(1993) shows striking similarities to Atwood’s earlier novels,
Lady Oracle(1976) and
Cat’s Eye(1988), the most notable being its preoccupation with the construction of female identity and the radical potential of self-invention. The main characters engage in an ongoing process of role-playing, and identity is presented as unfixed and changeable. The femme fatale of the novel, Zenia, is most interesting in this regard as the self-created myths about Zenia’s origins and personal history come to hold the other characters–Roz, Charis, and Tony–in thrall to her storytelling powers.
The beautiful and powerful villainess of The Robber Bride, Zenia embodies but also exploits the patriarchal fantasies more usually associated with male stereotypes. Late in the novel
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Citation: McWilliams, Ellen. "The Robber Bride". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 24 October 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=7603, accessed 25 November 2024.]
