The Awakening
by Kate Chopin
Review PowerPoint
Mrs. Dibble
Setting and Social Background
• Grand Isle and New Orleans, LA
– circa 1899 are the two settings
• NO – Catholic, French, with a
great deal of interracial mixing
– is a relatively easy-going
society.
• Husbands are NOT overly
jealous of the attentions that
their wives receive from other
men. Women do not place too
much credence on these
attentions.
• The problem comes from Edna
who is not from there – she does
take Robert’s flirtations
seriously.
Cont.
• Edna is a Southern
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Presbyterian who contrasts
with her husband who is a
Creole.
Creoles are the descendants of
early French or Spanish
settlers. Another definition is a
mixture of African and French
or African and Spanish. A
third definition is “Gens de
Couleur” or “Free People of
Color”
Cont.
• NO was established in 1718 as a French-Canadian
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outpost.
Located by the mouth of the Mississippi, it
developed rapidly.
Its unique social structure began to evolve with
the mass importation of African slaves in the
1720s.
By the end of the 18th century it was the haven of
smugglers, gamblers, prostitutes, and pirates!
Became refuge of whites and free blacks – and
their slaves – escaping slave revolts in St.
Dominque.
Cont.
• The Spanish, French, and people
of color worked together, lived
next door to one another, and
intermarried, creating a
distinctive Creole culture.
• NO was already a diverse city
when it was part of the
Louisiana Purchase – American
immigrants weren’t particularly
welcome there.
• Then, in the Battle of NO, the
final battle of the War of 1812,
Anglos and Creoles fought side by
side. They were even backed by
pirates like Jean Lafitte!
Cont.
• Before the Civil War, NO experienced an
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economic Golden Age as a port and finance
center for the cotton industry.
This came to an end with the Union
occupation and the Union blockade.
The Old “French Quarter”- where Edna and
the others live – is the site of the original
settlement. The Quarter is laid out on a
grid that hasn’t changed since 1721.
The architecture is predominantly
Spanish, with a strong Caribbean
influence.
Victorian and Early 20th Century Sexuality
• The Victorian attitude toward human
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sexuality was largely influenced by two people:
Darwin and Freud
Darwin “lowered” man to almost animal status
Freud “revealed” that man’s most every
thought was sex related
Although it is clear that Alcee Arobin’s threat
to Edna is sexual and that they did indeed
consummate their relationship, Chopin does not
openly discuss this.
Men and women were not supposed to talk or
THINK about sex.
Symbolism in the Text
ART –
- a symbol of both freedom and failure
- a major part of Edna’s awakening is her
decision to take up painting again
- through her sale of paintings, she is able to
leave Leonce’s house and move to the Pigeon
House
- there is the suggestion that her art is flawed
(her drawing of Mad. Ratignolle is not a good
likeness)
- Mad. Reisz often cautions Edna about what
it takes to be an artist – the “courageous soul”
and the “strong wings”.
Birds
- major symbol from the first page
to the final image
- the mockingbird and parrot
symbolize various ineffective
attempts at communication.
- both birds are best known for their
imitation of others, rather than
having their own voice – they
cannot tell their own stories
- the parrot screeches “Get out! Get
out!” which could foreshadow
Edna’s desire to leave confines of her
middle-class life.
- The fact that both birds
are caged clearly shows
entrapment.
- the ability to spread
wings and fly occurs
often in the novel –
“strong wings”
- while listening to
Mad.Riesz, Edna
daydreams about a
naked man standing on
a beach watching a bird
fly away.
Food
• There are several symbolic meals in the novel
including
– The meal on Cheniere Caminada which occurs when she
wakes up from her fairy tale sleep
– The dinner party at her “old house” when she is ready to
leave for the Pigeon House – viewed by some to recreate the
Last Supper
Swimming
Appears as a central issue 3 times
- Edna tells Mad. Ratignolle of
her experience as a young girl
swimming through the meadow –
here the swimming is an escape
from formalized religion (Edna’s
father’s gloomy prayers)
- Edna finally learns how to
swim – after trying all summer.
Experiences exhilaration and
freedom. Also experiences the fear
of drowning
Cont.
The final swimming episode is, of course, her
suicide. It is ultimately ambiguous
whether Edna is embracing a new
freedom from restriction by stripping off
her clothes and surrendering herself to the
seduction of the sea. Or – is it a final
desperate act because she can no longer
live the life she seems destined to live???
