The awakening

The Awakening: Leaving the Social Norm

In the 1800’s, if women were to act differently then what was the “social norm” it was taken to be either an act of defiance or mental illness, which explains the negative critiques following the release of The Awakening deeming it as immoral, it was so controversial that it was later censored. The Awakening written by Kate Chopin in 1899 speaks of sin, lust, freedom from social constraints and the journey of finding one’s self; these ideas are shown through Edna’s actions and her relationships with men.

The beginning of the book is set at Grand Isle towards the Gulf of Mexico, which explains the frequent visits to the beach. Chopin describes the sea as seductive, never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude (Chopin 41). Edna Pontellier is petrified of the ocean and does not know how to swim, the ocean symbolizes freedom and the immersion of self which confuses and scares Edna because at that time she had not gone through her awakening, but in the end it was the ocean that compelled her to begin her awakening.

In the 1800s, the number one priority of a woman was their children and husband. Women were used to worshiping their kids and catering to their husbands (Chopin 16). For Edna it was different, yes she loved her husband and children dearly but she felt much oppressed by them. In The Awakening the first look at Edna’s oppression is the night when Leonce comes from Klein’s Hotel and he starts telling Edna all sorts of stories, but Edna is only half awake so she barely pays attention, and Leonce thought it was very discouraging for his wife the sole object of his existence showed little interest in things concerning him (Cho...

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...she yearns for because the love of her life tells her that he has wild dreams of her being his wife (Chopin 129 ) and Edna has already made it clear that she will never belong to another but to herself (Chopin 100) and after Finding the note that Robert leaves at her door it is then Edna finally realizes that she is alone in her awakening (Chopin 185) and the only path to freedom is the ocean so she lets it all go as she takes her own life and finally sets herself free (Chopin 190).

Works Cited

Chopin, Kate. The Awakening. 1 ed. New York: H.S. Stone & Co., 1899. Print.

Wolff, Cynthia Griffin. "Un-Utterable Longing: The Discourse of Feminine Sexuality in The Awakening." Studies in American Fiction 24.1 (Spring 1996): 3-23. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Janet Witalec. Vol. 127. Detroit: Gale, 2002. Literature Resource Center. Web. 19 May 2014.