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Symbolism In The Awakening

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The Enlightenment (1650-1800) also referred to as the “Age of Reason” eventually morphed into 19th century Romanticism. Throughout the period of Enlightenment and Romanticism we see an emergence of independent thought, which resulted in freedom to know and understand. The Enlightenment was a period that spawned many philosophical, intellectual and social movements throughout much of Europe. Furthermore, it lead to countless intellectual break throughs in disciplines such as: mathematics, philosophy and medicine. Scholars of the time thought that all humans should strive to increase knowledge rather than rely on emotional impulses. To be human is to be free as an individual in your thoughts and actions. One of the fundamental belief commitments …show more content…

Edna yearns to finally be able to spread her wings and fly away, so that she can’t think and feel for herself. Her deepest desires are to be free from the burden of her family and society that are constantly trying to suppress. Therefore, against society’s expectations she begins to gain knowledge through sex, art and love through her affair with Alcée Arobin as well as through her deep desire for Robert Lebrun. Edna begins spreading her wings when she explores and gains all of the knowledge to make a decision to fly on her own. Chopin describes Edna’s escape through Mademoiselle Reisz hugging Edna “put her arms around me and felt my shoulder blades to see if my wings were strong, she said. ‘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” (Awakening Pg. 106). Mademoiselle Reisz trying to tell Edna that if she truly wants to be free she will have to be strong, independent and must not think about what others think of her. If Edna fails she will break her wing and fall back to earth. Edna’s awakening is that death is the only way she will be able escape the cage and be able to fly independent and

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Edna experiences the hardships of striving to break as a “ [feeling] like one who awakens gradually out of a dream, a delicious, grotesque, impossible dream, to feel again the realities pressing into her soul … the exuberance which had sustained and exalted her spirit left her helpless and yielding to the conditions which crowded her in … clutching feebly at the post before passing into the house.” (79). Through the imagery of a weight on her mind and feeble body, Chopin conveys her inability to find the strength to break the chains of the archetypal female identity. Extremely fleeting, her momentary empowerment clearly validates her circular growth rather than a building of personal development.

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She begins withdrawing herself from societal norms and finally becomes more content with life. After Edna learns to swim “a feeling of exultation [overtakes] her, as if some power of significant import [is] given her to control the working of her body and her soul…She [wants] to swim far out, where no woman [has] swum before” (Chopin 37). Edna develops new confidence in what she wants in her life after slowly retracting from societal expectations. Edna obtains a new mindset on how she will accomplish her goals. She becomes more determined and cares less about what others think.

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Music, as well as art, had influenced her emotional/ personal awakening to the fact that, drawing allows Edna to find love, peace within herself, and is the only thing she actually has control over. Her imaginative dream of being alone open the doors for her departure from Leonce's house which is a form of individuality in which seeks to build her own autonomy, she finds a new house that she named Pigeon illustrating the ideals of not being able escape society even after she moves, representing the fact that she is like a bird in which, the bird can’t escape the cage he’s in, as for Edna she can’t escape the role of woman in society.(Pg31) “ Edna began to feel like one who awakens gradually out of a dream, a delicious, grotesque, impossible dream, to feel again the realities pressing into her soul.” after haven slept alone in the hammock,she's

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In the 1800’s, the societal niche of married women was clearly defined: they were meant to devote every aspect of their lives to their husbands and children. Edna Pontellier, the protagonist in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, struggles to adhere to these standards, and eventually rebels against them. The harsh standards placed on Edna and other women in the novel are like the cages around the metaphorical birds Chopin uses to represent them. Edna's unhappiness in her societal role is realized in the ocean, which symbolizes this awakening and her attempt to escape the gender roles of the nineteenth century.

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In ‘The Awakening’ there’s many themes that this story has, the most notable one is how music and art is displayed through emotions and actions. Moments in the story help us understand what Edna is feeling and gives us a better understanding. Some examples is when Robert tells Mademoiselle in a letter to play a song for Edna, when Edna gets upset when Victor starts singing at her dinner party, and Edna’s sketches. One moment is when Robert tells Mademoiselle in a letter to play a song for Edna. During Roberts departure, he sends letters to different people.

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The Awakening written by Kate Chopin, is a novella about a woman named Edna, who desires to be an independent woman and break free from the typical 1800’s mold of society. Allusions are used to show how the characters behave and are affected by their surroundings and emotions. Throughout the story, Chopin uses them to connect the characters to the plot and make each scenario recognizable to the reader. “The foamy wavelets curled up to her white feet, and coiled like serpents about her ankles. She walked out.

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