Summary
Atonement is a 2001 novel by British author Ian McEwan about love, guilt, and redemption. Set primarily in England, the story follows the lives of its three main characters—Briony Tallis; her older sister, Cecilia; and Robbie Turner, the son of the family's housekeeper—and the repercussions of Briony's actions over the decades.
The story begins on a day in the summer of 1935 at the Tallis family estate. A dreamy aspiring writer, 13-year-old Briony witnesses a tense encounter between Cecilia and Robbie, for whom they both harbor feelings. Briony’s misinterpretation of the situation, coupled with a sexually explicit letter Robbie intended for Cecilia, leads her to accuse Robbie of assaulting their cousin Lola. Along with shattering Robbie and Cecilia's nascent love, this terrible accusation has devastating consequences. Despite his protests and his innocence, Robbie is arrested and sent to prison.
As World War II engulfs Europe, Robbie is released from prison on the condition that he joins the army. Meanwhile, Cecilia becomes a nurse, severing ties with her family for their complicity in Robbie's unjust imprisonment. Despite their separation, Cecilia and Robbie's love endures through letters. Briony, now a young adult and realizing the gravity of her childhood mistake, trains as a nurse in London. She endeavors to confront the past and seeks forgiveness from Robbie and Cecilia, promising to rectify her grievous error.
The novel concludes in 1999 with an elderly Briony, now a successful novelist, preparing for a family reunion. She discloses that the story the reader has followed may not be entirely true. This metafictional aspect of the novel highlights the power and limitations of storytelling.
Atonement received widespread critical acclaim for its complex narrative and profound exploration of human error, love, and the difficult pathway to forgiveness. Shortlisted for the 2001 Booker Prize and awarded the 2002 National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction, the novel solidified McEwan's reputation as a master of English prose. It also inspired a successful film adaptation in 2007, directed by Joe Wright and starring James McAvoy, Keira Knightley, and Saoirse Ronan.
Themes
Loss of innocence
Guilt and the quest for forgiveness
The impact of imagination and misunderstanding
Class division and social conflicts
The effects of war on individuals and relationships
The nature of love and the power of redemption
Storytelling and the nature of fiction
The morality of writing and the responsibilities of authors
Setting
Atonement by Ian McEwan is set primarily in 1935 England, during the interwar period and on the eve of World War II. The story unfolds at the Tallis family's country estate in the English countryside. The novel also takes the reader to London during the Blitz of World War II and to the retreat of Allied forces to Dunkirk in 1940.
As the shadow of World War II looms large, the storyline broadens to encompass the war-stricken landscapes of England and France. This era underscores the novel's thematic focus on love, guilt, and redemption. The war sections of the novel not only depict the period’s visible turmoil but also serve to reflect the internal battles of its characters, notably that of Robbie Turner, whose coerced enlistment and subsequent experiences in France are deeply entwined with his quest for exoneration and reconciliation.
The story culminates in present-day England, specifically 1999, where a reflective and aged Briony Tallis contemplates her life and the indelible impact of her actions. This setting, although briefly touched upon, serves as a poignant conclusion to the novel's exploration of memory, the act of storytelling, and the elusive possibility of atonement. Through these meticulously crafted settings, McEwan not only anchors his narrative in specific historical and geographical contexts but also imbues it with universal themes of human fallibility and the yearning for forgiveness.
Characters
Briony Tallis: A 13-year-old aspiring writer who falsely accuses Robbie Turner of rape, changing the lives of those involved forever.
Cecilia Tallis: Briony's older sister, who falls in love with Robbie, their childhood friend. She becomes estranged from her family after Robbie's false imprisonment.
Leon Tallis: The eldest Tallis sibling who brings his friend, Paul Marshall, to visit their family home.
Emily Tallis: The Tallis matriarch, mostly bedridden with migraines throughout the novel.
Jack Tallis: The Tallis patriarch, often absent and hinted to be unfaithful to his wife.
Robbie Turner: The son of the Tallis family housekeeper and Cecilia's love interest, whose life is devastated by Briony's false accusation.
Grace Turner: Robbie's mother, the Tallis family housekeeper who lives on their estate.
