Prof Francisco Zabala - 2016 Atonement: Interview INTERVIEWER: Briony Tallis, I’d like to talk now about your new novel, Atonement, which comes out in a few days to coincide with your birthday It’s your twenty-first novel, and… BRIONY: It’s my last novel INTERVIEWER: Oh, really? Are… are you retiring? BRIONY: I’m dying My doctor tells me I have something called vascular dementia, which is essentially a continuous series of tiny strokes Your brain closes down – gradually You lose words… you lose your memory: which, for a writer, is pretty much the point So, that’s why I could finally write the book, I think I had to And why, of course, it’s my last novel Strangely enough, it would be just as accurate to call it my first novel I wrote several drafts as far back as my time at St Thomas’s Hospital during the war I just couldn’t ever find the way to it INTERVIEWER: Because the novel is… is autobiographical, is that right? BRIONY: Yes, entirely I haven’t changed any names, including my own INTERVIEWER: And… and was that the problem? BRIONY: No I had for a very long time decided to tell the absolute truth No rhymes, no embellishments And I think… You’ve read the book, you’ll understand why I got firsthand accounts of all the events I didn’t personally witness: the conditions in prison, the evacuation to Dunkirk, everything But the effect of all this honesty was rather pitiless, you see I couldn’t any longer imagine what purpose would be served by it INTERVIEWER: By what? Sorry… Ser… Served by honesty? BRIONY: By honesty – or reality Because, in fact, I was too much of a coward to go and see my sister in June, 1940 I never made that journey to Balham So the scene in which I confess to them is imagined, invented And, in fact, could never have happened, because… Robbie Turner died of septicaemia at Bray Dunes on June the first, 1940 – the last day of the evacuation and I was never able to put things right with my sister Cecilia because she was killed on the 15th of October, 1940, by the bomb that destroyed the gas and water mains above Balham tube station So my sister and Robbie were never able to have the time together they both so longed for and deserved, and which, ever since, I’ve ever since I’ve always felt I prevented But what sense of hope or satisfaction could a reader derive from an ending like that? So, in the book, I wanted to give Robbie and Cecilia what they lost out on in life I’d like to think this isn’t weakness or evasion, but a final act of kindness I gave them their happiness Atonement (2007) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0783233/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1 Prof Francisco Zabala - 2016 /əˈtəʊnm əʊnmə nmənt || ˈɪntə ntəvjuː vjuː || ˈɪntə ntəvjuː vjuːə || ˈbra(ɪ)əni ˈtælɪs || aɪd ˈlaɪk tə ˈtɔːk ˈna(ʊ) əˈbaʊtʃɔː ˈnjuː ˈnɒvl | əˈtəʊnmənt | wɪtʃ ˈkʌmz ˈaʊt ɪn ə ˈfjuː ˈdeɪz | tə ˈkə(ʊ)ɪnˈsaɪd wɪð jɔː