In 'Carrie', what is the first name of Carrie's mother?

In Carrie, Carrie's mother is named Margaret. Margaret White is a deeply religious and emotionally unstable woman whose severe beliefs shape nearly every part of her daughter Carrie's isolated childhood.

Margaret treats ordinary events as signs of sin and punishes Carrie through beatings, religious lectures, and confinement in a prayer closet. One of the novel's most important early scenes occurs when Carrie has her first menstrual period at school; because Margaret never explained menstruation to her, Carrie believes she may be dying.

Margaret's fanaticism is central to the novel's tragedy, but she is not the source of Carrie's telekinetic powers. Carrie develops those abilities independently, and the cruelty she experiences at home combines with relentless bullying at school to fuel the story's escalating violence. Readers may also encounter slight differences in Carrie's full name between versions, but her mother's first name remains Margaret.