Books : The Edible Woman: Based on the Novel by Margaret Atwood
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 812.54
EAN: 9781896239842
ISBN: 1896239846
Label: Scirocco Drama
Manufacturer: Scirocco Drama
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 112
Publication Date: January 16, 2002
Publisher: Scirocco Drama
Sales Rank: 1774585
Studio: Scirocco Drama
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Margaret Atwoods internationally–renowned first novel has been brilliantly adapted for stage by playwright Dave Carley. With wit, affection and dollops of irony, The Edible Woman traces the journey of Marian, a young woman who has embraced the consumer society. Marian has a good job, a handsome lawyer–fiancé, and a conventionally bright future. But slowly Marians consumer world starts slipping out of focus, as she begins instead to identify with the things consumed. Compounding Marians confusion is her newly–pregnant roommate, her incensed landlady, and that strange young man she just kissed at the laundromat
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
Edible Woman / 0-385-49106-9
Probably one of Atwood's most surreal novel, the main character finds that just as she is being 'consumed' by wedding plans, she herself cannot consume certain foods without becoming violently ill. Her mysterious and lamented aversion to certain foods start with the standard vegetarian fare (she cannot to eat animals which were once alive) to vegan fare (she cannot eat products of animals, such as milk and eggs) to complete abstinence (she cannot eat vegetables, as they were once alive, too).
The symbolism within the novel is incredibly heavy, and revolves around women eating and being eaten by the world around them. The main character is being consumed by her demanding fiance and the wedding plans; her roommate is being consumed by the infant inside her, and the fetishes of the infant's father (he is only attracted to very young, 'unspoilt' girls); her best friend from college is being consumed by multiple pregnancies and a desperate, clinging husband. Though the novel is feminist in tone, the men are just as consumed as the women, in their own ways - in typical Atwood fashion, nearly everyone here is a victim of something, with few villains to point at. The ending is neither happy nor tidy, and will likely lead the reader to feel disappointed and sad, but the disappointment is with reality, and not with the author or her writing.
Rating:  -
I have read and enjoyed many of Margaret Atwood's books, especially Oryx and Crake and The Robber Bride. The Edible Woman was Atwood's first published novel. It's definitely not her best, but I recommend it.
The setting is late 1960s Canada. Marian, our protagonist, is on the trajectory that society expected of her at the time. She's going to get married, leave her job and, well, be a housewife.
Is she fulfilling expectations, or are expectations consuming her? Is she on a path to self-realization, or will she subsume her own identity and desires to those of her fiancé and society at large?
The Edible Woman uses food metaphorically, as the title would suggest. Marian's relationship with food reflects her journey as she teeters on the edge of living the life that is expected of her.
There were some truly funny, insightful moments. Marian's voice was effective and her character well-realized. But I found the other characters in the novel to be vague, shapeless caricatures. They didn't seem like real people, each of them being too specifically defined by their quirks and their purpose in the story. The food metaphor, too, while effective, was way too front-and-center for my, er, taste. I've read reviews that praise this food metaphor as an early, prescient look at eating disorders as tied to gender roles and expectations, but I'm not sure I believe that Atwood had eating disorders, as a disease, in mind. Perhaps I'm not giving ... Read More
Rating: -
This is the first book I read by Margaret Atwood, it was written in 1965 but I believe that the only aspects giving away the years depicted are the absence of modern technolgy in the narrative (i.e. mobile phones, computers etc. -not that this is a "technological" read anyway, just the opposite) and perhaps, only perhaps, -that's the way I perceived it- a certain candour in some of the characters/situations which conveys "something" dated.
It's the tale of Marian, a quiet, well-brought up girl in her early 20s who's struggling to conform to the demands and unwritten rules of society. This is not because she does not want to, in fact, she would like to, but she realises that her inner self craves more than a proper, suitable and predictable routine (a good job, a respectable marriage, children in due time etc.), as it was expected -and often still is, if you think about it-. Something in her rebels, in a subtle but undeniably determined way. Will she manage to tackle and overcome her gnawing uneasiness, consistently on the rise, rapidly becoming a true torment and assailing her inner being? (A fact that her "cool" but obtuse boyfriend completely fails to see). That's for you to find out if you get this book.
Bearing in mind the year in which it was written, some considerations about our modern society arise. Have women's -and men's- roles changed much since then? Of course they have, in many ways. Still, could and can a demanding society have such ... Read More
Rating: -
I guess I'm not the kind of reader who searches out the symbolism of every novel I read. So the discussion of this book and what the characters are supposed to symbolize may be the reason that many people did not enjoy The Edible Woman. I did. Immensely. I thought it was a hilarious look at the late 1960s in the West and there were many points I could relate to. Here's a rollicking group of young people, extremely intelligent, and full of ideas about the way life should be and how they want to live. In college, or just having graduated, they're getting smacked in the face with the reality of the world: Dull coworkers their own age and older, dull, meaningless jobs when they really want to make a splash; dull marriages and engagements that promise to turn into dull marriages; insane friends, roomates, and situations. Everything's just too much. I found this book a really refreshing--and nostalgic--look at the day before 1970. Of couse, it was written then, so the nostalgia is in the mind of the reader who may recognize that time and place. The book is deep, too. It explores the emotions of Marian, a "stolid" (I love that word--only Atwood can bring it off) young woman of obviously conventional upbringing. She's on a path that seems not to be of her choosing--though it is--and consciously decides to step off it. How she does this drives the plot and to a great extent the book's other characters. I found the parts about her friend Ainsley wickedly funny, and yes there's a certain amount ... Read More
Rating: -
THE EDIBLE WOMAN by Margaret Atwood
March 18, 2007
Rating: 4 Stars
Here's a book I read back in 2006. I'm taking a guess, but I think this is Atwood's first novel. It's a psychological character driven story in which a woman finds herself in a relationship she doesn't really care for, and before she knows it she's engaged to be married. She doesn't know how to get out of the engagement, so she goes along with it, but at the same time she is slowly losing the desire to eat. While this is all going on, she meets a man (a somewhat delinquent type of college student is the impression I get) during an interview.
Marian McAlpin works for a company (Seymour Surveys) where she has to find people to interview for various products. This is how she meets Duncan (and his "parents" Fischer and Trevor) and she is drawn to him. They carry on an illicit relationship while at the same time she keeps up the facade of being engaged to Peter, a man she really does not want to be with.
Marian's roommate Ainsley is another problem. Ainsley is trying to get pregnant (previously she was totally against having children) and latches on to Len, Marian's long time friend, and seduces him. Len had no idea what Ainsley was planning, and you can guess how he reacts when he figures out what Ainsley is up to.
And there is also Clara, Marian's friend who has several children(all toddlers). Clara's life revolves around her children and seems ... Read More
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