자연과 여성의 정체성 찾기: 마가렛 앳우드의 떠오르기연구 -에코페미니즘적 접근을 중심으로

Abstract

In this thesis, I make an attempt to analyze how woman, man and nature are interrelated in Surfacing, adopting viewpoint of woman and nature as an analytical frame. Surfacing, one of Atwood’s early novels, was written with contemporary environmental awareness. The novel’s the internal structure is focused on revealing the past repression of her own identity, while external structure tells the journey to reveal the truth of the disappearance of the protagonist’s father. At first, I explain how woman and nature are interrelated. I emphasize that woman’s body is similar to the system of the nature and the protagonist shows a sensitive reaction regarding nature as an organic body. And also, I explore the realization of an unbalanced relationship between men and women. The protagonist experiences an abortion as the result of unsuccessful love and the experience gives her a severe sinful conscience. At last, I explore how the protagonist finds her lost identity when she faces her father’s dead body. Therefore, the title of the novel, Surfacing, means not only rising from deep water, but also the redemption from her painful past memories. Thus, in Surfacing, the conclusion shows us that Atwood tries to find the solution to the destructiveness of the modern society and to the restriction of women’s identity through the view of ecofeminism. This is exemplified in the protagonist’s return to city, which shows a kind of positive change of life. Therefore, in Surfacing, it could be drawn that it is Atwood’s ecofeminismal vision to identify the power of nature related with woman’s capacity to form a life cycle.