Tortoise vs. Hare

This is an analogy used by Edith near the beginning of the story to describe two different types of women she believes exist in the world. In her stories, it is always the tortoise who wins the man, while the hare is left scorned and confused. It is her belief, however, that this is the complete opposite of how things really work in the real world. Her definition of a tortoise is a woman like her who is quiet, shy, mild-mannered and conservative, the type of woman who does not do a lot of flirting or chasing after men. In her books, this woman always ends up with the male hero.

The hare, on the other hand, is the confident, attractive, sexy woman who is not afraid of going after a man but who usually does not have to, since men are drawn to her in...