.
2. To show how the portrayal and action of the protagonist help to
reveal the theme.
Method of Research
In analysing the literary work, I use library research. First, I read Kazuo
Ishiguro’s When We Were Orphans as my primary text. I also read several books
which are relevant to the topic being discussed; and I use further information from
the internet to support my thesis. Finally, I draw some conclusions of what has
been discussed.
Organization of the Thesis
This thesis begins with the Preface, followed by the Table of Content
and Abstract. This thesis is divided into three parts. It begins with the Introduction
in Chapter One, consisting of Background of the Study, Statement of the Problem,
Purpose of the Study, Method of Research, and Organization of the Thesis.
Chapter Two deals with analysis of theme through portrayal and action of the
protagonist in Kazuo Ishiguro’s When We Were Orphans. Chapter Three is the
Conclusion, which is the last chapter. This thesis ends with the Bibliography and
the Appendices, which contain the synopsis of When We Were Orphans and the
biography of Kazuo Ishiguro.
3
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
CHAPTER THREE
CONCLUSION
In this chapter, I am going to conclude my analysis on the theme of
Kazuo Ishiguro’s When We Were Orphans which is revealed through the
portrayal and action of the protagonist. The theme of the novel is “Difficulties
often shape one to be a tough and realistic person”.
Christopher Banks, who is the protagonist of the novel, faces a lot of
difficulties in his life. He faces the biggest difficulty in his life when his parents
disappear in his childhood. As a result, he must survive by himself. I find out that
Christopher Banks faces his biggest difficulties in optimism and becomes tough.
In the process of finding his parents, Christopher Banks also faces a lot
of difficulties. Yet, the difficulties cannot make him give up to the conditions. On
the contrary, he faces them in optimism and persistence, which makes him tough
in facing the next difficulties in his life.
I am of the opinion that the difficulties which everyone faces can
influence their live. Through the difficulties which always come in our lives, we
are given chances to learn how to deal with the difficulty. Moreover, sometimes
the difficulties make us have motivation in life. Christopher Banks’ becoming a
detective is influenced by the difficulties in his past life, which is losing his
14
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
parents. Christopher Banks wants to solve the mystery of his missing parents, so
he works hard and becomes the most brilliant detective. Through his experience in
solving many cases, he always learns how to solve his own case.
Christopher Banks may be disappointed by the truth about his parents,
but he is tough enough to accept the truth and he turns to be a realistic person. So
I can conclude that the many difficulties which Christopher Banks faces urge him
to become a tough person and turn him to be a realistic person.
Human beings face difficulties in their lives. Moreover, there are two
attitudes in facing the difficulties, which are negative and positive. A man who
faces difficulties negatively cannot survive and he will be led into depression. On
the other hand, a man who can face his difficulties positively will be tough. He
does not give up to difficulties and he can find the way-out of the difficulties.
Through the difficulties, a man can learn a lot about life and is usually shaped to
be a tough and realistic person.
I find that the theme of the novel is related to the title. I assume the title
When We Were Orphans is related to everyone in the world. Just like orphans; we
are struggle searching for some essential point in our lives. We sometimes can
deal with it and move on, but sometimes we are permanently stunted by our loss.
Phrasing the title in the past tense indicates that Christopher Banks has finally
succeeded to find important point in his life and he has moved on. Although the
reality turns out to be far from his hope, he has been successful in finding the
important answer in his life.
No one wants to get difficulties in his or her life. Everyone wants to live
easily and happily. Yet, when difficulty is unavoidable, the important thing is to
15
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
be being optimistic, persistent and never give up as it has been done by
Christopher Banks in When We Were Orphans. For this particular reason, I
consider this novel to be worth reading and analyzing. The best way to deal with
difficulties is to cope with it and move on.
16
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
BIBLIOGRAPHY
References:
Kenney, W. How To Analyze Fiction. New York: Monarch Press., 1996.
Peck, John and Coyle, Martin. Literary Terms And Criticism: A Students’
Guide. London; Macmillan Publishers Ltd., 1984.
Shaw, Harry. Dictionary of Literary Terms. New York: McGraw-hill, Inc.,
1972.
Internet Web Site:
Geocities online. Kazuo Ishiguro Page. 21 February 2005
Primary Text:
Ishiguro, Kazuo. When We Were Orphans. Britain: Faber and Faber
Limited., 2000.
17
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
PREFACE ....................................................................................................
i
TABLE OF CONTENTS …………………………………………………
ii
ABSTRACT ……………………………………………………………….
iii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study ……………………………………………
Statement of the Problem …………………………………………..
Purpose of the Study ……………………………………………….
Methods of Research ……………………………………………….
