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Margaret Atwood

Margaret Atwood, "The Female Body"

Margaret Atwood (1939- ) was born in Ottawa, Ontario. She earned a B.A. from the University of Toronto in 1961 and an A.M. from Radcliffe College in 1962. She’s taught at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, the University of Toronto, and New York University. Her numerous stories, novels, and poems are complemented by her editorial and critical work, which includes the Oxford Book of Canadian Verse. One of her best-known novels, The Handmaid’s Tale (1986), which was made into a successful film in 1990, describes life in a future world where women suffer severe repression. Her most recent novel is The Blind Assassin (2000). Her work also appears frequently in periodicals such as The American Historical Review, the New York Times Book Review, and Parnassus: Poetry in Review. Atwood is the recipient of dozens of awards and honors, including a Guggenheim fellowship and several honorary degrees. "The Female Body" is an excerpt from Good Bones (1992) and was reprinted in Good Bones and Simple Murders (1994).

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

CONTENT

  1. Describe the main subject of section six.
  2. Discuss the types of "accessories" described in paragraph three.
  3. Who are the "He" and "She" characters in paragraphs six through eleven? What are they talking about?
  4. Discuss the types of "uses" described in paragraphs twelve through fifteen.
  5. According to the author, in what two ways "does a woman know"? What’s the difference between the two?
  6. What are the differences between "female brains" and "male brains"?

STRATEGY AND STYLE

  1. How does the substitution of the word topic for the word body in the second paragraph reflect the author’s view of the female body?
  2. Discuss how this piece can be classified as a definition essay. Make sure that you make clear the author’s main definition and her types of support.
  3. Review your answer to "Content" question c.) above. How many "She" characters did you come up with? What point is the author making about women in general here?
  4. Atwood divides her piece into seven sections and numbers them. What is the effect of this decision? What would the reading lose without this numbering and these divisions?

ENGAGING THE TEXT

  1. Imagine changing sexes. What effect would the switch have on your self-identity? Can you link these thoughts with your reading? If so, how? If not, why not?
  2. How content are you with your body shape? If you could change one thing about it, what would it be, and why would you change it? How can you relate your body image to your reading?

SUGGESTIONS FOR SUSTAINED WRITING

  1. Write an essay in seven sections called "The Male Body," following the organization of Atwood’s divisions.
  2. Pick one specific difference you’ve noticed between men and women. Using your reading and your own experiences, write an essay about that difference, detailing its nature and possible origins.

FOR FURTHER RESEARCH

Find Atwood’s poem "Helen of Troy Does Countertop Dancing" and study it. (It is available online.) What similarities can you find between the poem and your reading? What’s different?

WEB CONNECTION

Interested in putting Atwood’s work into the broader cultural context of feminist literature? This page of literary resources about feminism and women’s literature will help you do just that.

LINKS

Biographical

Atwood’s own site has a biography, information about her books, and FAQ, among other sources of information. It’s a great place to start learning more about the author.

Another excellent starting point, Atwood’s page at the Academy of American Poets site, has a biography, and links to poems and other web pages. What’s different in the nature of the biography here as opposed to the one on her own site?

This is the homepage of the Margaret Atwood Society’s site, maintained by "an international association of academics who study and teach the works of the Canadian writer." You’ll find lots of links and some pictures here.

Bibliographical

Here is an interview with the author at Salon.com. It centers on her historical novel, Alias Grace. What does the title of the interview, "Blood and Laundry," mean?

This is a speech by Atwood called "Spotty-Handed Villainesses: Problems of Female Bad Behaviour in the Creation of Literature." What kinds of audiences heard this speech, do you think? How could you find out?

Click here to read excerpts from the novel The Blind Assassin. A movie adaptation is currently in the works.

Cultural

This profile from the University of Calgary puts Atwood into the company of 99 other Canadian poets. It has a photo of her and some links.

Atwood’s influence extends beyond the literary world. There’s a band from England that took their names from her novel Alias Grace. Read more about them at their entry from Allmusic.com.

Did you know that Atwood has appeared in several films? Here’s her filmography from imdb.com.