These pages in Atonement were very important because they set up how the rest of the novel will foreshadow previous factors. The first being in Chapter 9, when Cecilia is getting ready for the dinner with her family and brother. Cecilia discovers the twins, Jackson and Pierrot fighting in the hallway over a pair of socks. Cecilia helps them by substituting the missing pair of socks with that of Briony’s socks. These young twins foreshadow the young soldiers who will be stuck in the middle of a war zone. “Pierrot said, ‘Actually, we’d prefer to go home.’ ” (Page 94). The twins and the two soldiers desire nothing more than to find a way back home. However, the only obstacle in their way is the fact that they have no idea how to get home nor do they fully know where home is. Then of course at the end of the chapter, Cecilia is given Robbie’s note by Briony, and is enlightened of her oppressed love for Robbie Turner. Nevertheless, Cecilia is aware that the letter didn’t come with an envelope, hypothesizing that Briony had read Robbie’s letter first before she handed it it to her sister. What captures the reader’s attention in Chapter 10, is the first two sentences: “The very complexity of her feelings confirmed Briony ion her view that she was entering an arena of adult emotion and dissembling from which her writing was bound to benefit. What fairytale ever had so much by way of contradiction?” (Page 106). I should also note, that this is also the chapter where Briony catches Cecilia and Robbie making love in the library, because (let’s be honest here for a second) there is nothing, NOTHING worse than losing your innocence from witnessing your sister having sex with someone else. This quote informs the readers that Briony has now finally found a way to enter adulthood. As difficult as this moment is for Briony, it this very incident in which Briony believes that her imagination and storytelling will lead her to find the passage to adulthood. It is for this very reason that Briony trusts her literary instincts more than her sensory perception. For instance, when Briony witness the ‘c’ word in Cecilia’s letter, she connects that exact word to the ‘rape’ or ‘attack’ when she witnessed Robbie and her sister together. Yet, in order for Briony to enter the adult world, she will have to forget that Robbie and Cecilia are real people, and instead uses them as a source of material for her own imagination. Chapter 11, covers Robbie’s point of view in the library with Cecilia. When their lovemaking is interrupted by Briony, Robbie is beyond embarrassed but doesn’t believe Briony actually trusts what she saw. “Propelled from the depths of ignorance, silly imagining and girlish rectitude, she had come to call a halt.” (Pages 130 – 131). Robbie falsely assumes that Briony is too young to understand that nothing will come of the incident in the library. This is Robbie’s tragic flaw. Finally, Chapter 12, is seen through the eyes of Emily Tallis. After the entire family splits up into search parties to find the missing twins, Emily debates whether she should call the police or not. Emily is depicted to not be socially attached or involved in the twin’s disappearance. From Briony’s point of view, she finally recognizes that her mother lacks involvement. “How like her, to sit in the room like this, and not ‘joining in.’ ” (Page 141). Briony seems to become aware of her mother’s failure as a protector during this fragile time of lost innocence.
So I think this chapter was a little less interesting to read at first because it was played out pretty much exactly the same way it was in the movie. Regardless, seeing some of the characters’ thoughts throughout the play did amplify it a little bit—for example, I liked seeing Robbie’s nervousness and how he was watching Briony so closely during the dinner party. He has his own thoughts about Briony’s maturity level, and does not know whether or not to be scared of her.
I liked the conversation between Cecelia and Robbie in the library as well. It reminded me of something you would see in a typical romance movie, in a way that I can’t really explain, but I liked it. Then, as they gradually started getting used to being more sexual for the first time, it occurred to me that Cecelia and Robbie really did lose their innocence in a way, whereas Briny was overreacting a bit. But their transition was a good one.
Towards the end, I was getting a little less sympathetic towards Briony. Yes, she was still a little sore about the play, and she was nervous about what she just saw, but she was being way too testy with Robbie, and Cecelia was right in saying that she was being a “prima donna” for being mad about the fact that the twins were wearing her socks. But her defensiveness of Jackson when Robbie was trying to talk to him was more justifiable, because she did it out of fear of Robbie.
Chapter 12:
So here we have another completely Emily-centric chapter. Just like he did in Chapter 6, McEwan’s writing does a good job of giving the reader a picture of just how isolated Emily feels. It was interesting to get some insight into her thoughts during this chapter; while I found her to be too harsh in the dinner scene, I can now understand her side better. I completely understood her sense of sibling rivalry, and it made Hermione even more unlikable—because Emily is right in being angry that her sister just left her with this burden to deal with while she goes off and has fun.
Still, I do think that Emily is somewhat judgmental at points in this chapter. While I do see Jack’s helping with Robbie’s tuition in a new light—and really do not respect him at all at this point given how many problems he’s indirectly given Cecelia—I still think that Emily is being too harshly critical of her daughter’s life choices. And all I could do was just shake my head as she gave an approving assessment of Paul as a potential husband for Cecelia. It’s just…no! She could not have been more off!
Anyway, this was another interesting part that was not in the movie.
These pages lead to the rape, Briony's crime and Robbie's bad turn in life. Clues foreshadowing the rape is Lola's shock at a physical assult on pg. 119. Then to prove that it was Marshall Robbie notices that there is a scratch running down his nose. Later on he declares that he helped get the boys off of Lola. Strange if they weren't with Lola at the time it happened, they were with Cecilia.Then Robbie finds it strange the Marshall never mentioned Lola getting hurt is it was very serious.
