Scapegoat Criteria Essay

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Rebecca Scapegoat Criteria Being different is not always smiled upon in society. There are predesigned social norms that the majority follows and believes everyone else should do so too. When things go amiss it tends to be those that defy the mold for the norm that are held responsible. Although not everyone places blame on others, society as a whole tends to lash out at those individuals that are different—scapegoats. In Morrison’s “Recitatif” and Atwood’s “Lusus Naturae”, it is easy to distinguish the kind of person that is a scapegoat, why they are, and the consequences that follow. Not everyone is signaled out as a scapegoat; it takes an individual that is different from society’s norms and those individuals around them. In both Morrison’s “Recitatif” and Atwood’s “Lusus Naturae”, the scapegoat is the character that has a physically impairing abnormality. Morrison’s character, Maggie, is the older woman that works at St. Bonny’s. She is not only bow legged, but also a mute—the main reason behind her mistreatment. Although these handicaps are not significant concerns today, during the time frame of “Recitatif” these are seen as defects that do not mesh well with society. As Roberta tells Twyla, “And because she could [not] talk—well you know, I thought she was crazy” (214). The protagonist of Atwood’s “Lusus Naturae”, unsurprisingly, is the individual that is signaled out as the scapegoat. She has a genetic disorder that warps her outer features; yellow eyes, pink teeth, red finger nails, and dark hair that protrudes from her chest and arms (233). Not only does she have a physical disorder, but a mental one that has her, as Atwood writes, “off in the darkest corner, mewing to [herself] and listening to the twittering voices nobody else could hear” (232). It is these distinguishing differences that go against social norms that cause both of these characters to
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