Chapter summaries The Margaret Atwood 4-Book Bundle Margaret Atwood

Chapter 31: The Bronze Bell – Summary and Analysis

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

The chapter opens in the fictional city of Sakiel-Norn at midnight, where a bronze bell tolls to mark the mythic moment when the Broken God is torn apart and later resurrected. Though the ritual is performed, no one truly believes the story. The King, alone in his tower, removes his platinum face mask and reflects on his latest love affair. He plans to dispose of the demanding woman by ruining her husband financially and having her sold into slavery. He also considers an impending plot against him and sees a flickering light in the north.

The narrative shifts to the lovers' apartment. The woman fetches more alcohol while the man urinates out the window. They exchange banter about his orphan past and her "bloody mind." The man then resumes his story: the blind assassin, having killed a sentry, enters the room of the mute sacrificial girl. He feels no sympathy for her; he sees her as another victim of the ruling class he hates. He drags the corpse inside, locks the door, and prepares to carry out the assassination.

Key Events

  • At midnight in Sakiel-Norn, a bronze bell tolls, commemorating the myth of the Broken God's death and rebirth.
  • The King sits alone in his tower, laying aside his face mask to smile and frown freely.
  • The King decides to get rid of his mistress by ruining her husband financially, then selling her into slavery.
  • The King ponders a fresh plot against him and spots a distant flickering in the north.
  • The lovers' conversation resumes: she goes to get more wine, he urinates out the window, she wears a plaid dressing gown.
  • The blind assassin arrives at the locked door of the mute sacrificial girl, having already killed the sentry.
  • The blind assassin drags the sentry's body inside and locks the door, steeling himself to kill the girl.

Character Development

  • The King: Emerges as a cynical ruler who wields power without sentiment. He discards lovers like property and views the suppression of plots as routine. His removal of the mask symbolises a rare moment of private relaxation, yet his thoughts remain calculating.
  • The blind assassin: His backstory is further revealed: blinded and sexually abused as a child by the same aristocratic class he now serves. He feels no empathy for his target and views the assassination as a kind of favour. His hatred is absolute.
  • The female lover (framing narrative): Shows sharp wit and independence. Her retort that she is "bloody-minded" rather than bloody-hearted underscores her refusal to be sentimentalised.
  • The male narrator (framing narrative): Self-deprecating and manipulative, he uses his orphan background to evoke sympathy but also reveals a darker imagination in the story he tells.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

  • The bronze bell and the Broken God: The myth of a god destroyed and resurrected parallels the ritual violence in the chapter. The fact that nobody believes the myth anymore highlights the hollow formalism of the society and the gap between public ritual and private belief.
  • The King's platinum face mask: A symbol of royal power and concealment. The King removes it when alone, suggesting that even a ruler's emotions must be hidden to maintain authority.
  • Blindness and sight: The blind assassin's physical blindness contrasts with the King's search for omens in the stars. Neither can truly "see" the humanity of those they harm.
  • Silence and muteness: The sacrificial girl is made mute, symbolising the voicelessness of victims in a patriarchal, feudal system.
  • The lovers' banter: Their casual, intimate dialogue about the story creates a frame that comments on storytelling itself—the power of narrative to enact violence and to provide escape.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter deepens the novel's dual narratives by juxtaposing the King's cold political calculation with the blind assassin's personal vendetta. The myth of the Broken God introduces a cycle of destruction and renewal that underlies the story. The framing dialogue between the lovers reveals how the act of storytelling becomes a vehicle for intimacy, control, and shared fantasy. The blind assassin's lack of empathy for the mute girl raises disturbing questions about complicity and dehumanisation in societies built on violence.

Study Questions and Answers

Question 1: What does the King plan to do to dispose of his current lover? Answer: He plans to ruin her husband financially by dining at his house with many courtiers until the man's resources are exhausted. The woman will then be sold into slavery to pay the debt, which the King imagines as a punishment that will "firm up her muscles."

Question 2: Why does the blind assassin feel no remorse about killing the mute girl? Answer: His hatred for the rich and powerful is total—they blinded and abused him as a child. He also rationalises that the girl will be killed anyway by the next day, and his method will be quicker and less painful than a botched sacrifice.

Question 3: What is the significance of the bronze bell and the Broken God myth at the chapter's opening? Answer: The myth establishes a pattern of death and rebirth that mirrors the ritual murder the blind assassin is about to commit. The fact that the citizens no longer believe the story highlights the empty ritualism of the society, and parallels the King's own disbelief in the star omens he must interpret.

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