Marcus’s college girlfriend, eventual wife, and mother of his three children, Esme is a sensitive, intelligent, and caring person who is aware—in a way that Marcus himself doesn’t seem to be—that her husband’s possessive obsession with Genie threatens his marriage. Esme’s suffering reveals the collateral damage of selfish love like Marcus’s for Genie, while Marcus’s implicit recommitment to Esme at Genie’s funeral marks his growth as a character.