Feminism In Margaret Atwood's The Edible Woman

When one thinks of a strong woman, what could be thought of? Perhaps someone who is not afraid to speak her mind, yet, in Margaret Atwood’s The Edible Woman, imagine a docile woman referred to as an advocate for female rights. Marian exhibits traits of the exact opposite of a women’s liberationist, she is spineless, deceives others and is a coward. Thus, Marian is not the strong woman lead in a book that claims to have started feminism.

Firstly, Marian is spineless and permits others to use and degrade her. Particularly when someone tells her to do something, she will do it without hesitation, even if she does not desire to. For instance, when Ainsley tells Marian that she and Len may have sex on her bed, Marian tells her that she would prefer they …show more content…
Specifically, when she ruins her relationship with Peter by her lack of communication, leaving her resentment to build up. Marian retains the fact that she does not want Peter to take photos of her, but instead she runs away. Marian is not a strong woman lead because she does not face situations head-on, she quite literally runs away from them. Furthermore, up until the end, Marian never confronts Ainsley on her manipulation and lies. Especially when Ainsley involves Marian in her affairs, making her feel guilty if she talks back, such as having to move out of the apartment for her public fight with Len (237) or when she brings more drama to her engagement party as she publicly announces her pregnancy (266). Marian instead does not dare oppose her, but the outcomes always hurt her, not Ainsley, to be a strong woman lead, Marian should tell Ainsley if something is not appropriate. Furthermore, Marian displays timidness when she does not confront the office virgins when one of them exposes her secret. Either Lucy, Millie, or Emmy tells the office about her engagement (186), leaving Marian to leave her job sooner than she