Memory and Oblivion in Kazuo Ishiguro’s Novels

Student: Podshivalova Elizaveta

Supervisor: Elena Ostrovskaya

Educational Programme: Russian and Comparative Literature (Master)

Year of Graduation: 2021

Relying on the concept of memory in literary studies, this paper examines “The Artist of the Floating world,” “The Remains of the Day”, and “The Buried Giant” by Kazuo Ishiguro as sites of "mimesis of memory.” The aim of this study is to trace how these works reflect on the individual and collective effects of memory. By reworking well-known cultural motives and stereotypes, Ishiguro’s novels undermine the nostalgic perception of the “heroic past” and reflect on the role of literature in creating and transforming cultural memory.

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