Marian’s focus on housing logistics here is almost comical—Marian is so committed to routine that she cannot take in the weight of Ainsley’s remarks because she is too focused on the furniture. Interestingly, the contrast between the lady down below’s model of womanhood, which emphasizes marriage, and Ainsley’s, which emphasizes sex and childbirth, is now less stark than it seemed just a few chapters ago. Finally, Ainsley’s casual nod to eugenicist thinking points to a sinister, calculated approach to conception, one Atwood takes on more intentionally in her novel
The Handmaid’s Tale.