Death by Landscape

In Margaret Atwood's "Death by Landscape," Lois's isolation is intricately tied to significant losses in her life, including the death of her husband and the disappearance of her childhood friend,...

The key relationships and themes in this story are brought to a close in the last two paragraphs, where we are reminded of how Lois is still affected by the death of her friend Lucy. We are told that...

Margaret Atwood uses vivid imagery in "Death by Landscape" to explore the tension between civilization and wilderness. Through descriptions of invasive ivy and squirrels, and Lois's unsettling...

Nature acts as a character in both "Death by Landscape" and "Hills Like White Elephants" by driving the narrative and mirroring the internal conflicts. In "Death by Landscape," nature is a harsh,...

The central conflict in "Death by Landscape" involves Lois grappling with unresolved trauma from the disappearance of her friend Lucy during a childhood camping trip. This loss leaves Lois with a...

In Atwood's "Death by Landscape," Lois feels "wordless unease" from the landscape paintings because they serve as a haunting reminder of her friend Lucy's mysterious disappearance. The paintings...

In "Death by Landscape," we learn that Cappie is deeply invested in Camp Manitou's success and wants to "cause joy." She imprints the camp with her relentless, cheerful optimism. She also contributes...

Margaret Atwood uses foreshadowing in "Death by Landscape" to create a sense of foreboding and guilt surrounding Lois, the protagonist. Early text hints at something haunting Lois, foreshadowing her...

Atwood first describes the paintings in Lois' apartment. She paints a picture of Lois standing these landscapes which stare back at her. Atwood then moves on to recount Lucy's disappearance, which...

In "Death by Landscape" and "To Room Nineteen," both protagonists, Lois and Susan, experience isolation due to betrayal and existential doubts. Lois's isolation begins in childhood, tied to emotional...

In "Death by Landscape," the social environment is more significant than the physical landscape. While the physical landscape is crucial, symbolizing the place where Lucy disappeared, it is Lois's...

In "Death by Landscape," Lois, the protagonist, is partly responsible for her conflict due to her choices, such as downsizing to a smaller living space and filling her walls with landscape paintings,...

In "Death by Landscape," to a large extent, the protagonist, Lois, is conditioned not by her current physical and social environment but by an environment that she spent time in many years earlier, a...