In “The Awakening” by Kate Chopin, the city setting helped to establish the theme of freedom in the novel. Through symbolism and juxtaposition, Chopin displayed the importance of setting to the work as a whole. Through the settings of New Orleans and Grand Isle, the feelings and ideas of Edna Pontellier became known, and the thematic meaning of the novel was established.
The city setting in “The Awakening” helped to establish the theme of freedom by representing just the opposite. In New Orleans, the city was well taken care of. The houses were not too close, and the Pontellier’s home was large and beautiful. However, there were other houses around, and there were always people nearby. The wealthier women had a certain code that they were expected to live by, and the expectations
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After battling the feelings inside of her, Edna finally rid herself of all outside expectations. She no longer took care of the children, nor did she wait for her husband. Robert returned, but the standards of society kept them apart as well. In New Orleans, everything wonderful that Edna possessed at the beginning of the book spiraled down until she was broken. She ran away to Grand Isle, by herself, and waded deep into the cold ocean. It was here that Edna Pontellier experienced the only freedom she had left, which was death. Edna’s suicide was the only way she could get everything she wanted but society denied to her. She died in Grand Isle, where she always felt free. The city setting of New Orleans contributed greatly to the struggles that Edna went through and the trapped feeling she always had. Without the contrasting settings of Grand Isle and New Orleans, Edna’s feelings would not have been made as evident, and she would not have felt the way that she did during the book. Ultimately, the city setting established the theme of freedom, as well as the overall meaning of the