Never Let Me Go Evaluation

Defining Cloning. Depending upon the use of the word ‘clone’, or any technical term related to the word, there are a vast number of meanings, but many scientists have agreed upon one, broad definition. “Cloning is the process of creating a cell, tissue line, or even a complete organism from the cell,” (Maienschein 423).

In biology, cloning is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments, cells, or organisms. The term also refers to the production of multiple copies of a product such as digital media or software.

In "Never Let Me Go", The novel begins by capturing the life of Hailsham, a mysterious boarding school designed to raise "special" students by dooming them to a determined fate of relinquishing their internal organs. As they grow older, the students are sent to complete their given tasks which are aided by specific "training" and eventually relocation to different hospitals in order to becoming a donor or "carer" for the donor before becoming one himself. Ishiguro focuses more on the emotional side of his characters by developing very sensitive relationships between the "clones", as they reflect upon their childhoods and set out to find answers to many secrets about the isolated gates of Hailsham. As a result, numerous themes are used freedom and free will, language and commumication, fate, power, class distinction. Also various techniques are used as narration style, symbolism,settings and the importance of the title.

Clones are like identical twins only born at different times. Similar to in vitro fertilization, cloned animals begin in a laboratory, but then are born to surrogate mothers.

In Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro the major themes in this book is hope, and free will. Hope plays as a symbol and feeling of freedom for the characters. Their curiosity is what causes their confidence to one day be free, but then is let down when having to face the truth that their life is set for them and that they must accept it. Free will is shown that clones are unable to change their fates as organ donors, but their lack of free will affects many other elements of their lives as well. For example, Ruth never achieves her dream of working in an office, and Kathy gets precious little time with Tommy. Ishiguro is ambiguous about where this lack of free will comes from because Ruth never tries to work in an

Biologically, a human is unarguably a homosapien. However, when we begin to analyze the acts that constitute human behavior, the criteria to be human becomes difficult to characterize. In Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel, Never Let Me Go, where student clones are raised in isolation to ‘complete’ their lives as organ donors, the debate between what is human become pertinent, specifically when analyzing the ethics of the clones upbringing. Mark Jerng in his article, Giving Form to Life: Cloning and Narrative Expectations of the Human, examines the presence of clones and the use of fragmented narration to argue that the “normative narrative of individuation operates within the imagination of cloning […] to prescribe the proper form for life” (371). By

Kathy mentions all of the privileges she had at Hailsham , the status of how wonderful she is because of the school she went to. She always thought that because she came from Hailsham she had everything and the world was a great place because she didn’t have anything to worry about outside of the school yard, but she had some doubt about how wonderful it really was when she hears another teacher about other places

To counter their strong survival mechanisms, they take part in an somewhat controlling behavioral program that is disguised as a rural boarding school named Hailsham. Growing up at Hailsham, Kathy, Ruth and Tommy and the rest of the clones are gradually taught into the life of an organ donor purpose with a short life expectancy. Treated in this manner, Kathy, Ruth and Tommy are told by their human teachers at Hailsham, that they are fairly ‘ordinary’ but do have a special purpose in life and that is to give their organs or become an organ donor for a higher purpose. This ‘ordinariness’ persuades them from pursuing any kind of ‘individuality’and therefor self-identity is replaced by confusion about the value of their own lives even though they acknowledge the role clones play in

Cloning is the process of forming identical offspring from a single cell or tissue. Clonging is part of asexual reproduction. Some ways to make clones: binary fission, budding, etc.

In their childhood, Tommy, the boy who is talented in football, desires to be chosen by the football team captain. Similarly, Laura makes every effort to earn others’ attention by mimicking Tommy’s absurd behaviors. All children have high expectation of what they intend to obtain. In contrast, donors can only pass every anguished night with the company of pain and drugs. The only thing they can do to comfort themselves is recollecting their sweet memory of living as a normal child when they were young. The destination of their fate is definite: the death after donations. Therefore, committing their missions as donors forces them to lose any expiation of their own

Larisa Rudenko, Ph.D., states that clones are genetic copies of an animal, similar to identical twins that are born at different times

Cloning is the name for a group of organisms or other living matter with exactly the same genetic material. Cloning contains of genes and genetic material ,and the parts of cells that determine characteristics in living things. Some examples, of cloning material consists in nature, humans, and in most cases animals.

The word clone derived from the Greek Klonos, which means branch. Semantic implication is obvious. Human cloning is the main process by which a genetically identical copy of a certain bacteria, plant or animal is produced by asexual reproduction. The term "clone" was coined by JBS Holdone, an eminent Scottish biologist and used in his speech titled "Biological Possibilities for the Human species of the next-Thons and Ten Years" in 1963 (biological possibilities of the human species 10000de next year). Various groups and organizations define cloning differently. To use a specific definition, the American Medical Association define cloning as the production of genetically identical organisms. Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) refers to the process by which a somatic cell nucleus is transferred into the existing body of an oocyte from which the nucleus was removed. In other words, cloning is a method of producing a child who has exactly the same genes or parent. I take an egg and remove the nucleus that contains DNA genes. Then take DNA from an adult cell and placed in the egg, the adult cell is merged with the enucleated egg, or by a sophisticated nuclear transfer. Then the egg is stimulated electrically or chemically reconstructed and try to make it to divide and become an embryo. However, many groups have used a broader definition of cloning. They include production of tissues and organs by increasing cell or tissue cultures, with current production of embryos. This occurs by creating stem cells. When an egg / ovum is fertilized and begins dividing, stem cells are all alike. As cells divide, some cells differentiate and become stem cells that produce specific tissues and then organs. We must understand that cloning does not produce an exact copy of the person cloned. What cloning does is create a habitat in which a cell can copy itself and create a duplicate DNA/genes. Where is society going in the futue with cloning? Will a whole new species of clones come into being or will society choose to side with caution and utilize all the research and evolution to further the age limits and cure health issues of mankind? One can simply speculate that given human greed and self absorbtion the first mentioned will

The book opens up with Kathy H. in 30’s working as a “carer” in which she takes care of “donors” after they have given a donation. Due to her job as a carer, she reconnects with two of her former friends named Ruth and Tommy because it was their time to become donors and have their vital organs removed from their bodies because they were all clones and that was their purpose. Kathy takes the reader back to when she was a child at Hailsham and explained what life was like which included different guardians with different views of clones, for example Miss Lucy believed that the children should be informed of their futures while Miss Emily believed they should be treated like humans up until it’s time for their donations. Art was highly valued at Hailsham and was collected by Madame for her “gallery” to show that the clones still had souls. Kathy highly valued a cassette tape with songs by Judy Bridgewater and was especially found of a song called “Never Let Me Go.” She interpreted the song as woman

Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go illustrates an alternate world where clones are created for the sole purpose of becoming organ donors. The story follows clones Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy as they are born into a society in which they slowly understand and accept, as they grow older. Kathy, the narrator, reflects on her experiences in Hailsham, the Cottages, and her life as a carer. Conformity and the acceptance of fate are two themes that are present throughout the novel. Kathy exhibits obedience to social norms and never thinks to challenge them. It is only until Kathy looks back at her past where she notices her acts of omission and questions why she never intervenes with reality.