ABSTRACT
Breasts occupy a complex and deeply symbolic role within cultural discourses, functioning as markers of femininity, sexuality, and maternity. Consequently, breast cancer is not merely perceived as a medical diagnosis but as a gendered affliction that threatens the very foundations of socially constructed paradigms of femininity. The disease, and particularly the prospect of mastectomy, disrupts the culturally reinforced image of the idealised female body, eliciting responses that are often shaped by discomfort, stigma, and a sense of loss, not just of health, but of gendered identity. Within this framework, the female body is not simply diseased; it is perceived as deficient, disfigured, or in need of repair to realign with feminine ideals. Contextualizing the hindsight, the present paper examines the portrayal of the mutilated female body in Margaret Atwood's Bodily Harm, highlighting how the protagonist's experience with breast cancer and mastectomy exposes the tensions between socio-medical constructions of femininity. Through the lens of medical, cultural, and societal expectations, the paper critiques the symbolic mutilation of women's bodies, most specifically, the breasts, demonstrating how femininity is reduced to appearance, performance, and conformity.
