Character Analysis on EDNA from the novel The Awakening - Essay Example

no. Character Analysis on EDNA from the novel "The Awakening" The novel “The Awakening” by Kate Chopin, describes a woman who lives up to the expectations of a woman in the 19th century. Edna Ponteillier is described as a respectable woman in her years who did not only acknowledge her sexual desires but also courage and strength to act on them. Edna breaks through her roles as appointed by the society and discovers her own identity of being independent of her children and husband. Although many of Kate Chopin’s stories feature unconventional, passionate female protagonist, none of them features a heroin, openly rebellious as Edna as feature in “the awakening”. The specifics and details of the character of Edna are significant to the understanding of the story and its impacts on its readers. Edna, at the beginning of the novel, exists in a state of semi-consciousness. She lives comfortably in her marriage with Leonce, quite unaware of her feelings and ambitions. However, the narrator explains that Edna in her youth had made up her mind to live her life of passion without the interference by any man. She considers marriage as an end of her life of passion and the beginning of another life, which is full of responsibilities (Gentry and Deborah 17). The narrator describes Edna as a woman, firstly trapped by the boundaries of the society. At the initials stages of the novel, there is a parrot trapped in a cage. This symbolizes how Edna, as a woman, has been trapped by her husband expectations and the society constraints. The novel opens at Grand Isle where Edna and Leonce are on their vacation with their two children. While on the vacation, Edna’s mind gets influenced by her new friends and the surroundings. Her fantasies and yearning re-emerges. The people she meets influences and awakens her desires for music, freedom, sexual satisfaction, and art. The narrator compares Edna to a child who sees the world around her in a fresh perspective. In this manner, Edna forgets her expected behavior and ignores the effects of her actions. The narrator describes her as being childish and childlike. In this case, Edna harbors her unrealistic dreams of possibilities of an adulterous romance without considering the consequences. It is seen that Edna no longer enjoys her marriage with Leonce and she talks to Robert for an intention to develop a relationship with him. Leonce is greatly disappointed by her actions. In this situation, it is seen that Edna is still bound to her husband’s expectations. She also feels some constraints that are put on by her children. The narrator describes the character of Edna and argues that she is not a mother-like woman at the beginning of the story. She does not have much concern about her own children and thinks that they can just survive on their own. This is also demonstrated on page seven of the novel which notes “He reproached his wife with her intentions, her habitual neglect of the children” (Kate Chopin 7). This demonstrates her negligence and lack of attention to her children. Edna begins to embrace freedom from her family and the society. As the novel progresses, Edna changes from a trapped woman to a free woman who is not bound to any family of societal expectations. Her desire to have more freedom is described in a visions and imaginations. She has a vision of the sea and the naked man which symbolizes his freedom. Edna has another vision which featured birds flying free through the air. This also represented the freedom the Edna had wished to have. Mademoiselle Reisz is another influential character. While ate the Grand Isle, Edna gets influenced by several people who finally change her character. Mademoiselle Reisz was an unpopular woman who greatly served as inspiration to Edna. While she was called to entertain people with her expertise in piano playing, Mademoiselle Reisz realized that Edna was the only guest who had been truly moved and touched by the music. After the entertainment session, she approaches Edna and the two hold a discussion. In their conversation Mademoiselle Reisz tells Edna that “the bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings”. Additionally, she notes that “it is a sad manifestation to see the weaklings battered, exhausted, flapping back to earth” (Kate Chopin 138). Edna is convinced by Mademoiselle Reisz that, in order to become an artist, she should be strong and committed to break through her family and society expectations. After this, readers sees Edna beginning to break the bond her and her husband. Adele Ratignolle is another character in the awakening. She is a devoted wife and a mother who represent the nineteenth century womanhood. She spends much of her time caring attending to her family duties which include, caring for her children, ensuring the happiness of her husband and performing other domestic duties. However, Adele is seen to catalyze Edna’s movement though her speech. She talks about certain aspects which point at the youth on such matters like; romantic gossips, pregnancy and undergarments. This reminds Edna of her romantic dreams of her youth and it re-emerges her fantasies which had been suppressed for a long time. Adele is a portrayed as a simple character throughout the novel. She appears not to understand what more somebody would give than his/her own life (Chopin et al. 9). This goes centrally to what Edna stands for that she would not give up herself, except her life and money for her children. Edna is described to have an inner feeling that women are men’s property who served specific roles as mothers and wives and devoted themselves solely to their husbands. Later in the novel, the narrator explains how Adele views a woman’s