Then in this chapter the two love interests declare their love for each other. Awe but then they decide to make love and Briony walks in on them. Of course they are embarassed and want to act like nothing ever happened. But just by not speaking Briony comes to the conclusion that she had just saved her sister from an assult. This had me thinking that there is a lack of communication in the family as Cecilia had earlier mentioned that the family was spread apart and she kept it whole. Then the climax happens the twins have run away and Robbie goes on looking for them by himself and later comes to regret that descion many times in his life.
I'd have to say that the beginning of this chapter was where what's both so annoying and cool about Ian McEwan's writing style is revealed. His scene with Cecillia effectively doing nothing at all is described so well and in such detail that it reveals so much more about her character. He could have said; Cecillia was an indecisive person with a colorful past, but instead he decided to create this elaborate scene where she tries on different clothing and goes back and forth and can never make up her mind to reveal deeper things about her character. As much as I hated slogging through those paragraphs I came out with a much deeper understanding of who Cecillia is. Then of course Robbie's letter arrives and the barrier is broken between Cecillia and Robbie that has been set up by their differing classes. The one thing that i don't really understand is why neither Robbie nor Cecillia decide to address the fact that Briony both read Robbie's letter and witnesses them in the library. They should have at least talked to her if not to avoid a scandal then at least to try and minimize how traumatized Briony must be. I mean she think she saw Robbie raping Cecillia!! That's traumatizing stuff. I also think the parrallels between Marshall and Lola's relationship and Robbie and Cecillia's are interesting. While one is completely wrong and the other okay the one that's totally vile is not being attended to while the okay one is being treated with hatred.
Throughout this section you can feel the tension mounting. The dinner table atmosphere starts off uncomfortable and only gets worse from there. This scene shows how disconnected the Tallis family is. Emily is unattached to both her children and her guests. She feels no obligation to please or even feign an interest in her guests. But Emily is appalled when Briony makes an unsavory remark. Frankly, I think Emily is lucking that her children talk to the house guests; one would have guessed they would pick up their mother's aloofness.
But the giant elephant in the room, and the source of immense tension, is Cecilia, her letter, and what happened in the library. Briony may not truly understand Cecilia and Robbie's relationship, but she knows that such a relationship shouldn't exist. She makes pointed jabs about Robbie and her sister's mounting list of sins and wrongdoing.
But that tension doesn't get a chance to erupt. The twins interject with their own drama. They are left in this big, lonely house and stuck in a situation that no one has ever explained to them. Their choice to run away and Robbie's choice of search partner make all the difference. Soon enough Briony's barbed comments and self inflated maturity will cause the dam to break.
In chapter eleven, the Tallis family and all their acquaintances sit down to a painfully awkward dinner. Cecilia and Robbie are still thinking about what happened in the library; Cecilia is worried that Briony will say something about the letter and Briony is worrying about if she should say anything. The dinner then ends with the twins running away without any warning. The reader hears about the search first from the perspective of Emily. Emily seems completely calm throughout all of it. She doesn’t worry enough to even call the police to help look for them. She is more worried about Jack getting home on time.
In this section my complete admiration of McEwan's writing wavers a little. The passage about Cecilia trying on dresses makes sense. It perfectly encapsulates her indecisiveness and gives an undertone that perhaps she is nervous for this dinner for some reason. Maybe because Robbie is coming we are never sure. What I thought was a little unncecessary was to dedicate about three page to Cecilia finding socks for Pierrot and Jackson. I guess he can't turn his descriptive writing gene on and off like a machine. Also when they were talking about the dinner roast I couldn't have cared less. Especially when they wanted to do it just for Leon; it's too goddamn hot in this scene for a roast, don't cater to that guy; he's such a tool. Every time Leon talks, in my mind all I can think is "shut up no one cares." I'm not sure if McEwan's intent was to have everything that leaves Leon's mouth uninteresting drivel but that is how it is perceived in my brain. Conversely whenever Paul Marshall speaks, my brain goes on *predator alert* and reads all of his dialogue in my best rapist impression. Even when he offers a drink (which sounds like mud in a martini glass) I imagine him thinking 'I put roofies in one of these glasses. Guess which one!' Speaking of rape, Lola did a wonderful job of inflating Briony's false perception on Robbie. By labeling him a "maniac" she opened so many doors for Briony's imagination. And of course Briony walks in on Cecilia and Robbie (just when it was getting good) because what else could happen? In that giant old house of course she stumbles in to the dark recesses of the library, looking for her sister, only to find her in a compromising position.
^THE ABOVE COMMENT IS FOR THE OTHER SECTION. I APPARENTLY DO NOT KNOW HOW TO READ
It was interesting to hear Emily's thoughts in this section. Her thoughts on people rather than the sounds of the house. We had heard only minute details of Emily and her sister but it was fascinating to hear the full extent of the resentment that flows beneath Emily's calm composure. Her stolen childhood possessed and seized by the mother of the children who are now underneath her own roof. Eating her food once again stealing the spotlight from her at dinner table. Drama. Her reaction is what was peculiar. she hugged Lola tighter even as she resented her more. Crazy. Perhaps she secretly felt like she was making her sister feel better by taking care of her kids. Oh and Emily and her husband relationship is god-awful. Staying in the city for extended periods of time talking on the phone every once and awhile. Their relationship is barely functional. It was weird learning all these things about Emily, it was almost like we shouldn't knows these fact but she was resign to the fact that we now do. I also thought it was shocking how unsupportive she is/was of Robbie and her husband supporting Robbie. This section made it clear how she could be so quick to believe that Robbie is some kind of sex maniac.
