[...] A reviewer once has called Alias Grace “the doctoral dissertation that Atwood did not complete, a tour de force rendition of nineteenth century Canadian social life.” In fact, the authoress had done some proper historical research, and definitely the better part of the novel's attraction “emanates from its basis in the truth, and the sheer impossibility of tracking down that truth.”
The title itself already alludes to the difficulty of finding out the true identity of the historical person Grace Marks:
“The title signals a disturbing absence of the original behind the name. […] This novel recognizes that no written […] history allows either the real women's voice nor the true story of the past to be recovered.”
The traditional modernist view of history depends on a belief in and a pursuit of objectivity. In her novels, Atwood often challenges these modernist views. As a consequence, the reader is rather confronted with different, even contradictory versions of one and the same story. Until its very end the novel refuses to deliver an unambiguous and unmistakable reconstruction of the events at Richmond Hill. So Alias Grace is not only concerned with history just because the plot is set in the past, but also the issues 'memory', 'historical truth' and the 'reconstruction of historical events' form a thematic constellation that plays a crucial role in the novel. The aim of this paper is supposed to discuss the question of how Atwood deals with the representation of history and historical 'truth' in her novel Alias Grace, thus offering a general questioning of the truthfulness and objectivity of historical accounts.
For this purpose it seems to be appropriate to touch on briefly the narrative construction of the novel. The prominent role reconstruction of history plays in the novel, becomes already apparent in the fact that the better part of the plot is set nearly two decades after the events that are to be reconstructed, so that any occupation with the murders in the novel itself must be a retrospective one.
Not one single narrator, but a “plethora of voices” unfold the story in a multiperspective narrative situation. After having introduced the most influential recent theoretical concepts on the relationship of historical and literary writing, each narrative perspective is to be discussed in more detail in the following chapters to find out how they all work together in a kind of “narrative patchwork.” [...]
Aus der Einleitung
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- History and Fiction. Recent Concepts by White and Hutcheon
- "To keep the Sultan amused." Grace's First-Person Narrative
- "I've been baffled." Third-person Perspectives
- "The past is made of paper." Historical Documents and Fictional Epigraph
- Conclusion
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This paper aims to analyze Margaret Atwood's novel Alias Grace, focusing on how she tackles the representation of history and "historical truth" within the narrative. The paper will explore the complexities of historical reconstruction, the interplay of fiction and fact, and the multifaceted nature of truth in Atwood's work.
- The Representation of History and "Historical Truth"
- The Interplay of Fiction and Fact in Historical Narrative
- The Construction of Memory and Identity
- The Role of Gender and Power in Historical Events
- The Difficulty of Establishing Objective Truth
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The introduction provides a brief overview of Margaret Atwood's literary career and her historical novel Alias Grace. The text highlights the novel's success and its roots in Atwood's fascination with the historical murder case of Thomas Kinnear and Nancy Montgomery.
The second chapter explores recent concepts of history and fiction by White and Hutcheon, setting the stage for analyzing the novel's engagement with these themes.
The third chapter examines Grace Marks' first-person narrative, analyzing its role in shaping the reader's understanding of the events. The chapter explores the limitations and complexities of a first-person account, particularly in relation to a historical event.
The fourth chapter focuses on the various third-person perspectives that offer contrasting insights into the events surrounding the murders. This chapter sheds light on the subjectivity of historical interpretations and the challenges of reconstructing events from multiple viewpoints.
The fifth chapter delves into the interplay of historical documents and fictional elements in the novel. It examines how Atwood utilizes real historical documents, including Grace's own words, to create a layered narrative that blurs the lines between fact and fiction.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The central themes explored in this text revolve around historical narrative, truth, subjectivity, gender, and the complexities of reconstructing the past. Important keywords include: historical novel, historical truth, memory, identity, fiction, fact, gender, power, subjectivity, objectivity, and narrative construction.
- Quote paper
- Florian Unzicker (Author), 2009, "Perhaps I Will Tell You Lies", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/135245
