Fictional Representations of London: The ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’ in One Day

Abstract

This research looks at the work of David Nicholls’ One Day published in 2009. The novel narrates the story of two characters who are complete opposites and meet the night of their graduation. It explores their relationship from 1988 until 2007, nearly twenty years. Although the novel begins in Edinburgh, the plot actually develops in L ondon. The main aim of this dissertation is to analyse how London is portrayed in the novel and to prove that it is not merely a setting. In order to do this, we will use Sara Ahmed’s The Promise of Happiness to provide a critical analysis on how London is linked to the pursuit of happiness.