It’s clear from the first page of Chapter 11 that nobody is going to enjoy this dinner. Hot, humid air described as “suffocating” paired with heavy food immediately creates a nauseating atmosphere. I think McEwan was smart to make everyone physically uncomfortable even before they start talking—the sensory description makes the scene more real.
I really don’t like Paul Marshall, and it’s not just because he’s hurting Lola. What makes him all the more repulsive to me is the fact that in the eyes of the other character’s, he’s attractive. Lola is confused, but I think there’s sexual attraction there. Emily is attracted by his suitability (i.e. wealth and status) as a match for Cecilia. He seems to just be best buddies with everyone—so of course, when he pipes in about the twins attacking Lola, nobody thinks he’s lying. I’m bothered by the credibility the other characters give him, just because he has money. I find the way he makes his money to be almost pathetic, making chocolate from artificial crap and sugar to save money. Emily (though I give her credit for recognizing her thought as vulgar) fantasizes about “what comfort, what untroubled years might flow from these cheap vats,” (143). She doesn’t care at all that Paul lacks any notion of integrity (he goes around boasting about his profiting from low quality products- today, his product wouldn’t even be marketable as chocolate because it lacks the proper percentage of cocoa butter… okay I’m getting off topic), but he’s got the money, and that’s all that matters. I have to wonder if Emily would approve of him making money illegally—would theft be acceptable? gambling? selling whatever drugs they had at that time to underage children? I think she could justify anything by simply looking in the other direction. Oh- wait- money isn’t the only thing, she of course takes looks into account- why she wishes his face looked like a wedge of cheese instead of its current appearance as an over furnished bedroom is beyond me.
Before this reading, Jack Tallis was more an unspoken force than an actual family member. His presence, or even just reminders of his existence (e.g. the painting of the uptight aristocrats) bring a sense of order to the household. His relationship with Emily is quite sad, so tired and strained. When they talk on the phone, they’re just going through the motions; the call is just another scheduled task. They talk about their day in passing, avoiding any point of confrontation at all. Even when Emily admits to finding the “extravagant” number of casualties recorded in his file to be “a form of self-aggrandizement, and reckless to the point of irresponsibility,” (140) her concern is remedied by a kiss on the hand. She’s not passive aggressive, she’s just passive.
I really don’t know what to make of Emily. While she does do her best to care for the children and keep house while her husband is away, her classist attitude is off putting. She sulks a lot, but can you really blame her for pitying herself, being that her sister effectively usurped her childhood and her husband is doing something (she doesn’t want to know what) behind her back? Self-pity isn’t productive by any means, but I think she’s entitled to those feelings.
I don’t have that much to say about the Cecilia and Robbie thing. There’s a hint of Lady and the Tramp in their relationship (the classism, NOT the spaghetti thing that everyone thinks of when they hear Lady and the Tramp), but other than that, well, they had sex. Yay for them?
The last (and least I guess because this isn’t important) thing I want to say is the entire strawberry sock ordeal was entertaining. Both boys wanted the girls’ socks, which I thought was quite charming, but the best is Briony’s reaction when she sees her socks on their feet. Her childishness really shines through here; “Briony squealed and pointed. ‘My socks! They’re wearing my strawberry socks!’” (131), and even more so in her reaction to Cecilia’s defense; “Briony stared at her, amazed, attacked, betrayed, by the one she only longed to protect,” (131). Cecilia’s right on this one—Briony is definitely a prima donna.
The whole moment that really sets briony's imagination into overdrive has just happened and everyone is now on edge. under the surface everyone is mad at someone or has ties to someone that is in the room or not in the room. basically everything has gone spiraling out of control. Robbie is mad at Briony becasue he believes that she purposefully came into the library to sabotoge them and Briony is mad at him because she believes hes a sex maniac and was raping cecilia in the library. i believe cecilia is mad at Briony for the same reason as Robbie as well as the fact Briony read the letter. None of this can be resolved because none of them want to talk to each other. all the while Lola is the one actually being abused and is lying about it because she is one: attracted to paul and two: she is afraid of being seen as a whore. sitting two seats away from her is paul who is going along with her lie becuase he doesnt want to get caught either because shes a minor and consensual or not hes still going to be arrested. they wont talk because of these reasons. so when the twins run away and everyone has to go look for them everything really does spiral out of control and possibly the match is lit because all of them splitting up creats the whole situation in which everything will blow up. no one is talking to eachother and each person has their own story as well as mind set. this all leads to the events that are about to unfold.
In this section, we receive more clues about Paul and Lola’s relationship – red marks on Lola’s arm, a scratch on Paul’s face. I thought it was extremely bizarre when Paul Marshall nonchalantly admitted to seeing the twins attacking Lola. Robbie is quick to spy this oddity, as well: “Robbie wanted to know why Marshall had not mentioned the matter before if Lola had been so badly harmed…” (p. 133).
