Aahana Swrup
‘Nightbitch’ presents a story about a woman’s transformational experience as she dedicates all of her time to being a mother to her toddler son. However, what starts out as an agreement for a momentary departure from her career rapidly turns into a complete detachment from her identity outside of her motherly duty. As such, under the weight of her husband’s non-existent parenting role and the perpetual societal expectations, Mother’s sense of self begins to crumble.
That is, until an onslaught of freaky physical and psychological changes descend upon her, leading her to suspect she might be on her way to transforming into a dog. After Mother comes to this bizarre realization, her initial response is to learn more about the strange turn of events and evaluate the plausibility of her suspected shapeshifting destiny. Consequently, this brings her to the local library, where Dr. Wanda Wasserstein’s book “A Field Guide to Magical Women” proves to be a treasure trove of information.
A Field Guide to Magical Women is a Product of Nightbitch’s Narrative
In ‘Nightbitch,’ once Mother’s suspicions about her metamorphosis are furthered due to a number of bodily physical changes, she seeks out a better understanding of the things happening to her. Her previously suppressed memories about her mom compel her to believe the looming animalistic transformation is something intrinsic to womanhood, but more importantly, motherhood. As she traverses the shelves of the local library, Norma, the librarian—and fellow mother— points her toward A Field Guide to Magical Women by Wanda Wasserstein Wasserstein. Through the book, Mother then gets to learn about an ethnographic study into the mythological and pseudo-scientific connection between nature and motherhood.
While the book offers an intriguing premise, it is restricted to the fictional premises of ‘Nightbitch.’ Originally, in Rachel Yoder’s 2021 novel that serves as the basis for Marielle Heller’s eponymous film, the same book was introduced into the narrative to play a similar part in the bookish protagonist’s tale. Notably, in the literary counterpart, the book—A Field Guide to Magical Women—was penned by Wanda White. Even so, despite the divergence in the last name, the author remains fictitious and a fabricated inclusion of the overarching fictional story.
Therefore, the novel ultimately remains a work of fiction with no real-life basis behind it. Nonetheless, the idea of connecting motherhood to nature has been a part of culture for a long time. Still, the fictitious Wanda White/Wasserstein work provides an unexpected take on the matter by examining the relationship between womanhood and animalistic transformations, comparing the process of becoming a mother to the ferality of nature. This fascinating concept directly plays into the central themes of the story, further adding to the themes of Mother’s narrative.
Read More: Nightbitch: Does The Cat Die? Did Mother Kill It?
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