How Closely Based
Margaret Eleanor Atwood, the author of The Blind Assassin, is a fierce feminist and an avowed enemy of the patriarchy. “Atwood consistently explores how society might change if one of its many oppressive agencies (in the case of The Handmaid's Tale, patriarchy, and in the case of the MaddAddam series, scientific-industrial manipulation of nature) gained control” (Atwood “The Blind Assassin”). Atwood writes in the postmodern era, and uses metafiction to examine the effects and actions of the patriarchy. Atwood can see these actions in her own life, and gives her characters elements of her activism against these actions. Furthermore, Iris’s life embodies Atwood’s, including a non-traditional childhood, unsuccessful relationships with men, and writing a science fiction novel.
Margaret Atwood is a vocal feminist, using her books as a vehicle for her activism and giving her characters her opinions and feelings. She voices her problems with the world, particularly with the patriarchy, through her stories. Iris decries Richard. Along with her father and the others who deceived her, he manipulates her life. Iris views the ease with which she and the public are deceived as a major flaw with the way her society operates. Women throughout Iris’s life also decry the men around them, including Laura, Reenie, and Winifred. Laura refuses to associate with Richard, Reenie criticizes Norval’s treatment of his daughters, and Winifred doubts her brother’s ability to keep up his political campaign. The women throughout the book act as an outlet to share Atwood’s own viewpoints about society.
Iris and Atwood also share similarities regarding their childhoods. Both women were raised in nontraditional environments where they were encouraged to explore what they wanted, not bound by societal expectations (Atwood “The Blind Assassin”). Atwood’s father, an entomologist, searched for samples in the forests of Quebec, preventing Atwood from regularly attending school until age eight. Similarly, Iris and Laura were left to raise and educate themselves. The two of them formed their own family, their own society in the ruins of their family. “I forgave her, of course. I always did; I had to, because there were only the two of us. The two of us on our thorn-encircled island, waiting for rescue; and, on the mainland, everyone else” (Atwood The Blind Assassin 143) Reenie only marginally monitored Iris and Laura, leaving them to explore their world in their own way. Both Atwood and Iris’s primary source of education in their formative years were books. They both utilized books for comfort and solace, in turn learning and thinking about the world around them.
In 1964, Margaret Atwood married Jim Polk. In 1973, only nine years later, they divorced (Atwood “The Blind Assassin”). Iris’s brief and volatile marriage seems to mirror Atwood’s own love life. Soon after her divorce, Atwood found a new man named Graeme Gibson, moved in with him, and had a daughter. This is evocative of Iris and Alex Thomas’s relationship and their daughter. One wonders how closely Iris is based on Atwood especially as Atwood was approaching the same stage of life as Iris: the reflection period.
Finally, Iris and Atwood are both science fiction writers. Even though Iris used Alex Thomas’s serials as source material, she had a real passion for science fiction. Atwood is perhaps most famous for her science fiction books, such as The Handmaid’s Tale and Oryx and Crake. The two are united by their love for the genre, for worlds that take them out of reality and their situations. Both developed their love for science fiction at a young age, when they most needed an escape. Their writing styles are also similar, understandably so since Atwood is writing the whole book. Both are witty and acerbic, unwilling to give others quarter where they deserve none. Their voices are honest and unaltered, meting out punishment and celebrating truth everywhere.
When Margaret Atwood created Iris Chase, she created Iris in her own image. Iris reflects Atwood’s childhood, her unsuccessful marriage, and her love of science fiction. Atwood and Iris are most united by their belief in the feminist movement and the blinding power of the patriarchy. They are not resigned to the way the world has always been and strive to change it. However, Iris is not unique in that aspect. Most of Atwood’s main characters reflect her views, as we can see in Laura, Reenie, and Winifred. This also applies to the main characters of Atwood’s other books, including Offred in The Handmaid’s Tale, Penelope in The Penelopiad, and Tony, Charis, and Roz in The Robber Bride. Like many other authors, Atwood took elements of her own life and used them to create her novels. Iris mirrors Atwood in many important ways, which are almost certainly intentional on Atwood’s part.
Works Cited
Atwood, Margaret. The Blind Assassin. London, Virago, 2011.
Atwood, Margaret. “The Blind Assassin.” Novels for Students, edited by Kristin B. Mallegg, vol. 53, Gale, 2016, pp. 16-38. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Accessed 27 Mar. 2017.
“Biography.” Margaret Atwood, margaretatwood.ca/biography/. Accessed 27 Mar. 2017.