The Comfort of Strangers by Ian McEwan :: English Literature

Review of The comfort of strangers by Ian McEwan==================================================This is a actually interesting book by McEwan as intumesce as being ratherconfusing. The name the comfort of strangers fits the storylineperfectly.This is a very mysterious book in which the deuce of the main characters Carolean and Roger are slowly tightening the noose on the necks of theother two main characters bloody shame and Colin.I think the book fits into the mystery writing style as far as the writing ofthe writer goes and I open up that some parts of the book reminded me ofEnduring Love. The way that that Colin and Mary blindly get involvedwith Roger shows unity of many weaknesses in the novel. Rogers shadycharacter and his weird story somewhat how his father was very strict andhow his jealous sisters made him eat chocolate so that he would getinto trouble with his father along with other things should form unbrokenMary and Colin away. Stories like this one, which requi re the readerto susp send away disbelief as the actors venture further and further intothe abyss are extremely rugged to pull off, so its not surprising thatMcEwan doesnt quite manage it. An occasion can get away with making hischaracters naive, but at the place where the reader is yelling at themand calling them idiots for following along with the novels plot,that author has lost control of his own narrative. A big complaintthat reviewers have had with this novel or rather this short storyis that the author full treatment around taboo issues meaning he may talk ab come out of the closetthem for a moment or two and then ignores them. some other chore whichlinks onto this is that many times the author builds up the story assomething really dramatic is going to happen and then nothing out ofthe ordinary happens for example when Mary jumps in the water youwould think that one of them may drown but it turns out to besomething just ordinary. I think this has a negative effect on th ereader as well as the fact that sometimes the reader is left to carryin the gaps themselves when we are not given enough detail on thecharacters or the storyline. There is no real solution at the end ofthe novel. Another problem with the novel is how Mary and Colins sexlives on the spur of the moment become great again after meeting Caroline and Roger.Another similar instance is when Roger punches Colin in the stomachfor NO reason. The setting of the novel, which is Venice, is notreally used well by