Water
• Water is a symbol of both freedom and
escape.
• Edna remember the Kentucky fields of
her childhood as an ocean, and she
daydreams of the day she “swam” the
meadow. Her learning to swim in the
Gulf is a show of self-assertion, and she
finally “escapes to the sea”. Even in NO
there are lots of references to water in the
form of rain or the river.
Piano Playing
• Even at the beginning of the novel we hear the
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Farival twins playing the piano. Here, the
fact of playing the piano is an allusion to the
opera. On the evening of Edna’ 1st swim, the
twins play again, but their inept poundings
are replaced by Mad. Reisz.
Both Adele and Mad. Reisz play the piano.
Each woman functions to underscore a
different aspect of the novel. Adele is good
because she practices every day – but she does
not love it. She wants to set a good example for
her kids. Mad. Reisz is an artist. She serves as
a mentor to Edna.
Sleep and Awakening
• The 1st night of the novel, Edna cannot
sleep after her husband rebukes her for
neglecting the children. It is during this
sleepless night that her “awakening”
begins. We are told, “An indescribable
oppression, which seemed to generate in
some unfamiliar part of her
consciousness, filled her whole being with
a vague anguish.”
Cont.
Similarly, the night of Edna’s 1st successful
swim, she also cannot sleep. Yet, the next day,
she experiences a deep, dream-filled sleep during
her nap at the home of Madame Antoine.
Each major episode – disagreements with Leonce,
encounters with Alcee, Madame Ratignolle’s
childbed – are punctuated by specific mentions
of Edna’s sleep, or lack of sleep. During this
time, physical sleep also comes to represent a
state of awareness as in Edna’s conversation
with Doctor Mandelet the night of the birth,
the night before her suicide.
Themes
• Repressed Feelings – almost everyone in the book , w/
the possible exceptions of Mad. Ratignolle and her
hubby, repress their feelings, and this repression has a
significant impact on how the characters interact and
how the plot develops.
- We are told very early that Leonce truly loves Edna.
But does he tell her??? Robert flees to Mexico rather
than express his love. On his return to NO, he delays
seeing her for the same reason.
- Mademoiselle Reisz seems to possess an insight into
matters of the heart and soul yet she never reveals
what in her past gives her this wisdom.
- It is ultimately Edna’s inability to repress her newly
discovered feelings that drives her to suicide.
Cont.
• Personal Freedom – all of the characters
are trapped by social expectations. The
only characters who are not ( Victor,
Mad. Reisz, and Alcee) are criticized by
others. As Edna begins to gain a sense of
personal freedom (evidenced by her
learning to swim, painting, bagging her
“at home” days, and moving out), she,
too, falls subject to gossip and criticism.
Cont.
• Role of Women- The society of Chopin’s
novel allows for essentially one feminine
role, and that is wife and mother
(“…women who idolized their children,
worshiped their husbands, and esteemed it
a holy privilege to efface themselves as
individuals and grow wings as
ministering angels.”) The various female
characters in the novel represent the
various responses to this single role.
Cont.
• Madame Ratignolle fills the role perfectly.
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She is the “embodiment of every womanly
grace and charm.” Notice that she is pregnant
throughout the novel.
Mademoiselle Reisz represents the woman who
has thumbed her nose at the role. She is
described as “a disagreeable little woman, no
longer young… (with) …a temper which was
self- assertive and a disposition to trample upon
the rights of others. She lives in near poverty.
Edna, of course finds it difficult in her role and
kills herself
Cont.
Search for Self – To some extent, this theme
is a combination of the idea of the
repressed feelings and the search for
personal freedom. It is only by witnessing
Edna’s struggle of self-actualization
that we can question whether any of the
characters has a strong sense of self. If
there is such a character, it is probably
Mad. Riesz.
Alienation and Loneliness
• Mad. Riesz lives alone but does not seem
to be lonely. Edna, on the other hand,
feels lonely when her husband and
children and more but she feels no less
alone when she is with him. With
Robert, however, she is not lonely. It is
the ultimate aloneness caused by Robert’s
final leaving that immediately
precipitates Edna’s suicide.
• Consequences of Choices
- Immediately before Robert and Edna’s
reunion, Madame Ratignolle warns
Edna, “You seem to me like a child,
Edna. You seem to act without a certain
amount of reflection that is necessary in
this life.” Does Edna care about the
repercussions of any of her decisions?