tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20991755011088205802024-03-12T21:09:46.162-07:00The AwakeningAmber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-25091607672503439802011-03-20T11:58:00.000-07:002011-03-20T16:00:18.876-07:00I know this is one post too many, but I've had an epiphany. In my recent posts I made the argument that Edna, though a feminist figure, was still weak. But maybe it is not so much that she is as weak as she had always been. Yes, she gave in easily to temptation and allowed her moods to fluctuate in relation to those around her. But it is unfair for me to call her weak because of her encounters with men when they committed the same acts as her. All of the characters were weak, for in the novel human folly ran deep. Edna became as strong as she could have possibly become, as strong as the womanizer in town, as the maternally figure who stood on the opposite end of the spectrum as her, as the husband who tried to buy love with gifts. However, it was still not good enough.Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-31001892213257672962011-03-20T10:47:00.000-07:002011-03-20T16:01:20.634-07:00Analysis: Chapter 36In Chapter 36, the following is stated by Robert Lebrun:<br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"'No; I only think you cruel, as I said the other day. Maybe not intentionally cruel, but you seem to be forcing me into disclosures which can result in nothing; as if you would have me bare a wound for the pleasure of looking at it, without the intention or power of healing it.'"</span></strong><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Robert was well aware of the dead end that a relationship between he and Edna would reach. She, however, still delusionally believed that a relationship was possible. As a married woman with children, her husband would never allow her to leave and abandon her responsibilities, which was hinted at by Robert's mentioning of the fact that she did not possess the "power" to make such a decision in their Creole society. Her husband's </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">quick home makeover manuever to perserve his name and stability in his home and family provided a glimp</span>se into his<span style="font-family: inherit;"> inability to let her go and the opposition her desired freedom faced. Robert wanted something he couldn't have and had learned to carefully avoid the object of his affection. He hated Edna's selfishness, the fact that he loved her, and her inability to let him go and thus allow him to get over her. </span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-35167065222148128822011-03-20T10:27:00.000-07:002011-03-20T16:02:03.537-07:00Analysis: Chapter 18In Chapter 18, the following is stated:<br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"'Perhaps I shall be able to paint your picture some day,' said Edna with a smile when they were seated. She produced the roll of sketches and started to unfold them. 'I believe I ought to workagain. I feel as if I wanted to be doing something. What do you think of them? Do you think it worth while to take it up again and study some more? I might study for a while with Laidpore.'</span></strong><br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">She knew that Madame Ratignolle's opinion in such a matter would be next to valueless, that she herself had not alone decided, but determined; but she sought the words and praise and encouragement that would help her to put heart into her venture."</span></strong><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I believe this scene provides further evidence of Edna's weakness. There she was, a newly awakened woman convinced that she no longer played by society's rules. Edna was almost like the goody-two shoes attempting to play the role of the bad child but still not able to fully encompass such a role. She didn't believe in allowing herself to be held back or in allowing her life to be dedicated by others' terms, but she still sought approval from Madame Ratignolle in a matter that was not in the latter's forte, symbolizing her inability to altogether free herself or be free.</span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-56892975197627381072011-03-20T10:07:00.000-07:002011-03-20T16:02:32.430-07:00Analysis: Chapter 7In Chapter 7, the following is stated: <br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><strong>"'Of whom---of what are you thinking?' asked Adele of her companion, whose countenance she had been watching with a little amused attention, arrested by the absorbed expression which seemed to have seized and fixed every feature into a statuesque repose.<br />
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'Nothing,' returned Mrs. Pontellier, with a start, adding at once: 'How stupid! But it seems to me it is the reply we make instinctively to such a question.'"</strong></span><br />
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<span lang="EN"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Courier New;"></span></span><span lang="EN">This conversation between Madame Ratignolle and Edna highlights the whole belief that women were unintelligent, unthinking beings. Adele is almost shocked to see that her friend is truly in thought, deep in thought, something she may not experience and may not agree with since she believes that a woman’s thoughts should revolve around the household, husband, and kids. Edna exclaims “How stupid!” after mechanically replying with a “Nothing” because she realizes that women often fall into the trap of reinforcing the idea that they are one-dimensional. This conversation foreshadowed the protagonist’s upcoming awakening. </span></span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-4145894752726109232011-03-20T09:48:00.000-07:002011-03-20T16:04:14.449-07:00Analysis<span lang="EN">After finishing the novel, I realized that Edna, though probably a worthy figure in early feminist literature, was still a very weak character. I was still on her side, not only because she’s the protagonist but because she was certainly more likeable or at least more interesting than most of the characters in her inner circle. However, she was not a character I completely respected. Robert’s departure, correspondence with Madame Reisz and mention of her, and his return