Duncan Wedderburn is considered an unreliable narrator in Poor Things because his account of Bella, their relationship, and her motivations is deeply skewed by his fears, desires, and emotional instability. Below are the main reasons his reliability is compromised:
Why Duncan’s Narration Is Unreliable
-
Mediation through Other Voices Duncan doesn’t speak directly to the reader; his perspective is always filtered—through letters, through McCandless’s narrative, through editing by Godwin Baxter, and finally by Gray himself. Each of these “lenses” adds layers of potential distortion.
-
Emotional Instability & Projection His jealousy and anxiety over Bella’s sexual freedom lead him to view her actions through a lens of betrayal. He often projects his own insecurities onto her, calling her names like “succubus” or “temptress,” which suggests that his complaints say more about his feelings than her reality.
-
Selective & Dramatic Storytelling Duncan frames events in melodramatic terms—Bella as a monster, love as torment—and tends to emphasize Bella’s missteps or deviations from his expectations. He edits out what doesn’t serve his image of their relationship.
-
Clash with Bella’s Counter-Narrative Near the end of the novel, Bella (or Victoria, depending on interpretation) offers her own version of events—more grounded, less romanticized. This account directly undermines many of Duncan’s claims, showing that much of what he described was exaggerated or invented.
-
Authorial Footnotes and Framing Drawing Doubt Gray inserts footnotes and editorial comments that subtly question what Duncan claims. The structure of the novel—involving letters, multiple narrators, and archival framing—constantly reminds the reader that even the “official” narrative may be distorted.
In short: Duncan’s version of events is shaped more by how he wants to feel and what he fears than by objective truth. He sees Bella mostly as seen through his own wounds, not as she might truly be. Because the novel provides other perspectives, particularly Bella’s, that clash with his, we can’t accept his narration at face value.
If you want, I can map specific scenes where his unreliability becomes unmistakable and show how they align with Bella’s version.
Sources
Provider metadata
Tap to read source excerpt