Lola Quincey: The Cecilia and Briony’s 15-year-old cousin, who is raped during her stay at their house. Lola later marries her rapist, Paul Marshall.
Jackson and Pierrot Quincey: Lola's twin brothers, also cousins to the Tallis siblings.
Danny Hardman: The Tallis family's handyman, initially suspected by some characters to be responsible for Lola's rape.
Paul Marshall: A friend of Leon's, a wealthy chocolate manufacturer who rapes Lola and later marries her.
Corporal Nettle: One of Robbie's companions during the Dunkirk retreat.
Corporal Mace: Another of Robbie's companions during the Dunkirk evacuation.
Betty: A servant in the Tallis household.
Critical reception
Ian McEwan's Atonement has been resoundingly acclaimed by critics from John Updike in The New Yorker to Michiko Kakutani of The New York Times to Claire Messud and James Wood from The New Republic. Reviewers praise its expansive narrative, deep psychological insight, historical accuracy, intricate storytelling, and moral inquiry.
Quotes
“A person is, among all else, a material thing, easily torn and not easily mended.”
“It wasn't only wickedness and scheming that made people unhappy, it was confusion and misunderstanding; above all, it was the failure to grasp the simple truth that other people are as real as you.”
“The cost of oblivious daydreaming was always this moment of return, the realignment with what had been before and now seemed a little worse.”
“A story was a form of telepathy. By means of inking symbols onto a page, she was able to send thoughts and feelings from her mind to her reader's. It was a magical process, so commonplace that no one stopped to wonder at it.”
“And though you think the world is at your feet, it can rise up and tread on you.”
“Wasn't writing a kind of soaring, an achievable form of flight, of fancy, of the imagination?”
Quick facts
Ian McEwan originally planned to name his novel “An Atonement,” but at the last minute decided to change the title to Atonement on the advice of historian Tim Garton-Ash, a friend.
Atonement was shortlisted for the 2001 Booker Prize for fiction and has won several awards, including the 2002 Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the 2002 National Book Critics Circle Award.
TIME magazine named Atonement in its list of the 100 best English-language novels since 1923.
In 2007, Atonement was adapted into a critically acclaimed film that won an Oscar for Best Original Score. The film adaptation starred James McAvoy, Keira Knightley, and introduced Saoirse Ronan in a breakout role.
The first edition cover image, designed by Suzanne Dean, features a girl wearing a summer dress sitting on the stairs of a country house. This image came to be after the young model had been photographed for hours, leading to her frustratedly tapping her foot, which added a "pensive quality" to the photograph.
McEwan faced controversy over allegations of failing to give sufficient credit to Lucilla Andrews, a late romance and historical author, for material on wartime nursing in London sourced from her autobiography. McEwan cited Andrews's work in the novel’s acknowledgments and was defended by several prominent authors.
The novel incorporates intertextual references to numerous other literary works, including Virginia Woolf's The Waves, Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure, and works by Shakespeare.
About the author
Ian McEwan is an esteemed British author and screenwriter. He launched his literary career in 1976 with the publication of First Love, Last Rites, a collection of short stories that won him the Somerset Maugham Award. To date, he has written 17 novels, including The Cement Garden (1978), Enduring Love (1997), Saturday, (2005), and Machines Like Me (2019), winning widespread praise for his ability to intertwine intricate character studies with the exploration of moral and ethical dilemmas. Among numerous awards and accolades, he received the Whitbread Novel of the Year Award in 1987 for The Child in Time, the Booker Prize in 1998 for Amsterdam, and the National Book Critics Circle Award in 2002 for Atonement. He is also the author of beloved books for children, including The Daydreamer.
For his services to literature, McEwan was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2000 and a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in 2023. In addition, his work has earned him a spot on The Times list of the 50 greatest British writers since 1945 and The Daily Telegraph's ranking of the 100 most powerful people in British culture.
Born in 1948, McEwan received a BA degree in English Literature in 1970 from the University of Sussex, followed by an MA in English Literature from the University of East Anglia. Making his home in London, he continues to captivate readers worldwide with his profound insights into the human condition and brilliant writing.
