One of interesting aspects of this plot is the way that public opinion seems to hinge on romantic life for Eadlyn. That doesn't necessarily explain itself, symbolically, but it does make sense. In a way, it shows that the people are living vicariously through the power and autonomy of the princess, but this Selection process leaves her with a hyper-sensitive understanding of the public scrutiny and capriciousness that is also present in their opinion.
When she tries to focus on herself, she realizes that she isn't exactly free to ignore her suitors or the public. The novel shows a counter-position to the fiercely independent point of view that has typically dominated Western literature. Instead, the reader finds that the lives of the community members play into one another. They have emotional involvement in Eadlyn's love life, for better or for worse. At the end of the story, Eadlyn's personal journey has taken her through ambivalence, injustice, frustration and more, to let her arrive at a new place: she is finally ready for romantic commitment.
Although regular life doesn't have the epic nature that a princess story does, the plot clearly mimics the way every community works. There is a feminist question that the plot seems to imply, but one that seems irresolvable in some ways. The problem is public opinion, because on the one hand, the people are sometimes wrong and capricious, but part of her role is to uphold the balance of those people. Instead of fixing the people, she must learn to navigate social opinions gracefully.
