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Moral Disorder was published in 2006 and is Margaret Atwood’s latest collection of short stories, which could also be qualified as a hybrid-novel. Through eleven stories, the collection gives us a glimpse at Nell’s life. The stories are at times narrated in the first person, in Nell’s voice, at other in the third person, thus giving the reader a different perspective on the narrative as well as different degrees of reliability. In the same way, some stories are told in the past tense, while others are told in the present, although these usually contain past memories.
According to Atwood, this is her most autobiographical work, except for one thing: Nell is not a writer. Indeed, there are many elements in Nell’s story that also belong to Atwood’s life from the family members to the job in university to the farm in the countryside and many of the anecdotes are actually memories from her own past, such as that Halloween when she disguised herself as the headless horseman from Washington Irvine’s story, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. What I found more striking though is how it keeps referring to Atwood’s own work and how so many details have already appeared in previous stories thus giving the reader the impression of a déjà-vu. The first time I read it, I kept thinking “I’m sure I have already read this story”; but when I reread the other collections I discovered that it was due to these details that are recurrent in Atwood’s work.
The same themes and images favoured by Atwood are also present in this collection, although in quite a mellow way. For instance, one can see how the position of women in society has evolved in the second half of the 20th century and Nell’s ambiguous attitude towards feminism seems to reflect Atwood’s own position. Nell never appears as being a proponent of Feminism with a capital “F”, although she is to a certain extent an independent woman who, we discover, fears this independence. The discussion is more focused on the norms and conventions of society and how these works. It shows that Feminism is only another discourse imposing different norms that need to be followed and with which Nell is not necessarily comfortable.
Another concern in this collection is the subjectivity of any narrative and how interpretation depends on the perspective adopted by the reader, as the story “My Last Duchess” directly draws attention to. This story also highlights the importance of Literature as a life teaching tool while insisting on the need to go beyond the accepted reading.
Yet, one theme is much more present than in other collections, although it was already touched upon in previous stories it was not as well developed: the theme of growing old. As we witness episodes from Nell’s life since she was a kid waiting for the birth of her little sister to present days, when she is a woman whose own daughter has left the family nest and whose mother is slowly losing her senses and getting close to death, we can feel the fear growing. It is not so much a fear of dying but really the fear of growing old and losing one’s mind, like the cat in “The Bad News”. Maybe Atwood is getting older but she has not lost her ability to write great compelling stories.
Although the narrative is broken up by the short-story collection format and the time displacement, one can feel drawn into this collection and Nell’s world as if it were a novel. As always with Atwood important issues are raised while the narrative retains a certain lightness and humour making reading at the same time an enjoyable and serious activity.
I have just finished reading Larry’s Party by Carol Shields. I had previously read Unless by the same author and had enjoyed it, despite finding it a bit lengthy at times. The same can be said of Larry’s Party. It is not so much that it is lengthy, but that it is sometimes repetitive because of its structure. The book is indeed divided into autonomous chapters which are connected to a particular year in Larry’s life. Each chapter could actually stand on its own and make a short story since it does not seem necessary to have read the whole book to appreciate each chapter. The chapters are also written like short stories: they do not relate the year but only an aspect of it; they are therefore suggestive and evocative. However, this chapter autonomy also means that some information is constantly repeated, which can get a little annoying.
Through these various chapters, ranging from 1977 to 1997, we get a picture of Larry’s life, his emotions and how he has evolved with his society. Larry having been married twice, with women of a different age, means that we can observe the evolution of gender relationships. This theme actually occupies an important place in the final chapter, when the party of the title takes place and the guests are found discussing the position of men and women in society:
‘Being a man at this moment of history means -’ . . . ‘Well, we’re certainly no longer providers and guardians. That went years ago.’ . . . ‘And hunting and fishing? – forget it. Women sneer when men talk about hunting and fishing.’ . . . ‘A man these days is no more than an infrastructure for a penis and a set of testicles.’ ‘That’s not true! Tell me it’s not true.’ ‘That’s all that’s required of us. Our bodies are just walking, talking envelopes designed to contain our paltry store of genetic tissue.’ . . . ‘Being a man in 1997 means walking on eggshells. I don’t dare tell a woman that she looks nice anymore. That I like the color of her dress or the way she’s changed her hair. They’d have me up for sexual harassment.’ . . . ‘My point is that we – both men and women – ought to cherish this period of confusion. Our present period of discomfiture – well, it’s a great and ecstatic gift. We’ve had 5000 centuries of perfect phallic clarity. Everyone knew the script. Men buttoned themselves into their power costumes -’ ‘But at least we all knew who we were and what was allowed.’
Overall, I enjoyed this read and would definitely recommend the book. Carol Shields writes with elegance and simplicity about the ordinary; yet, her writing is powerful and raises contemporary issues.
The reason why I picked up this book is that it was recommended to me by a person who is planning to adapt the final chapter, the party, as a play. I think it is going to work really well. I can’t wait!
P.S.: I have just joined the 4th Canadian Book Challenge hosted by John Mulford at The Book Mine Set and this is my first review for the challenge. You can follow my progress on the “Book Challenges” page I have created for the occasion.
As we all know, energy waste is not good for the environment. Every year, events like “Earth Hour” (see my posts here and here) try to sensibilise people to this issue and the little changes they can make in their daily life. The obvious thing is to turn off the light if you’re not in a room. I’m sure that an increasing number of people try to do these little things. I believe they do add up and that it makes a difference. However, imagine the difference it would make if businesses and shops were to do the same thing. The corner shop in the village I live in has its outside light on all night. What’s the point of this? Attracting attention? Not many cars pass by at night, it’s pointless and a total waste of energy.
That’s one thing I don’t understand: why in these days and ages there is no governmental regulation about this? If you leave the light on in the shop when it is closed, you get fined. I agree, it is a bit totalitarian but at least it would make a difference!
Anyway, I’m off to write to my corner shop and tell them what I think!
C'est la vie! 