Preview

Compare And Contrast Adle And Mademoiselle Reisz

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
160 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Compare And Contrast Adle And Mademoiselle Reisz
Adele and Mademoiselle Reisz are provided as main foils for Edna in this story. Mademoiselle Reisz cherished here solitude and was respected as an artist throughout the Grand Isle. Edna was drawn to her independence and expert piano play. Being independent was something Edna longed for, but was bound by the edict of the time. Social expectations required Edna to take care of her husband, children, and the household. She was also drawn to Mademoiselle’s self-sufficient lifestyle, ruled by her passions and her art and not the social norms of the period.
Adele cultural customs permitted her to talk freely on such topics as sexuality, undergarments and gossip. Although Adele is completely conformed and content with the social expectations of the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Edna was not going to sacrifice herself or her happiness anymore for others. Not for her husband, her children, her fellow friends: Madame Lebrun and Madame Ratignolle, or even the love of her life, Robert. She loved herself too much and felt herself too important to stay confined to a role that didn’t fit who she was as a person. Edna came to this realization through a series of different experiences: her relationship with Robert, her friendship with Mademoiselle Reisz, and her developing artistic ability for painting. Edna realized that she couldn’t be herself and be happy, and still “remember the children.” She no longer wanted to be possessed mind, body, and soul. In the end, she would only be sad, alone, frustrated, and unhappy. So she came to the realization that she had to kill herself and accepted that fact.…

    • 1309 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are many stereotypes of women in 20th early century including that women were their husbands property and could not be successful . We see in The Awakening that Edna takes it upon herself to become independent from her husband. She begins painting to earn income, and rents out a house to completely become free from her husband. Rumors begin to circulate because this was not normal behavior at the time. Even her husband thought that she might have an illness and hired a doctor to investigate. Another person that breaks the stereotype is Mademoiselle Reisz. Although she unmarried, she is still a successful independent woman and acts as a mentor to Edna.…

    • 853 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Isolde's Song Analysis

    • 114 Words
    • 1 Page

    Mademoiselle Reisz inquired Edna how has she been using her time and is shocked to hear of Edna’s choice of becoming an artist. She warns her that an artist must be brave, possessing “a courageous soul that dares and defies.” Edna assures her that she has persistence if nothing else, and Mademoiselle Reisz laughs, hands over the letter to Edna, and begins to play the Chopin Impromptu that Edna asked to hear. The music deeply affects Edna, and she weeps as the pianist glides between the Impromptu and another piece, “Isolde’s song.” When Edna asks if she may visit again, Mademoiselle Reisz replies that she is welcome at all times.…

    • 114 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Quesons to 10

    • 493 Words
    • 2 Pages

    How do Mlle. Reisz and Mme. Ratignolle function in relation to Edna and the novel's view of women as mothers and artists? Because Edna is not strong enough to give up everything for her art, and because she she is too overwhelmed by the demands of society and children, she feels her only escape is suicide.…

    • 493 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    abilities, and her many different homes. Kate Chopin expertly adds symbolism to add to Edna…

    • 609 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    “ All these things that other women of her class would not even have noticed, tormented her and made her angry.” ( Maupassant, 374). Mademoiselle wanted more and lost what she wanted in life and became jealous and did everything in her power to become one of the high class ladies, even though it costed her hard labor the rest of her…

    • 748 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Mademoiselle Reisz represents the artist-woman within Creole society. She is a good friend of Edna’s and represents the independent woman that Edna wants to be. She is a non-married, practiced musician and artist who has strong beliefs, in which Edna is the only one…

    • 1364 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Edna admires Adele’s beauty and requests to sketch her, but always has the tendency to crumple the picture even though Adele claims, “[it is] a fair enough piece of work” (20). Adele seems to contribute to Edna’s opening up about her passion for sketching and artwork. Edna seems as though she is trying to make something of herself, that she is more than just a housewife and simply wants to convey personal expression. This might also be an indication of Edna’s perfectionist side that reflects Adele, where Edna feels an obligation to perfect her work in her own way and prove she can be just as talented as Adele, who she frequently watched sewing. Nonetheless, Adele has a heavy influence on Edna’s point of view and makes her come out to do what she loves without needing to pertain to her family and this helps build her confidence. However, when Edna goes over to the Ratignolle’s residence for art critique, Adele’s behavior makes Edna think about the Ratignolle’s “life’s delirium” and how it ties to their “blind contentment”(76). Even when Adele praises her and encourages Edna to pursue art, she overlooks the compliments and finds Ratignolle’s attitude distasteful, concluding that Adele’s life is boring, making Edna truly acknowledge that she will never want to live like the Ratignolles. This further affects her family…

