The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

York Notes Advanced on The Remains of the Day by Addison Wesley Longman

Stevens, the protagonist of the novel, has been given the rare opportunity to go on a tour of southwestern England in a Ford by his American master, the new proprietor of Darlington Hall, where he has served as a butler before to the famous Lord Darlington until the latter's death. While Stevens is touring the English countryside he recollects countless incidents and experiences all connected with his work as a butler at the manor house in Oxfordshire.
Stevens is a character who suppresses his own feelings and emotions in order to serve his masters, esp. the Lord of Darlington Hall, as perfectly as possible. He strives to be the personification of an English butler. Even when his father (also a butler) dies, does he feel more obliged by his duties as a butler than by those of a son. His main aim in life is to achieve 'dignity', which for him is foremost loyalty to his master whatever circumstances are. Even when the Lord is suspected to sympathize with the Nazis, would Stevens never dream of criticizing, let alone blaming him. Being as loyal as he is, he would not even think of a love affair or even marriage.
The setting of the story is England's 1920s and 1930s and allows the reader to gain a fantastic insight into the life of a country house, its owner and its butler and his staff. The novel is an allegory on Stevens' life as well as on the decline of the British Empire. I would also recommend the novel to be read in an advanced course (Leistungskurs) for its quality of the English language (neither slang nor obscene language). The technique of narration, the means of presentation, devices of the interior monologue, stream of consciousness or flashbacks can well be studied.