Never Let Me Go

The film, Never Let Me Go, is the adaptation of a novel written by Kazuo Ishiguro. It is the story of three young people, and their lives while in Hailsham (an elite boarding school in the English countryside) and in the years that followed (Romanek). We follow the characters from early childhood into adulthood, and watch as their lives unfold. Although the story takes place in a beautifully picturesque setting, it is the story of a very ugly, and ethically questionable, society, in where the lines between wrong and right are blurred.

The story is told in a first-person narrative in one of the protagonist’s, Kathy, point of view. Kathy is a Hailsham alumna who is close to finishing her time as a “carer” (a person who takes care of other clones whose organs are being harvested until they reach completion, which is clone death) (Romanek). The audience relieves memories of Kathy’s childhood in a large country estate, filled with rolling hills, sports pavilions, art projects and, most importantly, guardians (Romanek). The “guardians” are adults that watch over the students guide them along in life, all the while reminding them of their “special chance” (Romanek). These children are encouraged by the guardians to produce artwork, which will ultimately be collected by “Madam,” and featured in her gallery (Romanek). The best pieces of art will be sold (Romanek). It is not until later in the film that the audience truly realizes just how “special” these children are.

The premise of the story is that these students are clones, specifically created so that their organs may be harvested and ultimately used by those who could afford to buy them. Each clone is modeled after “possible” (the name for their genetic originals) (Romanek). The students live their lives in ignorance, in a world full of unknowns and fantasy, until one of the guardians, Miss Lucy, one day tells them the truth – “I, your teacher, am now going to take this arbitrary opportunity to explain to you what you are and what role you were created to serve” (Romanek). The ethical question soon appears to be behind the morality of raising these clones to completion.

For the purpose of argument, it would be ethically acceptable to raise something with no feeling or no emotions to the point of harvest. Much like corn or wheat is grown in fields, if scientists were able to grow organs to the point of viability, absent a human host, it would be a wonderful scientific accomplishment. However, the immorality behind this project cannot be overlooked. The guardians try and justify the entire project over and over again throughout the film. The children are repeatedly told that they are special, and that they were “brought into this world for a purpose… and your futures, all of them, have been decided” (Romanek). They are prohibited to have children of their own, presumably to keep them as inhuman as possible. However, there is an inconsistency between the view of these clones as inhuman, and how the students are actually treated.

The students, although regarded as nothing more than organ hosts, are not treated as such. Hilsham itself is a beautiful place, located on manicured grounds. The students engage in daily activities and frequently interact with other students, creating close personal bonds that are obvious to everyone, including the guardians. If they were truly just receptacles, query why the need for such a lovely place for the clones to live? Further, although the clones’ fate is largely predetermined, they are given a limited amount of hope with the existence of “deferments” (Romanek). Deferments are a kind of hiatus granted to two clones if they can prove that they are genuinely in love. This seems to confirm the possibility that clones are not entirely unfeeling, and it would be unacceptable to hurt another (by definition) person. The movie then goes on to suggest all of the clones, not just the ones that demonstrate true love, are capable of genuine feelings and are truly alive. This raises even more issues regarding the ethical and moral consequences of the harvesting.

Miss Emily, the head mistress of Hailsham, tells her students that “that things like pictures, poetry… they reveal your soul” (Romanek). In another scene, Madame cries when she sees Kathy, alone in her room, playing a song, while dancing to the music and holding an imaginary baby to her chest (Romanek). Kathy herself confirms that she feels human emotion when describing her time as a career. She says that, “there’s no way I could have gone on for as long as I have if I’d stopped feeling for my donors every step of the way” (Romanek). Even the existence of a nurturing carer flies in the face of the argument that clones do not feel human emotion. If this were true, clones would not need someone to help them transition into completion, and it would be morally acceptable to leave them to wither away. Despite the argument that the clones were raised for a purpose, the guardians appear to feel an obligation to treat the clones as humanely as possible, even though they repeatedly try and justify in the film that clones are not truly human. In real-life, given the technological advances in cloning over the years, I wonder if the possibility of cloning humans is on the horizon. 

Of the fil, despite the fact that the clones are man-made, the story demonstrates throughout the film that they do in fact have souls. They are clearly capable of feeling true emotion and experiencing authentic love, and this is demonstrated in both their artwork and interpersonal relationships throughout the film. Everything that the clones feel is as real as what the guardians when confronted with their own ethical shortcomings, and is as real as the heartbreak that the audience feels throughout the film. As such, it is unethical to harvest organs from these clones.

Works Cited

Ishiguro, Kazuo. Never let me go. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005.

Never Let Me Go. Dir. Mark Romanek. Perf. Keira Knightly, Anthony Garflied and Carey Mulligan. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 2010. VHS.