"Alias Grace"

Paper Summary:

The paper believes that the story of Mary Whitney in Margaret Atwood's story "Alias Grace" is just as important as that of Grace as she is in fact a major part of Grace's story from when Grace becomes possessed half way through the novel. The paper also shows how the relationship between the characters of Mary and George illustrates the hypocrisy of the upper classes and exposes the unfortunate position of servants and women in the 19th century society that Atwood writes about.

From the Paper:

"In "Alias Grace", Mary Whitney is a character that dies, but is never entirely removed. Grace holds on to the memory of their time at the Alderman-Parkinson's, as well as using her to use language that she does not want to be associated with. She is a typical 19th century woman, and is indicative of the treatment that servants suffered at the hands of their employers. Mary Whitney represents a doubly weak situation: she is a woman and a servant. Her pregnancy exposes the problems between the relationship between the classes, and her untimely death shows the reality of the master-servant relationship at the time. The death of Mary also leads to the theory that Grace is innocent because Mary possesses her body after death."

More papers on "Alias Grace":

• Comparison Essay # 140010 : "Gender and Race in "The Color Purple" and "Alias Grace"
• Book Review # 75253 : "Alias Grace" "
• Book Review # 85467 : "'Alias Grace' by Margaret Atwood"

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