The Remains of the Day

A novel presented in memoir form, The Remains of the Day follows an English butler named Stevens as he recounts his life and career serving at Darlington Hall. Stevens is meticulous, formal, and professional, and much of the novel is about surmising what the actual reality is behind Stevens’ surgical, and sometimes unreliable narrative. Over the course of the novel, the fog and mystery around Stevens’ past gradually wears away and what’s left is a bittersweet story of loyalty, values, and life’s priorities - a slow thaw, when at first, Stevens’ cold, strict, professional tone can put off even the most patient readers, but near the end, the warm tears melt away any remaining vestige of his icy mask.

Stevens is an unreliable narrator as he would often state things which contradict how others saw him, as he’d write that he’s doing fine, but at the same time his coworkers would ask if he was doing all right, and all of this add an artful nuance to the narrative. It becomes clear that Stevens was never quite cognizant of his feelings, and that the very writing down of the memoir was a way for Stevens to search for his feelings. He wore his icy mask of professionalism for so long that even as he tries to reveal, to take off, it took him the whole story to do so. If he were able to live his whole life without realizing his own feelings, he would have lived a robotic, but not a tragic life – but the tragedy comes as he realizes his feelings at the end of his life, after searching for so long, and only has what remains of his old age to live out what he still can.