Awakening Essay The Awakening by Kate Chopin is a novel filled with many conflicting perspectives in the mind of Edna Pontellier. Mrs. Pontellier is a complex character filled with different desires and ambitions for what she wants out of her life. Throughout the novel, we get to know the many sides to this character and we see who she becomes and how that leads to her eventual peaceful downfall. Starting from the beginning, she seems to have the same ideals as the typical woman in her time, but she is unhappy and her unhappiness leads to rebellion and the breaking of social norms. At the beginning of the novel, Edna learns to swim. This might seem like a minor detail, but it ties to the downfall of Mrs. Pontellier. She falls in love with Robert, even though she is a married woman to Mr. Pontellier. Again a minor detail, but some might argue is the start of the plot for Edna to become her ideal, rebellious self. Edna grows tired of being a housewife …show more content…
Edna started spending more time painting and working on her own masterpieces. She began to focus all of her time on her hobby, eventually trying to turn it into a job by selling her artwork for some extra money. Edna eventually began to contemplate moving out of her home into a nice little home so she could paint in peace and be lost in her own little world of art. She loved artwork and began to neglect other aspects of her life.
Slowly Edna’s manners began to change. She became more sexual and very flirtatious towards other men. She toys with other men’s hearts, but still does not feel the same about any of them as she does with Robert. She becomes very outspoken. She openly laughs and bets during the races and is not shy of being heard. In a way, she begins to behave like a man would in these times: loud, proud, and boisterous. Edna starts to become the opposite of what a typical woman should be like and is not embarrassed by the