Concept:
Concept:
Concept:
Stylistic Choices:
Stylistic Choices:
Stylistic Choices:
Concept: Influences on Identity
Stylistic Choices: Evolving Allusion
Nursery Rhyme (her personal past)  Breakfast
(personal experience)  Literary Canon (to show
the influence on the world)  reduced to an
allusion to show the complexity of “evil”
Concept: Perception
‘Spotty-Handed Villainesses’
by Margaret Atwood
Overall Purpose and Approach:
Atwood’s purpose is to demonstrate the futility of
language in capturing the full essence of identity –
particularly that of a women’s in literature.
Dismantles language forms and features, literature
and discourses to show that
humanity/womenhood is so much more complex
Stylistic Choices: Changing Narrative Voice
Starts with a personal voice reminiscing 
Responds to critics of her work  Adopts the
voice of a critic
Concept: Limitations of Language
Stylistic Choices: Rhetorical Questioning 
Responds and Composes through the question of
identifying women There are no clear answers
Concept: Internal and External Self
Stylistic Choices: Dichotomies  Dr Jekyll/Mr
Hyde, Angel/Whore  Despite these allusions and
diction, there is more a tension than a defining
split  Juxtaposition Writer (her)/Creator (God)
Concept: Challenging the Patriarchy
Concept: Definition of women
Concept: Evilness – Perception
Stylistic Choices: Rhetorical Questions in sequence
 Emotional responses to challenge structure 
responds with indefinite answers (subverts the
purpose of a RQ) to emulate the voiceless
response of women
Stylistic Choices: Ironic Juxtaposition  A novel
cannot be defined and yet the words it carries
attempts to define a woman  There are deeper
complexities
Stylistic Choices: Juxtaposition – oxymorons;
allusions  Lived experiences mimicked in
literature (albeit with limitations)