Would you describe the relationship between Klara and Josie as love?

Would you describe the relationship between Klara and Josie as love? Where did you notice what seemed like genuine love to you in the novel?

Klara certainly loves Josie, and the younger Josie seems to love Klara. However, as Josie matures, she behaves more like the adults around her and beckmes more distant from Klara.

Not love. Certainly Klara had Josie's best interests foremost in her thoughts. And Josie cared for her, more at different times. To me, Rick and Josie are the only ones who came close to genuine love.

I agree with beckyd as far as Josie and Ricks relationship. I do believe, however, that Klara and Josie loved each other. Loving someone sometimes requires sacrifice and Klara lovingly sacrifices some of herself to save Josie. That’s more that a lot of humans would do

I believe that Klara loved Josie as much as an AF can "love". Klara was willing to sacrifice part of herself so that Josie may live, she always had Josie's best interest in mind, and was willing to put herself in dangerous situations (crossing the field to the barn multiple times) in order to save Josie's life. Klara demonstrates her love by her actions. I'm not sure Josie would have done the same for Klara, as demonstrated at Josie's party, when Rick has to step in to protect Klara from being treated roughly by the other lifted kids. I believe Josie was fond of Klara, but I don't think she loved her.

Klara and Josie both cared for each other but I do not think it was love. Rick came first in Josie’s life. She loved Rick. I believe Josie liked that Klara did things for her and that was Klara’s job.

It seemed like Klara truly came to love Josie, willing to sacrifice her own safety and well being to try and make her better, including crossing the field, humbling herself before the powerful Sun, giving up a part of herself to fulfill her promise, and her willingness to go along with the Mother’s scheme in the event of Josie’s death, all the while wondering what would happen to her own self if she did. While Josie shared a friendship with Klara, it didn’t seem like it crossed over into love. Their last moment together seemed to demonstrate this, a trite tip of the hat thanking Klara for what she did for her then eagerly moving on to the next thing. I wonder if she knew what would happen to Klara, and since Klara had served her purpose, if she would have cared.

I think this question goes to the heart of one of the themes of the book. What is love? Klara was programmed to be an AF to the human who selected her. She was attentive, always ready to do something for Josie as needed and she undertook to save Josie which meant sacrificing some of her precious liquid to do so. But is there something more? The Father explores this when he asks Klara whether she thinks there is such a thing as a human heart and whether she could ever learn Josie's heart. Klara answered she could with study, but her answer is necessarily a programmed one. No, I believe there is something about the human heart that can't be learned by Klara and thus, she can't experience the totality of human love just as she can't become human.

As other readers stated, I feel that Klara "loved" Josie (if we can say that AFs feel true love) but I don't think Josie was on the same level. There was a definite connection when Josie was younger, but it felt more like best friend/companionship rather than love.
Knowing that Klara made sacrifices for Josie and would've "embodied" the other AF (portrait) if need be; indicates true love in my opinion.
The best example of genuine love was between Josie and her father. He truly had her best interest and she seemed so happy and at ease with him, despite not seeing him often.

I agree with joanr about Klara and Josie's love.
But I think human love can be fickle. Also, Klara as an AF was just learning sbout feelings and in the end became more"human". The moral dilemma is it right to discard something or someone who has feelings when you no longer need them.

Absolutely not. It was clear, to the reader and Klara, that Klara's position was as strictly as a servant-entity. She was given some empathy emotions, because is what humans wanted, and this was her *job*--her entire reason for existence. But that is not love. Klara would have had the same feelings for any human she was owned by. Josie's feeling were clearly as an owner--she was overjoyed to finally have an AF, and felt affection for Klara like a child would for a stuffed animal. However, as Josie grows up, Klara is relegated to the utility closet. Again--not love. The most striking scene in the book that supports this is when Josie is getting in the car, leaving for college, and casually and breezily acknowledges, to Klara, that she knows Klara will not be there when she returns. The machine has outlived its usefulness to Josie.

Taking another perspective on AF "love", I would agree with your statement but some human love is just as transitory ...so is it that much different?

Ah yes, love. Many emotions are called love, some are strong and last, others wither. Klara was programmed to be a devoted servant, one who is always secondary to the child. Josie was quite fond Klara as long as Klara kept to her subservient position. She treated her well, so she was fond of Klara. We have a very difficult time defining love. As other posts show, each of us has a definition for love. The human heart is unique to the person, and its properties are ineffable. This is what distinguishes humans from AI.

As Tina Turner sang: what does love have to do with it?... it's just a second hand emotion

Not love. I am not certain an AF feels emotions or if they have been taught to show signs of empathy. Josie likes having KLara around as she has no other friends except Rick, but I don’t think she lives her

I believe Klara loved Josie. Klara was selfless and caring for her entire existence. I don't think that because she was an AF that makes her love any less real. Most humans don't love for a lifetime. Josie, on the other hand, didn't love Klara. She felt affection for Klara but she did not really care about her after she had no further use for her.

This is a great question. Can it be considered love if it was just part of Klara’s programming? Is AI capable of love? But then of course that raises the question of how humans are able to love—is it part of our programming/how we were created or is it a learned response? I don’t have an answer. But it didn’t feel like love to me. I think Klara was a well programmed and highly functioning AF. And while I wanted to think Josie loved Klara, I just didn’t see it.

Klara and Josie have a strong bond in the beginning of their relationship; however, I'm not sure if it could be named as authentic love between the two. I believe that when individuals love, genuine love never dies. This doesn't mean that the relationship of those that love one another will stay the same. Love can be expressed in many ways that may seem harmful, but in reality is not.

No, I wouldn't - is a robot capable of emotions? To me that would be a scary thought. Klara was "programmed" to act as a friend - but I wouldn't assume she has emotions - a terrific question though.

Although Klara truly cared about Josie, I would agree with others here that it was not what humans would consider love. It was Klara's job to do whatever was best for Josie and to help her in all ways. Klara was insightful and creative in fulfilling this requirement and cared for Josie to the best of her ability, even sacrificing her own well-being for Josie. However, it was pretty much of a one-way street as Josie cared for Klara much as I have cared for dolls in my childhood....treasuring them but not actually "loving" them. Ishiguru is quite adept at making the reader care about Klara, however.

No, Klara wasn't really capable of "love" as an emotion. She was dedicated to Josie as soon as she was chosen to be Josie's AF. Josie wanted a companion to have somebody else in the house besides the housekeeper. When Josie no longer need a companion, Klara was allowed to go into a slow decline.

The Father asking Klara to learn Josie's heart seemed to demonstrate that the Father had no understanding of programing. Agreeing that Klara was programed to fulfill the needs of her buyer, Klara was still an AI. Programming might be made for responses to given situations but not to heart-felt situations. Your vacuum doesn't recognize that you are so messy that it need to open the door to continue on the other side. Personally, I think that's great!