How Does Cordelia Gain Cruelty

Cruelty comes in many different shapes and sizes, weather mental or physical the pain that is suffered by the victim is indescribable The novel Cat’s Eye by Margaret Atwood demonstrates to us that the cruelty that is suffered during ones childhood can stay with one well into adulthood. Throughout Elain’s childhood she suffered much at the hands of those around her. The one she suffered the most from though was a neighborhood girl named Cordelia. Cordelia force Elain to believe that she was better than Elain and it was Cordelia’s job to straighten Elain out “Cordelia says it will be better for me to think back over everything I’ve said today and try to pick out the wrong thing”. Every time that Cordelia feels that Elain has dose something wrong she punishes
Smeath, Grace’s mom. Elain always thought that the torment she endured from her friends was a secret but she finds out from Mrs. Smeath that it is not “It has been discussed before, and tolerated. Mrs. Smeath has known and approved. She has done nothing to stop it. She thinks it serves me right.” Before this is heard Elain can convince herself that the bullying she endures is just a kids game but after hearing frim Mrs. Smeath that she knew and thinks she deserves it breaks the false reality she created. Mrs. Smeath cruelty reveals that she has no tolerance towards people and ideas that are different from her own. Since Elain and her family are different from what she considers normal, from the beginning she has treated them unfairly because of this difference. This drives Elain a couple years from then to paint a whole series that makes fun of Mrs. Smeath to exact some revenge on her for thinking she deserved to be treated in that cruel manner. This series was very popular and helped her gain some credibility in the art