The Awakening
by Kate Chopin
A Study Guide by R. A. Moore
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
Chapter 1
The action of the novel begins on Grand Isle, Louisiana, a summer retreat for the wealthy
French Creoles of New Orleans.
1. The Awakening opens with the shrieking complaint of a constrained parrot, “Go away! Go
away! For God’s sake” to a mocking bird “on the other side of the door.” You will probably
have picked up the symbolic intention here. However, the full meaning of the symbols only
becomes clear as you read the book. These questions may help you to make a tentative
interpretation:
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What does the fact that the bird echoes the phrases of rejection and rebuff tell us about
the society in which the novel is set?
In what ways does the parrot’s predicament represent that of Edna Pontellier?
The parrot speaks a “language which nobody understood, unless it was the mockingbird.” How will this detail apply symbolically to Edna once she has begun to awaken?
The mockingbird, it has been suggested, represents Mademoiselle Reisz. Can you
explain this identification?
The symbol of the birds applies more generally to women in the nineteenth century. Can
you explain this identification?
2. Léonce does not regard his wife as a partner in marriage so much as a possession. How is
this established by:
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the simile Chopin uses to describe his reaction to Edna’s sunburn;
the incident of the return of the rings;
the way he reacts to Edna’s close relationship with Robert;
his decision to go to play billiards?
3. How does Edna react to her husband? What relationship does she appear to have with her
children?
Chapter 2
4. What evidence is given in this chapter that Robert Lubrun is a rather shallow young man
lacking a sense of drive and determination?
5. What do you learn about Edna’s upbringing? In what ways does it place her at a potential
disadvantage in the wealthy French Creole society of New Orleans into which she has
married?
Chapter 3
The tension and discord between Edna and Léonce that simmer beneath the surface of their
apparently happy marriage foreshadow the drama that will result from Edna’s later departure
from social conventions.
6. Mr. Pontellier reproaches “his wife for her inattention, her habitual neglect of the children.”
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Since Raoul clearly does not have a fever, what has given rise to this accusation?
What is ironic about this accusation being made by Mr. Pintellier?
Why does Edna cry? In what ways is her reaction to her husband’s comments different
from the way she normally deals with such incidents? What accounts for the difference?
Comment on the similes:
a. “[The sound of the sea] broke like a mournful lullaby upon the night.”
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The Awakening by Kate Chopin
b. “[Her vague anguish] was like a shadow, like a mist passing across her soul’s
summer day.”
7. Examine the dramatic irony of the statement, “all declared that Mr. Pontellier was the best
husband in the world. Mrs. Pontellier was forced to admit the she knew of none better.” List
the things that Mr. Pontellier does in this chapter which support the view that, in terms of
the conventional values of the time, he is a good husband.
Chapter 4
8. Creole society defines the ideal wife as “a mother-woman.”
 In what ways does Mr. Pontellier consider Edna to fall short of this ideal?
 In what ways is Adele Ratognolle an ‘embodiment’ of this ideal?
 Comment on the extended metaphor of wings that Coopin uses to describe the motherwoman.
9. Give examples of the “freedom of expression” allowed to Creole women. Why is Edna
initially shocked by this freedom? Ironically, this freedom of expression contributes to
Edna’s awakening. Explain how.
Chapter 5
10. Explain why “the Creole husband is never jealous.”
11. Chopin notes that Robert and Mrs. Pontellier have reached “a certain advanced stage of
intimacy and camaraderie.” In what ways is Robert’s devotion similar to, and in what ways
different from, that which he has shown each summer, “Since the age of fifteen … [to] some
fair dame or damsel”?
12. What can you conclude about Madame Ratignolle’s faint?
13. Contrast Madame Ratignolle’s interaction with her children in this scene with that of Edna.
Chapter 6
In this short chapter, Chopin discusses directly the beginning of Edna’s process of awakening.
14. Edna cannot understand her own behavior. Explain her initial refusal to bathe and her
subsequent agreement to do so.
15. How does this chapter suggest Edna’s uniqueness in pursuing her desires?
Chapter 7
16. Chopin tells us of Edna, “Even as a child she had lived her own small life all within
herself.” What factors in her upbringing encouraged Edna’s introversion?
17. Comment on the contrasting ways in which Edna and Adele are dressed. (“The women were
both … of line could not have done.”) How does Chopin use dress to symbolize the
differences between the two women?
18. What influences Edna to marry Leonce? Why does she feel an “unaccountable satisfaction
that no trace of passion … colored her affection” for Leonce?
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19. Why do you think that Chopin includes the two lovers? You will notice that they are almost
always seen with a lady in black – a minor character who does not speak. What do the
lovers and the lady each symbolize?
