The Convergence of Symbol and Derridean Concepts in Never Let Me Go

مطالعات زبان و ترجمه

Article 5, Volume 54, Issue 1, April 2021, Pages 107-126   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/lts.v54i1.84769

Author

Zahra Khozaei Ravari^*

Department of English Language and Literature, Bahonar University, Kerman, Iran.

Abstract

Never Let Me Go (2005) is a novel by Kazuo Ishiguro, the British- Japanese writer. His novels vary in terms of structure, plot, and themes. Never Let Me Go is one of his famous science fiction novels, which criticizes the social norms of the society. The novel focuses on the lives of students at Haillsham Boarding School, from the viewpoint of Cathy, an oppressed person, who has been dominated by injustice laws for many years. The present research seeks to explore the novel from the point of view of deconstruction. The study draws on the concepts of deconstruction proposed by Jacque Derrida, the French philosopher and the founding father of deconstruction strategy. Although Ishiguro’s novels have been vastly studied from numerous perspectives, there have been only a few attempts to investigate the post-structuralism concepts and themes in the novel. Accordingly, this study attempts to examine three concepts of deconstruction, i.e., the arbitrary relation between the signifier and the signified, binary opposition, and decenterism in Never Let Me Go. It employs Derrida’s deconstruction theory to examine if and how by using the above-mentioned concepts, Never Let Me Go shows the readers the complexity of symbols presenting different layers of meanings which are at times opposite. The study found that different and opposite meanings of the symbols are constructed through the arbitrary relation between the signifier and the signified, binary opposition, and decenterism.

Keywords

Arbitrary Relation between Signifier and Signified; Binary Opposition; Decenterism; Deconstruction; Symbol

References

ایشی گورو، کازوئو. (2005). هرگز رهایم مکن. ترجمۀ سهیل سُمّی. تهران: انتشارات ققنوس.

 Abrams, M. H. (2014). A glossary of literary terms. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing.

Adiseshiah, S. (2005). Utopian space in Caryl Churchill's history plays: Light shining in buckinghamshire and vinegar Tom. Utopian Studies, 16 (1), 3-26.

Bressler, C. (2007). Literary criticism: An introduction to theory and practice. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.

Culler, J. (1998). On deconstruction: Theory and criticism after structuralism. London, England: Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd.

Cummins, E. (2019). Claude Levi-Strauss: Biography, theory & structuralism. (Retrieved from https://study. com/academy/lesson/claude-levi-strauss-biography-theory-structuralism. html.

Denham, R. D. (1975). Frye’s theory of symbols. Canadian Literature, 66, 63–79.

Derrida, J. (2002). Structure, sign and play in the discourse of the human sciences. Writing and Différance. London, England: Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd.

Eagleton, T. (2008). Literary theory: An introduction. Malden, USA: Blackwell Publishing.

Frye, N. (2000). Anatomy of criticism four essays. New Jersey, USA: Princeton University Press.

Guerin, W. L, Labor, E, Wilson, G. A., Morgan, L, Reesman, J. C Smith, A., & Willingham, J. R. (2010). A handbook of critical approaches to literature. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

 Ishiguro, K. (2005). Never let me go. New York: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.

Leitch, V. B. T. (2001). The norton anthology of theory and criticism. New York, NY: Norton and company.

Norris, C. (2002). Deconstruction: Theory and practices. New York, NY: Routledge.

Royle, N. (2000). Deconstruction: A user's guide. London, England: Macmillan Press Ltd.

Selden, R. (1993). Reader’s guide to contemporary literary theory (3 ed.). Kentucky: Kentucky University Press.

Tyson, L. (2006). Critical theory today: A user friendly guide. New York, London: Routledge.