The Devil Wears Prada

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2003

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Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-5

Chapters 6-8

Chapters 9-10

Chapters 11-12

Chapters 13-15

Chapters 16-19

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

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Chapters 13-15Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 13 Summary

Andy has now been working at her job for seven months and feels she’s getting the hang of how to satisfy Miranda’s impossible demands. Her current task is to help coordinate the upcoming engagement party at the Met. Miranda’s red, beaded Chanel gown for the event costs $40,000. Andy is appalled at the waste and says, “I couldn’t help a quick conceptualization of forty grand: two full years’ college tuition, a down payment on a new home, an average yearly salary for a typical American family of four” (245).

Andy gets a brief respite one evening before the party and offers to take Lily out to celebrate the end of graduate school for the semester. Lily wants to go to Benihana, where they meet Christian on the sidewalk outside the restaurant. He convinces them to go for a drink at a trendy bar where he’s meeting his agent. When they arrive, Christian introduces Andy to his agent, who offers to read some of her work when it’s ready. She’s thrilled at the opportunity and at Christian’s continued interest in her, even though she feels guilty about Alex.

The next day at work, Andy spends all day chasing down a lead on an obscure restaurant review for Miranda. Hours later, Miranda informs her that the restaurant isn’t even in New York. Andy makes a date with Alex for that night only to learn at the last moment that Miranda expects her to assist at the Met party that evening.

Chapter 14 Summary

When Andy arrives home, she finds Alex waiting for her. He’s disappointed that she must cancel but seems to understand. The two realize that Lily is also home but a strange man is in bed with her. Alex escorts the unsavory character out. Lily admits that she was completely drunk the night before and picked the man up at a bar. Even though Andy wants to stay and lecture Lily about her behavior, both Alex and Lily urge Andy to leave so that she isn’t late for the party.

All week, Andy has been memorizing photos and names of the guests so that she can prompt Miranda with their names when she greets them. Andy secretly gloats at Miranda’s forced pleasantness toward the rich rednecks that her brother-in-law invited to attend. At the same time, Andy admires Miranda’s physical presence:

She wasn’t beautiful—her eyes were a bit too beady and her hair too severe and her face much too hard—but she was stunning in a way I couldn’t make sense of, and no matter how hard I tried to play it cool, to pretend to be admiring the room, I couldn’t take my eyes off her (289).

Chapter 15 Summary

A few weeks after the party, Andy receives a late-night call from Emily, who has contracted mononucleosis and won’t be able to accompany Miranda to Europe. Andy will have to go instead. The assistant’s job will be to help Miranda throw her annual party for the spring show in Paris.

Andy waits for the right moment to break the news to Alex and Lily. Alex is particularly upset because Andy won’t be able to attend the homecoming festivities that he so carefully planned for them. He also points out that Andy has become so obsessed with her job that she’s oblivious to Lily’s growing drinking problem. Andy defends herself by saying that she has no choice, but Alex replies, “No choice? You have nothing but choices! Andy, this job isn’t just a job anymore, in case you’ve failed to notice—it’s taken over your entire life!” (310).

Alex suggests that the two spend some time apart and leaves abruptly. Shortly afterward, Andy receives a phone call. At first, she thinks it must be Alex calling to apologize, but the voice belongs to Christian. Rather than discouraging him, Andy continues her dangerous flirtation with the writer.

Chapters 13-15 Analysis

This set of chapters focuses squarely on the degree to which Andy has succumbed to her devil’s bargain. She continues to justify Miranda’s abusive behavior and claims that she has no choice but to obey. Disgusted, Alex points out that Andy is exerting the power of choice every day but that her choices are bad ones. She abandons Lily as her friend descends into alcoholism and one-night stands. Andy also abandons Alex by continuously making plans with him and then breaking them whenever Miranda needs her.

As much as Andy criticizes Miranda behind her back, the young assistant is enthralled by the power her boss commands as well as her personal presence. Andy deplores the extravagance of a $40,000 gown for the Met gala and calculates how much better that money might have been spent on education or feeding a family. However, she’s mesmerized when she sees Miranda wearing it and can’t explain her own fascination.

Andy is even more fascinated by Christian, who keeps popping up in her life with the clear intention of seducing her. She’s elated when he introduces her to his literary agent. Again, Andy is dazzled by people with power and influence. Although Christian’s designs on her are sexual, he begins by offering to introduce her to important people. After Andy’s fight with Alex, she receives a call from Christian but doesn’t discourage the flirtation. She’s apparently party to two devil’s bargains now.

The greatest temptation of all arrives when Andy learns that she must go to Paris in Emily’s place. Any assistant would kill for this opportunity. Once again, Andy sacrifices her personal relationships to further her ambitions because the trip is scheduled for the same time as the homecoming reunion, which Alex planned so carefully. At this point in the story, the devil appears to have claimed Andy’s soul.