The novel Cat's Eye, written by Margaret Atwood, is an exemplary way for an author to use a character such as Elaine Risley, estranged from society, to elucidate society as a whole. Elaine, who grows up to be a fairly renowned artist, heads back to her childhood town of Toronto for a retrospective at a local art gallery. When she arrives in her town, she is reminded very much of her childhood, and takes the reader with her as she flashbacks to her childhood experiences. From the flashbacks to her younger years, the reader begins to see that she, and the rest of her family, were alienated from the rest of society. One can see what was expected out of a family in this society, and Elaine did not fit all of these expectations.
It becomes obvious from the beginning of Elaine's life that she is alienated from the rest of society because of her longing for friends, girl friends in particular. As a young child, it became hard for her to become a part of society because her family was constantly on the move. They would stay in motels, often for one night at a time before they were on the road again. Elaine says that her way of living is "slightly irregular." She only knows about friends because she has read about them, and she would like some for her own. She and her family were never able to come in contact with others being that they were never in the same place long enough. This caused immediate estrangement for Elaine. When the family finally moves into their first real house in Toronto, Elaine begins to make girl friends, but she comments that she doesn't know how to act around them. She is different from the girls in her society, and this is shown with her first two friends Carol Campbell and Grace Smeath. Elaine is used to growing up with her brother, and wanted to be friends with him as a child, causing her to develop many boy-like qualities including worm and insect collecting.
