"The Edible Woman" by Margaret Atwood

The main theme in the novel entitled The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood is consumerism. To consume, as defined by The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language is "To take in as food; eat or drink up. To expend; use up. To purchase (goods or services) for direct use or ownership. To waste; squander. To destroy totally; ravage. To absorb; engross." Consumerism is demonstrated throughout the novel in a variety of ways, some more …

… she must stand up for herself, Peter ends up without Marian because he took advantage of her too much, and Ainsley ends up being pregnant, the goal of her scheme. This imagery underlines the major theme of consumerism because each character is somehow consumed by another unless they break free, as did Marian. Bibliography Atwood, M. The Edible Woman. Toronto: The Canadian Publishers, 1969. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000