Organization of the Thesis …………………………………………
1
3
3
3
3
CHAPTER TWO: ANALYSIS OF THE THEME THROUGH THE
PORTRAYAL AND ACTION OF THE PROTAGONIST IN
KAZUO ISHIGURO’S WHEN WE WERE ORPHANS ……..
4
CHAPTER THREE: CONCLUSION…………………………………….
14
BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………...
17
APPENDICES:
Synopsis of When We Were Orphans .…………………………….
Biography of Kazuo Ishiguro ...…………………………………….
ii
.
18
19
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
ABSTRACT
Dalam skripsi ini, saya ingin membahas tema When We Were Orphans,
sebuah novel karya Kazuo Ishiguro. Saya menggunakan pendekatan instrinsik
dalam pembahasan tema melalui penokohan dan tindakan tokoh utama. Tema
tersebut berhubungan erat dengan kesulitan-kesulitan yang dihadapi dapat
membentuk pribadi seseorang menjadi lebih tabah dan realistis.
Novel When We Were Orphans bercerita tentang seorang yang bernama
Christopher Banks, yang menemukan banyak kesulitan dalam hidupnya.
Kesulitan yang dihadapinya sebagian besar berhubungan erat dengan hilangnya
orang tuanya saat ia masih kecil, proses ia mencari orang tuanya, dan ketika ia
menemukan fakta-fakta tentang orang tuanya. Namun, kesulitan terbesar yang
dirasakannya adalah saat ia kehilangan orang tuanya ketika ia masih kecil dan
mengharuskan dia tinggal bersama bibinya. Kondisi tersebut memaksa
Chtistopher Banks untuk tidak bergantung kepada orang lain dan menjadi lebih
tegar hidup tanpa orang tuanya.
Dalam proses pencarian kedua orang tuanya, kesulitan-kesulitan yang
dihadapi Christopher Banks bisa membuatnya menjadi putus asa. Namun justru
sebaliknya, kesulitan-kesulitan tersebut dapat diselesaikan dengan sikap optimis
dan tekun. Kesulitan hidup yang dihadapi Christopher Banks berpengaruh pada
kehidupannya. Ia bisa menjadi seorang detektif yang hebat di Inggris
iii
dilatarbelakangi keadaan di mana ia kehilangan orang tuanya. Christopher Banks
menjadi termotivasi untuk menyelesaikan kasus teka-teki hilangnya orang tuanya.
Saat mencari orang tuanya, Christopher Banks menemukan fakta-fakta yang
dapat membuat dirinya kecewa. Namun, karena ditempa oleh banyaknya kesulitan
yang pernah dihadapinya membuat ia menjadi lebih tabah. Hal tersebut terjadi karena
pribadi Christopher Banks telah ditempa oleh banyaknya masalah yang membuatnya
menjadi pribadi yang lebih kuat dan lebih realistis dalam melihat kehidupan.
Setelah menganalisis karya Kazuo Ishiguro ini, saya menyimpulkan bahwa
permasalahan yang dihadapi seseorang, jika dihadapi dengan sikap positif, akan
membuat diri orang tersebut menjadi tidak mudah menyerah dan membentuknya
menjadi tegar. Dengan ketegaran yang dimilikinya, seseorang dapat menjadi realistis
dalam menjalani kehidupannya. Saya juga belajar agar dapat menghadapi setiap
persoalan dalam hidup dengan tidak mudah putus asa dan bersikap lebih tegar dan
juga realistis.
iv
APPENDICES
Synopsis of When We Were Orphans
Christopher Banks lives in the privileged haven of the International
settlement of Shanghai. His father works for the branch of a large English
company, Morganbrook and Byatt. His mother is a social activist of sorts, railing
against the opium trade in Shanghai.
When Christopher Banks was nine years old, his father suddenly
disappeared and everybody thought that he was kidnapped. Since his father
disappeared, Christopher Banks had guarded his mother very carefully. He was
afraid his mother would be kidnapped as his father was. But when he was out, his
mother also was missing and he was sure that his mother also had been
kidnapped.
Before his parents were found, in 1911 Christopher Banks had to go to
England to live with his aunt. There he grew up and was determined to become a
detective in his adult life. He was motivated by his failure in the past to guard his
parents which made him eager to clear up the mysterious disappearance of his
parents.
In 1937, Christopher Banks finally returned to Shanghai where at that time
was war happening. Banks tried hard to find his parents and collected information
about them. He thought that his parents would be found in his childhood house or
18
he would get information about his parents there. But actually the owner of the
house had never met his parents. Christopher Banks finally met Inspector Kung
and got the information about the house where his parents were supposed to be
imprisoned.
