... cover up his wife leaving. Although her new house is supposed to represent a new life, Edna is lost without Robert. In response, Edna travels to the Grand Isle to the beach not caring that Leonce will be hurt by her fidelity. It is there where Edna feels that she cannot be a possession of Leonce. By being a possession of Leonce, to society ... , she cannot be with her true love, Robert. Slowly creeping into the water at the beach, Edna commits suicide because she can no longer be a possession, and she cannot have her own independence. Edna swam in the water with the intention of killing ...

• Word Count: 2270
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... like the married Creole women of this time. As the book continues, Edna's awakening begins. One morning, when Edna and her good friend, Adele Ratignolle, are walking down to the beach, Edna is dressed somewhat differently than the rest. "She wore a cool muslin that morning-white, with a waving vertical line of brown running through it." Edna also wears a large straw hat ... Madame Ratignolle, Mrs. Pontellier does not care for her skin. Madame Ratignolle wears a gauze veil, doeskin gloves, and a pure white fluffy dress with ruffles. As the two friends reach the beach and seat themselves,...

• Word Count: 1129
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... wants, not just what her husband thinks she should paint. Her art also represents the pinnacle of her awakening towards freedom. This is the awakening Edna finds while on the beach. "The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the ... the question of whether it was due to their marriage or their wish for freedom this shows their lack of control of their mind. As Edna is walking along the beach she sees, "A bird with a broken wing was beating the air above, reeling,...

• Word Count: 1547
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... part of her soul that she lost when she married. Edna was feeling the awakening that was about to happen. The next day she feels a need to go to the beach and felt that, "A certain light was beginning to dawn dimly within her, the light which, showing the way, forbids it- (Beaty 49). After a summer party, Edna falls asleep, against her ... feels the walls of society and responsibility closing in on her, she escapes to Grand Isle, the birthplace of her awakening, one final time. She sheds her clothes upon the beach and swims until the water consumes her. Whether Edna's suicide is an act ...

• Word Count: 2280
• Approx Pages: 9
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... , with respect to Edna's character, makes reference to the sea to express this need. On one occasion, Edna and Madame Ratignolle, her neighbour for the summer, are sunbathing on the beach. Madame asks Edna to where her mind is wandering. Edna tells her the ocean is bringing back a memory of a field in Kentucky which, as a child, she had run through with ... feelings for Robert. Chopin also portrays Edna's longing for freedom by using the ocean as a trigger for this emotion. Edna's memory of the field in Kentucky while sunbathing on the beach, the feelings of chains loosening during her s...

• Word Count: 800
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... . For instance, Edna's clothing was very modest, much like her life. The clothing she wore can represent a "cage" which is obvious when we see Edna and Adele walking to the beach in chapter seven. Adele wore a veil, "doe skin gloves, white gauntlets ... was dressed in pure white, with a fluffiness of ruffles that became her." On the other hand, Edna "wore a cool ... not cast a second glance" towards Edna. Edna, simply dressed, is thought to be defying her role in society by showing her true self. When Adele and Edna get to the beach, Edna removes her collar and unbuttons her dress at the...

• Word Count: 347
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... . Now Edna was ready to set herself free. Prior to Edna's death, or rebirth as some would see it, the woman is in a state of solitude. Edna's walk to the beach was pleasant and peaceful. She repeats, "The voice of the sea is seductive, never ceasing, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander in abysses of solitude." When Edna first arrived ... on the beach, not a living thing in sight. Then, to her demise she noticed a bird wit a broken wing flying in the air above. Yet, the bird was not soaring confidently. The bird fluttered ... ...

• Word Count: 1472
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... The Awakening, the sea is a symbol of freedom and release for Edna when she takes her first swim, leaves Grande Isle for Cheniere Caminada, and when she walks to the beach for the final time. Edna's emotions begin to stir the first time she is able to swim. Following a particularly moving musical performance by Mademoiselle Reisz, the vacationers at Grande Isle ... the era, and is not understood or accepted. Feeling shamed by her affair with Arobin and helpless after Robert leaves, Edna runs back to the sea. She goes to the beach, and strips off all of her clothing, representing the she...

• Word Count: 734
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... a place where she can be herself,not worrying about the conventional lifestyle of a Creole wife. The sea motifs for Edna's developing individuality. In the beginning, Edna spends time at the beach, and Mr. Pontellier makes a remark about her: "You are burnt beyond recognition" (2) Edna just smiles, and thinks about how much fun she had in the water. THis shows Edna can ... the boundaries of her society still surviving on whatever path she takes. The next time she gazes upon the sea is when she goes with Adele for a stroll at the beach,. She remembers a time of her childhood on a Sunday,...

• Word Count: 396
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... dinner. During this awakening she stops and realizes her duties to her husband, but she also questions herself. "Edna Pontellier could not have told why, wishing to go to the beach with Robert Lebrun, she should in the first place have declined, and in the second place have followed in obedience to one of the two contradictory impulses which impelled her ... "(Chopin 642). I believe that Edna was kind of excited and flattered that Robert was asking her to go with him to the beach for an evening swim and before she could think she got caught up in the moment. The though of her wanting to ...

