Kate Chopin - The Awakening

[mytigression]

By and far my favorite book, I think it is rich with things to discuss, largely due to the highly visual symbolism. I love it, so if you're a fan too I'd love to hear what you have to say!

[mytigression]

Do you feel that Edna's end was intentional or an accident?

[mytigression]

Did the continuing appearances and bird theme symbolize more than just Edna's "Awakening"

[joanr33075]

It was absolutely deliberate. Emma felt trapped by being a wife and mother and by her station in society. Drowning herself was her means of finding freedom.

[Rainydaysunshi…]

I have never read the "The Awakening" but i have read a couple of short stories by Kate Chopin such as "A Story of an Hour" and "Desiree's Baby" both were really excellent reads. In fact, these two stories were a class assignment on how they represented the different aspects of love.

[whitneyyoung]

I believe that it was intentional.  Whether it was due to her inability to deal with the consequences of her actions or simply because she would never be able to express her independence happily within the society of the era.

[Peppermill]

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joanr33075 wrote:
It was absolutely deliberate. Emma felt trapped by being a wife and mother and by her station in society. Drowning herself was her means of finding freedom.

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How do you "know"? (I happen to read the story assuming it was deliberate, but more likely may be that she was ambivalent at some level until a wave actually swamped her life. Doesn't Kate Chopin leave that possibility open in her writing?)

[TiggerBear]

Having read every thing published by Chopin, you see a pattern. She is echoing the cultural female possibilities, well lack thereof.