Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
High School
Taft Avenue, Manila
I think the title suited the story because Briony really recon
ciliated on her fault. Her consciences were bugging her that she did
personal suffering. “I gave them happiness, but I was not so self-
serving as to let them forgive me," Briony says at the end of the
novel. Briony recognizes her sin and attempts to atone for it through
writing her novel. She does not grant herself forgiveness; rather, she
attempts to earn atonement through giving Robbie and Cecilia a life
together in her writing.
III. Setting
Minor Characters
Jack Tallis – Jack is the father of Briony, Cecilia, and Leon. Jack
often works late nights and it is alluded to in the novel that he is
having an affair.
V. Plot/Synopsis/Gist/Summary
In the hot summer of 1935, 13-year-old Briony Tallis is already an
ambitious writer. She has written a play for her older brother, Leon,
who is supposed to arrive later in the day. The characters are to be
played by her cousins, 15-year-old Lola and the nine-year-old twins
Jackson and Pierrot. Briony's sister, Cecilia, has returned home from
Girton College, Cambridge, and is trying to sort out her confused
feelings towards the charlady’s son and her childhood friend, Robbie
Turner, who is home from Cambridge University for the summer.
His studies were financed by her father, Jack Tallis.
Leon Tallis arrives with his friend, Paul Marshall. They meet
Robbie on their way to the house, and Leon invites him to dinner.
Cecilia is irritated at Robbie’s coming, but does not know why he
bothers her so much.
Upon reading Robbie’s letter, Cecilia realises her love for Robbie,
and they end up making love in the library. Briony interrupts them,
and interprets their lovemaking as a sexual assault upon her sister.
During dinner, the twin cousins run away, leaving a letter. The
dinner party divides into groups to go out searching for them. Robbie
and Briony are the only ones who leave alone — as Robbie has to
acknowledge later, the biggest mistake of his life. In the dark, Briony
comes across Lola being raped by an unknown attacker. Briony
convinces herself that Robbie is the attacker, as it fits perfectly in her
picture of him as a maniac. Lola, afraid of even more humiliation,
lets Briony do the talking.
The police arrive to investigate, and when Robbie arrives with the
rescued twins, he is arrested solely on the basis of Briony's testimony.
Apart from Robbie's mother, only Cecilia believes in his innocence.
By the time World War II has started, Robbie has spent three
years in prison. He is released on the condition of enlistment in the
army. Cecilia has become a nurse. She cuts off all contact with her
family because of the part they took in sending Robbie to jail. Robbie
and Cecilia have only been in contact by letter, since she was not
allowed to visit him in prison. Before Robbie has to go to war in
France, they meet once for half an hour during Cecilia’s lunch break.
Their reunion starts awkwardly, but they share a kiss before leaving
each other.
Briony attends the wedding of her cousin Lola and Paul Marshall
before finally visiting Cecilia. Robbie is on leave from the army and
Briony meets him unexpectedly at her sister’s place, as well. They
both refuse to forgive Briony, who nonetheless tells them she will try
and put things right. She promises to begin the legal procedures
needed to exonerate Robbie, even though Paul Marshall will never be
held responsible for his crime because of his marriage to Lola, his
victim.
Briony explains why she decided to change real events and unite
Cecilia and Robbie in her novel, although it was not her intention in
her many previous drafts. She did not see what purpose it would
serve if she told the readers the pitiless truth; she reasons that they
could not draw any sense of hope or satisfaction from it. But above
all, she wanted to give Robbie and Cecilia their happiness by being
together. Since they could not have the time together they so much
longed for in reality, Briony wanted to give it to them at least in her
novel.
D.CLIMAX
E.DENOUMENT/ENDING
F.STYLE
Factual Value:
The factual value in the story is that you will know some extra
knowledge about history and the happenings and sufferings of the
people in World War II. The places and hospitals where the soldiers
were sent to when injured and dying.
Psychological Value:
Briony grew up getting everything she wants. She’s a spoiled
brat because she’s the youngest child. Even in love she wants to
pursue it but she already know that her sister Cecilia already have
what she wants. Jealous, and rage in her heart unable to get what she
wants. Instead of still wanting to get it she made them tear apart.
Symbolical Value:
The symbolism in the story is the vase that got broken in to two
pieces. It symbolizes that the trust between Briony and Cecilia got
broken and can not be mend in to one piece again.
Ethical Value:
It has always been like this until now it is now like a tradition
that rich belongs to rich people only and poor people belongs to poor
people.
The Tallis family is rich they have big house and many
servants. One of the servants is the mother of Robbie Turner. Robbie
is also a servant of the Tallis family.
VII. Reaction and Suggestion
Actually, this novel was made into a movie. I saw the trailer and it
caught my interest. The movie won so many awards and it’s really
interesting. I watched the movie and I love it and when the story is
backwardly shown and narrated. I like the setting because it’s back
in the old times and it’s in the middle of World War II.
It’s like Briony became the God and she manipulate the life of her
sister and her love Robbie. Well she’s the author of the story.