Kazuo Ishiguro’s Refleetions On The Cultural Sign Of British Gentleman Tradition InThe Remains Of The Day

Kazuo Ishiguro is a contemporary Japanese British writer. Together with V. S. Naipaul andSalman Rushdie, he is known as one of the most prominent emigrant writers in the Britishliterary world. Although growing up with the influence of both Japanese and British culture,he is more interested in writing an international subject. Until now, his six novels have beenwell received by the literary critics, as well as the common readers. He was awarded the mostprestigious British literary prize, the Booker Prize, for his third novel The Remains of the Day.However, because of his origin, most of the critics of his works have been restricted to theperspective of post-colonialism or New-historicism, and the protagonist’s memory way ofnarration in his works are mistaken as the author’s revelation of his sense of wandering andloneliness. The gentleman ideas of dignity and professionalism which penetrate the novelhave not received their due attention. Besides, as a kind of cultural sign, the British gentlemantradition has reflected some deeper meaning of the British national consciousness after thetwo World Wars. Therefore, under the guidance of Roland Barthes’ theory of culturalsemiotics, this theses tries to analyze the meaning hidden behind this cultural sign of Britishgentleman tradition in The Remains of the Day.The novel begins at the summer of1956when the African king canonized the Suez canal,which indicates that the British Empire is challenged by other superpowers in the world.Immediately, after the Suez Crisis, many colonies begin to run out from the Great Britain,who, therefore, has gradually lost its global influence. The once powerful empire has toaccept the fact that its politics and cultures are severely challenged by the other superpowers. Faced with this situation, a lot of domestic writers begin to think about the reasons andexpress their views about the decline of their country in their works. As an internationalnovelist, Kazuo Ishiguro has also explored the reasons for Britain’s decline from theperspective of gentleman tradition.In Kazuo Ishiguro’s masterpiece The Remains of the Day, the protagonist restricts hispersonal emotions blindly to realize his ideal of being great. He has observed the gentility ofdignity and professionalism stubbornly, leaving almost little room for his personal life.However, under the influence of a new world climate, his ideal is no more than an illusion. Inthis novel, the protagonist’s six-day trip in the countryside is actually a psychic journey todiscovery the crisis of the myth of Englishness. Through the protagonist’s miserablememories about the British country house, Kazuo Ishiguro has revealed the decline of theformer British Empire, and showed his criticism about the British imperialist complex whichwas prevalent at that time.