ˈbɜːθdeɪ || ɪts jɔː ˈtwenti ˈfɜːs(t) ˈnɒvl | ən || ˈbra(ɪ bra(ɪ)əni || ɪts | maɪ ˈlɑːs(t) ˈnɒvl || ˈɪntə ntəvjuː vjuːə || əʊ ˈrɪəli || ə | ˈɑː ju rɪˈta(ɪ)ərɪŋ || ˈbra(ɪ bra(ɪ)əni || aɪm ˈda(ɪ)ɪŋ || maɪ ˈdɒktə ˈtelz mi | aɪ ˈhæv ˈsʌmθɪŋ ˈkɔːld | ˈvæskjʊlə dəˈmenʃə || wɪtʃ ɪz ɪˈsenʃəli | ə kənˈtɪnjuəs ˈsɪəriːz əv ˈtaɪni ˈstrəʊks || jɔː ˈbreɪn ˈkləʊzɪz daʊn | ˈɡrædʒuəli || ju ˈluːz ˈwɜːdz || ju ˈluːz jɔː ˈmeməri || wɪtʃ fər ə ˈraɪtəz | ˈprɪti ˈmʌtʃ ðə ˈpɔɪnt || ˈsəʊ | ˈðæts wa(ɪ) aɪ kəd ˈfaɪnəli ˈraɪt ðə ˈbʊk aɪ ˈθɪŋk | aɪ ˈhæd tuː || ən(d) ˈw(a)ɪ əv ˈkɔːs | ɪts maɪ ˈlɑːs(t) ˈnɒvl || ˈstreɪndʒli ɪˈnʌf | ɪt ˈwʊd bi ˈdʒʌst əz ˈækjərət | tə ˈkɔːl ɪt | maɪ ˈfɜːs(t) ˈnɒvl || aɪ ˈrəʊt ˈsevrəl ˈdrɑːfts | əz ˈfɑː ˈbæk əz maɪ ˈtaɪm | ət snt ˈtɒməsɪz ˈhɒspɪtl | ˈdjʊərɪŋ ðə ˈwɔː || aɪ ˈdʒʌs(t) ˈkʊdn(t) ˈevə ˈfaɪnd | ðə ˈweɪ tə ˈduː ɪt || ˈɪntə ntəvjuː vjuːə || bɪˈkɒz ðə ˈnɒvl ɪz | ɪz ˈɔːtə(ʊ)ˈba(ɪ)əˈɡræfɪkl | ɪz ðæt ˈraɪt || ˈbra(ɪ bra(ɪ)əni || ˈjes | ɪnˈta(ɪ)əli || aɪ ˈhævn(t) ˈtʃeɪn(d)ʒd ˈeni ˈneɪmz || ɪŋˈkluːdɪŋ ma(ɪ) ˈəʊn || ˈɪntə ntəvjuː vjuːə || ən | ən wəz ˈðæt ðə ˈprɒbləm || ˈbra(ɪ bra(ɪ)əni || ˈnəʊ || aɪ ˈhæd fər ə ˈveri ˈlɒŋ ˈtaɪm | dɪˈsaɪdɪd | tə ˈtel ði ˈæbsəluːt ˈtruːθ || ˈnəʊ ˈraɪmz | ˈnəʊ ɪmˈbelɪʃmənts || ən(d) aɪ ˈθɪŋk | juv ˈred ðə ˈbʊk || jul ˈʌndəˈstæn(d) ˈwaɪ || aɪ ˈɡɒt ˈfɜːst ˈhænd əˈkaʊnts | əv ˈɔːl ði ɪˈvents | aɪ ˈdɪdn(t) ˈpɜːsnəli ˈwɪtnəs || ðə kənˈdɪʃnz ɪn ˈprɪzn | ði ɪˈvækjuˈeɪʃn tə ˈdʌŋˈkɜːk || ˈevriθɪŋ | bət ði ɪˈfekt əv ˈɔː(l) ðɪs ˈɒnəsti | wəz ˈrɑːðə ˈpɪtɪləs ju ˈsiː || ˈaɪ ˈkʊdnt ˈeni ˈlɒŋɡə | ɪˈmædʒɪn ˈwɒt ˈpɜːpəs wʊd bi ˈsɜːvd ba(ɪ) ɪt || ˈɪntə ntəvjuː vjuːə || baɪ ˈwɒt || ˈsɒri || sə sə | ˈsɜːvd ba(ɪ) ˈɒnəsti || ˈbra(ɪ bra(ɪ)əni || ba(ɪ) ˈɒnəsti | ɔː riˈæləti || bɪˈkɒz | ˈɪn ˈfækt | aɪ wəz ˈtuː ˈmʌtʃ əv ə ˈka(ʊ)əd | tə ˈɡə(ʊ) ən ˈsiː maɪ ˈsɪstə | ɪn ˈdʒuːn ˈnaɪnˈtiːn ˈfɔːti || ˈaɪ ˈnevə ˈmeɪd ðæt ˈdʒɜːni tə ˈbæləm || səʊ ðə ˈsiːn ɪn wɪtʃ aɪ kənˈfes tə ð(ə)m | ɪz ɪˈmædʒɪnd || ɪnˈventɪd || ˈæn(d) ɪn ˈfækt | kəd ˈnevər əv ˈhæpənd || bɪˈkɒz | ˈrɒbi ˈtɜːnə | ˈdaɪd | əv ˈseptɪˈsiːmiə | ət ˈbreɪ ˈdjuːnz | ɒn ˈdʒuːn ðə ˈfɜːst | ˈnaɪnˈtiːn ˈfɔːti || ðə ˈlɑːs(t) ˈdeɪ əv ði ɪˈvækjuˈeɪʃn || ən(d) aɪ wəz ˈnevər ˈeɪbl | tə ˈpʊt ˈθɪŋz ˈraɪt | wɪð maɪ ˈsɪstə səˈsiːliə | bɪˈkɒz ʃi wəz ˈkɪld | ɒn ðə ˈfɪfˈtiːnθ əv ɒkˈtəʊbə | ˈnaɪnˈtiːn ˈfɔːti || ˈbaɪ ðə ˈbɒm | ðət dɪˈstrɔɪd ðə ˈɡæs ən ˈwɔːtə ˈmeɪnz | əˈbʌv ˈbæləm ˈtjuːb ˈsteɪʃn || ˈsəʊ | maɪ ˈsɪstər ən ˈrɒbi | wə ˈnevər ˈeɪbl tə ˈhæv ðə ˈtaɪm təˈɡeðə | ðeɪ ˈbəʊθ ˈsəʊ ˈlɒŋ(d) fɔː | ən dɪˈzɜːvd || ən wɪtʃ ˈevə ˈsɪns | ˈaɪv | ˈevə ˈsɪns | ˈaɪv ˈɔː(l)weɪz ˈfelt | ˈaɪ | prɪˈventɪd || ˈbʌt | ˈwɒt ˈsens əv ˈhəʊp | ɔː ˈsætɪsˈfækʃn | kəd ə ˈriːdə dɪˈraɪv | frəm ən ˈendɪŋ laɪk ˈðæt || ˈsə(ʊ) ɪn ðə ˈbʊk | ˈaɪ ˈwɒntɪd tə ˈɡɪv | ˈrɒbi ən(d) səˈsiːliə | ˈwɒt ðeɪ ˈlɒst ˈaʊt ɒn ɪn ˈlaɪf || aɪd ˈlaɪk tə ˈθɪŋk ˈðɪs ˈɪzn(t) ˈwiːknəs | ɔː | ɪˈveɪʒn || bət ə ˈfaɪnl ˈækt əv ˈkaɪn(d)nəs || ˈaɪ | ˈɡeɪv | ˈðem | ˈðeə ˈhæpinəs/