In Kate Chopin's novel, Awakening, Edna's marriage is complicated. Her marriage is both a source of positive and negative influence on her, in that it confines, imprisons and depresses her while providing impetus, reasoning and inspiration for her individual aspirations and activities. . Edna doesn't particularly know, especially at the beginning of the novel, what is wrong, just that she is unhappy. Chopin describes Edna's marriage as a factor in her unhappiness, but also as a factor in her emerging awakening. Edna learns, as she reflects on her lack of contentment, that her marriage is the foundation of individual, social, and even paternal expectations that worry, depress, and overwhelm her. This understanding, that the majority of her problem is rooted in her marriage, leads Edna strongly in the direction of her own life's goals. Chopin describes marriage as something in Edna's life that constrains, informs, and inspires her and her quest for personal fulfillment. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get the original essay Edna's marriage to Léonce Pontellier has the force of making her feel inextricably trapped, complicating her social and solitary life and to interfere with care. , hope and love from her. The narrator frequently explores and elaborates on the mental and emotional processing that Edna deals with internally. The apparent and clear turmoil that Edna experiences is a response to the possession of her by external factors, perhaps most importantly her marriage, which she feels, resents and frankly despises. Edna is initially submissive to Mr. Pontellier and could be described as an obedient, if thoughtless, wife. It is within the framework of the common and undisputed procession of life as it is described in the novel, not of love, but within the framework of the blind and guiding forces of life's situations that Edna married with Léonce in the first place. "Her marriage to Léonce Pontellier was pure chance, resembling many other marriages which pass themselves off as decrees of destiny. It was in the midst of her great secret passion that she met him. He fell in love, as men are wont to do, and he defended his cause with a seriousness and ardor that left nothing to be desired” (575). Edna, throughout the novel, gradually realizes her trap. that she increasingly comes to desire an intimate relationship with Robert. A significant part of Edna's desire for Robert coincides and deepens with her desire to break the traditional, societal, and marital obligations and codes of conduct that she has. "she finds more and more false and paralyzing" She noticed that her will had become inflamed, stubborn and resistant. At that moment she could not do anything other than deny and resist. She wondered if her husband had ever spoken to her like that before and if she had submitted to his orders. " (585). Edna's awakening, the central point and title of the novel, is realized and demonstrated, in large part, through her growing dissatisfaction with her marriage. Edna is primarily concerned with herself and of her desire to be the sole arbiter of her own destiny, which means: of course, that she must understand all the intricacies of her imprisonment in order to seek and walk towards freedom Edna recognizes her feelings for Robert. as something real, something intrinsic to her true being, something completely different from the feelings she felt for her husband "The feeling she felt for Robert was nothing like the one she felt. for her husband, or that she had ever felt, or expected to feel. Shehad all his life been accustomed to entertaining thoughts and emotions that were never expressed. never took the form of struggles. They belonged to her and were hers, and she was convinced that she had a right to them and that they concerned no one else." (598). Chopin describes Edna's marriage as a reality of her life that was brought to her imposed and which, unbeknownst to Edna, pushed her to accept it Edna learns to no longer accept it and follows the elusive and captivating path Edna. truth about her marriage to Mr. Pontellier, and in her deep and growing affection for Robert, also realizes that she is becoming a whole new woman "She let her mind wander over her. stay in Grand Isle; and she tried to find out how this summer was different from all the other summers of her life. She could only realize that she herself - her current self - was somehow different from the other self" (592). This notion of her marriage being at odds with her true self and breaking free of slavery, inspires Edna to a plan of action that separates her from the other women around her by sympathizing and identifying with Mademoiselle Reisz, by longing for Robert's contemplative solitude, by remembering with Madame Ratignolle her. days of youth dreaming of love, and finally succumbing to being drawn by the sensual sea into its "soft and close embrace" (652), Edna acts by inspiration to free herself from external expectations for her life, for her marriage, and for to live independently, without possessions. “She felt no interest in anything about herself. The street, the children, the fruit seller, the flowers that grew before her eyes, were all part of her. a foreign world suddenly turned antagonistic” (603). As this excerpt from the novel shows, Edna's quest to live free from social expectations does not result exclusively in a positive outlook or feeling. She endures confusion, pain, and suffering in her journey to becoming a new woman, but she does not let it deter her from her path once she awakens to her reality and leaves. "Instinct had pushed her to put aside her husband's generosity by renouncing her allegiance. She did not know what it would be like when he returned. It would have taken an agreement, an explanation. The conditions would adapt from one way or another, she thought, but whatever happened, she had decided never again to belong to anyone other than herself” (624). Edna makes her decision, and although her extremely unusual behavior and actions cause the characters around her to question her sanity and does not turn back. “It sometimes occurred to Mr. Pontellier to wonder if his wife was not a little mentally unbalanced. He could clearly see that she was not herself. That is to say, he could not see that she was becoming herself and that every day she was getting rid of this fictitious self that we assume as a garment in order to appear before the world” (606). Léonce, and even Robert, do not understand reality. This is the reason for Edna's strange new behaviors and decisions, and one she herself would not expect or want. She acts by learning, by awakening and by reviving her inner nature which refuses to be commanded or restricted by external forces. Keep in mind. : This is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Marriage for Edna is something that makes her unhappy, ties her down, and is an insult to the woman she becomes as she opens herself to the possibility of her independence and freedom. Edna's experience of facing depressing news.