Passive Dolls and Gothic Escapes: Angela Carter’s and Margaret Atwood’s Early Novels

Abstract

The article deals with Shadow Dance (1966) and Love (1971) by Angela Carter; and The Edible Woman (1969) and Lady Oracle (1976) by Margaret Atwood. It focuses on Carter’s and Atwood’s treatment of popular genres, especially the genres of romance and Gothic. Although their early writing depicts passive characters who are often presented as doll-like and paralyzed, they develop from victims to survivors. In this respect, Carter and Atwood exploit romance and Gothic to re-write and parody the pre-determined roles and stereotypical conclusions which these traditional genres contain.

Keywords

• Angela Carter
• Margaret Atwood
• Shadow Dance
• Love
• The Edible Woman
• Lady Oracle