Famininity, or Parody of Autonomy: Anorexia Nervosa and The Edible Woman

Abstract

Margaret Atwood once commented that she uses madness as a poetic device in her fiction. In The Edible Woman, the “madness” she uses is an eating disorder which is remarkably similar to anorexia nervosa. The three sections into which the novel is divided represent the three main phases of this psychosomatic disease: background causes, the onset of diet restriction, and the resolution of the crisis which caused the disorder. Marian McAlpin exhibits almost all the main characteristics of an anorexic: “enmeshment” with a parental figure, a feeling of ineffectiveness, fear of fat, and above all the longing for autonomy. Recent medical literature on anorexia nervosa provides a useful “key” for interpretation. By understanding the dynamics of this disorder we can better understand the relationship of character to structure and theme, as well as appreciate the brilliance with which Atwood has unified her novel with appropriately mordant wit.