1970. Choose a character from a novel or play of recognized literary merit and write an essay in which you (a) briefly describe the standards of the fictional society in which the character exists and (b) show how the character is affected by and responds to those standards. In your essay do not merely summarize the plot.
The society in which a character exists is one of the most powerful features that shape his or her development, especially when the character is fundamentally opposed to all that their society is built upon. This is the case in The Awakening, in which the protagonist Edna finds her own beliefs and actions to be unacceptable and even treacherous in her society. The strict sexual divisions and discrimination of upper class New Orleans society cause Edna to initially shrug off her familial and societal responsibilities and question her reason for existence, to which she cannot find a suitable answer.
Edna is married into a family of deep Creole heritage, and thus surrounded by such a culture. The nature of Creole society in Louisiana during this period is one of extreme wealth and luxury. The wealthiest men are typically businessmen who extend their hospitality to other well-to-do members of their society. Edna is an integral part of the middle of a large chain of her husband’s associates and friends. The image of her family is of utmost importance to her husband of Creole heritage, and the ideas of a dominant male figure in the family are the norm with no exceptions. Infidelity by the male member’s is often ignored while female infidelity is seen to lecherous. The woman exists primarily to serve the husband and portray his essence to the public at large. As for Edna’s specific position in Creole society, she is expected to run the household and ensure that the image of her family is spotlessly displayed to those around them. Whether this be throwing elaborate house parties or forging shallow relationships with wives of her husband’s business associates, she is expected to perform any task. As a result Edna receives little attention or regard from her husband, rather than occasional lavish gifts that are meant to keep her attention. Edna’s position as a mother, though she isn’t supposed to directly raise her children, she is certainly in charge of their societal upbringing and in ensuring that they understand their position in the world.
Edna reacts to this in quite possibly the most abrupt manner possible. She shrugs of every task and expectation that society has of her and begins to embody something extremely radical for the time, feminism. Tasks such as hosting lavish house parties and ensuring a positive image for the public are ignored, and she often refuses to attend parties that she is invited to. As for her children, her fundamental insecurity about her life result in her losing all affection for them. She doesn’t feel love or a sense to protect them, a shocking revelation for a mother. Traditionally seen as the most fundamental of feminine responsibilities, he choice to ignore the raising of her children defines her feminist beliefs, specifically that she isn’t to be tied down by the out of date characteristic of motherhood. Her most blatant disregard for accordance to her society’s norms is seen in her act of adultery. After years of disregard, she no longer feels any affection for her husband, and partakes in an affair with a close friend of hers. This provides a liberating effect for Edna, and inspires her to demand her independence. She purchases her own home and attempts to move out on her husband. Further perpetuating this move is her husband’s reaction, based out of concern for his image by having his wife disobey society’s demands. Most significant of all however is Edna’s choice to take her own life. By doing so she shed’s all unwanted responsibility and fully escapes the grasp of the norms and demands of Creole society, thus actualizing her awakening to feminist ideals.
In a society that is so strictly rigid and demanding of Edna, is brutally clear that her actions that are in complete conflict with such a society cannot continue. Her intellectual awakening to sexual social disparagements as well as the frivolous nature of her life drove her to reject all that she was meant to embody, which defined her actions as freeing and enlightening.
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