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Surfacing Critical Essay #1
Perkins is an associate professor of English at Prince George's Community College in Maryland and has published several articles on British and American authors. In the following essay, she traces the narrator's search for identity in Atwood's novel.
In her most popular and critically acclaimed novel, The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood traces her heroine's efforts to cope, endure, and survive the oppressive totalitarian regime that governs her life. In a similar vein, Atwood places the unnamed narrator in Surfacing into a more realistic, contemporary setting that does not threaten her physical safety. Yet, she too must reconstruct herself to preserve a strong sense of self.
The narrator in Surfacing has been victimized and disabled by a society that promoted male superiority and domination. She entered into a relationship with a married man who forced her to abort their unborn child. This experience so devastated the...
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This section contains 1,492 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) |
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