Margaret Atwood

Margaret was born in Ottawa Canada, and has two siblins. Margaret spent a lot of her childhood in Northern Quebec, because of her father’s ongoing research in forest entomology. She attended Leaside High School in Toronto, and graduated in 1957. She started writing at six years old and realized she wanted to write professionally when she was sixteen.

In 1957, she began studying at Victoria College in the University of Toronto. She graduated in 1961 with a Bachelor of Arts in English (honours) and minors in philosophy and French.

In 1961, after winning the E.J Pratt Medal, she began graduate studies at Harvard's Radcliffe College. She got a master's degree in 1962 and then went to study at Harvard University for 2 years. She has taught at several different Universities across Canada, along with some in the United States.

She married Jim Polk in 1968, but then got divorced in 1973. She got into a relationship with Graeme Gibson after the divorce, and moved to a farm near Alliston Ontario. They had a daughter three years later, named Eleanor Jess Atwood Gibson.

Margaret has won a significant amount of awards, her latest award she has received is The Nelly Sachs Prize in Germany, in 2010.

Here is a video clip of an interview with Maragaret Atwood, discussing her role as a social campaigner and feminist.

Did this lead to a new understanding of your life?

In the novel The Edible Woman, certain parts that made me uncomfortable, could lead me to a new understanding or awareness of some aspect of my life I might not have thought about before. The part about Marian not eating and having a lack of self confidence, makes me realize that everybody goes through rough patches in their life, but they are always possible to overcome. I never thought about not being able to eat anything if I am unhappy or depressed, but now that I have read this novel I realize that it is a bad thing to do. It also led me to a new understanding of marriage, that marriage is not always easy and having children completely changes your life. For the most part it works out like Clara and Joe's marriage in this novel, but sometimes it does not, like Marian and Peter's. Also I have come to realize that some people would do anything to get what they want, such as Ainsley. I never thought that somebody would lie about their age and actions to a person, and not think about the consequences. Having a baby is a major event, and to manipulate somebody into that is completely unfair and careless.

Did parts of the book make you uncomfortable?

In the novel, The Edible Woman some parts make me uncomfortable. The part in the novel when Marian realizes she is unable to consume foods makes my uncomfortable because it that is a sign of depression. She becomes unhappy with herself due to her boyfriend Peter, and then she stops eating everything. First she could not eat meat, which was fine because I figured she had become a vegetarian. However, it came to the fact that even looking at any food made her feel sick. So she would only take vitamin pills when she was feeling hungry. This is very unhealthy and could easily kill a person, which made me uncomfortable. I also thought about the fact that a man did this to her, no man should make a woman change so drastically. I also felt uncomfortable when Ainsley, Marian's roommate, decides she wants to have a baby but without a husband. She creates a plan to become pregnant, and then just have the baby by herself. I think that parenting is very important, in both mother and father roles. She uses a man named Len, who is a close friend to Marian, and lies to him. Ainsley does not think about Len's feelings, and when he finds out she is pregnant with his child he becomes furious, "I don't want any son at all! I didn't want it, you did it yourself, you should have it remove..."(pg.249).

How do characters change throughout the story?

In The Edible Woman, the main character changes throughout the story. The main character Marian changes drastically throughout this novel because she starts off being a gentle sensible woman, slowly changes into a woman full of regret, sadness and disappointment, and then evolves into a stronger smarter woman at the end of the novel. She starts off thinking she loves Peter, and then changes into thinking she only needs him, and finally she figures out that she is better off without him. Marian changes her personality throughout the novel, along with her relationships. The relationship she has with Peter changes because she loves him and wants to marry him, but then she changes her mind and she does not love him anymore. The relationship she has with Duncan, a man she met while working changes as well. When they first meet, she thinks he is quite strange, "I was convinced that he was a compulsive neurotic of some sort and that I'd better remain calm and not display any fear"(pg.55). He looked younger than he was, however later on they meet at a laundromat a couple of times and they become friends, secretly. Duncan and her at the end of the novel reveal their secret friendship to Marian's friends, which is a relief.

Do the characters seem real and believable?

The characters in The Edible Woman seem real and believable. I think this because the character Marian is a normal woman, she is working, has a boyfriend, and living in an apartment with her friend. Her boyfriend Peter states she is smart and realistic, "you're such a sensible girl"(pg.100). She has many emotional rollercoaster’s throughout the novel, similarly to a real woman. She struggles with relationships, and self confidence. Peter seems real and believable because he has a significant amount of pride in himself, which is understandable because he is in school to become a lawyer, which makes him think he is the better than everyone. He knows Marian's job at market research film is not as important as his job will be, so he acts more confident. The character Clara also seems real and believable because she is a mother of three children, married to her husband Joe. She had to drop out of college because she became impregnated with their first child, which can relate to many women. Clara has no social time because of her children, "Clara has so few people she can really talk to"(pg.36). this is very believable as well. All these characters resemble somebody I know of in my life, which make them seem real and believable.

What is Margaret trying to get across?

Margaret Atwood the author of The Edible Woman, is trying to inform the reader about feminism, and dignity. Feminism in this novel is expressed through several different characters: Marian, Ainsley and Clara. It is impossible to ignore, the way Margaret highlights the women in this novel. She informs the reader about feminism by implying women are equal to men, and sometimes it is beneficial to not have a man. Marian is a smart young lady who has many friends and a decent job, Ainsley has her independence and charm, and Clara is married to a man who loves her and treats her well. Although Margaret has Marian struggling with femininity, by having her stop eating because she is unhappy with the way she is and Peter is making her feel this way. Margaret ends the novel with Marian finding a man who is nice to her, and she finally feels happy about herself. Dignity in this novel is also expressed through the characters, which informs the reader to have self confidence. Knowing you are important and worthy, increases self confidence. Therefore, Margaret Atwood is trying to inform the reader that everybody is equal, and you should be treating others with respect.

Specific Themes

Search for self is one theme that Margaret Atwood emphasizes throughout the novel. A search for self is shown by the main character Marian, who is constantly shaped by her boyfriend Peter. Peter is an intelligent man who always gets what he wants, listens to no one. He is also quite sophisticated and well put together, "it's impossible for Peter to dress with genuine carelessness"(pg.99). However, Marian is scared of Peter's strong personality destroying her own fragile identity. Peter nags to her about how she does certain things, or if she is not acting the way he is intending, "The trouble with you is, you're just rejecting your femininity"(pg.89). Marian is aware of the fact that Peter treats her with little respect, almost like a child. He is constantly telling her what to wear and how to act, and she finds herself struggling with this every time she is with Peter. She eventually is unable to consume food because she is being consumed by her relationship with Peter, and eating seems to be the one thing she can do on her own without Peter. At the end of the novel Marian finally has enough courage to discover she is better off without him, and who she really is as a person.

Feminism is another theme that Margaret Atwood emphasizes throughout the novel. Feminism is shown by the character Ainsley, who decides she wants to have a baby without having a husband. She tells Margaret, "The thing that ruins families these days is the husbands."(pg.40). She feels that she can take care of a baby by herself; she does not need anyone to help her. Marian does not think it is a good idea, and is concerned for her well being in society. However, Ainsley thinks otherwise and does not care about what others have to say about her actions.