Children placed in adult worlds. Explore the presentation of childhood in Never Let Me Go and The Cement Garden.

Ian McEwans The Cement Garden (published in 1978), is a dark and negative vision of childhood, exploring child abuse, loneliness and the absence of parental authority in an urban family home. Meanwhile, Kazuo Ishiguros Never Let Me Go(published in 2005), is an exploration of what it is to be human and the ethics of genetic engineering in which childhood plays a fundamental role in establishing the importance of maturation. Ishiguro was clearly influenced by the serious ethical questions surrounding genetic engineering in the 1990s, e.g, Dolly the Sheep. On the other hand, McEwan takes a superficial, urban family to explore hidden darkness, in what has become his trademark style. Childhood is certainly presented negatively through the use of abuse in both novels. McEwans dark twist is introduced early in The Cement Garden. He takes a seemingly innocent game of doctors and Nurses and reinvents it in the light of contemporary concerns about space exploration, the space race and draws upon popular sci-fi movies of the period, notably the first Star Wars movie in 1977. This game takes on a sinister twist when it emerges a scientific exploration is actually sexual. Julie, Jack and Sue play the game, mimicking German accents, imitating the Nazis. It turns out to be exceedingly disturbing. The incestuous abuse is instigated by an older sibling as Julie stroked it with a moistened finger and a small tremor along Sues boney spine, a horrendous description of Julie touching her sisters genitals, informing the reader of the laws of incest and the onset of sexual maturation. We have a dark realisation of uncivilised children, which is a complete contrast to parenting today, with the constant media focus in parenting. It also shows the lack of adult supervision. McEwan takes a stereotypical period of innocence and subverts it, shocking the reader. Another act of abuse is Sue and Julie dressing Tom up as a girl. The fact that Julie says we should let him be a girl if he wants to confuses the reader, who is unaware of her intention. Transgender roles are seen also in reality through David Bowie who is androgynous. For him, wearing female clothes was experimental which shows that he did not conform to the Macho culture. Sue and Julies dressing up of Tom evokes the Feminist Movement. Toms inclination to transvestism1 represents Julies ability to manipulate people, have total control over the family and also how the children are subject to abuse repetitively. Julie seized hold of him in the living room and tore his clothes off, represents physical abuse within the family. Abuse is also present in Never Let Me Go where we witness Tommy being bullied incessantly, highlighting the common events of childhood where peerto-peer teasing is inevitable. Highlighting the torrid childhood Tommy endured is seen in the physical bullying kept coming, which was fraught with melancholy and his inability to create acquaintances with the other students apart from Kathy. Tommys outbursts are also an exploration of his humanity, frustration and desire to be a part of things. As Ishiguro himself declares, the novel is an exploration of human nature.2 Tommy feels isolated and left out, explaining his tantrums. An evident comparison between the two novels is the strictness of authority and control as Never Let Me Go represents the strict authority of the guardians. A passage representing the authoritative role the guardians take is seen in Didnt we all dream from time to time about one guardian or other bending the rules and doing something special for us? It also shows the extent to which the

