Kate Chopin makes use of her other characters as well in revealing the theme through juxtaposition. Madame Ratignolle serves as an obedient wife who confines to society’s standards without protest and acts as a character consistently compared to Edna when another character wishes to criticize her changing. On one occasion, her husband talks down to her when she neglects her role as a wife and housekeeper by choosing to paint instead. He tells her she can paint, but not to neglect her duties, comparing her to Madame Ratignolle because she is “more of a musician than [she is] a painter” and still fulfills her necessary tasks (Chopin 95-96). Edna wishes to diverge from the societal norms, becoming independent of her responsibilities through her