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Robbie And Cecilia's Relationship In Atonement

1357 Words6 Pages

Robbie and Cecilia’s relationship is central to the novel Atonement. It is at first a slow burning one but it essentially becomes what the novel is centred around. Their interlude in the library is the moment they revisit consistently, Robbie whilst at war and Cecilia during her nursing. In the library the ‘words spoken aloud were like signatures on an unseen contract’. The simile here creates the idea that their connection is so strong they have somewhat entered a marriage. Briony sacrifices their relationship from progressing after blaming the rape of Lola on Robbie by saying ‘[she] saw him’, in order to create the neat ending of her story that she desires. Robbie and Cecilia’s relationship is to a degree cemented through their sexual intercourse; …show more content…

In The Great Gatsby, Tom sacrifices the marriage he has with Daisy by pursuing an affair with Myrtle Wilson. However, it can be argued how big of a sacrifice it is that he made as in the 1930s, it was common for upper class men to have a mistress as well as a wife, and it is suggested that Daisy is aware of the affair but remains with Tom anyway. Tom’s physical power is exhibited through ‘“Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!” Shouted Mrs Wilson… making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand.’ It is possible to infer from this that Tom is concerned about the possible outcome of putting his marriage with Daisy at risk as he gets increasingly aggravated and aggressive when Myrtle speaks of her. However the brutality he shows towards myrtle implies that she is somewhat meaningless to him and acts as more of a possession. Even though he may be sacrificing his marriage to have a relationship with her, he understands it is unlikely due to his status. ‘Short deft movement’ illustrates his physical strength and dominance as his ability to ‘break her nose’ appears almost

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