Cecilia is incredibly forgiving of Robbie when he admits that he hadn’t meant to give her *that* particular note. Instead of reprimanding him for his carelessness, she admits that she, too, feels the same desire he does. They proceed to make love, and the Briony walks in. Uh-oh.
...Still hate the book. When Lola comes in with scratches on her arm, and Paul Marshall says it was the twins. Why did no one ask why he was in the nursery to begin with? Its stupid.
And the tension in the room is palpable even to the outside reader. I could feel how badly Briony wanted to tell everyone about what she saw. Her misconception is becoming a real pain in the ass. As for Cecilia and Robbie, part of this is on their heads. If they had sat Briony down and explained what was going on, there wouldn't be this problem.
You would think that Cecilia would be at least mortified by the fact that her innocent younger sister was exposed to vulgar language contained in the letter, but somehow, its story land, so that's ok, lets make love. Doesn't make any sense to me.
What I really liked about this chapter was the continuing clues about Lola's...erm...exchanges with Marshall. The scratches. If only I could get inside the heads of everyone sitting at that dinner table to know what they made of it. The dinner table conversation was pretty great, especially Briony's "I'VE done nothing wrong today." I completely stand behind Robbie and Cecilia lying low and not pulling Briony aside to discuss the preceding events. Can you IMAGINE how uncomfortable that conversation would be?! I'd do what they did and pretend it never happened. One of my favorite scenes in the book was the library scene, when Robbie and Cecilia were talking before...well, getting down to business. It was so tender, and sweet, exciting and peaceful all at once. That whole scene was written so beautifully.
The dinner was very awkward and hard to read. However, one my favorite lines book so far is in this chapter, “Emily Tallis picked up her knife and fork and everyone did likewise” (120). I love how Emily picks up her knife first. While reading it, I stopped reading at the word “knife” thinking something would finally happen. I was a little disappointed when it continued “. . .and fork” although the way the sentence was written really contributed to the unbearable tension in this scene.
After the library everyone has to sit down for dinner this is an excruciatingly awkward meal. Briony is angry and worried about what she saw in the library. She does not know that Cecilia feels the same way as Robbie and is afraid that Robbie was talking advantage of her big sister. The other very awkward discussion of the night is when Lola’s multiple injuries come up. She blames the twins and Marshal is quick to verify her accusation saying that he had to stop the fight himself. At this point I want to know why no one asks the twins about this and just takes marshals word for it. The final event of the evening is the realization that the twins have run away due to the fact that they do not feel wanted and are very home sick.
I have to wonder about Lola and Paul’s relationship. Is it really Paul raping and abusing her, or does he (and/or she) just like it rough. And then I remember Lola’s 15 and I feel like I should take a shower. And then the moment we’ve all been waiting for happens in this chapter. All that god damn frustrating sexual tension that’s been building up between Robbie and Cecilia finally culminates and they finally have sex. See is that so hard? Of course if they had just been up front about it and there wasn’t all this bullshit class shit going on then Briony wouldn’t have awkwardly walked in. Life is so much easier when people just communicate instead of being building sexual tension to the point where they have mad, passionate, animalistic sex in a library, extremely descriptive sex. Yeah, McEwan definitely had fun writing this sex scene, not that I’m complaining. It’s 100 times more interesting than reading about a god damn vase.
I think Briony just makes the whole dinner just awkward.. As do Lola and Paul, but Briony just assumes what she saw in the library with her sister and Robbie was an attack, when it was really just two people with mutual feelings. WHY CAN NO ONE IN THIS DAMN HOUSE TALK! SO MANY THINGS WOULD BE SOLVED AND THE BOOK WOULD END IF THEY WOULD STOP BEING DUMB! I feel like the family doesn't really care all that much about what happens between the "twins" and Lola, also they seem to totally miss the suspicion of Paul Marshall. If had to throw them off of her why didn't he talk about it before hand? Wouldn't they notice that the twins have no markings? (or I don't think they do) It seems like Paul and Lola blaming the twins for the injuries cause them to run away, yay more drama!
In this section we get to see the library scene from Robbie’s point of view. Again, this scene reinforces my conclusion that children are scary/creepy (especially Briony) from how Briony just watches them and says nothing. We also see the beginnings of the Paul and Lola “relationship” that will to Briony’s worst action. The twins run away, and everyone looks for them. I like it when fiction set in the past references historical events, such as what happens with learning about Jack hinting at a war in his files. That is why Forrest Gump is one of my favorite movies. It’s full of those kinds of references.
The tension is building as everything falls into place for the anticipated climax of the novel.
Robbie finally expresses his love for Cecilia. I liked getting Robbie's point of view of the library scene. Personally i feel the two lovers are unsure of why they are so drawn to each other, and it's weird to me that Cecilia isn't creeped out by Robbie's letter.
All the stories have come together and now the tension builds for the ultimate crime Briony is to commit. Everyone sits at dinner boiling with anger, desire, guilt, confusion, and betrayal. Yet no one seems to be able to strike up a conversation. Ultimately we see Cecilia's rage toward Briony surfaces, "Shut up, for goodness' sake! You really are a tiresome little prima donna." (131) I thought that was pretty funny, but maybe a little too strong. Briony did nothing wrong; Cecilia shouldn't of had sex with Robbie in the LIBRARY and not locked the door.
21 comments:
These pages in Atonement were very important because they set up how the rest of the novel will foreshadow previous factors.
