The Remains of the Day

by

Kazuo Ishiguro

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Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) Character Analysis

The lead housemaid at Darlington Hall, Miss Kenton is intelligent, headstrong, and stubborn. Like Stevens, she takes a great deal of pride in her work and in her position, but she also possesses a more independent streak than Stevens, which allows her to disagree not only with him but also with the decisions made by Lord Darlington. Miss Kenton has a strong moral sense—she doesn’t hesitate to object strongly to the Jewish maids being dismissed, for instance—but she also recognizes her fragility as a woman alone and without resources in a society that still requires women either to be married or beholden to life as a servant. It gradually becomes clear that Miss Kenton is in love with Stevens, though she simultaneously finds him infuriating, and her decision to leave Darlington Hall is in part due to her frustration with his lack of response, as well as to her general impulsiveness. Miss Kenton, now Mrs. Benn, seems better suited than Stevens to face her “remains of the day” outside the realm of aristocratic country houses, but she too struggles to find a place for herself in a changing world.

Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) Quotes in The Remains of the Day

The The Remains of the Day quotes below are all either spoken by Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) or refer to Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn). For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Dignity and Greatness  Theme Icon
).
Day Two: Morning Quotes

But now that I think further about it, I am not sure Miss Kenton spoke quite so boldly that day. […] I am not sure she could actually have gone so far as to say things like: “these errors may be trivial in themselves, but you must yourself realize their larger significance.” In fact, now that I come to think of it, I have a feeling it may have been Lord Darlington himself who made that particular remark to me that time he called me into his study some two months after that exchange with Miss Kenton outside the billiard room.

Related Characters: Mr. Stevens (speaker), Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn), Lord Darlington
Page Number: 60
Explanation and Analysis:
Day Three: Evening Quotes

“Does it not occur to you, Mr. Stevens, that to dismiss Ruth and Sarah on these grounds would be simply—wrong? I will not stand for such things. I will not work in a house in which such things can occur.”
“Miss Kenton, I will ask you not to excite yourself and to conduct yourself in a manner befitting your position. This is a very straightforward matter. If his lordship wishes these particular contracts to be discontinued, then there is little more to be said.”

Related Characters: Mr. Stevens (speaker), Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) (speaker), Ruth and Sarah
Page Number: 149
Explanation and Analysis:

Naturally—and why should I not admit this—I have occasionally wondered to myself how things might have turned out in the long run had I not been so determined over the issue of our evening meetings; that is to say, had I relented on those several occasions over the weeks that followed when Miss Kenton suggested we reinstitute them. I only speculate over this now because in the light of subsequent events, it could well be argued that in making my decision to end those evening meetings once and for all, I was perhaps not entirely aware of the full implications of what I was doing.

Related Characters: Mr. Stevens (speaker), Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn)
Page Number: 175
Explanation and Analysis:
Day Four: Afternoon Quotes

It occurs to me that elsewhere in attempting to gather such recollections, I may well have asserted that this memory derived from the minutes immediately after Miss Kenton’s receiving news of her aunt’s death; that is to say, the occasion when, having left her to be alone with her grief, I realized out in the corridor that I had not offered her my condolences. But now, having thought further, I believe I may have been a little confused about this matter; that in fact this fragment of memory derives from events that took place on an evening at least a few months after the death of Miss Kenton’s aunt.

Related Characters: Mr. Stevens (speaker), Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn)
Page Number: 212
Explanation and Analysis:
Day Six: Evening Quotes

And you get to thinking about a different life, a better life you might have had. For instance, I get to thinking about a life I may have had with you, Mr. Stevens. And I suppose that’s when I get angry over some trivial little thing and leave. But each time I do so, I realize before long—my rightful place is with my husband. After all, there’s no turning back the clock now. One can’t be forever dwelling on what might have been.

Related Characters: Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) (speaker), Mr. Stevens
Page Number: 239
Explanation and Analysis:
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Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) Quotes in The Remains of the Day

The The Remains of the Day quotes below are all either spoken by Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) or refer to Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn). For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Dignity and Greatness  Theme Icon
).
Day Two: Morning Quotes

But now that I think further about it, I am not sure Miss Kenton spoke quite so boldly that day. […] I am not sure she could actually have gone so far as to say things like: “these errors may be trivial in themselves, but you must yourself realize their larger significance.” In fact, now that I come to think of it, I have a feeling it may have been Lord Darlington himself who made that particular remark to me that time he called me into his study some two months after that exchange with Miss Kenton outside the billiard room.

Related Characters: Mr. Stevens (speaker), Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn), Lord Darlington
Page Number: 60
Explanation and Analysis:
Day Three: Evening Quotes

“Does it not occur to you, Mr. Stevens, that to dismiss Ruth and Sarah on these grounds would be simply—wrong? I will not stand for such things. I will not work in a house in which such things can occur.”
“Miss Kenton, I will ask you not to excite yourself and to conduct yourself in a manner befitting your position. This is a very straightforward matter. If his lordship wishes these particular contracts to be discontinued, then there is little more to be said.”

Related Characters: Mr. Stevens (speaker), Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) (speaker), Ruth and Sarah
Page Number: 149
Explanation and Analysis:

Naturally—and why should I not admit this—I have occasionally wondered to myself how things might have turned out in the long run had I not been so determined over the issue of our evening meetings; that is to say, had I relented on those several occasions over the weeks that followed when Miss Kenton suggested we reinstitute them. I only speculate over this now because in the light of subsequent events, it could well be argued that in making my decision to end those evening meetings once and for all, I was perhaps not entirely aware of the full implications of what I was doing.

Related Characters: Mr. Stevens (speaker), Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn)
Page Number: 175
Explanation and Analysis:
Day Four: Afternoon Quotes

It occurs to me that elsewhere in attempting to gather such recollections, I may well have asserted that this memory derived from the minutes immediately after Miss Kenton’s receiving news of her aunt’s death; that is to say, the occasion when, having left her to be alone with her grief, I realized out in the corridor that I had not offered her my condolences. But now, having thought further, I believe I may have been a little confused about this matter; that in fact this fragment of memory derives from events that took place on an evening at least a few months after the death of Miss Kenton’s aunt.

Related Characters: Mr. Stevens (speaker), Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn)
Page Number: 212
Explanation and Analysis:
Day Six: Evening Quotes

And you get to thinking about a different life, a better life you might have had. For instance, I get to thinking about a life I may have had with you, Mr. Stevens. And I suppose that’s when I get angry over some trivial little thing and leave. But each time I do so, I realize before long—my rightful place is with my husband. After all, there’s no turning back the clock now. One can’t be forever dwelling on what might have been.

Related Characters: Miss Kenton (Mrs. Benn) (speaker), Mr. Stevens
Page Number: 239
Explanation and Analysis: