Atonement

Atonement was a very interesting novel. Throughout the plot everyone is searching for atonement but only a couple find it in my opinion; Cecilia and Robbie. However, even though they reached atonement, it is difficult to say whether it is complete atonement due to it being achieved after death. Once Robbie died, the truth came out about him not being the rapist he was known for. This, along with being reunited with Cecilia (in Heaven), gave the couple complete atonement. I think this is interesting they were the only two to find atonement because they seemed to be the most innocent people throughout the novel in my opinion, and they were rewarded for being good people. The reward being atonement.

Of the characters that never reach atonement, I think Marshall should be the most noted. He had to live his entire life knowing another man was suffering for a crime he committed. Briony never achieved atonement due to guilt for a false accusation. If she would have been positive of her accusation, she could have lived in atonement forever. Lola also deserves a generous amount of guilt. She never came close to atonement due to knowing the true rapist the entire time but not having the courage to step forward and prosecute him.

As far as Briony is concerned, I do have sympathy for her. She was a young girl at the time and just wanted attention, which is something I feel we can all relate to at some point in our lives. We all want to feel important. One decision Briony made I have a problem with was the amount of time it took her to confess the truth. If she would not have waited so long to confess the truth, Robbie and Cecilia would have achieved atonement much sooner. All in all though I give Briony a free pass on her mistake, but she could have handled it different once she matured.