Christopher Banks did not know the truth until he met his parents’ friend
Uncle Philip, who told him that his father ran off with his mistress, and lived with
her in Hong Kong for a year, but then he died from typhoid two years later in
Singapore. On the other hand, his mother offended an opium warlord who
arranged for her to be kidnapped and kept her. Christopher Banks’ mother agrees
to submit to him, provided that he gave Banks financial support until he grew up.
However, some 22 years later the warlord died and Christopher Banks’ mother
disappeared in war-torn China.
Finally, he found his mother in 1953 in a Hong Kong religious institution
for the mentally disturbed. Still, she did not recognize him. He wanted to be with
her in England but he thought she would prefer to spend the rest of her life in the
west. Finally, Christopher Banks return to England and spend the rest of his life
alone.
Biography of Kazuo Ishiguro
Kazuo Ishiguro was born on 8 November 1954 in Nagasaki, Japan. In
1960, he moved to England and studied in a grammar school for boys in Surrey.
Afterwards, he worked as a grouse-beater for the Queen Mother at Balmoral
before enrolling at the University of Kent, Canterbury, where he studied
Literature and Philosophy. In 1976, he works as a community worker in Glasgow.
19
And after graduating, he was employed as a residential social worker in London.
At the University of East Anglia, he studied creative writing to complete a
Creative Master program. While studying Ishiguro began to write fiction to put
down on papers his early memories of Japan.
Ishiguro has been a fulltime writer since 1982. No sooner had his first
novel been promoted than Ishiguro was nominated by Granta magazine as one of
the 20 ‘best of young British writers’. He was also included in the same
promotion when it was repeated in 1993. Besides writing novels, Ishiguro also
writes short stories published in Introductions 7:Stories by New Writers.
His first novel, A Pale View of Hills, won the Winifret Holtby Prize. His
second novel, An Artist of Floating World, which is the winner of the 1986
Whitbread Book of the year award, Premio Scanno, and was short listed for the
1986 booker prize. The Remains of the Day, won the 1989 Booker Prize, and his
next novel, Unconsoled, was awarded the Cheltenhan Prize in 1995. And When
We Were Orphans was short listed for the 2000 Booker Prize, and Whitbread
Novel of the Year.
Ishiguro has also written two original screenplays for Chanel 4 Television,
broadcast in 1984 A Profile of Arthur J. Manson, and The Gourmet, broadcast in
1986. He was awarded the OBE in 1995 for services to literature and is a fellow
of the Royal Society of Literature. He also was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre
des Arts et des Letters by the French government in 1998. Ishiguro works have
been translated into over 30 languages.
Now Ishiguro lives in London with his wife and daughter. His latest novel
is
Never
Let
Me
Go,
which
20
was
published
in
2005.
i
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Novel is a literary work which is long and complicated. Moreover, like
poetry or drama, novel has its own specialty in conveying a message. Even though
novel is the most complicated genre, it gives more details than the other literary
genres and can make the reader get a clear idea of what the story is about. Peck
and Coyle in Literary Terms And Criticism: A Student’s Guide state that novel is
“a long work with a great amount of detail on every page. They do present all the
complicating text that needs to be taken into account before we can reach any sort
of judgment”. (Peck and Coyle, 1984:103). Therefore, I am of the opinion that
novel is challenging and enjoyable to analyze.
I am interested in analyzing a novel about parents and children, because
I know that parents and children have a special relationship. The novel When We
Were Orphans by Kazuo Ishiguro clearly indicates that. Ishiguro writes a story
about a child who has been facing many difficulties in life since he lost his
parents. In addition, the difficulties shape him to be a tough and realistic person in
facing the world.
1
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
Kazuo Ishiguro is a British citizen of Japanese descent, a writer in the
twentieth century, who always writes “about the relationship between parents and
children. Kazuo Ishiguro uses language, genre and literary form that most
distinguish his work and account for its power and hold over his reader. He has
near perfect ear for rhythms of the English language, and a remarkably lucid prose
style
that
is
almost
unmatched
among
modern
writers”.
(www.
Geocities.com/SoHo/Nook/1082/ Kazuo Ishiguro page.html).
I notice that the theme of the novel is the most prominent element in
When We Were Orphans. According to Shaw in Dictionary of Literary Terms,
theme is “the central idea or dominating idea in literary work. “ (Shaw, 1972:
378). Revealing the theme through the portrayal and action of the protagonist is
very significant. According to Kenney in How to Analyze Fiction “As a major
element in fiction, character is obviously of major importance for the theme”
(Kenney, 1996: 94-95). This fact makes me interested to analyze the theme by
using intrinsic approach as the idea of the story is revealed through portrayal and
action of the character.