were all events that were able to completely shift Edna’s mood from depressed to ecstatic, hopeless to hopeful. She was extraordinarily capricious, a word that was used to describe her at one point by another character, when it came to her feelings for her husband and children, who she sometimes cared for and sometimes didn’t. It was almost as if she was trying to convince herself that she didn't care about her children at all when she truly did. She fell for Arobin’s womanizing tricks despite convincing herself that she was the one in charge of that relationship. She went through her awakening, but her life continued to revolve around men, their moods, and their actions, and she allowed it to be that way. Even in this world of literary fiction, the protagonist was not allowed a chance to reach a solution that did not call for her end, and she was partly to blame. </span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-39886070132785491832011-03-20T01:31:00.000-07:002011-03-20T16:05:09.811-07:00Analysis<span lang="EN"><span lang="EN">I was confused by the rapidity in which Robert transformed from unimportant to an essential aspect of Edna’s life. I then realized that since her stay on Grand Isle, from the moment she had one night in the ocean that first put the title into the minds of the audience, Edna equated Robert with her awakening. Robert reinforced this delusion that she was free of a responsibility to her husband, children, and a society of sexist or at least narrow-minded Creoles when she really wasn’t. Without his presence, she was aware of the mere idealism of such a belief. His return gave her hope that she really could escape and live the life she desired. </span></span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-51469504476135806522011-02-16T20:42:00.000-08:002011-02-17T20:55:41.672-08:00Analysis: Chapter 5At the very end of chapter 5, the following is stated:<br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"</span></strong><span lang="EN"><strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Her glance wondered from his face away toward the Gulf, whose sonorous murmur reached her like a loving but imperative entreaty."</span></strong> </span><br />
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<span lang="EN">An audience unaware of the upcoming doom of Mrs. Pontellier would assume that the statement just foreshadowed the bound to happen romance between Edna and a man who was not her husband. Although I have not finished the book, I always read the last few pages just to see where and how the characters' paths end. Therefore, I am aware of the suicide that occurs in the closing chapter of the novel. Mention of "her glance [wondering] from his face toward the Gulf" foreshadowed Edna's death caused by her voluntary surrender to the ocean. </span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-86858518254266653852011-02-16T20:34:00.000-08:002011-02-17T20:57:28.071-08:00Analysis: Chapter 3In chapter 3, the following is stated: <br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"<span lang="EN">An indescribable oppression, which seemed to generate in some unfamiliar part of her consciousness, filled her whole being with a vague anguish." </span></span></strong><br />
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<span lang="EN">This hinted at the fact that Edna was not satisfied with her life. She was tired of the immobility she was experiencing with the obligations that came along with having a family. The statement also served to foreshadow future events. Edna sought ways to escape that "indescribable oppression," and in the end escaped in the most permanent way.</span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-53486797815968676622011-02-16T20:28:00.000-08:002011-02-17T20:58:33.688-08:00AnalysisI've noticed that Edna is referred to by her full name or last name in equal amounts in the novel. Her friend Madame <span lang="EN">Ratignolie is, however, referred to either nearly entirely or solely by her last name. Her being referred to as Madame Ratignolie throughout The Awakening automatically stamps her with the wife label, "Madame" used to address a married woman and Ratignolie being the last name she adopted as her own after marriage. The way she is addressed throughout the novel makes it obvious that she is identified by her status as a wife and a mother.</span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-45970633647504243952011-02-16T20:19:00.000-08:002011-02-17T20:59:48.575-08:00Analysis: Chapter 5In chapter 5 Edna describes Madame Ratignolie as possessing the s<span lang="EN">ame <strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"grace and majesty which queens are sometimes supposed to possess."</span></strong> Shortly thereafter, Mrs. Pontellier also </span><span lang="EN">describes the scene as her friend's kids run up to their mother and pull on her skirt. The indirect connection made between <strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"grace and majesty"</span></strong> and motherhood is evident. Society at the time placed being a good mother on the top of the list of values women were to uphold. At the beginning of the novel, even Edna was convinced that such a standard was right.</span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2099175501108820580.post-64957769099971695412011-02-16T20:10:00.000-08:002011-02-17T21:00:24.447-08:00Analysis: Chapter 5In Chapter 5, the following was stated: <br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"<span lang="EN">They accepted without murmuring what she chose to give them, each holding out two chubby hands scoop-like, in the vain hope that they might be filled." </span></span></strong><br />
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<span lang="EN">This described Edna's two kids as they waited to receive treats. The statement could be related to the fact that although Mrs. Pontellier is their mother, she will never and was never able to completely embody and embrace motherhood. Children will be children and yearn for their mother's attention; the Pontellier kids are no exception. They, however, will yearn with "vain hope" that their mother will truly want them, a hope that will go unfulfilled.</span>Amber Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06428399994061077519noreply@blogger.com2