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The Ominous Southern Border in Margaret Atwood's Alias Grace
Abstract
For her first and only historical novel, Margaret Atwood chose the convicted murderer Grace Marks – a 19th-century case that attracted notoriety due to Grace's gender, attractiveness and age. However, in reading Alias Grace, Atwood's invention of displaced American characters is striking, particularly as the novel holds them as responsible for Grace's trajectory than actual historical players. It appears that in addition to her portrait of Grace as a protagonist who subverts power relations, Atwood wanted to establish a historical context for the insidious threat of Americans. This chapter examines the function of Canada's southern border in Alias Grace, examining the conflicts generated by American characters temporarily residing in Canada. To begin, this chapter will first establish the context of historical northern crossings by American citizens, as well as Atwood's other portrayals of visiting Americans. Overall, while Atwood's American characters are generally benign figures, she consistently presents them as a subtle threat to Canadians and Canadian identity.
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