Statement of the Problem
In order to analyze the topic chosen, I state the problems as follows:
1.
What is the theme of When We Were Orphans?
2.
How does the portrayal and action of the protagonist help to reveal
the theme?
2
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
Purpose of the Study
The study is done:
1. To analyze the theme of When We Were Orphans.
2. To show how the portrayal and action of the protagonist help to
reveal the theme.
Method of Research
In analysing the literary work, I use library research. First, I read Kazuo
Ishiguro’s When We Were Orphans as my primary text. I also read several books
which are relevant to the topic being discussed; and I use further information from
the internet to support my thesis. Finally, I draw some conclusions of what has
been discussed.
Organization of the Thesis
This thesis begins with the Preface, followed by the Table of Content
and Abstract. This thesis is divided into three parts. It begins with the Introduction
in Chapter One, consisting of Background of the Study, Statement of the Problem,
Purpose of the Study, Method of Research, and Organization of the Thesis.
Chapter Two deals with analysis of theme through portrayal and action of the
protagonist in Kazuo Ishiguro’s When We Were Orphans. Chapter Three is the
Conclusion, which is the last chapter. This thesis ends with the Bibliography and
the Appendices, which contain the synopsis of When We Were Orphans and the
biography of Kazuo Ishiguro.
3
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
CHAPTER THREE
CONCLUSION
In this chapter, I am going to conclude my analysis on the theme of
Kazuo Ishiguro’s When We Were Orphans which is revealed through the
portrayal and action of the protagonist. The theme of the novel is “Difficulties
often shape one to be a tough and realistic person”.
Christopher Banks, who is the protagonist of the novel, faces a lot of
difficulties in his life. He faces the biggest difficulty in his life when his parents
disappear in his childhood. As a result, he must survive by himself. I find out that
Christopher Banks faces his biggest difficulties in optimism and becomes tough.
In the process of finding his parents, Christopher Banks also faces a lot
of difficulties. Yet, the difficulties cannot make him give up to the conditions. On
the contrary, he faces them in optimism and persistence, which makes him tough
in facing the next difficulties in his life.
I am of the opinion that the difficulties which everyone faces can
influence their live. Through the difficulties which always come in our lives, we
are given chances to learn how to deal with the difficulty. Moreover, sometimes
the difficulties make us have motivation in life. Christopher Banks’ becoming a
detective is influenced by the difficulties in his past life, which is losing his
14
Universitas Kristen Maranatha
parents. Christopher Banks wants to solve the mystery of his missing parents, so
he works hard and becomes the most brilliant detective. Through his experience in
solving many cases, he always learns how to solve his own case.
Christopher Banks may be disappointed by the truth about his parents,
but he is tough enough to accept the truth and he turns to be a realistic person. So
I can conclude that the many difficulties which Christopher Banks faces urge him
to become a tough person and turn him to be a realistic person.
Human beings face difficulties in their lives. Moreover, there are two
attitudes in facing the difficulties, which are negative and positive. A man who
faces difficulties negatively cannot survive and he will be led into depression. On
the other hand, a man who can face his difficulties positively will be tough. He
does not give up to difficulties and he can find the way-out of the difficulties.
Through the difficulties, a man can learn a lot about life and is usually shaped to
be a tough and realistic person.
I find that the theme of the novel is related to the title. I assume the title
When We Were Orphans is related to everyone in the world. Just like orphans; we
are struggle searching for some essential point in our lives. We sometimes can
deal with it and move on, but sometimes we are permanently stunted by our loss.
Phrasing the title in the past tense indicates that Christopher Banks has finally
succeeded to find important point in his life and he has moved on. Although the
reality turns out to be far from his hope, he has been successful in finding the
important answer in his life.
No one wants to get difficulties in his or her life. Everyone wants to live
easily and happily. Yet, when difficulty is unavoidable, the important thing is to
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be being optimistic, persistent and never give up as it has been done by
Christopher Banks in When We Were Orphans. For this particular reason, I
consider this novel to be worth reading and analyzing. The best way to deal with
difficulties is to cope with it and move on.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
References:
Kenney, W. How To Analyze Fiction. New York: Monarch Press., 1996.
Peck, John and Coyle, Martin. Literary Terms And Criticism: A Students’
Guide. London; Macmillan Publishers Ltd., 1984.
Shaw, Harry. Dictionary of Literary Terms. New York: McGraw-hill, Inc.,
1972.
Internet Web Site:
Geocities online. Kazuo Ishiguro Page. 21 February 2005
Primary Text:
Ishiguro, Kazuo. When We Were Orphans. Britain: Faber and Faber
Limited., 2000.
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