Women’s Sexuality and Reproductive Rights through Animalistic and Mechanistic Images in Margaret Atwood’s Surfacing (1972)

Abstract

The discussion of women’s sexuality and reproductive rights is at the core of Margaret Atwood’s Surfacing (1972). The Canadian writer explores sex, contraception, pregnancy, giving birth and abortion through the female characters of Anna and the unnamed narrator. In dealing with these issues, Atwood employs images of machines and animals that are deeply rooted in Western culture’s understanding of the female body to criticize and expose the exploitation and control of women in patriarchal societies.