To Be Human, Or Not To Be

At first thought, distinguishing between humans and non-humans would seem to be a fairly black and white matter. As you delve deeper into the topic, though, it turns out to be situated on a much more gray scale. In his novel, Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro attempts to answer a few of the questions surrounding this idea of what constitutes humanity. He accomplishes this by creating a parallel world in which humans make clones for the sole purpose of harvesting their organs. The story follows an adult clone, Kathy, as she reflects upon her life just before starting the donation process that will eventually kill her. In a world where society is continuously placing boundaries around those who don’t fit in, Never Let Me Go looks to emphasize how oftentimes, our similarities outweigh our differences.

One of the most potent methods Ishiguro uses to strengthen the connection between human and clone involves giving the reader insight as to their emotions. By doing this, he reveals a human side to the clones that we all can somewhat relate to. One instance of this is Tommy’s anger. Due to a lack of artistic ability as a kid, Tommy was bullied by his peers, and his response would be to throw increasingly larger temper tantrums. “...Tommy was no longer trying to direct his comments in any particular direction. He was just raving, flinging his limbs about, at the sky, at the wind, at the nearest fence post” (19). While we don’t all express it in the same way, us humans have to deal with painful emotions, just like Tommy. To go even further into the humanity found within his emotions, though, Tommy learns to control his rage. “Then it all stopped, not overnight, but rapidly enough… It started with a period—it might have been a month, maybe longer—when the pranks went on pretty steadily, but Tommy failed to lose his temper” (35). As we are shown this brief evolution of Tommy’s childhood anger, the audience is able to reflect on our own human experience and the mental states we have had to conquer in order to become who we are today.

While the similarities remain strong, there is no denying the fact that there are some important distinctions between the humans and clones in Never Let Me Go. I believe the most critical disparity lies in how clones have to become donors as young adults and give up their organs until they ‘complete’, or pass away. One could very well argue that clones aren’t related to humans based on this one difference alone, as it has implications that affect all aspects of a clone’s life. However, I actually see this as an opportunity to reinforce the bond between humans and clones. Even though they each have separate lives predetermined for them, they both have to deal with mortality and the idea of death. Initially, we can see that the clones in the story don’t truly accept their fate, as they cling to the rumor of deferrals, which are passes given to clones in love in order to live longer. This fruitless hope was still present with Kathy even after Tommy had his first donation and she became his carer. “And my other thought, I suppose, was that if our plans went along the lines Ruth had wanted, and we did find ourselves going for a deferral, it might prove a real drawback if we’d never had sex” (338). Just as it is challenging for Kathy to process her eventual fate, I have found death a difficult concept to comprehend in my own life. However, as time progressed, I learned to come to terms with it. I see this as a natural human process, and it is one that I share with Kathy and the rest of the clones. “I half-closed my eyes and imagined… if I waited long enough, a tiny figure would appear on the horizon across the field, and gradually get larger until I’d see it was Tommy, and he’d wave, maybe even call. The fantasy never got beyond that—I didn’t let it—and though the tears rolled down my face, I wasn’t sobbing or out of control. I just waited a bit, then turned back to the car, to drive off to wherever it was I was supposed to be” (409). The final words of the book, I interpreted this as an analogy as to how Kathy originally had hoped to get a deferral and live out her life with Tommy, but instead had to face the reality of death, just like the rest of us. While we may share some seemingly glaring distinctions with the clones, we can see that they don’t actually affect our human connection.

Ishiguro is able to further bolster this idea that we can have differences and still be the same by emphasizing the importance of replacements. There are numerous examples of replacements throughout the book, the main characters included. A fairly specific and recurring one seems to be Kathy’s tape, a Judy Bridgewater album called Songs After Dark. This was Kathy’s most prized possession, until she lost it. “It’s odd but when it first dawned on me the tape wasn’t there any more, my main thought was that I mustn’t give away how panicked I was. I can remember actually making a point of humming absent-mindedly while I went on searching. I’ve thought about it a lot and I still don’t know how to explain it: these were my closest friends in that room with me and yet I didn’t want them to know how upset I was about my tape going missing” (108). That tape obviously held a lot of significance to Kathy, so losing it must’ve been like losing a part of herself. However, when Kathy and her friends go on a trip to Norfolk, she decides to look for the tape with Tommy. After spending the day with Tommy, she eventually finds a copy. While it wasn’t the original, it had just as much value to Kathy, if not more. “...it was only later, when we were back at the Cottages and I was alone in my room, that I really appreciated having the tape—and that song—back again. Even then, it was mainly a nostalgia thing, and today, if I happen to get the tape out and look at it, it brings back memories of that afternoon in Norfolk every bit as much as it does our Hailsham days” (248). Just as a replacement can be as good as its predecessor, a clone can be just as human as you or me.

The question of what does it mean to be human is one that may never have an answer. However, Never Let Me Go allows us to see how it isn’t as straightforward as one may assume. Throughout history, authors have used many different ‘non-human’ examples to shine light on this topic, from robots to chimpanzees. In this case, the author used clones, and was able to show how related they were to humans through things like emotion, mortality, and the significance of replacements. While for now our world is not populated with clones, we still don’t treat everyone in society the way they deserve, and hopefully one thing you can take away from the story is how that should be changed.