What happened at the end of The Awakening?

At the end of the novel, Edna returns to Grand Isle, and after stripping down to her swimsuit, she walks into the sea. She begins to swim until she loses her strength and presumably drowns.

What is the final climax of The Awakening?

Most readers view Edna’s suicide as the definitive climax of the novel. Other possible climaxes include the first time Edna commits adultery by having sex with Alcée Arobin, and the moment when she declares her love aloud to Robert Lebrun and the two finally kiss.

What does Robert do at the end of The Awakening?

Upon his return, Robert and Edna finally declare their love for each other, but their happiness is cut short when they realize they want different things: Robert wants marriage while Edna wants independence.

Why did Edna drown herself?

The suicide can also be seen as Edna’s rebellious assertion of her own will: because Edna refuses to be tied down and to sacrifice “herself,” she bravely sacrifices her life for the sake of maintaining her integrity and independence. By drowning herself, she ensures that her last act is a self-determined one.

What is the summary of The Awakening?

Originally titled A Solitary Soul, the novel depicts a young mother’s struggle to achieve sexual and personal emancipation in the oppressive environment of the postbellum American South. When it was first published, it was widely condemned for its portrayal of sexuality and marital infidelity.

Did Edna ever love her husband?

Edna’s husband thinks nothing of this and rightly so for the most part at the beginning because there is nothing more than a friendship. However, Edna begins to fall in love with Robert and realizes that she does not love her husband. She also feels as though her children are nothing more than a burden on her.

Why did Robert leave Edna in the end?

He has two reasons for leaving. First, Léonce will never free Edna, which is the only way Robert could be with her. Second, Robert realizes that Edna wants to be a free woman, not owned by any man, which is too radical an idea.

Is Edna’s suicide a defeat?

middle of paper … a defeat that involves no surrender” (Treu 22). Edna’s suicide can also be seen as giving herself to the voice of the sea, rather than the magian powers of Doctor Mandelet and her father (Treu 27).

What steps does Edna take to ensure that her death will be interpreted as an accident?

Indeed, Edna seems to have carefully arranged her suicide so as to make it appear an accident: by specifying to Victor that she will be lunching with him at the house, she ensures that he will believe she had intended to return from the water.

Who does Edna cheat with in The Awakening?

Edna finally succumbs to Alcée’s seductions after she confesses to Mademoiselle Reisz—aloud for the first time—her love for Robert. It may seem ironic that she gives herself to one man just after declaring her devotion to another, but, in terms of Edna’s development, the two acts are joined.

What is the main point of The Awakening?

The Awakening explores one woman’s desire to find and live fully within her true self. Her devotion to that purpose causes friction with her friends and family, and also conflicts with the dominant values of her time. Edna Pontellier’s story takes place in 1890s Louisiana, within the upper-class Creole society.

Is Edna’s act of suicide at the end of the novel an act of bravery or cowardice?

Killing herself shows cowardice. Edna’s suicide is a rebellious assertion of her free will. She refuses to be tied down and sacrifice herself and so she ends her life for the sake of maintaining her integrity and independence. Her last act is a self-determined one.

What does Edna see when she walks down to the beach at the end?

As she walks along the beach, Edna’s thoughts are completely different. She spies a bird with a broken wing flying erratically before crashing into the surf. She finds her old bathing suit, still hanging on its peg from the summer, and puts it on.

Why is Edna sad when her husband leaves?

Edna feels slightly sad when her husband leaves for a long trip to New York, and her children have been taken to Iberville to stay with their grandmother, but once they are all gone, she feels peaceful and happy. Edna eats dinner alone, reads, then takes a bath and goes to bed. She still feels peaceful.

What did Edna sacrifice in The Awakening?

In The Awakening, Edna Pontellier exhibits the unconventional woman and possesses the artist’s rebellious soul. She sacrifices her position as being a wife and mother to her children, in pursuit of her happiness.