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strict rules at Hailsham discourage human intimacy; any special relationship with a guardian is strictly forbidden and must be conducted in secret. At another point in the novel, Kathy explains that students at Hailsham do not hug each other much, highlighting the strictness. Kathys pragmatic descriptions of the fourth donation illustrates the clones acceptance of their fate. Their acquiescence is arguably the tragedy of the novel as Ishiguro explores the nature (and potential abuse) of the role of authority. However, in The Cement Garden, the lack of parental control is conspicuous after the death of the father and mother. It prevents them from experiencing a common childhood and therefore, they are unable to learn or comprehend the ways of the adult world, leaving them further isolated. Even when the mother is alive she is too meek to assert her authority.3 Dereks concern at Tom being dressed up is highlighted within Hes an odd one your little brother; Putting on girls dresses. This is a representation of societys disapproval towards transvestitism and the fact that Derek says it will be hard for Tom in the future reinforces the childrens inability to morally think what is right or wrong. Free of any kind of control, the children are incapable of giving any proper structure to their existence4 indicates the need for parental control and guidance. In marked contrast, the children in Never Let Me Go are strictly controlled by the Guardians, creating an idealised, protected vision of childhood. This contrasts with the complete lack of parental authority in The Cement Garden resulting in the foreshadowed incest between Jack and Julie. In England, laws about incest show that it is illegal and can lead up to 14 years of imprisonment, emphasising the severity of Jack and Julies actions. McEwan illustrates a clear relationship between Jack and Julie in we hugged each other and our arms and legs were in such a tangle that we fell sideways on to the bed; This again enhances the comprehension that having no guardian or elderly person can result in incidents and situations as repulsive and psychologically damaging as this. Furthermore it also connotes the importance of childhood as they have to be fostered and told what is right or wrong. Maturity is explored within The Cement Garden, where Julie is mature enough to deal with the burden of her mother dying. The reader understands that she is on the cusp of adulthood as she takes charge of the household, yet the fact that she dresses Tom as a baby, belittling him, indicates perhaps her lack of maturity. Julie is rendering Tom infantile, preventing him from growing-up. It is comprehensible that she is exerting control on him. This again highlights the lack of parental control within the family who do not have someone mature enough to deal with a family full of children. Tommys tantrums in Never Let Me Go indicate his lack of maturity to deal with his exasperation. As a boy, he is ostracized by the other students because of his short temper and immaturity. However, Tommys behaviour as a foot-stomping and arm-flinging toddler is all the more troubling as he is thirteen years old. Conversely, in The Cement Garden, Julies maturity is actually indicated by the amount of responsibility she possesses because Tom is dependent on her to fulfil the motherly role, as stated in Tom had made up his mind that Julie was to take care of him now. His love and devotion to his mother is transferred onto his sister, which is why he regresses back to a baby. McEwan clearly indicates the dependence that a child has for a person who is in power and control. Clichs of motherhood is indicated within what am I going to do with the two of you, further reinforcing Julies position and status. Jack is the second oldest of the family but his maturity is undoubtedly questioned when he is jealous of Tom getting a lot of attention from Julie, representing McEwans portrayal of childhood to be encircled with jealousy and petty arguments.
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When Jack partakes in the repulsive Doctors and Nurses game, him, he says knowingly, knowing nothing highlights that he is trying to reflect this maturity but he does not really know what he is actually doing. His lack of comprehension to what is occurring elucidates that he is still not within the remit of being considered as an adult. Despite the novels focus on childhood, the transition of the main characters from childhood to adulthood is unquestionable as we see characters like Jack from The Cement Garden enter adolescence. This is indicated through their sexual discovery. This is evident within The Cement Garden where Jack expresses his admiration towards his sisters beauty. He clearly wants to be part of Julies world as she is elder and beautiful. Sexual curiosity is undoubtedly emphasised as Jack masturbated each morning and afternoon, indicating his self-absorption and egocentricity. Jack and Julie play parental roles as Jack moves from wanting Julie as a mother to wanting her as a wife, clearly evoking the Oedipus complex. Meanwhile in Never Let Me Go, Kathy herself is anxious that she will not have sex with anyone as we were all pretty worried and excited about sex; representing her maturation. Throughout the novel, there are discussions about umbrella sex, exploring the ideas of homophobia. This is an indication of the importance of educating young adults about sex. Kathys curiosity is clearly highlighted by her statement: I did it quite a lot on my own. She herself wants to experience sex because of rumours and her own confusions about it, indicated by If you hadnt done it, you ought to and quickly. This accentuates the plentiful descriptions of sexual maturation within the two novels, evaluating the way in which children learn about the ways of the adult world, love and develop their sexual maturation. The reader detects a great degree of melancholy in The Cement Garden, where isolation is a key theme. Jack and his family have lived a life without any close friends as No one ever came to visit us reinforces the level of loneliness in which they live in. This novel was incidentally published in the year before Margaret Thatcher took power in Britain and the socio-political climate of deprivation reflects the moral deprivation of the children. Often, the protagonists of his novels find themselves lost in a world unfamiliar to them, isolated,5 accentuating the fact that these children are separated from society, undoubtedly degrading them. The disintegration of the family is clearly caused by the death of parents,6 strengthening their loneliness and the lacking of an authoritative figure to help control the family. Never Let Me Go also highlights the way the clones are exempt from society. Through this quote I see the same thing so often these days, but back then I hadnt seen it before, Ishiguro highlights the isolation of their lives at Hailsham, the Cottages and its mundaneness. This relates back to what Kathy said in Chapter 10 about how they had never been beyond the grounds of Hailsham. The mind-set Hailsham has ingrained into them caused them to become unfamiliar with the outside world. The idea of being isolated from society is well indicated within Never Let Me Go where it is questioned whether the clones are human at all. This highlights the elements of dystopian fiction as they are in a nightmarish world, mistreated and looked down upon. Ishiguro is asking about the monstrosity of mankind as the clones are clearly dehumanised. Kathys acceptance in we were different from the normal people outside questions human value. Ishiguros novel presents a dystopian society that focuses on the search for identity,7 portraying the turn of the century fears and the ethical concerns present during the time. Ishiguro was
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influenced by what he saw as his novel was written in 2005, after the developments in biomedical science including the Vacanti Mouse in 1997, which was used by geneticists to grow a human ear. Dolly The Sheep in 1996 also caused many ethical concerns. The children in Never Let Me Go are clearly valued as objects; their fate is determined by others and was decided already by the guardians as Miss Lucy tells the children ruthlessly your lives are set out for you, emphasising the lack of equality and their say in their own lives. This novel clearly portrays a secluded life where humans are treated as commodities, objects for sale, highlighting the disastrous childhood they face. Children who are different like Kathy, Tommy, and Ruth are marginalised, pushed to the edge of society to indicate isolation and none of you will be film stars is a clear representation of their lack of a future. In conclusion, both writers represent similar aspects of childhood as abuse is frequently portrayed. Childlike behaviour, lack of maturity along with the occurrence of sexual maturation is mentioned when discussing the presentation of childhood. Isolation is also heavily explored, seen by the way in which the Hailsham students live and are not taught proper life skills, signalling their separation from society. Meanwhile, McEwans work emphasises the problems of contemporary society as the family is highly dysfunctional.8 Parental authority disappears after the parents death as the household lacks any kind of rules,9 fully emphasising the negative presentation of childhood within both novels.

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Bibliography:

1) Kazuo Ishiguro: Never Let Me Go (Faber and Faber) 2) Ian McEwan: The Cement Garden (Vintage 1997) by Ian McEwan 3) is.muni.cz/th/105089/pedf_m/Diplomova_prace.doc 4) http://is.muni.cz/th/361087/ff_b/THESIS.txt 5) http://is.muni.cz/th/216729/ff_b/BC_McEwan.Childhood.pdf 6)