Violence against Women and Nature: An Ecofeminist Critique of Patriarchal Exploitation in Surfacing (1972)

Abstract

This study explores the ways in which Margaret Atwood's novel Surfing (1972) links the victimisation of women to the degradation of nature. The study is based on an "ecofeminist reading" that supports the claim that the male characters of the novel view women and nature as "things" to be used, owned and discarded. The anonymous narrator embarks on a voyage through the Canadian wilderness and gradually learns about the extent to which her body and mind have been wounded by the patriarchal culture. This paper argues that Atwood views women and nature as connected within the same system of male domination by examining the scenes of physical and emotional abuse, and the killing of animals and the control of the environment. The study also relies on the basic theory that was established by the late Sherry Ortner (1974) that the equation of woman with nature is both an object of exploitation. This research combines close textual analysis and an explicit ecofeminist framework, which is absent in the current research. The results reveal that Surfacing is a personal narrative of trauma and healing, but it's also a political stance against all systems that see humans as less than human. This collection of essays includes an overview of Atwood's work along with a collection of her most recent nonfiction writings. This is a volume of essays that contains a survey essay on Atwood and a group of her latest nonfiction works, including works on "Ecofeminism" and "The Female Body.