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Regarded as "the Queen of Canadian Literature", Margaret Atwood is a prestigious contemporary Canadian writer with international reputation, who has produced a large numbers of books in several genres, including poetry, criticism, short story and novel. Her diverse literary works usually embody the dual themes of feminism and Canadian national consciousness, reflecting her distinctive meditation on human being’s survival condition and life value. Meanwhile, as a female writer, she has strong feminist consciousness, which conveys her concern over the theme of women’s survival. Her novels manifest her unique feminist perspective and keen observation. Her novel Alias Grace takes a historical event as background, with exquisite language and excellent narrative technique, describing a female murder suspect’s experiences of adversity and survival, to show the survival pattern of women in the power politics of gender. This thesis aims at making an analysis of survival theme in Alias Grace combining the perspectives of feminism with nationalism, in the hope of revealing Canadian consciousness of self-seeking through women’s experiences in Atwood’s works.This thesis is composed of three parts. Chapter One introduces the survival theme. To begin with, it traces the development of Canadian literature history, to illustrate that the survival complex is the recurring motif in Canadian literature. Then it narrows down to focus on the survival theme presented in Atwood’s works, especially in Alias Grace. Through exploring the theme of "survival", Atwood constantly focuses her attention on the lives of female community, combining women’s fate with Canada’s situation, to mirror Canada’s resisting its marginalized subordinate identity in the crevice of history and reality, and to reflect the mental process in seeking self-identity. In Alias Grace, the heroine Grace, as a female immigrant living at the bottom of society, always suffers trammel, ignored and oppression from patriarchal society. However, through wise female policies and unique philosophy of survival, she finally achieves self-salvation physically and mentally.Chapter Two based on close reading investigates the victimization of women from three aspects of gender, class and culture cultivation. In wars of sexes, as "second sex", women are considered as Other in the patriarchal society and endure the double injuries both morally and physically. Women’s miserable fate is presented in three female images’ death in the novel. In class conflict, women in lower class are classed as inferiors. Their intelligence, creativity, even their hard works are not admitted, and are placed as marginal status. In cultural cultivation, Victorian moralities and values restrict women to conform to the ideal stereotypes. In the novel, women not only suffer the physical bondage, but also the spiritual shackle, implying the deep-rooted influence of social convention.Chapter Three analyzes the heroine’s experience of resisting victimization through female policies and finally achieving salvation. Through first-person narrative, the heroine Grace shows her independent consciousness, and reveals her unique survival wisdom. Psychologically, she keeps alienation from hypocritical society. As an immigrant, a servant, and a prisoner, Grace indulges in two modes of vision:a participant, who is enduring hardships but is skilled in self-protection; an observer, who is holding a critical perspective with her sober-minded judgment. Her narrative indicates her insight and criticism to the ugliness of society. In action, Grace conceals herself in the patriarchal society by the strategy of camouflage. Ostensibly, she constantly mimics what society wants her to be:submission, subordination and silence, but actually she has strong minds of rebellion, manipulation and cynicism. Finally, she achieves salvation both physically and mentally through the knowledge she learnt from her friend Mary Whitney, and also through her own moral awakening.In conclusion, the survival theme is the dominating theme in the novel Alias Grace, which has been evident in Atwood’s main literary creations as well as in Canadian literature. Through other female characters’ misfortune, Grace acutely realizes female’s victimization. Due to the inferior position of gender, class, and culture cultivation, female character has to adopt a series of strategies and accept her female identity and feminity. By resisting her submissive position and keeping her own independent status, Grace finally achieves the physical and spiritual self-salvation. This theme based on Atwood’s feminist perspective, vividly demonstrates the historical and Canadian theme.
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