6.3.2

Cecilia in Part Three

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Cecilia in Part Three in Atonement

In Part Three, Cecilia betrays signs that her separation from Robbie and her family has taken its toll.

Illustrative background for Briony's descriptions of CeciliaIllustrative background for Briony's descriptions of Cecilia ?? "content

Briony's descriptions of Cecilia

  • Briony detects a “hardness to her tone” and notes that her eyes convey a sense of “fatigue” or “sorrow” (p322).
Illustrative background for Cecilia's caring natureIllustrative background for Cecilia's caring nature ?? "content

Cecilia's caring nature

  • In the closing pages of Part Three, Briony recalls Cecilia’s acts of “unthinking family love” (p349) when Cecilia would “rescue her from a nightmare” using the refrain “come back”.
  • This caring side to Cecilia’s nature is seen elsewhere in the novel, for example when comforting the twins, Jackson and Pierrot, and in the “tenderness” she displays when soothing an agitated Robbie, suddenly confronted with the person who had ruined his life.
Illustrative background for Briony's confession about CeciliaIllustrative background for Briony's confession about Cecilia ?? "content

Briony's confession about Cecilia

  • Briony admits in Part Four that the visit to her sister did not happen and that Cecilia in fact died when Balham tube station was bombed later that year.
  • As with Robbie, readers must question how ‘true’ Briony’s depiction of Cecilia in Part Three is. Is it an idealised portrait of her sister, masking the emptiness of the ‘real’ Cecilia’s life?

Jump to other topics

1Introduction to Atonement

2Chapter Summaries & Analysis: Part One

3Chapter Summaries & Analysis: Part Two

4Chapter Summaries & Analysis: Part Three

5Chapter Summaries & Analysis: Part Four

5.1Epilogue: London, 1999 - Pages 353-371

6Key Character Profiles

7Key Themes

8Writing Techniques

9Context

10Critical Debates

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