Pride and Prejudice and The Edible Woman: Negative Effects of the Society's Influence Throughout history, society has played an important role in forming the value and attitudes of the population. Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice and Margaret Atwood's The Edible Woman are two novels which exemplify the negative effects of society's influence. Both Elizabeth Bennet and Marian McAlpin are strong women who rebel against society's influences in their lives. They refuse to accept the pre-set roles and identities handed to them. Both women realize that the individual's needs are not necessarily the same as what society impos