Grace Marks: The Enigmatic Protagonist of Alias Grace

Overview

Grace Marks is the central figure of Margaret Atwood’s Alias Grace, a novel drawn from the real life of a celebrated nineteenth‑century Canadian murderess. In the book, Grace narrates her own story to Dr. Simon Jordan, a young alienist, but her guilt or innocence remains unresolved to the end. Atwood deliberately leaves the truth ambiguous, as the historical records themselves offer contradictory versions. Grace is both a victim of circumstance and a potential manipulator, a woman who may be mad, feigning madness, or simply surviving through performance.

Her defining trait is elusiveness. She speaks in a calm, measured voice, yet her account shifts and contradicts itself. She admits she may lie — “I suppose I may tell you lies” (Chapter 5, as recalled in Chapter 207). This self‑awareness makes her an unreliable narrator, but also a powerful one: she controls what she reveals and what she hides. Grace is intelligent, observant, and deeply aware of how society sees her. She uses the stereotypes of the “fallen woman” or “weak‑minded girl” to her advantage, as when her lawyer successfully argued she was an “idiot” to escape the noose (Chapter 3, Chapter 205).

Plot Role

Grace is the protagonist and first‑person narrator of the sections set in the past. In the present‑day frame of 1851–1859, she is a prisoner serving a life sentence in Kingston Penitentiary. Dr. Simon Jordan interviews her for his research on criminal psychology. Through these sessions, Grace recounts her life story — her impoverished Irish childhood, her voyage to Canada, her service in various households, her friendship with Mary Whitney, and finally the murders of Thomas Kinnear and Nancy Montgomery. She also describes her time in the Toronto Lunatic Asylum and her current life as a servant in the Governor’s house.

Her plot role is that of a storyteller on trial. The central mystery is not whether she committed the murders (she was convicted) but why and how much agency she had. She gives three different versions of the Montgomery murder, as noted in the Author’s Afterword (Chapter 256, Evidence). Dr. Jordan tries to uncover the “truth,” but Grace’s narrative resists simple answers. The novel’s plot is thus a quest for a truth that never fully emerges.

Motivations and Traits Shown Through Actions

Grace’s primary motivation is survival — physical, social, and psychological. She endures poverty, abuse, sexual threat, and institutional cruelty. Her actions consistently show a drive to protect herself.

• Self‑preservation: She leaves her father’s home to escape his violence (Chapter 15, Chapter 217). She accepts higher wages at Mr. Kinnear’s despite vague warnings (Chapter 22, Chapter 224). She uses an alias, Mary Whitney, when fleeing with McDermott (Chapter 12, Chapter 214; Ballad, Chapter 204).
• Circumspection: She guards her words carefully in interviews. She adopts a “stupid look” to deflect Dr. Jordan (Chapter 5, Chapter 207). She refuses to name Mary Whitney’s lover (Chapter 20, Chapter 222).
• Resilience and cunning: She endures the asylum, where she observes women feigning madness (Chapter 4, Chapter 206). She later recognises Dr. Jerome DuPont as the peddler Jeremiah and keeps his secret (Chapter 34, Chapter 236). She manipates Dr. Jordan’s expectations, giving him the story he wants while withholding key details.
• Emotional depth: She grieves for Mary Whitney and keeps a lock of her hair (Chapter 22, Chapter 224). She dreams of Nancy and feels haunted by the murders (Chapter 1, Chapter 203; Chapter 33, Chapter 235). Yet she can also be coldly rational, as when she reasons away McDermott’s confession about poison (Chapter 29, Chapter 231).

Her traits — intelligence, memory, theatricality, and a sharp sense of irony — make her a complex figure. She is not merely passive; she actively constructs her own story.

Chronological Arc

The narrative follows a non‑linear timeline. Grace’s present (1851‑1859) alternates with her past (1840‑1843) as she tells her story to Dr. Jordan.

1. Irish Childhood (Chapter 13, Chapter 215): Born to a poor family; mother dies at sea; father becomes abusive.
2. First Service in Toronto (Chapters 15‑22, Chapters 217‑224): Works at Mrs. Alderman Parkinson’s. Forms deep friendship with Mary Whitney. Mary dies from a botched abortion after being seduced by the son of the house.
3. Employment at Kinnear’s (Chapters 23‑36, Chapters 225‑238): Moves to Richmond Hill. Meets Nancy Montgomery, James McDermott, Jamie Walsh. She becomes aware of Nancy’s secret pregnancy and Kinnear’s attention. McDermott threatens murder. The murders occur on July 23, 1843.
4. Flight and Arrest (Chapters 38‑39, Chapters 240‑241): Flees with McDermott to the United States, using the alias Mary Whitney. Captured at Lewiston.
5. Trial and Conviction (Afterword, Chapter 256): Tried for Kinnear’s murder; sentenced to death; sentence commuted to life due to her youth and supposed “witlessness.”
6. Imprisonment and Asylum (Chapters 3‑4, 203‑206): Spends 15 months in Toronto Lunatic Asylum (1851‑1853). Returns to penitentiary.
7. Interviews with Dr. Jordan (1859): Tells her story. The novel ends with a final tableau where Grace may or may not have been hypnotised into revealing hidden memories (Chapter 49, Chapter 251). She receives a pardon in 1872 and vanishes from records.

