American Expansion
Atwood packs Surfacing with images of Americans
invading and ruining Canada. The Americans install missile silos, pepper the
village with tourist cabins, leave trash everywhere, and kill for sport.
David even goes so far as to theorize an American invasion of Canada for
Canadian fresh water. Atwood depicts American expansion as a result of
psychological and cultural infiltration. The narrator calls Americans a
brain disease, linking American identity to behaviors rather than
nationality. To the narrator, an American is anyone who commits senseless
violence, loves technology, or over-consumes. David claims he hates
Americans, yet he loves baseball and imitates Woody Woodpecker. Atwood
depicts American expansion as destructive and a corruptive psychological
influence.
The Power
The narrator mentions power several times before going mad and
actively seeking “the power.” In Chapter 4, she remembers thinking that
seeds from a certain plant will make her all-powerful. In Chapter 9, she
says that doctors pretend childbirth is their power and not the mother’s. In
Chapter 15, she remembers alternately pretending to be a helpless animal and
an animal with power. The narrator’s later quest for “the power” emphasizes
her response to alienation. Ever since childhood, she has been isolated and
emotionally numb, crippled by unsuitable religious ideals and gender roles.
The narrator’s psychotic search for “the power” represents the false hope
that by withdrawing from society she can regain her humanity. Ultimately,
the narrator gains power by resolving not to be powerless. She acknowledges
that in order to function in society, she must learn to love and
communicate. The narrator’s quest for “the power” is similar to her anxiety
over social alienation.
