AustLit

Martin examines the relationship between the geographical boundaries and the boundaries of the body that enable Tom Collins to make sense of the world. Martin argues that the male-like females threaten the boundaries and simple binary divisions by which Tom Collins navigates the world. Any male/female partnerships such as Tom and Jim or the two Alfs do not create neat binary structures, but form ambiguous cross-gender doubling. This ambiguity indicates the permeability of supposed gender boundaries, leading Martin to argue that if women are read as a metaphor for land in Such is Life, the land suffers the same ambiguity.