The Awakening Feminist Essay

The unavoidable, unshakable feeling of hopeless resignation that she could never escape the roles she had fallen into (i.e. mother, wife, follower of religion) led Edna Pontellier, the proto-feminist main character of The Awakening, to an untimely demise amidst the waves where she had finally decided her life was one she didn’t feel was worth living any longer. Several aspects of Mrs. Pontellier’s life drove her to suicide, such as: feeling as though she was just another piece of Léonce Pontellier’s property, not being able to truly explore the undeniable love she bore for Robert, and feeling trapped by what society deemed “ proper” mother-woman. Feminism in the 1890’s was a radical idea for its time, thus its coinage as “proto-feminism,” or feminism before feminism even existed or was acknowledged. Many women during that period were married with children and were more than happy to cater to their every need, as Adele Ratignolle did with her family. The Seneca Falls Convention, a convention to discuss the social, civil, and religious condition and rights of women had already come to pass, and outside of the small and confined world the book had taken place in, the rest of the world were just beginning to consider the notion of recognizing women

In the story “The Story of an Hour” Mrs. Mallard thinks her husband dies from getting in an accident and she doesn't react like people think she should. The feminist lens is represented through most of the story. The feminist lens looks at how women are supposed to act and be in society and focuses on if the do a action that is manly or not. In the story when Mrs. Mallard’s husband dies she hides how she truly feels from everyone else and goes in a room to express it. She doesn’t cry forever she only cries for a little bit.

Published at the turn of the century in 1899, women had limited writes and privileges in the traditional, patriarchal society, leaving many feeling limited in personal pursuits. A woman’s place was in the home and there would be no arguing about that. The story takes place in Louisiana where the families depicted were financially well to do, especially those on the scenes set on Grand Isle. Women in The Awakening seemed to truly embrace their roles of wives and mothers, finding these responsibilities to be fulfilling, even exciting. Edna was the quintessence of domestic achievement for a woman in the late 1800s, yet despite her advantages she became dissatisfied with her role as wife and mother.

Kate Chopin stood as a feminist icon at the turn of the nineteenth century with feminism running rampant through her short stories. In The Awakening, Edna Pontellier is often seen as the ideal feminist, due to her sought out independence from her husband and her family. Often readers overlook Madame Adele Ratignolle as a feminist because she is thought to be the perfect mother and wife, unlike Edna as she separates herself from her family in search of a personal awakening in a way that would be seen as selfish. The reader is led to believe that Adele is the complete opposite of Edna because she is the “mother-woman” of the story. Madame Adele is not perfect by any means; regardless of what stereotype the narrator tries to place her in.

In 1899, society bestowed a norm on women that includes solely maintaining their household and maintaining an honorable name. However, The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, characterizes women in a way they had never been written before, taking the standard role of woman away and giving them their own voice and needs. Chopin utilizes two women on opposite ends of the spectrum of society to compare Edna, the protagonist, to as she beings her journey through her transformation of morals and beliefs. During the late 1800s, creole women carry the responsibility of being beautiful mothers, who devote their lives to their families indefinitely.

Many movements were significant towards the idea of American Freedom. American Freedom was created in the revolution. During the conflicts for independence, ideas of liberty changed, new ones derived, and the explanation of those designated to adore what the Constitution called "the blessings of liberty" was confronted and continued. The Revolution passed on to future generations a surviving yet counteractive estate. Its perception of the new nation as a refuge for freedom in a world raided by brutal resonates in the political civilization to this day.

1. Introduction Published in 1899, The Awakening caused a lot of controversy and attracted strong criticism for its uncharacteristic representation of women, marriage, and society. The novel depicts the pursuit for self-identity and individualism of its protagonist Edna Pontellier in the conservative and socially restricted world of Victorian America. Edna is a woman who wants to pursue her passion for art and freedom, but cannot do so while being the obedient wife and doting mother society expects her to be. Her role as a leisure-class woman clashes strongly with her desire to be free and fulfilled.

Edna’s characterization throughout The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, describes Edna as someone with burning passion who desires to improve not only her life, but the lives of future generations. However Edna’s actions make her often seem weak to the oppressive people around her; sometimes, and in this case unfortunately, good ideas and beliefs are stopped cold by one’s surrounding influences. Edna’s feminist attitude, though formidable, is no match for the individuals who accept the current society’s customs. I find Edna to be a weak person from a general standpoint. However the story masks this obviousness fact by illustrating some of Edna’s questionable actions.

Women in the Progressive Era The Progressive Era was a time of change across America, a time when the country chose to reform into an industrialized urban country. Prosperity was widespread across America, so people turned to social issues to try to expand. Minorities in particular became a focus of this time period, and everyone tried to find a way to integrate them into society.

In the late 1800s society assigned to women a specific role to play. The role included bearing children, caring for them, and honoring their husbands. People saw women who took jobs outside of the home or who never married as deranged. Kate Chopin highlights the female duties of the time in her novel, The Awakening, through the use of foils Edna and Adele. Adele represents the model of how an ideal women of the 19th century should behave and feel.

The women 's suffrage movement arose in the eighteen hundreds, and was suffered for until it was nationally approved in Nineteen twenty. During the movement, people such as Susan B. Anthony were highly involved in acts such as petitioning. The movement also consisted people such as Alice Paul, who picketed outside the White House. According to the National Archives and Records, it started when Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucretia Mott lead the first woman’s rights convention at Seneca Falls, NY in eighteen forty eight.

In Kate Chopin’s novel, The Awakening, the role of women in the late 1800’s is explored through Edna Pontellier, Madam Adele Ratignolle, and Mademoiselle Reisz. The Awakening was often condemned because they claim that Chopin did not punish “her adulterous heroine [Edna Pontellier]” (Davis). However, The Awakening is considered to be Chopin’s major achievement (Davis) and “ a novel ahead of its time…” (Davis). Chopin wrote The Awakening in third person and incorporated thoughts of the other characters, sometimes interjecting her own voice, but she never let the reader avert their attention from the main character, Edna Pontellier (Green).

Chopin makes her strong statement in this quote from the story. Mrs. Mallard has no one to answer to but herself, and she feels liberated that her husband can no longer control her. During the late nineteenth century, women quite frequently had to suppress themselves to the will of their husbands, or to some other man who had a significant amount of control over their lives. Chopin successfully uses vivid imagery, point of view, and irony that gives a different view of marriage that is not typical of today.

Kate Chopin reveals how language, institutions, and expected behavior restrain the natural desires and aspirations of women in patriarchal societies. In 1894, when this story was formed, culture had its own structure on marriage and the conduct towards women. Gender roles play a major role throughout our history. They would decide whether a woman in colonial times would be allowed to join the labor

Tying into the African American Civil Rights Movement, many other previously disadvantaged demographics such as women began to push for social equality as well, leading to the rise of right liberalism within American society. For example, tired of being treated as “little more than pretty helpers who typed memos and fetched coffee,” women such as Kate Millett began to raise awareness about “sexual politics” (Henretta, 925). These efforts eventually culminated in the passing of Title IX in 1972, which changed the identity of American higher education; prior to Title IX, women’s opportunities in higher education were very limited, but now, “formerly all-male bastions such as Yale, Princeton, and the U.S. military academies admitted women undergraduates