The article analyzes the theme of childhood in novels by Kazuo Ishiguro. Throughout the article, key features of literary childhood are examined as they relate to global problems that impact future generations. The literary theme of childhood and the motif of childhood memories, as explored in Kazuo Ishiguro's novels, are closely related to sociopsychological issues, such as orphanhood, absent parents, memory loss, generation gaps, infantilism, etc. In Kazuo Ishiguro's fiction, global problems are used as a background for examining themes of the philosophy of life and love, images of memory, and childhood illness. The protagonists in Ishiguro's novels unconsciously recreate their childhood relationships with their parents when reminiscing about their childhood. Childhood trauma, coupled with family conflicts, led the protagonists to be confused about their own identity as adults. It was due to these factors that the main characters were unable to develop healthy relationships, successfully integrate into society, and solve ethical dilemmas in daily life. Those childhood traumas also contributed to the creation of false memories of childhood. In his novels, Kazuo Ishiguro addresses childhood through the literary device of the unreliable narrator. By using an unreliable narrator, the author raises questions about the factual nature of childhood memories
and the problem of how historical and social memory can be presented in literary narratives.
For citation: Orlova T.S. Childhood in novels by Kazuo Ishiguro, Ivanovo State University Bulletin, Series: Humanities, 2024, iss. 2, pp. 21—29.