20. What evidence do we get in this chapter that Leonce’s vague dissatisfaction with Edna as a
mother is not entirely without justification?
21. What new way of relating to other people does Edna try in her conversation with Adele?
Explain Adele’s action at the end of this chapter.
Chapter 8
22. What does Adele understand to be “the law and the gospel” relating to intercourse between
single men and married women?
23. How does Robert react to Adele’s suggestion that he does not intend his flirting with Adna
to be taken seriously?
24. What symbolic significance might the driving away of the rockaway have?
Chapter 9
25. Contrast Adele’s motivation for playing the piano with that of Mademoiselle Reisz.
26. Examine Chopin’s symbolic description of the vision that Edna usually achieves when
listening to Mademoiselle Reisz playing ‘Solitude’ (“When she heard it … flight away from
him.”). The bird, with which the narrative repeatedly associates the Victorian woman, is a
female symbol. Significantly, Edna identifies with the man abandoned by the bird. What
does this reading of Chopin’s symbolism add to your understanding of Edna’s state of
mind? Three other music-inspired visions are described more briefly. Can you suggest a
symbolic reading of these?
27. What is the significance of Edna’s jarring physical reaction to Mademoiselle Reisz’s piano
playing? How is it different from her usual visions?
Note: The visions described in this chapter serve as a mark against which to measure Edna’s
development as the novel progresses.
Chapter 10
28. Edna’s first swim clearly symbolizes her rebirth, sexual awakening, and self-discovery.
Comment on:
 the simile that compares Edna to a “little tottering, stumbling, clutching child, who . . .
walks for the first time alone”;
 Edna’s desire “to swim far out, where no woman had swum before”;
 her childlike fear of self-reliance, as evidenced by her fear that “her unaided strength
would never be able” to get her back to shore;
 the way that the episode foreshadows Edna’s ultimate failure and death.
29. What does Madame Lebrun mean when she says of Edna, “‘Sometimes I am tempted to
think that Mrs. Pontellier is capricious’”? Comment on Leonce’s response.
30. Alone with Robert, Edna attempts to articulate the flood of new emotions and experiences
that the night has inspired in her. How does she do this? How successful is she? Comment
on Robert’s reaction.
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Chapter 11
31. For the first time, Edna defied the expressed will of Léonce. She even expresses resentment
at his tone, “‘Don’t speak to me like that again; I shall not answer you.’” How does Chopin
establish the difference between Edna’s assertion of her individual will at this moment and
her previous submission to her husband’s wishes?
32. How does Léonce react to Edna’s assertion of her independence? How does he succeed in
restoring the conventional structure of relations between himself and his wife?
Chapter 12
33. Of Edna’s request that Robert accompany her to the Cheniere Caminada, Chopin
comments, “She did not appear conscious that she had done something unusual.” Explain
the dramatic irony of this statement. How does Chopin make it clear that this request
marks a decisive stage in Edna’s awakening?
34. Examine the symbolism of Chopin’s description of Edna’s feelings in the paragraph that
begins, “Sailing across the bay…”
35. Comment on the response of Robert and Mariequita to the question of whether the two
lovers are married, “‘Of course not.’”
36. Comment on the symbolism in Edna and Robert’s discussion of the finding and spending of
“‘pirate gold.’”
37. What is the function of the character Mariequita in this chapter?
Chapter 13
Edna’s escape from “the stifling atmosphere of the church” is a symbol of her desire to escape
the social conventions which prevent her from following her newly woken desires.
38. Comment on the symbolic significance of the island, and of Madame Antoine’s cottage in
particular. Explain the significance of Edna’s reaction upon waking, “‘How many years
have I slept?’ she inquired. ‘… A new race of beings must have sprung up, leaving only you
and me as past relics.’”
39. How does Chopin make clear in her description of how Edna and Robert spend the rest of
the day both that the island frees them from the restraints of society and that such freedom is
ultimately an illusion.
Chapter 14
40. In what ways is Edna made aware of the role of the “mother-women” upon her return to The
Grand Isle?
41. What stage of self-awareness has Edna reached about the awakening through which she is
passing?
42. What significances can you suggest for the song that Robert sings on the boat as they return
and which Edna repeats as she waits for her husband?
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Chapter 15
43. In what ways does the farewell between Edna and Robert demonstrate their contrasting
attitudes toward upholding the rules assigned by society and tradition? Consider:
 the ways in which the two address each other when talking;
 the physical contact between the two;
 how Robert might have ended his sentence, “‘Perhaps that’s the –’”;
 Robert’s response to her request that he should write to her.
44. What symbolic significance do you find in Edna’s getting “undressed” when she returns to
her room?
45. What similarities does Edna note between her feelings for Robert and the symptoms of
youthful infatuations? Explain Chopin’s statement, “The recognition did not lessen the
reality, the poignancy of the revelation by any suggestion of promise of instability.”
