Text: The Awakening Author: Kate Chopin Major Characters & Important Details (personality, actions, changes over the course of the novel, etc.) Edna Pontellier - Main protagonist who comes from an upper class upbringing in NOLA. She feels trapped in her unsatisfying marriage with Léonce, and tries to find ways to fulfill her unmet sexual and romantic desires. Léonce Pontellier - Edna's husband, a successful businessman. Remains pretty clueless about his wife’s emotional desires throughout the entire novel. Mademoiselle Reisz - A talented pianist who devotes her life to artistic expression without being bound by societal norms.Is in turn somewhat isolated from society. Robert Lebrun - A flirtatious young man who has a habit of getting close to women he cannot form relationships with. Becomes Edna’s romantic interest. Victor Lebrun - Brother of Robert who is good looking but very spoiled and impetuous. Madame Lebrun - Owns the resort at the Grand Island is the mother of both Robert and Victor. Alcée Arobin - Promiscuous man who is skilled at seducing married women. Enters into a sexual relationship with Edna. Adéle Ratignolle - Close friends of Edna who is described as an ideal “mother-woman” who fits into the expectations of Victorian gender norms.. Colonel - Edna’s father, a former Confederate soldier. Holds conservative views on gender roles but gets along relatively fine with Edna. Dr. Mandelet - Physician who tries to help Léonce figure out why Edna has been acting differently. Also helps with Madame Ratignolle’s childbirth. Seems to be one of the few characters who understands how Edna feels. Genre: Literary Fiction Major Events Publication Date: 1603 Major Conflicts (in plot, between characters, internal, etc). The Pontelliers are introduced as they are 1. Edna vs. society: Throughout the novel, vacationing at the Grand Isle for the summer. Edna struggles to reconcile her desire for Edna, the protagonist, is initially portrayed as a personal freedom and independence with her devout wife and mother, but she gradually loses societal roles as a wife and mother. This interest in her life and starts to question the leads to conflicts with those around her. expectations society places on her as the novel 2. Edna's vs. Léonce: Léonce represents the goes on. traditional societal expectations of women, and his attempts to control and suppress By becoming close friends with the pianist Edna's independence lead to conflict in their Mademoiselle Reisz and being involved in a marriage. romantic connection with Robert Lebrun, Edna 3. Edna vs. Robert: As Edna begins to explore begins to examine her own needs and sexuality. her sexuality and desires outside of her marriage, she enters into relationships with As Edna grows more invested in her quest for other men. There is a tension in the fact that independence and self-fulfillment, she persists Robert is unaware of Edna’s affair with in defying social norms despite her husband Alcée, and Robert’s personal values conflict and friends' efforts to control her. deeply with his desire to be with Edna, a source of frustration for both of them. Edna starts having a passionate affair with Alcée, whom she meets at a horse race. At the same time, her love for Robert intensifies, but Robert is not able to bring himself to fulfill Edna’s desires. Edna is ultimately abandoned by Robert and is unable to balance her need for independence with the constraints placed on her by her status as a woman in society, and she commits suicide by drowning herself in the ocean. Major Topic or Theme (minimum of three required, but feel free to add more) 1 2 Patriarchy/Oppression Art as a form of liberation 2-3 Specific moments related to the topic/theme (bonus if they integrate a specific literary technique, but not required) Explanation: How do you interpret the text’s treatment of this topic/theme, and how do the cited moments contribute to this interpretation? “The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude; to lose itself in mazes of inward contemplation. The voice of the sea speaks to the soul. The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace." Edna is drawn to the water because she wants to be free from the constraints of a patriarchal society. Edna's love for the sea symbolizes her search for a place where she might live independently of the patriarchal system that forbids autonomy, and reveals her rejection of the notion that she must live up to social expectations. "The bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings. It is a sad spectacle to see the weaklings bruised, exhausted, fluttering back to earth." The metaphor Edna used of the bird with strong wings helps to highlight the difficulties women who want to challenge conventional gender roles face. It implies that even those who have the strength to soar above societal expectations may still encounter significant challenges and struggle to succeed, which also mirrors the words of Mademoiselle Reisz. "A certain light was beginning to dawn dimly within her,—the light which, showing the way, forbids it." Art is a form of liberation for Edna, both as it relates to her painting hobby and Mademoiselle Reisz’s piano player that stirs her emotionally when she listens to it. The "light" refers to her understanding of the role that art can play in her life, and the realization that her society forbids her from pursuing it fully. Edna's exploration of art helps her realize her own ambitions and possibilities as a person, and her interest in painting and music provide a way for her to express herself. In this way, Edna's pursuit of art and her romantic desires are closely linked. “‘And, moreover, to succeed, the artist must possess the courageous soul.’ ‘What do you mean by the courageous soul?’ ‘Courageous, ma foi! The brave soul. The soul that dares and defies!’” 3 Illusion/Conformity “An indescribable oppression, which seemed to generate in some unfamiliar part of her consciousness, filled her whole being with a vague anguish… …She was just having a good cry all to herself.” "The years that are gone seem like dreams – if one might go on sleeping and dreaming – but to In this passage, Edna considers her life and her true feelings on her social obligations as a wife and mother. She makes the argument that it is preferable to face one's true desires and live with the consequences than to continue living in delusion and abiding by social norms. Edna's frustration with the fantasy of a perfect existence as a wife and mother is connected to her longing wake up and find – oh! well! perhaps it is better to wake up after all, even to suffer, rather than to remain a dupe to illusions all one's life." for freedom and her rejection of patriarchal conventions. The first stage of Edna's "awakening" is her realization of her own desires.
