A Study Of Self-identity Construction In Alias Grace:A Perspective Of Spatial Narrative

Margaret Atwood,"the Queen of Canadian Literature",is a contemporary female writer of international fame.Alias Grace is one of her masterpieces,which has greatly aroused critics' interests from its publication.Based on a true historical event,it tells the story of the murderess Grace Marks and presents her pursuit of self-identity.Previous studies on this novel mainly concentrate on the relation between history and fiction,feminism,narrative techniques and writing techniques.But a deep research into the identity in this novel is ignoredIn Alias Grace,space does not only serve as the setting,but also plays an important role in Grace's construction of self-identity.Her construction of self-identity is a dynamic process and is closely related with the space.The changes of space influence Grace's self-identity.Besides,her mental world is constantly changing and presents her real self-identity.Moreover,the textual structure reflects her self-identity as well.Therefore,this thesis intends to explore different levels of space in this novel and examine the influence of the space on Grace's construction of self-identity.It analyzes her process of constructing self-identity from the perspective of spatial narrative,mainly focusing on the topographical space,mental space and textual space in this novel.Based on the related theories of Gabriel Zoran and Henri Lefebvre,this thesis sorts out and analyzes the major places on the topographical level,Grace's mental space and the reconstructed textual space in this novel through close reading.It finds out that in the perspective of topographical space,the changes of places influence Grace's construction of self-identity.The prison confines her body and deprives her private space and the asylum forces her to hold her tongue,which makes her lose her self-identity.Instead,at Mrs.Parkinson's house,Grace changes into a mature woman and possesses her female identity.At the Governor's wife's house,she acquires self-identity through the narration of her own story.The mental space reflects that she consciously asserts and constructs self-identity,but she possesses a double identity in the unconsciousness.The textual space echoes her construction of self-identity and shows that she constructs a collective female identity with other female victims,which is the final solution for women to rebel against the patriarchal society and assert their self-identity.The status of female victims hints the oppressed state of Canada as the sufferer of American neo-colonialism and cultural imperialismFrom the perspective of spatial narrative,this thesis offers a new way to analyze Grace's self-identity.It finds out that although Grace is trapped in some topographical places,she consciously attempts to construct self-identity in other places.She claims her self-identity in the mental space.Moreover,the reconstructed textual space echoes her quest for self-identity.