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The Edible Woman

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Eating is a fundamental part of life that most people undertake without any hesitations. But when a character named Marian needs to resolve some problems in her life; it ends in Marian losing her appetite. In The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood, Marian initially alludes to being an obedient person that lives her life fulfilling every expectation of her. She plays the role of a mother, a loyal friend and a submissive girlfriend whenever it is expected until she can’t recognize herself anymore. Slowly, Marian starts feeling exploited as she struggles to fulfill these roles. This leads to Marian feeling sympathetic towards the food which is imprudently consumed by others throughout the novel. Ultimately, Marian starts to identify herself with …show more content…

She only reaches for the dishes she needed instead of cleaning all the dirty dishes in the sink. Marian’s choice to “unearthed a long platter from the bottom of the stack plates” reflects the change in her (Atwood 316). The narrator uses this vocabulary to show that Marian is becoming selfish which is necessary for her in order to become a consumer. In contrast, the Marian described in initial chapters would clean all the dirty dishes in the sink even if it was Ainsley 's turn to tidy up. She would do so to because it would be mannerly and expected of her. Marian refusing to wash the old dishes symbolises her denial to be used by …show more content…

Marian “almost hummed with pleasure” when she made the cake (Atwood 316). This shows Marian’s acceptance towards becoming a consumer instead of doubting her morality. Marian “grinned into the mirror, showing her teeth” (Atwood 317) after brushing her hair out which the hairdresser had styled the previous day. This is powerful evidence of development in Marian’s character. This reflection illuminates several new changes in Marian. Firstly, she finally feels comfortable enough with herself to smile in contrast to the previous chapters when she “was embarrassed: she didn’t know how to” (Atwood 261) smile. Additionally, she is no longer disgusted at herself for consuming food for her

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