Preview

A Character Analysis Of Edna Pontellier's The Awakening

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
424 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
A Character Analysis Of Edna Pontellier's The Awakening
The book, The Awakening explains about a woman true wish to find her inner self. As the journey to find herself becomes an issue among friends and family. While she battles the stereotypical standard of woman during the time in the 1890s. The main character whom is Edna Pontellier's, is a wife that lives a life of luxury. In a Creole society that is upper-class that she’s lives with her husband and two sons. As the story takes off in Grand Isle, as the family is vacationing for the summer. The summer that begins Edna's process of "awakening" and self-identify that soon lead to a selfish decision.
However, the husband of Edna is so involved with work, he is constantly leaves Edna herself to the kids. While the absence husband, Edna spends much
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    A Critical Analysis Of Kate Chopin's The Awakening
    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages

    A Critical Analysis Of Kate Chopin's The Awakening

    The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, was published in 1899 and explored the life of a young married woman named Edna Pontellier. Throughout the novel, Edna attempts to discover her true self and her place in the world by becoming economically independent from her husband and seeking extramarital relationships with young, attractive men. There are multiple opinions about the impact of her awakening and the meaning behind Edna Pontellier’s suicide. Chopin’s goals in the novel were to emphasize the importance of Edna’s rebellion against traditional roles under the prejudice of society; the suicide at the end is the pinnacle of her character and the moment in which she becomes entirely free.…

    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Madame Bovary And The Awakening: Literary Analysis
    • 1844 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Madame Bovary And The Awakening: Literary Analysis

    Edna’s husband, Leonce, was seen as being the perfect husband in fact some of the ladies in the novel “declared that Mr. Pontellier was the greatest husband in the world.” Society sees him as being the perfect husband because he was wealthy and could therefore fulfill all the roles that a husband was supposed to. However when Edna met Robert Lebrun she realizes what she has been missing in her marriage. Robert provides her with attention and passionate love that Leonce simply did not. Edna also seeks her physical desires to be filled. She's fulfills them with the seductive man Alcee Arobin. Edna is always in control of this relationship and Robert is always the one that Edna actually cares for on a deeper level. Edna and Robert eventually fall in love, but Robert greatly struggles with the fear of how society would view his relationship with Edna. In the society in which they live in women are the possessions of their husband and it isn’t even viewed as a possibility for a women to go against her husband. Eventually, Robert’s fears win out over his love for Edna and he flees to avoid this forbidden love. He leaves a note that says “I love you. Good-by—because I love you.” Emma has an incredibly similar experience to this. Emma lived a somewhat routine and monotonous life with her husband Charles which leads her to wanting more out of her life. This is explained in the quote…

    • 1844 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Edna The Awakening Essay
    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Edna The Awakening Essay

    Novelist Edith Whorton states that a novelist “must rely on what may be called the illuminating incident to reveal and emphasize the inner meaning” of the book. In the novel The Awakening by Kate Chopin, the illuminating episode is when Edna has an epiphany after swimming out into the sea. She comes to the realization that she can speak freely and share her emotions openly as she finds it liberating. This moment functions as a casement that reveals the overall meaning of the work as a whole that women should feel free to practice individuality over conformity and sexuality over repression.…

    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    The Role Of Parenthood In Kate Chopin's The Awakening
    • 1942 Words
    • 8 Pages

    The Role Of Parenthood In Kate Chopin's The Awakening

    Kate Chopin's The Awakening was a striking bit of fiction in now is the right time, and hero Edna Pontellier was a disputable character. The narrative is clearly based on the attitude of the characters towards death. She annoys numerous nineteenth century desires for ladies and their gathered parts. One of her most stunning activities was her foreswearing of her part as a mother and wife. Kate Chopin shows this dismissal bit by bit, yet the idea of parenthood is real subject all through the novel (Chopin & Knights, 2000). Edna is battling against the societal and characteristic structures of parenthood that drive her to be characterized by her title as wife of Leonce Pontellier and mother of Raoul and Etienne Pontellier, rather than being her own, self-characterized person. Through Chopin's attention on two other female characters, Adele Ratignolle and Mademoiselle…

    • 1942 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Female Protagonists In Kate Chopin's The Awakening
    • 669 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Female Protagonists In Kate Chopin's The Awakening

    Many individuals believe that we live in a perfect environment, without violence or prejudice. A group of people who call themselves feminists argue that a significant amount of the population, women, are treated as men’s tools. To fight back this ideal, people write stories with female protagonists who challenge the social norms, one example being Kate Chopin’s The Awakening. The novella gives life to the motherly Adele Ratignolle, the unconventional Reisz, and the stubborn protagonist Edna Pontellier. Mrs. Pontellier is a rebellious woman trapped in a strict culture who finds freedom during her vacation in Grand Isle. As a result, she decides to obtain her individuality with radical actions that reflect modern feminist ideals that are essential in a feminist literature.…

    • 669 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Awakening final
    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Awakening final

    The use of literary elements, such as theme and conflict, helps to further demonstrate the idea of Edna attempting to seek independence and find her inner self throughout this novel. The theme, which is the main idea which the author weaves throughout a work and wants the reader to remember, is to first find yourself before involved with others. In almost all stories the theme is very important and teaches the reader a lesson. In this novel, The Awakening, the theme plays a crucial part to the overall story. Because Edna struggles so much and eventually leaves her family to take some time for herself, it reinforces the concept of the necessity of realizing the importance of knowing who you are and your values. It makes Ednas suicide in the end of the story much more important and effective. Without this particular theme, the main point of the story, which is to develop feminism and bring it to the readers attention.…

    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Theme Of Love In The Awakening By Kate Chopin
    • 385 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Theme Of Love In The Awakening By Kate Chopin

