Individualism In Kate Chopin´s The Awakening Essay

Kate Chopin’s The Awakening is about the slow awakening of Edna Pontellier, a young married woman who pursues her own happiness of individualism and sexual desires in a Victorian society. As a result, Edna tries to makes changes in her life, such as neglecting her duties as a â€Å"mother-woman† and moving into her own home. But she soon realizes that nothing can change for the better. Feeling completely hopeless, Edna chose to die as a final escape from the oppression of the Victorian society she lives in. Back at the beach at Grand Isle, Edna walks along the beach and watches a bird with a broken wing crashing down into the waves right before her eyes. She then removes her clothes before entering the water. Edna swims out and embraces†¦show more content†¦Once her clothes are off, there are no restrictions against her for the first time in a long time; she feels free and peaceful at last. Also, clothes illustrate the rules and conventions of society. O ne’s appearance shows what kind of class one is in and they must act accordingly. So, being a married to a traditional Creole man, Edna had to act like a graceful and sophisticated â€Å"mother-woman†, a woman who is obedient to her husband and a great mother, never expected to pursue her own dreams and happiness. This oppression of social expectations is what led her to be naked and thus her suicide. This nakedness focuses on the idea of rebirth; the clothes she had on in the beginning of the novel is what defined her, but now, with nothing on, her body and soul exposes her true self as an individual. Another depiction of nakedness is when Madame Adele Ratignolle played a piano piece that Edna entitled â€Å"Solitude†. While hearing the music, Edna imagined a â€Å"figure of a man standing beside a desolate rock on the seashore. He was naked. His attitude was one of hopeless resignation as he looked toward a distant bird wining its flight away from him† (Chopin 25-26). Interestingly enough, Edna identified with the abandoned man, focusing on his loneliness. This vision not only shows Edna’s desire for freedom from the roles of wife and mother, but also foreshadows theShow MoreRelatedResearch Paper on Kate Chopin and the Feminism in Her Works2066 Words   |  9 PagesAp English 08 27 April 2012 Kate Chopin: Feminism in Her Works â€Å"Love and passion, marriage and independence, freedom and restraint.† These are the themes that are represented and worked with throughout Kate Chopin’s works. Kate Chopin, who was born on February 8, 1851, in St. Louis, was an American acclaimed writer of short stories and novels. She was also a poet, essayist, and a memoirist. Chopin grew up around many women; intellectual women that is. Chopin said herself that she was neitherRead MoreKate Chopin s The Awakening Essay1450 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"The beginning of things, of a world especially, is necessarily vague, tangled, chaotic, and exceedingly disturbing† (Chopin 67). Change: the most frightening word in the English language; it has never came quickly, never came easily, never come without casualties. Throughout history, countless revolutions have fought with blood, sweat, and tears for the acceptance of new ideas to foster change within mainstream culture. Naturally, there is always a resilient r esistance to revolution, the norm thatRead MoreNurse2025 Words   |  9 Pagesâ€Å" Common Themes Found in Kate Chopins Short Stories Kimberley J. Dorsey Stevenson University English 152, Writing About Literature 152-OME1 Charlotte Wulf November 14, 2010 Abstract Many of Kate Chopin’s short stories share the common themes of female oppression. The females in her stories are trying to find a way to escape their oppression and have a sense freedom and individuality. TheyRead MoreEssay about Individualism in American History1470 Words   |  6 Pagesbeen struggles for individualism. The American Revolution, the American Civil War, and the separation from family life are all examples of individualism in American history. Individualism is an American paradigm designed by the modern societal structure that is an altered idea of the foundation by immigrants. In today’s society the struggle for individualism is more personal and represents how American values have shifted since the beginning of American history. Individualism in today’s society isRead MoreBrief Survey of American Literature3339 Words   |  14 Pages(1636-1711), A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson (1682) American Literature 1700-1820 From Colonies to Nation Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), whose passionate sermons helped revive religious fervor during the â€Å"Great Awakening†Ã¯ ¼Ë†Ã¥ ¤ §Ã¨ §â€°Ã©â€ â€™Ã¨ ¿ Ã¥Å  ¨, 1730s-1740s) Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) Thomas Paine (1737-1809) Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) Olaudah Equiano (1745?-1797) Philip Freneau (1752-1832) Phillis Wheatley (1753-1784) Hannah Webster Foster (1758-1840) Enlightenment