• Word Count: 1027
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... a life where she had no choices and could not fulfill her own desires. This marked the beginning of her internal Romantic Journey. The first sign comes on a trip to the beach with Robert. She surprises herself when she initially declines Robert's invitation despite the fact that she really wanted to go. It was as if for the first time she discovered ... Romanticism because Chopin presents nature as the catalyst for Edna's revelation. The next few stops on Edna's Romantic Journey are major milestones. While Edna and Adele Ratignolle are at the beach one day, Edna is taken in by the vastn...

• Word Count: 4173
• Approx Pages: 17
• Grade Level: High School

... there is more to life than raising children and being a good wife. In chapter six, Edna is awakened as to the true circumstances of her life. It is at the beach that she is beginning to realize that she is an autonomous individual and that what she does affects the people around her. At the same time, she is subject to ... and the expectations of other people. During this period, women led very sheltered lives that were focused on the family and home and not one individual hopes and desires. The beach and the ocean are major symbols used throughout the novel that represent every thing E...

• Word Count: 1097
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... an outward knowledge of the expansion of the universe and an inner direct obsession with self. Paradoxically, Edna's first swim symbolizes both rebirth and maturation. When she descends to the beach, she is described as a "little tottering, stumbling, clutching child, who walks for the first time alone." Before her awakening, Edna is afraid of abandoning herself to the sea's embrace. At ... the very end of the story just before Edna enters the ocean for the last time End watches the coast. There is no living thing all along the beach, but there is a bird, a wild free bird, with a broken...

• Word Count: 1283
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... of the novel, Edna fears she will never be able to fully be free and escape the Victorian women society. Because of this, she decides to go down to the beach to "dip her toes in"" (163) the water. When she gets down there, she thinks about her husband, children, and the other Creole women and realizes she will never be ... ...

• Word Count: 1075
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... difficulty grasping and expressing just how she failed in her duties as a wife and mother. Though never voiced, she was viewed as a possession. For example, upon her return from the beach, Leonce berates her for staying out in the sun to long and looks at her "as one looks at a valuable piece of personal property which has suffered some damage" (Chopin ... ...

• Word Count: 3206
• Approx Pages: 13
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... . Edna's suicide is her escape from society. She knows that her life will never be what she wants it to be. In the final scenes where she is on the beach, Edna stands "naked in the open air, at the mercy of the sun, the breeze that beat upon her, and the waves that invited her."" (Chopin 350) "She felt like ... ...

• Word Count: 3600
• Approx Pages: 14
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... found enjoyable nor did he treat her as the woman that she is. The first chapter clearly shows this negligence of Mr. Pontellier. When Edna had come back from the ! beach a little sun burned, he looked "at his wife as one looks at a piece of personal property which has suffered some damage." (The Awakening, p. 2) Mr. Pontellier treated Edna as a possession and ... ...

• Word Count: 1973
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School

... the sun. The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander for a spell in the abysses of solitude. All along the white beach, up and down, there was no living thing in sight. A bird with a broken wing was beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled down, down to the water'"'(p. 558). In ... ...

• Word Count: 1045
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... leave her be. Later, when Edna realizes the hopelessness of her situation, birds act as clear indicators of Edna's success in freeing herself and foreshadow her fate. Upon reaching the beach, Edna looks around and sees a sign of what is to become of her: "a bird with a broken wing was beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled down, down to the ... ...

• Word Count: 1017
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... who comes and goes because of business. This sounds almost exactly like Chopin's life style. While on vacation, Edna falls in love with Robert Lebrun. She often goes to the beach with him and she spends time with him alone. She begins to realize for the first time that she is an individual. When she realizes this, she feels as though ... ...

• Word Count: 1384
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... Robert. The way the sea is described at the beginning of the story seems to represent Edna's feelings about realizing her sexuality- "The sea was quiet now except upon the beach in little foamy crests that coiled back like slow, white serpents." (Pg. 47) The emphasis is placed on the words "slow, white serpents." "Slow" seems to reflect the pace at ... ...

• Word Count: 793
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... inhibitions. Chopin cleverly crafts the clothing imagery to go hand in hand with her character Edna's, sleeping patterns Edna first starts to remove her clothing when she goes to the beach with Madame Ratignolle. Edna only removes her collar and opens her dress around her throat, but this is the first instance she feels free enough to unbutton publicly. After Edna ... ...

• Word Count: 914
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... she experienced while swimming. Edna Pontellier relies heavily on the support of her friends to help her in this defiance of her society. In fact, it is sitting on the beach with her good friend, Madame Ratignolle, that Edna first realizes how generally unsatisfied she feels. She is only truly happy when she is with Robert, a charming young man at the ... ...

• Word Count: 1629
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... clearly shown when Adele says, " She is not one of us; she is not like us. She might make the unfortunate blunder of taking you seriously." The man on the beach is standing alone implying that he is also an outsider. It is important to note that Edna calls the piano piece "Solitude", for this leads the reader to believe that ... ...

• Word Count: 594
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... clearly shown when Adele says, " She is not one of us; she is not like us. She might make the unfortunate blunder of taking you seriously." The man on the beach is standing alone implying that he is also an outsider. It is important to note that Edna calls the piano piece "Solitude", for this leads the reader to believe that ... ...

• Word Count: 594
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School