    • 1247 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The protagonist attends a party and hears emotional piano music from Mademoiselle Reisz, a woman who becomes detached from society to follow her passion for music. This inspires the young woman to follow her own dreams. Reisz, in turn, guides Edna by assisting her pursuit for true love while warning her of the conflicts that this path brings. Reisz aids Edna with her worries by permitting her to read the letters from Robert Lebrun, the man who awakens Edna with their forbidden love before moving to Mexico. This helps Edna to continue her journey in her awakening, as the narrator states, “Edna was sobbing, just as she had wept one midnight at Grand Isle when strange, new voices awoke in her” (Chapter 21). Another key point is when Reisz alerts Edna of the forthcoming struggles she will face. The musician assures Edna of the consequences to the path of liberty, testifying that, “The artist must possess the courageous soul, the soul that dares and defies” (Chapter…

    • 669 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Music and Ednas Awakening

    • 440 Words
    • 2 Pages

    For Edna, the times that Reisz plays are times when she "take[s] an impress of the abiding truth" and realizes her true desires(p.34). When Edna visits her, Reisz first improvises at the instrument and then plays the Impromptu which itself has original and adventurous themes. Through music Edna realizes the importance of being self-actualized and making choices. She again feels the same as that night when "new voices awoke in her"—when through music, the way to genuine freedom was revealed to her (p.84). However, having freedom comes with responsibility, which like…

    • 440 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Edna The Awakening Essay

    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Edna’s discovery of feelings of empowerment after she enters the sea allows Chopin to reveal that women should not conform to society and feel repressed. Her new sense of power can be seen in the scene as she…

    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Edna was struggling to find happiness in society by feeling that she cannot be a mother and an independent woman. She followed society’s “rules” such as getting married and having children. Overall, Edna wanted more than the life she was living; she wanted to live life on her terms and not living life through a family. Therefore, she did not feel self-fulfilled. Unlike Edna’s struggle to conform to society, Adele Ratignolle is the epitome of a woman in the society. Adele is a beautiful, “idealized” creole woman. She is dedicated to her husband and has performed the wifely duties by bearing children and attending to them. Her family dictates her happiness through wanting to create a happy home. Therefore, her identity is her family; which shows that Adele represents society and the ideal happiness one can achieve. The exact opposite of Adele is Mademoiselle Reisz. Mademoiselle Reisz shows that she disregards society’ standards by not marrying or having children. She focuses on her interests such as piano playing. By not having a family, Mademoiselle Reisz is able to find her own identity. Therefore, she entices Edna’s desire to have the same life through her independence and free spirit. Mademoiselle Reisz tells Edna, that to be happy one is going to have to take risks and be courageous. Therefore,…

    • 1751 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Edna faces this struggle with her husband, Mr. Pontellier because she feels like he controls her. After her first awakening experience, Edna’s husband demands that she come inside and go to bed and it is noted that, “She wondered if her husband had ever spoken to her like that before, and if she had submitted to his command. Of course she had; she remembered that she had. But she could not realize why or how she should have yielded, feeling as she then did.” This realization that her husband used to control her and Edna’s refusal to continue obeying him demarks the first steps she takes toward taking control of her own life. The second prominent example of blatant disregard for her husband’s wishes is when Edna moves into her own house. No longer wishing to live in her husband’s house, she moves to her own as the narrator points out, “The pigeon-house pleased her. It at once assumed the intimate character of a home, while she herself invested it with a charm… Every step which she took toward relieving herself from obligations added to her strength and expansion as an individual.” This validates Edna’s desire to be free from her former life and highlights the fact that she is only able to truly flourish when she is on her own. Sadly, one must be willing to give up relationships in order to fully achieve this sense of…

    • 972 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Music and art: Adele's piano piece caused a flickering of images within Edna’s mind, images of solitude, a naked man watching a bird fly away freely, this bird representing a woman breaking away. Reisz's piece was different, it caused in agitation within Edna that forced a stirring of emotion bringing her to tears, Reisz commented that Edna was the only one worth playing for, this is because only Edna understood the magnitude of self expression present within the notes. After having heard Reisz music Edna began to paint with a newfound passion and burning desire for…

    • 838 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Edna, in the beginning of the novel, tailors her life to the path set before her. A mother of two, Edna's life does not concern herself, but her husband and children. All of Edna's interests are thrown to the side to make way for her family, as a mother-woman would do in the nineteenth century. Edna understands…

    • 921 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays

Related Topics