Relationships

• Mary Whitney: Her closest friend, a fellow servant who teaches Grace about men, class, and survival. Mary’s death is a profound loss and shapes Grace’s view of the world. Grace later borrows Mary’s name as an alias (Chapter 12, 214) and perhaps her identity in moments of dissociation.
• James McDermott: The stable hand who becomes her co‑defendant. He is violent, crude, and infatuated with Grace. She claims to fear and resist him; his confession blames her as the instigator. The novel leaves the nature of their relationship ambiguous — were they lovers? Did she manipulate him?
• Nancy Montgomery: The housekeeper and Kinnear’s mistress. Grace initially sees a resemblance to Mary Whitney but soon feels rivalry and unease. Nancy’s pregnancy and her threat to dismiss Grace are precipitating factors.
• Thomas Kinnear: The gentleman employer. He shows Grace some kindness but also touches her inappropriately (Chapter 29, 231). He becomes a victim.
• Dr. Simon Jordan: The young alienist who seeks the truth. He becomes infatuated with Grace (Chapter 47, Chapter 249) and projects his own desires onto her. Their relationship is a power struggle: she controls the story; he controls her fate.
• Jeremiah the Peddler / Dr. Jerome DuPont: A mysterious figure who moves between roles. He warns Grace, offers her escape, and later reappears as a neuro‑hypnotist. He may be the only person who partially understands her.

Key Decisions and Consequences

Themes and Symbol Connections

• Memory and Storytelling: Grace is both a keeper and a weaver of memory. She tells multiple versions of events, and the novel explores how stories shape identity. The quilt patterns she sews — like the Tree of Paradise (Chapter 12, 214) and Pandora’s Box (Chapter 18, 220) — symbolise her narrative craft. The epigraph from Sheila Watson, “The word is a flame burning in a dark glass” (Chapter 202), underscores the dual nature of language as illumination and deception. Learn more about memory and storytelling.

• Gender Oppression: Grace is a victim of a patriarchal system. Her body is examined, measured, and interpreted by men (doctors, lawyers, journalists). She is denied agency over her own story. The ballad printed in Chapter 2 (Chapter 204) reflects the public’s obsession with her sexuality and guilt. Atwood’s afterword notes that contemporary ambiguity about women’s nature fuelled the controversy. Explore gender oppression.

• Betrayal and Manipulation: Grace is betrayed by McDermott, who blames her; by the legal system; and perhaps by her own mind. She in turn manipulates Dr. Jordan, feeding him what he wants to hear. The theme of [[betrayal and manipulation]] runs through all relationships in the novel.

• Identity and Self‑Invention: Grace reinvents herself multiple times: as a faithful servant, a madwoman, a victim, and a celebrated murderess. Her alias “Mary Whitney” suggests she can become another person. The novel questions whether any identity is fixed. Read more about identity and self‑invention.

• Power and Control: Grace exercises power through storytelling. She decides what to reveal. She also uses feigned weakness as a strategy. Dr. Jordan, despite his authority, is ultimately at her mercy for the truth. The power dynamic in the interview room is constantly negotiated. See power and control.

Key Questions and Answers

1. Did Grace Marks really murder Nancy Montgomery?

Alias Grace deliberately leaves this unresolved. Historical accounts conflict: Grace herself gave three versions (Author’s Afterword, Chapter 256). In the novel, she claims to have lost memory during the killing and can only recall fragments. Dr. Simon Jordan suspects she may be a skilled liar. The text suggests she may have been present but not the wielder of the axe — or she may have actively participated. No definitive evidence from the novel settles the question.

2. Why does Grace use the alias “Mary Whitney”?

Mary Whitney was her closest friend and fellow servant, who died after a botched abortion (Chapter 20, 222). When fleeing with McDermott, Grace gives the name “Mary Whitney” at the Lewiston Hotel (Chapter 12, 214; Ballad, Chapter 204). She explains she did not think her dead friend would mind. Using the alias may also allow her to briefly escape her own identity as a murder suspect. It foreshadows themes of borrowed identity and psychological doubling.

3. Is Grace genuinely insane or merely acting?

The novel presents arguments on both sides. Dr. Bannerling, the former asylum superintendent, insists she is a consummate actress feigning madness (Chapter 9, 211). Dr. Workman found her sane enough to return to the penitentiary (Chapter 6, 208). Atwood’s afterword notes that she “was suspected of having become pregnant” while in the asylum, suggesting sexual abuse. Grace herself tells Dr. Jordan she fears being sent back to the asylum (Chapter 5, 207). The text leaves open the possibility that her “madness” was a survival strategy.

4. What role does Jeremiah the peddler play in Grace’s life?

Jeremiah appears at key moments: he gives Grace a button and warns “sharp rocks ahead” (Chapter 18, 220); he offers to take her away as a medical clairvoyant (Chapter 30, 232); and later he reappears as Dr. Jerome DuPont, a neuro‑hypnotist who magnetises Grace (Chapter 34, 236). He is a liminal figure who understands her history and possibly her true nature. His re‑emergence suggests that hidden knowledge will be uncovered — but it also raises questions of showmanship and manipulation.

5. What happens to Grace at the end of Alias Grace?

The novel ends ambiguously. Dr. Jordan leaves Kingston abruptly after Major Humphrey’s return (Chapter 49, 251). Grace receives a pardon in 1872 and goes to New York State with the warden and his daughter; later writers claim she married, but no proof exists (Afterword). The final paragraphs show Grace sewing a quilt — a symbol of her ability to piece together fragments into a coherent pattern, even if the “truth” remains hidden. She becomes a figure of enduring mystery.

Conclusion

Grace Marks is one of literature’s most compelling unreliable narrators. She is a woman trapped between two worlds: the public myth of the “celebrated murderess” and the private reality of a traumatised survivor. Atwood’s novel refuses to judge her, instead inviting readers to piece together their own version of events — just as Grace stitches her quilt blocks together. Her story resonates with themes of memory, oppression, and the power of storytelling, making her a character who continues to haunt readers long after the final page.

For a deeper look at how the story concludes, see our ending explained. If you have further questions, check our questions and answers.