Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood

Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood: DID SHE? AND DOES IT REALLY MATTER? (792 words)
by MagdaDH - written on 17.07.04 (Very useful, 1591 readings)
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Grace Marks is a murderess. She is an ex-servant girl; in prison for having killed - or taking part in a murder of her employer and his housekeeper and mistress at the age of 16 . Her alleged partner in crime was hanged for his deeds but as opinions about her were widely divided she was spared the gallows and sentenced to life imprisonment. The next 30 years of Grace's life are spent in prisons and asylums although when we meet her, Grace claims having no memory of the murders. Dr Simon Jordan, a practitioner of just-being-born clinical psychology is employed by people who are trying to grant her pardon to prove her innocence. Her remarkable story unravels ...

The truth about murder. (666 words)
by Bryn Pearson - written on 01.11.01 (Very useful, 757 readings)
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"Alias Grace" is only partly fiction, as it is rooted in actual events, and contains many snippets from newspapers and reports at the time. In 1843, Thomas Kinnear and his servant/ mistress Nancy Mongomery were murdered - Kinear was shot, while Mongomery was attacked with an axe andd then strangled. Both were then throw into the cellar of Kinnear's house. Two servants - James McDermot (21) and Grace marks (16) fled from Canada to America, where they were caught and arressted, Both were tried for the murder of Kinnear (not for Montgomery curiously) and both were found guilty. While McDermot was hanged, some leniancy was given to Marks in light of ...

Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood: 1800's Brought to Life (245 words)
by Alindrail - written on 23.02.01 (Very useful, 465 readings)
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Atwood is always a good writer, but this is a fantastic book! I picked it up because of it's considerable heft, and the mesmerising cover (reminiscent of the Mona Lisa I thought). From the beginning the book works to mesmerise; the cover evoking the power, aloofness, and ethereal quality of the central character Grace Marks... Murderess. In the mid 1800's she was charged with aiding and abetting her fellow servant McDermott with the murder of her employer Mister Kinnear and their fellow servant Nancy. The book takes place during Grace incarceration as she is interviewed by Dr Jordan, who is trying to determine whether she is mad, or whether she suffered ...