Edmond In 'The Locket' By Kate Chopin

"The Locket" by Kate Chopin tells the story of a young couple in love who are apart due to the Civil War in America. Edmond wears a locket that his lover Octavie gave to him. Soldiers around him notice the locket and ask about it. One soldier, Nick, believes it is a Catholic charm that is keeping Edmond safe and helped him get promoted. Edmond responds to Nick and states that the locket has helped him get through the past eighteen months in battle. Other soldiers nearby listen to the conversation, but they do not comment (Part I). Octavie eventually receives the locket back with news that Edmond was killed in battle. She is heartbroken and grieves for him greatly. At the end of the story, Octavie is reunited with Edmond. He tells her how the locket had been stolen, and it was the soldier who stole it that died (Part II).

Octavie was experiencing so much grief and seemed unable to move forward without Edmond in her life. She had talked about becoming like her Aunt Tavie who was elderly and alone. She seemed extremely depressed and questioned why spring had come and why she was alive (Part II). She didn't feel like she should be alive without Edmond. Edmond being alive was life-changing for Octavie. She became joyful and alive again (Part II).

I think the ending of the story was predictable because of clues that the author gave. Although Chopin pulled me in to feel Octavie's sadness, I also easily picked up on positive statements that made me feel like something good was going to happen in the end. On the day that Octavie rides with Judge Pillier, Edmond's father, Chopin opens Part II with, "The peace and beauty of a spring day had descended upon the earth like a benediction." This statement gave me a feeling of