Chapter 16
46. Explain the disagreement between Edna and Adele on the subject of a mother’s sacrifice.
What is the significance of Chopin’s remark, “the two women did not appear to understand
each other or to be taking the same language”? (You might want to think back to the
description of the birds and the start of the novel.)
47. What is significant about Edna’s reaction to Mademoiselle Reisz’s story of the dispute
between Robert and Victory over Mariequita?
Chapter 17
48. Comment on Chopin’s diction in the first paragraph of this chapter which describes the
Pontelliers’ home in New Orleans.
49. How does Edna’s manner of dress signal her rejection of the restriction and theatricality of
social customs?
50. Account for the violence of Edna’s behavior once she has retired to her room.
Chapter 18
51. Trapped, as she feels herself to be, in an “alien” world, what is the one activity which seems
to Edna to have meaning? Why?
52. Why does Edna feel “depressed rather than soothed” by her experience of the “domestic
harmony” of the Ratignolles?
Chapter 19
53. What does Edna mean when she says of Madamme Ratignolle, “‘She isn’t a musician’” and
of herself, “‘I’m not a painter’”?
54. How does Chopin bring out the dramatic irony of Léonce’s view that his wife is “growing
a little unbalanced mentally”?
Chapter 20
55. What is the significance of Victor’s half-told tale of his adventure the previous evening
which “all began with a girl peeping and smiling at him”?
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56. What is significant about the impression which Ladame Lebrun and Victor share that Edna
looks more stunningly beautiful than she did in the summer?
Chapter 21
57. In what ways is Edna’s visit to Mademoiselle Reisz characterized by unconventional
behavior on both sides?
58. Some background knowledge is useful in understanding the full significance of the music
that Mademoiselle Reisz plays. Having played Edna’s requested piece, the Chopin
Impromptu, she takes up a song from Wagner’s opera Tristan and Isolde which tells the
story of two tragic lovers who resemble Edna and Robert: a married woman and a single
man who can be together only in death. In the piece that the Mademoiselle plays, Isolde
pledges her decision to follow Tristan in death. Isolde sings: “As they swell and roar around
me, shall I breathe them, shall I listen to them? Shall I sip them, plunge beneath them, to
expire in sweet perfume? In the surging swell, in the ringing sound, in the vast wave of the
world’s breath—to drown, to sink, unconscious—supreme bliss.” What is foreshadowed in
Isolde’s words?
Chapter 22
59. Having heard Léonce’s account of the change in his wife’s behavior, what possible
explanations does Doctor Mandelet offer? What is the one explanation that the doctor does
not offer? Why would it have been a social ‘blunder’ for him to have done so?
Chapter 23
60. What is the difference between Madame Ratignolle’s flirting with Edna’s father and Edna’s
own sense of attraction for men at the party and for strangers seen in the street?
61. What is the purpose of the stories told by both Doctor Mandelet and Edna at the dinner
party? Explain the doctor’s muttered comment to himself as he walks home.
Chapter 24
62. Explain the change that comes over Edna when the time for her husband’s departure for
New York approaches.
63. How does Edna react when she finally finds herself left alone in her New Orleans house?
Chapter 25
64. At times Edna feels as though “life were passing by,” and at other times she is “led on and
deceived by fresh promises which her youth held out to her.” How do these feelings explain
her actions in this chapter?
65. Explain Edna’s rejection of Alcee’s sexual advances. How does Chopin make it clear that
Edna’s rejection will not be final?
Chapter 26
66. What is the basis of Edna’s attraction to Alcee?
67. What is the reason for Edna’s decision to leave her house and rent a smaller house nearby?
68. How does Mademoiselle Reisz help Edna to articulate her feelings for Robert for the first
time?
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Chapters 27 & 28
69. Analyze the meaning of the extended metaphor that Edna quotes Madamoiselle Reisz as
using, “‘“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.”’” How does this metaphor foreshadow Edna’s fate?
70. On what level is Edna’s sexual experience with Alcee satisfying? On what level does the
experience fail to satisfy her?
Chapter 29
71. What is significant about the way Edna is dressed and how she is working at clearing the
house of her own possessions when Alcee arrives?
72. Comment on the symbolism of the house around the block being called by one of Edna’s
servants the “pigeon house”?
73. How does Edna make it clear that she is never again going to be an unequal partner in a
romantic relationship?
Chapter 30
74. Edna’s dinner party seems to be a great social success, yet in the midst of it Chopin tells the
reader that Edna “felt the old ennui overtaking her, the hopelessness which so often assailed
her, which came upon her like and obsession….” How do you account for this feeling?
