Module 3 Assignment in Canvas
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River Ridge High School *
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Arts Humanities
Date
Nov 24, 2024
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Module 3 Assignment
While recalling her memories, Kathy tells them in three parts: childhood and
adolescence at Hailsham, the cottages, and finally her work as a carer. The song
“Never Let Me Go” appeared in all of these sections. Using your knowledge of the
novel, study the passages below and discuss their significance. You will use your notes
from this assignment to complete Assignment 2. The first one is done for you.
Setting: Young Kathy as a student at Hailsham.
Passage
Summary
The child Kathy is dancing
to her favorite song about
closeness and
connectedness and holding
a pillow like a baby.
Madame is standing in the
doorway, quietly watching
her and crying. One reason
Kathy thought Madame’s
crying was odd was that she
always acted like she was
afraid of Hailsham students.
Kathy: “Anyway, what I was doing was swaying about
slowly in time to the song, holding an imaginary baby to
my breast. In fact, to make it all the more
embarrassing, it was one of those times I’d grabbed a
pillow to stand in for the baby, and I was doing this slow
dance, my eyes closed, singing along softly each time
those lines came around again:
“Oh baby, baby, never let me go. . .”
The song was almost over when something made me
realize I wasn’t alone, and I opened my eyes to find
myself standing at Madame framed in the doorway.
. . . . . .
She was out in the corridor, standing very still,
her head angled to one side to give her a view of what I
was doing inside. And the odd thing was she was
crying” (71).
Significance
As readers, we observe Madame’s reaction on a variety of levels. First, through
Kathy’s innocent eyes, we see a sharp contrast between her reaction to this scene
and the Madame who visits every few months. Kathy is wondering why a woman who
cringes when students walk by her would cry to see her slow dancing. We know that
Madame is seeing the humanity in Kathy as she tenderly pretends to hold a baby and
sings “never let me go.” Kathy’s need to maintain a connection with others is also
expressed in this scene and shows even more evidence of her humanity.
Setting: Kathy’s interpretation of the scene as an adult speaking to Madame
Passage
Summary
In this passage, Kathy
reflects on her interpretation
of the song "Never Let Me
Go" as she speaks to
Madame. She describes
how she imagined the song
to be about a woman who
had been told she couldn't
have children. However,
against all odds, this woman
had a baby, and she held
the child tightly to her
breast, fearing that they
might be separated.
“You see, I imagined it was about this woman who’d
been told she couldn’t have babies. But then she’d had
one, and she was so pleased, and she was holding it
ever so tightly to her breast, really afraid something
might separate them, and she’s going baby, baby,
never let me go. That’s not what the song’s about at
all, but that’s what I had in my head at that time” (271).
Significance
Kathy's interpretation of the song serves as a metaphor for the central themes of the
novel, the desire for connection, the fear of separation, and the constant yearning to
be held close and never let go. It shows the deeply emotional and philosophical layers
of the story.
Setting: Madame’s interpretation of the scene responding to Kathy
Passage
Summary
After Kathy tells Madame
why she thought she was
crying on that day long ago
Madame tells her that this
wasn’t the case at all and
had a totally different
meaning to the song in
mind. As this song made
Madame reflect on her past
and think about how the
world used to be before all
these technological and
medical advancements. She
missed how simple and kind
the world was back then.
Associating this little girl
slow dancing and holding
her breast almost if she was
holding on to this old way of
life and pleading that it
never let her go.
Madame: “I was weeping for an altogether different
reason. When I watched you dancing that day, I saw
something else. I saw a new world coming rapidly.
More scientific, efficient, yes. More cures for the old
sicknesses. Very good. But a harsh, cruel world. And I
saw a little girl, her eyes tightly closed, holding to her
breast the old kind of world, one that she knew in her
heart could not remain, and she was holding it and
pleading, never to let her go. That is what I saw. It
wasn’t really you, and what you were doing. I know
that. But I saw you and it broke my heart. And I’ve
never forgotten” (272).
Significance
Madame interpreted the song in the sense that it represented the world she grew up
in which had no great medical advancements or crazy technologies such as clones.
She missed this way of life as it was a simpler time one without all of this insanely
advanced technology. This revelation was so sad for Madame because when she was
younger and lived in the old world where she was excited for new scientific and
medical advancements to come about in her lifetime. However, now that she is living
in a world full of these advancements she once was excited about she realizes that
life was better before everything got so complicated. Madame realizes the new world
is coming since innovation is inevitable and we will only get further and further away
from this kind old world as time goes on. Which is why she was crying that fateful
afternoon in the dormitories.
Use the evidence that you collected in the chart above and write a paragraph that develops a
claim about the meaning of the title of
Never Let Me Go
. You may also use other evidence from
the novel to support your line of reasoning.
As you develop your argument, consider:
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●
Kathy’s attachment to the song “Never Let Me Go.”
●
The impact the song and Kathy’s actions have on Madame.
●
Madame’s interpretation of the moment she caught Kathy dancing and singing to the
song
●
The relationship between the song and Kathy’s need to remember her days at Hailsham.
The title
Never Let Me Go
, has various meanings throughout the book for each character,
though the main message the author is trying to convey with this title is that humanity should
have never let go of the way life used to be. This is revealed late in the book when Kathy and
Tommy go to visit Madame before Tommy completes hoping to get a deferral. During this
meeting, Kathy brings up the day that Madame saw her slow dancing in the dormitories and
started to cry and to this day wondered why. As Kathy interpreted that it was a song about a
mother and a child afraid of being separated, symbolizing the intensity of human love coupled
with the fear of losing those whom you love. She thought that maybe Madame thought the same
which is why she was crying that day. Then Madame reveals that she wept that day because
she “saw a little girl, her eyes tightly closed, holding to her breast the old kind world, one that
she knew in her heart could not remain, and she was holding it and pleading, never to let her
go.” (Ishiguro, 272) I believe this revelation was so sad for Madame because when she was
younger and lived in the old world, where she was excited for new scientific and medical
advancements to come about in her lifetime. However, now that she is living in a world full of
these advancements she once was excited about she realizes that life was better before,
wishing that she never let go of the old way of life. Though she knows that even if she had tried
to hold on, the coming of the new world was inevitable as it is human nature to always want
more. Therefore there will always be new innovations and we will only get further and further
away from this kind old world which she wishes she could hold onto forever.