Lina Abril: Forgive yourself to forgive others

Lina Abril

Mr. Breaton
ENG4U

May 26, 2015

Forgive Yourself to Forgive Others

     Atonement written by Ian McEwan is a beautifully written masterpiece that incorporates the postmodern themes and readings previously studied in this course. McEwan wittingly uses his writing skills to make us summon our deepest understandings of compassion and forgiveness, while making us ponder on our actual human mistakes. The character Briony Tallis is not a well-liked character. In Part 1, she is described as a selfish, obnoxious child, shaping her as the typical 13 year old. It is at that age that the teen years begin, and a lifetime of mistakes are bound to be made. Like any other child, there is an interest on adult affairs. What do they think about? What worries them them most? Briony made a preposterous mistake the summer of 1935. She failed to grasp that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Briony's misunderstandings and misinterpretations caused the lover's tragedy, but she was a child at the time. Are we forgiving enough to understand that concept? Briony's character development demonstrates that she isn't despicable at all and that there is in fact, evidence that can define her as a good person.
     The ambiguity in Briony's true intentions when she committed her unrepeatable sin are unclear, but believing that there is still good in society, Briony did it out of love instead of mischievous thoughts against Robbie. It is highly unlikely that an educated girl would betray her family friend by thinking of him as a "maniac" (McEwan 148), unless having an arguable reason. Cee and Briony have had a strong relationship since childhood, their bond is much like a mother-daughter one. Cee was persistent in Briony's life. Whenever Briony has unpleasant dreams, she soothed her by saying,  "Come back...It's only a dream. Come back" (McEwan 41). Throughout Atonement, Briony has the mother role instead of Cee. This is seen when she reads Robbie's uncensored letter to her sister. The letter accelerated Briony's path into adulthood, allowing her to come to conclusions that Robbie should not be trusted around Cee. "The very complexity of her feelings confirmed Briony in her view that she was entering an aren of adult emotion and assembling from which her writing was bund to benefit. What fairy tale ever help so much by way of contradiction?" (McEwan 106). Briony feels threatened by Robbie and is set on protecting Cee from any harm on his part. From the beginning of the book, we are presented with Briony's eagerness to become a writer. Just like any other 13 year old, a dream has to be pursued, and so in "London 1999", we are welcomed to Briony's true identity. Briony has always had a vivid imagination, the fact that she can send Robbie to jail and make him survive the war makes her an unbelievable writer. 

     In "London 1999", we are able to see Briony's battle with herself. Briony has spent over 65 years perfecting a story in order to achieve ultimate atonement. It is at this point in the book, that McEwan challenges our compassion and forgiveness toward others. Briony has suffered from her childish mistake that she felt the need to help others before her guilt took over her mind and body. Briony helped many injured soldiers during the war, "She willed more strength to her left arm, and willed he doctor to go faster. She would not bear the disgrace if she were to fail" (McEwan 274-275). She is constantly pushing herself to the point that she is physically incapable of. Briony's enrolment as a nurse proves that she was devoted to making up for her mistake. This is a great quality in a human being, to be able to keep trying and not give up. Perseverance is everything. Briony has become a mature woman by the end of "London 1999", she comprehends the gravity of her mistake, not only has she given back to society (being a nurse), but she has also fabricated the happy ending that Robbie and Cee never had. "I gave them happiness" (McEwan 351. If you can't see it, you can at least imagine it while reading it.

     Another characteristic that makes Briony a not so despicable character are her morals in "London 1999". "My fifty-nine-year assignment is over. There was our crime-Lola's, Marshall's, mine...I've regarded it as my duty to disguise nothing--the names, the places, the exact circumstances--I put it all there as a matter of historical record" (McEwan 349). She is 77 years old and has not informed anyone else of the summer of 1935. Briony has exonerated the Marshalls by not publishing her book during their lifetime. "I know I cannot publish until they are dead" (McEwan 349). Briony values family the most, even though Lola and Paul committed a crime, she is still willing to cherish and love them unconditionally. The publication of the novel would cause tremendous turmoil between families. Briony knows from experience that one mistake can make you lose a family member and so she is not ready to do that again, not now, especially not with her disease.  

     At the end of Atonement, Briony is not the child she once was. She has more life experiences than a 13 year old, and is somewhat ready to go in peace. She managed to achieve atonement to a certain degree, which is more than enough for a person that has been atoning their whole life. As humans, we make mistakes on a daily basis, these mistakes/failures are just as important as our successes. They are crucial to the construction of a just society! Briony's determination to find forgiveness really makes us think of how much our actions impact the people that encircle our lives. 

Comment:

Tierney, I really enjoyed reading your post. It was very well written with enough prove to demonstrate your point. I liked how you thought of Briony as trying to isolate herself from the people around her, in order to find atonement with herself from her childish mistake. I feel that as young adults we do that all the time. For example, when I have procrastinated enough and have come to a realization that If I don't stop, my grades will suffer, I make myself stop watching another episode of Grey's Anatomy, which in fact is very hard to do when Netflix plays the next episode automatically for you! Imagine if Cee were hooked on it instead of Clarissa. She wold not think it was boring, but that's another story. It takes a lot of determination to finally stop an episode, but when I do, it feels great. Briony indeed has a lot of will-power to put herself through isolation and pain, and as you said it "her life would be a stream of the guilt she felt and reflection of the ruins she has created" has not isolated herself. I do have to say though, that I did't hate Briony. I thought she was incredibly annoying, but as far as hating her, it just didn't happen. Could it be because I am just as annoying with my siblings? Maybe. Briony's mistake was way beyond her understanding of consequences, so I do agree with what you had to say about humans being humans. I think our mistakes make us who we are.