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Purpose of the awakening by kate chopin
Purpose of the awakening by kate chopin
Purpose of the awakening by kate chopin
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In the story, “The Awakening,” by Kate Chopin, the main character, Edna Pontellier truly goes through an “awakening”, or self-discovery throughout the story. It is quite interesting how at a glance, Edna is seen as an elegant and devoted wife and mother, but in reality, she was not satisfied with both her marriage and her current lifestyle, and yearned to be an independent woman. It is clear that this story is ideal to teach in American Literature for several reasons. First and foremost, the story was a psychological journey rather than a physical one. For this reason, a reader must analyze and make sense of the thoughts and feelings that Edna shared throughout the book to come to conclusions about how she has gone through an “awakening.”
When undergoing socially oppressive conditions, many individuals are hesitant to invoke changes in their lifestyle. Kate Chopin’s The Awakening exemplifies how an individual rejects societal restrictions through Edna Pontellier, a nineteenth century woman who is in a passionless marriage with her Creole husband. Being a part of an upper-middle class family, she vacations in Grand Isle, but primarily lives in New Orleans, Louisiana. Edna initially submits to the Creole expectations that limit her freedom, but realizes her current status in life is not enough for her and begins to implement changes in her lifestyle. She pursues independence in various ways and defies the typical housewife role she has been playing for her entire life.
It is common for people in everyday society to conform to society’s expectations while also questioning their true desires. In the novel, The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, the main protagonist Edna Pontellier is said to possess, "That outward existence which conforms, the inward life that questions." In other words, Edna outwardly conforms while questioning inwardly. Kate Chopin, uses this tension between outward conformity and inward questioning to build the meaning of the novel by examining Edna’s role as a wife, mother, and as nontraditional woman in the traditional Victorian period. Edna outwardly conforms to society’s expectations by marriage.
As people grow old they tend to realize the mistakes they have made in life and try to make up for them. These realizations are mostly internal; however, there could be some external manifestations. The Awakening, by Kate Chopin shows how Edna has a realization that having a family is not what she wanted in life. Chopin is able to create a feeling of suspense and excitement through this event by illustrating Edna’s inner thoughts, including her past, the way she starts to act towards others and demonstrating the steps she takes towards freeing herself up. A reflection of Edna's past is described in the novel in order to represent how she wants to go back to her old self.
Stone, Carole. “ The Female Artist in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening: Birth and Creativity.” Twentieth-Century Criticism, vol. 127. Web 8 Nov. 2016. From here on, Stone discusses the birth imagery of Kate Chopin and the artistic skills that Edna Pontellier symbolizes.
Hulan (Hayley) Munkhtuya The concept of perspective is a complex mixture between opinion, interpretation, and past experience. It varies greatly between individuals in modern times, yet the variance is made apparent when comparing past to present. The novel written by Kate Chopin, "The Awakening", follows the story of a young woman by the name of Edna Pontellier. It is a journey of escaping the conformity of society and realizing individuality. The novel was written in the Victorian Era, between 1897 and 1899; set in the year 1899 at Grand Isle, Louisiana.
The Awakening by Kate Chopin is exemplary of this. The book follows Edna Pontellier and her discovery of her self-worth during the Victorian Era. In this process, she abandons her homely duties and focuses on her hobbies, like painting and swimming, where she can freely express herself. Unfortunately, Edna could not find a satisfactory compromise between the life that she wanted and the life and the life she had. Fortunately, the times have changed and freely live how they want to.
Individuals all around the world today face obstacles that challenge their strength and integrity. Someone’s ability to persevere through obstacles ultimately builds their moral character. Moreover, an individual’s capability to turn themselves into the person they have always desired to be can be life-changing. Human beings can discover who they genuinely are in a variety of ways. In Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, the main character Edna Pontellier awakens in life with bravery and a sense of exploration, which, in due course, alters her perspective on life and grants her independence.
To the untrained eye, a story could be viewed one-dimensionally; a tale might only appeal to emotion while logic is left out in the cold. Equally, logic may be forgotten while emotion is heavily focused on. However, through the use of Critical Lenses, readers can begin to see greater depth in literature. As readers find connections through Critical Lenses, they become more educated on various topics, more aware of social, political, and even logical abstractions. Instead of failing to retain the intent and content of the material, they even can remember details of stories more vividly when truly examining literature rather than reading it once for entertainment (or chore).
Awakening In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve experienced a sudden moment of realization, they become aware of themselves and their surroundings. This “awareness” led to their demise and created a door for sin. Likewise, the main character in the novel “The Awakening” experiences a sudden moment of awareness. Like many women of her time, she tried to follow the tracks laid out for her, trying to please the eyes of the people.
The Awakening is a novel written by Kate Chopin that follows a woman named Edna Pontellier on her journey to self-awareness. Edna lived a comfortable lifestyle with her husband and two children in Louisiana during the 19th century. Despite obtaining all aspects to a perfect life, Edna became dissatisfied after meeting Robert Lebrun in Grand Isle. Robert sparked a desire for unlawful lust as well as a yearning for independence in a society full of conformed standards. Edna was unable to handle the pressures associated with achieving personal freedom which ultimately led to her death.
In the late 1800s, nearly all women were viewed as subservient, inferior, second class females that lived their lives in a patriarchal and chauvinist society. Women often had no voice, identity, or independence during that time period. Moreover, women dealt with the horrors of social norms and the gender opposition of societal norms. The primary focus and obligation for a woman to obtain during the 1800s was to serve her husband and to obey to anything he said. Since women were not getting the equality, freedom, or independence that they desired, Kate Chopin, an independent-minded female American novelist of the late 1800s expressed the horrors, oppressions, sadness, and oppositions that women of that time period went through.
Monumental strides have been made when looking at the treatment of women in today's society, compared to the treatment of women in the early 20th century. In today's society, a woman can survive on her own, with no companion to assist in her sustainability. However, in New Orleans creole culture circa 1899, women were not given any opportunity to express any form of individualism. The objectification of women in the early 20th century is exemplified by the women in Kate Chopin’s feminist novel The Awakening.
In the 19th century, a group of people launched the suffrage movement, and they cared about women’s political rights, their property and their body liberty. Born in that age, Kate Chopin was aware of the importance of setting an example for those who were taken in by the reality and poor women to be an inspiration. So we call her a forerunner of the feminist author for every effort she put in advocating women’s sexuality, their self-identity and women’s own strength. When people were ashamed of talking about sexuality, Kate Chopin stood out and call for women’s sexual autonomy.
While reading this book, I come away with three major thoughts. First, Stokes provides a clear understanding of naturalism. Being able to understand naturalism, removes all confusion that may occur if I were to talk to a person about my beliefs. During this semester the topics of naturalism, skepticism, and multiverse theory, were often very difficult to follow. However, it is clear in How to Be an Atheist, and lends itself to apologetics, giving clear reason of argument.
