The Awakening is a novella by Kate Chopin about the protagonist’s transformation from a constricted, traditional wife and mother into a free, self-regulating woman. For many years, women have struggled to be seen as equals to the men of the world. Chopin explores how men and society of the 1800s “caged” its women. Throughout the story, Chopin uses imagery of birds and flight to express the yearning for freedom of the entrapped women of the Victorian era. Chopin begins the novella by describing two
In the book, the Awakening, Edna Pontellier, a confused twenty-eight year old, undergoes many transformations throughout the story. Starting out with a very limited life, Edna had to overcome these barriers to turn into the independant woman that she became. She had many “awakenings” finding a final product of living away from her husband and children. With each new challenge thrown at her, there was one constant that she always turned to. Whether it was swimming, drowning, or crying, water was her