'On Chesil Beach' by Ian McEwan

Synopsis

The story of Chesil beach is set at the end of the 1960s decade, a turning point in history, marking the onset of the supposed ‘sexual revolution’. But what happened to everyone who was not ready to make the change, who still felt the same binds that their parents felt regarding this area? This is the idea behind Ian McEwan’s book ‘On Chesil Beach’. We find the two protagonists of the story on their honeymoon, eight hours after their wedding, in anticipation of their wedding night. Both are virgins and whilst the groom is experiencing a healthy nervous anticipation of the night to come, his bride is experiencing a deeper, severe dread. For Lucy, this is the sacrifice that she must pay to have Edward as her husband. The book explores the emotions and feelings that go through a young couple on their first night together.

The Book

Commencing this book, I feared that I would be subject to a novel filled with tawdry details and remarks made in poor taste, dominated from a Chauvinistic perspective. I was very surprised that McEwan was more interested in the emotions involved on such a first night – the physical aspect being almost inconsequential, although it does demonstrate how much the physical can be tied to the emotional. The book was peppered with stories of the couple’s history, descriptions of who they were, what they would be, their first meeting, and finally we arrive at the wedding night. Much to my surprise, McEwan does not dismiss Lucy’s fears as childish and unimportant, but in an understanding manner. He is slightly disapproving of Edward’s impatience and has a very real respect for true love, and what each must do for the other once one has found it.

The book can be slow at times and slightly tedious but it an innovative take on a concept which most people find out-dated; the beauty of two people discovering each other and falling in love, and the thrill of finding all about each other for the first time, no longer bound by constraints. The only fault I find with his novel is that McEwan wants to impose his explanations for the misunderstanding between the bride and groom on their wedding night – her awkwardness is blamed on an ambiguous relationship with her father whilst his impatience and ability to detach him-self is explained by a difficult childhood. Both explanations were entirely unnecessary in my opinion, and merely served to detract from the impact of the book. I’m sure there are plenty, (and I mean plenty regardless of what the media perpetuates about young people), of new couples who find themselves at a loss on their wedding night and unsure of what to do, and nervous. I think this is quite normal, and not a symptom of some twisted past and unresolved history.

Regardless of this quibble, I have to say that this book stayed with me. The last page is a killer – I couldn’t get it out of my head for days. It completely changed my perspective on the author and turned this book around. McEwan writes with complete conviction on what true love means in practice, not just in our minds, and his step back provides the necessary objective view that makes this short novel memorable and poignant.

I would not recommend this book for a young couple about to embark on their wedding night – it would have scared the hell out of me if I had decided to read it on such an occasion. I don’t think I would really recommend it to anyone I know, if that sounds strange, except for readers who find themselves in the mood for something beyond superficial entertainment (although there is nothing wrong with that). You need to be searching for something more in life and relationships – even now the last page makes me shiver.