The Edible Woman: Analysis of Major Characters.

Marian MacAlpin, a conventional young woman who works in a dull job and is engaged to Peter, a rising young attorney. As the date of her wedding approaches, she loses her appetite, first for red meat and then for all foods. Her behavior becomes increasingly erratic, and at one point she spends a night with Duncan, who seems to be completely unemotional. Marian discovers that she is rebelling against the conventions that have trained her to expect that the best life can offer her is marriage to a financially and socially successful man. The lives of her friends present her with the possible roles of mother, helpmate, companion, and feminist rebel, but she rejects them all. In the end, she breaks her engagement and finds herself alone.