"On Chesil Beach" chronicles just one short night, but manages to pack in a lifetime of regrets and a commentary on life in the 1960s as well.
On Chesil Beach introduces Florence and Edward, a young newly-married couple who have just arrived at a resort in Dorset for their honeymoon. The era is the early 1960s, before the "sexual revolution" and "the pill" turned middle class morays on their ear. Florence and Edward fell in love, courted, and married quickly, with neither of them gaining much or any sexual experience prior to the wedding. Both are understandably nervous. Edward worries about being good enough in bed and Florence worries about the mechanics of the whole thing and her growing repulsion at the thought of sex.
Florence and Edward
The tightly-written, short novel follows the couple as they share a wedding dinner in their suite. As they pick at their food, both worry about the events to come. The couple's individual expectations are colored by their past and McEwan shares both Edward's troubled childhood and Florence's privileged one. Both have hopes and apprehensions that they aren't able to share with each other. Talking about such things just wasn't "done" in 1962.
The Wedding Night
As the gradual crescendo builds, Florence and Edward progress to the bedroom. Will their lack of communication lead to insurmountable problems and regret, or will their growing love be strong enough to bridge the gap between them?
One of the most difficult books to write is one that tells the story of just one day or, as in this case, a part of one day. Few authors are up to the challenge, but when they succeed, the results are striking. Consider Virginia Wolf's Mrs. Dalloway or even McEwan's last work, Saturday. Packing a lifetime of emotion into 24 hours or less is quite a task, but in On Chesil Beach, McEwan succeeds beautifully. At the same time, he manages to comment on an age many of us remember when emotions were often left unexpressed and sexual feelings were something to be ashamed of, not proud. Exquisitely written, with nary an excess word, On Chesil Beach just might be McEwan's best effort to date.
About Ian McEwan
Ian McEwan is a British writer, the author of ten previous novels and two collections of short stories. His previous works include Enduring Love; Amsterdam, for which he won a Booker Prize; Atonement; and Saturday.
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