Examples Of Societal Standards In The Awakening

Edna, like the bird, wants to be free from Leonce, who keeps her caged in a metaphorical. Another example lies in Edna’s experience listening to the piano, in which she has a vision of a bird flying away from a naked man. Even though it will leave Leonce vulnerable and alone, Edna wants to escape her marriage. Later in the novel, Edna’s attempts at leaving her responsibilities are symbolized by birds.

This is evidence that Edna can work for what she wants and Mrs. Ratignolle will be content with where she is at in life. Edna is also seen as “rather handsome than beautiful,” while Mrs. Ratignolle’s beauty was all there” (page 7, 19). Adele Ratignolle is a prime example of a proper woman from this time period and it benefits in showing how special, different, and free-thinking Edna is. It seems that Edna is covetous of Adele Ratignolle and her husband’s relationship; however, the younger wife knows that she wants more to her life than just taking care of a family. These comparisons show how different Mrs. Pontellier is from the regular, household keeping, rule-abiding women of the time.

In nineteenth-century Louisiana, women are only seen as capable of being devoted mothers and obedient wives. In Kate Chopin's, The Awakening, Edna Pontillier and her husband, Leonce Pontillier, travel in the summer to Grand Isle, an island, which is also a Creole society. While spending time on the island, Edna realizes she no longer wants to be restrained by society's expectations of what a woman should be and do. Edna begins to indulge in abnormal behaviors such as neglecting her motherly roles and being disobedient to her husband. She also begins to talk to, and develop an interest in another man, Robert Lebrun, who further pushes her into her pursuit to find a life where she can live as she wants.

Kate Chopin primarily uses birds as symbols in The Awakening to illustrate confinement, lack of independence, and societal expectations. Chopin tactfully uses birds in The Awakening to represent femininity and

Kate Chopin’s The Awakening takes places in the social world of New Orleans, in the 19th century, were the notion of motherhood and femininity was controlled and enforced fiercely. Women could not own property, vote or work. The only use society had for them was to stay at home and take care of their husbands and children. Motherhood is displayed through three characters in the novel: Adele Ratignolle who is the symbol of The Angel in the House or the mother woman, Mademoiselle Reisz who although physically old represents the new woman, and Edna Pontellier who is stuck in between motherhood and her thirst for independence. There is an interesting dichotomy between Edna Pontellier, the woman who feels deprived and repressed and Adele Ratignolle

When she comes back from the island, this new outlook on life clashes with her husband’s old world values, and he endeavors to stop what he sees as utter madness. At one point, a family doctor recommends to Léonce that Edna spend time at her ancestral home, far away from the water, to return her behavior to what he knows as normal. Edna expresses a dislike of and actively avoids certain parts of society, but cannot fully separate herself from the motherly duties forced onto her by traditional gender roles, unlike her muse Mademoiselle Reisz. These duties, ultimately, prove to be the fetters that cause Edna to sink downward, and lead her to end her life in the same ocean where it truly

However that all goes away when Robert leave her. In the end, Edna realizes that there is no place for her in the world, and similar to the parrot and mockingbird, there was no way to escape. She felt like an injured bird, “beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling, disabled, down, down to the water” (Chopin 120). She sees this bird just before she dies, a bird that once represented defiance and strongwill is now broken and depressed, just like

Edna stands, watching as she sees “a bird with a broken wing [beating] the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled down, down to the water” (Chopin 156). Edna realizes that she cannot flee from the immense amount of burdens placed on women in her society by living in ignorance of her responsibilities. Therefore, much like the bird's demise, she subjects herself to death in the sea, an escape from all of her sentiments. Edna is able to escape her caged life as a married woman and learns to fly. Although, her wings are not strong enough to allow her to soar and reach satisfaction with her

During Edna’s awakenings and empowering moments, birds with powerful wings soar in the background, and when Edna faces oppression and fails to advocate for herself, birds with broken wings flutter down to earth. Edna’s friend, Mademoiselle Reisz recognizes Edna’s individuality and warns her, “the bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings” (Chopin 138). The ability of birds to fly reflects Edna’s true freedom in her life. Edna’s oppressive society grounds her, trying to control her actions, but when Edna refutes these views, she soars as

Another mother in the neighborhood, Madame Ratignolle, speaks with Edna about what the standards are for mothers and married women during this time. Madame Ratignolle believes Edna is “not a mother-woman [because] … they [are] women who idolize their children” (Chopin 10). Edna’s poor mothering is very noticeable to those around, especially Madame Ratignolle. Edna begins disagreeing with Adele, another mother in the neighborhood, and explains she would give up her unwanteds but not sacrifice herself for her children. When Edna says this about her children proves she would instantly prioritize herself over her children if it came down to it.

Women during Edna’s time were supposed to be dedicated to their husbands and children, however, Edna yearned for her own independence, and as a result of wanting her own independence Edna knew that she was seen as a terrible person. For instance Edna wanted to “…try to determine what character of a woman I am; for, candidly, I don't know. By all the codes which I am acquainted with, I am a devilishly wicked specimen of the sex. But some way I can't convince myself that I am. I must think about it" (27.4).

Birds are also symbolized in Edna's conversation with Mademoiselle Reisz when Reisz states to Edna, "The bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings" (pg. 83). Implying the freedom that birds symbolize and the capabilities of Edna if she maintains her composure and confidence, and how Edna will be able to fly above the expectations of the people around her. Finally, at the end of the novel, "A bird with a broken wing was beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled down, down to the water" (pg. 115). This image foreshadows Edna's soon escape from society, not from flying, but from drowning in the ocean in front of

Edna feels no joy being a mother and knows that will never change. The other loyal women in her life often tell her how lucky she is to have her husband and to live the luxurious lifestyle. However, Edna feels trapped, similar to her pet “Parrot, which hung in a cage outside the door…whistling his fluty notes out upon the breeze with maddening persistence” (Chopin 1). Edna and the bird, although, two different species have more in common than they think. The caged bird stands as a symbol on her entrapment as many women felt during the time.

Moreover, when her children tumbled, she will not pick them up just let them get up on their own. In contrast to Adele, Edna is not contributing herself to her family as well as Adele. Edna tries to fit in as the role to be a good mother, but, she cannot definitely, to be a mother-woman cannot fulfill her eagerness to be a special, independent and egocentric person. In Chapter XVI, Edna said to Adele, she would give her money and her life to children, but never herself. And that is what she is trying to understand and recognize.

Madame Ratignolle, tells her, “In some way you seem to me like a child, Edna. You seem to act without a certain amount of reflection which is necessary in this life” (Choplin 130). Edna was often so self-absorbed that she did not think about the consequences of her actions, resulting in childish decisions. She did not have her priorities straight, her children and husband were the last worries on her mind. Edna was never mature enough to think about the big picture in life, but only the small things that directly affect her.