75. Why do you think that Edna reacts so violently to Victor’s song?
76. Comment on the significance of the final sentence of this chapter.
Chapter 31
77. How is Alcee’s question, “‘What next?’” more significant than he understands?
78. What need in Edna does Alcee supply? How does Edna interpret Alcee’s gesture of filling
her new house with flowers?
Chapter 32
79. In what ways does moving to the “pigeon-house” promote Edna’s awakening?
80. Account for Edna’s recurring sense of loneliness.
Chapter 33
81. Why does Adele say that Edna seems to her “like a child”?
82. In what ways is the meeting with Robert in Madamoiselle Reisz’s apartment a
disappointment to Edna?
83. Explain Edna’s feeling that “her dreams were coming true after all, when he followed her
into the little house.”
84. How does Robert react to finding the photograph of Alcee? How does Edna seek to explain
away the photograph?
85. What does Robert mean when he says, “‘Mrs. Pontellier, you are cruel’”?
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The Awakening by Kate Chopin
Chapter 34
86. Why does Robert leave so soon after Alcee arrives? What is significant about the way in
which Robert takes his leave of Edna?
87. Why does Edna feel that in ‘some way he [Robert] seemed nearer to her off there in
Mexico’ than he does now that he has returned?
Chapter 35
88. Comment on the dramatic irony of Edna’s confident thought, “She recapitulated the
motives which no doubt explained Robert’s reserve. They were not insurmountable: they
would not hold if he really loved her; they could not hold against her own passion.”
89. Explain the following authorial comments on Edna’s state of mind:
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“she had abandoned herself to Fate, and awaited the consequences with indifference”;
“There was no despondency when she fell asleep that night; not was there hope when
she awoke in the morning.”
Chapter 36
90.
Edna tells Robert, “‘I suppose this is what you would call unwomanly’” Make a list of the
things Edna does in this chapter that would be termed “unwomanly” by the conventional
standards of her day.
91.
Comment on the foreshadowing of the little detail of Edna’s book, “He looked at Edna’s
book, which he had read; and he told her the end.”
92.
Explain how the following dialogue encapsulates the different views of Edna and Robert
on the future of their love affair:
‘I forgot everything but a wild dream of your some way becoming my wife.’
‘Your wife!… I give myself where I choose…’
His face grew a little white. ‘What do you mean?’ he asked.
93.
Comment on the dramatic irony of Edna’s confident assertion, “‘I shall come back as
soon as I can; I shall find you here.’”
Chapter 37
94.
Why do you think that Chopin includes a description of Adele’s painful childbirth at this
point in the novel? What does it make Edna aware of?
Chapter 38
95.
Edna tells Doctor Mandelet, “‘perhaps it is better to wake up after all, even to suffer,
rather than to remain a dupe to illusions all one’s life.’” Does this appear to you to be a
conclusion supported by the author?
96.
What do you thing Robert means by his note?
Chapter 39
97.
What steps does Edna take to ensure that her death will be interpreted as an accident?
Why do you think that she does this?
98.
Explain which it is her children who have made Edna feel that suicide is her only course
of action.
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The Awakening by Kate Chopin
99.
Comment on the symbolism of the bird, “A bird with a broken wing was beating the air
above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled down, down to the water.”’
100. Do you feel that Edna’s suicide is presented as a victory or a defeat? (It is perhaps only
fair to add that a word used by many critics in discussing the ending of this novel is
‘ambiguous.’)
Cover picture:
Kate Chopin in 1894
The image is in the public domain and not subject to copyright.
Source: http://kclibrary.nhmccd.edu/awakening.htm and en:Image:Chopin1.jpg
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The Awakening by Kate Chopin
Postreading
1. Discuss Kate Chopin’s use of place in the novel. How does she generate the reader’s interest
in a regional society and life with which few had personal experience?
2. Edna Pontellier is caught in the contradictions between the way others see her and the way
she sees herself. Describe in detail three scenes in which this becomes apparent. Show how
Edna becomes increasingly aware of the contradiction.
3. There are numerous women of color in The Awakening. What is their contribution to the
writer’ development of the novel’s themes?
4. Some readers have described Edna’s death in The Awakening as suicide; others view it as her
achievement of self-realization. Argue the relative truth of each interpretation.
5. How does the novel use clothing and garments (or the lack thereof) to portray Edna’s
rebellion against Victorian norms?
6. Of the many awakenings Edna undergoes in the novel, identify those which are most
important to her progress.
7. There are numerous different species of birds in the novel — parrots, mockingbirds, pigeons.
How are they used by the writer to develop the novel’s themes?
8. Throughout the novel, Edna feels caught between the way others see her and the way she sees
herself. Identify several moments in which this struggle is apparent. How does the text portray
Edna’s growing awareness of these contradicting views?
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