The the chapter “Puss in the Corner”, Grace meets Dr. Simon Jordan for the first time. Both people have made preconcieved notions about the other based on rumor. Grace’s experiences with doctors in the past have been far from pleasant and Dr. Jordan has been warned that she is a psycopath and not to be trusted. In their first meeting, Dr. Jordan makes somewhat of a peace offering to Grace, which I initially found strange until I realized the symbolism behind the gesture. He gives her an apple, which may seem simplistic but it holds much more meaning. Since the prisoners are given basic life-sustaining rations like bread and water, an apple is like a treat to Grace. She even remarks that, “the apple looks to me like a big round drop of water, cool and red. I could drink it down in one gulp.” It also reminds her of the game she played with Mary Whitney; throwing the apple peels over their shoulders to find out who they would marry. However, I think that the apple that Dr. Jordan offers to Grace draws parallels to the biblical story of Adam and Eve. When the devil came to Eve in the form of a snake and offered her an apple from the Tree of Knowledge (although, it has been historically proven that if the story is true, it would not have been an apple, but a more tropical fruit…) she takes it and loses her innocence. Dr. Jordan is visiting Grace to discover the truth behind the horrific murders. He is using the apple as a means of understanding, almost like a “truce” to get her to trust him. I wonder if Atwood will take this metaphor to the end of the novel and how she will conclude the myth of Simon and Grace!
While writing this, I kept typing ‘apple’, which made me think of Fiona Apple. Coincidentally, she has a song called “Criminal”, which I think Grace Marks would buy on iTunes, had Apple Products existed in her time!!