The Last Mrs. Parrish

Food has layered meanings throughout The Last Mrs. Parrish. In the first section of the novel, Amber views food as another signifier of wealth. From the dinners at the country club to ordering fine bottles of wine with the expectation that Daphne will pay, food represents wealth and access. Fine dining shows a level of social access that Amber previously could not engage with, another luxury she believes she has been denied.

Daphne and her daughters have a significantly different view of food that is spurred by Jackson’s abuses. For most of the novel, food symbolizes their torment. Jackson uses negative talk about Daphne’s appearance and weight to belittle her. When Daphne resists his insistence that she keep a food journal, he cancels plans with her mother as punishment, then tricks her into physical violence to use as proof of her supposed mental illness. The food and food journal become another way for Jackson to micromanage Daphne’s life. He punishes her for lapses in her diet, calling her phrases like “fat cow.” This behavior creates a deep trauma in the girls and Daphne, as is evident at the novel’s conclusion when the girls worry about Daphne becoming “fat.” For Daphne and her daughters, the conclusion of the novel sees food change from a symbol of restraint to a symbol of freedom. They eat previously forbidden foods as one of their first signs of healing.

Formal and informal education appear at varying levels as do different levels of self-teaching. In the beginning, Amber endeavors to teach herself topics like art to be more attractive to those in higher social circles. She uses information gained from both Daphne and museums to learn about topics interesting to Jackson so that she can be a better conversationalist. However, at the novel’s close, it is clear that Amber’s self-education has not made Jackson any more drawn to her, as he uses her lack of formal education as a topic of abuse.

Daphne also pursues education, which is pushed on her by Jackson and serves as another form of control. He forces her into French lessons and tries to do the same with art history. However, Daphne instead takes psychology classes, secretly seeking understanding that she can use in her struggle with Jackson. Education becomes a way to survive, allowing her to develop a plan of escape. As much as Daphne uses formal education to prepare herself for the future, Jackson uses it to abuse their younger daughter. Bella’s reading disability is a sore subject, and her father subjects her to cruel punishments and overwork as he refuses to accept her condition. Bella dreads formal education for this reason, often acting out in response. Although it is unclear in the novel whether Bella will overcome this behavior after she has time and distance away from her father, her newly secure home life provides support and the potential for change.

Daphne is also unconventionally educated in that her exposure to an abuser teaches her cruelty and manipulation. By watching Jackson, Daphne learns how to collect information and get what she wants from others, culminating in her use of Amber to escape Jackson. Informal education is thus valued as much as formal education because Daphne uses both to get herself and her daughters to safety.

A person’s ability to have a child is one of the major topics of The Last Mrs. Parrish. One of Jackson’s major sources of anger towards Daphne is that she has given birth to two girls and seemingly cannot get pregnant with a boy. He obsesses over Daphne’s age, claiming that she is growing too old for pregnancy and that her age disgusts him. Unbeknownst to him, Daphne intentionally prevents her own fertility. While Jackson attempts to use fertility to degrade Daphne’s worth, she in turn turns it into a weapon of her own, using her “infertility” as further encouragement of his affair with Amber. While for both Amber and Jackson, fertility is the route toward something they want, for Daphne infertility is protection and freedom.

Amber and Daphne are nearly opposite mothers. Amber abandoned one child and had another with the sole interest of linking herself to a fortune. Daphne, by contrast, puts her daughters’ well-being above all else, enduring Jackson’s abuse so she can ensure her continued presence for her children. Amber views children as a means to an end, while Daphne treats them as valuable in their own right. Daphne’s healing and freedom are centered on her children, giving her the strength needed to pursue justice.