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British LiteratureArticle 15 · Vol. 1, Issue 4, June 2026 · pp. 130–136
The Cracks Within: Familial Dysfunction in Ian McEwan’s Atonement
Dr. Indrani Hazarika
Guest Faculty, Jagannath Barooah University, Jorhat, Assam, India
Abstract
This paper examines the portrayal of familial dysfunction in Ian McEwan’s novel Atonement (2001), harping on the impact it has left on the psychological and identity development and the relationships of the various characters in the novel. In the novel, the Tallis household is presented as an emotionally fragmented family. The father is absent and the mother is emotionally withdrawn and this creates an environment that gives rise to insecurity, misunderstandings and psychological issues. Informed by psychological perspectives, the paper tries to show how various issues like discorded family ties, emotional neglect and the absence of parents shape the actions of characters like Briony, Cecelia, Robbie and the like. We see how the various issues like childhood naivety, emotional deprivation and imagination lead to Briony’s misinterpretation of adult relationships, her false accusations about Robbie and the lasting consequences of her actions. The familial dysfunctions also affect the secondary characters like Lola and her siblings. The study tries to place the novel within the postmodern framework and argues that the author, McEwan, questions the crisis of the family as an institution in a changing social world and further tries to throw light on how familial discord functions as a critical force in the novel, shaping the characters’ destiny and leading to the tragic consequences that unfold with time.
Keywords:
Atonementfamilial dysfunctionpostmodernismidentityfamily dynamicstrauma
How to Cite
Dr. Indrani Hazarika (2026). The Cracks Within: Familial Dysfunction in Ian McEwan’s Atonement. Veritas: A Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 1(4), 130–136.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21195084
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