life. She views it in terms of the service she offers from her family and the society. Adele suspects that Edna had an affair with Alcee Arobin and reminds her of her duty towards her children. Adele gives birth to another child. In this manner, she represents the ideal woman. On the other hand, Edna ignores her responsibilities to her family and seeks freedom up until her death. Alcee Arobin is described as a seductive charming character in the story. He enjoys building congests out of married women. In this way, he becomes Edna’s lover on times when her husband was away on a business trip. He satisfies her physical urges while Robert was away. Throughout their affair, Edna holds on to her authority and never allows Alcee to control or own her (Hoder-Salmon et al. 78). Robert Lebrun plays an important role in Edna’s awakening. He rains away in Mexico while this inspires Edna to forget her reserve and start revealing herself to others. He possessed the character of showering women at Grand Isle with affections rooted in admiration but without a serious intent. The narrator explains him as a man who had been ruled by his passions and impulses. However, he could not forget the societal conventions that allowed and limited his actions. Edna is moved by Robert’s devotion and sees him a promise of love and enjoyments that she had always missed from her life and during her marriage with Leonce. His love towards her appears to be different from the way he treats the other women. However, Robert realizes that his love for Edna would never come to materialize; therefore, he decides to go to Mexico. Their courtship on Grand Isle arrives at the boundary between misconduct and innocence, and suggests that daring and defiance may rule his reputation and in a safe way. Later in the story, Robert returns from Mexico and requests that Leonce sets Edna free so that he may take over with her and make her his wife. However, Roberts has got the challenge to differentiate reality and day dream. Later, within the story, he realizes that his intentions would never materialize and that they were all impossibilities. Despite his urgent lust and sincere love for Edna, Robert cannot ignore the society rules. On leaving Edna’s house, he leaves behind a note that explained how unchangeable it was the state of the world around them. Roberts final fidelity to convention and the society solidifies Edna’s disappointment with life and the societal roles that she is expected to play. With much despair over Robert’s rejection, she commits suicide. This action does not only respond to Edna’s disappointment, but to a certain extent to the final awakening that it suits her. Although Robert’s love matched the sincerity and Edna’s desperation, it would not trespass the boundaries of societal convention. She acknowledges the intensity of her solitude. Edna Pontellier is the main protagonist in the novel “the awakening”. The twenty eight years old lady was initially the wife of a New Orleans businessman. After spending much of her youthful life with great fantasies and enjoyment, she later finds herself in a relationship which leads to their marriage with Leonce. In her marriage life, she finds much dissatisfaction and limits to enjoy and live her lifestyle. She comes out from her semi-conscious state of devoted mother and house wife to a state of much awareness. In this state, she discovers her identity and acts on her own desires for sexual and emotional satisfaction. In a series of experiences, Edna becomes a surprisingly independent woman who lives away from her children and husband and takes the responsibilities of her own passions (Green et al. 8). Unfortunately, her awakenings isolate her from other people and eventually lead her to a state of total solitude. As the novel approaches its end, Edna is eager of her freedom. However, she realizes that she would never accomplish her goal. Although she has come a long way in developing in the entire story, she accepts the fact that she can never escape her society’s expectations and pressures. She then drowns herself in the ocean. As it appears in the novel; “a bird with a broken wing was breaking the air above, fluttering, reeling, spinning disabled down to the water” (Kate Chopin 189). This is symbolic to Edna’s failure to accomplish her mission and acquire her freedom. She accepts to the fact that she has failed to conjure her freedom and that she will never get it. Therefore, she decides to commit suicide (Dewitz and Claudia 35). Edna Pontellier mounts greatly throughout the novel. The inevitably change leads to her awakening and finally to her death. We can compare Edna and her actions to the individuals who fought in the establishment of the women’s rights movement. The rights of women have tremendously improved since the establishment of the movements. People with similar charades with Edna have achieved their rights. This shows their determination and negligence of the ordinary routine in the women’s life. In the current society, women and men are considered to be equal and enjoy the same rights. It is through such determinations that people enjoy their current status. Works Cited Chopin, Kate, and Sheri Metzger. Chopins the Awakening. Foster City, CA: Hungry Minds, 2001. Dewitz, Claudia. "the Awakening" by Kate Chopin - Edna Pontellier, a Woman Fated to Die. München: GRIN Verlag, 2010. Gentry, Deborah S. The Art of Dying: Suicide in the Works of Kate Chopin and Sylvia Plath. New York: Lang, 2006. Print. Green, Suzanne D, and David J. Caudle. Kate Chopin: An Annotated Bibliography of Critical Works. Westport, Conn. [u.a.: Greenwood Press, 1999. Print. Hoder-Salmon, Marilyn, and Kate Chopin. Kate Chopins the Awakening: Screenplay As Interpretation. , 1992. Print. Read More