The Remains of my Sanity By Mr. David

David Witzig

English and Swag

2/4/2014

The Remains of the Day Close Read and Swag

Pros: "Embarrassing as these moments were for me, I would not wish to imply that I in any way blame Mr. Farraday, who is in no sense an unkind person; he was, I am sure, merely enjoying the sort of bantering which in the United States, no doubt, is a sign of a good, friendly understanding between employer and employee, indulged in as a kind of affectionate sport. Indeed, to put things into a proper perspective, I should point out that just such bantering on my new employer's part has characterized much of our relationship over these months- though I must confess, I remain rather unsure as to how I should respond." page 14

Analysis: 

         This passage from the prologue is very interesting it does two things: Firstly, it characteristic Stevens and secondly it describes his relationship with his new employer, Mr. Farraday.

         In essence, this passage does a wonderful job of characterizing Stevens. It does a very good job of showing how very reserved he is and how unsure he is about himself.  This is shown by the use of many long sentences and a plethora of commas; because this novel is writ in stream of consciousness this shows that Stevens it stammering around trying to most respectfully say what he wants, instead of directly saying it. Thus the inference can be made that Stevens is very reserved and doesn't want to offend anyone, even in his thoughts. 

       Furthermore, this passage explains Stevens’ relationship with Mr. Faraday.  Stevens is used to the classical relationship with Mr. Darlington where everything is strictly professional; whereas his new employer, Mr. Faraday, is more modern and American. Stevens is transferred from a traditional English estate into a new American house hold, where he undergoes a little culture shock. Because Stevens has never really been around Americans he doesn't understand many of their practices like ‘bantering’. Therefore, because Stevens really doesn't want to offend people, he is very hesitant when exposed anything he is not used to. For instance, Stevens doesn't know what to do when Faraday pokes fun at him.  This shows us that although Stevens doesn't understand his new employer, he deeply wants to satisfy him. You Feel Me Bro?