Awakening : A Short Story

The novel The Awakening is an empowering masterpiece that shows a woman stepping out of the social norm to find her bliss. Edna Pontellier is expected to be the perfect wife and perfect mother. The needs of her husband and children are supposed to triumph over her own. She is well ahead of her time because she wants independence and to live her life to the fullest. In Chopin’s story, not only is there a daring young woman who is on the hunt to find her independence, but there is also a housewife, whose life belongs to her family.

This paper will examine the life of Kate Chopin along with her writing style and theme in The Story of an Hour and The Awakening. Chopin has a unique writing style that shows throughout all of her works. Her works carry similar themes that include: women in search of independence, negative views of marriage, and self-assertion. While reading Chopin’s work, the reader will conclude that Chopin’s writing is very inspiring because she incorporates obstacles that she faced throughout her life. With this technique used, it is easier for the reader to connect with Chopin on a personal level while reading her works.

Sacrifices can define one’s character; the definition can either be the highest dignity or the lowest degradation of the value of one’s life. In The Awakening, Kate Chopin implicitly conveys the sacrifice Edna Pontellier makes in the life which provides insight of her character and attributions to her “awakening.” She sacrificed her past of a lively and youthful life and compressed it to a domestic and reserved lifestyle of housewife picturesque. However, she meets multiple acquaintances who help her express her dreams and true identity. Mrs. Pontellier’s sacrifice established her awakening to be defiant and drift away from the societal role of an obedient mother, as well as, highlighting the difference between society’s expectations of

The First Awakening began as an idea of evangelical minister Theodore Frelinghuysen, however, didn’t begin to impact society until many itinerant preachers such as Whitfield and Jonathan Edwards began traveling throughout New England preaching against church hierarchies telling people what to do and having their relationships with God. Both the First and Second Awakenings reflected changes in religious belief, and as ministers preached different theologies than those of the past significant social changes caused an increase in religious passion and brought a revival to Christian thinking.

Afterward, she sulked back upstairs and threw herself on her bed. after laying for a few minutes, she rolled over and grabbed a picture of her brother, and a tear rolled down her cheek she found it to believe that it had already been a whole year since he passed away. She set the picture back in its place and laid down allowing herself to drift into the peaceful void of sleep.

The contrast between an urban and a tropical setting represents the awakening that the protagonist experiences in Kate Chopin's classic novel, The Awakening. At Grand Isle Edna becomes conscious of her restrictive marriage in a male dominated society. Her awakening originates with her experiences at Grand Isle but fully develops upon her return to the city, where she completes her transformation from her roles as wife and mother to an independent woman.

In discussing Kate Chopin's novel, The Awakening, critic Susan Rosowski categorizes the novel under the heading of "the novel of awakening" and differentiates it from the bildungsroman, the apprentice novel, in which the usually male protagonist "learn the nature of the world, discover its meaning and pattern, and acquire a philosophy of life and ‘the art of living'" (Bloom 43). In the novel of awakening, the female protagonist similarly learns about the world, but for the heroine, the world is defined in terms of love and marriage, and "the art of living" comes with a realization that such art is difficult or impossible; the price for the art is often tragic endings. Rosowski calls this female awakening "an awakening to

    The word “awakening” is used to describe a moment where somebody or something becomes aware of something. In the novel, The Awakening by Kate Chopin, the main character, Edna Pontellier goes through her “awakening” moment when she finally realizes she has been conformed all her life and is now ready to do her own things in life and become her own person. She also begins to realize her true potential and that she is more than just a housewife and carer for her children's .

Naturalism is a form of writing that gained traction in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Much like realism, naturalism was an opposition to the romantic style of writing. Kate Chopin, an American author, wrote a novella called The Awakening (1899). This piece of literature is one of the many forms of naturalistic writings that became famous in present times. The Awakening follows a young woman named Edna Pontellier, who breaks through societal norms, and discovers her true self.

	In The Awakening, Kate Chopin brings out the essence of through the characters of her novel. In this novel Edna Pontellier faces many problems because she is an outcast from society. As a result of her isolation from society she has to learn to fit in and deal with her problems. This situation causes her to go through a series of awakenings that help her find herself, but this also causes problems with her husband because she loses respect for him and the society she lives in. Throughout the novel she is faced with unfavorable circumstances which confuse and eventually kill her. Kate Chopin uses Creole Society in the 1890s as a basis for her novel and expresses it through

The novel The Awakening by Kate Chopin takes place in the early 1920's on the Grand Isles of Louisiana. The Grand Isles is a resort for the wealthy. The theme of this novel is about a woman named Edna who awakens to a new life as she discovers her independence. In the novel Edna also "awakens" to her love for Robert Leburn and most importantly she awakens to the knowledge that her husband is not in control of her life. Edna and Mr. Pontellier's relationship begins to get worse after he leaves for his business trip to New York. There are two stages of Edna and Mr. Pontellier's relationship, one of which is before Mr. Pontellier's trip to New York and the other is after he leaves.

How do you differentiate the selfish from the selfless? A person can be characterized as such if they do things for their own profit or pleasure. They live to please themselves. Women who rebel against all oppression and discriminating stereotypes are often praised for this fearless selflessness. These women give other women hope for a future where they will be considered equal to men. They rise against all oppression that is wrong and unjust. In the novel The Awakening Edna Pontellier is seen as a feminist, her rebellion to everything she believed was oppression marked an impression on the readers. Yet is it correct to refer to Edna as a feminist? Does she rebel against oppression for the good of the oppressed female society? Are her acts of rebellion justifiable?

How do you differentiate the selfish from the selfless? A person can be characterized as such if they do things for their own profit or pleasure. They live to please themselves. Women who rebel against all oppression and discriminating stereotypes are often praised for this fearless selflessness. These women give other women hope for a future where they will be considered equal to men. They rise against all oppression that is wrong and unjust. In the novel The Awakening Edna Pontellier is seen as a feminist, her rebellion to everything she believed was oppression marked an impression on the readers. Yet is it correct to refer to Edna as a feminist? Does she rebel against oppression for the good of the oppressed female society? Are her acts of rebellion justifiable?

The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, tells the story of Edna Pontellier. Edna is a married “housewife” who is on vacation with her husband and her two kids. When we first started reading the story, Edna seems as any other person from that time period. She seems like a mother that is busy with life and her own emotions as well as caring for her family.

Further Edna’s emotional abuse soon escalates into physical beatings. In addition, she also forces him out onto the street where he endures isolation and beatings from neighborhood bullies. Stating, “You are to remain in the street from the end of school until supper, and from after supper to bedtime” (Lee 65). She even nixed his sister’s invitation to join her, responding, “No. You [Kai] belong on your own block, where I can whistle for you” (Lee 65).