Characters
Briony
The central character and main narrator. Everything she sees or does is experienced with the
potential that a story can be made out of it. This makes her character callous in relation to other
people and their experiences. In Part I she is a child who desires respect from adults and this
though leads to disaster: "at this stage in her life Briony inhabited an ill-defined transitional
space between the nursery and adult worlds which she crossed and recrossed unpredictably".
Briony's imagination is what convinces her that Robbie is a "maniac" and pushes her doubts
aside saying she knows that it was Robbie she saw because it fulfils her wish of a tidy narrative
where events are just as they should be. From the start her passion for writing is a key feature
of her personality. McEwan withholds the information that Briony is the writer which forces the
reader to reevaluate the novel. As she sacrifices Robbie for her desire of fulfilling the narrative
she makes him the protagonist in the rape with no consideration on the impacts it will have on
him. This lack of empathy also limits her writing as it does not allow her to understand other
people and therefore other characters.The change of her beginning to emphasise with other
people brings about her guilt as well as creative success. Part III, the epilogue in London creates
the sense that the crime was her life's key event and her atonement the driving force behind it.
Her obsession with order, her fantasising about playwriting and fencing, and the seriousness
with which she takes her play all represent her at a point where she is too young to see the
world beyond her own existence. This flaw is not her fault. It is a part of the psychological
maturing process.
Robbie Turner
The range of opportunities available for Robbie emphasises how much he has lost through
Briony's lie and his early death because of it. Robbie comes across as a genuinely good person
which makes it more terrible that he is imprisoned for a rape he did not commit. When Briony
says she saw a man Paul's height Robbie states "my height" - both a warning and recognition of
how an error occurs. Robbie's character mainly focuses on his love for Cecilia which is what
drives his determination to survive. The intensity of feeling is conveyed through the ensuing
events of war. Robbie is the character we are given the most introspection into as we hear more
of his own private thoughts than any other character. The younger Briony is an ironic character
which creates distance which makes her more unlikeable. Robbie is more likeable and we
identify and emphasise with him more strongly
Cecilia Tallis
An example of the low regard in which women were held at the time. At the beginning of the
novel she is somewhat of a snob Cecilia only becomes sympathetic through Brionyʼs evolving
narrative voice. She is initially presented through an unsympathetic lens as McEwan
appropriates Brionyʼs childlike voice of disdain for her sister.
She assumes it is social difference and his desire to highlight it which forces Robbie to remove
his shoes and socks when entering the house but we later learn from Robbie that it was out of
Briony
The central character and main narrator. Everything she sees or does is experienced with the
potential that a story can be made out of it. This makes her character callous in relation to other
people and their experiences. In Part I she is a child who desires respect from adults and this
though leads to disaster: "at this stage in her life Briony inhabited an ill-defined transitional
space between the nursery and adult worlds which she crossed and recrossed unpredictably".
Briony's imagination is what convinces her that Robbie is a "maniac" and pushes her doubts
aside saying she knows that it was Robbie she saw because it fulfils her wish of a tidy narrative
where events are just as they should be. From the start her passion for writing is a key feature
of her personality. McEwan withholds the information that Briony is the writer which forces the
reader to reevaluate the novel. As she sacrifices Robbie for her desire of fulfilling the narrative
she makes him the protagonist in the rape with no consideration on the impacts it will have on
him. This lack of empathy also limits her writing as it does not allow her to understand other
people and therefore other characters.The change of her beginning to emphasise with other
people brings about her guilt as well as creative success. Part III, the epilogue in London creates
the sense that the crime was her life's key event and her atonement the driving force behind it.
Her obsession with order, her fantasising about playwriting and fencing, and the seriousness
with which she takes her play all represent her at a point where she is too young to see the
world beyond her own existence. This flaw is not her fault. It is a part of the psychological
maturing process.
Robbie Turner
The range of opportunities available for Robbie emphasises how much he has lost through
Briony's lie and his early death because of it. Robbie comes across as a genuinely good person
which makes it more terrible that he is imprisoned for a rape he did not commit. When Briony
says she saw a man Paul's height Robbie states "my height" - both a warning and recognition of
how an error occurs. Robbie's character mainly focuses on his love for Cecilia which is what
drives his determination to survive. The intensity of feeling is conveyed through the ensuing
events of war. Robbie is the character we are given the most introspection into as we hear more
of his own private thoughts than any other character. The younger Briony is an ironic character
which creates distance which makes her more unlikeable. Robbie is more likeable and we
identify and emphasise with him more strongly
Cecilia Tallis
An example of the low regard in which women were held at the time. At the beginning of the
novel she is somewhat of a snob Cecilia only becomes sympathetic through Brionyʼs evolving
narrative voice. She is initially presented through an unsympathetic lens as McEwan
appropriates Brionyʼs childlike voice of disdain for her sister.
She assumes it is social difference and his desire to highlight it which forces Robbie to remove
his shoes and socks when entering the house but we later learn from Robbie that it was out of
