Stevens: In the Shadows - Physically and Emotionally

Passage:

"On that occasion, much of the room was in darkness, and the two gentlemen were sitting side by side midway down the table - it being much too broad to allow them to sit facing one another - within the pool of light cast by the candles on the table and the crackling hearth opposite. I decided to minimize my presence by standing in the shadows much further from the table than I might usually have done. Of course, this strategy had a distinct disadvantage in that each time I moved towards the light to serve the gentlemen, my advancing footsteps would echo long and loud before I reached the table, drawing attention to my impending arrival in the most ostentatious manner; but it did have the great merit of making my person only partially visible while I remained stationary."

(Pg. 72- 73)

Commentary:

Stevens' lack of emotion and often seemingly dull personality are traits that stuck out to me from the beginning of this novel. In this passage, these traits are further developed and depth is added to Stevens' character as a whole. The diction, sentence structure, as well  as motifs that appear in this passage all contribute to creating a more dynamic character out of Stevens. Specifically, I feel that the structure and techniques within the paragraph present the idea that Stevens' treatment of emotions (neglection) can be related to how he presents himself as a person. A common motif in the passage is the idea of shadows and being out of sight. Interestingly, the latter of the two is probably something that he holds of high importance and necessity in his butler profession. To the analytical reader, however, the ubiquity of "being out of sight" within the novel presents presents itself as a reflection of Stevens' attitude regarding his feelings, as well as life in general. Within this short passage alone, Stevens refers to this idea multiple times: "minimize my presence", "standing in the shadows", "partially visible", and "stationary" are examples of this motif coming through in this specific point in the novel. One could argue this motif is merely Stevens' extreme professionalism shining through, but I feel it can be interpreted as reflective of his emotions due to how he is constantly pushing any real feelings he has away from himself. The attraction he feels towards Miss Kenton, and his father's death are two scenarios in which his emotions were shoved out of the way in order to maintain his butler "greatness".

Outside it's motifs, this passage also contains meaning within it's diction and structure. As with the rest of the novel so far, a very formal and cautious tone is used by the narrator, Stevens. The use of words such as "impending" and "ostentatious" contribute to establishing Stevens' values of formality, professionalism, and intelligence. In other words, he does not ever put down his wall of 'butlery' and therefore the professionalism he strives for in his profession is also seen in his accounts of happenings within the novel. Regarding structure, I noticed that the sentence length of a few of the sentences in this passage were quite long. The third sentence, for example, includes 7 lines of words and a semicolon. Although it is not extremely lengthy, the way Stevens continued elaborating and extending his thoughts further reveals his personality and devotion to his lifestyle as a butler striving for greatness.