Elaine’s Identity: Cat’s Eye
The novel ‘Cat’s Eye’ by Margaret Atwood is about a journey of finding yourself, and how another person can affect who you are. Elaine (the main heroine) possesses the trait of vulnerability and is a victim of verbal abuse by a childhood friend Cordelia. What at first may seem like a child play results into Elaine’s mental instability. This novel consistently foreshadows how Elaine will forever remain affected by Cordelia. Elaine is not able to come to terms with herself until she finds Cordelia’s role in her life. The empty void of Cordelia’s memory will remain present until Elaine can understand how her life was impacted. Throughout the novel it is evident that the voice, replacements of Cordelia, and the person she pretends to be demonstrate how Cordelia is always with Elaine. Until she can realize why she is this way, she can never forget her.
Elaine is able to cope with the memory of Cordelia by establishing relationships with others who closely resemble her. Her affair with Josef symbolizes twinning with Cordelia as he treats her with disrespect. Cordelia was always trying to reform Elaine. She tormented her by watching all her movements, making sure to correct anything she was unsatisfied with. “‘Don’t hunch over’ says Cordelia ‘Don’t move your arms like that’”. After a childhood of continual lessons being put upon Elaine, as an adult she becomes attractive to those who can fix her. It is unmistakable that Josef is always trying to improve her, similarly to that way Cordelia tried to fix Elaine as a child. “Josef is rearranging me.” As Josef always tries to change Elaine, a similarity between Josef’s character and Cordelia’s shows up. Elaine, still vulnerable, follows his orders as she is in love with him. Elaine may have never loved Josef, but she was in love with his need for her. Until she realizes she does not need him, nor Cordelia, she cannot move on. Finally, Elaine makes this realization and puts an end to their relationship. “I see him as weak now, clinging, gutted like a fish.” (342) She understands that she has no love for Josef, and she is inadequate to him. She was once unable to look him in the eye, but once she discovers that he’s just an old man, she looks upon him as a fool. When he no longer needs her, she is of no use to him. This ends Josef and Elaine’s relationship but other factors cause Elaine to continually be tortured by the memory of Cordelia. She is beginning to understand Cordelia’s role in her life, but she has not fully come to terms with it. Josef is an example of how Cordelia followed Elaine throughout her life, and makes her drawn to these negative attributes.
Elaine manages to impersonate many different versions of herself, based upon what environment she is in. She is unable to identify herself until she understands how Cordelia affected her life, and she uses other people to influence the personality she takes. “I wear these things too, I try to blend in.” It is evident that when Elaine spends time within a certain setting, she adapts herself to be just like them, in order to feel included. This is heavily influenced because of the way Cordelia treated her as a child, trying to fix her to be Cordelia’s idea of normal. “Cordelia says it will be better for me to think back over everything I’ve said today and try to pick out the wrong thing.” Cordelia managed to pick out the wrong things about Elaine, and left Elaine to believe Cordelia was right. She begins to believe what Cordelia is doing is best for her, follows everything she says and transforms herself. Elaine spends her life constantly changing to what she believes will help her succeed. Once she realizes how Cordelia affected her, and how she does not need her, she can move on and become true self. “When I turn, finally, Cordelia is no longer there.” Elaine is finally able to express herself the way she wants to, as the taunting of Cordelia’s rules can no longer affect her. It seems as at this point, once she’s discovered her identity, she can be happy for herself, and can understand she does not have to live her life the way others tell her too. She is inspired, and in a way, freed by the way she’s always assumed she had to be. Cordelia’s role in Elaine’s life was to control and dominate her. Once Elaine can understand this, she can finally become her true self.