Atwood’s Presentation of her Female Characters Essay -- Alias Grace Ma

Atwood’s Presentation of her Female Characters Early in the novel Atwood presents us with the division between ladies and women. The example given is Grace compared to the governor’s wife and the ladies who frequently visit her. It seems that grace wishes that she was a lady when she comments â€Å"I have no gloves† this shows that Grace is conscious of her appearance even if she is in prison. Grace cannot sit on the governor’s wife’s settee without thinking of the ladies that have sat there before her who have bums â€Å"like wobbly soft boiled eggs†. These ladies are compared to jellyfish that grace has seen in her childhood, Grace shows admiration for these ladies ass he says â€Å"they were bell shaped and ruffled† Atwood also makes the point through grace that ladies of this time were restricted. This is achieved by the mentioning of wire crinolines that were â€Å"Like birdcages† the ladies were not allowed to touch or brush up against other men’s legs. Grace is now talking about legs in sexual way (also another sign of the times) â€Å"the governor’s wife never says legs† this commen...