Edna Pontellier’s Solution in Kate Chopins The Awakening :: Chopin Awakening Essays

Ednas Solution in The Awakening         This is a belief at The Awakening by Kate Chopin.   When you first lookat the life of Edna you think there is not much to discuss.  Edna is a marriedwoman who at first seems vaguely satisfied with her life--she grew fond of herhusband, realizing with roughly unaccountable satisfaction that no trace of passionor excessive and fictitious warmth colored her affection, thereby threateningits dissolution. (Chopin, 558).         Edna doesnt know what she wants from life.  It is evident from the airshe tries to change her life to seduce it better, that she wants her own happiness. She refuses to stay home on Tuesdays, which she is expected to do to satisfythe social conventions of the time.  She spends more time on her art.  She goesto races and parties in all the time.  All of this doesnt seem to help hermaintain happiness all the time.   &nb sp     There were days when she was very happy without knowing why.  She washappy to be alive and breathing, when her alone being seemed to be one with thesunlight, the color, the odors, the luxuriant warmth of some perfect Southernday. There were days when she was unhappy, she did not know why, when it didnot seem expenditure while to be glad or sorry, to be dead or alive when lifeappeared to her worry a grotesque         Pandemonium and humanity like worms struggling blindly toward inevitableannihilation. (Chopin, 588)         Edna struggled to make her life more fulfilling.  Edna wanted what?Passion, excitement?  She states to the Doctor, But I dont want anything butmy own way.  That is wanting a good deal, of course, when you have to trampleupon  the lives, the hearts, the prejudices of others--but no matter--still, Ishouldnt want to trample upon the little lives. (Chopin, 629) .         In the title of The Awakening I get the impression of person wakingup and deciding that their life is not what they want.  Edna goes from beingreasonably happy in her life to very unhappy with her life and tries to changeit to make it better. The ways she goes about it are not necessarily the rightways, but at least she tries to change it to make it better.         The acceptable behaviors of the time in which she lived worked againsther.  Edna waistcloth married because divorce was unheard of in those days.  Shewants to marry Robert, but he will not because it will disgrace her to leave herhusband.  She exceeds the social boundaries of the day by going her own way and