"Male fantasies, male fantasies, is everything run by male fantasies? Up on a pedestal or down on your knees, it's all a male fantasy: that you're strong enough to take what they dish out, or else too weak to do anything about it. Even pretending you aren't catering to male fantasies is a male fantasy: pretending you're unseen, pretending you have a life of your own, that you can wash your feet and comb your hair unconscious of the ever-present watcher peering through the keyhole, peering through the keyhole in your own head, if nowhere else. You are a woman with a man inside watching a woman. You are your own voyeur."
Mystery, suspense and a lot of drama can be perceived on the surface of Margaret Atwood's The Robber Bride. Interpretting this novel is a slippery matter. From afar, the book is a work of art; if you look closely to the story, you will find a group of women that have suffered in the hands of another woman: Zenia. But even that is not the story. That's what we are led to believe. The true story resides in the past of the main characters. From my point of view, this is the best work by Margaret Atwood.
PLOT AND STRUCTURE
The novel begins with three friends, Tony, Charis and Roz, at Zenia's funeral. They are glad that Zenia has finally departed for good. They are relieved, they can finally breath in peace. They have lunch at The Toxique to turn the page and to close this dark chapter of history. The ephemeral peace lasts only a few pages more, these pages can be counted with the fingers of a single hand. A horrible truth is revealed: Zenia is still alive.
Anyone would believe that this novel is about how these women got to know Zenia, how she destroyed their lives, of how they plan on retaliate the damage that she has blatantly provoked. Margaret Atwood goes beyond this predictable premise.
The author narrates the lives of the main characters before they meet Zenia, before meeting the men that she will take away from them. We go deeper on how these women survived harsh circumstances, and on how this woman, Zenia, comes to remind them how strong they are if they are determined to.
Tony's story: she is the daughter of a fickle woman in an unhappy marriage, her father is a cold man. Tony lives in neglect, in a childhood full of hostility between her parents. When she meets Zenia, she finds some confidence, then she rescues West whom she believes is her soulmate, her missing piece to fill the void that she never got to fulfill. That is until Zenia comes back, she takes it to herself, she uses him, she leaves him dry and dumps him, barely alive.
Charis used to be Karen during her childhood. She is the daughter of a neurotic mother with a deceased father who died in the war. Her grandmother takes care of her and this old lady appears to have magical powers to heal others. Karen enjoys the best years of her life with her, until she has to go with her Aunt Vi. At her house, she is abused by her uncle who takes advantage of her behavior: she has always been a very secluded girl, special in a way. Karen supresses her emotions to the point of creating a new persona to survive: Charis. Karen will be the one to be used and abused, but Charis will see everything from the distance, detached. Charis meets Bill, an inmigrant that resides in her house. Charis receives him as well as some chickens. As time goes by, Zenia shows up asking for help, but at the end, she steals Bill away from Charis and kills all of her chicken.
Roz is the daughter of a martyr and a heroe. Her mother awaited her husband who was in the war. Roz lives in a religious environment where she is constantly reminded of the impertinence of questioning her religion. Her father comes back, and as some months go by, he reveals they are very rich. They transform from an average middle class family to a wealthy one. Roz is moved from one world to the other, but she never gets to belong to any. She later becomes a successful entrepeneur and owner of the magazine Wise Woman World. She marries Mitch, a womanizer. Zenia shows up at her office and helps her to increase the sales for her magazine, but she also ends with her marriage full of infidelity, albeit constant.
Back to the present, the women face Zenia with revelations that ultimately fill them with questions about Zenia's true agenda. Did she do good with her cruel ways? Was Zenia a heroin or a villain? Was Zenia their enemy or their ally? Were her objectives truly vicious or was there a hint of a goodness?
The answers might appear to be vital, but at the end, Margaret chooses an open ending (which is not surprising). What is important is that these three women have found their inner strength thanks to the families that they have made for themselves.
THEMES
A novel about wars, history, vicious men, broken families, open wounds, and women that never give up, that always get what they want either as heroins or villains. A must-read. Flawless literature.
ABOUT THE ENDING
The ending was perfect for the development of the novel. The Toxique is a hypnotical fictional place that I wish really existed because it seems extremely compelling.
CHARACTER: 10/10
PLOT DEVELOPMENT: 9.5/10
THEMES: 10/10
What are your thoughts on this book? Did you love or hate Zenia?
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