|
I don’t know. I didn’t worry about Dr Jordan being a construct. I was just irritated at the amount of attention he was getting when I was more interested in Grace. She was an enigma, and therefore intrigued me.
I think I read the book as a story and didn’t bother so much about the boundaries between fact and fiction. I was prepared to accept that the story about Mary was true, that she existed in Grace’s world I mean, as opposed to being part of Atwood’s fiction. Her fate was sadly such a common one back then, that it was all too possible.
Grace was clearly personable, intelligent and had many useful skills in order to become a trusted servant in the Governor’s home. So I was prepared to believe her to be innocent of the murders but afraid of McDermott and so an accessory after the fact. She managed to use her wits to keep him from raping her.
In some odd way she reminded me of Elizabeth Tudor managing to survive by her wits in a similarly perilous situation when one mistake would have given Queen Mary the excuse to execute her. Quite different circumstances of course, but each a woman surviving despite the odds.
|