“ The creative person must possess the brave psyche that dares and defies ” ( 156 ) . Edna Pontellier, the chief character of Kate Chopin ‘s The Awakening, under goes a religious and sexual waking up during the novel. Because of this waking up, she starts to seek independency from the Victorian and Creole traditions of the clip. Even though this new independency of hers is guiltless in nature at first, Edna shortly begins to populate the same life style as Mademoiselle Reisz and starts to force away her household, such as Leonce Pontellier, her male parent, and her sisters, and her friends, like Alcee Arobin and Robert Lebrun, to maintain this independency.
Soon, Edna Pontellier begins to willingly seek purdah from certain people in her life. One of these people is Leonce Pontellier, her hubby. In her hunt for independency, Edna starts to distance herself from Leonce and disregard his imposts and traditions. When they return from Grand Isle, Edna goes for a walk on Tuesday alternatively of having companies to assist to break her hubby ‘s repute. When Leonce asked her why she left, she replied, “ I merely felt like traveling out ” ( 68 ) . Besides, when Leonce went to New York for concern, Edna moved to a smaller house that she owned alternatively of go oning to populate in the house that her hubby owned. She bought the house utilizing money she received from selling her pictures. Soon, Edna begins to distance herself from her household. When her male parent, the Colonel, came to see Edna before the nuptials, she was “ non really heartily or profoundly attached to him ” ( 91 ) . Before the Colonel left, she had a “ warm, and about violent difference, ” with him because she refused to go to her sister Janet ‘s nuptials ( 96 ) . Her male parent was besides certain that her sisters would ne’er speak to her once more if she did non demo up for Janet ‘s nuptials. Even though Edna volitionally separated herself from these people, she shortly began to get down to force away the 1s closest to her.
At first, Edna Pontellier ‘s hunt for independency leads her to doing new friends, yet her newfound independency starts to force them off besides. One of these is Alcee Arobin, a local figure who “ possessed a good figure ” and “ a pleasing face ” ( 100 ) . Soon, Edna falls in love with him and finally has an matter with him. This matter proves that she is now wholly independent from the ironss of tradition that had held her down for so long. Yet, even this matter can non maintain them together, for every bit shortly as Robert Lebrun returns from Mexico, Alcee and Edna start to float apart. Another friend unwillingly pushed away by Edna ‘s independency is Robert Lebrun. She was with Robert when her hunt for independency began, for it begins with Edna larning how to swim in the Gulf during the midnight bathing after Madame Lebrun ‘s party. Edna starts to fall in love with Robert, and Robert shortly realizes this. Robert travels to Mexico to seek to distance himself from Edna, but he can non defy and finally returns. But when he returns, he realizes that Edna does n’t desire to get married him like he wants, but wants to be free from any signifier of bondage such as matrimony. After recognizing this, Robert knows he can non remain, so he once more leaves from Edna ‘s presence.
By the terminal of the novel, Edna realizes that she is now wholly entirely because of her new independency. During her battle to interrupt free from tradition, Edna starts to lose herself in her emotions, until she can manage the solitariness and yearning no longer. Because she knows no 1 would understand, she commits self-destruction by submerging in the Gulf, which is where her hunt for independency began. She realizes that no affair what, all those that she loves will finally melt from her memory and she will be entirely, trapped in the purdah that surrounds her.
