Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine Themes

As Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine unfolds, the reader gradually learns the full extent of Eleanor’s traumatic past: that her mother, burdened by the responsibility of having children, intentionally set fire to her house when Eleanor and her younger sister, Marianne, were children, killing herself and Marianne, and forcing Eleanor—the sole survivor—to endure physical and psychological scars from her traumatic childhood. As the reader learns more about Eleanor, it becomes obvious how…

Shame figures prominently in Eleanor Oliphant, presenting itself most readily in the embarrassment with which Eleanor ultimately regards loneliness. Throughout the novel, Eleanor repeatedly hides how lonely and isolated she feels, fearing the repercussions of publicly flaunting a feeling that society deems unacceptable to express outside one’s private life. Honeyman emphasizes the shame Eleanor feels toward her loneliness to shed light on society’s tendency to regard pain and sadness—and one’s inability to address and…

Much of Eleanor Oliphant’s humor arises from Eleanor’s tendency to act in ways that make others feel uncomfortable. Honeyman’s exploration of Eleanor’s social awkwardness is unique because it frames social awkwardness as the product of specific circumstances or life events rather than as an innate character flaw or essential facet of a person’s personality. By framing Eleanor’s difficulty to relate to others as the result of a lack of practice rather than a…