The first being in Chapter 9, when Cecilia is getting ready for the dinner with her family and brother. Cecilia discovers the twins, Jackson and Pierrot fighting in the hallway over a pair of socks. Cecilia helps them by substituting the missing pair of socks with that of Briony’s socks. These young twins foreshadow the young soldiers who will be stuck in the middle of a war zone. “Pierrot said, ‘Actually, we’d prefer to go home.’ ” (Page 94). The twins and the two soldiers desire nothing more than to find a way back home. However, the only obstacle in their way is the fact that they have no idea how to get home nor do they fully know where home is. Then of course at the end of the chapter, Cecilia is given Robbie’s note by Briony, and is enlightened of her oppressed love for Robbie Turner. Nevertheless, Cecilia is aware that the letter didn’t come with an envelope, hypothesizing that Briony had read Robbie’s letter first before she handed it it to her sister.
What captures the reader’s attention in Chapter 10, is the first two sentences: “The very complexity of her feelings confirmed Briony ion her view that she was entering an arena of adult emotion and dissembling from which her writing was bound to benefit. What fairytale ever had so much by way of contradiction?” (Page 106). I should also note, that this is also the chapter where Briony catches Cecilia and Robbie making love in the library, because (let’s be honest here for a second) there is nothing, NOTHING worse than losing your innocence from witnessing your sister having sex with someone else. This quote informs the readers that Briony has now finally found a way to enter adulthood. As difficult as this moment is for Briony, it this very incident in which Briony believes that her imagination and storytelling will lead her to find the passage to adulthood. It is for this very reason that Briony trusts her literary instincts more than her sensory perception. For instance, when Briony witness the ‘c’ word in Cecilia’s letter, she connects that exact word to the ‘rape’ or ‘attack’ when she witnessed Robbie and her sister together. Yet, in order for Briony to enter the adult world, she will have to forget that Robbie and Cecilia are real people, and instead uses them as a source of material for her own imagination.
Chapter 11, covers Robbie’s point of view in the library with Cecilia. When their lovemaking is interrupted by Briony, Robbie is beyond embarrassed but doesn’t believe Briony actually trusts what she saw. “Propelled from the depths of ignorance, silly imagining and girlish rectitude, she had come to call a halt.” (Pages 130 – 131). Robbie falsely assumes that Briony is too young to understand that nothing will come of the incident in the library. This is Robbie’s tragic flaw.
Finally, Chapter 12, is seen through the eyes of Emily Tallis. After the entire family splits up into search parties to find the missing twins, Emily debates whether she should call the police or not. Emily is depicted to not be socially attached or involved in the twin’s disappearance. From Briony’s point of view, she finally recognizes that her mother lacks involvement. “How like her, to sit in the room like this, and not ‘joining in.’ ” (Page 141). Briony seems to become aware of her mother’s failure as a protector during this fragile time of lost innocence.
Chapter 11:
So I think this chapter was a little less interesting to read at first because it was played out pretty much exactly the same way it was in the movie. Regardless, seeing some of the characters’ thoughts throughout the play did amplify it a little bit—for example, I liked seeing Robbie’s nervousness and how he was watching Briony so closely during the dinner party. He has his own thoughts about Briony’s maturity level, and does not know whether or not to be scared of her.
I liked the conversation between Cecelia and Robbie in the library as well. It reminded me of something you would see in a typical romance movie, in a way that I can’t really explain, but I liked it. Then, as they gradually started getting used to being more sexual for the first time, it occurred to me that Cecelia and Robbie really did lose their innocence in a way, whereas Briny was overreacting a bit. But their transition was a good one.
Towards the end, I was getting a little less sympathetic towards Briony. Yes, she was still a little sore about the play, and she was nervous about what she just saw, but she was being way too testy with Robbie, and Cecelia was right in saying that she was being a “prima donna” for being mad about the fact that the twins were wearing her socks. But her defensiveness of Jackson when Robbie was trying to talk to him was more justifiable, because she did it out of fear of Robbie.
Chapter 12:
So here we have another completely Emily-centric chapter. Just like he did in Chapter 6, McEwan’s writing does a good job of giving the reader a picture of just how isolated Emily feels. It was interesting to get some insight into her thoughts during this chapter; while I found her to be too harsh in the dinner scene, I can now understand her side better. I completely understood her sense of sibling rivalry, and it made Hermione even more unlikable—because Emily is right in being angry that her sister just left her with this burden to deal with while she goes off and has fun.
Still, I do think that Emily is somewhat judgmental at points in this chapter. While I do see Jack’s helping with Robbie’s tuition in a new light—and really do not respect him at all at this point given how many problems he’s indirectly given Cecelia—I still think that Emily is being too harshly critical of her daughter’s life choices. And all I could do was just shake my head as she gave an approving assessment of Paul as a potential husband for Cecelia. It’s just…no! She could not have been more off!
Anyway, this was another interesting part that was not in the movie.
These pages lead to the rape, Briony's crime and Robbie's bad turn in life. Clues foreshadowing the rape is Lola's shock at a physical assult on pg. 119. Then to prove that it was Marshall Robbie notices that there is a scratch running down his nose. Later on he declares that he helped get the boys off of Lola. Strange if they weren't with Lola at the time it happened, they were with Cecilia.Then Robbie finds it strange the Marshall never mentioned Lola getting hurt is it was very serious.
