Four Stages of Edna’s Awakening

唐凱麗

【Abstract】The awakening introduces to the reader a woman who experiences self-growth within four stages. At the initial stage， Edna， the heroine of the novel， lives a desolated life with a split personality. Inwardly， she has her own fantasies and keeps autonomous. Outwardly， she acts in accordance with the social code. As the dissatisfaction of her marriage deteriorates， she begins the period of searching for her identity as a woman and restarts her life on Grand Isle. Her awakening is further advanced by the influence of Adele， Mademoiselle Reisz and Robert. Robert helps to excite her sexual and emotional awakening. Mademoiselle Reisz inspires her artistic awareness and also exerts profound influence in her pursuit of freedom. Adèle induces Edna to get rid of the repression of convention. The openness of the Creole community impels her to share more of her inner world. The act of swimming initiates her sexual awakening and the role it plays in probing self-awareness is undoubtedly the most important， which also sets the ground for her later defiance to the convention. As her self-awareness grows， she declares her independence in a dinner party and refuses to attend her sisters wedding. She even has an affair with another man Arobin.

【Key words】Edna； self-discovery； awakening； emancipation

Analysis of Ednas Awakening

As the protagonist of The Awakening undergoes her self-growth within four stages， she realizes her inner being and explores her self identity with the people she encounters and experiences she has bit by bit. Three people play an indispensable role in catalyzing her awakening. Robert excites her sexual and emotional awakening. Mademoiselle Reisz inspires her artistic awareness and exerts profound influence in her pursuit of freedom. Adèle， the mother-woman in Victorian age， induces Edna to get rid of the repression of convention. And the emancipation of her spirit is achieved through her final suicide into the sea.

The book， since its publication， has received various feedbacks from the readers， including appreciation as well as harsh criticisms. Showalter depicts “the book， which Chopin subtitled ‘The Solitary Soul， may be read as an account of Edna Pontelliers evolution from romantic fantasies of fusion with another person to self-definition and self-reliance” （Showalter 169）. The novel is also appreciated in its artistic terms， as Kenneth Eble comments， “Edna could be seen as a person occupying a particular historic moment and having personality traits that influenced the course she took in life and death” （Eble 142）. Actually， for centuries Ednas final choice of death has been a controversial topic among critics. They argued about whether her pursuit of freedom is achieved or symbolically fails with her death. Leary sees Edna as“a valiant woman， worthy of being placed beside other fictional heroines who have tested emancipation and failed” （Walker 148）.

Actually， one cause that accounts for such character can be traced from her family. She is the middle child of an ambiguously religious family. Her elder sister “has all the Presbyterian undiluted”， while “the youngest is something of a vixen” （Chopin 86）. Cynthia Griffin Wolff analyzes， “Edna， caught between the two extremes； can live comfortably with neither portion of the familys double standard； instead she tries to evolve a habit or manner to accommodate both” （Wolff 235）. The attempt to internalize the contraction combines with other of Ednas psychic needs to produce an identity which is predicted on a conscious process of concealment. Outwardly， she exhibits an ordinary cool character which is as no difference with other Victorian women. Inwardly， she conceals an ardent yearning for intensity and passion， which marks her uniqueness. Those elements of character which she might call her “real self” remain hidden， only revealed to herself.

Edna prefers Léonce to other figures of her anticipation as her husband. Actually， such a union certainly ensures the safety of her “real” self in the Victorian Age. On one hand， with huge property possessed， Léonce can function as the source of her finance. By relying on such a person， Edna can gain economic stability in spite of her ineffectuality. On the other hand， intentionally or not， through married， she can retain her spiritual desire. Léonce is frequently involved in business and uninterested in knowing her fantasies. On this level， the inner gap between the couple is deteriorated due to the absence of mutual understanding. Henry James wrote in 1892 about “the growing divorce between the American women and the male immersed in the ferocity of business， with no time for but the most sordid interests， purely commercial， professional， democratic and political. This divorce is rapidly becoming a gulf” （qtd. in Ziff 275）. Symbolically， the gulf where the opening chapters of The Awakening are set certainly suggests the “growing divorce” between Ednas interests and desires and Léonces obsessions with the stock market， property， and his brokerage business （Showalter 179）. Moreover， taking the then social setting into account， Ednas fantasies are intolerable in that conventional society. Victorian society requires women to be “angle in the house”. In another word， women should fulfill their responsibility as wife and mother and be taken up with absolute fidelity.

Apart from the affair， she also boldly asks for her husbands permission to move to a pigeon house. In its symbolic sense， the pigeon actually echoes the bird appearing closed in a golden cage in the beginning of the novel. The change from bird to pigeon connotes Ednas departure from the previous confinement to the freedom. By making such a transfer， she gets rid of the sense of guilty imposed on her as seeing the property earned all by her husband in the old house. It also enables her to acquire a space of her own so as to cultivate her preference for solitude and develop her affection towards Robert. It makes her descend in the social scale， but rises in the spiritual respect instead. Moreover， what contributes to her fearlessness of breaking the convention is her refusal to attend her sisters wedding. She has ever complained， “A wedding is one of the most lamentable spectacles on earth” （Chopin 86）， which definitely reveals her disrespect and contempt to the conventional form of marriage. She is involved in heated discussion with her father on attending the sisters wedding， and eventually still persistent in not going. She dares to resist her fathers wish and violate the etiquette formulated in the convention. Moreover， she refuses to join the Tuesday gathering which symbolizes the well maintained social relations， and declares her independence from such activities. Such rebellious claim indicates the degree of her craving for acquiring the solitary atmosphere to nurture her being.

Ednas self awakening is achieved step by step with the development of her mentality. With the help of the people she meets， she provokes her inner being and discovers her true self. Her immature character is gradually reshaped and her awareness on femininity， love and independence is eventually elevated. She achieves her process of awakening by finally sacrificing her self and lifts the theme of self liberation to the climax. Without doubt， Edna is a courageous woman， but on account of the stiff convention and her trivialized power as a woman， she can not switch the situation for all Victorian women. She only achieves her own awakening by her final choice of death at her best.

References：

[1]Burchard，Gina M.“Kate Chopin Problematical womanliness：The Frontier of American Feminism.” Ed.Nancy.A.Walker.New York：Vanderbilt University，1993.

[2]Chopin，Kate.The Awakening.New York：Cambridge University Press，1996.

[3]Cully，Margaret，ed.The Awakening.New York：Norton，1976.

[4]Wolff，Cynthia Griffin.“Thanatos and Eros：Kate Chopins The Awakening” Ed.Nancy.A.Walker.New York：Vanderbilt University，1993.

[5]Walker，Nancy A.“A Critical History of The Awakening” Nancy.A.Walker.New York：Vanderbilt University，1993.

[6]Rankin，Daniel S.Kate Chopin and Her Creole Stories.Philadelphia：University Of Pennsylvania P.1932.

[7]Showalter，Elaine.“The Awakening：Tradition and the American Female Talent：The Awakening as a solitary book.” Ed.Nancy.A.Walker.New York：Vanderbilt University，1993.