Margaret Atwood - Journey to the Interior - a Journey

The main aspect of a journey that is evident in the text is that of an imaginative journey; a journey through one's mind. Atwood, as the poet, travels through the "interior" of her mind, describing things being seen almost two-dimensionally, until she uses her other senses to fully see the object or whatever she's looking at. For example, the hills are seen "welded together" until she begins to move through them, and they "become endless as prairies".

Atwood has created a sense of wonder and curiosity throughout her poem, simply by using condensed descriptions of each element of her mind (or her "interior"). She has created meaning by the use of all the imagery throughout the poem, making it much easier for the reader to interpret what Atwood is trying to reflect through her writing.

The poem explores the concept of journeys throughout each stanza - the journey takes Atwood as well as the reader on an adventure through the mind of the poet, in an almost prose-like manner, in the hope of showing the reader all the amazing things you can do with your imagination.

The use of caesura and especially sprung rhythm create the sense of narrative throughout the poem, and the fluidity of each line helps the reader to enjoy each section of the poem without having to analyse each word.

The values underlying the text include the importance of perception. What seems to be pointless, plain, or "flat", is actually a wonderful and imaginative creation that just hasn't been interpreted by all your other senses. Another value is the importance of the "interior"; the importance of your mind, which includes your own ability to create and imagine.

The text has really made me think about just how many different kinds of journeys are possible, and that a journey is what you make of it. If you choose to perceive things as boring and useless, by not using your additional senses you're ruining the experience for yourself. In a bad situation, you're the only one with the power to change the outcome for better or for worse.

The main similarities is the idea of that inner journey, the adventure throughout one's own "interior", as it were, and the concept of perception. Throughout "Journey to the Interior", Atwood describes much of what it is like to walk through a place without any knowledge of it (or not experience), and change the outcome for the better. Throughout A Lesson Before Dying, the main character Grant has his own internal adventure, and in the end he needs to make his own decision as to whether he'll take control and change the outcome of the events which take place.