Then in this chapter the two love interests declare their love for each other. Awe but then they decide to make love and Briony walks in on them. Of course they are embarassed and want to act like nothing ever happened. But just by not speaking Briony comes to the conclusion that she had just saved her sister from an assult. This had me thinking that there is a lack of communication in the family as Cecilia had earlier mentioned that the family was spread apart and she kept it whole. Then the climax happens the twins have run away and Robbie goes on looking for them by himself and later comes to regret that descion many times in his life.
I'd have to say that the beginning of this chapter was where what's both so annoying and cool about Ian McEwan's writing style is revealed. His scene with Cecillia effectively doing nothing at all is described so well and in such detail that it reveals so much more about her character. He could have said; Cecillia was an indecisive person with a colorful past, but instead he decided to create this elaborate scene where she tries on different clothing and goes back and forth and can never make up her mind to reveal deeper things about her character. As much as I hated slogging through those paragraphs I came out with a much deeper understanding of who Cecillia is. Then of course Robbie's letter arrives and the barrier is broken between Cecillia and Robbie that has been set up by their differing classes. The one thing that i don't really understand is why neither Robbie nor Cecillia decide to address the fact that Briony both read Robbie's letter and witnesses them in the library. They should have at least talked to her if not to avoid a scandal then at least to try and minimize how traumatized Briony must be. I mean she think she saw Robbie raping Cecillia!! That's traumatizing stuff. I also think the parrallels between Marshall and Lola's relationship and Robbie and Cecillia's are interesting. While one is completely wrong and the other okay the one that's totally vile is not being attended to while the okay one is being treated with hatred.
Throughout this section you can feel the tension mounting. The dinner table atmosphere starts off uncomfortable and only gets worse from there. This scene shows how disconnected the Tallis family is. Emily is unattached to both her children and her guests. She feels no obligation to please or even feign an interest in her guests. But Emily is appalled when Briony makes an unsavory remark. Frankly, I think Emily is lucking that her children talk to the house guests; one would have guessed they would pick up their mother's aloofness.
But the giant elephant in the room, and the source of immense tension, is Cecilia, her letter, and what happened in the library. Briony may not truly understand Cecilia and Robbie's relationship, but she knows that such a relationship shouldn't exist. She makes pointed jabs about Robbie and her sister's mounting list of sins and wrongdoing.
But that tension doesn't get a chance to erupt. The twins interject with their own drama. They are left in this big, lonely house and stuck in a situation that no one has ever explained to them. Their choice to run away and Robbie's choice of search partner make all the difference. Soon enough Briony's barbed comments and self inflated maturity will cause the dam to break.
In chapter eleven, the Tallis family and all their acquaintances sit down to a painfully awkward dinner. Cecilia and Robbie are still thinking about what happened in the library; Cecilia is worried that Briony will say something about the letter and Briony is worrying about if she should say anything. The dinner then ends with the twins running away without any warning. The reader hears about the search first from the perspective of Emily. Emily seems completely calm throughout all of it. She doesn’t worry enough to even call the police to help look for them. She is more worried about Jack getting home on time.
In this section my complete admiration of McEwan's writing wavers a little. The passage about Cecilia trying on dresses makes sense. It perfectly encapsulates her indecisiveness and gives an undertone that perhaps she is nervous for this dinner for some reason. Maybe because Robbie is coming we are never sure. What I thought was a little unncecessary was to dedicate about three page to Cecilia finding socks for Pierrot and Jackson. I guess he can't turn his descriptive writing gene on and off like a machine. Also when they were talking about the dinner roast I couldn't have cared less. Especially when they wanted to do it just for Leon; it's too goddamn hot in this scene for a roast, don't cater to that guy; he's such a tool. Every time Leon talks, in my mind all I can think is "shut up no one cares." I'm not sure if McEwan's intent was to have everything that leaves Leon's mouth uninteresting drivel but that is how it is perceived in my brain. Conversely whenever Paul Marshall speaks, my brain goes on *predator alert* and reads all of his dialogue in my best rapist impression. Even when he offers a drink (which sounds like mud in a martini glass) I imagine him thinking 'I put roofies in one of these glasses. Guess which one!' Speaking of rape, Lola did a wonderful job of inflating Briony's false perception on Robbie. By labeling him a "maniac" she opened so many doors for Briony's imagination. And of course Briony walks in on Cecilia and Robbie (just when it was getting good) because what else could happen? In that giant old house of course she stumbles in to the dark recesses of the library, looking for her sister, only to find her in a compromising position.
^THE ABOVE COMMENT IS FOR THE OTHER SECTION. I APPARENTLY DO NOT KNOW HOW TO READ
It was interesting to hear Emily's thoughts in this section. Her thoughts on people rather than the sounds of the house. We had heard only minute details of Emily and her sister but it was fascinating to hear the full extent of the resentment that flows beneath Emily's calm composure. Her stolen childhood possessed and seized by the mother of the children who are now underneath her own roof. Eating her food once again stealing the spotlight from her at dinner table. Drama. Her reaction is what was peculiar. she hugged Lola tighter even as she resented her more. Crazy. Perhaps she secretly felt like she was making her sister feel better by taking care of her kids. Oh and Emily and her husband relationship is god-awful. Staying in the city for extended periods of time talking on the phone every once and awhile. Their relationship is barely functional. It was weird learning all these things about Emily, it was almost like we shouldn't knows these fact but she was resign to the fact that we now do. I also thought it was shocking how unsupportive she is/was of Robbie and her husband supporting Robbie. This section made it clear how she could be so quick to believe that Robbie is some kind of sex maniac.
