Friday, February 12, 2016
The Men of Mrs. Pontellier
Throughout the novel, The Awakening, it is evident that the men in Edna's life impact her life in multiple ways. After giving it some thought, it is clear that each male in her life brings out a different side of her. Leonce brings out a negative side of her, especially when she is told to stay at home. For example, on page 60, Leonce goes out to eat dinner at a club after a brief argument between the two, leaving her to stay at home. She enjoys the loneliness, but as she enters a room of her house, she angrily throws her ring on the ground and steps on it as she breaks a vase. Edna's father draws out a similar side of Edna, however, this is only when serious matters are brought up. "Edna and her father had a warm, and almost violent dispute upon the subject of her refusal to attend her sister's wedding (Chopin 96). Although this argument brings about a hostile mood between them, beforehand, they had a perfectly fine relationship enough that, "When Doctor Mandalet dined with the Pontelliers on Thursday he could discern in Mrs. Pontellier no trace of that morbid condition which her husband had reported to him (Chopin 93). Even Victor Lebrun makes her feel something that other males don't. She felt uncomfortable, "...like a confederate in crime..." (Chopin 81). Robert brings out two sides of her, depending on whether or not he is in her life. In the beginning of the novel, she feels adventurous and rebellious, seeing as how she spends an entire day with Robert without even giving a second thought about her husband. However, after Robert leaves to go to Mexico, she feels only desire. Only after he leaves, does she realize , "...the symptoms of infatuation...(Chopin 61). Almost every male she encounters, brings out a different side of her, resulting in the reader unable to understand who she really is.
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I completely agree with your analysis, and I feel that Chopin uses this characteristic of Edna to show how complicated her life truly is. She has multiple personalities dependent on who she is with, and her actions and emotions vary in different situations to symbolize that she is just as complicated and confusing as her life is.
ReplyDeleteDude this is really good! It is evident that Edna's relationship with men is a bit strained and hard to understand. She's never really explored beyond her husband and father, showing she doesn't really know how to act around other men. She has also never experienced love or passion, truly, never experiencing life to the fullest.
ReplyDeleteI loved your analysis Julz! Throughout the novel, Chopin adds more and more layers to Edna's character. We see this when she acts with men - she has so many layers and which one shows depends on who she's around. Perhaps she doesn't know how to act around men? After all, like Christina said above, she's never really explored her husband and father.
ReplyDeleteYour analysis makes a lot of sense. I do believe that although she has many different personalities around the different men, she is most like herself around Robert. When he's around, she usually seems more relaxed and playful.
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