Introduction intergenerational Debts, Guilt, and Shame in

act of injustice:

we had no voice

we had no name

we had no choice

we had one face

one face the same

we took the blame

it was not fair

but now we’re here.

The interest in science that is so patently conveyed through characters and themes in Cat’s Eye has led to several examinations of the novel from a scientifically oriented perspective, most recently by Janine Rogers who argues that ‘Atwood is clearly constructing science as redemptive’. The spiritually redemptive dimension of Cat’s Eye is, however, most vividly expressed through the appearance of the Virgin Mary. Many critics associate the Virgin Mary with forgiveness, emphasizing her divine status. According to Helen Charisse Benet-Goodman, it is via Elaine’s experience of the Virgin Mary that the novel ‘grounds forgiveness in a

religious vision’. Whether she should be seen as a projection of Elaine’s mind or as a genuine apparition is a point of contention amongst critics, and even Benet-Goodman argues that the novel ‘resists this religious vision and remains uncertain of the vision’s ontological status’. Whereas Benet-Goodman examines female friendship and forgiveness, Rebecca M. Painter explores the novel’s portrayal of evil. In her reading, evil manifests itself not only in Cordelia, but also in Elaine’s subsequent indifference to Cordelia’s suffering.