Social Themes In The Awakening

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Recommended: The symbolism of the ocean in the awakening

Title: The Awakening - Edna’s fight against society
Author - Kate Chopin
Setting - New Orleans and the Grand Isle
Genre - Fiction
Historical context: Set in the 19th century New Orleans was a booming town with lots of pretty little housewives and successful husbands. There was a divide between Creole (french blood) and the others (americans) just like the book. The social values in the book reflect that of the time period.
Theme; Marriage/Family, Women/Femininity, Identity, Repression, Self-actualization, passion/love, reputation, art/culture, repression, adultery, and society/class are all of the themes.
Self - actualization
She would give up the everything but herself for her children
“ she saw no pictures of solitude, of hope, of longing, …show more content…

She is cast aside when she no longer conforms. Her fights with her husband lead to clarity when she decides that the life she is living isn’t the one she desires.
The conflict never resolves itself. Her goal and desires die with her after her attempt to grasp them. For a few days she may have felt fulfilled but it was short lived and led to her downfall.
SHe communicates the theme because she is the theme. Her desires and wants capture the theme of society's rules, class, love, etc.
Mademoiselle Reisz is the biggest influence in her life. She unknowingly convences Edna that she is not crazy for wanting what she wants. This support shapes her actions and molds her character.
See conversations with Mademoiselle Reisz, fight with Léonce at the beginning when he comes home from gambling, dinner after the race with Aléce, day with Robert, party scene with music.
Plot Summary: Provide a brief plot synopsis in your own words (no more than 200 words; really condense this information to the …show more content…

The main character, Edna, is a common house wide to a wealthy creole named Léonce. They are not in love, she only married him as a rebellious move towards her father. We track Edna’s thoughts as she begins to challenge society and its rules about what a woman should be. She falls in love and craves attention and passion. She throws caution to the wind and eventually ships off her children and attempts to move out. People such as Mademoiselle Reisz encourage these actions to fight against the grain even though it leads to her downfall. The sea is a motif that represents a full circle, she ended where she began. Robert encourages her by teaching her how to swim, Léonce thinks she went crazy and calls upon a doctor, Adéle (the perfect woman always wearing white) also believes that she is a wild woman. Colors vibrant tell the story to those who can detect each colors meaning.
Passages: The last chapter where everything comes crashing down and the scene at the part with the naked man on a rock surrounded by the sea are the two passages that stick out to me. They paint a perfect picture and contain a wealth of symbols and hidden

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