Lesson 4: Death by landscape by Margaret Atwood

Who is the author of “Death by Landscape” and why is she important?

Margaret Atwood (born 1939, Canada) is a major late-20th-century writer and part of the literary canon.

She is known for exploring identity, memory, power, gender, and nature, and has won the Booker Prize twice.

Why is “Death by Landscape” considered a Canadian story?

It focuses on the Canadian wilderness, landscape painting, national identity, and nature as a powerful, dangerous force rather than a peaceful backdrop.

What is the basic plot of “Death by Landscape”?

Lois, an elderly woman, is haunted by the disappearance of her friend Lucy at summer camp years earlier.

Lucy is never found, and Lois copes by surrounding herself with wilderness paintings that seem to contain Lucy’s presence.

Where and when does “Death by Landscape” take place?

In the present (around 1990) in Lois’s apartment in Toronto

and in the past (1949) at Camp Manitou in the Canadian wilderness.

How does Atwood signal time periods in “Death by Landscape”?

Through language and cultural references such as Superman comics, I Love Lucy, and post-WWII context, rather than explicit dates.

What narrative perspective is used in “Death by Landscape”?

Third-person narration closely aligned with Lois’s perspective.

How does Atwood structure time in “Death by Landscape”?

By constantly shifting between past and present, showing how trauma collapses time and keeps Lois trapped in memory.

Why is the ending of “Death by Landscape” considered open?

Lucy’s fate is never explained, reinforcing ambiguity, haunting absence, and unresolved trauma.

How does “Death by Landscape” explore memory and trauma?

Trauma permanently shapes Lois’s identity; memory is alive, haunting, and impossible to escape.

What role does guilt play in “Death by Landscape”?

Lois feels survivor’s guilt for Lucy’s disappearance, surviving physically but remaining emotionally imprisoned.

How is disappearance a key theme in “Death by Landscape”?

Lucy’s absence becomes more powerful than presence, turning her into a ghostly trace within memory and art.

How is nature represented in “Death by Landscape”?

Nature is beautiful but threatening, indifferent to human life, and capable of absorbing people completely.

How does Atwood portray friendship and jealousy in “Death by Landscape”?

Lois admires and envies Lucy; their friendship includes power imbalance, competition, and dependence.

What does “Death by Landscape” suggest about obsession?

Lois’s obsessive collecting of paintings shows her inability to move on and her fixation on unresolved loss.

What is the literal meaning of the title “Death by Landscape”?

Lucy is literally taken by the landscape and disappears without a trace.

What is the metaphorical meaning of the title “Death by Landscape”?

Lucy becomes part of the landscape, while Lois experiences an emotional death through lifelong trauma.

What do the landscape paintings symbolize in “Death by Landscape”?

Memory, guilt, and the containment of Lucy’s presence.

What does the wilderness symbolize in “Death by Landscape”?

Mystery, danger, the unconscious, and forces beyond human control.

What does Lois’s apartment symbolize?

Her inner world — a private museum of memory and trauma.

What does Camp Manitou symbolize in “Death by Landscape”?

Human attempts to control and civilize nature.

How are Lois and Lucy similar in “Death by Landscape”?

Both break rules and isolate themselves from the group, suggesting early separation from social norms.

How is Lois characterised in “Death by Landscape”?

Passive, insecure, and defined by others; she admires Lucy and lacks agency.

How is Lucy characterised in “Death by Landscape”?

Confident, impulsive, adventurous, wealthy, and outwardly innocent but deceptive.

How do the landscape paintings differ from Lois’s city surroundings?

The city represents control and order, while the paintings represent chaos, danger, and emotional intensity.

Why does Lois return to the paintings at the end of “Death by Landscape”?

They allow her to feel close to Lucy and recreate the wilderness where Lucy “lives on.”

How can “Death by Landscape” be interpreted overall?

As both a ghost story and a psychological trauma narrative about memory, loss, and survival.