Chap. 11-12 post #1
It’s clear from the first page of Chapter 11 that nobody is going to enjoy this dinner. Hot, humid air described as “suffocating” paired with heavy food immediately creates a nauseating atmosphere. I think McEwan was smart to make everyone physically uncomfortable even before they start talking—the sensory description makes the scene more real.
I really don’t like Paul Marshall, and it’s not just because he’s hurting Lola. What makes him all the more repulsive to me is the fact that in the eyes of the other character’s, he’s attractive. Lola is confused, but I think there’s sexual attraction there. Emily is attracted by his suitability (i.e. wealth and status) as a match for Cecilia. He seems to just be best buddies with everyone—so of course, when he pipes in about the twins attacking Lola, nobody thinks he’s lying. I’m bothered by the credibility the other characters give him, just because he has money. I find the way he makes his money to be almost pathetic, making chocolate from artificial crap and sugar to save money. Emily (though I give her credit for recognizing her thought as vulgar) fantasizes about “what comfort, what untroubled years might flow from these cheap vats,” (143). She doesn’t care at all that Paul lacks any notion of integrity (he goes around boasting about his profiting from low quality products- today, his product wouldn’t even be marketable as chocolate because it lacks the proper percentage of cocoa butter… okay I’m getting off topic), but he’s got the money, and that’s all that matters. I have to wonder if Emily would approve of him making money illegally—would theft be acceptable? gambling? selling whatever drugs they had at that time to underage children? I think she could justify anything by simply looking in the other direction. Oh- wait- money isn’t the only thing, she of course takes looks into account- why she wishes his face looked like a wedge of cheese instead of its current appearance as an over furnished bedroom is beyond me.
Before this reading, Jack Tallis was more an unspoken force than an actual family member. His presence, or even just reminders of his existence (e.g. the painting of the uptight aristocrats) bring a sense of order to the household. His relationship with Emily is quite sad, so tired and strained. When they talk on the phone, they’re just going through the motions; the call is just another scheduled task. They talk about their day in passing, avoiding any point of confrontation at all. Even when Emily admits to finding the “extravagant” number of casualties recorded in his file to be “a form of self-aggrandizement, and reckless to the point of irresponsibility,” (140) her concern is remedied by a kiss on the hand. She’s not passive aggressive, she’s just passive.
Chap. 11-12 post #2
I really don’t know what to make of Emily. While she does do her best to care for the children and keep house while her husband is away, her classist attitude is off putting. She sulks a lot, but can you really blame her for pitying herself, being that her sister effectively usurped her childhood and her husband is doing something (she doesn’t want to know what) behind her back? Self-pity isn’t productive by any means, but I think she’s entitled to those feelings.
I don’t have that much to say about the Cecilia and Robbie thing. There’s a hint of Lady and the Tramp in their relationship (the classism, NOT the spaghetti thing that everyone thinks of when they hear Lady and the Tramp), but other than that, well, they had sex. Yay for them?
The last (and least I guess because this isn’t important) thing I want to say is the entire strawberry sock ordeal was entertaining. Both boys wanted the girls’ socks, which I thought was quite charming, but the best is Briony’s reaction when she sees her socks on their feet. Her childishness really shines through here; “Briony squealed and pointed. ‘My socks! They’re wearing my strawberry socks!’” (131), and even more so in her reaction to Cecilia’s defense; “Briony stared at her, amazed, attacked, betrayed, by the one she only longed to protect,” (131). Cecilia’s right on this one—Briony is definitely a prima donna.
The whole moment that really sets briony's imagination into overdrive has just happened and everyone is now on edge. under the surface everyone is mad at someone or has ties to someone that is in the room or not in the room. basically everything has gone spiraling out of control. Robbie is mad at Briony becasue he believes that she purposefully came into the library to sabotoge them and Briony is mad at him because she believes hes a sex maniac and was raping cecilia in the library. i believe cecilia is mad at Briony for the same reason as Robbie as well as the fact Briony read the letter. None of this can be resolved because none of them want to talk to each other. all the while Lola is the one actually being abused and is lying about it because she is one: attracted to paul and two: she is afraid of being seen as a whore. sitting two seats away from her is paul who is going along with her lie becuase he doesnt want to get caught either because shes a minor and consensual or not hes still going to be arrested. they wont talk because of these reasons. so when the twins run away and everyone has to go look for them everything really does spiral out of control and possibly the match is lit because all of them splitting up creats the whole situation in which everything will blow up. no one is talking to eachother and each person has their own story as well as mind set. this all leads to the events that are about to unfold.
In this section, we receive more clues about Paul and Lola’s relationship – red marks on Lola’s arm, a scratch on Paul’s face. I thought it was extremely bizarre when Paul Marshall nonchalantly admitted to seeing the twins attacking Lola. Robbie is quick to spy this oddity, as well: “Robbie wanted to know why Marshall had not mentioned the matter before if Lola had been so badly harmed…” (p. 133).
