Mary By Margaret Atwood

Throughout the story Maraget Atwood uses many different tools to give messages. Beyond the transition of 6 pm to morning and a story of survival from ‘half hanged Mary' there is a story of self fulfillment.
First, Margaret Atwood uses analogy. Early on and throughout the poem, Mary's language fluctuates for the message the author tries to convey. An example is at 7 pm Mary states, “I didn't feel the smashed flesh closing over it like water over a thrown stone.” The analogy is that the ‘smashed flesh’ closed over like a thrown stone is a skipping stone bobbing on the water until it sinks. The stone that sinks also represents her innocence, which is reinstated throughout the writing. Atwood using the writer's tool of analogy allows the reader

Later on and at the peak of Mary’s sorrow and predicament, her health is deteriorating. This is represented in her words: “I call on you as witness I no crime I was born I have borne I bear I will be born this is a crime I will not acknowledge leaves and wind hold on to me I will not give in”. The rhetorical device of asyndeton indicates Mary’s deteriorating condition. The purposeful misuse of punctuation and grammar shows that mentally and physically Mary is in a different place. In the beginning Mary has a wide range of complex analogy and language, but use of asyndeton indicates the transition almost as clearly as the progressive time stamps on paragraphs. Also the misuse of punctuation by Atwood sets an urgent tone of being on the end of a hanging rope. This shows the urgency of the manner even more, as if all the alarm bells are ringing, for Mary and the

Time and progress are stepping stones on the way to Mary’s contentment, and to move onto the conclusion of the story it was necessary to have character development in Mary. In the transition from being hanged to ‘later’ Mary goes through a lot of character development which is difficult for the reader to understand. The use of 7 pm through 8 am by Atwood helps the reader see signs of transition also reinstated throughout in rhetorical devices and writers tools. This allows the reader to go through comparably the same process as Mary, the begging is very hollow and dark but towards the end it's meaningful and relatable. Finally with the tools to understand the message and theme but only at the end. Instead of a manifesto from a miserable old woman, it becomes an enlightenment story about someone overcoming adversity to learn and love their true