Eleanor feels guilty about surviving the fire that killed Marianne and shameful about her inability to protect her from Mummy’s abuse. While Eleanor survived the fire, Smyth and Marianne both perished in it.
When Eleanor was 10 years old, Smyth started a fire to kill her daughters and relieve herself of the burdens of motherhood. Smyth saw her two children, Eleanor and Marianne, as inconveniences that prevented her from having the fun, cosmopolitan life that she desired. Eleanor’s adopts her “Mummy” voice from her actual mother, Sharon Smyth, who was abusive and negligent to her children. Mummy repeatedly tries to convince Eleanor that everything good she does is inevitably overshadowed by the reality that she is too stupid and too damaged to be worthy of love and redemption. During Eleanor and Mummy’s weekly chats, Mummy insults Eleanor, belittling her attempts to socialize and open up to the world. Mummy isn’t alive during the novel’s present action, existing only as a voice in Eleanor’s head through which Eleanor articulates and dwells on her guilt, shame, and various insecurities.
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