Cecilia is incredibly forgiving of Robbie when he admits that he hadn’t meant to give her *that* particular note. Instead of reprimanding him for his carelessness, she admits that she, too, feels the same desire he does. They proceed to make love, and the Briony walks in. Uh-oh.
...Still hate the book. When Lola comes in with scratches on her arm, and Paul Marshall says it was the twins. Why did no one ask why he was in the nursery to begin with? Its stupid.
And the tension in the room is palpable even to the outside reader. I could feel how badly Briony wanted to tell everyone about what she saw. Her misconception is becoming a real pain in the ass. As for Cecilia and Robbie, part of this is on their heads. If they had sat Briony down and explained what was going on, there wouldn't be this problem.
You would think that Cecilia would be at least mortified by the fact that her innocent younger sister was exposed to vulgar language contained in the letter, but somehow, its story land, so that's ok, lets make love. Doesn't make any sense to me.
What I really liked about this chapter was the continuing clues about Lola's...erm...exchanges with Marshall. The scratches. If only I could get inside the heads of everyone sitting at that dinner table to know what they made of it.
The dinner table conversation was pretty great, especially Briony's "I'VE done nothing wrong today." I completely stand behind Robbie and Cecilia lying low and not pulling Briony aside to discuss the preceding events. Can you IMAGINE how uncomfortable that conversation would be?! I'd do what they did and pretend it never happened.
One of my favorite scenes in the book was the library scene, when Robbie and Cecilia were talking before...well, getting down to business. It was so tender, and sweet, exciting and peaceful all at once. That whole scene was written so beautifully.
The dinner was very awkward and hard to read. However, one my favorite lines book so far is in this chapter, “Emily Tallis picked up her knife and fork and everyone did likewise” (120). I love how Emily picks up her knife first. While reading it, I stopped reading at the word “knife” thinking something would finally happen. I was a little disappointed when it continued “. . .and fork” although the way the sentence was written really contributed to the unbearable tension in this scene.
After the library everyone has to sit down for dinner this is an excruciatingly awkward meal. Briony is angry and worried about what she saw in the library. She does not know that Cecilia feels the same way as Robbie and is afraid that Robbie was talking advantage of her big sister. The other very awkward discussion of the night is when Lola’s multiple injuries come up. She blames the twins and Marshal is quick to verify her accusation saying that he had to stop the fight himself. At this point I want to know why no one asks the twins about this and just takes marshals word for it. The final event of the evening is the realization that the twins have run away due to the fact that they do not feel wanted and are very home sick.
I have to wonder about Lola and Paul’s relationship. Is it really Paul raping and abusing her, or does he (and/or she) just like it rough. And then I remember Lola’s 15 and I feel like I should take a shower. And then the moment we’ve all been waiting for happens in this chapter. All that god damn frustrating sexual tension that’s been building up between Robbie and Cecilia finally culminates and they finally have sex. See is that so hard? Of course if they had just been up front about it and there wasn’t all this bullshit class shit going on then Briony wouldn’t have awkwardly walked in. Life is so much easier when people just communicate instead of being building sexual tension to the point where they have mad, passionate, animalistic sex in a library, extremely descriptive sex. Yeah, McEwan definitely had fun writing this sex scene, not that I’m complaining. It’s 100 times more interesting than reading about a god damn vase.
I think Briony just makes the whole dinner just awkward.. As do Lola and Paul, but Briony just assumes what she saw in the library with her sister and Robbie was an attack, when it was really just two people with mutual feelings. WHY CAN NO ONE IN THIS DAMN HOUSE TALK! SO MANY THINGS WOULD BE SOLVED AND THE BOOK WOULD END IF THEY WOULD STOP BEING DUMB! I feel like the family doesn't really care all that much about what happens between the "twins" and Lola, also they seem to totally miss the suspicion of Paul Marshall. If had to throw them off of her why didn't he talk about it before hand? Wouldn't they notice that the twins have no markings? (or I don't think they do) It seems like Paul and Lola blaming the twins for the injuries cause them to run away, yay more drama!
In this section we get to see the library scene from Robbie’s point of view. Again, this scene reinforces my conclusion that children are scary/creepy (especially Briony) from how Briony just watches them and says nothing. We also see the beginnings of the Paul and Lola “relationship” that will to Briony’s worst action. The twins run away, and everyone looks for them. I like it when fiction set in the past references historical events, such as what happens with learning about Jack hinting at a war in his files. That is why Forrest Gump is one of my favorite movies. It’s full of those kinds of references.
The tension is building as everything falls into place for the anticipated climax of the novel.
Robbie finally expresses his love for Cecilia. I liked getting Robbie's point of view of the library scene. Personally i feel the two lovers are unsure of why they are so drawn to each other, and it's weird to me that Cecilia isn't creeped out by Robbie's letter.
All the stories have come together and now the tension builds for the ultimate crime Briony is to commit. Everyone sits at dinner boiling with anger, desire, guilt, confusion, and betrayal. Yet no one seems to be able to strike up a conversation. Ultimately we see Cecilia's rage toward Briony surfaces, "Shut up, for goodness' sake! You really are a tiresome little prima donna." (131) I thought that was pretty funny, but maybe a little too strong. Briony did nothing wrong; Cecilia shouldn't of had sex with Robbie in the LIBRARY and not locked the door.
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