Simple Marie By Isabel Linde Analysis

When noticing a person who wears a similar clothes everyday, one may wonder what their intentions behind their attire is. In Isabel Allende’s story “Simple Marie” featured in The Stories of Eva Luna, the clothes are taken in a figurative sense just as much as in a literal function. Just as clothes are made to cover up one's physical body, clothes can be interpreted as a covering of one’s soul and true identity. Although, not very evident on the surface of the story, one can discover the intentions of Maria, by correlating the situation to her attire. The symbolism that Allende creates within the clothing of Maria illustrates a deeper sense to her vulnerability and reasoning within the situations of her life.
The colors and styles of Maria’s attire reveal her reasoning and mindset through the diverse situations she faces in her life. In the beginning of the story, while the narrator describes Maria being struck by the train, Eva Luna states, “She was picked up from between the rails, seemingly unharmed, she had only a few scratches and had lost her hat” (Allende 154). The representation of losing her hat can be interpreted as Maria losing her head or losing her mind, which further reveals the imagery that although she looks fine on the outside her mind is permanently deficient. Allende uses this

symbolism of the Marie’s outfit to also to present the idea of extravagant clothes serving the purpose to cover up her mental defect and abnormality to be seen by the rest of the world as externally beautiful. After Maria bore her first child and right before stating that her husband died of a stroke, the story states, “She even had the spunk to buy herself new elegant clothes. She was not, however, to have the opportunity to show off her new wardrobe” (155). This quote proves that even though Maria tries to appear completely normal, with a marriage going well and a new baby son, she was kept from completely covering up her real self. This same notion of covering herself is brought up again when she is on the boat and right before her son gets killed by the trunk, when “She was arranging her new dresses in the stateroom dresser” (157). Both tragedies prevent Maria from wearing the beautiful dresses that cover up her true identity to ultimately attract men. It is proven that her identity is covered up when wearing the fancy dresses in the text, saying “She regarded herself in the three leaves of the mirror and greeted a woman dressed for a ball, a woman in whom she found it very difficult to recognize herself” (156). She doesn’t recognize herself because she is concealed behind the layers of extravagant apparel, making up an illusion for others to view her as. Maria even goes to the extent to cover up her son, “whom she dressed as a little girl with long curls” (156). Symbolism also resides in the color of her clothing. After her husband’s death, “Maria resigned herself into wearing mourning and veiled hats, feeling as if she were buried in a tomb of cloth” (155). Just as death is the absence of life, darkness is the absence of light, and when put in a wardrobe evaluation, it is evident that by wearing black, she is secluding herself from an active life. By wearing black for those two years she also takes herself out of the lives of others. On the contrary, when she is interested in those around her again, she brings vibrant colors back in her wardrobe.
The reader’s awareness to the outfit signifying a fraudulent version of Maria can be used to understand how the taking off of clothing represents the opening up to others by displaying one’s true identity. This allegory is depicted in the story is when Maria, whom still has a veil on herself after her son’s death, approaches the man on the boat and “submissively allowed him to remove her black veils and voluminous clothing” (158). This action reveals that taking off her veil, figuratively takes away the separation from society and also any other illusions of herself. The veil specifically can be related to her head and taking that away reveals the truth of her disabled mind behind the cover. The action of taking away the voluminous clothing removes any separation between them, leaving Maria vulnerable and open to the man. After opening herself up as the person she truly is, Maria believes that this surrender of herself is love. Unfortunately, the sailor is not completely honest and open with her in the same way that she is with him. This lack of mutual openness and trust becomes a problem when Maria learns that “the sailor, it turned out, was a brawler and a drunk” and that “he was incapable of valuing the gift that this woman offered him” (159). After the Greek sailor and Maria grow apart, Maria never goes looking for more clothes to provide any fake covers like she did previously, because now she believes in love. With that love, she looks for anybody who is willing to open up to her. When walking down La Calle Repulica, Maria’s desire for open love grows too much when suddenly, “She took the man’s hand, and asked in the most genteel and educated way whether he would do her the favor of taking off his clothes for her” (160). This again shows that this desire of having someone willing to take off his clothing can be figuratively perceived as a want for a man who is willing to open up to her. This desire is the start of the Maria’s career as a prostitute, yet it comes as just a simple desire and longing for a shared openness, which is Maria’s innocent illusion of love. Later in the story, after realizing that she would never find an open love, she decides to die and right before drinking the poison, it is mentioned that she “put on her best dress… opened up the plastic curtains… so that everyone could be with her” (152). Allende suggests that Maria realizes she won’t attain that mutual open love that she strived for so she covers up her true self and lets everyone see that image of her before she dies. Allende creates a circular literary device in the action of putting on her best dress. Putting on her best dress parallels the intention that she had before her husband’s and son’s death, but it is only in this scene that she successfully gets into the dress, and only this time is followed by her own death.
Overall, The symbolism of illusion that Allende creates for clothing in this story is a gateway to learn the desires and reasoning behind Maria’s actions.

When presented with a strange story with uncertain reasoning behind several actions of the characters, and in this story, it is revealed through the symbolism of their attire. Understanding that clothing symbolizes a false identity and an open heart and open love is the taking off of clothes gives a second story behind her reasoning for this story. Although clothing might not be a common symbol for fake identities versus true beings, almost all love stories have a symbolism to represent the open trustful

love.