The blind assassin by margaret atwood reading guide. Its two concepts that almost go together, but also almost dont. Book club books margaret atwood on the blind assassin guardian book club. Were currently discussing this months selection, margaret atwoods the blind assassin, in a series of posts to be followed by a. The blind assassin is a novel by the canadian writer margaret atwood. While the blind assassin is widely considered a modern classic today, it wasnt altogether favorably received when it was published. When we return to iris, it is through a 1947 newspaper article announcing the discovery of a sailboat carrying the dead body of her husband, a distinguished industrialist.
If you were the chosen girl in sakielnorn, born and taught to be a sacrifice, would you accept your destiny. Reading guide for the blind assassin by margaret atwood discussion guide for book clubs. Entitled the blind assassin, it is a science fiction story told by two unnamed lovers who meet in dingy backstreet rooms. When i was home for christmas, i grabbed atwoods the blind. In this multilayered novel, a dying octogenarian recalls her past, including her forced marriage, her sisters suicide, and the publication of her sisters science fiction novel, the blind assassin. How do you explain the sentence the way down is the way up. The novel begins with the mysterious deatha possible suicideof a young woman named laura chase in 1945. How much are the bad turns of ones life determined by things beyond our control, like sex and class, and how much by personal responsibility. The blind assassin by margaret atwood book club discussion. I liked the book but wasnt a critical enough reader at the time to fully. With her thoughts, the book skips between her 1930s and 1990s. Some people started reading it, not knowing what it was, and theyll continue reading it forever just because this. This months selection was margaret atwoods the blind assassin.
The the blind assassin community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. It was first published by mcclelland and stewart in 2000. The blind assassin margaret atwoods the blind assassin is a killer novel, all right, but it can see exactly where its going. It can be read as a blind person who assassinates people i. The blind assassin by margaret atwood, paperback barnes. My first idea was to write about the generations of my.
The introduction, discussion questions, author biography, and suggestions for further reading that follow are designed to enhance your reading groups discussion. The blind assassin by margaret atwood is a novel in which iris chase explains the circumstances leading to the death of her sister, laura iris marries the wealthy. John mullan on the blind assassin guardian book club. See more ideas about the blind assassin, margaret atwood and words. The page turners bookclub is led by kelly malitz and is open to the public. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides for challenging works of literature. W riting the blind assassin was a startandstop process. Margaret atwood on the blind assassin guardian book club. Alternating with sections of her narrative are chapters from a story entitled the blind assassin, told in the present tense. The blind assassin paperback tattered cover book store. The blind assassin is quite simply atwoods most emotional, yearning, heartfelt, sexy, and elegiac book ever.
This 66page guide for the blind assassin by margaret atwood includes detailed chapter summaries and analysis covering 15 chapters, as well as several more indepth sections of expertwritten literary analysis. Peter farnums summary of blind assassin tacoma retired mens. There is an eerily similar structure to margaret atwoods long awaited novel, the blind assassin. The novels title is actually the title of the story within, written by the narrators sister, laura chase, who on the very first page of the book, you learn, drives herself off a bridge ten days after world war ii ends. John mullan on the blind assassin guardian book club books. At the outset, the book concerns socialite iris griffen. I must admit this was a book that you had to put some effort into. She introduced me to her work my freshman year of high school and her books opened up my world.
I always thought of the concept of a blind assassin to be contradictory in a weird way. The blind assassin by margaret atwood penguin random. They are introduced by the newspaper voice at the start of the book. This latter tale is published as the work of iriss younger sister laura, whose death in. The majority of the book is told from the perspective of iris chase, an elderly woman reflecting and writing about her life and her family. Atwood has said that the form of the blind assassin was influenced by early twentiethcentury collages, in which newspaper excerpts were glued onto canvas and then painted around and overthus framing two ways of representing reality, each of which contradicted the other but also complemented it.
The blind assassin is a story that winds slowly through the lives of a wealthy canadian family before, during, and after the depression. My paperback copy is 637 pages, but every one of them is a joy to read. The counterpart story, the blind assassin, is a strange futuristic tale that dramatizes in unusual fauxoriental fashion a nameless womans obsession with a sciencefiction writer whose imaginings blithely mirror and exploit his power over her. What goes on four legs at dawn, two at noon and three in the evening. The writing is exquisite, each detail and description thoughtful and showing the fertility of atwoods imagination. A site dedicated to book lovers providing a forum to discover and share commentary about the books and authors they enjoy.
Content includes books from bestselling, midlist and debut authors. Would that all book club selections were as good as this one. The last time i read an atwood book was years ago and it was the handmaids tale. Reading guide for the blind assassin by margaret atwood. The blind assassin margaret atwood, 2000 addresses the question. John mullan on the blind assassin guardian book club among the tricks and puzzles, the overwhelming sense of design encourages the reader that there will be answers john mullan. Discuss the intricate structure of this novel and the methods atwood used to construct it. Peter farnums summary of blind assassin tacoma retired.
Laura chases older sister iris, married at 18 to a politically prominent industrialist but now poor and 82, is living in port ticonderoga, a town dominated by their onceprosperous family before the first war. This concludes our discussion of this months selection, margaret atwoods the blind assassin. The blind assassin by margaret atwood published by virago press ltd on 2000 genreslists. Peeling away the obscuring levels of narrative takes patience and no small amount of endurance, but each layer is sharper and smoother than the last, making the outer layers seem rough and disposable once the polished core comes into view. Peter farnum s summary of blind assassin tacoma retired. The author explains how she made two attempts to introduce the central. The blind assassin margaret atwood, 2000 knopf doubleday 544 pp. We are delighted to welcome the the north shore page turners to the store for their second meeting of 2020, as they discuss the booker prizewinning novel the blind assassin by margaret atwood. I got my own copy of the handmaids tale not long after moving to the city, but other than that i hadnt reread any of her books that i had been introduced to over ten years ago. When you return to iris, it is through a 1947 newspaper article announcing the discovery of a sailboat carrying the dead body of her husband, a distinguished industrialist. Thus begins the blind assassin, margaret atwoods new novel. Go fug yourself book club past book club discussions. Set in canada, it is narrated from the present day, referring to previous events that span the twentieth century.
1132 847 461 257 1364 1404 1536 346 470 92 42 577 146 84 1241 1291 1227 449 246 1227 326 505 723 1417 53 1081 150 571 188 708 838 982 278 1245 1260 757 1169 904 1457 1068 703 358 1376