Feminism In The Awakening - 2069 Words

Though it was uncommon during the 1800’s, some women didn’t want to assume the traditional role of a typical Victorian lady. Such is the case in Kate Chopin s The Awakening; she introduces us to Edna Pontellier a mother and wife during the said era. Throughout the story, we follow Edna s journey of self-discovery and self-expression through emotions, art, and sex thanks to the help of people she meets along the way. Chopin decides to end the book with Edna’s suicide in an attempt to convey a sense of liberation from her repressed life, but was the reasoning behind her suicide what everyone else thinks? Consequently, this said journey took me along for the ride, and I had no complaints. As Edna figured out who she was, I felt as if I was†¦show more content†¦The Awakening’s protagonist is Edna Pontellier; She is a twenty-eight years old mother of two. Consequently, her appearance is slight that of what a mother should look like, she possesses quick and bright eyes, which compliment her thick, wavy, yellowish brown hair (9); While Edna s physique is poise and movement (27). Despite this, Edna does not want to assume the role of a mother; Edna wants to be free from social assumptions of what a lady and even mother should be during the 1800’s. Independence is her goal, and she is not letting anything, or anyone gets in her way. This is why she has an affair with Robert Lebrun. Edna is symbolized in the story through multiple birds, which in the end tell a story in and of itself Leonce Pontellier, the husband of Edna, is the story s antagonist. He is materialistic, due to him being a wealthy businessman, and also forty years old. His high status came at a cost; he is very concerned with appearance and how others view him.The way to become rich is to make money, my dear Edna, not to save it, he said. He regretted that she did not feel inclined to go with him and select new fixtures. He kissed her goodbye, and told her she was not looking well and must take care of herself. She was unusually pale and very quiet† (18). He also treats Edna as mere property You are burnt beyond recognition, he added, looking at his wife as oneShow MoreRelatedFeminism In The Awakening1562 Words   |  7 Pagesissue of feminism, it is a sensitive topic that must be inclusive of all genders. The modern term of ‘feminism’ is defined as giving both men and women the same rights and privileges as each other. Basic human rights would give others the notion that this is how all humans should have been treated from the beginning. However, this is far from the truth. Books like The Awakening, give us an inside look at how women were treated around 100 years ago. When Kate Chopin wrote The Awakening, she createdRead MoreFeminism; the Awakening868 Words   |  4 PagesThe Emergence of Feminism In the 19th century women were supposed live by concept of Republican Motherhood. Republican Motherhood is the idea that American women had a few main roles, to stay in their homes, to train their children to be good American citizens and to follow the demands of their husbands. This reinforced the idea of that a domestic womens life should be separate from the public world of men. Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equalRead MoreFeminism In The Awakening1329 Words   |  6 PagesThough it was not common during the 1800’s, some women did not want to assume the traditional role of a typical Victorian lady. In Kate Chopin s The Awakening, this is just the case; she introduces us to Edna Pontellier a mother and wife during the said era. Throughout the story, we follow Edna s journey of self-discovery and self-expression through emotions, art, and sex thanks to the help of people she meets along the way. Chopin decides to end the book with Edna’s suicide to try to convey aRead MoreFeminism In The Awakening1193 Words   |  5 PagesTHE AWAKENING LAP TOPIC #3- EXPLORE HOW EACH MAN IN EDNA’S LIFE ATTEMPTED TO CONTROL AND/OR REPRESS HER EXISTENCE.. NICHOLE NARINEBRIJBASI In the time era of the 1800s, women were regarded as the weaker sex to society. Gender equality wasn’t the focal point of society as yet, leading to the oppressive mindsets of women. Men were viewed as â€Å"superior† because of their masculinity and righteousness that society had implanted into our view of socialRead MoreFeminism In The Awakening1506 Words   |  7 PagesThe Awakening LAP Topic 1 By: Lourdes Rivera AP Literature Mr. Amoroso Rivera 1 Courageous, brave, and valiant are all characteristics that are necessary for one to possess in order to be heroic. The actions an individual takes dictates the kind of person they are and the actions of a hero reflect these characteristics. If the world is against a group of people, it takes a heroic person to break away from the oppression set to hold them down. Women have faced tremendous oppression from the ideologyRead MoreThe Awakening Feminism Essay1262 Words   |  6 PagesAfter reading The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, I believe the text is feminist. Whether Kate Chopin was deliberately writing for early feminists or not, the book has many early feminist ideas and it is shown through the main characters awakening by being eccentric. The author uses Edna Pontellier as an anti-conventional woman, breaking societal laws that govern her life, in search for individuality in a society that represses her. From a reader’s perspective in the early 1900’s, Edna would be a mentallyRead MoreThe Awakening Feminism Essay1689 Words   |  7 PagesComing into the nineteenth century, women were looked at as feminist. â€Å"Feminism,† as we know the term today, was nonexistent in nineteenth-century America (Cruea 187). Feminist describes as someone embracing the beliefs that all people are entitled to freedom and liberty within reason. Gender, sexu al orientations, skin color, ethnicity, religion, culture or lifestyle should not be considered as a form of discrimination. Women roles, in the nineteenth century, were to take care of the cooking, cleaningRead MoreEssay about Feminism in The Awakening986 Words   |  4 PagesIn the novel The Awakening, by Kate Chopin the critical approach feminism is a major aspect of the novel. According to dictionary.reference.com the word feminism means, â€Å"The doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men.† The Awakening takes place during the late eighteen hundreds to early nineteen hundreds, in New Orleans. The novel is about Edna Pontellier and her family on a summer vacation. Edna, who is a wife and mother, is inferior to her husbandRead MoreThe Rise Of Feminism In The Awakening By Kate Chopin711 Words   |  3 PagesFeminism is the liberation of women and their rights as human beings. The feminism that we see today started in 1960s , but the issue began way before the 1960s. In the 1890s, Kate Chopin wrote a novella called The Awakening to tell the story of the rise of feminism within a character named Edna. In The Awakening, Kate Chopin creates feminism before it’s time by using Edna’s attitude toward her lovers, the freeness of the scenery, and her motherly attitude. These traits that Edna possesses are extremelyRead MoreAnalysis Of Proto-Feminism In The Awakening By Kate Chopin838 Words   |  4 PagesProto-Feminism is defined as a philosophical idea in which feminism existed in a time period it was expected to be unknown. Before the 20th century, women’s liberation was not a familiar concept to society, however a great variety of literature from this time period displayed how women defended themselves for the independence and freedom they lacked. Along with the many novels written in this time period, The Awakening written by Kate Chopin in 1899 justifies this philosophy. Edna Pontell ier, the