Significance of Blood

Whenever blood is mentioned, it usually symbolizes a world about which Martha knows little. Patrick comes home after work with blood on his arm, a reminder that he has a very separate and commendable life outside their home as an intensive care physician. The blood from Ingrid’s delivery shocks Martha who is unfamiliar with, and seemingly adverse to, childbirth. The “knife with blood dripping off it” (264) tattooed on the artist’s neck is evocative of physical violence far beyond that which Martha is accustomed to exhibiting. At one point, Martha actually negates blood as a symbol of all pain when she blames Patrick for not detecting her disease: “Does a person need to be physically bleeding for you to comprehend that they’re not well?” (271). Interestingly, this is the last mention of blood in the novel.