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Alias Grace Feminist Analysis

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“Am I a bad feminist?” “It seems that I am a ‘Bad Feminist.’ I can add that to the other things I 've been accused of since 1972, such as climbing to fame up a pyramid of decapitated men 's heads (a leftie journal), of being a dominatrix bent on the subjugation of men (a rightie one, complete with an illustration of me in leather boots and a whip) and of being an awful person who can annihilate – with her magic White Witch powers – anyone critical of her at Toronto dinner tables. I 'm so scary!” Atwood’s satirical description of herself here is remarkably similar to societal perceptions of Grace in Alias Grace. In the novel, Grace is considered to be this dark “murderess” who charms men, deceives them, then kills them though she may not go quite as far as to create “a pyramid of decapitated men’s heads.” She can be seen by readers as a dominatrix, weaving together a false story, alluring Dr. Jordan and thus, gaining power over him. In addition, similar to Atwood’s perceived “White Witch powers,” at the end of the novel, Jeremiah draws Grace into a trance and Mary’s voice speaks through Grace in a witchlike manner. It seems as if the societal opinions of Atwood influenced her creation of Grace. “A fair-minded person would now withhold judgment as to guilt until the …show more content…

In the novel, women are viewed as both manipulative and inferior. Further, not only is Grace seen by the men in the novel as a cunning temptress, but additionally she is saved from the noose due to the lack of wits associated with her gender. Unlike her partner in crime, James McDermott, this corrupt system regards Grace as not clever enough to be responsible for the double-murder. Ultimately, Atwood incorporates this corrupt system in the novel and illuminates its complexity by having it both condemn and spare

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This article is credible as it was originally published in a literary journal and then on the JSTOR database. Auerbach’s article analyzes Alias Grace in both a feminist and psychoanalytic perspective, specifically regarding the characters Grace Marks and Simon Jordan. Auerbach approaches Grace not as an intelligent heroine defying the odds and blazing her own path, but rather a young girl imprisoned both literally and by the standards for servants and ladies of the 19th century. For example, the sole reason she is not hung like her fellow-compatriot James McDermott is due to the belief that women are feeble-minded and incapable of such murderous feats. Likewise, Auerbach argues that on the surface, Simon seems to be an enlightened doctor,

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