The Edible Woman: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Edible Woman," a novel by Margaret Atwood, explores the complexities of gender roles and societal expectations through its major characters. The protagonist, Marian MacAlpin, is a young woman caught between conventional life and personal autonomy as she prepares for her marriage to Peter, a conventional attorney. As her wedding date nears, Marian experiences a loss of appetite, symbolizing her rejection of societal norms and pressures. Her roommate, Ainsley Tewce, embodies radical feminism, initially seeking independence through motherhood, but ultimately succumbing to societal expectations by choosing marriage.
Peter represents traditional masculinity and societal norms, expecting Marian to conform to his vision of the perfect wife while remaining oblivious to her struggles. Other characters, like Joe and Clara, depict conventional domesticity that Marian ultimately rejects. Additionally, Duncan, a disaffected graduate student, shares Marian's disillusionment with societal expectations but remains emotionally detached, offering Marian no real partnership. Through these characters and their interactions, Atwood examines the choices available to women and critiques the limitations imposed by society, making "The Edible Woman" a profound commentary on identity, choice, and the quest for self-definition.
The Edible Woman: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Margaret Atwood
First published: 1969
Genre: Novel
Locale: Toronto, Canada
Time: The late 1960's
Marian MacAlpin, a conventional young woman who works in a dull job and is engaged to Peter, a rising young attorney. As the date of her wedding approaches, she loses her appetite, first for red meat and then for all foods. Her behavior becomes increasingly erratic, and at one point she spends a night with Duncan, who seems to be completely unemotional. Marian discovers that she is rebelling against the conventions that have trained her to expect that the best life can offer her is marriage to a financially and socially successful man. The lives of her friends present her with the possible roles of mother, helpmate, companion, and feminist rebel, but she rejects them all. In the end, she breaks her engagement and finds herself alone.
Ainsley Tewce, Marian's roommate. She is a radical feminist who decides to have a baby outside marriage and unemotion-ally chooses Marian's friend Len Slank to be the father. Once pregnant, she panics and decides she must marry, but she rejects Len and chooses an ordinary young man to be her husband. In the end, she blames Marian for rejecting the conventional life.
Peter, a rising young attorney. He proposes to Marian because all the young men he had played games with have married and have thus betrayed him. Getting married is the thing to do; everyone else does it, so he might as well. He is thoroughly conventional and wants Marian to be the perfect wife, playing the roles of hostess, mother, and mistress and giving all of her attention to him. He is baffled when Marian's behavior becomes strange, but he offers her no help.
Joe and Clara, friends of Marian, a couple who exist for no apparent reason except to reproduce themselves. Joe earns a living and tends the children while Clara happily produces one child after another. They provide a look at one kind of life, one that Marian decides she must reject.
Duncan, a young graduate student whom Marian meets at a Laundromat and with whom she develops a friendship. Like Marian, he cannot adapt to the expectations of conventional society, but Duncan simply refuses to care. He is bored with his studies but will not leave them. He depends on his roommates to see that he is fed and kept healthy, and he declines to make choices. Even when he and Marian make love, Duncan shows no emotion and indicates no desire for a more serious relationship. Like other characters, he represents one of the choices available to Marian, a choice that she rejects.
Leonard (Len) Slank, a friend of Marian and Peter. He claims that he wants to live unencumbered by a wife and family, but when he learns that Ainsley is pregnant with his child, he is upset that she chooses not to marry him.
Lucy, Emily, and Lillie, called the Three Virgins, women who work in the office with Marian and whose hopes for a conventional marriage are slowly fading. When Marian breaks her engagement with Peter, Lucy moves in on him.