Freedom In Edna Pontellier's The Awakening

The reader knows that Edna is unhappy in her marriage and craves affection. This is why one must believe that Edna started to fall in love with Robert on Grand Isle. However, due to the strict Napoleonic code, women had little rights, were considered as their husbands property, they could not sign a legal contract or institute a lawsuit. They were basically held to the same legal level as children and the mentally ill. (Mary Bird, “Reconciling Edna’s Suicide and the Criticism Surrounding Kate Chopin’s The Awakening.”) It is because of these laws the reader might feel Edna killed herself, she knows she cannot leave Leonce and is forever stuck with him as his wife. At the same time, another reason Edna killed herself is because she knows she will never be able to marry the man she truly loves, Robert, with her already belonging to her

Edna has the “fortune” to be considered the “sole object” of her husband’s “existence.” This is at best confusing, since Mr. Pontellier spends the greater part of his time exiting: for work, Klein’s hotel, etc. It stands to reason that Edna would develop a resentment toward this man who claims to cherish her to the point of obsession, yet performs a ritual “leaving” as if it were second nature.It was interesting to note that Edna and Leonce had only been married six years---one usually perceives an “awakening” to occur in conjunction with a “mid-life” crisis of sorts, and Edna and Leonce were young, vibrant people with small children.

Edna’s discoveries throughout the novel are things she wants from life, not things she wants in death. She cannot love when she’s dead. Though looking for a partner was no easy task, she was making forward progress when she was alive. Despite becoming aware of life’s multidimensionality, she maintains views of romance that are flat. She believes she cannot live alone like Mademoiselle Reisz, but views this as the only alternative to a picturesque romance. Though none of the other characters can own her while she is dead, she cannot really own herself while she’s dead either. The only thing she can control is her death, but that ignores the many things she can still control in her life that are far better alternatives for Edna than

In her article Kathleen M. Streater wrote “Edna chooses suicide rather than a life confined by societal expectations, and her shocking resolution provokes passionate reactions in readers, as extreme acts will do” (Adele Ratignolle: Kate Chopin's Feminist at home in The Awakening). Although I do not agree that committing suicide is a way to escape from the problems of life, I believe Edna had no other choice but that. In that period of time social standing and reputation was everything to a family especially the young children growing up. Edna did not want her children to go through the rumors of adultery or put them in the middle of a divorce that could ruin their entire childhood. She made her suicide look like and accident allowing her to go in peace with her boys and husbands reputation still intact. Edna may not have been the ‘mother-woman’ but in the very end she put her children’s desires and life before hers. I believe at that point her freedom was fully given to her. She had the choice to how she wanted to die and what she wanted others to think and feel about her and was also able to keep her children’s reputation in

“Mr.Pontellier to define his own satisfaction or anyone else's wherein his wife failed in her duty towards their children” ,stated Mr. Pontellier (IV.7). This quote demonstrates that Edna wasn't brave enough to show love and caring for at least her children. Edna was not a mother like the others that were there the 24 hours needed. She wanted to free and be her but, in the naked eye it looks like she was inadequate and could not see that her children needed her more than ever. Even though Edna decided that giving up on her family was best thing to do she decided to turn to

Edna Pontellier could not fit into the dull life she was originally provided with for, when given the responsibility of children, she found that “their absence was a sort of relief [...] It seemed to free her of a responsibility which she had blindly assumed and for which Fate had not fitted her” (25). A strong-willed woman, Edna wants to live her life in independence—away from her family. Societal expectations caused her to believe that being a “mother-woman” or “happy homemaker” was the only thing that women could do, as well as the only thing that would make women happy.

If I can ever meet a character from a book, it would be Edna Pontillier from The Awakening. She is one of the few strong female protagonists I have read. She defied societal beliefs and did what was needed to be set free from her chains but at one point, she became extreme. She chose to commit suicide. My questions are, were there no other choices that you could have made no matter what the consequences were? I cannot comprehend your reason for committing suicide even though you were living peacefully in the birdhouse of yours. Did suicide really set you free from the societal chains or did you take an easier route? Did you think about Robert, the man you loved? Are you happy enough to forget the family you made even though you did not want

By committing suicide she is finally freeing herself from the social constraints placed on her as a women. Society is so hard on Edna that it drives her to take her own life. She feels that there is no escaping the conforming lifestyle and she cannot live like that. Edna is unable to deal with the many awakenings she experiences because she knows she cannot live within society with the person she has made herself to be. Adele’s childbirth is the first event that contributes to Edna’s suicide.

Though some may see the actions taken by Edna as justified, I feel that she was in no way justified in her actions. In the realm of the social situation in the story, she acted selfishly and disregarded her duties as a mother and a wife. She threw away a perfectly fine life for no reasons beyond her own selfishness, and abandoned her family. However, in terms of the romantic tones of the story, she freed herself from her perceived bondage and lived the life she wanted to live.

After her affair, she gives off the impression of being scandalous and deviant, and she does not care. Later, Edna becomes romantically involved with Robert exemplifying her scandalous-self and diminishing her impression management even

In “Kate Chopin’s The Awakening and the Exploration of Feminine Desire and Expression” Iraj Montashery argues that Edna is the “ultimate feminist.” While some of her actions are feminist, Edna’s childishness and submissiveness of the changes within her suggest that her actions are stemmed more from a need to embrace a repressed part of herself rather than any feminist motives. Edna’s rebelliousness is born of a childishness throughout the novel. Monstashery begins by stating that Edna’s breakoff from motherhood suggests a different kind of femininity than the culturally acceptable one.

Edna still had a few options left, but they were still less practical than suicide. Edna could have remained living in a loveless marriage with Leonce Pontellier while she kept her secret

Here we see that Edna has always been “different” and that she perceived early the difference between “the outward existence which conforms, the inward life which questions.”

In The Awakening, Edna forms a close relationship with Robert Lebrun. Edna spends more time with Robert than with her husband and ends up falling in love with him. Edna tells Mademoiselle Reisz that "Robert's going had some

In Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, there are three major female characters that help depict Victorian society from different perspectives. To be a good person in Edna’s society meant being a "mother-woman" who completely surrenders her sense of self in favor of her husband and children. In the beginning of the novel Edna is comfortable with her life and does not recognize her true desires. It is not until she is at Grand Isle and grows passion for Robert, where she finally begins her awakening and yearns freedom. Edna Pontellier is both a mother and wife, but she does not see those roles as a blessing, but rather a burden. Attempting to rid herself of all responsibilities imposed on her by society she neglects family responsibilities and social obligations. Instead she focuses on her artistic expression and surrounds herself with like minded friends such as Mademoiselle Reisz. As the novel progresses Edna completely changes her perspective on life and heads on her journey to freedom in a seemingly child like manner. This being so, she disregards the needs of anyone but herself and never looks ahead to the consequences of her actions. Her search for freedom and personal happiness often cause her to make selfish decisions. Edna continuously seeks to be liberated from the social convictions of Victorian society throughout her awakening. In the end, Edna is unable to find a fulfilling sense of freedom in her world because of her attachment to her sons’ reputations. Therefore,