Novel Edna Pontellier example essay topic

Throughout time women have expressed and demonstrated their need, and their right to be equal with men; to no longer be viewed as only someone who represents a specific and restrictive role, such as a mother or a wife, but to be understood as a person, someone with their own ideas and their own in habitations. As a form of expression literature was used as an outlet for women. Kate Chopin's The Awakening was a novel written to communicate, and perhaps to promote change, concerning women's position and their confining role in society, yet with its beautiful prose put aside, the message that was actually expressed was quite negative. Throughout the novel Edna Pontellier, the main character, is portrayed as a woman who is battling with herself to come to terms with her place in the grand scheme of things, yet there is a part of her that doesn't wish to fit this mold. There is a part of her that wishes that she was more than just a wife, a mother, someone to keep the house in order. Edna wants to be able to be her own person, to have her own desires, to be active with her own interests.

Throughout the novel Edna goes through many phases in which she tries to explore the depths of her mind and to express herself through painting, yet she often retreats back into the role that society has outlined for her, leaving her feeling most unhappy. Edna constantly battles with her vision of a satisfying life for herself, and is torn between how, if possible, that vision would fit in with her previously determined role. Edna finally reaches a dark depth in which she feels as if she can't go on, and her outlet is suicide. Considering the time that The Awakening was written, the novel communicates many strong points, and has to power to motivate and to enlighten women to accomplish what Edna Pontellier failed to do, branch out of their roles, and to explore themselves, and to succeed as independent beings. With the commencement of the novel ending in suicide, as a result of Edna reaching a point where she felt as if she would rather die than to live within the restraints of her gender; the entire message of the novel was destroyed, and made women appear as weak, and considering the power that the novel had, this outcome was a real shame. At the time that this novel was written it basically only received negative praise.

The reason for this negative praise could have either been a result of the close minded views people tended to have at this time towards the independence of women, or perhaps because of the ending. If the novel had ended with Edna standing up for herself and living life the way that she wanted to live it, the end would have had a much more positive affect. Edna's life resembled that of a typical woman living in a Creole society at the when this novel was written. She had a husband, children, and was expected to look over the house, and to keep everything orderly. Women in the Creole society were described as. ".. women who idolize their children, worshipped their husbands, and esteemed it a hold privilege to efface themselves as individuals and grow wings as ministering angels".

(Pg. 9) Edna's life was lived through her husband; her connections to the outside world were through her husband. Edna's life had social outlets, yet to her they were so fake and so unsatisfactory that she didn't wish to engage in them. With her children Edna did not feel a connection, she also did not feel a connection with her husband, which in turn made her feel entirely disconnected from her own existence. It is this disconnection that made Edna not able to fill the duties that she was expected to fill.

The attempts that Edna made to fill these duties, perhaps because a part of her conscience told her that she had to, or perhaps because she felt the restraints of society weighing so heavily down on her, yet no matter how hard she tried, it wasn't coming from her heart and she was not able to fill the role of a perfect Creole mother. Edna's husband comes home late one night to find her already asleep". [Mr. Pontellier] thought it very discouraging that his wife, ho was the sole object of his existence, evinced so little interest in things which concerned him and valued so little of his conversation". (Pg. 7) Not only does Mr. Pontellier feel as if Edna comes short with tending to his needs, he feels as if his wife comes short with tending to the needs of the children. "If one of the little Pontellier boys took to a tumble whilst at play, he was not apt to rush crying to his mother's arms for comfort; he would more likely to pick himself up, wipe the water out of his eyes and the sand out of his mouth, and go on playing". (Pg. 9) As the novel progresses Edna attempts to break out of her caged life and to explore her own thoughts, she attempts to engage in activities that make her feel more complete as a human being.

Edna explores her interests in painting and the arts, she works on a couple of paintings of her own, which she tries to share with Leonce; however Leonce is filled with the idea that his wife has become a completely different person, a person whom he does not know, and who he wishes would return to the Creole women that he thought she once was. With this un constructive response, Edna feels even more alienated, she was simply trying to make herself happier, yet her own husband's pessimistic attitude gives her no encouragement, which makes Edna detest him even more. "Edna spent an hour or two in looking over some of her old sketches. She could see their shortcomings and defects, which were glaring in her eyes. She tried to work for a little, but found she was not in the humor". (Pg. 52) As Edna finds her sanity slowly drifting away from her, she dreams of a sort of love affair wit the object of her desire, Robert.

"As Edna walked along the street she was thinking of Robert. She was still under the spell of her infatuation. She had tried to forget him, realizing the inutility of remembering. But the thought of him was like an obsession, ever pressing itself upon her". (Pg. 52) Just as Edna tries to rescue herself from her own sad thoughts, she discovers that even the things she finds happiness in, somewhat fall short.

As a result of Edna's new "awakening" she begins to neglect her husband and her children even more than she has done in the past. Edna also begins to stop engaging in the same social activities that she at one time thought that she found bits of pleasure in. With this new and strange development, Mr. Pontellier becomes worried; he even asks the doctor what he ought to do in order to put an end to these changes. "Her whole attitude-toward me and everybody and everything-has changed...

She's got some sort of notion in her head concerning the eternal rights of women". (Pg. 63) The doctor goes on to try and calm Mr. Pontellier down by explain that it is probably a phase, at that this best thing to do would be to let her be. "But it will pass happily over, especially if you let her alone". (Pg. 64) Throughout the novel Edna has periods where she breaks out of her confining life, and tries to better her well being, even against the disapproving members of her society. A point is reached where Edna feels as if she would be better of living away from her house, she decides to buy a little house of her own. It is at this point that it seems as if she has established a life that will continually progress in a direction that will leave Edna feeling happy, satisfied with life.

By coming upon this point in the novel the reader feels as if Edna has suppressed the evils of her society, and the evils that were within herself. She broke out of the mold, and fought for independence, this would seem to serve as a wonderful example for the women of this time. Yet Edna sudden; y comes to a crossroad where Robert does not come to her calling, and leaves her alone in her house. With this one setback Edna irrationally decides to go and commit suicide. It is with this rash decision that the novel ends. The title "The Awakening", is a positive title.

To one it would communicate a kind of breaking out of ones shell to engage in a more happy and satisfying life. However, as proven with the ending of this novel, this is not what happens at all. In fact, not only does a positive outcome not occur, the novel proves to be a setback for women of this time. Perhaps the original title, A Solitary Soul, would have been a more appropriate title. Chopin could have easily used her novel to reach out to the many women who felt confined in these days, and could have given them a source of hope and encouragement in the fight for the independence of women.