While reading Oryx and Crake, I was fascinated by the narrative structure that Atwood uses to tell her characters’ story. At first, it was extremely confusing: it was difficult to tell the point at which Jimmy stopped and Snowman began. However, once I acclimated to this technique, I found it really interesting. After recognizing the differences between Jimmy and Snowman, I realized that pretty much every character has at least two identities, although they are not necessarily as clear-cut as those of the narrator.

Though I would agree with Moller when she says that to label this novel solely as a humanist work about the nature of human identity completely misses the novel’s social and political ramifications, the exploration of identity is an interesting facet of the novel to explore. It’s also such an obvious part of the novel, that to ignore it is impossible. Lore has three “identities,” as represented by the different tenses and perspectives, as we talked about in class. Not only does each Lore’s storyline end with a convenient climax, they also begin with a birth.

When reflecting on “Slow River,” everyone is obviously interested in what the book has to say about identity. Lore constantly struggles with her inability to ever truly inhabit one of her three characters. “I slept for nine hours and woke up feeling stiff and sore, as though my body had tried to rearrange itself physically to fit three people inside one skin. (294)” The persona of Bird seems rather insignificant to me because while this is the PIDA Lore has adapted, she never really replaces Bird’s place in the world.