The Awakening by Kate Chopin:LAP Topic #5: Describe the course of Edna’s awakening.
A sudden epiphany a woman endures about evolving into a new individual is one to shock people of the late 1800’s. In Edna Pontellier’s case, she experiences minor arousals in the novel “The Awakening” By Kate Chopin following up to an awakening of individuality. Her position is not an easy one as she deals with several confusing thoughts and constantly gets told what action she did wrong by her companions. Feeling out of place, and struggling to find happiness, Edna is not a woman of the late 1800’s with its harsh society on women. Even before reaching her new self-individual, indications have been recognized about the woman she is longing to develop into.…show more content… Finally confessing her love of Robert to Mademoiselle Reisz, she states “Why do you love him when you ought not to?” (81). Edna underwent an epiphany of true passion with Robert, one that truly comes from the heart. However, she cannot propose this due to her unhappy marriage with Leonce. Today people can easily divorce one they no longer wish to be married to. A marriage should consist of pure happiness, devotion, and love, which is the opposite of Edna’s definition of marriage, the reason being her dreadful marriage to Leonce. Perhaps if she was married to Robert, she would view marriage in a more positively loving way. To symbolize a marriage, the wife would wear a wedding ring on her finger. The ring Edna has attempted to destroy following her sorrow. Her attempt to destroy the ring means she wants out of this marriage. The wedding ring appearing to be indestructible shows that for now, Edna is trapped. In this society, it is clear that being in a marriage, you are to stick with that one person. Although the whole reason to Edna and Leonce’s marriage wasn't the right reason to begin with, society does not allow Edna to express her true desires to who it should really be for. Edna cannot control the way she feels, thus, expressed through her actions and feelings, she found genuine love,