    The first man that Edna comes in contact with in the novel is her Husband, Mr. Pontellier. The author uses this father and husband figure to create the sense of commitment that comes from love, but nothing else, revealing to Edna the need for more than just commitment. The author creates this sense of commitment on page 7 of “The Awakening” by having Edna be called the “sole object of his existence.”…

    • 385 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Edna Pontellier's Personal Awakening Cycle
    • 1518 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Edna Pontellier's Personal Awakening Cycle

    In a traditional society, Edna feels stuck between what is right for her and what makes society happy. She is expected to be a good wife and mother, however; she falls short of this…

    • 1518 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    5.10 the Awakening
    • 820 Words
    • 4 Pages

    5.10 the Awakening

    1. What features make The Awakening a "local color" story?The type of dialogue used, the way the town is depicted and the fact that it was a time where women did not have much say in their lives or decisions 2. What customs and beliefs of Edna Pontellier 's society are significant in relation to her psychological development?The typical new Orleans woman is expected to let their life revolve around their husband and children and they are expected to spend their time doing their domestic duties, and Edna is forced to live in these confines, and she is not happy with her life and feels tied down in her marriage and life. 3. What attitudes and tendencies in the Creole characters does Edna have trouble adjusting to?She has trouble adjusting to the matronly attitude of other women and the tendency to put her husband and children and their needs before hers. 4. Why did Edna marry Leonce? Is he the model husband?She married him because she loved his devotion, and the fact that she was infatuated with another man, and he was the only one that seemed to pay attention to her made her fancy him even more and she wanted to defy her father and sister. 5. What incidents in the novel reveal that he may not be a good husband for Edna?Fully believes in the traditional duties of a creole woman in their society and he can’t, or is unwilling to communicate with her and figure out how she feels. 6. How do Mlle. Reisz and Mme. Ratignolle function in relation to Edna and the novel 's view of women as mothers and artists? Mademoiselle Reisz is an unmarried artist and represents freedom for Edna and is the only person who knows about her and Roberts’s secret love. She tells Edna that if she wants to become independent then she must be brave because artists are brave and defiant people. Madame Ratignolle represents the ideal new Orleans/ Creole woman and contrasts with Mademoiselle Reisz 7. What kind of mother is Edna? What kind of artist is she?She isn’t and…

    • 820 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    The Awakening, the Story of an Hour, and Desiree's Baby
    • 2934 Words
    • 12 Pages

    The Awakening, the Story of an Hour, and Desiree's Baby

    The Awakening: The novel was titled “The Awakening,” because the main character Edna Pontellier goes through a series of liberations that cause her to “awaken” or become aware of her…

    • 2934 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Edna's First Awakening Analysis
    • 230 Words
    • 1 Page

    Edna's First Awakening Analysis

    Edna’s first awaking happens in response to her being around people of Cajun descent who openly communicate and touch. While spending time on the beach with a Cajun women Edna is touched, this touch is not in a sexual way, but is outside the norm and starts Edna’s journey towards what she will accept versus what is socially acceptable. Edna says that mother-women “created the embodiment of every womanly grace and charm” {Baym 567). Edna does not consider herself to be a motherly-women. Edna’s second awakening occurs when she pushes the bounds of her immortality by swimming out farther than she thought that she could, but still makes it back to shore. This leads her to try new thing even to the point of speaking back to her husband. To speak…

    • 230 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    An Analysis Of Kate Chopin's The Awakening
    • 72 Words
    • 1 Page

    An Analysis Of Kate Chopin's The Awakening

    The Awakening is a novel written by Kate Chopin first published in 1899. The novel centers around the character Edna Pontellier, a twenty-eight year-old woman married to a man she never loved. Edna struggles throughout the novel to be either the perfect Creole woman or to be true to herself. She reaches her breaking point at the end of the novel and takes her own life by drowning herself in the sea.…

    • 72 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Edna Pontelli's The Awakening
    • 264 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Edna Pontelli's The Awakening

    In 19th century, the society was dominated by male. Edna Pontellier was the wife of Mr. Portlier who was a creole. In French upper class society, the purpose of life for female was taught to be fond of their husbands and children. Woman at that time never lived for themselves. Mrs. Pontellier's friend, Adele Ratignolle, was considered as the perfect woman in the society, because she was a great woman who treated her children better than herself.…

    • 264 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Edna's Dereliction Of Duty In The Awakening
    • 163 Words
    • 1 Page

    Edna's Dereliction Of Duty In The Awakening

    During their talk in chapter 7, Edna also tells Adele something about her feelings for her children. Edna loves her children but feels weighed down with a responsibility that is suited to her nature. She feels relief when they are away. Edna is not a “mother-woman” like the women that surround her on the island, and their children, when they fall over and hurt themselves, do not rush to her as other women's children do, but they merely pick themselves up and carry on playing. Although Mr. Pontellier is therefore not able to point the finger towards any definite dereliction of duty as a mother, the way that Edna is obviously so different from the other mothers with them that summer highlights that she has a very different kind of relationship…

    • 163 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Symbolism In Kate Chopin's The Awakening
    • 505 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Symbolism In Kate Chopin's The Awakening

    The awakening was first published 1899, near the beginning of a new century. This novel was published during the Victorian Era where the expectations of women were significant to society if a woman did not live up to societies expectation they were seen as a villain and unmarriageable. The ideal Victorian lady was to be home-centred, family orientated women. They had ensured the house was well groomed; all meals were made on time, sewed and knitting all the children’s clothing, care for the ill individuals in the family that the home and family are free of disease and any problems that occur outside of their home aren’t brought into the home. Women did not have the rights like the men did, they had little choice on who they married, restrictions of what they…

    • 505 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics