Analysis of Chapter 9 of Enduring Love by Ian Mcewan
Chapter Nine is a turning point in the plot of Ian McEwan's Enduring Love. In the former chapters, Joe and Clarissa witness a ballooning accident in which a man dies. This event is an emotional shock for both of them. On that day, they meet Jed Parry, a Christian fanatic. The same night, he phones Joe saying “I love you”, but Joe, too scared of Parry and of worrying Clarissa hangs up and says that it is a wrong number (p. 37). Few days after, Joe confesses about it to Clarissa, adding that Parry had been following him at the library, but she reproaches him not telling her before and does not seem to believe in the stalking, and thinks he imagined the whole thing. Then, the real harassment starts : Parry waits for Joe at the front door, stays there all afternoon and fills Joe's answering machine with 29 messages of “love” (p. 78). When Clarissa comes home, Parry is gone and that is where Chapter Nine begins : she has had a very bad day and just wants to have a bath whereas Joe wants to share what he went through with Parry. What strikes us most is that in this chapter there is a narrative shift from a first person narrative (Joe's point of view) to a third person narrative (Clarissa's point of view). Why did Ian McEwan choose to change the narrative style in this chapter ? Moreover we witness here an argument between Clarissa and Joe and discover that they have very different viewpoints. Why does Clarissa doubt of Joe's tale ? What is Parry's influence on the couple ? What is the real impact of this chapter on the reader ? For this chapter 9, Ian McEwan chooses an omniscient narrator, following both Joe's and Clarissa's thoughts. All from the beginning we have been with Joe, we have heard all his thoughts, as if we were taking his place in the story. If Ian McEwan switches from a first person narrative to a third person narrative, it is to create a distance with Joe. By seeing Clarissa's feelings, we have another point of view, which can maybe be more accurate.