GCSE- Modern prose and drama – November 2021

In Never Let Me Go, Miss Emily says, ‘You wouldn’t be who you are today if we hadn’t protected you’.
How far does Ishiguro present Miss Emily as a character who protects the students at Hailsham?
Write about:

• what Miss Emily says and does
• how far Ishiguro presents Miss Emily as a character who protects the students

Miss Emily is the former headmistress of Hailsham, the boarding school where the protagonists of “Never Let Me Go” by Kazuo Ishiguro spent their formative years. Miss Emily is undoubtedly worried about the welfare of the students in her care, but it is questionable whether she can be regarded as a figure who actively defends them.

On the one hand, Miss Emily does try to protect the pupils from the unpleasant truth of their circumstance. In order to help them cope with the realisation that they are destined to be organ donors, she tells them that they are unique and that they have a worthwhile role in life.