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Date Posted: 16:22:44 09/03/07 Mon
Author: Helen
Subject: Re: Atonement - Does Lola love Marshall in Part 1?
In reply to: Liam Orton 's message, "Atonement - Does Lola love Marshall in Part 1?" on 09:07:15 06/26/07 Tue

It's an interesting question, but not one which has a distinct answer and I think that's deliberate. Don't forget that this is all written through the eyes of Briony. Robbie and Cecilia die young, in the manner of all Romantic heroes - there is that edge of purity (despite the raunchy library scene), loyalty and great passion which you can't help wondering comes from Briony's imagination as much as anything else. She is, after all, trying to re-order the past and write her own story to atone.

In this world, by contrast Paul and Lola's union is implied to be rather base and shallow. Briony isn't interested in much of the details of Lola's feelings, so it's hard to get a sense of what they might actually be. As she failed to understand the violence of true passion between Robbie and Cecilia, she would certainly miss the confused and highly emotional reaction that her older cousin might have to sex.

As the story is re-written from Briony's perspective, featuring the people she knew and loved, no mention is ever made of Lola's behaviour past the first few minutes after the rape. All the questions which would help us ascertain if Lola loved Paul are never explored - surely, on encountering him at close quarters again she must have known? What would that have been like? Yet, for all Briony's disapproval the facts of the case were that the two stayed together for 60 years.

I suppose the point I'm making is that does Briony want Lola to love Paul, or is it not the case that in her re-ordering of events the only purpose they serve is to slightly alleviate her total responsibility for Robbie's fate?

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