"The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude; to lose itself in mazes of inward contemplation" (13). For Edna, the sea is 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 reach out beyond 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, and talks about the sea as a "green meadow" where she can walk "unguided" (16). Edna finds calmness in the sea where sge cab think what she wants. Later during Mademoiselle Reisz's piano playing, Edna choked in her tears as "passions aroused within her soul" (260. So far, Edna is passive, but she is in conflict with her new emotions like waves crashing against the shore coming back and forth. When Edna learns how to swim in the sea, she learns how to control her emotions in a way that she will no longer struggle against the waves, but she had "a quick vision of death" (280. Onward through the story from Grand Isle to New Orleans, Edna struggles with herself on what she can do as a woman, and when she can not , Edna thinks of the place where she can think of things she can do: "I've been seeing the waves and the white beaches of Grand Isle.still feeling like a lost soul" 100. Here Edna explains she is trying to find what type of woman she is, and the place where she thinks is in the water of the sea. When Edna does find out what type of woman she is, she walks into the sea because that was the only place she is accepted, at the time, is in the sea and not in society where her behavior is considered unacceptable to their women standards (115).
