The Devil Wears Prada

Andrea (“Andy”) is a recent college graduate who aspires to write for The New Yorker. She’s attractive, almost six feet tall, and weighs only 115 pounds. Her low weight is the result of a parasitic infection from which she’s recovering when she interviews for a job at Runway. Apparently, a gaunt figure is one of the requirements for being hired. Andy is still a size six, which puts her in the fat category compared to all her co-workers. She has absolutely no fashion sense at the beginning of the novel but improves her look as she gains experience in the Runway ecosystem.

Although she hates Miranda’s demeaning behavior, Andy is seduced by the promise of being fast-tracked to the career of her dreams. However, in pandering to Miranda, Andy loses perspective on what matters in life. Only after she destroys her relationship with her boyfriend and fails her best friend at a critical moment does she begins to awaken from the hypnotic lure of fame and fortune. By the end of the story, Andy walks away from the temptation that Miranda offers and establishes her career without depending on a devil’s bargain to get there.

Alex is Andy’s long-suffering, sensitive boyfriend. The two were inseparable all through college. After graduation, good-hearted, altruistic Alex becomes a schoolteacher who wants to help underprivileged students in the slums. Once Andy takes the job at Runway, Alex notices her behavior changing for the worse. He’s appalled by the ruthless sacrifices Andy makes in her personal life to advance her career.

In many ways, Alex becomes the voice of Andy’s conscience when she loses her perspective on what’s important in life. It is Alex, rather than Andy, who is at Lily’s bedside after her accident. He’s so disillusioned by his girlfriend’s behavior that he doubts their relationship can ever recover. By the end of the story, it still isn’t clear whether the couple can repair the damage.