The Awakening by Kate Chopin - Essay Example

The Awakening by Kate Chopin Kate Chopin’s nineteenth century novel, The Awakening, has been hailed by several critics as a remarkable expression of the feminist ideology. Ivy Schweitzer, a professor of American literature, argues the novel to be remarkable in its obvious, yet subtle, expressions of frustration at the subordination of women and their virtual imprisonment in the home. She further holds the novel to be unique because it expresses this frustration, even anger, at a time when few believed the subordination of women to be anything but natural (160-161). The Awakening, in other words, has been interpreted as a precursor to the feminist movement’s call for equality. Some of these interpretations, such as that forwarded by the American literature professor, Katherine Kearns, maintain that to accurately understand this novel in these terms, it is necessary to focus on symbols used throughout (67). While many of the symbols used throughout, whether childbirth, motherhood, food or the displacement of identity, language and culture, as represented in the Creole theme, support the mentioned interpretation, this paper shall focus on the bird symbolism used throughout. Not only does the bird symbol represent Edna Pontellier and her caging, but represents her journey to awakening and her eventual crash/suicide. As indicated by the title, Kate Chopin’s novel is about the female protagonist’s awakening to the reality of her surroundings and to her own inability to accept this reality, or live by its structures. Within the cultural and societal context of nineteenth century America, The Awakening’s protagonist, Edna Pontellier, is introduced as a wife and mother. Her identity, as a woman, derives from these two roles and, according to the dictates and expectations of society, not only is she expected to find self-fulfillment in the perfection of these roles but should willingly submerge her identity, as Edna, the woman and individual, to that of Edna, the wife and mother. The path to awakening occurs when Edna finds the courage to admit her dissatisfaction, to openly proclaim that she “would never sacrifice herself for her children, or for anyone,” (Chopin, 47) and to act upon that dissatisfaction, whether through her relationship with Robert or her eventual suicide. As may be determined through this brief summary of events, the novel is about a woman’s awakening to the imprisoning strictures of her reality and her determination to escape, or fly away from, that reality. While several of the novel’s images are linked to the theme of awakening, none are representative of the process of awakening as is the image of the birds. As Kearns argues, while motherhood, marriage, Creole culture and food are, to varying degrees, symbolic representations of awakening, they are more representative of Edna’s crisis of identity. Her role as mother and wife, for example, represent the “nullification” of identity from which she seeks escape and, as such, may be defined as the primary motives for her awakening (62-63). However, they do not symbolize the awakening itself, only the process that leads to it. Consequently, even though one cannot deny that the mentioned symbols and images are immediately connected to Edna’s journey towards awakening, they are representative of steps within that journey but not of Edna or the theme per se. In direct comparison, the image of the birds is representative of Edna, as an individual, and as a victim of nineteenth century societal norms. Chopin establishes the factor of interrelated identities from the outset of the novel, whereby the first image and words the readers encounter are spoken by a bird in a gilded cage. The caged birds, Madame Lebraun’s mocking-bird and parrot are beautiful and well-cared for creatures. They are symbolic of Edna, who is also a beautiful and well-cared for and, just like the birds, is valued in terms of her physical appearance. The cage which houses the birds and prevents them from the freedom of flight which they were born to, is symbolic of Edna’s figurative confinement in her husband’s house and the suppression of her natural freedom of individuality. Edna, in other words, is interchangeable with the parrot and the mocking bird. The interchangeability between Edna and the bird is further confirmed through the very first words spoken in the novel. These words, as spoken by the bird/parrot, are: “Allez vous-en! Allez vous-en! Sapristi! That’s right” (Chopin). The literal translation of the parrot’s words are `go away, go away.’ It is almost as if the bird is speaking Edna’s subconscious thoughts and voicing her protests against her surrounding oppressive societal environment. These words, if interpreted as echoes of Edna’s own protestations against her confinement and the oppressive restrictions on her freedom, are indicative of awakening. The implication here is that Edna is conscious of the disparity between her reality and her own, personal expectations and desires and, in some way, is trying to push that reality away so she can realize her potential as an individual. The bird’s words are not just indicative of Edna’s awakening but may be interpreted as a defiant expression of determination to act upon that awakening. The words, “that’s right,” may be understood as a defiant emphasis on the intention to push the world, the oppressive, reality away through flight. This is basically what Edna does when she turns to Robert, or `flies’ into his arms. With Robert, she finds happiness and not just because she believes that she loves him but, more importantly, because she feels that through this relationship, she realized herself as an independent being with freedom of choice and, thus, escaped the dark confinements of her gilded cage/home. That she feels freedom in her relationship with Robert is evident in her feelings following his departure. When he leaves to Mexico, Edna feels that his “going had some way taken the brightness, the color, the meaning out of everything” (Chopin 46).In other words, he represents freedom and light and her reality represents confinement and darkness. Therefore, when he goes away, her newfound sense of freedom, of independent identity, somehow dissipates. Following Robert’s departure, signifying the loss of the freedom she had briefly felt she had claimed Edna becomes increasingly depressed. She has been awakened to her reality and has found that she cannot live by it; she escaped that reality by flying into Robert’s arms and finds that she cannot go back to her confinement. She has been awakened and, for a brief moment, spread her wings and flew away from her reality. Robert’s departure acts like a force that’s weighing down upon her wings and threatening to bring her crashing down to the ground, to reality. As she, herself, observes, she is “like a bird with a broken wing … beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled down …” (Chopin 115). She crashes to the ground, as symbolized through her suicide. However, her death does not represent her defeat as such but rather, her refusal to accept confinement after she had experienced freedom and her awakening to the realization that death is her escape from her oppressive reality. As argued in the above, the bird image symbolizes both Edna and her entire journey of awakening. Like the birds with which the novel opens, Edna lives in a gilded and caged reality but, like the birds, she was born to be free. Her awakening to that reality motivates her to test her wings and when she does, she finds happiness in her freedom and sense of self-realization. When Robert leaves to Mexico, she is like a bird with a broken wing. She cannot fly around anymore but she knows that she cannot go back to her cage. She, thus, chooses death and, like a bird, falls to the ground in mid-flight because her wings cannot carry her weight any longer. Works Cited Chopin, Kate. The Awakening. New York: Dover Publications, 1993. Kearns, Katherine. “The Nullification of Edna Pontellier.” American Literature. 63, 1 (Mar., 1991): 62-88. Schweitzer, Ivy. “Maternal Discourse and the Romance of Self-Possession in Kate Chopin’s the Awakening.” Boundary 2. 17, 1 (1990): 158-186. Read More