New Perspective in Women and Nature: Dualism in Margaret Atwoods Surfacing

ABSTRACT: This article carries out a systematic study of Margaret Atwood’s second novel Surfacing in the outlook of Val Plumwood’s theories and pays attention to the ecological crisis and living situation of female, nature, and animal. Val Plumwood highlights the dualism involved in the specific opposition between Man/Woman, Culture/Nature, Subject/Object, Human/Nature and Human/Animal. Plumwood sets five features for dualism which defines women and nature in hierarchy. Therefore, such hierarchy reflects the major forms of oppression in Western culture. According to Plumwoodcontradictory, and dualistic worlds exist in the mastery society: the feminine and the masculine. Margaret Atwood depicted the image of women and nature in parallel with specific duties such as Mother Earth as well as Plumwood’s theories. She investigates woman, nature, and animal right that are in lower position in man’s society. They are closely related to each other. In male-dominated culture males take themselves as Master of the world and the soul of all creatures.