She realizes that no matter how little she depends on others, her children’s lives are the ones that will be affected by society because of her actions. Her children also represent the obligation that she has to them. Unlike her obligation to her husband her children are one that she could never turn from which was the suicidal ending to her life. The sea is also one thing that is a big symbolization to Edna. It symbolizes freedom and escape.
She goes on a life changing excursion to make sense of her difficult predicament. She matures and becomes the woman she is at the end of the novel through her relationship with T. Ray, experiences with racism, and internal struggles. Due to her loathsome relationship with her father T. Ray, the protagonist Lily drastically changed into a more independent and confident woman. Lily has finally built up the courage to leave her abusive father when she thought, "I knew exactly what I had to do-leave. I had to get away from T. Ray" (Kidd 41).
As she swam she seemed to be reaching out for the unlimited or impossible to lose herself in. This tells a lot about the deeper elements of her awakening in my opinion it also foreshadows her suicide because eventually she does lose herself. After this in my opinion she is no longer the old Edna but has sense of
Pontellier’s property. Edna partly believes that if she can prove her independence from her husband that Robert will want to be with her. She no longer cared about the needs of her husband she was fully lost in her own dreams. “Without even waiting for an answer from her husband regarding his opinions of wishes in the matter, Edna hastened her preporations for quitting her home on Esplanade street and moving into the little house around the block”(Choplin 84). Moving out of her husband’s house made her feel free, she didn’t want to be surrounded by her husband’s belongings, she wanted to be completely self-efficient.
We know that Edna couldn’t swim. She was actually afraid of going into the Ocean. She starts to change and this quote is saying that she had a calling. She just had to go out into the Ocean because it was almost telling her to go into it. “The voice of the sea speaks to the soul” This quote is part of the series of quotes involving Edna’s awakening.
The generosity of the pioneer generation shows that the rich of the pioneer generation were not greedy; their goal was not just to make a profit but also to do what was fair and honest. His relationship with Mrs. Forrester is very complicated because the captain does know that his wife is cheating on him but he expected this too happen because she is a very beautiful woman with many needs. Niel even thinks that Mr. Forrester knows Mrs. Forrester better than herself. “The longer Niel was with Captain Forrester in those peaceful closing days of his life, the more he felt that the Captain knew his wife better even than she knew herself; and that, knowing her, he, to use one of his own expressions valued her” (72) Mr. Forrester knows what Mrs. Forrester needs and was always able to do it until he had his fall in the mountains. This fall encumbered him only to sit around and do almost nothing so they did not visit Colorado Springs anymore.
Maryanne argues that she is content staying, and she wants to make plans to travel before she and Fossie get married. Eventually Maryanne becomes quiet and subdued toward Fossie and he asked her what was wrong. “Really nothing. To tell the truth, I’ve never been happier in my whole life. Never” (O’Brien, Pg.
She starts pulling off the wallpaper as she wants to free the trapped woman and this depicts how capable she is to fight against her own suppression as well. On the contrary, Edna Pontellier is fascinated by the sea and her liking for Robert further heightens as he teaches her to swim shedding all her frights and this symbolizes her awakening as an individual human being as well as her struggle against her imprisonment in the institution of marriage. Unlike her husband, Robert talks to her heart and it is depicted in “The sentiments which she entertained for Robert in no way resembled that which she felt for her husband” (Chopin 121). She later reveals her awakening as “It was you who awoke me last summer out of a life-long
17 Nov. 2008. <http://find.galenet.com/ovrc/infomark.do?&contentSet=GSRC&type=retrieve&tab l0=T010&prodld=OVRC&docld=EJ3010295218&source=gale&srcprod=OVRC&userGr oupName=derr60587&version=1.0>. Marzilli, Alan, Ed. Religion in Public Schools. Point/Counterpoint Series.
“Edna then starts her own flight to freedom little by little when her body is in contact with the water, and she achieves an awareness of physical pleasures and bodily control through swimming…It is as if Edna is reborn as a sexual and independent person…” (Clark 338). Gloria encounters the same type of revelation. She begins to understand that her marriage, although failed, is not the end of her life as she led herself to believe. Her night time swim is thus a rebirth, an Awakening that is similar to that of Edna Pontellier. It is important to note that the end results are different: Gloria does not commit suicide whereas Edna does.