摘要:This study tends to explore the effects of guilt and remorse in Julian Barnes’s The Sense of an Ending. The study argues that guilt and remorse have both positive and negative effects. Major characters have been taken for analysis and interpretation under the broad vision of psychoanalytic theory. Classical psychoanalytic theorization of guilt and remorse by Sigmund Freud and Melanie Klein makes the theoretical framework of the study where guilt and remorse arise due to conflict among id, ego and superego. This study examines the novelist’s depiction of guilt and remorse in the novel. It makes a contribution to the bulk of knowledge as guilt and remorse in the novel have not been investigated before. The study finds that despite postmodern incredulity towards ethical considerations, the elements of guilt and remorse and its effects justify Barnes’s humanistic and optimistic approach towards life.
关键词:Guilt and remorse;id;ego;superego;Julian Barnes;The Sense of an Ending